Read Novel Full Vol 25 Chapter 9
Vol 25 Chapter 9
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Chapter 9 – I see
As I began unloading the sea monsters, people started gathering in Gothenburg’s port town, creating such a lively scene that it could easily be mistaken for a festival. Overwhelmed by all that energy, I pushed harder with the unloading when a summons came from the port. Upon arriving, I found the magistrate in charge of the Gothenburg area severely beaten. Why?
“Fufu, ah, sorry. I just found your flustered expression amusing, Wataru-san. But, considering the situation, it’s understandable, right?”
Felicia explained the situation to me, but I was confused and couldn’t grasp it. Donatella-san laughed at me. However, it wasn’t a mean laugh. It was more like watching over a child trying hard at their studies.
It’s tricky to interpret. She doesn’t seem to dislike me, but it feels like she doesn’t see me as a man. I haven’t shown her that I’m reliable, and I often lean on the women, so I can’t blame her. I’d be happy if I could prove myself enough during this voyage to be seen as a man.
“No, it’s fine. Um, Felicia, could you continue?”
“Yes, I’ll continue.”
After listening to Felicia’s story, I finally understood. Well, not everything, but I grasped what had happened.
Donatella-san, Alessia-san, and Felicia were pondering how to respond to the magistrate’s unreasonable demands. Since Donatella-san was the only one who could understand the language, she had to interpret for them while they acted. Apparently, this made it difficult for them to move.
If they attacked, they could fight back. However, even though the guy reeked of malice, it’s hard to suddenly attack someone who’s just being loud and arrogant.
While they were still confused, the guildmaster of the Adventurers’ Guild was called over. When he started talking to the magistrate, it escalated into a loud shouting match. After that, the guildmaster and the adventurers beat the magistrate and his guards senseless without saying a word.
They knocked the magistrate and his group unconscious and started discussing something amongst themselves. I couldn’t read the situation, but I knew trouble was coming. Since my personal safety seemed assured, they apparently decided to call us over.
I understood the situation, but I still couldn’t grasp why things had gotten this far. It seems Donatella-san and the others don’t understand either. Unlike me, they grasp the situation, but they’re wary because they can’t predict what will happen next.
Everyone seems to know what’s going on, so it’s hard to ask questions. There’s a saying that curiosity killed the cat, but I’m not particularly prideful, so asking questions is easy. However, I’m the unfortunate type who wants to keep up appearances around women.
If things got really bad, I’d ditch my pride in a heartbeat, but this situation isn’t quite there yet. I’d like an explanation from Gilmas or someone, but they all seem so serious that it feels like I shouldn’t interrupt them casually. It’d be great if they noticed me, though.
“Ah, sorry! Sorry for the trouble!”
After waiting about three minutes, the guild master finally noticed me. It’s hard to say if the wait was long or short, but I was surprised by how quickly he apologized. There was almost no delay after he spotted me.
“No, there was no particular damage on our end, so it’s fine.”
I’m not thrilled about the whole “offering Felicia” thing, but since the guy who said it is getting beaten up, flipping out over it feels a bit off.
“That’s a relief.”
The guildmaster simply bowed his head again. He’s the head of this town’s adventurer guild, but he seems completely devoid of any political maneuvering, with a rough-and-tumble personality.
“But are you really okay? He’s the magistrate of this town, right?”
There’s a huge difference between us outsiders getting involved and the local guildmaster stepping in. We could run away, but the guildmaster can’t.
“Hm? Ah, well, it is a bit problematic… Oh, you noticed, did you?”
Gilmas said with a troubled expression. But he also looked strangely relieved.
Ah, I get it. That’s it. It’s that look you get when you punch that annoying boss and feel a sense of “I did it,” mixed with uncontrollable joy. I’ve seen it in manga.
Just as I came to that realization, the magistrate, who had been lying at Gilmas’s feet, began to stir.
“What? My hands won’t move! It hurts! My whole body hurts!”
The magistrate seemed confused and struggled frantically, perhaps not understanding his bound state. He had been beaten to a pulp, no doubt, which was why his whole body hurt.
He didn’t look like the combat-oriented type. Instead, he was slender, sly, and probably the bureaucratic type.
Gilmas and his crew could have knocked him out in an instant, but they didn’t. There was a certain darkness to that.
“Felipe! That’s right, you! You attacked me, a noble and a magistrate! I won’t forgive you!”
Still bound, the magistrate flipped out, probably remembering the situation before he passed out. He looked like a fish hauled out of water, thrashing wildly.
“Shut up!”
“Guh!”
Gilmas kicks the magistrate squarely in the gut without saying a word. It’s so merciless that it’s genuinely scary.
“And what’s more, you bastard! While we’re working our asses off to rebuild this place, you come in and try to siphon off some of the profits for yourself!”
Gilmas grabs the suffering magistrate by the hair and glares at him menacingly from point-blank range. Had he been sabotaging the reconstruction of this devastated town for personal gain?
As a magistrate, he should want the reconstruction. It seems more like he was maneuvering to secure profits and privileges tied to the reconstruction efforts.
Normally, officials dispatched to rebuild profitable areas, such as port towns, would be top-tier talent. However, the presence of such a low-level bureaucrat suggests that even the victorious nation is stretched thin managing its own affairs.
The scale of the war’s devastation can be glimpsed across the entire continent.
“And to top it off, you’re demanding tribute from benefactors from other continents who’ve been providing us with jobs and food?”
“Guh, let go! As a magistrate, I have the right to collect taxes!”
Oh, the magistrate’s counterattack. Right, taxes are necessary. With so many places devastated, I might have accepted paying some money if they called it a reconstruction tax.
“Huh? But that doesn’t mean you can tax people by demanding they offer up slaves from elsewhere!”
He’s right. In this world ruled by rotten nobles, it’s possible, but I won’t accept it. Thankfully, Gothenburg doesn’t either.
“Shut up! This rotten land offers no profit! I’ll never succeed unless I secure tribute or raise taxes. Free me now! I am the magistrate! The commoners of a defeated nation have no right to touch me!”
No to tax hikes! I only paid consumption tax in Japan, yet hearing about a tax increase makes me reflexively oppose it. I understand the necessity of taxes for maintaining essential services, but still…
“Hah. Do you even realize you’ve been cornered to the point of no return? You’re only still alive because you’re bound!”
Gilmas looked utterly exasperated as he said something incredibly dangerous. What does that mean?
“What nonsense! Killing me would be an act of reckless destruction, no different from self-destruction!”
“Sigh… That’s not the situation at all. All right, I’ll explain it from the beginning. Use your greed-corrupted brain to understand properly. Listen—”
Please. Gilmas was probably addressing the magistrate, but, since I didn’t understand the situation either, I silently pleaded inside.
Gilmas finished his explanation.
Upon hearing this, the magistrate turned pale and trembled violently, still bound. I was scared out of my wits, wondering if I would end up the same way.
According to Gilmas, before I arrived, the town was hopelessly stuck, and most residents lived on the edge, drowning in despair without knowing what to do.
Given that situation, the magistrate couldn’t accomplish much. The only ones truly displeased were the town’s higher-ups, who were connected to him.
Though annoyed, the higher-ups figured the magistrate was just a petty crook incapable of real harm, so they let it slide.
One reason seemed to be that they feared that taking action might lead to even more incompetent replacements being sent in, given the severe shortage of capable people.
Amid this atmosphere of despair, a ray of hope arrived from the northern continent. That was us.
Our reputation skyrocketed in just a few days, which was a bit scary.
Just as the residents started to escape their despair, spurred on by us, the magistrate showed up and made remarks that destroyed that ray of hope.
Even I could see why the residents were furious. It’s like someone offering you water in the desert when you’re dying of thirst, only to have that water ruined right before your eyes. Getting angry is only natural.
The situation was on the verge of rioting, which is why the guild master and the others apparently beat the magistrate to a pulp. Otherwise, the magistrate would undoubtedly have been killed by the residents.
“I see,” I said, nodding in understanding. I’ve experienced that phenomenon myself—when someone else gets angry before you do, you calm down. It’s also likely that the guild master was just venting his stress, but I’ll overlook that.
“So, Magistrate, you have few options left. First, you must sincerely apologize to Felicia-san for your abusive words and earn her forgiveness, then cooperate with the reconstruction.”
“Wh-what?! You want me to bow down to a mere slave?!“
The magistrate seems to have a lot of pride for a minor official. If I were him, I wouldn’t have the guts to insist on my pride after getting beaten to a pulp.
“The second thing is that, after Wataru-dono and the others withdraw because of you, the enraged residents will kill you. Of course, we’ll turn against you, too. The hope that finally sprouted has been trampled. That anger won’t subside easily.”
Ignoring the magistrate’s words, Gilmas presents the choices. Offering up Felicia is unthinkable, but abandoning Mear-san and the townspeople seems impossible, too. I won’t say that out loud, though.
“Third, we make you the standard-bearer of the rebellion. Once Wataru-dono leaves, we won’t be able to recover. We’ll go down together. We’ll force you, the one who created this situation, to be our representative and raise the banner of rebellion against the country. Naturally, we’ll present ourselves as acting on your orders. You’ll lose your position, your honor, and your family, but that’s only fair, isn’t it? You trampled on our hopes.”
Gilmas, you’re thinking of some scary stuff. Or rather, riots… no, in this case, rebellion. It’s possible the town’s higher-ups were already considering rebellion before we arrived.
No matter how you look at it, the situation was hopeless. To survive, desperate measures were probably necessary. It wouldn’t be strange at all if rebellion were one of the options.
“So then, Magistrate, which will you choose?”
The magistrate is on the verge of fainting from fear. Those aren’t the only three options, but looking at him, he probably can’t think of any others.
In any case, Gilmas’s explanation helped me understand the situation. It’s getting serious, though…
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