The Heroines Who Framed Me Are Clinging to Me

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]

Chapter 51 - Reward

"M-my lord! We have an emergency!"

Concorde Count’s House.

A soldier burst into the office of the Count who governed Eastan, clearly out of breath.

"What is it?"

A man with the face of a sly rat snapped at the soldier.

The soldier, panting heavily, opened his mouth to speak.

"The... the Seven Kill Squad. We've received an urgent request for assistance from them."

"The Seven Kill Squad? Why them? Tch, it's probably a mistake. Why bother reporting something like that?"

"Well, the captain went to check it out!"

"And?"

"He... he hasn’t returned yet! That’s why I came to report immediately!"

The Count of Concorde frowned at the soldier’s report.

He had, indeed, struck a deal with the Seven Kill Squad—more specifically, with Ilsal. He had been turning a blind eye to their activities in Eastan in exchange for a hefty royalty. The Count used his territory as a means of profit.

'You’ve got to make money while you can.'

And it wasn’t a bad deal.

The terms of the agreement were simple: help them if they got into trouble.

It was like having the Seven Kill Squad as personal bodyguards, so naturally, the Concorde Count saw it as a win. But now...

"The Seven Kill Squad is known as one of the most powerful groups on the continent. There’s no way they would ask for help. Forget it, just go."

The Count waved his hand dismissively, annoyed.

Just as the soldier was about to leave...

"Of course, they wouldn’t ask for help. They’ve already been wiped out."

A voice came from beyond the door.

The Count of Concorde shouted in alarm.

"Wh-what? Who is that?"

"Who else would it be? Step aside, soldier."

The soldier was shoved aside, and in his place, a young boy, a noblewoman, an older man, and the captain of the guards entered the room.

"Are you the Count of Concorde?"

"That I am, but..."

The Count mumbled, flustered.

After all, never before had anyone—least of all a boy—walked so boldly into the Count’s office.

No, not just a boy—no one had ever dared to do this.

Even if he was a puppet Count, wasn’t he still a Count?

And yet, they had barged in without so much as a word from his subordinates?

'Damn those servants!'

It was clear that his underlings had slacked off.

Still, he was a Count.

Swallowing his rising anger, the Count Concorde barely managed to keep his words civil.

"And who are you?"

"That’s not important."

...What?

Did this boy just say that it wasn’t important?

Wasn’t it basic courtesy to introduce oneself after barging into someone’s office?

The unexpected response left the Count’s already feeble mind spinning.

In the end, he could only ask this:

"Then what, pray tell, is important?"

It was then that the captain of the guards stepped forward.

He bowed his head in front of the Count.

"My lord, these people have killed Ilsal."

"Ilsal?"

"Yes, the leader of the Seven Kill Squad, Ilsal."

"Ah, that Ilsal."

The Count nodded in recognition.

Of course, he knew Ilsal’s name.

In exchange for a certain sum of money, he had given them control over a few of his interests. He had been wary of the infamous assassin, but Ilsal had been surprisingly punctual in delivering the payments, so the Count had come to like her.

Sure, Ilsal had a bounty on her head, but as long as she paid...

"Wait, hold on."

"Yes?"

"You’re telling me Ilsal is dead? That Ilsal?!"

Bam.

The Count Concorde shot up from his seat, practically convulsing.

How could he not be shocked?

The infamous Ilsal was dead!

"She wasn’t just killed..."

"Not just killed?"

"The Seven Kill Squad has been completely annihilated."

"An... annihilated?"

"Yes. I followed the protocol to assist them, but by the time I arrived, the Seven Kill Squad had already been wiped out."

"Th-that’s impossible... Annihilated? How could that be..."

Thud.

The Count Concorde collapsed back into his chair.

He couldn’t believe it.

The Seven Kill Squad, annihilated?

His relationship with them had been deeply intertwined.

In fact, he had entrusted most of the city’s affairs to them.

Yes.

The Seven Kill Squad had been like business partners to him.

And now they were dead?

Who would bring him money now?

Bubbling with frustration, the Count’s shock quickly turned into fury.

"Arrest them! Arrest them immediately!"

"Well, uh..."

The captain hesitated.

The Count shrieked.

"You’re in on it too, aren’t you? Of course, you are! You went there under the pretense of assisting them, but you conspired with these intruders to wipe them out!"

"No, my lord. You know how powerful the Seven Kill Squad was. How could I possibly take them down? Please, calm yourself..."

"Calm myself?! How can I calm down when my money line has been cut! Why did such powerful people lose?!"

"Well... isn’t it because these individuals were stronger than the Seven Kill Squad?"

"I don’t care! Arrest them! They should be executed, no trial necessary! They’re all sentenced to death!"

The captain of the guard scratched his head, clearly troubled.

"Are you disobeying my orders? Do you want to die with them?"

"Haa."

The captain let out an exaggerated sigh.

He scratched his head again before turning to Lloyd and the others.

"It’s come to this. Would you mind being arrested?"

"Are you crazy?"

"No, it’s just that... well, I have to at least make it look like I’m doing my job."

"Step aside."

"Of course."

The captain stepped aside for Lloyd.

The Count’s eyes bulged in disbelief at the scene.

"Hey! Who do you think you’re listening to?!"

"Wow, you really don’t get it, do you? You’re just being loud and obnoxious."

"Wh-what did you just say?! You little brat!"

Thud, thud.

The Count stormed toward them, his heavy footsteps echoing across the room.

Lloyd didn’t even flinch, watching him approach.

But soon, the Count’s pace slowed.

Even someone as clueless as him could sense that something was off.

‘Why is this kid so confident?’

The Count stopped in his tracks, unsure.

Lloyd spoke up.

"Count."

"...What is it?"

"The Seven Kill Squad is a criminal organisation. Right now, it seems like you’re defending a criminal organisation. Isn’t that right?"

"Th-that’s not true."

"Then why are you so angry? We just took down a criminal group."

"H-ha! Politics isn’t that simple! They had a role to play in this city! I was using them. Yes, that’s right!"

Grasping at the logic he had stumbled upon, the Count clung to it.

Lloyd shrugged.

"So, in exchange for using them, you pocketed some money?"

"What?"

"You said it yourself earlier—something about a money line?"

"Th-that’s...!"

The Count’s face flushed red with anger and shame.

"That’s not it at all! I told you, I was just using them!"

"Ah, so you admit that they were a criminal group, right?"

"...Yes, I do!"

The Count’s admission made Lloyd grin.

"Then hand it over."

"...Hand what over?"

"The reward."

"The reward?"

"Yes. We defeated some bad guys, so we should get a reward, right? Unless you want to admit that you were profiting off of them."

"Grr!"

"I wonder how the Emperor would react if he heard about this."

Gritting his teeth, the Count was trapped.

"How dare you mention the Emperor! That’s treason! And I still don’t know who you are! Reveal your identity! This is the domain of a Count! If you’re of lowly birth, you won’t escape punishment!"

The Count fumed and raged.

Lloyd slowly stepped back and nodded toward Yulia.

Sighing softly, Yulia stepped forward.

"Yulia Estrid. Third Princess of the Empire. And this boy is my advisor."

Her tone was calm and steady.

The Count froze upon hearing her words.

He mumbled to himself in disbelief.

"P-Princess?"

◆

As they left the Count’s estate, the village chief muttered in disbelief.

"I never expected a reward."

In his hand was a hefty pouch of gold coins.

Lloyd, silently shaking his own pouch, said nothing.

Yulia sighed and spoke up.

"Politically speaking, the Count didn’t have much choice. Though I did expect Lloyd to handle things this way."

"Thank you."

"That wasn’t a compliment. I’d prefer it if you kept the fact that I’m a princess hidden. You were the one who suggested it would be best to keep my position concealed..."

"No, it’s time to reveal it now."

"What...?"

—Jingle.

Lloyd swung the pouch of coins once again, a content smile on his face.

There was a certain comfort that money provided.

It reminded him of something important.

After all, the most crucial things were money and power.

"We’ve secured at least the minimum resources we need."

"Resources?"

"Even a small bounty like this is still money."

"How... how is 5,000 gold coins ‘small’?!"

Lloyd ignored the chief’s astonishment.

"The real gain is the control over the interests the Seven Kill Squad managed. We now have a steady stream of income secured."

"...You basically have full authority now. You could probably tell the Emperor to strip the Count of his title."

"I hope it doesn’t come to that. His incompetence benefits us."

Yulia reluctantly nodded.

"And there’s also Harold’s Trading Company, which Claire has. Bringing them under our control is a huge advantage."

Lloyd twirled a blank contract in his hand.

It was a magically binding contract, one he had just torn from the Count’s office.

"Eastan is a key trading hub. With control over the merchants, there’s nowhere we can’t go."

Lloyd knelt and began drawing lines on the ground with a stick, tracing out a map.

Straight lines spread out across the continent.

As Yulia watched the lines, she asked,

"...Why is this line so much thicker than the others?"

It was a thick line leading to Holy Constantine.

Lloyd smiled mysteriously at her question.

"Our next target is Holy Constantine. Saintess Aria, to be exact."

[Translator - Peptobismol]

[Proofreader - Demon God]