Chapter 85

I was taken by the so-called law enforcement team to the castle of the lord who governs this city.

The castle is lavishly decorated with rare white marble and adorned with gold, silver, and precious gems everywhere, proudly displaying the lord's power and wealth.

Once inside the castle, I was led to a small room without windows. The fact that my hands and feet were not restrained was probably because they underestimated me, thinking that someone of my class, an Unemployed, could do nothing.

"Wait here until preparations are made."

A man with a distinguished beard, who seemed to be the leader of the team, told me in a threatening voice.

"You will be judged by the lord."

"I see."

"You may not know this, as you are not from this city, but the lord's profession is the only one of the First Rank, the Great Lord. You should know that it's futile to have any foolish thoughts, because the Great Lord's skill, Absolute Command, cannot be disobeyed by anyone."

"Hmm."

As the name suggests, it's probably a skill that forces the target to obey commands. It makes sense that, with such a skill, no one tries to correct the unjust discrimination against lower-ranked people in this city, despite the majority of the population being of lower ranks.

Incidentally, I was the only one taken, and the shop owner's daughter, who was blamed for stepping on my shoes, was ignored. The man of the Second Rank, who had been scolding and mocking me, had probably forgotten about the girl after hitting her in the face.

After a while, I was moved again within the castle. I arrived at an especially luxurious room.

At the back of the room, a man in his early forties was seated on a throne-like chair.

He wasn't very tall, but his broad build made him a massive figure. His belly was abnormally large, and the excessive fat made his neck almost invisible.

In short, he was incredibly fat.

Despite this, he seemed to have no intention of losing weight. A platter loaded with fruits and meat was placed on a stand beside his chair. He was greedily devouring a piece of meat, ignoring me as I entered the room.

After finishing his meal, he handed the bone to a nearby beautiful woman, licked his greasy fingers, and finally turned to me. At that moment, the law enforcement team finally spoke.

"My lord, we have brought the man in question."

"Hmm, well done."

The lord nodded importantly and looked down at me, snorting.

"Hmph. A Sixth Rank, of course. The sentence is death, death. To show the citizens what happens when they defy my laws, the best way would be to tie ropes around your legs and have a horse drag you. The body can be left in the square for the birds to eat."

It seems that alone is enough for the death penalty.

"Hahaha! See that! Now you know what happens when you harm someone of the Second Rank, don't you!?"

A laugh came from behind me. I glanced back to see the man who looked genuinely delighted. He had come to witness the judgment.

‘Master, are you going to accept this quietly?’

"No way."

‘That's what I thought.’

"Hey, why do you sound disappointed?"

While choking Mati, I turned around.

"As the saying goes, 'When in Rome, do as the Romans do.' I thought I would go along with the city's rules, but this trial is clearly one I don't need to follow. I'll be taking my leave."

The law enforcement team immediately surrounded me.

"You, do you intend to defy the lord's judgment!"

"Of course I do."

"Hahaha! You must be an incorrigible fool! What can a mere Unemployed do! All the members of the law enforcement team are of the Third Rank, advanced combat classes!"

I used "Shrinking Ground" to break through their encirclement.

"…Huh?"

"He's… gone…?"

They were stunned by my sudden disappearance.

"! T, there he is! Over there!"

"How did he do that!?"

By the time they noticed, I was already near the room's exit.

"Stop!"

At that moment, the lord's "Words of Power" echoed. My body froze. It seems he used Absolute Command.

"Submit quietly!"

Following his words, my body moved against my will, returning to the law enforcement team.

"I see, this is indeed irresistible."

The compulsion was stronger than I expected. I tried to resist, but it felt as if my will itself had been taken away, and I couldn't even muster the energy to resist.

But what if I do this?

I switched my personality.

"Ugh!?"

I kicked one of the team members who was trying to restrain me.

"What? H, how can this be? Why isn't the lord's command working!"

"Also, isn't this man an Unemployed!? What was that kick just now!"

Hmm.

It seems that changing my personality allows me to escape the compulsion of Absolute Command.

"Stop resisting!"

"…!"

The lord's Absolute Command came again. I immediately switched my personality again, but I can't do this indefinitely.

"I need to take down the lord first."

I kicked off the ground.

Using a higher-level skill of "Shrinking Ground," "Divine Footsteps" (a mimicry), I appeared right in front of the lord.

"Huh?"

To him, it might have looked like I had leaped through space. I punched his thick belly, which was exposed by his stunned expression.

"Ugh!?"