By the time Lancer arrived at the Northern Fortress, another city had fallen in the south of the empire.
And in the center of the city square, a 'fat man' in an impeccably tidy suit was standing in the middle of the square with a serious expression, shouting something loudly.
"...The empire has lasted for a thousand years, the royal family has worked diligently, and the people of the empire live in peace and contentment. But now, a treacherous minister is in power and has blinded the sacred ear! The 'treacherous minister' Lancer, relying on the grace of having protected the emperor in the past, runs rampant and unrestrained. Not only does he kidnap women he desires, but he also forces them to become slaves! My son, because he did not submit, ended up meeting a murderous end..."
At this time, the man standing in the square spoke with a voice that was full of sobs, and the surrounding people were all talking among themselves.
In the end, after this 'poor man' was escorted away by his guards, the crowd did not disperse for a long time. At the same time, some people took the opportunity to hand out flyers to the crowd.
The flyers were all about the crimes of the 'treacherous minister, Lancer.'
From the most ordinary 'kidnapping women' to 'blinding the sacred ear', a total of ten major crimes were listed for Lancer.
Coupled with the fact that Lancer reputation was built on the 'slaughter of foreign tribes', everyone's preconceived notion of him was that he was an extremely brutal person. Now, looking at the seemingly irrefutable flyers and the 'former governor' and 'former Minister of Finance of the empire,' who had a 'good reputation,' everyone believed half of it.
As the saying goes, 'those who eat from your hand will be loyal, and those who take from you will be indebted.' Since the 'Justice Army' had attacked the city, they not only didn't harm the common people, but they also opened the granaries and directly announced that all taxes would be waived for the next year.
Although the previous city lord hadn't done anything bad, he was a bit inferior to the man in front of them. Furthermore, they had heard that the previous city lord was a comrade of the 'treacherous minister, Lancer,' so it seemed like a good thing that he was arrested?
Honest, who was escorted and got into his carriage, grabbed a towel from the table and wiped his face as soon as he closed the carriage door.
But at this moment, a calm male voice came from across from him.
"You really are something, Mr. Honest. You're so good~ I almost believed it myself."
Honest, on the other hand, was not surprised at all. Instead, he calmly wiped his entire face clean before speaking.
"I was only speaking the 'truth.' At most, I just left out a few things, don't you agree? Mr. Governor~"
There was a smile on Honest's face as usual, and there was no trace of the grief he had shown for his 'son' just now. As for the governor opposite him, he just shook his head helplessly. He really couldn't bring himself to like this 'accomplice' of his. Or rather, the first thing he would do once the 'plan' succeeded was to get rid of the other party, because the other party was simply too dangerous.
He was also not young and had seen his share of good and bad people, but he had never seen anyone like the other party. The way he completely followed his own desires was simply... terrifying.
"I guess so. I came to tell you that the person you mentioned earlier has been contacted."
Honest, who had been smiling, suddenly had an expression of ecstasy.
"That's great~! It's absolutely wonderful~! The most important chess piece is finally in my hands!"
The governor didn't seem to understand Honest's reaction. In his opinion, the other party had several Imperial Arms users under him, and the remnants of the Royal Fist Temple had also gathered under him. No matter how strong that 'Lancer' was, he wouldn't dare to act recklessly. Wasn't the fact that Honest hadn't been assassinated until now the best proof? If the other party were truly strong to the point of being a BUG, they wouldn't have been able to survive until now.
But Honest just smiled and shook his finger.
"I do have a lot of people under me, but I lack a character who can 'decide everything with one punch.' This time is all for this~ Well, I won't say any more. You'll know once the person arrives~"
Honest seemed to be in a good mood at this time, and he wasn't sad at all about his 'son's' matter. After all, as he said: 'It's just a son? If he dies, I'll just have another one.'
What he was thinking about now was, 'Although that city lord isn't good-looking, his daughter isn't bad.'
Although Lancer had never shown any signs, in Leone eyes, she had already taken a big step forward!
She knew that with her status, it was unlikely that she would become Lancer main wife. After all, with Lancer current status, he would definitely marry a noblewoman in the future. It was even possible that the emperor would marry his daughter to him, but she wasn't worried at all, because she trusted Lancer!
She might not fully understand Lancer, but the little things they had shared together made her realize that Lancer was a 'responsible' person. Even if the other person got married in the future, he would still protect her~
Perhaps because the iron collar on her neck had been removed, or because of Lancer 'promise' before he left, Leone was in a very happy mood today. She even deliberately 'disguised' herself and planned to go out for a walk.
Although Lancer had never forbidden her to go out before, every time she went out, she had to endure the scrutiny of passersby. But this time was different. She would even unconsciously hold her head high to show her smooth neck. Although this might seem a bit childish, it truly showed how she was feeling at this moment.
It was still the familiar Imperial Capital, but it gave her a feeling of 'strangeness.'
After thinking for a while, she finally realized what was different. The nobles who were always arrogant and seemed to be superior to everyone else had all disappeared. Although the streets seemed to be a lot more noisy than usual, she actually felt more comfortable, because she didn't have to be careful and walk around certain people everywhere.
'Is all this because of what master did?'
Leone didn't understand 'political balance' and had no idea that Lancer was actually on the brink of a volcano. She just felt that with Lancer efforts, the entire Imperial Capital had become 'better.'
And coincidentally, the 'auction house' on the street corner started its promotions again.
Leone was very curious about this but didn't pay too much attention to it. After all, whether it was before or now, she didn't have the money to go to such a place. However, the promoter on the street didn't seem to think so and directly handed her a flyer.
Although she was a thief from the slums, Leone at least knew how to read a few words. After all, if she didn't know anything when she sold the things she stole, she would have been scammed countless times. After reading it, a strange expression appeared on her face, because this auction was quite different from what she had imagined.
According to the flyer, the number of items being auctioned this time was a lot. Besides the few fine pieces that made up the special auction, some ordinary items were available for anyone to view and purchase.
Why was it so strange? It was simple: because these auction items were all from the nobles who had been beheaded and had their homes raided.
The most valuable items were naturally handed over directly to the national treasury. The average ones were auctioned off to the rich. Some items that were not sold and some things that were looked down upon were put in this 'large-scale auction.'
In short, although it sounded grand, it was actually just a 'flea market' or a 'second-hand market.'
Anyone who came could participate, and a curious Leone also decided to go and check it out...