Chapter 63: Public Execution
Noah had never intended to show off the Enforcement Knights' strength.
After all, the current Enforcement Knights were merely in their infancy—far from complete. The alchemical potions needed upgrades, equipment required refinement, and even their training and combat experience fell short of Noah's standards.
To parade such a force as a display of power...
That was something Noah couldn't fathom.
Thus, he didn't dwell on the idea, instead directly announcing the public execution.
At Noah's command, Morgan activated the prearranged illusion magecraft.
First, a luminous ring encircled one of the nobles positioned prominently among the dozen or so aristocrats. Then, the people of Britain witnessed the scene shift to a massive manor.
A knight stationed there stepped forward, explaining that this manor belonged to the noble now trapped within the glowing ring. After the explanation, the knight led his team into the manor, breaching the noble's treasure vault.
Instantly, mountains of accumulated wealth, numerous fine weapons, and crates of gems made many Britons widen their eyes in astonishment.
Most of them had never seen—let alone possessed—such vast riches!
They were initially mesmerized.
The knight then systematically categorized the treasures, using markings and origins to detail where each item came from—such as relics from a famous blacksmith in the southern territories, or gemstones discovered in a specific region during a certain year.
Meanwhile, other knights gathered witnesses, bringing those nearby and using Morgan's magecraft to remotely contact those farther away.
Through the combined efforts of these witnesses and the knight, the people of Britain quickly learned how this noble's vault had become so overflowing!
Their expressions shifted from initial shock to furrowed brows, and finally to outright fury.
By the investigation's conclusion, even the knight in charge was stunned.
He couldn't help but remark, "I've participated in cleaning out treasure vaults many times while serving the previous king, but this is the first time I've seen one where every single gem and sword can be traced back to ill-gotten gains—with not a single item earned through honest effort!"
This exclamation resonated deeply with the British people.
In that moment, all of Britain cried out for the noble's execution.
Camelot was no exception.
The noble, who had always scorned the "common rabble," turned pale with terror. He finally realized the immense power of the people's collective voice—though it was the last time he would ever hear it.
"Execute!"
At Noah's order, an Enforcement Knight swung his greatsword, cleanly beheading the noble.
Blood pooled on the ground.
The other nobles were terrified and wailed incessantly, and only then did the people, who had been roaring in fury moments earlier, finally quiet down.
Their emotions gradually settled a little.
Noah simply waved his hand at this point.
He first ordered someone to clean up the noble's corpse and bloodstains, then...
"Next."
Noah had arranged the order for these dozen or so nobles according to their rank, from lowest to highest.
The first noble held the lowest rank, and the further down the list, the higher the rank.
This public execution truly opened the eyes of the people of Britain.
Though they had long been oppressed by these nobles, they had never realized just how many heinous deeds these aristocrats had committed!
Moreover, they had never imagined that these lofty noble lords could actually be executed!
Their heads could be chopped off too!
They would die when killed!
Their blood was also red!
They too would wail and weep in fear of death!
It was through such events that the people's perceptions subtly began to change.
As for the Twelve Lords, knights from various regions in the north and south, and the nobles of Camelot and the northern territories witnessing this scene—they felt anger, fear, and schadenfreude, but surprisingly few were particularly impressed by the wealth amassed in these nobles' households.
Those who were astonished by such riches were mostly knights.
Even the northern nobles, not known for their financial prowess, were hardly surprised by treasures of this scale.
After all, they were different from ordinary people.
In fact, some of them possessed treasuries far wealthier than those of these nobles.
After witnessing about ten cases, even the lords of the wealthiest northern royal domains began to murmur among themselves—were the southern nobles captured by the new king all minor aristocrats?
Weren't the southern nobles once reputed to be the richest in all of Britain?
Why did they now appear... rather mediocre?
A few of these nobles had some valuable possessions, but nothing extraordinary—not even comparable to what these northern lords possessed.
They weren't as wealthy as imagined.
This was the consensus among them.
Meanwhile, the public execution proceeded to its final subject: King Lucan's father-in-law.
This wasn't intentional on Noah's part—it just so happened that King Lucan's father-in-law held the highest rank among these nobles, indeed among all British aristocracy!
However, when the magical circle marked him, the people of Britain watching the luminous screen noticed that although the old man had been frightened upon seeing the earlier deaths, he never wailed or screamed like the other nobles.
And now, even as his own household was being investigated, he showed little fear.
Seeing this, Noah raised an eyebrow.
"Begin."
Although Noah had previously decided that if King Lucan's father-in-law truly hadn't embezzled to an extreme degree, he would postpone his execution until the time came to eliminate his entire family.
Beyond this consideration, he wouldn't show any special favoritism.
But observing the old noble's apparent lack of fear, he wondered—had the man truly not stolen that much?
With this thought, Noah recalled how each noble's treasury he'd seen appeared wealthier than the last...
The increasingly unpleasant expression on his face had now calmed down by about ten percent.
King Lucan, who had been closely observing Noah's expression all along, now had a flicker of delight in his eyes.
The people of Britain, who had previously seen so many noble treasuries that their hatred for the aristocracy was nearly boiling over, now felt a glimmer of expectation toward this nobleman upon seeing his fearless demeanor.
'After all, the king has arrested over a dozen nobles—surely at least one must be wrongly accused?'
The simple-hearted people of Britain couldn't help but think this way.
When they saw the largest castle they had encountered so far, they no longer tried to convince themselves that it might have been built through ancestral favors.
But when that massive treasury was opened...
Not just the people of Britain and Noah, even King Lucan nearly climbed onto the execution platform to righteously eliminate his own kin!
After all...
—There was just too much!