The Adventures of an Overpowered Knight in Another World

Chapter 704- The Criminal Syndicate Of Blueberry Town (3)

"For what?"

Silas’s grin widened. "You’ll understand tonight. That man, the leader of the Benedict Syndicate, is strong".

This further strengthened his suspicions. Looks like he could not avoid a battle inside the church.

A group of criminals who could even make a retired knight like Silas Vermont refuse to take action against them. There was no way they could be ordinary.

.

Evening arrived. The rain clouds that had dominated the sky throughout the day had long since dispersed. Golden light from countless lanterns illuminated the streets of Blueberry Town.

Reinhardt walked beside Silas through the bustling streets. The closer they got to the church, the more surprised he became. The entire town was celebrating.

Children ran through the streets carrying handmade paper flowers. Merchants offered free samples of pastries and fruit wine. Families gathered around tables set up outside their homes.

Music drifted through the air and laughter echoed from every corner. The entire town gave off an atmosphere of happiness.

Seeing this kind of scene, for a moment, Reinhardt felt like he didn’t arrive at a remote town, but rather an affluent city.

Of course, the town was in no way rich, but they had enough to provide for all of their people.

Silas noticed his expression and chuckled.

"Surprised? Haha, don’t be too surprised yet. The real shock is about to come". The old knight grinned.

Before long, they arrived at the church.

Modest in size, yet beautiful and maintained well. Flowers decorated the walls, colorful ribbons hung from windows, and warm lights glowed from every corner of the building.

The place felt alive. And indeed it was so. Entering inside, the sight that greeted Reinhardt was... children running around wildly, elderly people chatting, and citizens sharing meals and stories.

The atmosphere was warm and welcoming. But what caught Reinhardt’s attention wasn’t the number of people, but the smile and happiness on their faces. His eyes went over to the table.

Stretched across were a variety of foods. Fresh bread, roasted meat, vegetables, fruits, pastries... Enough food for everyone. And nobody was fighting over portions. Nobody was worried about going hungry. Everyone had enough.

Before coming here, he investigated Blueberry Town and the criminal syndicate, his objective. Because of it, he knew. Blueberry Town wasn’t rich. Far from it.

The town was only known for its blueberry farms. The berries produced here were used in wines across Solaris. Beyond that, there was nothing remarkable about Blueberry Town.

Yet this very unremarkable town was brimming with happiness. Even the church that should barely be able to provide for itself without large donations or influential people backing it was instead providing for everyone.

By all accounts, this should have been one of the poorer towns in the kingdom. Yet what he saw contradicted everything he knew.

Silas observed his confusion and laughed. "You’re wondering how all this is possible, right?"

Reinhardt nodded. Silas looked around the bustling church grounds. A trace of nostalgia appeared in his eyes.

"You should have seen this place six years ago. The town was struggling. People barely had enough to eat. The orphanage was in an even worse state. The church was falling apart and children barely had proper clothes to wear".

He pointed at the children and stated.

"Most of those kids would’ve gone to bed hungry back then".

The more he spoke, the more his voice became heavy. Reinhardt listened silently.

"But then, things changed". A rare smile on the old veteran’s face.

"It was slow at first and took incredible effort. However, with time, the town began to change. Now look at this place. Everyone has food, everyone has work. The town is growing. The orphanage is thriving. I arrived here seven years ago. I witnessed the entire transformation with my own eyes".

Having finished speaking, he led Reinhardt inside the church.

"Come, let me introduce you to some people".

The two of them approached an elderly woman sitting near one of the tables. Her wrinkled face immediately brightened when she saw Silas.

"Sir Silas!"

"Haha, Granny Maribel". Silas laughed. "Your grandsons are causing trouble again".

"I’ll smack them with my cane". The old woman replied without hesitation, pointing her cane intimidatingly at the two boys who were the most rowdy.

Clearly, Silas knew this old woman.

"Reinhardt, this is Granny Maribel. A few years ago, her daughters were kidnapped. They were taken away by slavers. The townspeople searched everywhere. We thought we had lost them forever. Until one day, they were rescued and returned home safe and healthy. Now her two daughters are happily married, and they even gave birth to two healthy sons".

Silas introduced the old lady to Reinhardt.

"My family is together. Thanks to the gods".

The Granny Maribel clasped her hands together in a prayer.

After her, Silas led him to meet an elderly farmer named Hector. A sturdy old man, despite his age.

Silas introduced, "Hector almost lost everything years ago. Some nobles forged documents. They claimed his family’s land belonged to them. His children, grandchildren... all eight of them would’ve ended up on the streets if not for timely intervention"...

"Within a day, the documents disappeared, and the truth surfaced in front of everyone. Their land was rightfully returned to them. Not only that, their harvest is sold at fair prices. No middlemen there to rob them blind".

Reinhardt nodded. This was a good thing. No wonder the citizens appeared so happy. They all got their justice. But why was Silas telling him all this?

Before he could think further, he led him to meet the third person, a blacksmith.

The fourth was a widow.

The fifth was a former merchant.

The sixth was a schoolteacher.

One after another, he introduced them to him. What was common among them was that at some point in their life, they were all at the depths of despair, cruelly schemed against.

A merchant saved from predatory loan sharks. A widow whose debts mysteriously disappeared. A teacher whose school was rebuilt after a fire. An orphan who received funding to continue studying.

There were many stories.

After hearing all that, Reinhardt realized that something was wrong. Because according to the intelligence report, the Benedict Syndicate was responsible for multiple kidnappings in this town.

Yet Granny Maribel spoke about how her daughter returned safely to her from the slavers. Then there was the matter about land rights that was justly handled.

But with the criminal syndicate running wild, shouldn’t there be rampant forgery and extortion?

Everything he heard, every story that he was told, contradicted the report he got about this town.

In a place that was run by a criminal syndicate, forget about justice; one shouldn’t even be able to have enough for oneself. Yet somehow, all these people got their justice and even seemed thankful and happy to live in such a town.

While Reinhardt was deliberating all that, everyone placed their attention on him.

"Silas, you have introduced us. But who is this noble young man?" Granny Maribel asked.

Silas smiled and introduced Reinhardt. "This young knight is Sir Reinhardt Arcknight. He is the son of the current commander of the knight order I used to serve under".

Hearing this, Maribel, Hector, and everyone’s eyes opened wide in surprise. Silas’s reputation was known to everyone here. Naturally, they knew that he was once a knight. Today, they finally got to meet the son of the Commander whom he used to serve under.

"Ah, so you are a knight from the same knight order as Sir Silas. It is an honor to meet you". The townspeople responded kindly, or perhaps a little too over-enthusiastically.

What was going on?

As word spread that Reinhardt was the son of Commander Raymond, the townsfolk became even more enthusiastic.

"Try this".

"Take some pie".

"You need to taste our blueberry jam."

"No no, mine is better."

"Here, young man."

Before he knew it, his arms were full of food. Children surrounded him. Grandmothers fussed over him. Farmers insisted he sample their produce.

Receiving so much warmth from complete strangers, Reinhardt felt strangely uncomfortable. These people treated him like family. Like a hero, like someone worthy of their gratitude. Yet he had done nothing. Nothing at all. It all felt undeserved.

As he stood amidst the lively crowd, holding far more food than he could possibly eat, he thought about the intelligence report he received from the Council of Elders.

Strangely, everything in this town was completely the opposite of what he was reported. Something; no, a lot of things didn’t add up.

"Hehe, I wasn’t mistaken back then. Although I knew you were a knight, I didn’t know you were from Sir Silas’s order".

A faint fragrance drifted into his nose along with a familiar voice.

Reinhardt turned around. Standing behind him was the same woman he had met earlier beneath the rain. Aurelia.

She wore a simple white dress that accentuated her gentle nature. Her silver-blonde hair was neatly tied behind her back.