Chapter 148

“Your Excellency, what do you mean? Are we to stage a rebellion!!”

“We are merely lowly bailiffs. What audacity do such fellows have to rebel against Count Your Excellency?”

“You must be misunderstanding!! Please trust our loyalty! And did Your Excellency not grant us an enormous amount of food and mercy for our sake?”

Upon hearing this, I let out a small laugh and then spoke.

“Misunderstanding, misunderstanding… what a funny thing to say. Well, let’s see… according to my reports…”

I then pulled out a document I had and began to read.

“Bailiff Martin, upon receiving a letter from the Architel Duke, asked the villagers if they had any complaints. Bailiff Cent, upon receiving a letter from the Architel Duke, opened the granary to feed the serfs, stirring memories of the hungry times. Bailiff Dryel gathered the surrounding bailiffs to drink while expressing their intense dissatisfaction with me.”

As I read out part of the written content in a flat voice, the faces of the bailiffs began to turn pale.

The reports compiled by my subordinates were based on facts verified in the field.

Thus, there was no way for them to claim their innocence; it could not even serve as an excuse.

“A total of 40 individuals have attempted rebellion by expressing dissatisfaction to the villagers or other village headmen, and 240 bailiffs have tolerated the Duke’s letter inciting rebellion. Ah, among those 240, 20 have come to their senses and spoken about the letter.”

By the time I finished speaking, the binding of those bailiffs who had conspired or tolerated the rebellion was complete.

Some of the bound bailiffs seemed to acknowledge that an unavoidable death was upon them, pleading for their families’ lives.

“Please, spare our wives and children!”

“My wife and daughter are innocent… grant us this last mercy.”

“Just spare our lives!!”

I had never intended to kill these individuals’ families.

Because doing so could spread rumors of unnecessary cruelty within the territory, and there is also potential for further utility.

So, I stated firmly to them.

“Your wives and children will be exiled from this territory. They will be provided with the minimum amount of food and escort to ensure they reach safety. So, do not worry, just close your eyes.”

Upon hearing my words, the bailiffs bowed their heads in gratitude for letting their families live.

However, others continued to shout loudly despite this.

“We have never plotted rebellion against Your Excellency!!”

“Bailiff Harf has never plotted rebellion!! This is all the work of the damned Heintz, the village head!! I am innocent!!”

“It’s all a misunderstanding!!”

If they were attempting to rebel, to kill me and rise to fame, shouldn’t they have been prepared to face death instead?

No. If they were truly clever enough to devise such a scheme, they wouldn’t have been fooled by this foolish maneuver set by the Architel Duke to trick me.

Even if they did get tricked, they would have submitted a letter by now to protect their position and lives.

As I began to tire of hearing their voices, I gestured to the knight beside me and said.

“Execute their firing squad.”

“Understood! Matchlock soldiers, quickly bind the criminals to the execution platform!!”

At my words, the soldiers armed with matchlock rifles began to move in an orderly fashion.

Those who complied were quietly taken away, while the resisting bailiffs were beaten with the rifle butts until they lost consciousness or ceased to resist.

The heads and bodies of the bailiffs struck by the rifle butts were torn apart, and the blood that flowed pooled on the training grounds.

Once the soldiers had bound the bailiffs to the execution platform, the knight next to me spoke.

“Count Your Excellency, please issue the execution order.”

In response, instead of issuing a verbal command, I raised my right hand above and then lowered it.

“Execution!”

At my words, the soldiers with matchlock rifles fired.

Soon, the bailiffs hit by the shots fell dead with holes in their chests.

Afterward, the soldiers nonchalantly tossed the dying ones aside and moved on to the others.

After about 30 minutes had passed, all of the targeted bailiffs had been killed.

Witnessing this scene, the surviving bailiffs trembled and spoke.

“…I’m glad I didn’t side with the Architel Duke. No wonder I received a letter with the seal… I thought if I didn’t report it, I’d be in trouble…”

“Damn Duke, didn’t that bastard get us all killed?”

“Ha… I had a bad feeling today…”

As I looked around, I noticed some among them were trembling as if suffering from PTSD, even making mistakes.

To those individuals, I declared in a grave voice.

“You have remained loyal to me without betrayal. Therefore, you need not worry about suffering such fates as these. Furthermore, as your lord, I will gladly reward your loyalty.”

At that, one of the unbound bailiffs cautiously asked.

“When you say reward… does that mean you will continue to recognize our positions?”

“No. First, I will adjust your current salaries to match the standard of our territory. Approximately, the pay will increase by 2 to 3 times. Also, if any of your children have an interest in academics or the military, they will be able to enroll in the Academy and receive scholarships.”

When they heard of the 2 to 3 times salary increase, their faces were filled with joy, but the talk of scholarships didn’t garner much enthusiasm.

They surely thought that no matter how hard their children tried, they would struggle to gain admission against the children of nobles.

“The special privileges for entering the Academy are limited to families of counts and above, and those benefits will only be granted upon admission. Naturally, from that point onward, they will compete on the same level as you based on their exam scores. So, don’t think you won’t be able to enter because they’ll fail the exam. Furthermore, graduating from a military academy will grant them rank, and graduating from an administrative officer academy will allow them to work as bailiffs with the status of a minor noble.”

At those words, the bailiffs seemed unable to believe what I was saying, with some of them pulling at their cheeks hard.

“It hurts, so it’s not a dream…”

“No way, are we really getting such an opportunity…?”

“Then if my son does well… wait… can he become an inspector and a noble!!?”

“Leaving the Architel Duke’s house and siding with Your Excellency was the best choice of my life!”

With that, the bailiffs began to rejoice uncontrollably even before I finished speaking.

So, I clapped my hands to gather their attention and then said.

“As a final act of rewarding your loyalty and to fill the bureaucratic vacancies, I will command promotions for some of you. That is, some of you whose abilities are recognized will be promoted to inspectors. Furthermore, based on the recommendations of those promoted to inspector, we will elevate some village heads to bailiffs to fill the administrative vacancies.”

The reason for this is primarily to give them the dream of changing their status to eliminate their rebellious sentiments toward me.

At the same time, it is to instill a sense of competition so that those administrative officers from Nante or Croilet, who will be positioned above them, cannot surpass them at any time.

Additionally, it is to completely prevent the Architel Duke or other nobles from attempting to meddle with the bailiffs who remain as my subordinates.

“Hooray!!”

“I’m so proud of not siding with the Architel Duke like those fools!”

“It’s always right to pledge loyalty, right? Even if a knife comes to my throat, I won’t go to the Architel bastard.”

To add fuel to the fire, I murmured to them.

“Also, in our territory, there is a woman who has proven her abilities and has risen to the rank of inspector. Her name is Chris Belladora. Surely you don’t think that if a woman can rise that high, you cannot?”

After finishing my words, I descended from the platform and briefly surveyed the blood-soaked bailiffs before leaving.

Once I had departed, I turned to the Alps fellow next to me and asked.

“If there are any among them who seem to lack the ability to be inspectors, notify your father to promote at least 10% of them.”

“Yes, understood.”

“And, the wives and children of the dead must all be sent to the territory where the Architel Duke resides.”

At that, the Alps fellow tilted his head and asked.

“Isn’t it fine to kill them under the pretext of a bandit attack during the escort?”

“That would be more efficient, but didn’t the Architel Duke give us a great gift? We should respond with a gift in return. So, ensure that not a single one of them dies, and escort them politely, including knights. And, follow the proper procedures for surrendering at the Architel Duke’s castle.”

When it comes to losing a war or being fooled by a bastard child, those can be covered up with great effort.

Because if one openly admits such mistakes, other nobles and the territory’s citizens often give them a chance to move on by saying, “Ah, what a foolish guy. Pathetic.”

However, to abandon even the powerless serfs who were once their own subjects is a step that tarnishes their own honor.

And once honor is tarnished…

“Alps, the Architel Duke’s house now has no chance of revival.”