Chapter 3:
The Queen Goes to Battle
THE DAY OF RECKONING ARRIVED. Aaron and Godfrey stationed themselves in front of Lord Beckford’s manor.
“Magic sure is handy, huh?” Aaron muttered as he looked at the residence.
“Hm? Don’t you also wield magic, Aaron?” Godfrey said.
“Eh, I guess. It’s nothing special, though,” Aaron answered with a forced smile. “Transfer magic is one thing, but I just can’t compare to the queen’s ability to enhance magic.”
“You shouldn’t compare yourself to her. Not only is the sheer force of her magic unparalleled, but she also has the Sacred Swords at her disposal. Frankly, if the goal of our operation was ‘eliminate’ rather than ‘apprehend,’ she could’ve done it all on her own with no problem.”
“She’s that strong?”
“You’re not familiar with how potent the queen’s magic is?”
“I didn’t attend the coronation. And magic isn’t something I know a whole lot about in general,” Aaron admitted.
“Ahh, I see,” Godfrey said. “Her power is overwhelming. It’s simply divine, I must say.”
The two men went quiet for a time.
“Now then, I believe we should get started,” Godfrey said eventually, placing his hand on the ground. He summoned walls from the earth, surrounding every corner of the mansion.
“Your magic is Alteration, right, Godfrey?” Aaron said.
“Yes. I can reshape materials, turn water into steam, things of that nature.”
“Like I said, it’s handy. Going to be a real big help with the operation,” Aaron told Godfrey, then turned to address his men. “All troops, charge!”
At his order, the soldiers and mages ran in and began arresting House Beckford’s private army. All the while, Aaron shouted commands from the back lines.
“Remember your mission! Don’t let him escape! Hurry!”
“Pardon, Commander Aaron, but does the enemy’s resistance seem oddly weak to you?”
“One must never underestimate an opponent, but this is strange. Perhaps their main forces are with the marquess and Karl, or—” Aaron cut himself off, fixing his gaze ahead. “Now’s not the time to speculate. We must move quickly.”
“Indeed. I’ll be on my way.”
“Good luck, head mage.”
“You too, Commander.”
The two split up as the rest of the squadron performed their duties as planned.
Aaron urged his troops along, sending them deeper into the manor. “Onward!”
“Commander Aaron! Look!” one of his men shouted, pointing out a door more lavishly constructed than the rest.
Aaron nodded. Right away, the soldiers rammed the door open and rushed in.
“Hurry up, you bumbling buffoons!” someone was yelling inside.
It was none other than the lord of the manor himself, Bernard Beckford. The servants accompanying him were shocked at the sight of Aaron and his soldiers. They froze up on the spot, but Bernard was so absorbed in his own affairs that he hadn’t even noticed the intrusion.
“What the hell are you all doing?!” he barked.
Deeper within the room, a woman dressed in luxurious garments quaked with fear. “W-we need to get out of here, now! Why does this have to happen to me…?”
“Oh, I’m so sorry, Cherry!” Bernard cooed, then turned back to his servants. “C’mon, you lousy bastards! Pack my things, now! Careful, that necklace is worth three entire years of your salary!”
It was an utterly absurd, comedic scene. Lord Beckford had yet to realize he was completely cornered while panicking and preparing to escape. Some of the servants seemed more exhausted than afraid.
“Forget that thing! You can just buy another! We need to get out of here right this minute, Bernard!”
“Sure thing, my dear!” the marquess replied. “Hey, you! Hold this!”
Having seen enough, Aaron cut in, “Cease this at once, Lord Beckford.”
“What are you blathering on about…now…?” It was then that the marquess finally noticed Aaron and the other soldiers. He screamed. “H-hey! You idiots, stop this man!”
His servants showed no sign of listening to him.
“By order of Her Majesty the Queen Luxeria, you are all under arrest!” Aaron announced.
At the same time, one of the mages cast a spell. His shadow extended toward Bernard and Cherry, binding them.
“Wh-what are you doing?!” Bernard roared, his face turning red with fury. “I’m the marquess of House Beckford!”
“I know,” Aaron said. “But I am acting on orders from the queen.”
Bernard was frightened, both by Aaron’s calm delivery and the ice in his glare.
“W-wait a moment,” Bernard stuttered, “I-I-I’ll owe you a favor if you let me go. What do you say, huh?”
Aaron’s expression remained unchanged.
“Money! You can have everything in that box over there! It contains more money than you’ll ever make in your life!”
“You would try to buy my mercy with your profits from selling the kingdom’s own citizens?” Aaron retorted.
“Wh-what in the world?! I would never…”
Step by step, little by little, Aaron approached him. Bernard desperately wanted to run away, but the towering man had him pinned in place.
Aaron seethed. “You dare insinuate you knew nothing of this crime?”
A glimmer of hope shone in Bernard’s eyes, like a spider grasping for a thread. “Y-yes! I know nothing about selling peasants! Someone must’ve been taking advantage of me!”
The commander unsheathed the sword on his back and raised it above his head, snapping the thread Bernard clung to so desperately.
“Eeeeeek!”
Aaron lowered the blade, holding it a hair’s breadth from Bernard’s face. “This little farce of yours is over. We already possess documents with your insignia that detail human trafficking done under your name.”
He crouched down, staring Bernard directly in the eye.
“If you still insist you know nothing despite the evidence, then what good is your status? If being a marquess does not require any thought, if you never ask any questions and always do what you’re told, then perhaps a dog would be better suited for the role. Someone who desires only to indulge in worldly pleasures, no matter what kind of illegal acts must take place to fund those vices, is worse than a parasite. The least you can do now is lie still and make your final moments painless,” Aaron said with a smirk.