How a Second Life Knight Lives

50. The first on the list was me.

Duke Glenn held his forehead.

This was something he had not anticipated.

Erik Kalmar.

Except for Countess Linnea, he was practically the only remaining heir of the Kalmar Count family.

Although his legitimacy was absurdly low compared to Countess Linnea, if Erik Kalmar was excluded, there was no one else with even that much legitimacy.

The Kalmar Count family was a household with few heirs.

So, Duke Glenn had carefully placed Erik Kalmar in his basket.

He gave him mercenary work,

connected him with influential people in Kalmar City,

and subtly showed that he could be Erik’s background support.

It was enough for Erik Kalmar to settle near the Kalmar County and become a headache for Countess Linnea.

It would be even better if great fortune fell upon him.

If that happened, the voices insisting on neutrality might quiet down a bit.

But then he recklessly charged into Kalmar City and got himself killed!

What kind of madness is this!

Of course, Duke Glenn’s aides said that Erik Kalmar’s actions were not entirely unreasonable.

And although it was hard to believe, they explained that his actions were the result of a somewhat rational judgment.

Erik Kalmar’s actions began when Countess Linnea declared her marriage to her vassal.

It was a foregone conclusion that an heir would be born sooner or later, and when that happened, Erik’s chances of succession would practically drop to zero.

Moreover, the influential person in Kalmar City that Duke Glenn had connected him with was purged by Countess Linnea’s quick-witted vassals.

From Erik’s perspective, who had left Kalmar 15 years ago, he couldn’t even secure the minimum support from within.

The slightest possibility of “maybe?” had completely disappeared.

Now, only one possibility remains for Erik Kalmar.

Linnea Kalmar must die.

With the support of Duke Glenn, it is possible to seize at least part of the Kalmar County, and if time is dragged on, it is not impossible to swallow the entire county.

No merchant likes continued chaos, so compromise is possible.

Then Linnea Kalmar must die.

Who? No one?

If no one, then I’ll kill her.

It was speculated that he moved with such thoughts.

And decisively, seeing the chaos in the county caused by the sudden influx of refugees from the Aalborg region, the aides concluded that it was not impossible that adventurism and opportunism, commonly held by those who have been active on the battlefield for a long time, had been triggered.

It’s a plausible story.

It’s not impossible.

Since the county’s forces were scattered to control the refugees, a person skilled in actual combat could see a gap worth probing.

In fact, they even got right in front of the lord’s castle.

However, Duke Glenn could not tolerate such deviations.

Those under him always had to follow his instructions.

He knew that this was an obsession and sometimes became unreasonable, but he could not tolerate anyone deviating from the framework he had set.

He hated it when his subordinates acted on their own, so he used people whose names could not be revealed.

Therefore, his subordinates and the nobles of his faction feared him.

They always watched his mood and moved according to his will.

Those with stiff necks and loud voices were buried long ago.

Thus, he created a perfectly coordinated system with him at the top.

But now, someone who doesn’t follow my instructions appears?

And fails arbitrarily, ruining my plan?

Others need to be warned before they do something foolish.

Otherwise, someone will surely raise their head and say something absurd.

What should I do?

How can I make them fear me again and wait only for my instructions?

…Whose neck should I hang?

Duke Glenn’s eyes fell on the report on the situation in the Aalborg region.

The content was that the residents of the Aalborg region were fleeing to the Count of Kalmar’s territory.

Duke Glenn summoned all the aides in charge of the Count of Kalmar’s territory.

And he asked bluntly.

“Did you say it was William who killed Erik Kalmar?”

“Yes. His name is William Burroughs. He is now the Baron of Le Havre. Countess Linnea separated a small town and several rural villages from the count’s territory and made him the successor baron.”

“It must have been noisy.”

“There were many complaints from the merchants, but it soon quieted down. And surprisingly, there was no particular word from the vassals protecting Countess Linnea from the beginning.”

Duke Glenn nodded as if he understood the aide’s words.

Considering the bond between the former Count of Kalmar and his vassals, the lack of reaction to William was certainly strange.

And if you think about the fact that the complaints from the merchants soon subsided, there is only one reason.

William Burroughs is not the William Burroughs we know.

“As expected. He must have been raised by the Count of Kalmar’s family, right?”

“Yes. We think so too. He is probably a disciple secretly raised by Master Johan or someone related to Master Johan’s teacher. Given Countess Linnea’s urgent situation, she must have just called him up. Having lost her fiancés one after another, she needed someone skilled and trustworthy.”

“The identity of William Burroughs must have been hastily created too.”

“The real William Burroughs must be dead. Since he has no family, it is impossible to verify his identity.”

Hearing the aide’s words that it was impossible to verify his identity, Duke Glenn recalled his memory.

And soon he remembered that William Burroughs’ father was a knight who owned a manor.

“No, that can’t be. Didn’t he grow up in a manor? The people of the manor could verify it.”

“It seems they were silenced. It is said that bandits attacked, killed some, and took the rest away. Since it was a very small manor, no survivors could be found.”

Duke Glenn raised his evaluation of Countess Linnea by one level.

He thought that she should now be treated as a noble, not just a girl who suddenly became a countess.

“For a young girl who just became a countess, she is quite something. It might be the work of Master Johan or Lindstrom, but the approval must have been given by the girl. The bloodline doesn’t lie.”

“It could just be a coincidence. The situation in Baron Ash’s territory is not good these days, so it’s not impossible.”

“Enough. I have decided. Anyway, this person we know as William killed my mercenary captain and kidnapped the residents of my subordinate noble’s territory. I have enough reason to kill him. Moreover, this guy has a high reputation. I need to show everyone that they shouldn’t mess with my things.”

Duke Glenn’s aide urgently tried to stop his unreasonable decision.

When Duke Glenn was convinced that the framework he had set was broken, he tried to assert his presence with reckless actions.

It seemed to be the case this time too.

However, there is a difference between dealing with nobles within the faction and dealing with external nobles.

Moreover, isn’t there Duke Maximilian!

Why have we been lenient with Kalmar until now!

Wasn’t it because he was afraid that if he pressured too much, he would go to Duke Maximilian?

The aide had to point out what needed to be pointed out.

“Your Grace. Captain Eric died while attacking the city of Kalmar. Since he was one of ours, the Count’s side will raise an issue.”

“What are you talking about? Eric died trying to rescue the kidnapped serfs. The fault lies with the nobles of the Kalmar County who kidnapped the serfs from other territories. For example, someone like William.”

“And don’t forget Duke Maximilian. It will be troublesome if the Kalmar County takes his side.”

“Don’t worry. It’s fine for now. Even though he was pushed back so much in Aalborg, why didn’t he come out? Right now, he’s not in a situation to pay attention to this side.”

Duke Glenn’s obsession rationalized his stubbornness.

His current target was William Burroughs.

*

The aftermath of the battle was not simple.

The mercenary corps led by Eric were so fierce that the territorial army and the guards suffered severe damage.

The mercenaries ran mindlessly towards the castle, causing many stragglers along the way.

Thanks to this, the territorial army and the guards, despite suffering great damage, were able to defeat the mercenaries individually.

There was even talk that if Eric’s mercenary corps had gathered in one place and fought properly, we might have been defeated, but the victors were us.

Compared to the mercenaries who fought like madmen in the middle, the ones who charged into the lord’s castle collapsed easily.

I killed many in an instant, and crucially, Eric Kalmar died.

After he died, most of the surviving mercenaries surrendered with their hands up.

Seeing that they ran from the border of the county to the lord’s castle, they seemed half-mad, but his charisma among the mercenaries was absolute.

With him dead, there seemed to be no need to worry about the surviving mercenaries.

We executed some of the surviving mercenaries, made some rowers, and sent them away from the city of Kalmar.

There was a consensus among the Count’s retainers that it was best to erase everything related to Eric Kalmar.

The only good thing was that after experiencing what it was like to fight a mercenary corps with a lot of real battle experience, the budget given to the territorial army increased significantly.

When the post-battle cleanup was roughly finished,

A letter of protest jointly written by Baron Berggren and Baron Namson arrived.

And a letter of protest from Duke Glenn also arrived.

Reading their letters of protest, I could truly understand what it meant to be dumbfounded.

They defined the refugees as runaways who had left the territory, and defined the rescue and resettlement of refugees in the Kalmar County as the kidnapping of serfs.

They even claimed that Eric’s attack on the Beast Mercenary Corps, which annihilated them and attempted to attack the lord’s castle, was a clash that occurred while chasing runaways who had left the territory.

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And as if it were natural, they demanded punishment and compensation for those involved.

At the top of the list was my name.

“Are they playing a prank?”

“It’s not a prank, it’s about establishing justification, William.”

“But still, it’s absurd that such a pretext can be justified. Count, isn’t this just a blatant declaration that the powerful will do as they please? What is Duke Glenn thinking, provoking us like this if we side with Duke Maximilian?”

“Well, there must be some reason. He’s not a fool. But I’m worried. Your name is at the very top of the list. It’s a clear expression of intent to kill.”

“I don’t die easily, my lord.”

It seems I will have to keep the minimap on from now on.