Chapter 187: Let’s Start by Eliminating the Witnesses
After listening to Leon's explanation, Adele still looked highly suspicious.
After all, the image of Leon that had long been cemented in her mind was that of a corrupt law enforcer who accepted bribes, abused his authority, and was involved in illegal businesses.
During these past days, she had carefully observed that after Leon rebuilt the harbor, ships had been coming and going with remarkable frequency.
All kinds of supplies were being transported continuously into the mines.
As for what was being shipped out...
It appeared to be nothing more than flour produced by a mill on the eastern side of the island.
When she investigated further, she discovered that the mill—which had originally been mortgaged to the Watchers Merchant Guild—was now owned by Leon Set!
She knew exactly how much grain Arend Island produced.
The amount of flour coming out of that mill far exceeded what the island's crops could possibly yield.
That meant the mill had to be importing grain from outside the island for processing.
But...
There were flour mills everywhere.
Who in their right mind would deliberately ship grain all the way to an island just to grind it?
There had to be something suspicious going on!
Now Leon was claiming that he was an honest and upright man who had been hunted down by the Underworld because he investigated them.
She simply couldn't accept that so easily.
Compared to that...
It was much more believable to say this had been one gang swallowing another.
“Anyway, today's incident will be investigated by the Inquisition where I serve.”
“So don't worry.”
“There's no need for you to file any additional reports.”
Leon said.
“No need for any additional reports?”
Adele narrowed her eyes.
By now, she was practically convinced that Leon's activities were nowhere near as clean as he claimed.
“What exactly are you trying to hide?”
“Nothing.”
“I simply wanted to save you some trouble.”
“If you don't want me handling the investigation, then let me ask you something instead, Miss Adele.”
“Who exactly are you planning to ask to investigate?”
“You should know that under Imperial law, a lord bears part of the responsibility for maintaining public order within their territory.”
“Your father's territory doesn't even have a law enforcement organization.”
“Forget establishing a Public Security Bureau.”
“You can't even afford to hire a Constable.”
“And if you intend to ask the Public Security Bureau of any nearby town to take over jurisdiction...”
“You'd better have made substantial donations to that town.”
“Otherwise...”
“I don't think anyone will be willing to deal with such troublesome matters.”
Leon shrugged.
Adele fell silent.
It was true that their territory had no independent security force.
No Constable.
No guards.
The fishing villages had such small populations that there were rarely any major disturbances.
Minor disputes were generally settled by the village elders.
When outside problems arose, the villagers simply organized their own volunteer watch groups.
As for her father...
He no longer possessed the ability to govern the territory.
Even if they sought outside assistance...
No one would maintain law and order in their territory for free.
Unless they had made significant investments or donations to a neighboring town...
The guards from that town's Public Security Bureau would never bother helping them.
Of course...
Adele didn't necessarily have to rely on law enforcement agencies.
“Then... I can report this to the Archdiocese...”
She spoke again.
“You'll first have to prove that this matter is related to heresy before the Church gets involved.”
“Of course, I can provide that proof for you.”
“After all, I'll also be reporting the attack I suffered here on Arend Island.”
“But in that case...”
“The person most suitable to investigate this matter would still be me.”
“In the end, the case would simply be assigned back to me.”
Leon answered.
“Do you really have that much authority to conduct an investigation on your own?”
Adele frowned.
“I am Leon Set.”
“Intermediate Inquisitor.”
“Director of the Hamel Town Inquisition in Southport County.”
“I possess full authority to independently investigate a criminal gang attack.”
Leon calmly explained while producing his badge.
Adele felt as though she had been struck by lightning.
“You're...”
“The Director of the Inquisition!?”
This man...
Was actually an officially appointed member of the Church?
Why had he never mentioned it before?
“My apologies.”
“When we met previously, I hadn't yet obtained the position.”
“So there was no reason to mention it.”
“Didn't I tell you earlier that I had rendered great service to the Church?”
“It was precisely because of that achievement that I obtained my Church rank and was promoted to Director.”
Leon clasped his hands behind his back, stood upright, and looked directly into Adele's eyes.
“I-I see...”
“Well... congratulations...”
Adele offered her congratulations without the slightest sincerity.
So this man was now actually the Director of an Inquisition in Southport County.
Didn't that mean his foundations were now even deeper?
And that he was even harder to deal with?
In terms of authority alone...
A Director of an Inquisition could easily crush a bankrupt noble family that possessed neither wealth nor influence like theirs.
If that was the case...
Then it became even more important not to allow him to continue operating on this island.
Adele desperately searched for another solution before suddenly saying,
“But according to Imperial law, when a territory encounters a major crisis, a lord can request the central government to dispatch support from neighboring regions!”
“This time people broke directly into our home!”
“I think this clearly meets the requirements!”
Leon couldn't help letting out a quiet laugh.
“Aren't you embarrassed to say that?”
The "major crises" referred to in Imperial law generally meant things like invasions by foreign nations or neighboring lords...
Peasant uprisings...
Outbreaks of plague...
Or large-scale heretical activities.
No lord would ever request central military support simply because a handful of bandits had appeared within their territory.
It was certainly possible for a lord to be robbed or even killed by a small group of bandits.
But if a lord survived such an incident...
Yet lacked the ability to deal with those bandits afterward and instead requested the central government to send troops...
It would become a laughingstock throughout the Empire.
“Our family is already a joke anyway...”
As soon as the subject arose, Adele's expression darkened.
“But how likely do you think it is that your request for reinforcements would actually be approved?”
“Your family has fallen this far.”
“Who isn't hoping your territory gets confiscated sooner so it can be auctioned off again?”
“Not to mention...”
“When an Inquisition is already willing to handle the matter, applying for military assistance would simply make you look unreasonable.”
Leon said.
Adele was speechless.
She herself knew perfectly well how unrealistic her suggestion had been.
She thought frantically but couldn't come up with another idea.
In desperation, the words slipped out before she could stop herself.
“Th-Then I'll report—”
“You're planning to report me again?”
Leon suddenly interrupted her.
His tone remained calm.
But his eyes stared directly into hers.
Did this Viscount's daughter never learn?
Adele immediately shivered.
She didn't dare utter another word.
Of course she understood.
When Leon claimed that his earlier threats had merely been jokes...
That statement itself was probably the real joke.
“I'm disappointed, Miss Adele.”
“I saved your life.”
“And yet you're talking about reporting me?”
“Have you considered how I might treat someone who repays kindness with ingratitude?”
Leon narrowed his eyes as he carefully examined her.
“B-But...”
“Those people... weren't they brought here because of you?”
“You admitted as much yourself...”
Adele's voice trembled.
“They were criminals.”
“Whether they came to kill me or invaded your home...”
“That's their fault.”
“Not mine.”
“Understand the difference.”
“I wasn't actually obligated to save you, was I?”
“Not only are you refusing to thank me...”
“You're actually trying to blame me?”
“You should be apologizing to me.”
Leon asked in return.
Adele realized she had absolutely no way to refute him.
After thinking for a long while...
She finally lowered her head obediently.
“I'm sorry...”
“And besides...”
“You still haven't understood the situation you're currently in.”
Leon added.
“What... do you mean?”
Adele asked uneasily.
“Come outside and take a look.”
Leon stood up and walked toward the doorway, gesturing for Adele to follow.
Then, as though remembering something, he added,
“Oh, right.”
“Take a deep breath first.”
“Prepare yourself mentally.”
“Don't go outside, see it, and faint again.”
Hearing those words, Adele vaguely realized what he meant.
Her scalp instantly tingled.
She carefully climbed out of bed and followed Leon to the doorway.
Leon gestured for her to take a deep breath before opening the door.
The moment it opened...
Adele's eyebrow twitched.
She hadn't even seen anything yet.
But she had already smelled the metallic scent of blood.
Leon stepped out into the hallway and pointed toward the staircase.
Holding tightly onto the doorway, Adele cautiously poked half her face outside and looked in that direction.
Several corpses lay piled near the staircase on that floor.
Long trails of blood stretched across the floor.
Two men dressed in full protective robes were working together to move the bodies.
They appeared to be Leon's subordinates.
“Eek!”
Seeing a human corpse for only the second time in her life, Adele immediately cried out and jerked her head back inside.
She shut her eyes tightly, clutched her chest, and breathed heavily in panic.
Leon had finally realized...
Adele's reaction was perfectly normal.
How many ordinary people had ever seen multiple corpses?
When Leon himself had killed someone for the first time and seen blood and bodies...
He had nearly become dizzy from nervousness.
Now...
He wielded a giant greatsword on battlefields and split people cleanly in half.
As for Rena and Weiss...
They had performed countless animal experiments, grown accustomed to slaughtering living creatures, and had killed people themselves.
Naturally, their standards couldn't be used to judge ordinary people.
Not to mention...
Adele was simply a pampered noble young lady.
“Miss Adele.”
“Allow me to remind you of something.”
“There are twenty-five corpses inside your home right now.”
“And blood is everywhere.”
“If you choose another route for the investigation...”
“You'll have to leave every one of those bodies here until investigators arrive to collect evidence.”
“As for how many days that'll take...”
“There's no telling.”
Leon said.
Adele was completely dumbfounded.
It was true.
With so many corpses piled inside her home...
And having to leave them there for several days...
How could anyone possibly continue living there?
Although she could spend some of her remaining savings to stay elsewhere...
That obviously wasn't a long-term solution.
Moreover...
Blood had been splattered everywhere.
Cleaning it thoroughly would be extremely difficult.
The walls would need to be repainted.
Some sections of the flooring might even need to be completely replaced.
She couldn't even afford to hire extra servants.
Where would she get the money for all that?
“As it happens, I've already finished collecting the evidence.”
“If you leave it to me...”
“I can have everything cleaned up today.”
“Oh...”
“If we're being completely honest...”
“This matter isn't entirely unrelated to me either.”
“So, for Viscount Arend's sake...”
“I can also help renovate your home.”
“Whether it's replacing furniture...”
“Repairing the floors...”
“Or repainting the walls...”
“I'll pay for everything myself.”
“What do you think?”
Leon took the initiative to propose.
After hearing those words, Adele studied the smile on Leon's face.
Suddenly...
She realized something.
“You're trying to...”
“Destroy the evidence here?”
“Haha.”
“Miss Adele, that's an interesting way to put it.”
“If I really wanted to destroy the evidence...”
Leon stared directly at her.
The smile on his face suddenly became far more meaningful.
“Shouldn't I start...”
“By eliminating the witness?”