CHAPTER 43: CHAPTER 43: KILLING THE INNOCENT FOR FALSE MERIT

Uncle Doyle then explained a bit, and only then did Duke and the other understand that the personal soldiers under Earl Santos were notorious for their violence, often oppressing the commoners.

The composition of Earl Santos’s personal soldiers was quite complex. Only a part of them were locals from the territory, with many being mountain bandits, robbers, and adventurers taken in by Earl Santos.

These people were not originally from Silver County and had no emotional ties to the commoners within the territory.

Coupled with their inherently unsavory backgrounds, they could easily revert to their old ways whenever the opportunity arose.

This led to the sheer terror the local commoners of Silver County felt towards these personal soldiers, highlighting the great psychological shadow their past experiences had cast on them.

Ed was the village chief of Yatai Village, already over sixty years old, which was considered elderly in this era, and his hair was already white.

He hobbled over in front of this group of personal soldiers, smiling apologetically, "Sirs, is there anything we can help you with?"

The group of personal soldiers was roughly the size of two companies, with nearly thirty people in total, led by a company commander.

The company commander jumped down from his horse, approached the village chief, and smiled, "There is indeed something we need your help with. Recently, His Lordship Earl has ordered us to eradicate the bandits nearby. Have you seen them?"

The village chief thought for a moment and said, "I’ve only heard of those bandits; they haven’t been prowling around Yatai Village."

"Right, we’ve been looking for them all day without finding them, so we need your help," the company commander said.

"Uh... how can we help?" The village chief hesitated and asked.

The company commander sneered, "I think you’ve pretty much lived long enough. Living further isn’t much use. Might as well lend me your head for a bit."

Upon hearing this, the village chief was so frightened that he quickly stepped back, waving his hands, "Please, officer, don’t joke with someone insignificant like me..."

The company commander ignored his words and instead turned to the soldiers behind him, saying, "Yatai Village was attacked by bandits, all villagers died, and we fought to the end to eradicate the bandits. Understood?"

"Understood!" The soldiers behind him immediately grasped the meaning upon hearing this, drawing their swords and charging into the surrounding houses, and started slaughtering the commoners.

"You...you..." The village chief, angry and fearful, pointed at the company commander with a trembling hand, unable to speak a word.

The company commander couldn’t be bothered to talk nonsense with the village chief anymore. With a twitch of the muscle on his face, he drew his longsword and was about to finish off the village chief.

As he swung the longsword, just about to hack down, a pebble flew over, striking his wrist with immense force, causing the longsword to fall to the ground.

"Who is it?" The company commander was shocked as he looked at the two figures in full armor stepping out from a distant house. Ignoring the sharp pain in his wrist, he quickly retrieved the longsword from the ground and stepped back.

In this era, anyone able to wear full armor was a tough character, which not only indicated that the person had great strength but also suggested they had significant background.

Vivian was furious, "You dare massacre innocent civilians, killing the good for credit! Is this how Earl Santos manages his personal soldiers?"

The company commander felt a chill hearing Vivian mention Earl Santos.

Their actions clearly crossed societal lines, and if Earl Santos found out, they would inevitably be sent to the gallows.

The company commander steeled his heart, dismissing all else, and shouted, "Everyone, over here! These two are tricky; take them both down! Don’t let any of them escape!"

He suspected Duke and the other might be adventurers, and since there were outsiders here, they couldn’t let them escape.

Otherwise, once news got out, the consequences would be severe.

The soldiers from elsewhere upon receiving the order, immediately rushed over, charging towards Duke and the other two.

Though Duke and Vivian were clad in armor, they had no weapons in hand, which led the soldiers to think they could handle them.

Duke and Vivian exchanged a glance and, very much in sync, took action at the same time.

These soldiers were ordinary people who had never practiced any Breathing Technique, appearing too fragile before Duke and the other.

In just a moment, five to six soldiers were down before Duke and the other.

With the strength they possessed, even ordinary punches and kicks were enough to take these soldiers down.

Duke and Vivian casually picked up the longswords from the ground and slowly walked towards the distant soldiers.

Around twenty of them were over there, retreating step by step in the face of Duke and Vivian’s advance instead.

The soldiers had already discerned that both of them were Knight Level powerhouses, breaking out in a cold sweat instantly.

The strength Duke exhibited was also formidable and was also regarded by them as a Knight Level powerhouse.

The company commander’s face changed many times, finally managing a flattering smile, "There seems to be some misunderstanding. We thought you were bandits, hence the attack. How about this, I have over two hundred Gold Coins over there; let’s consider it as a token of respect to both of you as an apology."

"We can pretend nothing happened here, how about that?"

The company commander cursed internally as well, damn it, how did they end up encountering two Knight Level toughies in this remote little village? Truly rotten luck.

They had entirely given up on the idea of taking down Duke and Vivian, as they, being seasoned veterans, naturally knew that their current manpower wasn’t even enough to fill the gaps in a Knight Level’s teeth.

"Dream on!" Vivian shouted angrily, stomping her foot, and dashed out before anyone realized, instantly appearing before the company commander.

With a single swing of the sword, the company commander’s head flew high, and the surrounding soldiers scattered like birds and beasts, fleeing for their lives, never considering avenging their commander.

Seeing them slaughter women and children with her own eyes, Vivian had no intention of accepting these bribes; it only made her feel even more furious.

After these soldiers fled, Duke and the other two did not pursue them further as there were other issues that needed addressing at the moment.

The soldiers were smart, dispersing on horseback and fleeing, making it very difficult for Duke and Vivian to kill them all.

There were several corpses lying in the village, belonging to both those soldiers and a few villagers.

Vivian thought for a moment and said to the village chief, "I am Vivian, daughter of Earl Hardy of Maple Hill County. You should come with me to Maple Hill County. I will arrange for you to obtain commoner registration."

The village chief hesitated for a moment, not doubting Vivian’s words but sighing, "We’ve lived here for generations; to go to Maple Hill County..."

"If you don’t go, there will be trouble later. As a noble, I’m most familiar with how nobles operate. If Earl Santos learns of what happened here, he will first execute those soldiers and then you as well," Vivian persuaded.

"Why...why is that?" The village chief was a bit confused.

"For the sake of face!" Vivian said solemnly, "Nobles care most about face. Earl Santos could never allow outsiders to learn of his personal soldiers falsely taking credit for killing innocents. Once it spreads, he would be utterly disgraced."

"Rather than letting an Earl fall from grace, he would certainly take the more straightforward approach, which is to wipe out all who know, including you."