Chapter 855 The Jester
“This is a fly I created by rapidly growing maggots. It’s connected to my consciousness and carries no magic power, making it an excellent tool for tracking. I don’t need to control it; I just give it a command, and it will follow the two of them on its own.
Amelia and I continued upstairs, trying not to arouse suspicion. Amelia asked me, “Was that person just now trying to kill you?”
Fortunately, I trusted Amelia and explained the whole situation. Otherwise, if Amelia hadn’t known about my conflict with the Chief Knight, she would have directly said we were looking for students from the Magic Academy, and Albrisque, no matter how foolish, would have immediately realized.
“Yes, that was close. I didn’t expect him to be here. But the person by his side also seems suspicious. Who is he?” I said. The truly troublesome one was the one who appeared to be a clownish courtier.
“That one, he seems to be the Lord of the City’s jester, I think his name is Rodrigo? I don’t know him very well,” Amelia replied. After all, she was just a doctor who occasionally visited the Lord of the City’s mansion, and much of her intelligence was second-hand.
“Jester?” I asked, puzzled. It wasn’t a very positive term. It usually referred to positions like court musician or court jester, someone who provided amusement or flattery to their lord.
People in such unofficial positions typically lacked any real talent. They excelled only at bowing and scraping, sucking up, and flattering, with no practical use. If the lord felt they were no longer useful, they would be dismissed at any time.
Therefore, jesters would do their utmost to please the lord, even if it meant violating principles, flattering insincerely, and distorting right from wrong. They greatly influenced the lord’s judgment. Generally, wise lords would not have such positions unless they intended to humiliate one of their subordinates.
No wonder he was dressed so flamboyantly; he was a jester. But I didn’t think he was a foolish person. Judging by his alertness and caution just now, and what the Chief Knight said about him suggesting the soldiers desert, I felt he was not simple.
I had already suspected in the hall that the Lord of the City had tacitly allowed the soldiers to desert, as it was a brilliant move to completely sever ties with them. This would be the same for Albrisque; if the soldiers fled out of guilt, no one would expose him as the mastermind behind the order for the soldiers to claim false merits and amass wealth.
If it was the jester who suggested this plan to the Chief Knight, it indicated he was not only intelligent but also deeply entangled in this matter. He could even be the mastermind behind the mastermind.
It was quite a coincidence that I ran into him chatting with the Chief Knight. Of course, I wouldn’t let this clue go to waste. I controlled the fly to follow them from a distance, and soon they disappeared into a small room.
It seemed they also realized that speaking loudly in the corridor could easily lead to encountering someone passing by, like two doctors. Therefore, it was better to find a secluded room to discuss matters.
However, this seemingly sealed secret room was as good as nonexistent to a fly that could get anywhere. The fly I controlled actually crawled under the door.
Inside, it was an armory, displaying knives, spears, axes, and even firearms. It seemed to be for the soldiers stationed in the castle. I didn’t expect them to choose an armory to hide and talk in.
“What do we do now? The City Defense Army is gone, and we lost soldiers last night. The Lord of the City is like a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment. How am I supposed to explain this to him?” Albrisque asked irritably.
“Naturally, you should express your loyalty, Master. You should feign righteous indignation and tell the Lord that you will personally lead troops to hunt down those treacherous soldiers and completely eliminate them. Furthermore, you must distance yourself from their actions, claiming you knew nothing about what they did,” the jester advised Albrisque.
“What if the Lord of the City actually sends me? I was planning to eliminate these former subordinates myself,” Albrisque hesitated, showing a hint of reluctance as he thought of those who used to regularly offer him money and merits.
“Then, Master, you have two choices. One is to lead your troops out and search randomly for a few days. If you don’t find them, then indiscriminately attack some monsters and return to the Lord, saying you couldn’t find them. After all, it’s so dangerous in the wilderness now; they won’t survive long, and you can provide a valid explanation for not finding them,” the jester began to plot.
“The other option is to search thoroughly. Once you find them, you personally exterminate them with all your might, ensuring that all the deserting soldiers are annihilated. Then you can claim a reward with their corpses, but remember what I told you earlier.”
“Not a single survivor should make it to the Lord of the City, right?” Albrisque finished the sentence.
“Exactly. Otherwise, they will expose both of us. Therefore, you must take on yourself the task of hunting down the rebels,” the jester stated.
How ruthless! He clearly knew that this group of soldiers, with their weak combat power and morale, would be annihilated by monsters once they deserted without supplies. That’s why he suggested they desert.
Regardless of the choice, these soldiers were bound to be annihilated. But then this dark truth would be buried with them forever, and no one would ever know.
Although I also disliked those soldiers who engaged in forced sales and purchases, they didn’t deserve death, especially since they were acting under orders.
Albrisque continued, “Then how should I explain what happened last night? I can distance myself from the soldiers’ desertion, but the soldiers who fled last night were acting under my direct orders. In the end, the captain was incompetent, didn’t capture anyone, and so many people died. How should I explain this?”
Rodrigo smiled slightly and said, “There’s no need for explanations. You, Master, are wise and valiant. You must have discovered that an evil cult was lurking in that apartment building and sent people to eradicate them.”
Albrisque’s eyes lit up, even emitting faint electrical sparks. He understood the jester’s intention: to have him report proactively and claim credit.
The jester continued, “Although there were heavy casualties due to the on-site commander’s issues, the evil organization was still successfully eradicated, and the danger was nipped in the bud. You are not only blameless but deserve great merit.”
“Excellent, I understand. Thank you, Rodrigo. You’ve always been my good brother,” Albrisque patted the jester on the shoulder. “I think I get it. I’ll go see the Lord of the City right away.”
With that, he hurried out of the armory, leaving the jester alone. As I hesitated whether to follow and eavesdrop further, I heard the jester say, “Heh heh, what a body-builder with a simple mind, a good-for-nothing idiot. Hmm? Why are there flies in such cold weather?”
With that, he waved his hand, and a pink flame shot out, instantly severing my connection with the fly.
