An Excuse Delivered to Your Door

Chapter 56 An Excuse Delivered to Your Door

"Then let's waive this year's taxes. Consider it a benefit I, as the new lord, am giving to my people." Alphonse had just received a large sum of money, so he really didn't care about this small amount.

"On behalf of my people, I thank Your Lordship for your kindness!"

Captain Simon smiled with delight. He had been worried that Alphonse would raise taxes, but hearing Alphonse say that put his mind at ease.

"My lord, now that you've found the mine, you'll be able to provide more job opportunities for our people. I believe that under your leadership, their lives will only get better and better."

"No need for flattery," Alphonse waved his hand, then suddenly noticed something unusual on the river in the distance.

Upstream, various colors of sewage, including red, blue, and black, flowed downstream, turning the entire river into a filthy mess.

This is within our own territory!

Who dares to pollute my river?

"What's going on?" Alphonse pointed.

"That's the dyeing workshop next door discharging wastewater; it happens for a period of time every day," Simon replied.

"Are we just going to let them pollute this river?" Alphonse asked, immediately displeased. "Won't that cause problems with the water supply for our people?"

"There's nothing we can do. The dye house is Baron Aldrich's property, and this has always been how it's been discharged," Simon explained. "There are wells in the territory, so the people don't have a problem with their drinking water. The old lord protested before, but nothing came of it."

"No! This is a big problem!" Alphonse's face revealed a chilling smile.

When I first transmigrated here, it was Baron Aldrich's son, Kebelli, who caused me trouble by provoking some kind of honor duel.

He defeated Keberie, but the matter of him provoking him is not over yet.

To swallow one's anger is not Alphonse's style.

In other words, they haven't had time to pay attention to the neighbor, which is exactly the excuse that came to them.

Simon was taken aback. "My lord, how do you intend to resolve this? Are you going to protest to Baron Aldrich?"

"I'll handle it, you don't need to worry about it." Alphonse didn't intend to bring Simon along, but he would bring Mia, the strongest fighter in the Frostwind Territory.

Back at the castle, Alphonse handed the wooden doll to Simon and instructed him to find Jeru and Tessie and memorize the markings on it.

He then excitedly ran off to find Mia.

This time, however, she could not be found in her mother's room.

Only after asking did I find out that Mia was in the warehouse.

The lord's storeroom was in the cellar, and Alphonse knew where it was.

As you descend the steps, you see the heavy iron gate tightly shut.

Alphonse reached out and pulled open the iron gate.

Three candles were lit on the candlestick in the storeroom.

The faint candlelight flickered on the wall, outlining a hazy, dim yellow hue.

Mia squatted on the ground, intently counting the gold coins she had plundered the night before, by the light of the candle.

There were also papers, ink and a quill pen next to her.

A string of characters has been written on the paper.

Hearing the creak of the door opening, Mia glanced up and saw it was Alphonse, then lowered her head again. "I haven't finished ordering yet. I'll let you know when I'm done."

She seemed to know a thing or two; she stacked the gold coins in piles of ten and arranged them neatly together.

"Have you been busy with this all morning?" Alphonse asked.

"Hmm." Mia responded without looking up, and said somewhat impatiently, "Don't come here to cause trouble if you have nothing to do."

Alphonse has discovered that the written language in this world is not very convenient to use, and perhaps he should teach Mia what Arabic numerals are.

But I didn't come here for this reason.

"Stop ordering, go find someone to cause trouble with me!"

"Where are we going to cause trouble?" Mia asked, bewildered.

"Come with me and you'll see." Alphonse pulled Mia up and started to walk out.

Mia flung Alphonse's hand away, frowned, and although somewhat displeased, picked up the candlestick and followed Alphonse out of the storeroom.

Five-colored floral collar.

Outside the Lord Aldrich's manor.

Alphonse jumped off his horse and tied the reins to a tree.

He smacked his lips as he gazed at the magnificent castle before him.

Baron Aldrich's castle was in much better condition than his own weathered castle; it looked like it had been renovated.

He's definitely rich!

Without hesitation, Alphonse led the still bewildered Mia over.

"Who are you? Are you looking for the lord?"

The guards at the gate clearly did not recognize Alphonse, but seeing that his clothes did not resemble those of an ordinary civilian, they dared not offend him easily.

"I am Baron Tartarus, the lord of the Frostwind Territory. I've come to pay a visit to my neighbor. Where is Baron Aldrich?" Alphonse said with a smile.

The guard was taken aback, his expression immediately becoming somewhat complicated. "Your Excellency, please wait here for a moment while I report to the lord."

"As long as he's here, there's no need to report. I'll go find him myself." Alphonse walked straight inside.

The two guards' expressions changed, and they immediately tried to stop them, but at that moment, they felt a heavy pressure descend upon them, making them feel a chill run down their spines.

While he was still in a daze, Alphonse walked in.

Mia's face was as cold as ice. She glanced at the two of them and followed them inside.

It was she who made the move; with the sheer pressure of her battle aura alone, she had already subdued the two of them.

Although she felt that what she was doing was wrong and had violated noble law, as Alphonse was going to break in, she, as a knight of the Frostwind Territory, could only lend a hand.

She knew exactly which side to stand on.

At the very least, we shouldn't be questioning Alphonse's decision at this time.

The two soldiers were trembling uncontrollably, sweating profusely, and unable to speak.

For a fleeting moment, I had the illusion that I was facing an extremely ferocious beast.

Deep in the corridor, an elderly man dressed as a butler walked towards us.

Alphonse waved his hand dismissively, "Hey, butler, where's Baron Aldrich?"

The butler was taken aback by the question. "The lord is waiting in the study! Who are you?"

"I am the lord of Coldwind Territory, here to visit him. The study is over there, right?" Alphonse pointed ahead. The layout of the castle looked similar, so the study must be in that direction.

"Yes, but you can't just barge in without prior notice!" The butler was bewildered by Alphonse's overly familiar manner, but he still remembered his duty and said in a firm voice.

How could he not know the relationship between the Cold Wind Collar and the Five-Colored Flower Collar?

They had no prior dealings, and Alphonse had even knocked the young master unconscious in a duel a while ago. For him to barge in like this with his men, nothing good could come of it.

"That's fine then, don't block the way." Alphonse pushed him aside with one hand.

The butler was thrown off balance and stumbled to the side, immediately becoming anxious. "You can't barge in! Guards! Guards!"

"What's all this noise about?" Caberry burst out of a room, yelling.

(End of this chapter)