The lady was terrified by the tax officer’s words and hurriedly waved her hands: “No, no, how dare I be dissatisfied with Shogun-sama?
I was merely describing the difficulties of us small business owners!” Ignoring her pleas, the tax officer raised his voice and slammed his hand violently on the small cart before him.
The impact shook some of the snacks for sale off the cart onto the ground.
The lady’s young daughter, standing behind her, rushed over with a pained expression to pick them up.
The tax officer’s roar pressed the lady further: “Not only are you dissatisfied with the Shogun’s policies, but you’re also using such treasonous reasons to attempt tax evasion!” This is no longer a simple matter of compounding offenses!” With bitterness and sorrow in her heart, the lady tearfully pleaded: “Sir, please be reasonable.
How could our small business possibly evade taxes?
With taxes increasing layer by layer, my earnings from this stall can hardly cover them.
If this continues, we won’t be able to put food on the table.
How are my daughter and I supposed to survive…
It would be better if we had a man to support us, but…
but…” At this point, the lady could no longer hold back her tears: “But…
my husband was among the first conscripted into the army.
He went to the front lines early on and we’ve heard nothing from him since.
Just recently, I received news…
received the compensation from the Shogunate…” Any normal person would show some compassion upon hearing this situation, right?
Yet this corrupt official only became more ruthless: “Well then, that’s perfect!
Use the compensation money to pay your taxes!” The lady stared at the tax officer in shock, as if looking at a demon: “Sir, how can you say such things?
That money was earned with my husband’s life!
It’s our last hope for survival!
Moreover…” The lady covered her face, breaking down: “The compensation we received was much less than promised.
Even if I handed it all over, it wouldn’t cover the taxes.
We truly can’t go on like this, we can’t survive…
If not for my daughter needing care, I would…
I would…” The lady’s plight didn’t move the tax officer in the slightest.
He remained cold and relentless.
Witnessing all this, Raiden Saku was seething with anger that was almost uncontrollable.
Beside him, Atsuko clenched her fists, gritting her teeth to endure.
Taking a deep breath, Raiden Saku slightly eased his rage and looked around.
The other stall owners nearby showed sympathy upon seeing the lady’s situation.
Yet none stepped forward to help, as they too felt vulnerable facing the tax officer.
Not just the lady and her daughter, but all the small business owners around wore worried expressions, clearly struggling with poor business and hopeless lives.
Raiden Saku sighed deeply.
He looked toward Narukami Island.
Seeing a leopard through a tube – understanding the whole from a small part.
He had just returned and already encountered such a situation.
How many more cases like this existed throughout Inazuma that he hadn’t witnessed?
What had Inazuma become?
The people were destitute, suffering filled the land.
If things continued unchecked, Inazuma’s collapse and widespread uprisings were not impossible!
Previously, he only knew abstractly how much harm the Sakoku Decree, Vision Hunt Decree, and the Shogunate’s corruption had inflicted upon Inazuma’s people.
But knowing is one thing; witnessing it firsthand is truly more shocking and leaves a deeper impression.
Raiden Saku felt a rare surge of resentment toward Raiden Ei.
Inazuma should not be like this.
This nation cannot be like this.
Ei, you have taken the wrong path.
Just as Raiden Saku was lost in thought, the tax officer over there escalated his behavior, transforming from a scoundrel into a beast!
Perhaps because he saw that this lady truly couldn’t produce the money, or maybe because he knew her circumstances, the tax officer changed his expression, adopting a smile that terrified the lady: “Alright, seeing how pitiful you are, I have no choice but to consider your difficulties.
You know, tax collection is an official duty personally supervised by the Kanjou Commission.
If I fail to collect the taxes, I won’t be able to answer to the higher-ups, and in the end, they will surely reprimand me!
I can let you off this time.
We can postpone this month’s tax until next month.
But madam, shouldn’t you…
give me some compensation?” When he mentioned “compensation,” the tax officer deliberately lowered his voice, leaned forward, and sneered sinisterly as he approached the lady.
As for what kind of compensation he meant, those who understood, understood.
Seeing the tax officer’s sinister smile, the lady turned pale with fear.
She hurriedly shielded her little daughter behind her and shook her head in panic: “No, no!
My husband just died in battle, and I’ve only recently become a widow.
How could you ask this of me!?
How dare you make such a demand of me?
How can you face my husband who just died in battle!?
My husband died fighting for Inazuma, for Shogun-sama!
He was a hero!
How can you be so heartless!?” Being directly rejected by the lady, the tax officer’s expression turned grim.
He openly and shamelessly threatened and intimidated her in anger: “What?
You dare refuse me?
And you even bring up your dead husband!?
It seems you prefer punishment over courtesy!
If you don’t agree, not only will you have to pay the tax immediately, but to appease my anger, you’ll have to serve us!” The lady was stunned, her face ashen: “You…
all of you!?” The tax officer sneered viciously: “Originally, it was just me.
If you served me well, your daughter might even gain a stepfather, and your family would have my support.
But who asked you to be so unreasonable?
Now I’ve changed my mind.
I plan to call all my colleagues over!” The lady was filled with despair.
She collapsed to the ground and cried out in anguish: “No!
You can’t do this!” “No!?
If you refuse again, we’ll do it right in front of your daughter!
If that’s not enough, we’ll include your daughter too!” Over there, Raiden Saku let out a long sigh.
He could no longer hold back!
Raiden Saku took a step forward, and by the time his next step landed, he had already appeared beside the food stall.
He delivered a swift kick straight at the despicable tax officer!
The tax officer, still immersed in his arrogance and delight, had no idea what was happening before he was sent flying!
Spinning through the air, he traced an arc and crashed directly into a nearby maple tree.
Coincidentally, this maple tree happened to have a sharp branch growing in that direction.
The tax officer flew backward, his back slamming into the maple branch.
Due to his speed, the branch pierced straight through his chest, emerging from the other side!
With a look of disbelief in his eyes, the tax officer was impaled on the branch, his feet dangling in the air, eyes wide open, struggling in his final moments.
In the final moments, the tax official looked down at the branch piercing through his chest…
So red, this branch is truly red, redder than maple leaves.
Ah, it’s stained with my blood, no wonder it’s so red.
The tax official lost consciousness, his head lolled to the side, eyes wide open—dead with unseeing eyes!
This manner of death was far too horrifying!
Far too terrifying!
The nearby street vendors, witnessing this sudden tragedy, screamed in terror.
The more timid ones scrambled away in panic, fleeing for their lives, afraid of being implicated.
The lady involved immediately threw herself over her daughter, covering the child’s eyes.
As she glanced back at the tax official impaled on the tree, his eyes still wide open, a surge of grim satisfaction flashed through her heart.
That beast…
is actually dead!?
Good riddance!
Serves him right!
After collecting herself, the lady looked up at her savior.
Dressed in luxurious robes with an air of nobility, he must be a young master from some aristocratic family.
Weakly rising to her feet, the lady spoke to Raiden Saku with deep concern: “Kind sir, thank you for saving me!
But you’ve killed someone—and a official from the Kanjou Commission at that!
This is an unforgivable crime.
You must flee at once!” No sooner had she spoken than a group of Kanjou Commission guards, alerted by the commotion, swarmed toward them.
Led by an officer, a dozen soldiers brandishing spears surrounded them menacingly.
“What happened?
What’s going on here?” The officer glanced around before looking up and spotting the tax official skewered on the tree.