NOVEL NEXT Chapter 80
In dramas or movies, the bad guys often seem to have honor among thieves.
But they say that such villains only exist because there aren’t truly wicked individuals; they’re artificially created to look cool.
Not a single one of the Spice Guild executives gave me the thrilling spectacle I hoped for.
“Good for me, as they just freely spilled their guts.”
I watched as Judge Andante reviewed the information I had gathered, making Mancini let out a sigh.
“I knew merchants were desperate people maddened by money, but this goes beyond the pale. How can these guys be worse than beasts wearing human skin? How? How?!”
Mancini slammed his hands on the desk in front of him with a bang.
“Can you believe they sold our brethren who believe in Deus to heathens?!”
Though honestly, the real problem seems to be lending money to serfs knowing they can never repay it, and outright turning the townspeople into slaves to sell off.
Just like when in Rome, you follow Roman laws, from the perspective of the Toscan Empire’s common sense…
Townspeople voluntarily took out loans, and for that, women became sex slaves, and men became galley slaves—that’s seen as a “voluntary agreement,” a free choice.
It’s a hell of a lot more malicious than trainers asking, “Were you dragged here?”
“From their perspective, the problem is selling our precious citizens to heathens!”
“Calm down, Your Honor.”
“Can we even calm down about this? Those poor souls are going to be oppressed by heathens and forced to worship their gods!”
No, the bigger issue for them is their lives being ruined by the Spice Guild, rather than who they end up worshiping instead of Deus.
“How can you pick up spilled water? Right now, what’s important is to bring down the hammer of justice on those bastards. Isn’t this the perfect opportunity for you to be a deliverer of justice once more?”
At my words, Mancini smiled.
With his ambitious nature, he looked like he would do whatever it took to become the high court chief.
“Having a guy like him could actually be beneficial.”
He flashed a wicked smile and then turned his head away, clearing his throat as if embarrassed by his excitement.
“Ahem, I’ve shown too ugly a side; it was so ridiculous.”
“I completely understand. I was furious when I found that out too.”
“The shameless act of selling our Empire’s women to heathens must never be tolerated. And obviously, the powerful merchants involved in spice trading must be entangled in this mess.”
Mancini began to lick his lips again.
“Those merchants are also a hindrance to imperial authority. So why not take this chance to weaken them while we’re at it? What do you say we completely uproot the Spice Guild and have you take them all for yourself? That way, you’ll score a massive profit!”
After we’re done whacking the Spice Guild, he wants me to gobble it all up?
Honestly, I could probably ask the Emperor for permission, and he might just give it. But then the merchants would come after me with knives drawn.
“They say boasting about winning the lottery in a poor neighborhood gets you turned into a corpse faster than you can blink.”
I’d probably meet a miserable end at the hands of unknown assassins.
I have to watch where I place my feet even when stretching out on the bed…
“If I take down the Spice Guild and the merchants, I could finally become the high court chief.”
Mancini, the chief judge of the high court, was only one rank lower, but it was a considerable leap—like going from an executive director at a conglomerate to the company president.
It’s not just about social status; the clean, lavish gifts I’d receive from numerous people would be incomparable too.
“If he lasts until retirement, he could even aim for the title of lord with that robe.”
“Your Honor, eating too quickly can cause indigestion. Both you and I might face sad consequences once this is over.”
Mancini had only been promoted to chief judge for a few months.
But already aiming for the high court chief’s seat is crossing a line.
If you get too greedy, it can literally get you killed, you old fool.
He put a hand to his forehead and sighed at my comment.
“Thanks to you, I was promoted ahead of my peers by at least five years, so I should listen to you. What do you think is a good cutoff point for reporting?”
“Write that the Guild Master of the Spice Guild and the executives acted unilaterally in selling our Empire’s women to heathens as sex slaves. Any further entanglement would lead to counterproductive effects.”
“True, even just uncovering this much will earn me significant merit.”
The Spice Guild is one of the top five guilds in our Empire.
Even just having the experience of exposing all their corruptions and judging their leaders would be enough for Mancini to easily rise to high court chief.
“Afterward, if he can’t score more notable merits, he’ll just be a flash in the pan right before retirement.”
Regardless, that’s an achievement he can brag about for the rest of his life.
“And I suggest you write this in your report.”
“What should that say?”
“There have been confessions that the four major merchants, including Medici, were involved in directing and condoning the atrocities committed by the Spice Guild, but all these statements have been judged as perjury aimed at reducing their sentences.”
In this era, if you have power and the financial means to give appropriate presents to the officials in charge, you can do just about anything.
For someone like Duke Visconti, completely exonerating a murderer isn’t beyond the pale, but that’s possible for a duke.
Even I could quickly dig up all the testimonies, evidence, and various details related to the crimes I’m accused of, including the investigator’s personal details and family information.
So there’s no way the merchants couldn’t see this report we wrote.
“Only a noble in name, most barons can’t hold their heads up in front of such lofty individuals.”
“Then the merchants deeply involved in this case will have no choice but to understand your mercy, Chief Judge Mancini.”
“Well, technically what they said isn’t perjury but ‘fact,’ right? They’d know we intentionally covered it up as perjury.”
Such things happen in every country now and then.
A virtuous prosecutor or judge leaves a trace of ‘proper treatment’ for the crime of some noble, and suddenly the evaluation of someone who was meant to be skipped in promotions gets transformed into ‘eligible for promotion,’ landing them in a key position.
If the merchants don’t want to be part of this unfortunate situation where ‘the deliberately hidden truth’ becomes public…
They’d probably try to silence us with a proper payoff.
“Maybe I’ll be showered with suspicious gifts too?”
Even if that doesn’t happen, they’ll at least send signals to foster closer relations with me.
“Alright, I’ll handle this case at this level.”
“That’s a wise decision. So how much do you think the sentences will be?”
Mancini began tapping his fingers on the desk in front of me.
After a moment of contemplation, he spoke.
“Most matters can be handled on my end as chief judge of the high court. Honestly, using my power to cover up even a murder charge is no big deal.”
Other regular court judges don’t have prosecution rights.
But high court judges have prosecution rights and judicial power, making such feats possible.
“Yet this case is simply too big. It will end up reaching the high court justices or even the high court chief himself, so I can’t say it with absolute certainty…”
Mancini deliberately lowered his voice as he spoke.
“The Guild Master of the Spice Guild, along with all the executives, will face complete annihilation. If there’s a religious trial involved, the perpetrators face burning at the stake; the rest will be beheaded. Even if there’s no religious trial, escaping death by beheading will be tough.”
Are the families of the perpetrators also to be killed?
Well, I don’t particularly feel sympathy for them.
Those bastards will surely resort to cutting off my sugar supply and tormenting me, eventually trying to lay hands on Chloe too.
How do I know? The industry is like that everywhere.
“Negotiations for the sake of the opponent, no consideration—just destruction.”
That’s how one can have it all.
“Is that so? Understood.”
“This is the best outcome for both you and me. Besides, considering the multitude of crimes the Spice Guild has committed, I’ve ordered the clerks and other officials of the high court to focus solely on documenting the details of their sins and paperwork directly linked to them.”
Just a little thought reveals that this is a strange measure.
To secure material evidence regarding tax evasion and slave trade, they’d need to gather up cash or valuables from their warehouses.
It’s abnormal not to touch any of that.
“Are these guys just expected to benefit from whatever is in their warehouses?”
And then they probably plan to manipulate documents regarding real estate and various assets to wash the sources of their income and pocket some profit.
The give-and-take is very clear, and I like it.
“Thinking about it, I still haven’t collected punitive taxes. I’ll hurry to make that happen.”
Real friends understand each other without needing words.
“Go hurry and do that.”
After a fruitful conversation with the chief judge, I quickly left my seat.
While it’s great to loot the wealth held by the Spice Guild, there’s something more important I have to attend to.
“Damn that Albert bastard; it looks like he was just watching the Spice Guild cause this uproar to mess with me.”