Arthur met with Lord Howthorns during lunch and they discussed their businesses, which was extremely beneficial for both sides, thanks to capturing Griss Vul alive. The crime lord provided answers and evidence for many unresolved crimes, and even gave out details of his deal with Baron Nishem, Howthorns’ rival. However, the crime lord was, in fact, working for the Temple and the local Bishop, which complicated things. At least initially. Arthur briefly explained that the Temple's officials can go fuck themselves and Sion was more than happy to support the sentiment. With the new information, the local lord was ready to face his enemies and start fighting the bandits in the vicinity. Further agreements between the two went extremely smoothly when Arthur offered his assistance in hunting down particularly dangerous monsters or bandits. Meanwhile, Catherine was meticulously digging through the documents and ledgers that Arthur officially received as part of his compensation for exposing the crimes of Griss Vul. The slaves held by Griss Vul were delivered to their apartment, and while it was easy to release ten of the fifteen people, five of them were in a similar situation to Catherine. For the time being, she simply told them to clean themselves, eat, and rest.

  "I can't take them with us." Arthur shook his head when she told him about them once he returned.

  The four young girls and one lone boy looked at him in awe, but stayed silent while they spoke. Catherine, who took a far more proactive role in advising him after what happened between them in the morning, shook her head in disagreement as she pointed at the brown-haired Human woman.

  "According to her documents, she was an Adventurer whose debts put her into slavery. Despite her age, she travelled most of Saftia and knows the roads, my Lord." Catherine pointed at a short woman who flinched slightly under Arthur's gaze. The Nekomi came closer, and he lowered himself so she could whisper to his ear. "The boy near her is her younger brother and also a skilled Adventurer. In just a few weeks, he will be considered an adult, and I'm sure he will protect her from the Temple. They are level twelve and ten so they are at least stronger than I."

  "What about the rest?" He asked in a low voice, directly into her ear. "Do you think we can trust Benjamin to let them work in his Trade Company?"

  "I... I don't know, but it's worth asking him at least." She smiled at him.

  "All right, I'll trust you. But before we talk with them, I need to visit a few places, and you are going with me." He whispered back, looking at the quiet slaves and sensing their anxiety, Arthur tried to smile encouragingly. "For the time being, I want you to stay here and let us figure out how to help you. I don't want to drag you across the city in your current state."

  They looked at each other in shock, but still stayed silent. Arthur genuinely had no idea what to do, or what he could even tell them. That everything will be fine? They had no one, no money, and no class that would help them survive on their own. Then, there was this bullshit with the Temple taking care of the lone girls. That was why he decided not to give them any false hope. He turned around and left the apartment with Catherine following closely behind him.

  "No one is waiting for us, Sir?" She looked around in surprise. "Where are we going anyway?"

  "Lord Howthorns trusts me after I solved nearly half of his problems at once, so I can now move freely in the city and within reason inside his mansion." The Inquisitor explained. "As for where we are going..."

  The guards bowed to him with respect and opened the doors. Within a short walking distance from the city lord's mansion was a main square, and even from here, Catherine could see a lot of people gathered there.

  "Something is happening in the main square that I wouldn't want you to miss." He answered as they walked and reached the mansion's fence gate, where Captain Amos was waiting for them with four more soldiers.

  "Lord Ives!" The Captain deeply bowed. "The crowd is gathering much quicker than we anticipated, so we would like to assist you."

  "Very well." He smiled and looked at the Nekomi. "You are not allowed to leave my side. If you feel that you could be separated from me or lost in any other way, you are to take my arm, Catherine. Do you understand?"

  "I understand, my Lord." She bowed with a small smile and moved in very close to his right side.

  The guards didn't even look at her as they formed a square with them inside and Captain Amos leading the way. Catherine looked at Arthur in surprise but she was keeping their peace. The people got out of their way and they quickly found themselves closer to the centre of the city plaza. Lord Sion Howthorns was sitting in the tent drinking water, and right next to him were his wife and son. The noble was observing a single man building something in the middle of the plaza.

  "That's Griss Vul, my Lord!" Catherine said and nervously grabbed Arthur's arm.

  "Yes, it is him." The Arcadian flashed his teeth in a smile.

  "Ahhh! Lord Ives!" Sion stood up and extended his hand. Everyone on the market saw the two nobles shake their hands. "This is an extremely educational performance! I would be very happy to receive your permission to practice it more often."

  "Oh, by all means. Just remember to always be absolutely certain about the guilt of those sentenced." Arthur sat down near the Lord Howthorns and pointed at the slightly shorter stool next to him. "You can sit down, Catherine. I'm thankful you provided a sitting place for my Maid, Sion."

  "No problem, Arthur." Sion smiled, but someone approached him, and the city Lord needed to hear the man out.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Catherine observed the man she hated finish building a tall pole. He was crying and begging for his life, which gave her a lot of satisfaction, but she had no idea what was going on.

  "What is he doing, Lord Ives?" She asked quietly.

  "He builds himself gallows," Arthur answered.

  "What?!" She blinked and looked at him with her mouth agape. Her eyes started shining with a vindictive sort of happiness. "I never thought I would see justice... Thank you, my Lord! Thank you so much! Thanks to you, my father's death will be avenged."

  "About that, Cate..." Arthur looked at her. "I know it's sudden... But... Do you want to kill him?"

  She looked at Arthur in stunned silence who, in turn, looked at the blue sky with a smile that was equally sad and thoughtful.

  "I kept secret everything that regarded you and your family as you asked me. But I wanted to give you this opportunity. According to the teachings of Goddess Verka and her parents, God Vali and Goddess Tisiphone, righteous vengeance brings peace of the mind." He said with a strange voice. "This is not a self-driven revenge that starts a mad spiral of hate and destruction, but the conclusion of the trial. I found him guilty of all the crimes he committed and according to the Arcadian law, that man should die. Lord Howthorns judged him and sentenced him to death in accordance with the laws of Saftia. Do you want to be his executioner, or should I kill him for you, Catherine?"

  Her heart hammered like crazy but she took a deep breath to calm herself.

  "I will do it, my Lord." He felt her hand tugging his shirt's sleeve and he saw her thankful gaze. From the soundless movement of her lips, he read. "Thank you, Arthur."

  "There is one more thing I want to give you." He said and her eyes widened. "I don't know if we will manage to succeed, but I will try to give it a shot anyway..."

  "It's impossible, my Lord..." Her eyes were resting on the World's Words that were invisible to anyone else.

  "That is a word I hear very often outside Arcadia..." Arthur chuckled and looked at her seriously. "If we successfully awaken you, you are taking off that collar. If you are into such accessories I will buy you a choker or a ribbon with a bell if you like."

  She covered her mouth with her right hand and barely held back a laugh. Arthur had decided that he was going to go against the stupid customs of this country. If she wanted to return with him to his homeland, she was already an Arcadian. If anyone had any problems with that, they were going to discuss that with him. If anyone were to be too stubborn with their complaints, Shade would introduce them to the Shadow Lands. Arthur decided to take her as his apprentice. In theory, anyone with a class at least at the level eighty should be able to bestow one of their classes upon their apprentice, but no one has tested that in practice. What was the point of something like that if the Emperor could give anyone any class imaginable? The apprenticeship system was as old as the World's Words. However, there was a catch: the rarer the class someone tried to teach, the harder it was to learn.

  In Arthur's case... He flatly looked at the class rarities and almost sighed.

  The lowest rarity classes he had: the Paladin and Alchemist, were still rare classes. Hexblade Guardsmen? Epic. Blacksmith? Was already ready to be merged with Alchemist so he couldn’t teach it. The worst part of the class system was that classes doubled or even tripled with the only indicator being their rarity. His Paladin class was an excellent example. Before the Emperor, his Empresses, and the allied Gods discovered the messed-up class system skill tree, even the people of Aderon knew there were two types of Paladins. The common rarity class, which was bestowed on someone during the Revelation, was admittedly weaker of the two. The second one, exceptionally rare to obtain, was actually a fusion of the two classes: a cleric and a tank. Then... People learnt there were, in fact, at least nine Paladin classes, and everything was a random mess in terms of skills. The Emperor's guidance to obtain the best class possible and the Gods skill that allowed anyone to reset their stat points had been a salvation for the people of Arcadia.

  Catherine observed Arthur for a moment before she shook her head and giggled. She was still a bit embarrassed about what she had done earlier, but... She wasn't regretting anything now. Arthur was a handsome, charming, and unbelievably good-hearted person, so if she could fall in love with anyone, that would be him. The fact that he seemed to be invincible was also working in his favour. But whatever started growing between them, it wasn't love... Or not yet, at least. He considered her a friend and that alone made her happy. However... Right now, he had given her even more of a reason to be happy, and that feeling she had for him had grown. Making her his apprentice and allowing her to execute the man who ruined her life was like a new beginning. She watched Griss Vul build himself his gallows and enjoyed his pleas and wailing. That man had destroyed so many lives, and killed so many people, that it wasn't any surprise to her that the entire city had arrived to watch him die. She savoured every moment of Vul's despair until he finished tying his rope. Everyone looked towards the pavilion and she wanted to stand up when Lord Howthorns stood up, but Arthur stopped her with a gesture. She quickly realised that his call was correct etiquette.

  "Griss Vul!" Lord Sion Howthorns bellowed in the unnatural silence of the entire city. "You have been found guilty of many heinous crimes. Trafficking of people, theft, banditry, and most importantly, treason. Your actions almost led to a war between the Kingdom of Saftia and the Empire of Arcadia. By the power given to me by King Razak Ter Saftia, I sentence you to death."

  "Now we are standing up. Watch for my mark." He whispered and gracefully straightened himself to his full, impressive height. Arthur waited until she took her place and spoke with such authority, that most of the gathered people flinched. "I'm Count Arthur Ives of Arcadia. You have committed so many crimes that making everyone waste their precious time to hear every single one of them would be a crime all on its own. For almost all of them, I couldn't judge you outside of the Empire. But you have committed one of those crimes regardless. Griss Vul not only offended me but also raised his weapon against me. For such impunity, your only punishment could be death. I was informed about the customs of Saftia, the beliefs of your people, and the traditions of your race. And since I don't believe that someone like you deserves any honour or mercy, that is why you will be executed by a woman."

  Griss Vul again started begging for his life. However, Arthur exchanged gazes with Sion, and the Arcadian nodded at the Nekomi. Catherine immediately knew it was her turn. The moment she was going to avenge the death of her father had arrived. She gracefully stepped exactly three steps in front of Arthur. The sound made by her shoes echoed in the absolute silence of the city as everyone held their breath. Everyone was looking at her. The begging gaze of Griss Vul, and his pitiable pleas to help him, made her blood sing in her veins. She cherished every single moment of his despair. She took a deep breath and shouted with all the dignity she could muster.

  "Griss Vul!" Her voice echoed between the tall buildings silencing everything and everyone. "Kill yourself using the gallows you have built!"

  Still begging for his life, the former crime lord climbed the barrel and put the noose around his neck. His hands, working against his will, made sure that everything was ready and worked flawlessly. After just a single heartbeat, Griss Vul took the last step in his life...

  Thank you all for reading.

  I wish you all a great day and as always I wait for your comments.

  A big thanks to and who edited the chapter!