The Returnee's Hidden Strategy Stream

[Translator - Jjescus ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]

Chapter: 55

"...Did you just say Vice-Captain?"

-Huh?

-Leon noona?

-Is this for real?

-From today onwards, I consider Henry's enemies my enemies.

Mentioning Vice-Captain Leon's name was a shock to everyone. Hanbit, on behalf of everyone who was speechless, asked, "I understand that the Royal Knights are one of the top powers in the Raven Kingdom. You have a promise from their Vice-Captain?"

"When William's execution was carried out, the Royal Knights also came to Edlen. And at that time, Leon, who was a low-ranking knight, was the only one who expressed doubts."

The accusation that the lord of a city was a collaborator with the Holy Kingdom was a matter of national security. It was natural for the Royal Knights to investigate under the king's order.

"Leon doubted the circumstances, testimonies, and evidence, which all fit together too perfectly. Even though she wasn't in a position to lend weight to her words, she continued to raise objections to her superiors until she was punished for insubordination."

-As expected of Leon.

-Sense of justice GOAT

-FYI: She's insanely strong.

-She went up against her superiors and became Vice-Captain with her skills. lol

Leon's character could be described in a single word: Justice. She never compromised her beliefs, no matter the situation, even if the opponent was the king.

For example, even at the moment of her execution for defending a falsely accused rebel army, Leon's eyes shone with unwavering conviction. That's why she was also one of the most trustworthy figures in this world.

"What kind of promise did you receive?"

"A month after William was executed, Leon, disguised as an adventurer, came to me. She asked me to contact her whenever any suspicious circumstances arose."

"...And she rose to the position of Vice-Captain in that time?" Cowen said with admiration in his voice.

The position of Vice-Captain required at least 20 years of experience. To achieve that in less than seven years meant she was no ordinary individual.

"She will be a great help to us. With this evidence, it will even be reported to the royal court."

Henry was completely different from how he was at the beginning. Clearing William's name and returning the surviving Liventia to her rightful place... In the process, the punishment of Barres and Brook would naturally follow.

"Liventia, what is it that you desire?"

Henry lowered his posture and met Lia's eyes. He wanted to fulfill his own wishes and William's will, but the most important thing was the will of the girl who had survived until now.

"I..."

Lia looked down at her ring. A moment later, she raised her head and said with a determined expression, "I want to prove that Dad didn't commit any crimes."

"...Is that so."

No further words were needed. Henry nodded and turned his gaze to everyone.

"I will go to the royal capital. I happen to have business there, so I won't be suspected immediately."

"Will you be alright?"

"Whether I'm alright or not isn't important. We need to deploy people in the right places at the right time. You all, write a petition regarding William's case right now."

At Henry's instruction, the former vassals took the parchment and quill pens that were set aside and began to write. Clearing their unjustly accused lord's name was their lifelong wish, so their sincerity was poured into the petition.

"Understood. I have a magic tool for transportation, so I'll try to reduce the travel time to the royal capital as much as possible. We will stay here and obtain the remaining evidence."

"Remaining evidence? You mean there's more?"

"There was this note along with the blueprints in the workshop."

Cowen handed over the rest of the materials from the workshop. Henry, receiving them, immediately checked the contents of the note.

<I entrust the evidence I have gathered to the person who has reached this place. The crystal ball is a projection magical tool that recorded the scene of the underground temple altar. The parchment is a newly modified blueprint of the Norton mansion and Barres' mansion. I hope you will restore the honor of Lord William and Lady Liventia.>

"...Camon put in so much effort."

He could sense a myriad of emotions in the forcefully written letters. Henry, expressing his respect, turned his gaze to the blueprints.

"I have no clue about Barres's mansion. Considering his personality, he wouldn't keep anything dangerous there."

The colors marked on only a few passages were unclear in their meaning. Since Barres wasn't the type to reveal anything related to his safety, it was highly likely that even his close aides were unaware.

"The markings on Norton's... Is that Brook's vault?"

Henry also knew about the rumors surrounding Norton's mansion, specifically that the location of Brook's vault changed daily. Even without knowing what was inside, there was no way Camon would have left the blueprint without a reason.

"Likely, it's a seed prepared for betrayal. Brook must also be feeling uneasy, so he would have prepared something to use against Barres."

"Yes. That's why we plan to infiltrate using the secret passage connected to Norton's mansion. We intend to seize the vault entirely if possible, but we are also considering destroying it depending on the situation."

"Hmm."

Henry pondered for a moment as he listened to the plan. Then, looking at the mansion's blueprint, he said, "There's no way Barres wouldn't know about the rumors of this vault. The suspicious man would have checked what's inside by any means necessary."

There could be no mistakes, no failures. Therefore, they had to consider every possibility.

"Considering when this blueprint was drawn, there's a good chance there have been changes. He wouldn't let rumors of crucial evidence spread."

Even if Brook was an incompetent puppet mayor, he would use his head to protect himself. He would definitely have hidden the evidence in a different place that only he knew.

"Then let's kidnap Brook."

Hanbit casually threw in his opinion as he listened to the conversation. His voice was calm, but the content was shockingly radical.

-??

-Kidnap the mayor lol

-He's crazy.

-But fun, right?

"...Did you just say kidnap?" Henry asked, dumbfounded.

The feasibility of kidnapping aside, the aftermath was obvious. It wouldn't be strange for Barres, upon grasping the situation, to take any countermeasure.

"Yes. To eliminate variables, it's best to obtain the evidence directly from him. The purpose of infiltrating the mansion is to act before Barres does."

"If Barres finds out that Brook has been kidnapped, the city will be locked down. And he'll use all his forces to turn Edlen upside down."

"It's alright. We'll induce the city lockdown first."

"...?"

A look of questioning appeared on Henry's face. Hanbit, reading his unspoken thoughts as if they were audible, turned his gaze to everyone and said, "Let's reveal the temple in the underground waterway to everyone."

* * *

Edlen's central street.

Among the bustling crowd, a common topic of conversation emerged.

"I heard something was discovered in the underground waterway? Black Dragon? That adventurer found it, they say."

"A Holy Kingdom temple? No way."

"The guild already confirmed it! The Holy Kingdom has been infiltrating Edlen from early on!"

Early that morning, the guild officially announced the discovery of the Holy Kingdom temple in the underground waterway. The news spread through the adventurers, and even now, in the afternoon, the streets were abuzz.

"So, hyung, you were hoping for this situation?" Yeonwoo asked from beside him, observing the changes in the NPCs.

Hanbit, walking along the road, nodded. "Well, our goal is to kidnap Brook. This level of chaos is perfect."

The reason for revealing the temple to the public was simple: to cause chaos within Edlen and, in that atmosphere, induce heightened fear in Brook.

"But what about the quest? Do we just keep watching?"

"Hmm."

Hanbit brought up the message that had appeared in the secret space.

[Main Quest #8 Completed.]

[Received 50,000 gold.]

[2 stat points awarded.]

[Experience increased by 15,000.]

[Progress increased.]

[Main Quest #9: Execute the Plan]

You have met with the former vassals and devised a plan to expose the crimes of Brook and Barres. You must each move to fulfill your roles, but it's still too early to kidnap Brook. First, you must change the atmosphere in Edlen by revealing information about the temple.

Objective: Observe the situation on the streets of Edlen.

Reward: None

*Current Progress: 70 percent

As stated in the quest, everyone who had gathered in the secret space started working on their respective tasks. And now, all that remained was to wait for a single contact on this street.

Yeonwoo spoke up again. "We were supposed to watch the situation, so why don't we go somewhere else? Something might happen."

-Roper, are you bored?

-Give me a thumbs up if Roper is nervous because there's no streaming content.

-I am bored.

-FYI: It's been 3 minutes since we switched to the cutscene.

Yeonwoo seemed worried about the static situation. Indeed, for the sake of the stream, it would be good to have something going on, but they would be moving soon anyway. Someone was already approaching them.

"Black Dragon!"

A familiar woman came running, her voice urgent. It was Miel, the guild employee.

-?

-Why is she here?

-Could Miel leave the guild?

-She wasn't a bound spirit after all;

"Huff, huff..." She stopped in front of Hanbit, panting.

"What's going on? You're even coming outside."

"Just... a moment." Miel continued gasping for breath, her hands on her knees. It was a while before she could speak in a normal voice.

"Whew. I feel like I've run a whole year's worth, really." She said, wiping the sweat from her forehead. It was extremely rare for her to run with all her might like that.

"So what's the matter?"

"First, let's go to the guild together. Someone is looking for you, Black Dragon."

"Looking for me?"

"Let's get going!" Miel, as if there was no time for conversation, grabbed his arm and pulled him along.

Hanbit, already aware of the situation, moved his feet.

"Huh? Why are you out here?" Miel said in surprise as the guild building came into view. Knights and soldiers in full armor were standing near the entrance.

"They're coming."

Recognizing Miel and Hanbit, they approached.

Thud-

A few steps away, they stopped in front of Hanbit.

"Are you the adventurer Black Dragon?" the knight at the very front spoke first. Unlike the others, his particularly gleaming armor and weapons stood out.

"That's correct. Why are you looking for me?"

"I am a knight from City Hall. I heard you found a temple of the Holy Kingdom in the underground waterway. Is that true?"

"I am the first discoverer."

"Hmm." At his unreserved acknowledgement, the knight slowly examined Hanbit's appearance from head to toe. Then he immediately got to the point.

"Mayor Brook wishes to invite you to commend you for your achievement. Let's go to City Hall together."

[Main Quest #9 completed.]

[Progress increased.]

[Main Quest #10: Invitation]

You have received an invitation from Brook, who is conscious of public opinion.

It may be Barres's order, but this would be a good opportunity to assess the situation.

It seems worthwhile to accept their invitation.

Objective: Go to City Hall and have a conversation with the enemies.

Reward: None

*Current progress: 74 percent

[Translator - Jjescus ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]