Chapter 414 - Episode 397: Afterword
The death of Orso Helder caused a fair amount of stir as a mysterious incident that occurred within the territory of a major noble of the southwestern faction.
First, the gruesome nature of Orso's death was quickly spread among the common folk by the territorial army soldiers of the House of Baron Solonheit, who handled the initial response at the scene, as well as Orso's former servants and bodyguards, all of whom lost their jobs upon their master's death.
Then, regarding the reason why Orso was killed, various speculations arose and circulated from nowhere.
That he was killed as an example by moneylenders because there was no prospect of him paying back his debts.
That his years of tyrannical behavior finally caught up with him, and he was erased by the House of Baron Solonheit.
That some action of his had touched the royal family's wrath.
That he actually had a large amount of hidden money and was attacked by bandits.
Furthermore, some people with a penchant for the bizarre spoke half-jokingly of absurd rumors, such as that he had been assassinated because he was involved in a plan to rule the Kingdom of Roadberg from the shadows in collusion with a secret underground organization...
Among these, one of the most prominent theories discussed was that "Orso Helder incurred the wrath of the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist and was killed by the private soldiers employed by that house."
Stories had already spread, primarily in the northwestern and southwestern parts of the Kingdom of Roadberg, that a public execution of a criminal who had severely disturbed public order had been carried out in broad daylight in Noeina, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Arqvist, which was known for being particularly peaceful.
The speculation that Orso Helder was involved in that incident and was killed because he angered Grand Duke Noein Arqvist was spoken of with conviction, partly because the opening of the Bezel Highway maintained by the Grand Duchy of Arqvist had influenced Orso's downfall.
Additionally, the existence of a mysterious guest staying at Orso's mansion on the day of the incident further accelerated the credibility of this speculation.
Based on the testimony of Orso's former servants and bodyguards who were caught up in the incident, it was seen as obvious that this guest—a merchant calling himself Viets Alyoshan—was one of the culprits.
A person so blatantly suspicious, whose existence had been known since immediately after the incident, had managed to escape without being caught. Rumors spread among the common folk that the House of Baron Solonheit had intentionally let this man escape, and that behind this lay a secret pact between the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist and the Royal Family of Roadberg.
However, like the other rumors, this speculation lacked decisive evidence.
"...So, how much of this was your doing?"
Mid-June. Retovik, the capital of Count Koenitz's territory. In the garden of the lord's mansion, Frederick Koenitz, the acting lord, asked his brother-in-law, Grand Duke Noein Arqvist.
The official reason for the visit was that Noein and Clara had come to visit the Koenitz family, Clara's maiden home, bringing their children along... but behind that was also the purpose of speaking a bit with Frederick regarding the matter in Baron Solonheit's territory.
In front of Frederick and Noein as they spoke in the garden, Clara, Philia, and Frederick's wife Renette were looking at the flowers in the flowerbed, while Eleos and Frederick's eldest son Samuel ran around chasing insects.
"Now, how much of what?"
"You know very well. The source of the rumors that the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist is deeply involved in the mysterious death incident in Baron Solonheit's territory. Among the various speculations spreading, only the Arqvist theory is suspiciously detailed and spreads suspiciously fast. It's clearly been tampered with by human hands."
When Noein asked back with a composed face, Frederick spoke with a wry smile.
"My house served as the intermediary to notify the Royal Family of Roadberg about this matter. Since I know all the circumstances, you might as well tell me."
"Ahaha, sorry. I'm joking... Well, regarding the theory that Orso Helder's mysterious death is connected to the incident in the Grand Duchy of Arqvist, I artificially spread it using the vassals and official trading companies of the Arqvist house. However, I only intervened in the initial stage. After that, the people have been inflating the rumors on their own. It's a grateful thing."
Noein laughed cheerfully as he spoke.
The machinations of the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist's vassals had paid off, and because the consistency of the theory that the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist was involved was particularly high compared to other speculations, this rumor was spreading as one of the most plausible theories.
"I suppose I should say, as expected of Noein-dono. I'm truly impressed... Orso Helder, was it? It seems the way the mastermind was killed was quite impressive. The message from His Majesty the King is regarding that matter."
As he spoke, Frederick handed a letter to Noein.
It was written by Frederick's father, Arnold, who was in the royal capital, but the content was a message to Noein that he had heard from King Oscar Roadberg III. Hearing this was the primary purpose of Noein's visit to the Koenitz house.
The content avoided direct expressions by choosing words carefully, but to summarize it: "I heard the mastermind merchant was to be killed as an example, but if you were going to use such a flashy method of killing that it would become such a topic of conversation, I wish you had told me beforehand." It was a complaint along the lines of: I'm not angry, but you surprised me.
It wasn't enough to be called a bitter complaint or a warning, and that was likely why he chose the light means of a message via a father-in-law rather than a heavy means like a letter handwritten by the King. Thinking this, Noein let out a small chuckle at the content of the message.
"Ahaha. I left the specific method of killing to our Knight Schoenberg, but to show skill enough to surprise His Majesty Oscar, he truly is my Guard Captain."
"It's fine to laugh, but next time you do something similar, please explain the plan in a bit more detail."
"Yes, I'm sorry for that. I'll be careful... That said, I don't think an opportunity where I'll have to do something similar will come again for a while."
If the merchants of the Kingdom of Roadberg, who were colleagues of the victim, gathered information with a bit of seriousness, they would realize that the rumor of the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist's involvement in Orso Helder's death possessed a credibility that couldn't be dismissed as a mere rumor.
Even taking just the testimony of those employed by Orso, there should be those who notice the fact that Viets Alyoshan's appearance closely resembles Knight Bart Heidemann.
The same applied to the nobles of the Kingdom. Baron Solonheit, the party involved in whose territory the incident occurred, was fortunately an intelligent person. Since he had received direct mediation from the royal family, he would likely understand that the rumors regarding the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist were close to the truth using his own investigation network. If that happened, the story would naturally spread to other nobles from the Baron's mouth.
Furthermore, he had instructed Bart and the official merchant Philip that if they were asked by people of the Kingdom about the connection between Orso's death and the Arqvist house, while they must not state it explicitly, they did not have to completely deny the involvement.
As a result, the nobles and merchants of the western Kingdom of Roadberg would imagine what would happen if they unnecessarily poked the Grand Ducal House of Arqvist, and they would lose any strange inclinations. His objective of using Orso Helder as an example had been sufficiently achieved. That was what Noein thought.
"Well, I suppose so. I've heard rumors about the way that merchant died, and no one would find profit in harming the Grand Duchy of Arqvist to the point of risking such a gruesome death."
"I hope so. With this, the matter is finally settled... Normally, I should have been able to spend my time leisurely without any big jobs until next month's social gathering."
"You've had a run of bad luck since early winter's end."
"Yes, indeed... Well, I'll just have to be satisfied that it was somehow settled before welcoming important guests or leaving the country for a bit."
Frederick gave a wry smile at Noein, who let out a sigh of relief.
"Dear, Philia says she wants to look at the flowers with you."
"Father! Look! I found a very beautiful butterfly!"
At that moment, voices called out from Clara and Eleos walking in the garden.
Furthermore, Frederick was called by Renette and Samuel to come out into the garden.
"...Shall we wrap up the talk of work?"
"Indeed. Now it's time for family bonding."
Nodding at Frederick's words, Noein stood up from his chair along with him, and they each headed toward their wives and children.
The series of incidents that began with the commotion in the capital city of Noeina thus reached a complete conclusion.