Chapter 89

As soon as the guards began arresting everyone at the scene and heading toward the garrison, the lower-level members and courtesans started to scream in panic.

“Please, please spare us!”

“We only did what the pimps told us… Count, please save us…”

“We just went because we were promised food… If you give us just one more chance, we will live honestly.”

I would have to investigate further, but it was likely that the courtesans had little culpability.

In this era, prostitution was usually practiced by impoverished women driven to the brink of starvation, either to avoid death or to reduce the burden on their struggling families.

As a result, women in prostitution were often controlled through beatings or abuse that targeted places on their bodies that wouldn’t cause visible damage.

Thus, 99% of the women present had likely been forced into sexual exploitation, so punishing them for being here would be an injustice to innocent individuals.

Seeing these exploited courtesans reminded me of when I first possessed Siel; I felt a pang of sympathy as I recalled how Ela, trembling, was willing to offer herself.

However, the lower-ranking men present, whether lured by food or aiming for advancement, were voluntary criminals…

“If you women cooperate with the investigation by my soldiers, you will be spared. It is the pimps who are to blame, as you were made to do this against your will.”

Upon hearing my words, the lower-level members looked hopeful, their expressions brightening.

“Your Excellency, if we cooperate with the investigation, will you spare us? We didn’t intend to go against you, we only did this to survive.”

I would bet they had no intention of going against me.

According to the reports from Lieutenant Short and other scouts, once those thugs had secured the back alleys of the city, they had been promised beauties, liquor, and great riches from Count Peterburg and went wild…

Did they really think I would believe that?

If only they had just outright admitted their remorse, they might have at least died more easily…

I needed to extract useful information from them, so I decided to give them some empty hope.

In a calm voice, I said the words to inspire false hope.

“You too will be spared if you cooperate with the investigation.”

At my statement, their expressions began to lighten.

However, aside from the one who provided truly valuable information, they would likely still face execution, even if they tried to cooperate.

The default punishment for them would be execution by hanging.

If you asked why, it was because, while the external officials from outside could be considered somewhat excusable, those who belonged to my territory and betrayed me would naturally face the consequences.

After separating the criminals by gender and locking them in the garrison and parade ground, I summoned my commanders to the conference room to organize the collected information.

At the farthest end of a long table sat Colonel Beerman, flanked by his lieutenant colonel and captain, and for some reason, Lieutenant Short sat at the very end.

Sitting among true nobles with knightly titles, he must have been under considerable stress…

As I took my seat at a slightly elevated position compared to the table, all the commanders rose, looked at me, and knelt on one knee, bowing their heads in salute.

I gestured for them to rise and said,

“Thanks to everyone’s cooperation, we could deal with the Blue Mold without incident. Had it not been for your assistance, my citizens would still be trembling in fear. Thank you for protecting them. In the name of Siel von Croilet, I promise ample rewards for this matter.”

At my words, the commanders sitting before me began to brighten with hope.

They were likely eager to know how much of a reward I would grant…

“Now, let us begin the reports. Let’s start with Captain Frost, who suppressed the central headquarters.”

At that, Frost stood and began to recite his findings.

“We captured four senior members, including the leader of the Blue Mold, Nikolai, and we apprehended 20 out of 50 lower-level members. Inside, we found the daughter of the district chief believed to have been kidnapped, the daughter of another district chief’s concubine, and in addition, ten unidentified women and five men.”

“How much funding was there?”

“There are approximately ten tons of vodka and various hallucinogenic herbs in the headquarters, and in the facility’s storeroom, we found about 100 gold coins and 2000 silver coins.”

“I see. Next, let’s hear from Major Mangoel, who ambushed branch two…”

Thus, I received reports on all branches of the Blue Mold.

There were six senior members, including Nikolai, presumably from the nobility, thirty-four regular members, and three hundred forty lower-level members, with thirty tons of smuggled vodka and around 800 gold coins…

Ten members of noble families who almost got sold into slavery, and about sixty individuals suspected of being citizens or serfs…

While criminals may not think things through, pulling off an operation of this scale…

It simply couldn’t have been done without the backing of at least a count-level noble…

“Colonel, it seems highly likely that this was indeed orchestrated by Count Peterburg. Otherwise, how could they have attempted such a large-scale operation against us?”

“You have a point. However, Your Excellency has also garnered considerable animosity from merchants. Perhaps a merchant harboring a grudge against you has orchestrated this scheme to topple Croilet…”

“If it were those underhanded merchants, that would make sense. But can any merchant invest this much money at once…”

“I’ve heard that the lord of Hamburg is suffering greatly because of us. Apparently, due to falling food prices, grain wholesalers have faced significant damage…”

“Even so, the lord is likely making more money from the sugar trade. According to a relative who serves the lord, there are rumors that he intends to purchase a title from Romania soon.”

As the discussion continued, some began to raise their voices in discomfort over differing opinions.

To quiet them, I banged my fist on the armrest of my chair and spoke,

“Enough! What is this farce? If possibilities have arisen, we need to investigate them all. Why are we arguing at this stage of the interrogation?”

Hearing my words, the commanders lowered their heads in shame.

“My apologies, Your Excellency.”

“It’s alright. What you’ve all said has merit. The lord of Hamburg and Count Peterburg… both are entirely capable of unleashing smugglers and criminals into our territory. Especially Count Peterburg, who is currently impoverished and is causing a ruckus with his nobles in our territory, frivolously spending money on our exported culture. Meanwhile, the lord, a merchant, is prepared to release countless drugs or women to ruin competing guilds.”

Having never experienced poverty like Count Peterburg, I cannot say I understand what drove him to commit crimes, but I recall how I went to great lengths to destroy the Schwabin in the past.

I had sent two maids who were troubling Ela as spies to find out their weaknesses and further used their beauty to turn my lord, the Count, from a human trash into waste.

From that experience, if I were the lord, perhaps I would have made this choice to break the spirit of my rivals.

Otherwise, the free city of Hamburg, maintained solely by trade, could easily fall to either Romania or me.

Looking around, none of the other commanders spoke, seemingly lost in thought about how to proceed with the investigation.

So, I decided to give them more information by allowing Lieutenant Short to speak.

“Lieutenant Short, I sent a covert order for a infiltration at the headquarters… can you share what you learned with everyone?”

Short replied with a tense expression.

“Yes, understood. First of all, according to my investigation, the senior members divided themselves into two groups. The first group consists of early members who smuggled in together; the second group includes those with noble-like influence residing in Blueport. The latter group are mere puppets who only wear the title of senior member, used and discarded as needed, and they hold no real role in normal times.”

“Continue.”

“Yes, and the details I found correspond to the report already submitted on the organization, so I will only share the noteworthy things.”

“Proceed.”

“When I infiltrated, they used our Franche language, but it had a noticeable accent blending Northern and Romanian traits. Additionally, while trying to avoid suspicion, I was fed borscht and pirozhki, and the borscht they gave me was topped with sauerkraut, commonly eaten in Romania.”

“Sauerkraut? Isn’t that pickled cabbage eaten by those Romanians or Hamburgers?”

“Yes, exactly. However, in the Northern Alliance, traditional borscht typically contains red turnips or beets, various vegetables, and meats. They served it with sauerkraut, claiming it was a Northern version. This is how people from eastern Romania, specifically those from the land of Maxburg, consume it.”

Hearing those words felt like a puzzle piece finally fitting into place in my mind, and all the information started to form a clear picture.

If those individuals were from under the Duke of Maxburg…

It would then make sense why those foolish villains would use Count Peterburg’s name and hastily gather impoverished people beyond necessity.

If our territory suffers a certain degree of internal erosion, they could shed their tails after causing us some damage, and it would appear as if Duke Maxburg was involved in Count Peterburg’s actions.

Even if it didn’t happen, they could create a rift between Count Peterburg and me, inciting animosity between Northern and Southern factions…

It was reasonable to believe they purposely made vague moves to mislead us.

Still, they couldn’t have anticipated that I would employ former knights and officials well-versed in Northern language and culture to catch their ploy…

Short sure surprised me with this insight.

Seeing Short’s words resonate with those under my command, they all nodded in understanding.

“Lieutenant Short, how do you know so much about Northern Alliance and Romanian dishes? Perhaps…”

“I lived in the northernmost village of Maxburg called Norsheim when I was young. Merchants who came there often made borscht for us, so I know it well.”

“I see…”

Then I clapped my hands to focus everyone’s attention and said,

“Let’s proceed with the assumption that those individuals are from Maxburg and commence our investigation.”

“Yes, understood.”

“And until I give the order, no torture is to be inflicted. Instead, lock them in a very poor prison and provide them with just enough food and water to survive. Dismissed.”