Rebuilding a Kingdom - Chapter 25 (Patreon)

Rumors of “Spider”
I tried asking the guards at the post about the "Spider" organization.

Apparently, Spider organization has been a rumored presence in the Capital since before I was born.

According to the guards, there's always a shadow of that organization behind any misdeeds, but it was all just speculation.

While I was pondering about the Spider organization, the Captain of the Royal guards, Lyshiria, appeared at the post.

At first glance, she looked like an ordinary beautiful girl, but once she wielded a sword, possessing sword skills on par with the Commander of the Royal knights.

For me and my Sister Emilia, who live in the castle, she's a familiar face.

Why is Lyshiria, the Captain of the Royal guards, in the city?

As I wondered, Lyshiria pointed at me and my Sister Emilia and sighed.

"The Captain of the patrol guards rushed to the castle in a panic, so I came, but what are you doing at the post?"

"Well, while we were wandering around the Capital, we got attacked by some suspicious guys in an alley..."

"Did you sneak out of the castle without informing the Royal guards again? Both of you, please consider your positions! I'm the one who gets scolded by the Prime Minister Sylberg every time you do this!"

Come to think of it, every time Sister Emilia and I sneak out of the castle, Prime Minister Sylberg, after receiving the report, would call out Lyshiria and take out his frustration on her.

I always feel sorry for her...

With a look like she was dealing with troublesome children, Lyshiria put her hands on her hips and asked me,

"Are you satisfied now?"

"Not yet... Do you know anything about the Spider organization, Lyshiria ?"

"Well... The organization is something left to the various guards; it's not something you two need to know about. Now, I'll escort you back to the castle."

"Lyshiria , don't evade the question. My sister and I were both attacked once. We can't ignore this anymore. I won't overstep, so please tell me about the organization."

I walked up to Lyshiria and looked up at her face.

"Even if you plead with that face, it's impossible."

"Please..."

"No means no. Emilia, please stop Ian."

"I was attacked together with Ian. I want to know about this Spider organization too."

Faced with my pleading attack, Lyshiria looked to my sister Emilia for help, but she just smiled and refused.

Both my sister and I are very curious.

Finally resigned, Lyshiria lowered her shoulders with a weary expression.

“The Spider organization is said to be involved in a wide range of crimes, from bandits appearing on the Kingdom's highways and thieves attacking merchant associations in the towns, to kidnappings in cities and villages, running underground gambling dens, and drug trafficking. However, unfortunately, we haven't been able to grasp its actual form."

"If they’re committing such a wide range of crimes, you'd think they'd slip up somewhere."

"We always end up catching low-level operatives connected to the lower ranks of the Spider. We don't know the number of members in the core organization or the number of its leaders."

That's almost the same as knowing nothing.

Even though it's an organization that has existed since before I was born, we still can't grasp its true form. It's abnormal.
Someone might be intentionally concealing information or manipulating it.

It seems like we should return to the castle and investigate the crime records.

But before that――

I took my Sister Emilia's hand and smiled brightly.

"Sister, we're done here, so let's move on."

"Yes. We couldn't enjoy the city because of the interruptions. I'll go anywhere with you, Ian."

"Aren't we going back to the castle? Don't leave me behind. I'll come with you."

When the two of us stepped out of the post, Lyshiria followed us.

The three of us crossed the main street, entered a narrow alley, and headed towards an area near the slums.
When we arrived in front of a three-story building, Lyshiria tilted her head.

"What's this place?"

"This is the headquarters of the Cassel Merchant Association. I wanted to meet President Cassel."

I said this and entered the building.

When I told the servant on the first floor that I had arrived, he bowed his head and then hurriedly ran up the stairs.
After waiting for a while, we heard the sound of footsteps, and President Cassel came running down the stairs.

"Prince Ian, Princess Emilia, if you had business with me, I would have come to the castle."

"No, we were just playing around in the city, and I wanted to see your face, President Cassel."

"If you have business with me, it must be something important. This is the sales floor, so let's go to my office on the third floor."

President Cassel narrowed his eyes as he looked at my expression.

The Cassel Merchant Association is a large association composed of medium and small businesses and individual merchants, with sales channels extending like capillaries both inside and outside the Kingdom.

It has more members than other large associations, and therefore has a wealth of various information.

Soldiers tend to make the people in towns and villages shrink back, but merchants engage in casual conversations and might leak important information.

For merchants, information is life, and they're skilled at making small talk.

Now, what kind of information could we learn here about the Spider?

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