Baron Avier Ormund was a noble who had once been a mercenary.
In that respect, he had something in common with Father, since both of them had risen from commoners to nobles.
However, anyone who learned the truth about Baron Ormund would immediately realize that he was an entirely different sort of man from Father.
Avier Ormund.
Back when he had been a member of a mercenary company, he had been known as Gloomy Vier.
He always wore a sinister expression, as though he were constantly devising some wicked scheme in his head.
Several people had also seen him occasionally snickering to himself without explaining why, which was how he had earned the nickname.
Of course, that was merely how he appeared. He had never caused any particular problems during his time with the mercenary company.
Because of that, no one discovered what sort of man Vier truly was until he participated in the war against the Kingdom of Longrias.
The Song of Gold was a mercenary company led by Kael Toven, who was a Platinum-Grade Adventurer at the time.
When the entire mercenary company declared its intention to participate in the war against the Kingdom of Longrias,
Gloomy Vier naturally found himself taking part in a real war where people killed and were killed.
Everyone had expected Gloomy Vier to leave the stage as an unremarkable member of the company without accomplishing anything noteworthy.
Yet he returned from the war against Longrias after killing an enemy general, no less.
That single accomplishment earned him the promise of a baronial title once the war ended.
The problem was that his achievement was suspicious in more ways than one.
To quote Father’s assessment after personally encountering Gloomy Vier on the battlefield, His physical abilities were not bad, but all his attacks were far too straightforward.
More importantly, Father had said that Vier was not a man with the courage to openly face the enemy general who had died.
Of course, Vier accomplished his feat considerably later than when Father had encountered him.
It was not entirely impossible that his mindset had changed and that he had grown during that time.
However, judging by Father’s still-unconvinced expression, he likely had not believed it either.
Father had encountered countless kinds of people on the battlefield.
He would know better than anyone that a person could not change so dramatically within such a short period.
Moreover, the enemy general Vier was said to have killed had been strong enough to fight Father, a war hero, to a draw.
It must have wounded Father’s pride to think that an opponent he had considered his equal had been killed by someone like Vier.
Father had also remarked that Kael Toven, the captain of Vier’s mercenary company, might have been able to fight the general on equal terms.
He had probably already understood the truth behind Vier’s so-called achievement.
Dozens of slash wounds made by a longsword had been left across the dead enemy general’s body as though they had been deliberately put on display.
However, the wound believed to have pierced his heart and taken his life was a thrust from a rapier, the weapon Kael Toven used.
Marks believed to have been inflicted by Vier’s longsword were also found on the bodies of Kael Toven and several other mercenaries who died in the same battle.
Most of those wounds looked as though the victims had been ambushed from behind.
Above all, Vier was the only person to return alive from the battlefield where so many people had clashed.
Since there was only one survivor, every account of the battle and every judgment concerning it relied solely on that one man’s testimony.
There was no one left to refute Vier’s claim that he had killed the enemy general who had slaughtered all his comrades.
If the Imperial Family refused to honor his achievement, it could have damaged the morale of the other mercenaries and soldiers.
In the end, the Imperial Family promised to grant him the title of baron after the war.
The moment that happened, Vier acted as though he had already obtained everything he could gain from the war.
He immediately used an injury as an excuse to retreat to the countryside and merely waited for the war to end.
Meanwhile, thanks to the accomplishments of Father, who had been a centurion at the time, Mother, who had been a Battle Mage, and others, the war against the Kingdom of Longrias quickly came to an end.
That was the true nature of the man named Avier Ormund, who now ruled the Barony of Ormund.
Apparently, he had deliberately added an ‘A’ to the beginning of his name because he thought a longer name sounded more aristocratic.
Of course, there was no way a piece of treacherous scum could properly manage an estate and manor simply because he had obtained them.
In the end, all he did after receiving a noble title was kidnap merchants and travelers passing near his territory and sell them into slavery.
That was also how the bandits came to establish a base in the mountain behind Baron Ormund’s manor.
Otherwise, no noble would sit idly by while bandits established a camp in his own backyard.
If he knew about them and took no action, then he was evil.
If he did not even know bandits were stationed there, then he was incompetent.
Their master, Avier Ormund, was both evil and utterly incompetent as a noble.
As I finished explaining, I saw the gaze of the young lady from the trading company grow more serious.
“So the reason we were attacked despite parking our carriage near a manor we believed was unquestionably safe was that it was never a safe place to begin with.”
The woman murmured with a solemn expression after learning Baron Ormund’s true nature.
“I should have been more cautious. My careless judgment cost my guards their lives, and I nearly failed to escape unharmed myself.”
“It would not be easy for anyone to imagine that criminals bold enough to abduct people near a noble’s manor could exist.
For now, you should be content that your life was saved and set aside your sense of responsibility for a while.”
“You are right. For now, I should treasure the life I barely managed to preserve.”
In any case, deliberately luring those bastards out last night and then clearing out their den had benefited me as well.
Had I left them alone, they would have gradually grown into an organization little different from Ormund’s private army.
A group composed of such low-quality people would only become a nuisance if it remained near the Ferdalos lands.
In particular, the Barony of Ormund stood directly across the route to Highgarden, the nearest road leading to the imperial capital.
Unless I dealt with them in advance, I would suffer an unexpected disaster just as I had in my previous life.
Not only the bandit bastards operating a human-trafficking business with Avier’s support,
But House of Ormund itself as well.
***
Most baronial houses were protected under the authority of either a margravial or ducal house.
Naturally, House of Ormund also had a house to which it was subordinate.
Margrave Highgarden defended the far eastern edge of the Empire’s border.
The newly established House of Ormund was one of the many baronial houses serving under the House of Highgarden.
There was a reason I had hurried to the Highgarden Margraviate before dawn.
Before Baron Ormund noticed that his private organization had been annihilated and began covering his tracks,
I needed to bring Margrave Prasio Highgarden over to my side.
House of Ormund was nominally under House of Highgarden, so if I interfered with it personally, it would cause no small amount of trouble.
More importantly, there was no way the modest power of House of Ferdalos could judge House of Ormund for its crimes.
The son of a viscount, a noble but one of middling status.
The young lady of a trading company, a commoner but one who possessed a certain degree of standing.
Despite our strange pairing and sudden visit, Margrave Prasio Highgarden granted us an audience.
After we had waited for about an hour, one of the margrave’s servants escorted him into the waiting room.
“Forgive me for keeping you waiting, young Lord Ferdalos. And you as well, young lady of the Wintemere Trading Company.”
The middle-aged man who entered appeared to be at least ten years older than Father.
The young lady and I rose from our seats at the same time and paid our respects to the margrave.
“I am the one who should sincerely thank you for receiving us despite our sudden visit.”
“It is an honor to meet you, Margrave Highgarden.”
“Enough with the formalities. Explain only why you have come.”
“Understood.”
Perhaps we truly had arrived while he was busy, because Margrave Highgarden made no effort to hide his impatience as he asked why we had requested an audience.
I did not wish to take up much of his time either, so I summarized what had happened in the Barony of Ormund.
Robbery, murder, and kidnapping had been rampant at the bandit encampment behind Baron Ormund’s manor.
Despite the organization’s considerable size, Baron Ormund had taken no meaningful action against them.
Judging from the circumstances, Baron Ormund was either colluding with the bandits and profiting from their crimes, or he was an incompetent man who did not even know that crimes were occurring in the mountain behind his own manor.
Moreover, coded records believed to document transactions with Baron Ormund had been discovered at the bandits’ encampment.
The margrave’s eyes, which had initially seemed to expect nothing important, grew wider as my explanation continued.
After I finally handed him the coded records, even the way he looked at me changed.
“......You said you discovered this at a bandit encampment in the Barony of Ormund?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“As the eldest daughter of the head of the Wintemere Trading Company, I can testify that his words are true.”
“Hmm. Haah......”
The margrave looked back and forth between the contents of the document and my face, letting out several deep sighs.
Then he met my eyes and quietly spoke.
“Has anyone other than you read this?”
“All the bandits who lived at the encampment now maintain eternal silence. Aside from Baron Ormund’s people, I do not believe anyone else has.”
“......What do you want?”
“Pardon?”
“You must want something, or you would not have brought me a document that could become a weakness of mine.
I am asking how many gold coins you want in exchange for handing these papers over to me.”
He must have assumed I had come to sell him information for money.
I was not pleased by the misunderstanding that I was some greedy opportunist.
Still, as long as the seriousness of the matter had been conveyed to the margrave, that alone was enough.
“There is only one thing I want from you, Margrave Highgarden.”
“Say it.”
“Strip Baron Avier Ormund, the current ruler of the Barony of Ormund, of his title and make him pay for the crimes he has committed.
That alone is all I ask. I desire nothing else.”
“............”
Perhaps he had never imagined that such words would come from my mouth.
Not only Margrave Highgarden across from me, but even the young lady from the trading company turned surprised eyes toward me.
“Truly, is that all?”
“The Barony of Ormund lies between the Ferdalos territory and the Highgarden territory.
Most guests traveling to the Viscounty of Ferdalos must pass through the Barony of Ormund.
As the son of Viscount Ferdalos, I merely have the perfectly rational and natural desire not to have a dangerous neighbor nearby.”
“......Very well. I understand.”
Having understood my meaning, the margrave rose from his seat with the papers in hand.
He dipped his head slightly and thanked me.
“You have my gratitude for bringing me a matter that could have become grounds for holding me responsible. I will deal with Avier swiftly, as you requested.
Of course, that alone will not be sufficient compensation for what you have done. I will repay this debt when another opportunity arises.”
His reassuring declaration made me feel that this troublesome matter had finally been resolved.
“Thank you, Margrave Highgarden.”
I quietly smiled to myself as I imagined a future that had changed, even if only slightly, from my previous life.