Valkyrie's Shadow - 7The Paladin of the Holy Kingdom, Part III: Act 3, Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“For the love of the gods, Liam, stop scaring us like that!”

Liam eyed the rooftops as Marim used the butt of his spear to poke the unconscious man on the pavement. Upon assuming his duties, a number of snoops conveniently presented themselves to be caught and delivered to House Restelo’s men patrolling the streets below.

“I’m just following Sir Jimena’s instructions,” Liam dropped down from the eaves into the alley next to them. “He said you’d handle the prosecution part. What are you charging this guy with, anyway?”

“What was he doing?” Marim asked.

“I don’t know what he was supposed to be doing,” Liam said, “but I caught him watching a woman taking a bath near her window.”

Hoburns was suffering through a particularly hot summer, so most people left their windows open in a desperate bid to stay cool. Little did they know that the rooftops served as a highway for people like Liam.

“Hmm…I can’t exactly blame him for stopping to watch, but I guess it’s his fault for getting caught. It’d be trespassing, at least. How many is that now, seven?”

“Nine,” Liam said.

“Damn. Don’t people know better than to break the law?”

It’s not much of a law if you can’t enforce it…

Of course, most of the people in the Holy Kingdom didn’t think that way. Notions of right and wrong regulated their behaviour far more than the threat of punishment. Most of the people running around on the rooftops thought there was no harm in doing so and were looking for some amusement.

Those that were actually acting as spies or conducting illicit activities were likely few and far between. For Liam, this was unfortunate: he wanted to know what the neighbouring houses were up to as quickly as possible so he could get to work on his new orders.

“I’m going back up,” Liam said. “There’s another guy nearby that I want to nab before he disappears somewhere.”

“Want us to wait down here for you?”

“He’s on top of the apartment block east of this one. I’ll drop him into the next alley.”

Marim nodded to the rest of his patrol. Liam frowned as two of the men carried the downed snoop between them to the next spot. Everything that they did was ‘loud’ in one way or another.

He scrambled back up to the rooftops. Hopefully, the next guy wouldn’t be deterred by the scene. Fortunately, he was just as oblivious as the patrol below and Liam gave him a whack even as his victim watched Liam’s previous victim being carried up the street.

This is like unleashing a cat into a roomful of mice.

It would probably take a few days before all of the people going up on the rooftops for ‘recreational purposes’ to get the hint and stop. After that, he would be free to deal with the rest.

On his way to deliver his newest catch, he came across another man clambering onto the roof. They stared at one another for a moment before Liam got him, too. Marim and his patrol started as both of them fell into a pile of trash nearby.

“What the hell, Liam?” Marim looked up at him, “Is all of Hoburns up there?”

“I think people have just gotten used to playing around on the rooftops,” Liam replied.

“Maybe you’re right,” Marim leaned forward to examine the new deliveries. “Almost everyone you’ve caught can’t be older than twenty. It’s a good thing no one got hurt.”

He was starting to feel bad about knocking them out. In hindsight, telling them to turn themselves in would have probably worked.

“This is a great haul for us, though,” another armsman said.

“They’re not fish,” Liam frowned down from the rooftop.

“They’re kinda like fish,” the man replied. “The palace hands out rewards for…what did they call it?”

“Enforcement efficiency,” Marim said.

“Yeah, that.”

Liam never imagined that the example he had used to explain things to Remedios was actually a thing.

“What do we get for that?” Liam asked.

“I think the Knights have their sights set on controlling more city blocks,” Marim answered. “We can catch more people that way and hobble the competition at the same time.”

“Is there anything that would set us back on that score?”

“His Divine Grace wants the city orderly and peaceful, so anything opposite of that would hurt us.”

If Re-Estize tried to implement the same rewards system, half of the country would be on fire. From what he knew of the Baharuth Empire, it wouldn’t fare that much better.

“Has anyone tried, um…attacking another house’s jurisdiction?” Liam asked.

“Why would they do that?”

“…never mind.”

He was never going to grow at this rate. The Holy Kingdom was pitifully uncompetitive when it came to things that might challenge him as an Assassin.

The influx of thrillseekers petered out as midnight drew close. Liam yawned as he continued to maintain his uneventful vigil over the avenue. There were probably more people to catch in the other parts of House Restelo’s jurisdiction, but he wasn’t certain whether he would be praised for taking initiative or reprimanded for not sticking to his orders.

I can probably use this opening…

Liam dropped into an alley on the eastern side of House Restelo’s jurisdiction and walked out onto the street. Two steps later, he was nearly skewered.

“Woah!” Liam shouted as he danced back from his attacker.

The flickering light of a torch closed from halfway up the block. Liam pointed to his neck. The man’s eyes followed his gesture to the pin on his collar and lowered his spear.

“Sorry about that,” one of the men jogging up to join them said. “Lucas heard we took on a thief-taker and his head’s filled Hoburns with hundreds of Rogues.”

That probably wasn’t incorrect, but they were hardly what everyone feared them to be. Liam fixed his shirt and waved Lucas’ apologetic expression away.

“The next time you stop by the gatehouse,” he said, “can you ask Sir Jimena if he wants me to clean up the rest of our jurisdiction?”

“…the rest?”

“Yeah. He ordered me to stick to this avenue. I wanted to ask about the other places, but I can’t leave my post.”

Lucas sent a fearful look at the rooftops. The rest of the patrol exchanged worried glances.

“So you’re saying that there are Rogues here?”

“Don’t tell me you’re scared of those guys,” Liam rolled his eyes, “every man in the company is stronger than one of them in a straight fight.”

“Yeah, but Rogues fight dirty. What if they’re sneaking around using poisoned daggers?”

“It isn’t as if they’re going to pop up and stab you for no reason. The ones I’ve caught so far have been booked for trespassing, not attempted murder.”

The patrol visibly relaxed at his words. Liam idly wondered how they would react if he told them that there was an Assassin in the city.

“Have there been any thefts?” One of the armsmen asked.

“You’d have to ask Sir Jimena about that. They’d be going through everyone’s belongings at the gatehouse. I’m not going into people’s homes to check if someone’s stealing stuff.”

“That makes sense. We’ll ask Sir Jimena about the rest of the jurisdiction once our patrol gets to the gate.”

“Thanks.”

Liam waited until the patrol reached the next block before sneaking across the street. From there, he made his way to the Water Gardens and entered the Prime Estates through the poorly-guarded Water Gate.

How should I approach this…

Due to his work with House Restelo’s caravans, he hadn’t seen Remedios for a while and he had no idea how she would react to his reappearance. She was a pretty caring person, however, so he figured that she would be more relieved than angry.

The Custodio manor was completely dark, so entered through one of the solar windows. Unfortunately, Remedios wasn’t doing any late-night reading. The familiar scent of her olive soap tickled his nose as he walked by her uniform to check if she was still awake.

Nope.

A column of moonlight from one of the windows fell over Remedios’ bed, bathing her bare thigh in silvery light. Soft, steady breathing mingled with the whisper of the wind. Liam raised his hand to knock on the doorframe, then decided against it out of the fear he would wake others in the house up. He swallowed at the sight of the beautiful woman lying abed, doing his best to focus on his task.

“Re–”

Remedios glomped him. He didn’t know any other way to describe it. One moment, he was standing by her bed. Then, he was in bed with her. Did she use a Martial Art in her sleep? Or was this how fast those in the Realm of Heroes truly were?

“Those pervy Nobles came to ‘confess’ to you again?” Remedios murmured as she crushed him to her breast, “Don’t worry, big sis will protect you.”

He couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. Liam had no idea how Kelart had survived growing up with her sister. He wasn’t sure how he would survive, either.

She was so strong that her arms didn’t budge in the slightest when he tried to break free. He thought about poking her, but he wasn’t sure where. Furthermore, another issue was starting to rise.

In desperation, he kicked Remedios in the foot. Her eyes fluttered open.

“Huh? Liam? What are you doing here?”

Liam was squeezed again as Remedios snuggled him.

Whyyyyyyy…

It was already stupidly hot. Was she still half asleep?

Remedios released him just before he passed out. Liam rolled onto his back, wondering how many of his bones were broken. The mattress shifted as Remedios propped herself up, rubbing a sleepy eye with her free hand. Liam turned his back to her as her shirt fell open.

“What’s wrong?” Remedios asked, “Are you hurt?”

“I-I’m fine!”

He figured that she would kill him if he got hurt, so it was best to answer before that happened. Alarm rose within him as he felt a light touch on his arm.

“Um, can you put on some clothes?” Liam curled up, “More clothes?”

“Eh? But it’s damn hot…oh, speaking of which, your stuff came in.”

Her scant nightwear was common in the sweltering heat of the capital, but it made for a deadly combination with her supernatural beauty. Liam swung his legs off of Remedios’ bed, making a show of tightening his bootlaces as he glared at his crotch.

Begone, sinner!

When he complained about how often women appeared to torment him, Saye just looked at him as if he was a patch of mould growing in the corner of a room. Tira – who was one of his tormentors – only laughed and told him to consider it ‘resistance training’. He suspected that they would just throw more women at him if he ever advanced in that training, so he did his best to avoid them altogether.

“So,” Remedios’ voice came from behind his shoulder, “what did you find out?”

“…you’re not mad that I disappeared for so long?”

“I wondered where you went, but I figured you were off doing what you said you’d be doing. Carla’s still worried about you, though.”

“Sorry…wait, you weren’t worried about me?”

Remedios snorted.

“No. You pushed my hand away the other day. I wasn’t trying to keep it there, but not many people can do that.”

She had assessed his strength from that simple interaction. Despite being obstinately – or more like proudly – dull when it came to most things, Remedios could only be considered as a genius when it came to fighting and related physical activities.

After he finally settled down, Liam rose to his feet. He turned to find Remedios hugging her knees on her bed, resting her head against them. Strands of her hair fell over her cheek as she sucked in his gaze with her clear, brown eyes.

…you’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?

Probably not. She was either oblivious or dismissed her own charm in her characteristically bullheaded way. Liam retreated to sit behind a small table a few metres away from the bed. He focused his senses out of the nearby window, alert for any third parties in the vicinity.

“I secured a position in one of the labour camps outside the city,” he held up the brass pin from House Restelo. “I didn’t expect to advance so quickly, but I’m part of a company policing the area around Rimun Gate now.”

“It’s hard to believe that House Restelo could be up to no good,” Remedios asked.

“They’re not doing anything explicitly illegal,” Liam answered. “I’m pretty sure every house managing a labour camp around the capital is playing by the rules. The way that they compete is by applying pressure through competition, but I think it’s getting to the point that their current methods won’t achieve their desired ends anymore.”

“So they’ll resort to crime, which is something the Holy Order can do something about.”

“I don’t know,” Liam replied. “While I was working with House Restelo – no, even before then – I kept wondering why what I saw in the east didn’t match up with what’s going on in the capital.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Liam drummed his fingers on the tabletop, trying to come up with a way to describe what was going on without sending Remedios flying out of the window in her nightwear to mete out justice.

“Currently,” he said, “the southern Nobles are overseeing nearly everything in the north. That means they control all of the information that reaches the Royal Court. Well, almost. How often does the Holy Order receive reports of bad things happening around Kalinsha or the prefectures close to the Great Wall from its Paladins stationed there?”

“Hmm…nothing recently, but, early on, there were several major industrial accidents. After that, measures were taken to reduce the risk of fires and such and there haven’t been any reported since. As we discussed before, however, the Holy Order doesn’t have a lot of Paladins to go around right now. There are only five stationed in Kalinsha and they have to patrol the entire region.”

The early ‘industrial accidents’ were probably purposeful acts to bring everyone into line. If there hadn’t been any reported since then, it meant that the Nobles had solidified their hold on the area.

“…if you’re allowed to tell me, what is the disposition of the Holy Order’s members?”

“In terms of Paladins,” Remedios said, “ten in Hoburns Prefecture; five in Lloyds; five in Kalinsha and Prart; five in Rimun. The other half of the Holy Order is stationed in the southern Holy Kingdom.”

They may as well not exist at all.

Trying to catch the Nobles doing something illicit out in the countryside was an impossible prospect. No criminal in their right mind would stick around long enough for Remedios to run over and stomp them flat. The whole of the northern Holy Kingdom was effectively subject to the whims of the south.

“Anyway,” Liam said, “what I was trying to say is that the Nobles have sent their best, most disciplined houses to set up shop in and around Hoburns. Everyone here is supposed to behave themselves. The Royal Court sees that with their own eyes, receives reports from the rest of the country that matches what they see, and assumes that what they see is what’s going on in the rest of the country. Kalinsha, Prart, Lloyds and Rimun are probably set up like that, as well.”

“Then I should inform the Holy Order about that.”

“You could,” Liam said, “but I don’t think it’ll get us anywhere. If you had the Royal Army providing coverage to prove that the reports aren’t accurate, it might have been a different story. Right now, it’s best to concentrate our limited numbers on the cities and Hoburns is the best bet for that.”

Remedios turned to face him, resting a hand on her crossed legs.

“So as soon as they start plotting crimes,” she made a slicing motion with her other hand, “we’ll come in and stop them.”

“No.”

“No?” Remedios frowned.

“Think of it like a fight,” Liam said. “If we’re too consistent and repetitive in our attacks, then we’re going to get in trouble. We’re on defence, as well, so we have to be shrewd in our offence. When we hit them, it has to hurt or it’ll be too little.”

“That makes sense,” Remedios replied, “but I won’t allow harm to befall the citizens if I can help it.”

“I’m pretty sure things won’t escalate that quickly,” Liam told her. “Not intentionally, at least. I’ll definitely let you know if I notice something like that is about to happen, though. For now, the goal is to maintain the peace of Hoburns.”

“I can get behind that. What am I supposed to do?”

“It won’t just be you,” Liam said. “All of the Paladins stationed in Hoburns will have to participate, too. It’d be awfully strange if you kept appearing to mess things up for the Nobles when it isn’t even your shift. We can start with deterrence. The Holy Order office will investigate information that they receive from ‘concerned citizens’ or reinforce security in threatened areas. That should be enough to keep the Nobles’ agents from doing anything too risky and frustrate their ambitions.”

The city’s population was already well past the point of resentment when it came to the Nobles’ games, so the explanation was vague enough that the Nobles would never be able to figure out how they were being thwarted.

Remedios crossed her arms, looking up at the canopy of her bed.

“Hmm…this is getting complicated. You should speak to Captain Montagnés about this. He should be back any day now.”

“Once we produce results,” Liam said. “I don’t want to needlessly waste the Holy Order’s resources. Anyway, I need to get back before they notice I’m gone.”

“Do you want your stuff?” Remedios asked.

“My stuff…?” Liam frowned as he rose from his seat, “Oh, not yet. I just got into one of their elite retinues, so suddenly showing up with a full set of fancy equipment would be super suspicious.”

“Alright.”

Liam went to the nearest window and peeked out of the curtains before stepping onto the windowsill.

“Liam.”

“Yeah?”

He turned to see Remedios grinning happily at him from her bed.

“You’re a good guy. Thanks for not letting me down.”

Liam nodded silently and grabbed the eaves overhanging the window, flipping himself up onto the rooftop. He couldn’t find anyone snooping around, though the type of spying that the locals did probably wasn’t worth it so late at night. After returning to the western blocks, he located the patrol that he had contacted before he left. This time, he waited on the street well ahead of them instead of popping up nearby.

“Oh, hey, it’s…Liam, right? Thought we missed you.”

“Something caught my attention,” Liam said, “but it turned out to be nothing. What did Sir Jimena say?”

“He says to hold off for now.”

“Really? Why?”

“You’ve overloaded the gatehouse. It never had much holding space in the first place and they filled the customs office, too. The last few guys you turned in are just dangling their heels over the edge of the wall. Oh, Sir Jimena wants a word with you at the end of the shift.”

He hoped he wouldn’t get yelled at. As dawn rose over the capital, he warded away a dozen more people, including two who crawled out of their windows to have breakfast on the rooftops. Once he spotted A Company’s men coming to replace the night shift, he made his way to the western gatehouse. Sir Jimena was speaking to the same Knight from the previous evening in the captain’s office. They both looked over in his direction when he rapped his knuckles on the wooden column at the top of the stairs.

“Liam,” Sir Jimena nodded. “Come in. This is Sir Pires, Captain of A Company.”

“So you’re the new thief-catcher,” the tall redhead said. “How about working on the day shift?”

“Any man working on the rooftops during the day is just asking to get cooked, sir.”

Sir Pires chuckled at his response.

“Yet they say A Company is the choice assignment,” he said. “It’s no better baking on the street, I tell you.”

“What’s your assessment of our jurisdiction so far?” Sir Jimena asked.

“There are too many people playing around up there right now, sir,” Liam asked. “That’s a type of protection on its own. Once we thin them out, we’ll get a real idea of how many are being sent over on purpose.”

The Knight picked up a small pouch from the captain’s desk and lobbed it at Liam. It landed in his palm with an audible clink.

“What’s this for, sir?” Liam asked.

“Good work is rewarded,” Sir Jimena answered. “That’s how it should be, right?”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Return to the camp and get some rest. You’ll be clearing another part of our jurisdiction tonight.”

Liam saluted and descended the stairs. Despite only covering a handful of city blocks, his new job was far more demanding than escort duties between Hoburns and Canta. He yawned and stretched as he walked down the western highway, wondering what was for dinner.

“Ah, Liam, you’re just in time!”

Liam froze at the edge of the camp offices, where Sir Jorge was waving him over with a huge smile.

“Just in time?”

“A fresh batch of girls has come in!”

The guy just wouldn’t give up.

What does he mean by ‘fresh batch’, anyway? Do they pick girls off of trees here? Are there different seasons for different types?

“I just moved,” Liam said. “It’s been a busy night, too. Maybe later.”

“No, Liam, you do not understand!” Sir Jorge came up and fell into step beside him. “You are in B Company now. The elite companies get to pick the best girls first, and it is first come, first serve. Those left unchosen will surely be snapped up when they are passed down to the lower camps. There is no ‘maybe later’.”

That’s not the point…

He was still sore from being in bed with Remedios. Any involvement with girls was even further from his mind than usual.

“Come,” Jorge rested a hand on his shoulder, “We’re going by them right now. It is not good for a man of your status to be alone, hm?”

Liam sighed and allowed himself to be led aside. The aforementioned ‘best girls’ were lined up on a wooden platform placed in a patch of morning light. He had to admit they were all well above average in terms of looks. Whoever made the arrangements even made sure that there were a variety of different types available. All of them were young, with none appearing past their teens.

A crowd of men had formed around them, but none were allowed on the platform. Liam glanced at their longing looks as Sir Jorge led him up to see the girls. It seemed that they were on display as yet another ‘incentive’ for performance. As far as ideas went to improve camp operations, it probably wasn’t a bad idea considering how hard it was to motivate anyone to do more than the bare minimum. He knew that more than a few people didn’t care too much about wealth but went crazy over women.

“Please,” Jorge nudged him forward. “Do not hold back on our account.”

No, it’s more that I’m holding back on my account.

Jorge was all smiles, entirely oblivious to Liam’s thoughts. Now that it had become a matter of status, he wasn’t sure how he could worm his way out. Nobles and their retainers were very particular about certain things and life would get increasingly difficult the more he went against their customs. Being seen as a deviant would probably create all sorts of trouble for him.

Ugh, I can’t even look them in the eye.

Never mind the envious gazes of the men below, the women were sizing him up as well. It was like he was a piece of meat being assessed by the women who were in turn being assessed like pieces of meat by the crowd.

How could he even decide? The ‘best girls’ were selected for their looks alone. Additionally, it looked like the camp had taken them in – or maybe picked them out – to be fed and groomed until they were presentable as prime products for the privileged. Yet, despite that, he could still sense their desperation.

No, it’s worse than that. They’re all scared.

Whether it was fear of selection or rejection and what might come after that, he couldn’t tell.

As a follower of The Six, he had no intention of marrying someone until he was twenty. The Priests said that starting to consider prospective partners was fine when one got to around seventeen or eighteen, but twelve was far too young to even start thinking about it.

Never mind me, they’re all young, too…hm, how about this…

“I’m looking for someone who can read and do math,” Liam said. “Please step forward if you can do both.”

Only one of the girls stepped forward.

Well, that certainly narrows things down.

She appeared to be around Liam’s age and was a bit taller than him. She was also the prettiest out of the group, though that was probably just his opinion. Liam walked up to the girl, who looked uncertain as to what was going on.

“I’m Liam,” he said. “What’s your name?”

“…Natalia,” the girl’s gaze went to the floor of the platform. “Natalia Abarca.”

“Pleased to meet you, Miss Abarca,” Liam smiled and held out his hand. “Let’s go.”