The sudden string of disappearances, the successive destruction of several frontier outposts, and the spreading fog in the Black Forest all gave Sir Casla an excruciating headache.
On one hand, there was the paladin's grim warning—a disaster that could engulf and annihilate the entire city. On the other, there was his own unspeakable secret: together with Antoine, he had been smuggling weapons and armor to the orcs.
If the paladins were to uncover this, it would not only be the two of them who would suffer—their entire families would be dragged down and hanged from the city walls! Worse still, once the paladins began using large-scale Detect Evil to distinguish the loyal from the corrupt, the city's noble class would be caught in one sweeping purge.
It wouldn't just be the Chaos cultists being rooted out; Port Anthony itself would become the Church's next grand cleansing.
When that happened, the aristocracy would take a devastating blow, while the Church's influence within the city would rise dramatically.
Back when the Far South Colonies were first being developed, the earliest pioneers from the Old World had been led by a coalition of great noble houses. Determined not to let the Church restrain their power here as it had done back in the Old World, the lord of Port Anthony had, since the city's founding, worked tirelessly to suppress the Church's presence.
But if the paladins were unleashed… they would burn away every trace of shadow and ambiguity from the city, destroying all the "gray zones" that the nobles depended on to maintain their wealth. That meant he, too, would make enemies of the entire noble circle.
After all, the Far South colonies served as a vital hub for trade. Every year, endless streams of wealth flowed between the New and Old World—through smuggling, slavery, and the black market. And behind every criminal network, every shady operation, there stood a noble patron.
"No. Absolutely not!" Sir Casla clenched his teeth and made up his mind. He glared at the paladin and declared firmly,
"I've already recalled the anti-pirate inspection teams to strengthen the city's guard. We have enough manpower now. I'll go to the Count immediately and obtain the highest level of investigative authority. I will find those wretched heretics myself!"
The young paladin looked at him deeply and said, "The Church's patience has its limits. If, by nightfall tomorrow, the chaos in this city has not been contained, I will unite the local clergy and take matters into our own hands. And if the disappearances truly are the work of these cultists, then with the number of victims you've allowed to vanish, they may already have enough for their ritual sacrifices."
…
Elsewhere—deep in the slums.
Aldric, seated across from the gang member, was intrigued by what this man had called "a little secret of the slums."
"I was originally planning to find a random guide," Aldric said casually, pulling up a tall stool and sitting down before the man named Bram.
Beside him, the female warrior remained tense and ready, her presence alone keeping Rusk and his men frozen in place.
"But now," he continued, his tone calm but cold, "I find myself very interested in your little secret. Speak."
Bram wanted nothing more than to slap himself. Why couldn't I just keep my mouth shut? Why did I have to brag?
But the sharp, focused gaze of the Cerysian man before him left no room for hesitation. Bram swallowed hard and decided to tell the truth. Something deep in his gut told him that lying to this man would end very, very badly.
"Alright," he said finally, his voice trembling. "I—I stumbled onto this by accident. Not even Boss Rusk knows about it." He glanced nervously at Rusk, who was now flashing an ingratiating smile at the female warrior, too busy flattering her to react.
Relieved, Bram continued, "There's a group in the slums, claiming to act under the banner of the Young Count. We call them the Blood Howl Gang. Their main trades are weapons… and corpses. As long as you've got a body, they'll pay for it."
Bram watched the Cerysian carefully. Seeing no expression of outrage or moral fury, he felt a bit more confident that this wasn't one of those "justice-obsessed adventurers" who killed evildoers on sight. His chances of survival seemed to improve considerably.
"Everyone knows they claim to serve the lord," he went on, "but in truth, they're working for Lord Antoine…"
Aldric interrupted, frowning. "Antoine? Who is that?"
He had a feeling that both this Blood Howl Gang and the mysterious Antoine were tied to his current mission. The warehouse he had been sent to investigate was supposed to be filled with dwarven-forged weapons three months from now.
Bram's eyes darted between the two strangers. Their ignorance of Antoine's identity convinced him they couldn't be agents of the city's nobility—no one from the upper circles could be so uninformed. That meant they were probably investigating the disappearances.
"Lord Antoine," Bram explained, "is the steward of the Anthony family—the real master of Port Anthony, sir." He hesitated, then added, lowering his voice, "But what I'm about to say next… is something only I know."
At that, even Rusk, who had been standing by awkwardly, perked up, staring at the man in disbelief.
Bram took a breath, savoring the suspense, then said, "The truth is, the Blood Howl Gang really does belong to the Young Count himself. Lord Antoine might not even know the gang is actually working for Count Anthony."
The revelation stunned everyone.
"That's impossible!" Rusk blurted out. "I've seen Lord Antoine's own agents working with the Blood Howl Gang—cleaning up their messes! He even collects his share of the profits every month!"
Bram nodded slowly. "Yes, sir, that's what everyone thinks. On the surface, Antoine controls the gang. But one day, I discovered something by accident."
He leaned forward, voice trembling as he recalled. "It was along the river. I spotted a corpse floating there. I thought I could fish it out and sell it to the Blood Howl Gang for some pocket change. But before I got close, two men came walking along the bank, talking about something I wasn't supposed to hear. I didn't dare move. I hid myself in the mud near their side of the shore, barely breathing."
Bram paused, his face pale as he relived the memory.
"I recognized one of the voices—it was Colin, the leader of the Blood Howl Gang. He was reporting the gang's profits to someone else. He said Antoine was still completely in the dark, and assured the other man not to worry. Then he mentioned that the recent operation hadn't gone smoothly and that he needed to speed things up.
"The other person's voice… was young. Very young. He didn't seem to agree with Colin's methods and even warned him not to go too far. But after a short hesitation, he told Colin that as long as they didn't alert the nobles or the Church, they could continue operating in the slums and should complete their task as soon as possible."
Bram's voice trembled harder now. He lifted his eyes to meet Aldric's. "Sir, I know you probably think I'm just a petty thief, a street rat—but I grew up here. The slums are my home. Boss Rusk gave me work when I was starving, and for that I'll always be grateful. But I know his kind. If I tell him this secret, he'll have this whole gang wiped out just to keep it quiet. So, I'm telling you. Please, take this to the Church!"
Before anyone could react, Bram blurted out the last part:
"Because… after they left, I couldn't resist. I peeked out and caught a glimpse of the second man's back. Under the moonlight, his hair was white-gold. In this city, only members of the Anthony family have hair like that.
"I didn't realize it at the time, but later I figured out what their 'mission' must be. The Blood Howl Gang's main business is buying corpses—but no one knows why. No one knows who they sell them to. But ever since that night, the disappearances began. In the past few months alone, nearly four hundred people have vanished from the slums!
"I don't know what they're planning, but whatever it is—it can't be anything good!"
(End of Chapter)
TN: Damn I was so confuse editing this before finally reading it all before editing it again. Went from working for the young count to the steward then back again to the count.