After talking with my mother, I went to the barracks, where Almeria, Alex, the Adventurer Olivia and her team were already waiting for me, and the soldiers who would be the main force in the operation, mostly from among the royal guard. Most of the members of the special squad were not yet ready for a task of this kind, but Karina and three other notable recruits from the ranks of the special squad were still present.
Alex and Almeria were finishing their briefing.
- Try to capture as many of the criminals alive as possible! However, if one of them threatens your or someone else's life with their actions, then you can not show mercy!
It was part of my plan, I wanted to kill them all with my own hands to get experience points, but still someone from the experience bags… I mean, one of the criminals may resist, and in this case it is better to let him be killed right away, but not let him slip away.
I clapped my hands to attract attention, then cleared my throat and addressed the audience.
- This is a very important mission that will determine the future of our kingdom and all residents. So if you want your family and your loved ones to always be safe, then give it your all and don't let the bloodsuckers slip away! In addition, those who stand out in the process will receive a bonus of 10 gold coins! Have you already received your assignments?
I looked at the rows and everyone answered unanimously.
- Yes, Your Majesty!
- Then what are you waiting for? Proceed with the implementation of the plan!
- Yes!!!
My very mediocre speech, thanks to the effect of the title, was able to light a fire in them, and they started their tasks, dispersing into groups of 5 to 50 people. I waved my hand, signaling Alex, Almeria, Olivia and Karina to come over.
- Karina, Olivia, do you already know what we are going to do?
- No, General Almeria said that we will be in the same group with you, but she has not yet shared her instructions.
The elf replied. I nodded with understanding and began to explain our goal myself.
- We will deal with the most influential and most powerful opponents. Foremost, we will take on Marquis Freud, and then we will split into two teams and deal with criminal gangs. I'll go with Olivia and Karina, and Alex and Almeria will take care of another group. They will tell you more about the plan along the way.
They didn't answer me, but everyone nodded seriously. All my companions have called their subordinates, yet we will not go on such a mission five of us. Out on the street, their subordinates saddled horses, they did not need to know the plan — they would simply block the territory from escaping, but the five of us could handle the cleanup. We got into the carriage, where Alex together with Almeria outlined the plan. The way to the residence of the Marquis was not very long, it took 20 minutes. His residence was not much inferior to the royal palace, yes, the area of the territory is smaller. Yes, the building is lower. But in fact, the residence was much more luxurious than the palace, it could be noticed if you pay attention to the materials. Even the gates where the guards were standing were made of bronze, there was a marble fountain with a sculpture of gold in the courtyard, and the deeper you look, the more surprised you will be. The marquis maintained his status below the royal, but only for show, but in fact I heard that he has a platinum bathtub and a mirror with several thousand inlaid diamonds, but in fact everything could be much more luxurious.
It made me feel some envy. I'm the king, so why the hell am I poorer than a Marquis? But soon envy disappeared, and rage appeared in its place. How dare he steal from me? According to the data that Alex collected, in the last year alone, the Marquis appropriated more than 10,000 gold coins from the treasury. The money that was allocated to him for the development of the kingdom's territory simply settled in his pockets, and the assigned tasks were performed extremely poorly.
Breaking out of my reverie, I said to my companions.
- Let's start!
And got out of the carriage. The guards at the gate, at first did not understand who decided to visit them, but quickly bowed and after greeting said.
- We will notify the Marquis…
But I interrupted them.
- No, stay here!
If they decided to obstruct, then I would chop them into dust. I was so furious right now. But the guards wisely retreated, allowing me to enter the gate. My companions followed me. When I entered the garden, I was already convinced of how extravagantly the Marquis lived. Yes, I am not in distress either, but when I have bronze statues in my garden, the Marquis has gold and silver ones. He obviously stole a lot, and his ancestors probably did too. When I got to the house, I pushed open the gate and went inside. And I saw mountains of gold, there was gold everywhere — chairs with gold legs, mirrors with gold frames, gold chandeliers. Moreover, it could not be gilded — we are still in the Middle Ages, even if there is magic. I thought for a second and made a note for myself that it's worth taking up a business with gilding, this will allow me to earn a lot.
- Oh, Your Majesty, what brings you here?
The butler of the Marquis' house ran up to me.
-I have received a report from a reliable source that the Marquis is involved in the slave trade.
I answered. This was indeed the case, Alex found out that the Marquis was secretly trading slaves, and in the Kingdom of Jorgen it was forbidden, by the way, I think in vain. Soon I will allow the slave trade, but the reasons why someone can become a slave will be strictly regulated, in return many slavers and, accordingly, buyers from neighboring countries will be attracted to the country, which will have a positive impact on the economy. In addition, slaves are cheap labor, and instead of prisons, which the budget is spent on, there will be slavery for criminals who do not deserve the death penalty. But unlike what I planned, the Marquis sent thugs to kidnap ordinary residents of the neighborhood and turned their lives into hell.
After my words, the butler trembled, but answered.
- W-what are you saying?! M-Marquis would never do that! W-who is this bastard who dared to slander the lor…
Unfortunately for him, he couldn't finish the sentence, because I didn't have the patience to listen to this shit he was saying in a trembling voice, and I broke his neck with one hand, using the skill [Wild Power], a skill of the 1st level of the subclass called Berserk, a skill that briefly increased strength in depending on the user's rage. And I was in a very strong rage, so I broke his neck without even straining.
When his corpse fell to the floor, I was already climbing the stairs to the second floor, according to Alex, it was there that the Marquis spent most of his time. And I did not lose, looking into the third room on the second floor, I saw an elderly Marquis mocking some poor guy. The room was arranged like a mixture of a torture chamber and a bedroom of some Casanova, a large bed with gold posts and red velvet fabrics on it, but metal hooks hung from the canopy of the bed, on which a young naked boy was strung, whom the Marquis, frozen in place now, had previously tortured.
Everything was mixed up in my soul: Pity for the boy, contempt for the tastes of the old man, rage towards him and the understanding that such garbage has no place in this world. I rushed at the old man, not forgetting to use all the accelerating skills that I had at the moment, but suddenly a man in black appeared in front of me from the shadows in the corner and tried to attack me, but I retreated during the time and his dagger passed by vital places, however, I did not completely dodge, and the dagger drew a small cut on my shoulder. And then the killer's head exploded.
[Level 3 assassin killed! Received 30 XP of the magician, received 20 XP of the fighter, the amount of the contribution is 5%.]
The fact that I drew attention to myself and the killer's attack was also considered a contribution, albeit not a big one, and the distribution of experience points was based on the skills and moves that I applied during what the system considered a fight. I didn't even have to look to figure out who killed the killer instantly. Of our company, only Olivia is capable of this — after all, she is a level 4 fighter and an experienced adventurer in her peak condition. But I didn't thank her in any way, now I wanted to cut the Marquis into scraps, very slowly and with pleasure...