By the time Hammond reached the door, the others could already tell that something was wrong. The women rushed out of his way, while the guards rushed closer, afraid that they might attract his ire if they were not present by his side.
After going out the door, he turned to them all and roared, "Gather everyone! The villain has invited me to a duel… Don't you all want to see him torn to pieces?"
Without waiting, he turned around and flourished his cloak. Like a banner, it rippled behind him as he set off to the town center.
The route was pretty straightforward; all he needed to do was keep walking north. Initially, he didn't pay any attention to anything around him. The sounds of many footsteps shuffling behind him was enough to let him know that the guards were following, and apart from that, all he thought about was how he would ensure that the villain would beg for death, losing all dignity in the eyes of the townspeople. They would be teleported out of the odyssey after that, but it sure would be a sight to behold.
'It might even be a story that will enter the master's book… hey, I might even get famous!'
Fantasizing about how women in the real world might one day crowd around him like they did with the rich masters in his class, he quickened his pace, but that was when he finally saw the incongruity around him.
The town was too damn silent.
The general noise that accompanied a medieval town had been one of the first things she noticed after arriving. No matter what the time of the day was, there was always someone going about their work and disturbing the peace of nature, but right now, his surroundings were mostly silent. This made him finally turned to his left and right and see that most of the houses he was passing were abandoned, almost as if all of the people had fled.
The reason behind this soon became clear when he saw a large crowd gathered in the distance. The footsteps engraved in the mud were also indicative of how a flood of people had gone in one direction, and curiously, he realized that the villain might have made this happen for some reason.
For a few moments, he wondered whether he should be worried about anything, but he quickly abandoned this thought when he remembered how the man had frozen when confronted with a simple dagger. From that, it had become clear that he had no combat experience, at all, and was just an armchair strategist who had been foolish enough to enter an odyssey.
When he reached the crowd, a single shout made them all flinch and clear a path ahead.
"Make way for the Mayor, or pay with blood!"
He had made sure that his notoriety had already spread throughout the town. It soon became clear that he was successful when he looked everywhere, and saw no one who was ready to meet his gaze. They all looked down when his eyes wandered in the direction, and while reveling in the singular joy of being in complete command, he walked forward.
A few moments later, he stepped onto the open ground in the middle. He had been hoping that the villain might be waiting there, ready to die… so his anger flared when he saw that it was empty.
He even waited for a few seconds, telling himself that the man might have planned a dramatic entrance. It didn't make much sense, but Hammond had learned long ago that not everything in the world had a reason behind it.
When nothing changed even after a minute passed, he finally let loose his rage.
"Where are you, you coward? You call me to a duel, and you hide among the people? You are a disgrace to your parents, your family! Your ancestors must be turning in their graves!"
While his words echoed over the town, he waited for the villain to spring out of the mass of people. One of the favorite lessons of his master was that targeting one's family was the best method to incite anger, and in anger, the decisions one made were almost always good for the opposing party.
Alas… it didn't work.
He didn't see that his master's saying applied to his own anger, too. Ever since he had had no option but to keep his head down and run, he had hated the villain with all of his being. This was why he had been so excited to fight him, man to man, so as he felt that hope and excitement leave him… a deluge of fury took its place.
Turning around, his hands became a blur as he grabbed the closest townspeople. They happened to be a little girl and her mother, and as they squeaked with fear, he threw them into the middle of the ring that had been left empty for their fight.
"I know you're somewhere here. What happened? Did your courage leave you? Or did you want to attack me sneakily? Maybe that plan turned out to be futile when you saw me in armor… well, I don't care about the reason. Come out now, or these two die. I know you don't care about them… but the people of the town do. Citizens of Bellview! Surrender the villain, or enough blood will soak into this mud to make it turn red for all of eternity. If you do not want to see your husband, wife, or children scream with pain and go to an early death… rat him out. NOW!"
His scream made terror appear in the eyes of everyone he saw. They all looked around, as if hoping to suddenly find the former mayor beside them, and when they only saw other familiar townsfolk, they looked in Hammond's direction pleadingly.
That… was when a voice suddenly appeared from his right.
"Mr. Mayor… I have one question for you. Where…is the money?"
The question made his heart lurch to a halt, and for the briefest instant, he recalled one of the only problems presented to him after his takeover.
He had dismissed it as something that would not affect him. The odyssey would end soon, so he was sure that no one would even know…but as the question reverberated in the area, he felt doubt gnaw on his mind.
'No! He's poisoned! I still have the upper hand! He can't do anything!'
Reassuring himself, he made anger burn away the sudden uncertainty. He ran in the direction of the voice, but even when he barrelled through the people that had the misfortune of standing in that direction, he found no one who resembled the villain.
The voice had also been different. Unlike the deep timbre of the one the villain had used when he had spoken to the townspeople before, this was the reedy voice of a teenager.
The realization struck him when he reached the edge of the group, and found an empty road there. The villain… had removed his cloak and voice modulator, and hence, there were no signs to identify him for who he was.
'Fuck! Why didn't I think of that before?'
Whirling around, he ran back into the center. At first, he narrowed his eyes and wondered about how he could find the villain… but then, when he looked up and saw a few townspeople whispering between themselves, he realized that he still hadn't answered the question.
"What money?"
Understanding that it was best to buy time, he feigned ignorance, and sure enough, the villain took the bait.
"The money in the vault which the mayor has to use to procure materials for the town every year. It��s also the money promised to the wine houses and the brothels. Without that money, the town will die, come winter… so tell me, where is it? The vault was empty, wasn't it? Your assistant can confirm that! Only I know where it is… and if I die, it will be lost forever. People of Bellview…it is time to choose. Will you choose to continue to crouch in terror and fear him… or will you choose your future?"
At once, the plan of the villain became clear.
'He wants to turn the people on me!'
Suspicion filling his mind, he turned all around, looking for the first signs of disobedience. He wanted to crush it to make a point, but right now, the people were still registering what the villain had said.
He waited a few seconds, his eyes darting here and there, ready to rush toward whoever decided that the future was more important. But even after an entire minute passed… he saw no such thing.
Clearly…the fear was winning.
Feeling the suspicion melt away, he let out a boom of laughter and shouted, "Good try! But you failed! Did you really think that that would be enough to turn them? Terrorizing cowards like these is my bread and butter! They will never raise a hand against me. Never! Well, if they do, they'll find themselves short a hand… but that's beside the point. Just accept it, villain. You're done for. Come out, and I'll give you a quick death. Then, you won't have to be in pain for days before the poison takes you…"
With sly eyes, he looked around, waiting for the man to appear. The moment he did so, Hammond imagined grabbing him and practicing all the methods of torture he knew on his body… but still, no one appeared.
He was out of patience, now. Deciding that this had all been a waste of time, he humphed and turned around to go back to his residence. Eventually, the villain would have no choice but to face him or die, and the later that was, the more he would be dunked into a river of agony.
Passing the sentence, he took a step toward the crowd, but he paused when he heard a sound behind him.
It was that of a roll of parchment falling on the ground. Raising an eyebrow, he turned around and wondered what it was.
Behind it, a tall teenager dressed in the faded clothes of a villager stepped out of the crowd. A grin came unbidden on Hammond's face, as he had found his target.
Yet, before he could run in his direction, four other similar youths stepped out, too, from different directions.
As he looked between them with confusion, they all took out a parchment from their pocket and began to read what had been written on it out loud.
"No, I didn't think it would be enough… So I took one other precaution. That parchment there is a copy of one that I've hidden away. An accomplice is waiting to pass it around if this doesn't go well. It has three things. One, it contains the list of all those who have visited brothels without the knowledge of their wives. Two, it lists all hidden outstanding debts of those who have lived double lives without their families being aware of it. And, three…it contains an extensive catalog of all the secrets in this town. From instances of adultery to crimes hidden away, it lists all the dirty secrets of each and every member of this town. Either conquer your fear…or prepare to live with the consequences of all this information going public."
Hammond had discerned the danger he was in when just the first item had been mentioned. In a panic, he had run to the closest youth and used just one punch to make him crumple, but the others had gone on.
'He must be one of them. He must be one of them!'
Hearing the rest with half his attention, he had continued targeting each of the youths. Only one managed to finish his task, but after he fell to the floor, too…a dreadful silence engulfed the town.
'He's not here. He's not here! None of them are wounded!'
As this realization struck him like thunder, he turned around and took a step back.
'Weren't those people…standing further back before? Or am I dreaming?'
He felt the doubt return, but outside, he blustered.
"St…stay back! Or I'll kill you! I'll kill you all! Stay away from me! STOP MOVING!"
They didn't stop moving. He watched as they first took hesitant steps, then one of them broke into a run. It was the butcher he had planned his revolution with, and he was snarling, as if the fate promised by the villain would end his life.
He took out the dagger he had used before and brandished it around him. This made them pause, but from somewhere in the crowd…a fistful of soil was flung in his face, and he was momentarily blinded.
All at once, he heard the sound of hundreds of feet, running. Like a lion clamping its jaw shut, the ring of people closed around him and swallowed him whole.
The last thing he remembered…was the two women he had locked away in his bedroom appear in front of his eyes. For a moment, he hoped that that meant that this really was all a dream, but then…they brought both their feet down on his crotch, and with a scream, he felt everything go dark.