Chapter 196

Chapter 196

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If selecting the oldest professions in the world there were mercenaries and prostitutes. Those were probably professions born since the concept of 'trade' arose for humans.

Here mercenaries referred to armed groups that received large-scale funds and supported military power, or people belonging to them.

Adventurers and mercenaries have essentially no difference in that they receive money and solve problems with military power, merely adventurers were more public-friendly compared to mercenaries.

It was not necessarily employed by a nation or Lord, even in a poor village if they gather money bit by bit together and pay they solve problems to some extent.

The foundation of the Master's Federation lay in such adventurers. Whether noble or general public, an organization providing private military service to anyone fitting the unit price, defining it was such.

Since people or organizations possessing military power were bound to deteriorate strangely as time flows inevitably, there must be an institution managing, supervising, and directing them, and the role of the Master's Federation was exactly that.

Since the general public didn't know well about the Master's Federation or the Council of Six, they just called them adventurers or Adventurer's Guild and that stuck in their mouths.

What name they were called didn't matter, and the important thing was definite work processing and credit management.

Like thread following a needle, anywhere the power of the Master's Federation stretched the Benicio Merchant Guild always followed. The combination of military power and funds, what was conceived from the two combining was power.

The head leading that formidable organization, was currently a woman. And a pregnant woman at that. Martelia von Nivelinger, the thirty-second Princess and Queen of Adelorn.

Marie was unhesitating in operating the organization, had no way of going easy, and frequently even threatened the nobles. She was the exact opposite of Rickart who walked a tightrope subtly and carefully in his own way.

What that meant could only be known by passing it. It was recorded in history, and only people later looking at it could know the meaning.

The people living in the current era were no different from feeling it with their skin blindfolded. All the labor pains, and the confusion brought about by new things.

"Heo-eok, heo-eok, heo-eok, heo-eok......"

Actually there was a person kneeling with his eyes blindfolded. The time was when summer was ripe and it was the hottest.

It seemed to be a mountain somewhere, and whether the coolness unique to mountains couldn't cool the heat down either he was in the middle of sweating profusely.

But nearby the sound of digging the ground fully squelch squelch with a shovel was heard. Even digging the ground feeling hot as it was taking off the top, his face was in a completely scrunched state.

Seemingly taking turns digging the ground, two or so people nearby too stood leaning on shovels with their tops taken off.

"You fucking bastard you know you'll be buried alive if you don't come out of here."

On hot days annoyance was bound to soar well usually. But even digging the ground the annoyance developed into a heart almost to the extent of killing a person.

He didn't know what on earth would come out of the bare ground, but the person shoveling around the time he felt tired and wanted to switch turns felt something catch on the tip of the shovel.

And a metallic sound too.

KA-ANG!

"What is it, did you find it?"

The two people waiting asked with glad hearts. The person shoveling didn't answer, and exactly like pouring out his remaining strength stabbed the area around exactly where the metallic sound was heard squelch squelch. Thereupon the outline slowly revealed itself.

It was a square small chest. The man dug out the chest roughly and threw it out of the pit with a thud, then threw the shovel aside and immediately walked to the shade and sprawled down.

The remaining two people waiting opened the chest and examined the contents. Inside were documents made of parchment and money. There were no silver or copper coins, all were gold coins.

Instead of being agitated seeing the money they examined the documents first. Spreading out the documents they could roughly guess what this chest meant, and what they were looking for.

Memorandum of physical relinquishment, human transfer contract, list of debtors, list of assets things like that. Even just glancing roughly at the titles they could know they were documents related to usury.

But one among the documents was peculiar. It was nothing else but that the official seal of the Duke of Frederia was stamped.

Temporarily transferring the right of collection it was content to collect taxes by any means necessary within the period and offer it to him. Among them 30% the collector would receive etc., it was a document written about such contents.

The problem was not granting collection rights regarding his own direct territory, but telling to recklessly collect on the territory of vassals.

Meaning, to usurp the rights of vassals and secretly steal their assets and bring the results to him.

This was clearly illegal, and an act of betrayal of the lord against vassals.

The people who dug the ground immediately rolled up that document tying it with a string, then put it into a document storage tube. What remained were various illegal contracts and money.

Although the original purpose wasn't this, since it came into his hand trying to read it a person spread out the document and slowly scanned it over.

"This bastard was a total trash bastard was he, yeah."

He said looking at the person kneeling and trembling trembling with his eyes blindfolded. How many hits he took before coming, his cheekbones were bruised purple and blood scabs were hardened under his nose.

Outwardly he looks incredibly pitiful, but the three people didn't feel an ounce of sympathy. Because the acts he committed in the past were disgusting.

Intimidation, extortion, property damage, human trafficking, murder, rape etc., there were no bad deeds he hadn't done.

"I-I-I-I just did as I was told, just as I was told. Masters."

"I don't know about that, we are doing as we were directed. Even if you're trash like this we have no personal feelings. Hey, take off his blindfold."

The person reading the document said pointing with his chin. Thereupon one colleague approached the trash who looked pitiful only outwardly and took off his blindfold.

Thereupon he shut his eyes tight at the intense sunlight. He couldn't open his eyes for a while, and someone spreading a new parchment read down it.

"In the name of the royal family member and Queen of Adelorn, Chairman of the Master's Federation and Head of the Council of Six Martelia von Nivelinger, we intend to establish justice by executing you. Knowing that this is done based on the appeals, testimonies, and evidence of the Allet village people, our execution is lawful."

"Excuse me? W-what are you talking about? W-W-W-What, m-me, you're killing me!? I am a person working under His Excellency the Duke! I am not a simple usurer! W-w-wait a moment! Wait a moment!"

The man who was kneeling bound hand and foot had his heart beat wildly at the sound of his own death.

Whether he did or not, one of the three approached the equipment he had taken off nearby and picked up one dagger and drew it. These were exactly people dispatched from the Master's Federation.

If people who didn't know saw it the Master's Federation people would look like thugs, and the kneeling person would look like a good victim, but the reality was a bit different.

The person on the verge of death was a secret underling of the Duke of Frederia, a bastard who committed terrible crimes doing whatever means necessary, especially while satisfying his own dirty greed.

From the Duke's perspective he only wanted results regardless of what he did, so this kind of thing happened. Actually he didn't even care.

"W-w-wait a moment! Wait a momeeeeent!"

The man almost lying on his side on the floor, wriggled like a bug and tried to run away.

But doing that wouldn't make it work, and the Federation person slowly approached him grabbed and pulled his hair making him lift his chin, then stabbed his neck with the sharp dagger and sliced it off. Thereupon blood poured out gushing.

"Kkeo-reok! Kkeo-reok! Keu-reu-reuk, keu-reuk......"

The man's body shook shuddering. His throat blocked by his own blood he couldn't even scream. Only bubbling sounds were made.

Presently as he stopped breathing, the Federation swordsman wiped swish swish the bloody dagger on his clothes.

Silence lingered in the mountain. The one who killed the usurer pushed the corpse with his foot and put it into the pit. After that they didn't bury it separately. Because it was annoying and hard.

"Let's not dig next time. We should make these kinds of guys dig."

"Yeah, let's do that."

"By the way will it be okay?"

"What?"

"He says he was a person under the Duke."

This was the difference between Rickart and Marie. Rickart thoroughly didn't touch people related to Lords, but in Marie's case regarding criminals she gave orders to just kill them whether they were related to a Lord or not.

Of course it was a justified matter and establishing justice, but realistically there was no way Lords would like it. Furthermore they could take it as a challenge against themselves.

Especially if it was a figure related to a Duke they were even harder to touch though.

"Who knows. Such things aren't for us to judge."

"I like that the Queen is hot-tempered. Even if it's hard we don't get heated while working you know. I'm saying there is a sense of reward."

"That is true."

Saying so one of the three scraped out the gold coins from the chest. It seemed to be at least several dozens. This was all illegal funds.

However funnily enough once it entered the hands of the Federation it was no longer illegal funds. Because they gained it as spoils of war by killing criminals.

"30% we return to the village people, 30% we bring to the Federation, and the rest we take, right?"

The person resting in the shade and the person wiping their upper body with a towel nodded their heads simultaneously. Even seeing such huge money it was enough for greed to be stirred, yet they didn't. Because they had pride in the work they did.

Moreover their pay was quite strong. Calculating basic allowance, request fee, and even spoils of war.

"The Queen is the best, fuck."

The three people draped their equipment roughly on their bodies as if putting it on or not and went down the mountain.

If Rickart was an existence to be looked up to, Marie was an existence loved by everyone. Of course enemies would be the opposite though.

Whether transcending a woman it also transcended shyness, Marie's docileness of her girlhood days had somewhat disappeared. Although her age was still 19 years old.

With a somewhat plumper body wearing a sword at her waist she roamed around well waddling here and there, and the ones serving and protecting her from the closest flanks were Roy and Becca.

Since the headquarters of the Federation was on the outskirts of Stormhearts she frequently went back and forth to the Stormhearts Castle riding a carriage in the morning and met her father-in-law Abellich, returned by morning and handled basic duties, and even if not all members attended she steadily held Council of Six meetings and revised or newly created guidelines.

She herself was enthusiastically active and all the affiliated swordsmen liked her, but the leadership seemed somewhat worried.

Of course Ice due to his own personality didn't care much whether this or that. Bori took on given work according to the flow, and the ones mainly worrying were Bolka and Karlrich. And Paolo too.

Marie because she was not alone and recently moving actively perhaps needing a lot of energy, took off formal attire slightly and chewed crunch-crunch the meat she grilled herself cutting it.

Paolo quietly watched that sight from the side, then carefully brought out words.

"Queen, I am sorry during your meal but may I say one word?"

"I told you to speak comfortably anytime."

"Then I will speak. Moving enthusiastically is good but the month of childbirth is not far off. Furthermore, making many enemies here and there when the month of childbirth is not far off is not beneficial. Because one doesn't know from where someone might suddenly aim at you. The Duke of Frederia has been neutral since the beginning of the war, intentionally turning him into an enemy is......"

What Paolo was pointing out was Marie recently acquiring the illegal documents of the Duke of Frederia and delivering them exactly as they were to the victim Lords. Of course the wrong was done by the Duke, but it could be seen as internal meddling or a definite hostile act.

Simply speaking from the perspective of the Duke of Frederia it meant there was sufficient room to think were you picking a fight with me?

"Thank you for the concern but if I consider this and that and go easy on everything I can't do the work. I distinctly told you I decided my route. That I will become the Emperor."

Marie cut off Paolo's words and said firmly. Certainly this side resembled Rickart, but she wasn't as wise as him.

"It is better to spare such words too. The Second Prince and the Fifth Prince fighting each other was a problem strictly between the two. But if a third party intervenes midway those two could temporarily join hands. If the two match their words and invade simultaneously can you block them?"

"Then the Steel Knights of Adelorn would mobilize right."

"......It might not become such a simple problem. Couldn't the Duke of Frederia block the advance and in the meantime the Second Prince or Fifth Prince invade? Although they won't link up that well you must be careful when handling big matters."

"I am thinking and deciding sufficiently carefully. It might not meet your satisfaction though. Whether I live up to the Chancellor's expectations or not does not seem to be my jurisdiction."

"......"

Paolo shut his mouth. Marie was extremely intelligent and possessed decisiveness and courage, but right now she was a bit hysterical.

What Paolo was trying to say wasn't that her decision was wrong or anything like that, but let's adjust the speed a bit yet Marie did not listen to the words.

Of course, whether a Queen listens to the words of a retainer or not wasn't a problem another person could force.

At this point the Council of Six should step up a bit but Karlrich felt awkward around Marie, and Bolka was busy taking care of his own Clan without a moment to spare, and Ice and Bori frequently went out dispatched externally so the problem was there was no figure to properly keep her in check right now.

"Chancellor eat too. It's freshly caught veal so the meat quality is truly soft. Here. Eat."

It wasn't that Marie didn't know Paolo's intentions but she merely offered meat pretending not to know purposely.

Paolo declined saying he was fine, and merely asked one earnest request.

"Then please make one promise with me."

"Speak. Let me hear it and decide."

"If any incident occurs do not take up your sword. Promise me that you will evacuate to the safest place."

Marie could actually answer right away but out of courtesy she pretended to think slightly then answered.

"......Mmm, that won't work either. I'm sorry, Chancellor."

"Wow damn."

"Yes?"

"I apologize. My words slipped out by mistake."

At Paolo's trivial slip of the tongue that popped out without realizing it himself, Marie just laughed hahaha like an auntie throwing her head back exactly as if feeling good.

Because she knew she wasn't listening to shit either. But therefore, on the other hand it felt refreshing. It was a power she couldn't enjoy in the Royal Castle.

Perhaps because she herself was a Sword Master, her confidence or self-assurance was beyond the category of an ordinary person. However in running a nation or organization such temperament was a double-edged sword.

At least Paolo was there so he mitigated the shock according to the aggressive expansion as much as possible, yet eventually a matter he couldn't did anything about burst.

Namely without even a declaration of war the Fifth Prince lightning-invaded Stormhearts. That insidious fellow seemed to have caught the scent. That now was the chance.

When Rickart was not in his seat, when Marie was not alone (pregnant), and furthermore when the Federation itself was being on bad terms with many nobles. Right now.

Originally seating Marie in the Chairman position was for getting along well with nobles, but a situation opposite to what was thought unfolded.