Gregory La Fayette glanced briefly at his other unwelcome visitors.
"At least it seeeeems my Lord didn't bring an entire army to deal with my humble abode. Only a calvary, a young boy and your little daughter. How… peculiar."
Frederick didn't respond to the blatant provocation.
The two men stared at each other and waged a silent war.
Frederick took the first shot.
"How many?"
"Whooo knows. Around a dozen?"
"Names?"
"I'll give you a list. I'm sure you'll make your own checks tooooo, no?"
"Of course, your old mind may forget a few."
"Hmph."
"The reward?"
"Twiiiice their monthly pay."
"How stingy."
"It's called business."
"Right. The little boy?"
Gregory was finally stumped for words. A few seconds later, the old man's eyes went wide as he finally made the connection.
Arnold felt chills as the Baron's gaze turned towards him.
"I see. Sebastian."
"M'lord."
The response came from a butler, whose presence Arnold hadn't even noticed until then.
"Bring the newest toy out. At least I got to play with it for a while."
Arnold clenched his fist in disgust. He felt little Anna's hand on his shoulder, a comforting gesture.
It seemed that they were too late.
...
Arnold watched, unblinking, as a blindfolded and gagged Rudolf was brought out.
'Well damn.'
In a short few hours, the boy's body became a bruised mess, unable to walk on his own.
Most importantly...
"Gregory. What did you do the boy's eye?"
Porto's Governor frowned at the gruesome sight before him, while little Anna turned away, surprisingly managing not to scream.
Rudolf's right eye was bleeding through the blindfold.
He had been blinded in one eye.
...
A few hours earlier, while Arnold was still on his way to the Governor's mansion.
For once, Oldep the guard 'worked' efficiently. After all, the Merchant Baron's reward was twice Oldep's monthly pay, and few boys were pretty enough to satisfy the old pervert.
He had had a lucky break of sorts. Oldep had only checked out that begging spot after getting some suspicious information, but it actually turned out to be a windfall.
'Still, to think I'd end up collaborating with a Neutral Evil one day... dammit, I'll have to request Elsa's services tonight. She knows how to make my worries fly away, that sassy whore.'
With the Baron's reward money, Oldep could request some special services tonight. The guard smirked in anticipation, temporarily forgetting about the evil Class Holder he had encountered earlier.
Oldep handed Rudolf over to La Fayette's butler, received his hefty 'reward' and left on his merry way.
He still had to make a few rounds of patrol, and then...
"Wait for me, beautiful! Keh keh keh."
...
Meanwhile, Rudolf began his descent into hell. The young boy's luck was running at an all-time low, and Gregory La Fayette himself was present at the villa's gate when Oldep delivered him.
The old man observed the frightened boy from all angles, often raising an eyebrow or licking his lips.
"Ho? Oh myyyyy. Yes, you will work quite nicely."
The simple minded Rudolf could only shrink back in fear. He didn't know what this rich looking old man wanted, but it would be nothing good.
"C-can I eat?"
Still, Rudolf was smart enough to try and buy some time. Unfortunately for him, however, Gregory La Fayette was used to the ways his toys would try to avoid their duties.
The old man frowned and signaled to Sebastian, who immediately drove a punch right into Rudolf's guts.
"Gahh!"
The young beggar felt a pain worse than anything he had ever experienced as he closed his eyes and collapsed, powerless.
"W-why..."
"Listen now, pretty boooy. My Sebastian here is what's known as a Thief Class Holder, who has advanced to Torturer. I'm sure your simple, beggar mind can't comprehend what that means, so I shall be kiiiind just this once, and explain it to you."
Gregory approached within a hair's breadth of Rudolf's face.
Rudolf felt a cold gaze; the old man's smile didn't reach his eyes.
"It means you will be wishing for death veeery soon, if you don't behave. But worry not, once you've proven your worth, I miiiiight add you to my, well, permanent collection."
An eerie laugh sounded out.
...
And so, Rudolf endured.
And endured.
And endured.
And endured.And endured.And endured.And endured.And endured.And endured.And endured.
He held in his screams, the excruciating pain, and the bloody tears.
After what felt like an eternity, he went numb and lost hope.
Rudolf only wished he could free his hands and slit his own throat.
Having taken an instant liking to the pretty boy, Gregory took Rudolf down to the basement of the villa, and the rest was best left unsaid.
Gregory's permanent collection wasn't made up of young boys at all. Instead, he had hundreds of jars, big and small, filled with body parts.
Sebastian brought over a new jar filled with a viscous red liquid, and respectfully handed a blade to his Lord.
"Hmm, where to cut, where to cut. Isn't it quiiiite the delightful question, Sebastian?"
"Yes, m'lord. This servant finds the boy's eyes to be quite good."
Gregory pondered for a moment before nodding.
"Indeed. Let us proceed then."
Rudolf, who had become numb and silent recently, finally reacted. His tears and snot ran as he watched a bloody blade approach his eyeball.
"A-ah, ah, AHHHH."
Today, Gregory La Fayette added a new item to his collection.
...
Arnold didn't know about these events, but he could guess the truth from the boy's injury and La Fayette's reputation.
He could only sigh internally and pretend not to understand anything. Gregory was already suspecting him to have contacted the Governor, and it wouldn't be good to antagonize the old pervert any further.
Soon, a dazed Rudolf was mounted behind one of Frederick's soldiers, while the Governor himself spoke in a low voice.
"Seeing as the boy is... Mostly unharmed, I won't pursue this matter any further. But be warned, Lord La Fayette. I shall not tolerate any more bribes or undermining of the Governor's, and the Archeons', authority."
The old Baron's expression finally turned grave as he bowed, albeit reluctantly.
"I would never disrespect the Gods. May you have a safe trip home, my Lord."
With that veiled dismissal, both sides inwardly snorted as Frederick left with his entourage, including Arnold and little Anna.
The young girl didn't know what to say to the man in front of her. After all, despite his friend being so wounded, her father had made it clear that he wouldn't punish the perverted Baron.
Yet the smart Anna Trepana could understand the political machinations behind this unfair decision.
In the end, Frederick judged that the number of guards being bribed, and La Fayette's other crimes, didn't warrant a full-on war. At the same time, the Governor had achieved his primary purpose for this visit, namely intimidation.
As far as Frederick was concerned, he would sleep well tonight and think of this outing as a great success.