Volume 6 Chapter 52 Interlude - Luke and Cecilia
"The purpose of this trip..."
Cecilia murmured.
Alfred nodded in agreement. "Yes, the purpose."
Luke and Cecilia both knew the purpose of the journey was to counter the Pilgrim of Truth, by establishing alliances and using that as a reason to bring Cecilia and Fried together.
"Speaking of which, Conrad mentioned earlier that the Gardner family had been taken over by the Pilgrim of Truth..."
As Cecilia continued, Luke let out a sigh and said, 'As I thought.'"
One of the Four Saints was present.
It wouldn't be strange at all if they were involved.
Even so, it felt strange considering the reason for their journey.
It made sense that alliances were needed to fight the Pilgrim of Truth.
You never knew where the fanatics might infiltrate from.
Forming strong connections and preventing intrusion was the right choice.
But the need for military force didn't sit right with him.
It was necessary, yes, but right now, only the 3 families, including Hartfield, were linking the kingdom with the Pilgrim of Truth and the empire.
Even the kingdom's government was skeptical, yet Gardner had proposed Cecilia's betrothal in exchange for military support. It was unnatural.
"So Sir Count thought from the start that this was suspicious..."
"That's right. To be precise, the Gardner family had been suspicious for a while."
Alfred spoke of events even before the Pilgrim of Truth gained recognition.
For example, the harbor renovations.
A larger harbor meant more taxes paid to the kingdom.
But the Gardner family had only made the harbor bigger, without expanding its trading routes.
The unnatural renovations, besides the increased tax burden on the citizens, were a huge problem if you considered a potential imperial invasion.
A harbor large enough for a fleet to dock.
Then there was the hiring of servants.
Of course, that wasn't strange on its own.
But a long-serving head butler retiring and being replaced by a new one was unusual.
Especially in an old, established family, and one not as large as Braubelg.
In such cases, internal promotions were the norm.
And, troop placement changes.
It's not uncommon, but the coastal defenses are a little thinner than before.
It only makes sense to allocate personnel to that area if you've expanded the harbor.
Then there's the change in Count Gardner's connections.
The change in individuals coming and going from the Count's house is unnatural, considering the trade routes haven't changed.
"There's more..."
"Sir Fried's change of heart, perhaps?"
As Luke spoke, he recalled the scene he'd seen at the gate a few hours earlier.
"You're right. Fried was known as a very honest and serious man. And he was..."
Alfred continued, " ...deeply devoted, even in his unbending loyalty."
Alfred's point was that Fried had a close relationship with Elaina, a merchant guild master.
It was well-known throughout town, and Count Gardner had fully approved of the connection, as it strengthened his ties to the merchant guild.
So, the sudden rupture was highly unnatural.
"And on top of that, a marriage proposal to my daughter."
Out of the blue, a marriage proposal had come, despite there being almost no prior interaction.
It was too suspicious.
Alfred suspected that the Count Gardner family had been taken over by the [Pilgrim of Truth].
"That's when Victor contacted me. About brainwashing people with martial knowledge and its problems."
"Speaking of which..."
Luke recalled what Randy and the others had discovered about the limits of brainwashing.
"I got it! This information is aimed directly at us."
Alfred explained that the information was a ploy to conceal the takeover of the renowned Gardner family by the [Pilgrim of Truth].
Of course, what Randy and the others had predicted wasn't wrong either, but it was a strategic move to cover up the true secrets they wanted to hide.
"That means Sir Fried's strange feeling when he spoke about Sir Cedric..."
"It was probably a subtle hostility, directed by the will of the [Pilgrim of Truth]."
Was it surprising that he only revealed hostility for a fleeting moment?
Should Cecilia be commended for noticing it?
Regardless, even with Fried's usual training, there must have been a threat potent enough to be controlled to such an extent.
"Therefore, I purposely decided to accept this invitation."
Alfred said that by venturing into enemy territory, they would thwart their opponent's plans.
"Then, why keep it a secret from just us...?"
"You lot still haven't mastered the art of guile, have you? I thought it would be better to keep it hidden from the enemy, lest they become suspicious."
As Alfred shrugged, a commotion suddenly erupted from the hallway beyond.
Footsteps thumped closer, rounding the corner of the hallway, and Conrad stepped forward, followed by Gardner's knights, Gardner's family, the steward Nicholas, and finally, Hartfield's knights.
"Wh-what is this...?"
The Gardner family gasped, shocked to see Horace's lifeless body, while Nicholas recoiled slightly.
He was clearly trying to make his escape, but his retreating back bumped into Robert.
"Where are you going?"
Robert's chilling smile twisted Nicholas's face.
"Wh-where... I... I'll... I'll call a healer..."
"There's no need. He's already dead."
Robert winked, adding with a smile,
"My knight was attacked. Of course, as the Gardner family, you'll provide a satisfactory explanation, yes?"
Count Gardner stared at Alfred with a bewildered expression, uttering, "Attacked?"
His eyes were vacant, unfocused.
The same could be said for his son Fried, who appeared to be under a form of mind control, the spell perhaps starting to break.
"Cecily, you mentioned receiving magic guidance from Lady Eleonora, right?"
Cecilia explained to Alfred that she had only been taught the basics of multiple chanting.
"Multiple Chanting! That's... a technique reserved for the chosen few..."
Nicholas shouted instinctively, only to hastily cover his mouth, realizing too late the words had slipped out.
"I knew it, you're one of the dark ones."
In an instant, Robert pinned Nicholas down with powerful ease.
"Tough luck. My daughter is both charming and gifted, but she doesn't possess the magic to break hypnosis."
Nicholas gritted his teeth and glared at the grinning Alfred. "You've plotted this, haven't you?"
"It's your own misunderstanding."
With a sigh, Alfred produced a pendant from around his neck and held it up to the dazed Count Gardner.
As Count Gardner stared at the pendant's faint glow, clarity returned to his eyes.
"Sir Hartfield..."
"Lord Gardner, how do you feel now?"
"My mind is clear. It seems I've caused quite the trouble."
Bowing his head, Count Gardner turned to Fried, slapping his cheek with a firm hand. "Come back to your senses."
It was a rather Victor-like action, but even as Fried rubbed his cheek, light sparked back into his eyes, proving that warriors in this world were often quite simple-minded.
"Father..."
"And you, too, must apologize."
Following Count Gardner's lead, Fried also bowed his head to Alfred and then to Cecilia.
"My lord, what are you doing? Those men are murderers in our mansion──"
"Silence! I've seen enough to know you're in league with them. There's no use in trying to weasel out of it now."
Nicholas clicked his tongue in annoyance, turning his face away from Count Gardner's imposing presence.
From that point on, events unfolded rapidly.
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