The next day, when Leobolt arrived at work, one of his aides rushed into the room. He had a flustered expression on his face; apparently something unusual had occurred.
“Bad news, Commander Leobolt!”
“Has something happened?”
“A group of guards have abandoned their posts!”
Leobolt’s eyes shot open in surprise.
According to the report, the guards had abandoned the barracks in the night and disappeared without a trace. By the time morning had come, they still hadn’t returned. That meant that in all likelihood, they had run off—over thirty guards in total, supposedly.
“Those men are simply beyond belief...”
Is there not a single responsible bone in their bodies?
However, it was my blunder yesterday that ended up causing this incident.
Leobolt had made the guards monitor each other, and the reason they had been following through with that was because they feared Leobolt. If he had successfully purged that man the previous day and reinforced that sense of fear in their hearts, they probably never would have banded together to plot a desertion.
Unfortunately, he had failed in that purge. Their fear of him had diminished, and dissatisfaction and bitterness had grown in its place, giving the guards a sense of solidarity in their negativity.
“And what of the men who ran off...?”
“We still haven’t found them yet, sir!” his aide responded nervously. “But we fear they may have already escaped the capital.”
The Guard Corps is already short on manpower. If we’ve lost over thirty more guards, there won’t be enough men left to defend against a monster attack. Not to mention if the rest of the guards were to learn what happened, their morale would lower even further. At worst, there could even be another coup d’état.
“Such foolish behavior...”
As Leobolt was attempting to use reason to quell the dark emotions rising up within him, he heard loud voices coming from outside the guard station. It wasn’t just a few voices, but an entire chorus, rumbling endlessly through the air like the sounds of a heavy storm.
“What’s all the commotion...?”
Leaving his office, Leobolt went outside the guard station and was stunned by the scene he saw: the citizens of the capital had encircled the grounds and were closing in on the station.
“Well, hello there! Why is everyone gathered out here?”
Leobolt looked to the people, offering them a pleasant smile. He knew the value of his own smile; a pleasant expression on his handsome face could put others’ hearts at ease. He presumed it would happen the same way it always did.
He presumed wrong.
“Leobolt! You lied to us!”
The citizens’ expressions were brimming with anger, and all of it was directed at him.
What on earth...?
Having trouble understanding what was going on, Leobolt tilted his head. Just then, a furious middle-aged man pointed at him and yelled accusatorily.
“We heard what you did! You’ve been in talks with the council about increasing taxes on us to give the Guard Corps a bigger budget, haven’t you!”
The moment he heard that, cracks began to form in the mask he was wearing.
Where did they hear that...?
It was true that Leobolt had been in talks with the council. However, that info should never have left the building.
“Yes... I have indeed,” he conceded.
If the info was out there, then that was that—there was no point in denying it. It was in his best interests to go ahead and admit the truth. It wasn’t as though he had any ill intent; it was a necessity. If he just explained the situation to the people, they would understand that.
“However, it is a necessary part of defending the royal capital,” he continued. “If we don’t increase our budget, we’ll be unable to bolster our numbers.”
“Liar! I heard you just wanted to line your own pockets with a bigger salary!”
“I heard he’s secretly buddy-buddy with the nobles here! Someone said he’s been taking bribes from ’em to turn a blind eye to their crimes!”
“We thought you were such an honest person, Leobolt—but you betrayed us!”
“No, you misunderstand! I’ve done none of those other things! I’m only trying to fulfill my duty—”
“Our lives are hard enough already! And you want us to suffer even more?”
“If you want a bigger budget so badly, take it out of your own pocket!”
The citizens used to worship Leobolt as a hero and look upon him with envy, but suddenly they were glaring at him as if he were their enemy. Their demeanor was nothing like it had been before.
What? Did someone plant these ideas in their heads? Why won’t they just listen to me?
Leobolt couldn’t make sense of it. Increasing the budget of the Guard Corps will lead to better protection for the capital’s inhabitants. If the capital were to fall, the citizens would suffer just as much as everyone else. If they would just put their emotions aside and think logically, they’d be bound to accept that fact.
However—they were being driven by emotions, not logic. Nothing he said to the enraged townspeople seemed to have any effect. Their anger had swelled to a massive surge, taking over the entire area. All Leobolt could do was stand there motionless as they hurled abuse at him. His voice could no longer reach them.
People will only believe what they want to believe...
“Commander Leobolt! We’re in trouble!”
At that moment, a guard who had been out scouting rushed over to Leobolt, pushing his way through the crowd. He wore an expression of extreme urgency—which meant he almost certainly hadn’t brought good news.
“What is it?” Leobolt asked, urging the scout to continue.
Perhaps more guards deserted? Or maybe there’s been a coup? If it’s some sort of internal problem with the Guard Corps, that’s fine—I can figure out a way to deal with it.
However, what the scout told him was unrelated to any of those—instead, it was the most undesirable type of report Leobolt could’ve received at that moment.
“There’s a demon controlling a horde of monsters headed toward the capital!”