Chapter 8

A knight wasn't a title. Rather it was a designation of strength. A stage in a warrior's journey towards strength. Few could become a Knight. Fewer still could transcend that level and become a Grand Knight.

Just a Knight was enough to destroy a hundred ordinary warriors. The pressure alone was enough to paralyze commoners with fear. The Baron was actually a Knight, was actually a huge news. Why the Baron would keep it a secret for so long was puzzling to the guards who remained.

The three brothers turned and saw the fear and sadness in their villagers eyes. Sighing, the rage in their eyes disappeared. They dropped their weapons.

"This bloodshed is a tragedy for our Barony. We have disappointed the village of Herish, but we shall have bloodshed no more. Capture all of them." The Baron replied calmly.

The guards, who were deflated did as asked. The villagers did not resist anymore. A parade of prisoners slowly walked towards the town of Mith. The Baron caught hold of one of the horses brought by the rebel guards, grabbed his still unconscious son and rode back to the Mansion.

This incident had been a terrible disaster for the Barony. Not only was an entire village destroyed, almost three fifths of the guards, including the rebels were lost.

The incredible details of the event somehow managed to reach the ears of Baron Katich, who spread it right to the Viscount and Count. Baron Mith had quickly become a laughing stock and his two sons Jain and Trive were considered idiots and wastrels.

Meanwhile, in the mansion, Baron Mith's middle aged physique seemed to have aged 20 years. His hair had turned white, his face filled with wrinkles. The confident glare in his eyes disappeared. The Herish Village incident had shocked him to the core.

Jain, was crippled. Even the priests of the Sun temple had been called for their blessings, but it was all for nought. Wounds could be healed, but Jain had damaged his spine. Only a very powerful healing mage might be able to solve his predicament,however, such mages were fleeting and not someone a mere Baron could summon. He could only move around in a wheelchair for life.

Meanwhile, in the streets of town Mith, people began to agitate again when a dead body was discovered. The person who died seemed to have been the popular bar's owner as well.

The Barony's administrator wing was put under heavy work. Which meant Hess and Locke were now working overtime. An entire village had been massacred or imprisoned. The economy of that village was lost. At the same time, several guards had lost their lives, and the Barony would have to pay their families service fees. Several horses had died. The guards now needed to be retrained and refilled with men. Lot of weapons and armor had been destroyed. All in all it was an absolute mess.

Coupled with the fact that the Barony of Mith had become a complete laughing stock among nobility, Hess and Locke had a headache on their hands.

"What are you looking at?" Hess asked Locke, who was urgently making some calculations from the accounts of the town's trade.

"I think I am onto something." Locke replied as he began calculating even faster. He began taking out multiple scrolls and analyzing suspicious details. Ofcourse, this was all a performance. He had already done this work a long time ago.

After around half an hour, Locke finally turned his head up towards Hess. "I have found something serious. We need an audience with the Baron again."

This time, the two had been immediately led into the Baron's study. Both Hess and Locke showed a shocked expression when they saw the Baron's condition, who gave a dry laugh.

"I sacrificed my lifespan to temporarily become a knight." The Baron said hollowly. Locke could see that the Baron had lost not just his physical vigor, but his domineering mentality as well. The Herish Village incident seemed to have broken him.

Hess then turned to Locke, urging him to speak. Locke coughed then nodded.

"Three days ago, a day after the battle, the death of a person was reported in the town. The man was reportedly healthy, and had no prior illnesses. While his death might seem suspicious, this alone wasn't enough to pique my interest." Locke said, as he saw the other two urging him to continue.

"The curious thing about this man, who went by the name Worsh was that he was the owner of the popular bar, a place Trive frequently visited to get drunk. The supposed rape, was also claimed to occur in this bar's back alleyway.

This, combined with his sudden death made me suspicious. So I decided to analyze the accounts of the bar. There have been several suspicious trade and manpower exchange activities in the accounts with a contact in the Katich Barony.

The flow of money is particularly similar to one of a spy network. Coupled with the fact that details of the Herish Village event as well as inside details such as the accusations against Trive were leaked by Baron Katich before most of Barony Mith even knew about it, makes me suspect that this entire scheme was constructed by Baron Katich. However, his spy, this Worsh, must have had an inside collusion with someone in the Mansion."

Locke sighed, and then stopped. Hess was wide eyed, and quickly began reading Locke's calculations before shaking his head more and more. He wanted to yell 'Genius!' more than once, but he knew the situation was extremely bleak at the moment.

"Locke's hypothesis along with these calculations hold a considerable amount of weight. They could even be used in the King's court against Baron Katich." Hess said with a sigh.

The Baron, however, seemed to have aged considerably. "Baron Katich, huh. And a spy inside out Mansion? I am starting to have my doubts verified. But I need to talk with Katich directly."