37-54

EP.54 An Unexpected Encounter (3) 

The next day, following Meyer’s summons, Yuno got into a carriage with his family and headed to the residence he would use as his manor. 

Two guards under Gerard were stationed there, but Cordelia quickly subdued them, allowing Yuno’s group to enter the manor without resistance. 

"Welcome, Yuno. Everything is ready." 

Meyer was already waiting at the entrance with the seal symbolizing the count and the letter of appointment for the acting lord. 

"Cordelia! Guard Meyer with the knights. Eliza, take Mom and your sisters up to the second floor." 

"Yes! Understood, Your Highness." 

"Okay, be careful~" 

Once Eliza and the family went upstairs, Meyer asked Yuno and the knights to hide for a moment. 

"If they see Your Highness, they might destroy the evidence they brought. Or they might have hidden it elsewhere." 

"Hmm~ Got it. I’ve entrusted this to you, so I’ll let you handle it to the end." 

Not long after Yuno hid, a commotion was heard outside, and a large man appeared. 

"Hey, Meyer! Here’s a copy of the secret ledger that bastard Boras used to embezzle public funds! It’s not the original, but it should be enough to get his head chopped off!" 

Meyer glanced through the ledger. 

"This… should be enough. But is there any way to get the original?" 

Since a copy could be claimed as fake, Meyer wanted the original. But Gerard shook his head, and Meyer’s disappointment grew. 

"I just couldn’t find the original. That bastard must be keeping it close, since his neck’s on the line. I barely got this copy from one of his men who was keeping it for insurance." 

"Then Boras could just claim the evidence is fabricated, couldn’t he?" 

"Hehehe, what’s there to worry about? Just cut Boras’s head off as soon as he comes in! The dead can’t talk, right? Hahaha!" 

Deciding there was nothing more to get from him, Meyer raised his hand. 

"Come out!" 

"Hm? Who are you talking to huh!" 

Cordelia had a sword to Gerard’s neck, and all the guards Gerard brought were subdued by the other knights. 

"Why… why are you doing this? I don’t know who you are, but the one who should be executed is Boras, not me!" 

"No! Whether it’s him or you, you both deserve it." 

Gerard’s trembling gaze landed on Yuno, now dressed in the formal attire of a prince. 

Although it was his first time seeing a prince, and he didn’t know what the clothes meant, he could tell they were the kind of finery commoners like him could never dream of wearing. 

"Y-your Highness the Prince?" 

"Oh, you catch on quick. Yes, I’ve heard you and Boras have turned the territory into a mess, making up imperial laws as you please." 

"Haha… Your Highness, you see, in the countryside… there are customs… from old times urk!" 

Before he could finish his excuse, Cordelia kneed him in the waist, shutting him up. 

Gerard tried to resist, but no matter how big he was, a viscounty’s captain of the guard was, at best, a low-ranking knight. Cordelia, who was a knight commander in the Rdelmo County and had honed her skills on the Balkan-Teseito front lines, easily subdued him, leaving Gerard at Yuno’s mercy. 

"So, Meyer, is that enough to prove Administrator Boras’s guilt?" 

"It’s a bit lacking, since it’s only a copy…" 

"Hmm… Well, let’s see what Boras brings." 

A little later, Boras was captured just like Gerard, and a document proving Gerard’s corruption was found on him. 

"Your Highness, the document on the captain’s corruption is genuine. Execution is warranted." 

"Y-your Highness!! I’m innocent!! That’s all forged by Captain Gerard! If you let me go, I’ll bring documents proving I managed the territory’s assets properly!" 

As expected, Boras claimed the evidence was fake and pleaded innocence. 

"Your Highness! Please spare me!! I’ll do anything if you let me live!!" 

On the other hand, Gerard, thinking he was doomed, fell to the floor and begged for his life. 

"Fine. Here’s the deal. Bring a witness who can prove Boras’s corruption, and I’ll spare your life." 

"R-really?" 

"Yes. I swear on my honor. Cordelia! Watch him closely so he can’t try anything. If he tries to escape or resist, execute him on the spot." 

"Understood, Your Highness." 

Cordelia tied up Gerard and dragged him out. Soon after, several guards, clerks under the administrator, and some residents were brought in. Boras’s face twisted. 

"Administrator Boras ordered us to beat residents who didn’t pay special taxes. He also seized the fields of those who couldn’t pay and made them his own." 

"He also falsified the amount of tax collected and used money sent by the Ministry of Defense for the mountain rangers for himself, then forged the paperwork." 

"He took our homes and fields! Even in seasons with little game, he kept demanding more, so some hunters went deep into the mountains and disappeared." 

"You bastards! After all I did for you, you stab me in the back?!" 

Despite his shouting, the accusations kept coming. Boras’s crimes were so numerous that Yuno got annoyed and told them to stop. Yuno, Meyer, and Cordelia then dragged Boras and Gerard to Kiese Castle’s square and rang the bell to summon the residents. 

"People of Nikana! I am Yuno Alexander Windrage von Balkan, Third Prince of the Balkan Empire and Count of the unified Nikana and Teshida territories!" 

The residents, seeing a royal for the first time, murmured but immediately bowed in respect. 

"Raise your heads! Yesterday, upon arriving in Nikana, I discovered many evils in the territory! Most of it was the doing of Administrator Boras and Captain Gerard!" 

The residents rose and began cursing the two, some even trying to throw stones. 

"Enough! If anything like this happens again, I will deal with it the same way as lord of Teshidanikana! Administrator Lukas Boras is sentenced to death. Captain Stara Gerard will have half his property confiscated, be demoted to a common soldier, and transferred to the ranger unit in the Monster Mountains." 

"I’m innocent, Your Highness!!" 

"Th-thank you, Your Highness!!" 

In front of the residents, Yuno personally executed Administrator Boras and, as promised, spared Gerard’s life. 

Compared to Boras’s crimes, Gerard had only extorted bribes at the gate and otherwise amassed his wealth through less violent means. Since he was strong and had some skill, Yuno decided to send him to the most dangerous ranger unit. 

Yuno restored the falsified ledgers and reported them to the imperial treasury, thus completing his first duty as lord. 

"Whew~ Good work, both of you. Let’s go home for today." 

All the guards and clerks of the Nikana viscounty were temporarily suspended for their part in the corruption, so Yuno, Baron Kimberly, Meyer, Isabella, and Marie all had to fill in, working late into the night for several days. 

"Your Highness, isn’t this too much? I came to teach Lady Marie, not to do paperwork…" 

"Haha, Baron Kimberly, aren’t you my teacher too? If a teacher doesn’t help a student in need, who will? I’ll make sure to reward you for this when we return to the capital." 

"Hmm… If you say so… I’ll trust you, Your Highness." 

Baron Kimberly, honored to be called teacher by a prince, smiled from ear to ear and dragged his dark-circled face back to the quarters Yuno provided. 

"Haha, Your Highness? Now that everything’s settled, about that reward you promised…?" 

"Ah, right. I almost forgot about your reward." 

‘Heh, as a prince, how big will the reward be? I got 20 gold coins for acting as corps commander in the last war, so maybe 10 gold coins this time?’ 

For a middle-class family of four, half a gold coin was living expenses, so he’d gotten a huge reward last time and expected something similar now. 

"Alright! Vladimir Meyer! I appoint you as Captain of the Guards for the Teshidanikana County as your reward!" 

"Thank you, Your Highness! Such a great reward… Eh?" 

Meyer, who had bowed in gratitude, looked at Yuno in confusion. 

"Hm? Is something wrong? Captain of the Guards is a big job, isn’t it? You’ll command all the mountain guards and rangers. And when I’m away, you’ll even command the new knight order! With the skills I saw at Streve, you’ll do great." 

Meyer’s face twisted with shock this was not what he wanted. 

‘What the hell! I just wanted money! How long has it been since I left the army, and now I’m captain again…’ 

"Y-your Highness! I’m not interested in the military anymore…" 

"20 gold coins!" 

"Excuse me?" 

"I’ll pay you 20 gold coins a year. How about it? Don’t want it?" 

Meyer’s face, contorted with complaint, instantly returned to normal at Yuno’s swift financial offer. 

"I will do my utmost to live up to Your Highness’s expectations!!" 

Thus Meyer became Yuno’s retainer, though at the time he had no idea he would regret this decision for the rest of his life.