You can read the advance chapters here : patreon.com/Vigilante04
---------------
"What do you want to do?" The captain of the guards shoved Jon Snow, who was trying to force his way in. "This is the residence of the group leaders. Don't you know that?"
"They're saying that Harrison sent people to murder Boss Morgan, and now Harrison has killed Deputy Captain Kelvin in the castle. Is this true?" Jon Snow held back his anger as he questioned the guard captain.
How could the guard captain answer such a serious accusation? Upon hearing this, he froze, stunned. He turned to his men, seeking help, but was caught off guard as those in the guard who had once supported Morgan distanced themselves from him.
"Where did you hear such nonsense? Do you even know what you're saying?" The guard captain, feeling unsure in front of the crowd, managed to gather his mercenaries and block the door.
Jon Snow was momentarily taken aback. In truth, he had no idea where the rumor had originated. After Boss Morgan's death, many of the mercenaries hadn't slept that night.
The mercenaries had gathered outside the camp to discuss the future of their group and whether they should flee. It was unclear who first suggested that Sir Harrison had sent men to kill Boss Morgan, and that he had also killed Deputy Captain Kelvin in the castle.
The rumor quickly spread throughout the camp.
"That's right, where did you hear such news?" Taking advantage of Jon Snow's pause, Sir Grantham, the young knight, squeezed his way to the front.
"This is nonsense!" Grantham added, supporting the guard captain's stance, and gestured for order.
The guard captain shot him a grateful glance.
"But keeping everyone gathered here like this isn't helping," Grantham continued, "Why don't we have Deputy Captain Kelvin come out and speak for himself? I don't believe Sir Harrison would do such a thing."
Hearing Grantham's support, the mercenary captains who were loyal to Sir Harrison quickly voiced their agreement. They couldn't believe that Sir Harrison could be responsible for such actions.
Before the guard captain could respond, Sir Grantham quickly spoke to the crowd, "Then it's settled, let's have Deputy Captain Kelvin come out. If he's alive, it'll prove that Sir Harrison couldn't have been behind Boss Morgan's murder. We'll catch whoever's spreading these rumors!"
This strategy was something Sir Ian had taught him.
In a legal setting, having two accusations against one person creates a big problem. If you can prove that one of the accusations is false, it often clears the person of the other as well.
People, especially when angry, don't always consider logic.
Sir Grantham's speech played to the mercenaries who were eager for the truth. On the surface, it supported Sir Harrison, and so it quickly won the approval of most of the group.
The once-chaotic crowd quieted down, preparing to wait for the final outcome.
The guard captain sighed in relief and threw a grateful glance at Sir Grantham.
He still believed that if he went upstairs and invited Deputy Captain Kelvin down, the matter would be resolved.
"Please wait here, I'll ask Deputy Captain Kelvin to come down now." The mercenary captain instructed his men to open the castle door and hurried inside.
Harrison, who was hiding by the second-floor window, felt his heart drop.
He recognized the rhythmic footsteps in the corridor immediately. It was the sound of his old friend.
Harrison drew his sword and hid behind the door, preparing to strike just as he had done to old guard Carey.
But seconds later, he let the sword fall. What was the point of killing him now? His small castle had only one exit, and beyond the door were angry mercenaries, waiting to avenge Boss Morgan. He was already cornered.
The next moment, the guard captain entered the room, staring in shock at the two bodies on the floor. His eyes then turned to Harrison, who stood behind the door, his expression a mixture of anger and caution.
"Onion, do you believe me?" Harrison asked bitterly.
"Onion" was the childhood nickname of the guard captain. He had grown up in a nearby village and had once been caught by guards when he tried to steal onions from Grantson's family manor. The guards had chased him, but he outsmarted them and earned the respect of Grantson's father, who took him in to train as a sparring partner for his son. From then on, "Onion" became his nickname.
"Deputy Captain Kelvin was killed with a fork," the guard captain's voice shook.
"He attacked me first…" Harrison tried to explain.
"Kerry was also silenced by you," Captain Onion cut him off.
"He's lame. I couldn't let anyone find out what happened here…" Harrison stammered.
"Did you send someone to kill Boss Morgan?" Onion interrupted again.
Harrison couldn't find an explanation. The connections between the deaths of Kelvin and the Black Falcon were illogical. How could he even begin to explain this?
"I didn't do what they said. Do you believe me?"
Captain Onion took a few steps back before rushing downstairs.
Moments later, a loud uproar erupted outside the window, followed by heavy footsteps. The only words Harrison could clearly hear were "murderer" and "revenge for Boss Morgan."
Harrison slumped against the wall and began to laugh—a loud, bitter laugh.
In truth, he had also wanted to avenge Boss Morgan.
By dawn, Dorian, the "adopted son," had naturally taken over as the new leader of the Black Falcon Mercenary Group.
Unfortunately, fewer than thirty mercenaries remained in Harrison's manor.
Ian began to wonder if he had made a mistake.
His original plan was to blame Morgan's death on Harrison, hoping this would cause most of Harrison's supporters to abandon him, leaving more followers for the mercenary group.
Once Harrison was dead, Ian could use public sentiment to credit Dorian for uncovering the truth and avenging Morgan's death, increasing Dorian's prestige and allowing him to control the mercenaries more easily.
However, from the moment the mercenaries stormed the castle, everything had spiraled out of control.
After eliminating Harrison's retainers and personal guards, the mercenaries rushed into his room, decapitated him, and impaled his head on a spear, displaying it on the roof.
At that point, Harrison's former subordinates—those who had been forced to remain neutral out of a sense of "justice"—could no longer stand it and insisted that everyone show respect for Harrison's body.
This sparked a heated argument with the 'lame' guards.
Then, someone began shouting that those defending Harrison were also accomplices. This quickly gained support, and those people were soon besieged.
In the chaos, many of Harrison's former supporters were dragged into the conflict. Soon, everyone began to target all mercenaries who had sided with Harrison.
The Black Falcon mercenaries were soon plunged into a massive melee. Dorian couldn't stop it and had no choice but to retreat with his men.
During the chaos, some mercenaries began looting the castle's wealth. Others followed suit, and as they fought over the spoils, the mercenaries within Harrison's faction started fighting among themselves.
The conflict grew deeper. The mercenaries slowly forgot the reason for their initial fight, and the battle shifted to a frenzy over property. The war spread from Harrison's castle to the mercenary camp.
The battle raged late into the night. By the time most mercenaries had scattered, Dorian remained with a handful of loyal followers, promising them they could keep the wealth they had seized and lead them toward even greater riches.
But where was Ian?
He had slipped away early in the melee, hoping to use his identity as Ser Lannister to regain control of the situation. But no one was listening to him.
To avoid being caught in the chaos, Ian had secretly led his men out of Harrison's manor and waited outside for the melee to resolve.
At dawn, Dorian sent out a search party for Ian before returning to the manor.
"Sir Lucien," Dorian's once fair face was now smeared with ash, and he looked somewhat embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I only left these people behind. The others fled after grabbing their belongings."
He quickly added, "However, I've already sent word to the mercenary teams stationed elsewhere. If they can return, the mercenary group should be restored to over a hundred men."
Ian could only describe the situation as a disaster.
His original plan of forcing Harrison's mercenaries into neutrality by blaming Harrison for Morgan's murder had succeeded. But he hadn't accounted for the chaos itself. It was easy to create chaos, but once it took hold, it was impossible to control.
Ian realized he still had much to learn about managing group dynamics.
"Get this done quickly. As for the funds," Ian gestured to Rohr and handed a bag containing one hundred golden dragons to Dorian. "This is my initial investment in you."
"By the way, is the mountain weasel in charge of treasure hunting here?" Ian asked, continuing his questions.
"No, I've checked, and the mountain weasel hasn't returned to the camp."
"I'm going back to the Crossroads Inn. When he returns, notify me immediately. If I need your people, I'll send someone to find you. I hope you'll respond quickly."
"Of course, Sir, this is part of the agreement. But what about avenging my adoptive father?" Dorian's last words were low, as the surrounding mercenaries still viewed Boss Morgan as the one killed by Sir Harrison.
"I'll continue investigating this matter," Ian replied. "Next, I'll meet with the local Proprietary Knights Alliance and see if I can find any clues there."
"Thank you, Sir."