A Cunning Bandit with a Plan

Magnus Valorion leisurely played chess in the backyard for an hour, while Edmund Blackthorn and the others were in the hall for the same amount of time.

After standing in the hall for such a long time, Edmund Blackthorn and his group had their legs numb, and one by one, they collapsed to the ground, twisted and slumped.

Fortunately, Finnian did not come with them. His knees had already been injured, and if he had to stand like this, his wounded leg would likely be ruined.

While Edmund Blackthorn and the others were moaning in pain, a voice suddenly came from the inner room: "Magnus Valorion is here!"

A group of constables quickly emerged from the inner room, their footsteps solid and rhythmic, flowing into the hall like a stream. They split into two neat rows, standing tall and straight, resembling freshly cast bronze statues—cold and imposing.

"Lower your heads, all of you! No looking around!" one of the constables shouted while pointing his baton at the group.

Seeing this arrangement, Edmund Blackthorn and his companions couldn't help but feel a bit apprehensive. They all straightened up, carefully following the orders, their faces serious.

If it were an ordinary person who came here to report, the constables under Magnus Valorion's command would not be so arrogant. But since the people who came this time were from the three major families, Magnus Valorion had certainly given orders to treat them with proper "hospitality."

Several minutes passed, and Magnus Valorion leisurely walked out from the inner room and sat down at the table in the hall.

Suddenly, Magnus Valorion slammed his hand down onto the table, and the sound of wood striking wood rang out like thunder, shaking the entire room, and the air seemed to freeze.

"Who are you? What grievance brings you here to report?"

The leader of the Blackthorn family, Edmund Blackthorn, and the manager, Victor Blackthorn, both felt the voice was somewhat familiar. They looked up, trying to see the speaker.

"Don't look up!" a constable barked sharply.

"I am Edmund Blackthorn, the leader of the Blackthorn family. I have come to report... report the heinous criminal, Sinbad!"

"You... you..."

Though the constable's voice was loud, Edmund Blackthorn could not resist his curiosity. He stole a glance at the person sitting at the table.

Upon seeing this person, Edmund Blackthorn froze. The person before him was not Magnus Valorion; it was none other than the bandit "Sinbad"!

Although he had only seen him twice, Edmund Blackthorn would recognize Sinbad even if he turned to ash.

"But... wasn't Sinbad supposed to be managing the neighboring Green River Town after his surrender? Could it be that he feels Green River Town is too poor, so he secretly exchanged jurisdictions with Magnus Valorion?"

The more Edmund Blackthorn thought about it, the more convinced he became of his theory.

Bang! Magnus Valorion slammed the table again!

"How dare you, you villain! Do you know according to the law of the Great Latium Imperium, when commoners report an official, regardless of whether there is concrete evidence or not, they must first receive fifty lashes!"

"Guards, give this villain fifty lashes!"

Upon hearing this, Edmund Blackthorn nearly lost half his life right there. As for the other half, it would probably be gone after fifty lashes.

Just as the constables grabbed Edmund Blackthorn, he immediately panicked and began to explain, "No, no, I'm not here to report you, my lord! I... I... I am simply overjoyed to meet you!"

"Yes... overjoyed! It is an honor to meet you, we have long admired your name! You are our sun, we are your people, all owing you our gratitude!"

To save his skin, the barely-educated Edmund Blackthorn began to spew every flattering phrase he could think of.

Magnus Valorion, somewhat disgusted by this flattery, waved his hand impatiently. Two constables immediately let go of Edmund Blackthorn.

"Quickly, speak up! What grievance do you have? Who is it you wish to report?"

Edmund Blackthorn was on the verge of tears, but beside him, Walter Ravenswood poked him in the side, urging him to quickly explain the situation.

What was there to explain? The one who had sent men to rob the grain was him, and now he was here to report it!

No wonder Edmund Blackthorn had recognized the cattle hauling the grain at the warehouse—those cattle were from his own family.

He could only look miserable and say, "My lord, today, we were peacefully working at our family estate when the leader of the Servenia family, Adrian Servenia, along with Finnian, barged into our estate and began violently beating up our family members."

"My lord, look! Our family's Victor Blackthorn has been beaten so badly, he only has three teeth left! You must seek justice for us!"

Seeing the "Sinbad" that they had encountered earlier, Victor Blackthorn obediently opened his mouth to show the three remaining teeth, and while pretending to look painful (though he was truly in pain), he cried out, "Woo woo!" while pointing at Adrian Servenia, the head of the Servenia family.

When Walter Ravenswood and his group had previously been robbed by Magnus Valorion, they were all wearing masks, so they had never seen Sinbad's true face. They could not understand why Edmund Blackthorn suddenly turned against them.

"No, no, Edmund Blackthorn, we didn't come here to report this matter!" Walter Ravenswood said, utterly confused.

Edmund Blackthorn collapsed to the floor.

Magnus Valorion had witnessed Edmund Blackthorn's flexibility, but he never expected him to be so clever! He was willing to forgo the grain that had been stolen from them to save his own skin.

"Adrian Servenia, why did you lead men to break into the Blackthorn family estate and injure them so severely?" Magnus Valorion turned to ask.

Adrian Servenia was at a loss, but beside him, Walter Ravenswood yelled, "My lord, we did not come here for this trivial matter!"

"Oh? Injuries are trivial? Then tell me what the 'big matter' is," Magnus Valorion replied.

Walter Ravenswood directly took over from Edmund Blackthorn and began to recount his group's grievances, painting a picture of just how wronged they had been, and describing "Sinbad" as a ruthless and violent criminal.

"So, you really intend to report Sinbad for robbing your grain?" Magnus Valorion asked.

All the family members, kneeling in the hall, nodded in unison, recounting how much grain had been stolen from them.

"Then, Edmund Blackthorn, was your grain also taken by Sinbad?"

Edmund Blackthorn quickly shook his head, saying, "Grain? What grain? This year, there has been a famine and drought. The imperial court has already ordered a tax exemption. We have no grain reserves in our estate!"

The very clever Alaric Hawthorne quickly spoke up, "Edmund Blackthorn, what's the matter with you? Don't you remember? Your family was buying up grain frantically, claiming you would monopolize it..."

Edmund Blackthorn immediately denied everything, saying, "I didn't! I didn't! Stop spreading rumors!"

Magnus Valorion, satisfied with Edmund Blackthorn's performance, turned to ask the other family heads, "Which Sinbad are you reporting?"

Walter Ravenswood swore solemnly, "My lord, I am reporting the town head of Green River Town, the former bandit leader Sinbad. It was he who stole our grain!"

Suddenly, Magnus Valorion raised his voice again, "Have you thought this through? Sinbad is now an official of the imperial court. If you report an official, that would be a case of commoners suing officials. You would have to receive fifty lashes!"

Walter Ravenswood, Alaric Hawthorne, and the others exchanged glances before nodding firmly. They had no idea why Edmund Blackthorn was desperately trying to signal them, urging them to stop.

"That's right, my lord. We are reporting the town head, Sinbad."

"Good! Before I punish you, tell me how Sinbad's men robbed you. Do you have any evidence? If there is solid proof, even if it reaches the emperor, I will have him impeached!"

One of the Hawthorne family's grain managers, Norsen Hawthorne, immediately said, "I was a witness. The robbers had a skull-and-crossbones flag. I remember it clearly!"

Magnus Valorion feigned shock, "Is this really true? Show me a drawing of that flag!"

The clerk beside Magnus Valorion provided paper and ink, and soon, Norsen Hawthorne had drawn the flag.

Magnus Valorion pretended to be shocked, holding the drawing of the flag in front of him and asking, "You drew this flag just now. Are you sure it was the one used by the robbers?"

Norsen Hawthorne hurriedly replied, "I'm the grain manager for the Hawthorne family. I was present when the grain was being transported. I guarantee the truth of what I said!"

"Then look again. Is this flag really like that?" Magnus Valorion tossed the flag and asked Norsen Hawthorne to confirm.

Norsen Hawthorne looked again and had everyone from the other families verify it. After confirming it was the same, he felt a sense of relief.

Seeing the conspiracy succeed, Magnus Valorion immediately shouted, "Ha! Not only are you here to make false reports, but you even slander an official of the imperial court!"

"The flag that Sinbad used earlier was the Skull-and-Crossed-Daggers flag, with two daggers on it. But why does the flag you drew only have one dagger?!"

"From this, it seems that the person who robbed your grain is someone else, not Sinbad! According to the law, you should be punished for both crimes, thrown into prison, and sentenced to death by hanging!"

"However, I see that you are not intentionally slandering, and must have been deceived by evil people. Since I am of a kind heart, you will only be punished with fifty lashes for your mistake this time!"

Following Magnus Valorion's orders, two teams of constables immediately dragged everyone from the hall, except for those from the Blackthorn family such as Edmund Blackthorn and Victor Blackthorn, into the torture room to receive their punishment.

Hearing their screams echoing through the room, Edmund Blackthorn finally understood what it meant to deal with a cunning bandit—he was the most terrifying of all.

Sinbad was not only a thug with physical strength, but also a thorough conspirator, and dealing with him was no easy task!