Chapter 85

"Honestly, I didn't expect her to dislike it that much."

Tetra said as if defending herself.

"Well, she's always hated the outside, but I thought she could at least talk to people..."

"Well, that's just her personality. There's nothing we can do about it."

So, there's no need for Tetra to worry about it.

We had returned to the town center.

Reducing the town's fighting force. That's what we need to do.

Looking around the town, there were indeed many new buildings. Stone structures without any cracks or wear, and wood that hadn't discolored. They were probably built after the town was established.

As I had thought in the morning, the town had an impression of abnormal growth.

Indeed, it was unusual for a place that was a frontier village until recently.

The population also seemed large, with several people always in sight. It was on a different scale from the frontier village I used to live in, where you rarely encountered anyone while walking down the street.

"But what a lively town. In another ten years, it might even rival a secondary capital, don't you think?"

There are already more than a thousand people. Even Iralin probably doesn't have ten thousand.

"Yes. Ever since the current mayor took over, the town has suddenly grown. It's completely different from when it was a village."

"Is it because of the mayor's leadership?"

The mayor has the competence to grow the town and the cunning to evade taxes and hire assassins.

Judging from this scene, the mayor must be a beneficial figure for the town.

But to me, he's just an enemy.

"From what you've said, he seems like a good mayor."

"To me, he still seems like a bad and unpleasant person."

"Because he's using Helena, right?"

When I said that, Tetra's face darkened.

"...That's part of it, but the people living here have also changed. It used to be mostly farmers and craftsmen, but now it's mostly arrogant merchants."

"Ah, so the ratio of merchants has increased."

When people gather, merchants naturally follow. That makes sense.

Then, why do people gather here?

I suddenly wondered.

Is it because it's a comfortable place to live? No, I don't think a small town in the middle of a forest would be comfortable to live in, even now.

Is it because of a thriving industry that attracts people? Could that be it?

"Does this town have any major industries or specialties?"

When I asked, Tetra answered without hesitation.

"No, it was a self-sufficient village like any other. There was nothing to sell to other places."

It seems that's not the case. It's not an industry.

Then, what is it? How did the mayor revitalize the town?

"Then, did the mayor implement any special policies? Or did he do something different?"

"No. I don't know much about other places, but... he only reduced taxes."

"Reduced taxes?"

Taxes again.

"One day, the tax rate in this town was suddenly lowered. The amount deducted from store sales and the taxes on guild transactions."

"Did the income... increase?"

The economy might have improved. But then I realized something.

The income itself might not have increased, but the expenses were likely reduced.

"Isn't that related to when Helena got involved in tax evasion?"

"Yes, it was around that time."

I got the general idea.

The increase in people didn't lead to an increase in merchants. The increase in merchants led to an increase in people.

The mayor chose to favor merchants as a means to revitalize the town.

He reduced taxes, attracted merchants to open stores, and drew in people. Then, he taxed the increased population and used that revenue to develop the town.

It's a sound strategy. For a town without an industry, it's an effective approach.

This town chose to tax one hundred people at ten percent rather than ten people at twenty percent.

So far, so good.

But the village didn't have the assets to sustain the reduced taxes for a while.

It's likely that they started evading taxes during the initial period when profits were low, using Helena.

I don't know if they intended to continue it long-term.

It might have been a short-term, underhanded tactic. Just for this year, just this time.

I can't be sure.

However, this economic crime has continued for three years.

This town hasn't paid taxes for three years.

The town's prosperity is probably now dependent on this economic crime.

"You said the current mayor took over. When was that?"

"About three years ago, right after the village was upgraded to a town. The previous mayor died suddenly, and his son took over."

And that timing is also problematic.

"So, when did Helena's father die? You said it was around the time the town was established, right?"

"Yes. Just before I returned to work in this town, and just before the previous mayor died."

Helena's father's death, the previous mayor's death, and the current mayor's inauguration and the start of tax evasion all happened around the same time, with slight variations.

Is this a coincidence?

Just the fact that both deaths happened at the same time could be a coincidence.

But when Leighton heard about Helena's father's death, he immediately insisted on her active cooperation.

I can't see what her father's death means, but it might be related.

In any case, our current task is to eliminate the private army.

Let's start with that.

"So, we're going to deal with the private army's attack. Do you have any ideas, Tetra?"

"Well, can't we just attack and kill them?"

When she countered, I was a bit taken aback.

"That's true... Do you know who the private army members are? It would be troublesome to search for them."

"Oh, I see."

Tetra scratched her head, seeming to understand.

"Unfortunately, I don't know much. I only know that they are armed soldiers acting on the mayor's orders. I rarely worked with them."

"So, we need to investigate their size, strength, and base first."

We practically know nothing.

Even if we attack the mayor's residence, we might find some, but it would be difficult to distinguish them.

"If they attack someone, we could capture and interrogate them..."

"I doubt they'll talk easily. Do you have any experience with interrogation?"

Given that they are hired, they probably won't talk easily. That's true in any organization.

"I don't have any, but they're just hired for money, so I think they'll talk easily."

"Well, it might be worth a try..."

Indeed, it's worth a try, but to do that, we need to come into contact with one of the members, as Tetra said.

I made a mistake. If I had realized it yesterday, I would have kept one alive.

I must have been half-asleep.

By the way, I left the man unconscious, burned his spinal cord, and abandoned him in the forest.

I thought he wouldn't be able to move, but his diaphragm would still function, so he should have been alive.

I thought he could talk and that Leighton could get information from him, and I injured him in a way that could be quickly healed.

But when I woke up in the morning, he was dead.

Maybe I did something wrong, like when you kill a fish.

Strangely, I didn't feel much guilt.

It was no different from killing birds, insects, or fish. Is this what it means to get used to taking lives?

I felt a little lonely.

That's right.

Thinking about the man from yesterday reminded me.

We still have a member we can contact.

"That's right. Let's go see someone who might have inside information."

"Huh? You know where a member is?"

Tetra raised an eyebrow, looking confused.

I can't blame her. She didn't see it.

"Yes, I've seen them. It's a good time, so let's wait for lunch. Whether we can eat or not is another matter."

"Huh? Now? Huh? ...What!?"

When I took Tetra's arm, she seemed flustered for a moment but followed me quietly.

I'm glad she came without me having to explain.

It's already noon. We hurried to the cafeteria.