- This crazy bitch is in the dungeon!
- Yes, she is the one responsible for the death of her father, Lanpos III.
Two noisy aristocrats shared a very interesting opinion about the connection between the golden princess and the bloody mess. However, from the available data, "we" only have information about a man in dark clothes, capable of using the techniques of Gazef Stronoff, the captain of the guard.
Gazef... During the interrogation in Nazarick, the man held up well, completely ignoring physical torture, but he couldn't withstand mental torture. He completely broke down and was used by Demiurge to become a murder weapon. It's an interesting theory, to some extent it may be true. Are there any blank spots? There are a few. I personally saw the site of the royal family's massacre, someone was clearly artificially smearing the blood there.
Smeared... crazy bitch and dungeon...
— The guards said the culprit was a powerful criminal. Did you catch him?
- What? Who dared to blab?! - Aristocrats have been used to suppressing people with words since childhood, even they treated me like a second-class peasant.
And this despite the fact that living bodies of armed knights were lying next to me, and my rear was covered by a group of adamantite adventurers Blue Rose. They say it's true - only the grave can reform a man. If that's so, then so be it. A little later, I will get rid of ninety percent of the aristocracy, leaving the most influential, wise or capable alive. Everyone else will hide from death, but as we know, you can't run away from death.
- Hey you! I am Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra! Answer the question! - my companion demanded surprisingly loudly. And together with the dark blade pointed towards the aristocrat, her words had even more weight. An amazing girl, and also with character, that's what I like.
- Eeeek! - the man grimaced and quickly hid behind his girlfriend.
The common coward emerged from the woman's shoulders in fear, which made me feel a little sick, but this emotion quickly faded into the background. Each person is unique, so you need to try not to judge people too harshly.
- Dear... - the woman, whose shoulders the aristocrat grabbed, had an unsightly appearance, as well as a twisted face. Perhaps she is trying to hide her disgust for her husband. Or she is an ordinary mistress and is forced to remain silent. In fact, who will understand these aristocrats in such a short time in the new world?
"Don't think that you can do anything!" They pointed a finger at Lakyus, which distracted attention from the cowardly man. And this became the signal to begin bullying my companion.
- Yes, you ran away from home and no longer have the privileges of your family!
- I'll file a complaint with the adventurers' guild!
Like vultures they pounced on a socially weaker target, but their accusations brought something new. More information about my companions is worth a lot, for aristocrats have a clear advantage over adventurers, considering them like hired workers.
The second point is that Lakyus's title of nobility is in limbo because she ran away from home. Probably when she was little. Of course, this could be a pure lie. But you wouldn't know it from her companion's reaction; she clearly looked angry when the accusations rained down on her. Especially from where the Marquis was standing, hiding in the crowd.
"I propose a compromise," I quickly put the "noble aura" amulet away, turning it off and putting on another one. I had previously equipped an amulet in the form of a whistle, similar to a seashell. It gives an excellent boost to magic characteristics, but due to the weakness of the enemies, additional amplifiers were of no use. "Will you listen?" I politely suggested, but everyone backed away from me, except for Ivileye.
As if they felt a threat in me, like dangerous animals feel a threat from fire. Indeed, my natural aura does not inspire confidence, but on the contrary, has extremely frightening shades of an evil creature, often messing with the insides of living beings. However, Ivileye, as a vampire, is much more comfortable to be near her. The girl, against her will, began to move her legs in my direction, as if I were a magnet for her.
"You… Who are you?!" some of the aristocrats cried out loudly, quickly falling silent.
— For you, the Lord of Dawn, — the answer came out a little colder than usual, causing many to flinch. — I commend your ability to change topics and avoid awkward questions. However, due to the reckless actions of the assembled nobility — the ordinary people; plowmen or farmers, laundresses or blacksmiths, waitresses or carpenters. The lives of all your subjects have gone into limbo, — surprisingly, no one wanted to interrupt me, which is good. — And in these troubled times, we must unite our efforts, and not diminish them with unnecessary fuss, — a two-second pause, which is needed by those nobles who were near me. — Have you caught the criminal?
- He... he ran away! - the most fearful are usually the most talkative. - But we... the princess was covered in blood, and laughing madly! It's her fault! Now she has become the heir to the throne, but only a man can rule!
- That's right! We won't serve a crazy bitch!
The argument started again, but something had changed. The guards stopped showing any signs of aggression towards me, so the group of adventurers could lower their combat readiness. The aristocracy also considered me a dangerous factor without the amulet, but also someone with whom it was possible to negotiate. If we had had a calm time, we would have moved on to negotiations long ago. But somehow it turned out that only a rabble of aristocrats remained alive.
As if there had been an important meeting before, most likely regarding the destruction of the chimera. I see... I would have struck at the right time and place, and that's what Demiurge did. Before the important guests had time to get far from the king, he destroyed them with the hands of the missing Stronoff, and then helped him escape, or he managed it himself. Because people are too weak, it's hard to assess their abilities while they're gone.
What's next?
I see, all that's left is for me to make the demon's moves on this part of the chessboard, as I planned. I hope I'm not missing anything, and I don't want to get involved with the Demiurge. My wish is to see his game from start to finish, even if I have to participate in it myself. In this way, he will be able to strengthen his abilities, as well as accumulate merits... Although, he has already accumulated them to pass on our legacy with Ulbert to create an artifact that stores demonic offspring. The Demon King... Such a creature needs an army, strong and powerful, and I just have an item that will be a sip of water for him in the hot desert.
"I can establish the guilt or innocence of the princess," I took two small crystal balls from my inventory. They had been lying around unused for a long time, and in all fairness, these objects should have been thrown away long ago.
"They are powerful lie detectors," a half-truth. "But to use them I need two things: a volunteer and permission to use. After demonstrating the work, we will use the second item on the princess to fully understand the situation," I offered, with all my politeness, to act as a guinea pig to one of the aristocracy.
Although that's not the plan at all.
"Lord of Dawn..." Ivileye whispered quietly, lowering her head. "You have so many magical items..." Before she could ask the impolite question "from where", I decided to change the subject to a dead end.
- Don't worry, I only carry a handful with me. For a good cause, it costs nothing for a good person to spend these two spheres for the benefit of the people - all that remains is to find a good person.
- Hee-hee, - Kurumi laughed quietly, slowly understanding my idea. The girl plays far from the last role in it.
Starring: Tokisaki Kurumi, which sounds pretty good.
The problem remained small, and it is not about the trembling nobles who received an understanding of the upcoming troubles for their safety. Each of them tried not to open their mouths, so as not to provoke the hostile lords to offer them as a sacrifice. And my aura suppressed their will to resist well. Okay, since there are no volunteers...
I walked slowly towards where the Marquis was hiding. I didn't like this man right away, my intuition told me that he was a greedy and rotten man. Such people have many secrets that can sink their reputation to the bottom in the blink of an eye. And where one bottom is broken, the next one comes. Sooner or later, everything will lead to the chopping block for treason against the King. Now dead.
- What, where are you going?
"Don't worry, I was called a monster, so I want to make sure of something," I shrugged calmly and continued my way. I walked among the aristocrats like a king, completely ignoring the sidelong glances. True, the glances were not directed at me. Not at all, everyone was looking sideways at the dark corners of the room, further away from the black boots.
My black boots moved slowly but surely through the conference room with its luxurious chandelier and red walls. Until they brought me to a huddled group of mongrels. The aristocrats had suddenly experienced what scientists call "Enlightenment." In short, they had pushed the Marquis out of their crowd as if he were no longer with them, but just a drunkard who had wormed his way into their ranks. So, if everything went according to plan, it would be quite funny, but at the same time annoying. Oh, this contradictory inner world.
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