277th Episode
Arpa had successfully completed the mission assigned to her.
Arpa prepared to deliver her report, expecting the kind and amiable laughter of Duke Matthias.
However, Duke Matthias responded to Arpa’s expectations with shouts and the sound of breaking objects.
She could also hear the retainers desperately trying to reason with Matthias.
The retainers were scolding Matthias for ruining expensive items when the family’s finances were already in dire straits.
Eventually, Matthias stopped throwing furniture and instead began bellowing loudly.
[You ate it all up?! Aaaaah!!]
Duke Matthias was enraged upon hearing that Ray had greedily consumed the supplies he sent.
With the dukedom’s finances already tight, this incident would only worsen their situation. From Matthias’ perspective, it was indeed a matter that warranted foaming at the mouth and convulsions.
Afterward, Matthias barely calmed himself down and convened a meeting with his retainers.
The retainers discussed whether they should subtly leak the information that Ray was related to the Matthias family.
Most retainers agreed that leaking the information was the better option.
It was believed that Ray, having benefited from their resources, wouldn’t openly show hostility regarding this matter.
However, Matthias disagreed with the retainers’ suggestion.
[We can no longer afford to gamble.]
While the Matthias family might be struggling now, they still had significant influence and could recover slowly over time.
Given the current situation, Matthias argued that lowering risks was more important than taking gambles, especially since his confidence had waned recently.
Moreover,
[We don’t yet know what His Majesty the Emperor intends.]
This was the biggest issue.
If the Emperor decided to abandon Ray, the situation could drastically change.
Until the Emperor’s intentions became clear, it was necessary to maintain an appropriate distance from Ray without being overly greedy.
Pushed by Matthias’ strong argument, the retainers had no choice but to agree.
Once the discussion about Ray concluded, the next topic shifted to the upcoming war.
Though the war was set to begin soon, everyone remained rather relaxed.
The fief of the Matthias family was far from the front lines.
Aside from discussing follow-up measures for the troops dispatched to the war effort, there wasn’t much else to worry about.
After various discussions on these issues ended, Matthias instructed Arpa:
[Continue gathering intelligence around the Osiris Countdom.]
“Yes, understood.”
They still lacked sufficient information about Ray personally.
Arpa instinctively felt that her assignment would take significantly longer.
*
The war began.
Despite the news spreading about the start of the war, the atmosphere in the Osiris Countdom remained calm.
Since it wasn’t near the front lines, the war didn’t have much impact on the residents of the Osiris Countdom.
Besides, this was a war the Empire had meticulously planned. Even if the Kingdom resisted fiercely, it was certain to be overwhelmed unilaterally.
Thus, the nobles residing in the Osiris Countdom weren’t particularly tense.
Alesya was the same.
In fact, she was feeling even better lately.
She had expected to live a dreary life after evacuating, merely scraping by, but instead, it felt like she wasn’t in exile at all—more like she was on a luxurious trip.
Through witnessing the authority Ray possessed, Alesya was truly reveling in her own glory.
‘As I suspected, my intuition was right!’
Alesya proudly congratulated herself on her keen ability to judge people.
While Alesya was assigning meaning to something she had merely stumbled upon, Karen, who sat across from her, put down the snacks she had been nibbling on.
Seeing Karen’s deflated mood, Alesya asked,
“Are you not feeling well?”
“No, I’m fine physically.”
“…Could you still be sulking at Ray?”
“No… It’s not that.”
“Uuuuuuuh…”
No matter how one looked at it, Karen seemed to still be sulking.
Alesya narrowed her eyes and stared at Karen intently.
Honestly, Alesya couldn’t understand Karen’s behavior at all.
What exactly… was this act of bravado?
Ray had now attained authority that could be counted on one hand within the Empire.
Though he still lacked his own forces, that was just a matter of time.
Having gained renown, Ray couldn’t act recklessly anymore, but bedding women was really no big deal.
Any noble daughter would likely throw herself at Ray without much calculation if he made advances.
So why did Karen have the audacity to keep sulking and play this game of push and pull with Ray?
Sure, some tension between men and women could be healthy for a day or two, but if it dragged on for weeks, it was bound to wear thin.
‘It’s not Ray who’s in an unfortunate position; it’s us!’
Though it wasn’t something Alesya, who often clung to Ray shouting “My knight!” while whining, should say, she genuinely couldn’t understand Karen’s actions.
‘…Is she relying on those large breasts of hers?’
While Alesya was pondering this, Karen finally spoke.
“In the past, I always wanted to be by Ray’s side.”
“…So you’re sulking because you couldn’t always be with Ray?”
“…”
“It’s your chest—or rather, stomach—that’s full! Shouldn’t we be grateful that Ray cares about us at all?”
At Alesya’s reproach, Karen smiled faintly.
“I realized a long time ago that I couldn’t achieve my aspirations.”
As they grew out of childhood and adolescence, the gap between them widened horribly.
Johanna and Luna had the innate talent to stand by Ray’s side.
Alesya had bestowed many favors on the young Ray early on.
But Karen had nothing.
The only thing Karen could boast of was, at best, an average face.
This unchanging reality had made Karen feel uneasy for a long time, and as time passed, her growing unease was something she avoided confronting.
But due to a very small ‘trigger,’ Karen could no longer turn away from that unease.
“Alesya, I wished to be loved by Ray.”
She had hoped to whisper love, share her heart, and intertwine bodies with him.
But now, Karen doubted whether the feelings Ray harbored for her were truly romantic.
Perhaps the feelings Ray held were merely nostalgia for their childhood memories or simple sympathy.
If the emotions Ray felt for Karen were nothing more than that…
“I’m probably just a burden to Ray now.”
“…”
Alesya hesitated.
Was Karen saying this for her to hear?
Regardless of Karen’s true feelings, her words resonated with Alesya.
As a result, Alesya, who had been emotionally wounded, began to falter. Meanwhile, Karen quietly murmured, wiping her reddened eyes.
“Maybe I should give up… I don’t want to remain as an annoying burden in Ray’s memories…”
“That cannot be!”
Bang!
Startled, Alesya slammed the table and leaned forward, closing the distance to Karen dramatically.
“That absolutely cannot be!”
If Karen backed off, the “alliance front” would collapse.
And if the alliance front collapsed, it meant that Alesya, who was grouped with the orphans, would also be left out.
Alesya shook Karen’s shoulders, trying her best to instill courage into her.
However, despite Alesya’s efforts, Karen still appeared deeply troubled.
*
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if everything in the world went perfectly?
By nature, however, where there is light, there must also be darkness.
With an overwhelming influx of supplies, the refugees were freed from their impoverished lives. However, this led to complaints of discrimination against the residents of the Osiris Countdom.
Specifically, the residents of the Osiris Countdom grew resentful upon seeing the comfortable living conditions of the refugees.
Witnessing the leisurely lifestyle of these so-called refugees while enjoying honey made the local residents seethe with indignation.
Yet, the supplies provided to the refugees were essentially brought in by Ray.
Furthermore, the massive influx of supplies stabilized prices, benefiting the residents of the Osiris Countdom greatly.
Without Ray, the residents of the Osiris Countdom would have lived far poorer lives than they currently do.
However, given the low average education level among the residents, most failed to consider these broader implications.
They simply judged based on appearances and harbored resentment toward the refugees.
For now, this dissatisfaction wasn’t openly expressed, but it continued to build.
Two days after the announcement of the war’s commencement, around two hours before sunset, discontent voices echoed from a shabby tavern in the Osiris Countdom.
“Damn those damn rats!”
“They’re eating everything that should’ve come to us!”
“We should kill them all!”
Young men and middle-aged villagers gathered together, drinking and venting their frustrations.
Being a run-down tavern, none of the patrons were of high status, allowing them to freely express their emotions.
“We’re just being taken advantage of.”
“Their bellies should be slit open to make them vomit back everything they’ve eaten.”
“Does Lord Count even know…? Ugh…”
Though their chests burned with anger, insulting a noble recklessly could lead to unforeseen problems later.
Ultimately, the townsfolk briefly mentioned Lord Osiris and then returned to cursing the refugees.
Drinking their anger away with the refugees as their target, they continued indulging until their judgment was clouded by intoxication.
Just as their tongues loosened with drink, one youth clicked his tongue.
“Those bastards are strolling around the beach like they’re on vacation.”
“Beach sightseeing? Damn it…”
The vast coastline was a source of pride for the residents of the Osiris Countdom.
However, imagining the refugees trampling on their cherished shores twisted their stomachs in knots.
After a string of curses, a youth named Ben slammed his bottle down and stood up.
“Where do these bastards think they are, putting their feet on our land? They need to see what’s coming!”
“Yeah, they need to get a taste of it!”
“They deserve to be beaten up!!”
Everyone cheered in agreement with Ben’s proposal.
Their raucous cheers fueled Ben’s fervor.
Flushed with excitement, Ben ultimately declared he would teach the refugees a lesson, rounding up his usual gang and storming out of the tavern.
Ben stood at the entrance, raising his hand high.
“Let’s go beat them up!!!”
“Wowww!!”
The crowd cheered in response.
Drunk and disoriented, they could have gone home and fallen asleep after making a scene, but…
Perhaps the alcohol was unusually potent that day, as Ben’s group actually headed towards the beach.
On the seaside at sunset, there were rare glimpses of families walking along the sand, resembling refugees.
“…”
“…”
“…”
The young men, who initially seemed ready to pounce on the refugees, hesitated once they reached the shore, glancing at each other nervously.
Sobriety, delayed by the sea breeze, crept back into their minds, chilling them.
Still, pride prevented them from backing down.
After much deliberation, Ben picked up a rock the size of a fist lying on the beach.
“If we throw this and hit them, that’ll do it.”
“Oh…!!”
The beach was littered with rocks.
How could anyone tell who threw it just by looking at the rocks?
Throwing from a distance would allow them to attack the refugees without revealing their faces.
“Let’s finish them off.”
Smashing a refugee’s head with a rock would ensure the “rats” never dared approach the beach again.
Everyone praised Ben’s idea as brilliant and began picking up sharp stones.
Now armed, they needed to find an appropriate target.
There shouldn’t be any witnesses nearby, so they had to target individuals or families wandering in secluded areas.
Finally, after thorough searching, the young men found a suitable target.
The target was a family of three walking along the beach.
The woman and child were irrelevant, and the man walking with them looked like a frail old man on the verge of menopause.
Confident from the appearance of the target, Ben was the first to lift a rock.
Target (2)
