Chapter 24: No Mercy for Parasites
As we left the treasury and moved through the hallways, I noticed Margaret standing quietly to the side.
I slowed my pace slightly before calling her over in a low voice.
Margaret looked at me with confusion before approaching.
Leaning closer to her ear, I lowered my voice and gave Aurielle a brief glance.
"Margaret, did you notice that Aurielle seems a little different after yesterday’s incident?"
She blinked and gave me a puzzled look.
"She seems more possessive."
Her confusion only deepened.
After all, she had been with Aurielle since she woke up and hadn’t noticed anything particularly unusual.
"Nothing, my lord..."
She paused midway through her sentence as if suddenly remembering something.
"But I heard that the Silver Knight of Ashenford said you were dead. Only after hearing that did everything happen, and she lost consciousness."
She finished speaking and gave me a meaningful look.
"You should take better care of her, my lord. It seems she was deeply shocked by that."
I nodded lightly.
"Thanks."
With that, I quickened my pace and caught up with everyone.
After reaching the meeting room, we each took our seats.
Aurielle personally guided me toward the main seat before settling down on my right.
Aurora silently took her place behind me like an unwavering guardian.
The room gradually fell silent.
I looked around the table before taking out a sheet of paper.
"I toured the territory and identified several major problems."
My gaze swept across everyone present.
"If anyone has suggestions, feel free to speak."
Osric and Aurielle both nodded.
Finally, my eyes landed on the old man sitting nearby.
Edmund Blackwell.
Chief Financial Advisor of Blackstone Highlands.
A veteran administrator who had served the territory for many years.
Known for his strict budgeting, terrifying accuracy with numbers.
Despite his stern appearance, he genuinely cared for the people and remained one of Aurielle’s most trusted retainers.
Edmund slowly raised a hand.
I nodded.
"My lord, Baron Cedric has closed the river again with his dam."
His voice carried obvious anger.
"And it seems he has no intention of opening it this time."
The moment those words left his mouth, the atmosphere in the room became heavy.
Everyone’s expressions darkened.
Baron Cedric had done this many times before, and every time it created enormous difficulties for the territory.
Even Aurielle’s expression became unpleasant.
Seeing the mood sink, I calmly spoke.
"I’ve already dealt with the water problem for the territory. You don’t need to worry about it for at least a month."
"What?"
Everyone immediately stood up.
Shock filled their faces.
Aurielle merely smiled slightly.
I took out the Aqua Crystals and placed them on the table.
"You can also use these to refill wells and ponds throughout the territory."
I handed one crystal each to Osric, Edmund, and Aurielle.
The tension in the room instantly eased.
Relief appeared on their faces.
They sat back down.
"I’ve also dealt with the food problem for now."
I then explained the Mana Wheat Seeds.
By the time I finished, everyone was staring at me with speechless expressions.
It was as if they couldn’t believe that I had become lord only recently and had already solved two of the territory’s biggest problems.
I ignored their looks and continued.
"Now, another problem is unemployment and insecurity among our people."
The moment those words left my mouth, everyone’s expressions changed.
Several people clenched their fists.
Edmund sighed heavily before speaking.
"My lord, forgive me, but our territory has nearly five thousand poor civilians who mainly depend on farming."
He paused before continuing.
"We tried giving work to the adults before so they could support their families, but..."
His voice trailed off.
A struggling expression appeared on his face.
He couldn’t bring himself to finish.
I was about to urge him to continue when Aurielle spoke first.
"Edmund. Tell us."
Her voice was firm.
Edmund visibly flinched.
After taking a deep breath, he finally nodded.
"After your mother left, there was no one capable of properly governing the territory."
"Although I managed the finances and prevented excessive waste, Lady Evelyne—your aunt—was responsible for worker management, money distribution, and territory maintenance."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"But she never actually used the funds to repair the territory."
His expression darkened.
"Together with Roland, she frequently traveled to other cities to indulge in pleasure."
"As a result, enormous amounts of gold were wasted."
The room fell silent.
I looked toward Aurielle.
Disgust and displeasure were written all over her face.
BANG!
Her palm slammed heavily onto the table.
Edmund jumped slightly.
"Where is she?"
Aurielle’s voice had become ice cold.
Edmund answered nervously.
"My lord... she isn’t in the territory right now."
"She left for another city before you returned."
I placed a hand on Aurielle’s shoulder.
Her anger eased slightly.
Then I looked toward Edmund.
"Any other immediate problems?"
He nodded.
"Yes, my lord."
His expression became grim.
"There is the Blackstone Jackals gang."
"The gang has been terrorizing the people for years."
"They are responsible for many crimes throughout the territory."
He began listing them.
• Protection fees from vendors
• Illegal gambling
• Smuggling
• Extorting travelers
• Loan sharking
• Theft
The moment Aurielle and I heard that list, my face darkened.
I turned toward Osric.
He simply nodded.
Clearly, he already knew.
"Then why haven’t they been punished or imprisoned?"
My voice carried obvious anger.
Both Edmund and Osric visibly flinched.
Osric lowered his head before answering.
"My lord, it’s not that I never tried."
"Their leader is a Bronze Realm Knight."
"He also has several Iron Knights among his members."
I frowned.
"That doesn’t sound like a local gang."
"They sound more like a private army."
Osric nodded.
"Yes, my lord."
"There is definitely a noble supporting them from behind the scenes."
"We simply don’t know who."
"Lady Evelyne never ordered us to deal with them, and Roland, as vice captain, also chose to do nothing."
When he finally finished speaking, I slowly took a deep breath.
The room fell silent.
THUD.
I rose from my seat.
"Good."
A cold smile slowly appeared on my face.
Aurielle, Edmund, and Osric all looked at me.
Without another word, I began walking toward the door.
Aurora immediately followed behind me.
Confusion appeared on everyone’s faces.
Only Aurielle seemed to understand what was about to happen.
Then my voice echoed through the room.
"Osric."
"Order the one hundred Iron Knights and ten Bronze Knights of my Blackstone Legion to assemble."
The moment he heard that, Osric became visibly nervous.
"My lord, but what about the noble backing them?"
I stopped.
Slowly turning back, I looked directly at him.
Then a cold smile appeared on my face.
"To hell with them."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
"This is my territory."
"If they set foot here, then they follow my rules."
I paused.
My eyes became cold.
"Otherwise..."
"I’ll destroy them."
CREEEEAK.
The meeting room door slowly opened.
Without looking back again, I stepped outside.
Aurora followed silently behind me.
A second later, Osric hurriedly stood up and began issuing orders to the servants.
The Blackstone Legion was about to move.
[Chapter End]
