How a Second Life Knight Lives

37. Raiding the House of the Traitor Morgan.

I hung the battle hammer on the clasp of my waist.

It was inconvenient to carry it in my hand or on my back.

Carrying it on my shoulder seemed a bit undignified.

I’m not a mercenary who wants to show off his muscles.

The hammerhead is the size of two adult fists put together.

One side is a hammer and the other side is a spike.

It looks vicious and its destructive power is also vicious.

Christopher proved that it could pierce through a helmet in an instant.

Poor Christopher, who died by his own weapon.

Anyway, the weapon he gave me has been useful until now.

I planned to use it well today too.

Next to me was Arexon, the captain of the guard, with a sullen expression.

On the first day, I raided the lord’s army, on the second day, the city council and city hall, and by the third day, my actions had spread like wildfire, so today he came out to greet me at the entrance of the guard building.

“Would you like to go to my office first?”

“No, I have a lot to do today. I want to see the people I requested first.”

“Guard units 5 and 6 are waiting in the guard’s training ground, and three other units are on standby.”

He was trying to grease the wheels with me, who came out for inspection while making personal conversations, but it seemed a bit of a stretch for this clueless man.

As soon as I refused his offer, his face darkened noticeably.

Seeing him so blatantly disappointed, well, this is something.

Today, this man will see the hell of losing trust in people.

But seeing him like this from the start, I can’t help but feel a bit sorry.

Still, I had to do what I had to do.

I headed to the training ground where 20 guards were waiting.

“This is Sir Lundin, who is in charge of the guard’s administration and management.”

“Nice to meet you, Inspector.”

“Please take care of me, Sir Lundin.”

After greeting Sir Lundin, I turned my gaze to the guards.

Two units, 20 people.

One unit consists of a leader, a deputy leader, and eight members.

The guard is originally a stable job with a lot of incidental income.

Of course, it’s a job that inevitably involves dangerous tasks, but how many jobs in the world are not dangerous?

So once people join the guard, they don’t want to leave.

As a result, most of the guards have been working together for a long time.

They know each other’s circumstances, as well as family matters.

So if something goes wrong, they roughly know what the cause is and who is involved.

So the gathered guards here had somewhat figured out why I specifically called them together.

There is a traitor among us.

There is a rebel among us.

And that person is probably…

Indeed, the look in the eyes of the captain of the 6th squad was not normal.

He was forcibly disguising his composure, but his eyes were busy observing the surroundings.

From my long experience of meeting various people,

A person with such eyes had many things to hide.

Moreover, didn’t the minimap also point out that this guy was dangerous?

“Captain of the 5th squad?”

“Yes, Inspector.”

“Why did you take charge of a different area instead of your original area when searching and arresting the Dramen mercenary group?”

“It was at the request of the captain of the 6th squad.”

The captain of the 5th squad had an attitude that showed he had nothing to hide.

His voice, though tense, did not seem to be hiding anything.

“Alright. Captain of the 6th squad, why did you request a change of area?”

“Recently, we received new recruits, and I thought it would be difficult to conduct a proper search in the residential area. So I wanted an area more suitable for inquiries.”

“Are those new recruits those guys?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

At the tip of my finger, two guards with bruises still not fully healed on their faces were standing upright with frightened expressions.

“Are you the guards who were in charge of the area including the Red Windmill Club?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Who assigned you to that area?”

“It was the captain’s order.”

“Did you go without any senior members?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

I turned back to the captain of the 6th squad.

He was desperately maintaining his composure.

“Is it common for two new recruits to be deployed as a pair for a search?”

“That was my mistake. I wanted to ease the tension of the new recruits,”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

“What?”

At my harsh tone, the leader of the 6th squad could no longer open his mouth.

“Sir Lundin.”

“Yes, Inspector.”

“Who recommended the leader of the 6th squad to join the guards?”

“There was a recommendation from Sir Morgan, who left the guards a year ago.”

“Is there anyone else who recommended or vouched for him?”

“No, there isn’t.”

I asked the leader of the 6th squad, who was keeping his mouth tightly shut.

“What is your relationship with Sir Morgan?”

“He is a relative elder.”

“Did Sir Morgan order the change of the district?”

“What?”

His startled expression was like that of a farmer who suddenly encountered an orc while plowing the field.

Pointing at the leader of the 6th squad with my index finger, I ordered the leader of the 5th squad.

“He is a traitor! Arrest him immediately. And the 6th squad is to stay within the barracks under the deputy leader’s command. If they leave the barracks, they will be charged with treason.”

In front of the shocked Arexon and the solemn-faced Lundin, the leader of the 5th squad immediately carried out my order.

“No! There seems to be some misunderstanding! It’s not me!”

The leader of the 6th squad desperately protested as he was dragged away, but no one responded to his protest. Even the members of the 6th squad avoided his gaze with stern expressions.

The resistance of the traitor’s minion was weak.

I wondered how the resistance of the main traitor would be.

After tapping the battle hammer on my waist, I spoke to Arexon, who was still in shock.

“Sir Arexon, let’s go meet Sir Morgan together.”

We headed to Sir Morgan’s house with a few knights and three squads from the guards.

The atmosphere on the way to Sir Morgan’s house was heavy.

Sir Arexon seemed shocked that his subordinate and the superior he respected were being arrested for treason.

And there seemed to be parts he couldn’t understand.

But now was not the time for me to sit down and explain everything to him.

Moreover, Sir Arexon was likely to step down from his position as the head of the guards.

Because he lost the trust of the Countess.

Sir Arexon did not say a word until he arrived at Sir Morgan’s house.

Sir Morgan’s house was located in an upscale residential area near the lord’s castle.

Having a mansion close to the lord’s castle is no different from having power in this city.

It’s not just about money; there is no supply in the first place. Even if there is supply, it is always traded among insiders, so there is never any supply for outsiders.

Even among insiders, the order of distribution is based on proximity to power.

Although Sir Morgan stepped down from his position as the captain of the guard, he had not yet been ousted from the circle of power.

But that ends today.

“The outer gate of the mansion looks splendid. Break it down.”

At my command, several guards attached themselves to the hinges of the gate and started chopping with axes.

In front of the onlookers, the gate fell backward with an unpleasant noise.

Stepping over it, we headed towards the entrance of the mansion.

The noise from breaking and toppling the gate must have been quite loud, as the servants of the mansion came rushing out.

The servants, who had come out in a fury, were instantly intimidated by the sight of the broken outer gate and the menacing guards.

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The guards herded the servants to one side and began dragging out those who had not yet come out of the mansion.

“What is the meaning of this? This is Sir Morgan’s residence. You seem to be guards, so please show some respect.”

A bespectacled man, who appeared to be the butler, came out belatedly to protest, but our guards were relentless.

The bespectacled man was grabbed by the collar and thrown to the ground.

It was understandable, as he had just heard the news that one of the squad leaders had been taken away on charges of treason. Even the most oblivious person would know that now is the time to act swiftly.

“Sir Arexon, go in with the knights and detain Sir Morgan and his family. I will interrogate the servants and follow you. Oh, and Sir Arexon, this is just a word of advice. Sir Morgan is suspected of treason. I know you are close to him, but you must be careful with your demeanor. There are many eyes watching.”

As I gave orders to Sir Arexon, I saw a red dot moving on the minimap.

I immediately gave an order to the leader of the third squad.

“Third squad leader, take a few men and block the escape route. You will see a small door on the right side at the back of the mansion. It’s an escape door. If anyone tries to escape through there, capture them. Just keep them alive.”

I am always grateful for the minimap.

After a while, we dragged out everyone except Sir Morgan’s family and locked them all in the warehouse.

Those who tried to escape and got stabbed were sent directly to the guard’s prison.

I took over a room in the mansion and summoned the butler first.

*

The second squad leader thought.

He is a snake-like man.

When he smiled and acted friendly, he just seemed like the boy next door.

But that was never his true self.

When he gave orders, he was ruthless and merciless.

His demeanor during the interrogation of several servants, starting with the butler, was chilling.

He had the attitude that he could kill as many people as necessary, and do it casually.

It was incomprehensible why the merciful Count kept such a person close.

But he was competent.

After interrogating several servants, he immediately singled out one maid.

“Is it true that you personally attend to Sir Morgan?”

“Yes. And his family as well.”

“According to the testimonies of the butler and the coachman, Sir Morgan gives all the servants a two-day vacation once a month. They say it’s a merciful act, but it sounds very peculiar to me. Yet, you don’t rest during that time and take your break on another day. Why is that?”

“I have to serve tea to Sir Morgan, and someone has to attend to him.”

The maid spoke calmly, though she was trembling.

She was a woman of fortitude.

William smiled.

Then he leaned towards the maid and asked in a low voice.

“Where does the visitor who comes once a month meet Sir Morgan?”

“……What do you mean?”

“People have ten fingernails, don’t they? Do they also have ten toenails? If you pull out the fingernails, you can’t grasp things with your hands. If you don’t have toenails, you can’t walk. Because of the pain, they say. And if you add up all the fingernails and toenails, it’s twenty. Is that calculation correct?”

It was as if he was saying 1 + 1 = 2, and 2 + 2 = 4.

Meanwhile, he was tearing off the edge of the table with his right hand.

As if it were a joke.

Tearing off a wooden plank with bare hands?

Is that even possible for a human?

The second lieutenant, who was holding his breath, unconsciously straightened his posture.

At that moment, the maid sitting in front of them couldn’t say anything and started to cry.

She was terrified, just like him.

“Fingers have three joints, don’t they? Snap, snap, snap. That means they can be cut three times. More than the nails, right? But there’s one problem. Nails grow back over time, but fingers don’t, do they? So what kind of work can a maid with no fingers do? Can she still attend to someone personally with those hands?”

William leaned back in his chair.

“Morgan is a traitor. He betrayed the Count. And the people living in Kalmar, not just people like me, but you and your family as well, have been sold out to the Count’s enemies. Morgan will be ruined. And even if he somehow survives, he will never be in a position to show mercy to a loyal maid who has lost all her fingers. Because I will make sure of it.”

The maid kept crying.

“Still not thinking of talking? Then shall we start with your nails? It’s okay, they will grow back later.”

At those words, the maid gasped as she looked at William.

In that brief moment, she was drenched in sweat and exhausted, as if she had run several hundred meters at full speed.

A look of satisfaction appeared in William’s eyes.

“Second Lieutenant. Could you bring our lady a glass of water?”

After drinking the water, the maid spilled everything she knew.

The second lieutenant swore to himself that he would never, ever cross William.

*

A salesman must become a skilled actor.

It’s one of the lessons I learned from my seniors in the field.

Later, they even enrolled me in acting classes.

And I was a top student in those classes.

It seems that skill hasn’t gone anywhere.

I hypnotized myself into thinking I was a Gestapo interrogating a Jew, and the impressed maid cried and spilled everything she knew.

It seems method acting suits me well.

“So, in the end, we just need to search Sir Morgan’s study. Second Lieutenant, follow me, and First Lieutenant, control the surroundings as the senior officer. You may kill any escapees.”

I went to Sir Alexon, who was holding Sir Morgan and his family captive.

It was time to use the war hammer.