Chapter 74

As we were proceeding down the street, a group of rough men suddenly surrounded us from both front and back.

There were about fifty men in front and fifty in the back, making a total of a hundred. All of them were armed and had the faces of men accustomed to violence.

"Master..."

"Don't worry."

I placed my hand on Shirley's head, indicating that she should stay as she was, performing a passable act. I jumped off the carriage and said loudly,

"I am Mirees Truth. As you can see, I am a merchant. Do you have some business with me?"

One of the fifty men in front stepped forward. He was as well-built and accustomed to violence as the others, but his eyes had a certain calmness to them.

"I know you're a merchant. I just want to collect a toll."

"A toll, you say."

"That's right. As a merchant, you should understand, right?"

The man said this with a smile.

"What if I don't pay?"

"You're not saying you can't pay, are you?"

The man said this with a continued smile. I was certain that my behavior at the inn yesterday had reached his ears.

"It's better to pay up. That way, we won't have to resort to violence."

"Unfortunately, I have no intention of paying."

The man's smile vanished instantly, and his subordinates began to stir.

It seemed they hadn't imagined that a mere merchant would reject their demands so boldly.

"Then there's no choice. You'll have to taste some pain. Hey!"

The man nodded, and three of his subordinates stepped forward, cracking their knuckles.

"Look at that pretty face."

"I really hate guys like you."

"It's better to cry early."

The men, speaking in unison, lunged at me. All three drew their shabby long swords and swung them at me.

I wrapped my fists in Bahamut's flames and casually swept them away. The swords, when struck, melted more than halfway down their blades.

The red-hot molten metal scorched the ground, and the men were completely unable to comprehend the situation.

I immediately punched the three of them, and they flew away, turning into flaming torches in mid-air.

"Amazing, Master!"

Shirley, as instructed, cheered from atop the carriage.

"...It seems you really want to see some pain."

As the young leader spoke, the bandits attacked en masse.

I wrapped both hands in Bahamut's flames and met their assault.

I melted their weapons and sent them flying, turning them into flaming torches.

The enemies were knocked down one after another, rolling on the ground in agony.

They all came at me, and I wondered if they would go after Shirley.

"Stay still! This girl's life is in danger!"

Suddenly, the threat stopped both me and the bandits in our tracks. I slowly turned around and saw one of the bandits jump onto the carriage, taking Shirley hostage, holding her in a headlock, and pressing a sword to her throat.

"..."

I didn't respond.

"Boss, now's the time!"

Seeing that I had stopped, the man shouted to the young leader. The young leader, without a word, drew his sword and walked past me.

"Wha—gah!"

Without hesitation, he cut down his own subordinate.

"Why...?"

The man, who had been cut down and rolled off the carriage, looked at his boss in disbelief.

"To take a woman hostage is a disgrace!"

"Ugh..."

After spitting out these words, the young leader turned to Shirley.

"It's safe now... huh?"

He was surprised to see that the sword was still pressed against Shirley's neck, but it had adhered to her skin.

"Indeed, Master. No matter what happens, I don't intend to get hurt."

Shirley looked at me with admiration. The cheers she had given earlier were something I had told her to do beforehand.

From the beginning, I had planned to see how things would unfold if I noticed her or if she drew attention by making a noise.

Of course, I had taken measures to ensure that Shirley wouldn't be harmed, linking her with the most loyal of my hounds, Leviathan, and the armor ring, and focusing solely on her protection.

As a result, the sword that had been pressed against her neck adhered to her skin.

The young leader was visibly shocked and looked at me with trepidation.

"Who are you...?"

I could tell from his eyes that he was starting to piece things together. He no longer saw me as just a merchant.

"Raymond Grief Daily"

"!!!"

The young leader was greatly surprised, and murmurs of "Grief?" began to spread among his subordinates.

"For the past twenty years, I've only used the name Raymond Daily. Why do you know my full name? You stopped using it after your father died in prison, didn't you?"

"Why... do you know this?"

His voice was hoarse, as if being squeezed from deep within his throat, completely different from before.

"After your father, who was a magistrate, died, you became a beggar and eventually joined the bandits. You lived a peaceful life until one day, you couldn't stand by as the leader of the bandits tried to force himself on a subordinate's wife. In a fit of rage, you killed the leader and were subsequently pushed into the leader's position by your peers."

"...You've done your research. Who are you?"

The latter part of his history, from when he joined the bandits, was probably not hidden, and his current subordinates likely knew about it. From the moment I started recounting this, Raymond seemed to calm down.

"If you continue this way, you won't die a proper death."

"I've been prepared for this since I started this life. It's the life I was born into."

"What if I told you there's another path?"

"There isn't one."

"I had your father investigated. He was imprisoned for distributing food to refugees during a famine on his own initiative. While it was an unauthorized act, the emperor's treatment of such acts can change."

"How can it change?"

Raymond asked, his voice filled with disdain.

"I could grant you a barony."

"...Who are you really?"

Raymond's eyes grew even more suspicious.

"Shirley"

"Yes."

Shirley nodded and fired a signal flare into the sky. It was a type of firework that shot straight up and exploded with a loud noise, visible even in the daytime.

Within a minute, the sound of footsteps like an earthquake could be heard. After about another minute, soldiers appeared.

Two thousand soldiers suddenly appeared, surrounding the hundred bandits who had surrounded me.

Then, Cheryl came to stand before me.

"Cheryl Hyde, I have arrived—Your Majesty."

Cheryl knelt before me, and simultaneously, the two thousand soldiers also knelt.

Two thousand well-dressed, regular soldiers, all kneeling before me. The sight made Raymond and his bandits pale.

"Y-Your Majesty... You, no, you are..."

"Noah Ararat. I am the emperor of the empire."

"---!"

Raymond's face was as if he had been struck by lightning, and he took a step back.

After ten seconds of shock, Raymond regained his composure, knelt, and performed a proper bow.

Then, the bandits also began to kneel one by one. Shirley jumped off the carriage and knelt as well.

Among the total of 2,100 people, everyone was kneeling except for me.

It was a scene that could only be seen with an emperor.

In such a situation, I looked down at Raymond calmly.

"I had you investigated and observed your actions just now."

"Yes..."

"You are a man who shouldn't die. Are you willing to work for me?"

Raymond was taken aback and looked up.

"T-That's... my father—"

"That's irrelevant. I have already restored his honor."

"---!"

Raymond was even more surprised, and gratitude appeared in his eyes.

"Amazing..."

One of the women murmured, and Raymond bowed his head.

"As you command. Use this life as you see fit."

---

Name: Noah Ararat

Emperor of the Empire

Gender: Male

Level: 15 + 1 / ∞

HP: C + C Fire: E + S

MP: E + C Water: C + SS

Strength: C + S Wind: E + C

Stamina: D + C Earth: E + C

Intelligence: D + B Light: E + B

Spirit: E + C Darkness: E + B

Speed: E + C

Dexterity: E + C

Luck: E + C

---

Both body and soul, he submitted to me.