Spitzenberg was thrown into an unexpected uproar.
People roaming the streets whispered among themselves, while some went so far as to loiter around the site where the body had been discovered the night before.
Keldric grimaced as he stared at the spot, where deep stains of blood still remained. The servants from the castle had tried their best to erase the ominous traces, but in the end, the blood had seeped into the ground.
The paved roads around the inner castle were to blame.
Unlike most of the city, which had dirt roads, the area surrounding the inner castle and a few select places had been laid with stone. This made it nearly impossible to remove the blood once it soaked in.
“This is going to be troublesome.”
“It really is.”
Keldric and Alyssa looked down at the scene from the inner castle.
The body had been swiftly recovered, and the deceased’s identity was finally confirmed before being handed over to their family.
However, Spitzenberg had strict laws against burying bodies that had bled within the city.
Even if a corpse were buried deep, wolves drawn by the scent of blood would dig up the grave and devour the remains, which was an unsightly problem.
There were many other reasons for this law. A decomposing corpse could spread disease, and the area could become a hunting ground for wolves, putting mourning families at risk when they visited the grave.
Moreover, there was a widespread belief that had transcended mere superstition that if a body was not properly laid to rest, its soul would not find peace. At this point, it was less of a myth and more of a fact.
It wasn’t something Keldric was inclined to argue about.
He had seen Alyssa’s magic and had witnessed Niccolo’s suspicious medical practices firsthand.
It wasn’t entirely implausible that a restless spirit could return as some grotesque, walking corpse.
To avoid alarming the townspeople, funerals were kept brief, and instead of burial, cremation was performed according to the church’s recommendation. It was truly a tragic reality.
Keldric recalled the corpse he had seen the night before its abdomen gruesomely torn open, its body drenched in a foul, yellowish liquid that reeked of an unnatural stench.
The origin of the liquid was a complete mystery. Even the sickeningly sour stench that filled the air defied Keldric’s understanding.
“What do you think?”
In the end, all he could do was turn to Alyssa, the walking encyclopedia.
“Are you talking about last night’s corpse?”
“It looked rather unusual, didn’t it?”
“It did. Judging by how the stomach was ripped open, there are two possibilities.”
Either the organs were deliberately taken, or it was done purely for the perpetrator’s twisted amusement.
If it was the former, then the culprit had a clear purpose whether it was a monster that fed on human organs or a nefarious magician conducting experiments, their motives would be easy to trace.
But if it was the latter, things became far more complicated. If the killer was someone who took pleasure in tearing open human stomachs, there was no way to predict their actions.
“Some of the organs were missing.”
“That means they had a use for them. Either they were taken for a purpose, or they were eaten.”
Keldric grimaced, shaking his head. The sight from last night was too disturbing to shake off.
A creature that roamed about devouring human entrails, he had never heard of such a thing.
“Could it have been wolves?”
“I doubt it. There’s no way they could have entered the city, and they usually hunt in packs.”
The only possible culprit that came to mind was wolves. But in a world teeming with monsters, perhaps it was something far more grotesque and brutal than Keldric could ever imagine.
Not only had someone gone through the trouble of ripping open the corpse’s abdomen and removing its organs, but some of the townspeople had even begun openly using the word ’monster.’
Clearly, something akin to a monster existed.
“Then… could it be some kind of beast? Are there creatures that eat human organs?”
“I’m not sure. Biology isn’t really my field…”
Keldric smacked his lips in frustration. If even Alyssa didn’t know, that meant it wouldn’t be easy to find someone in the area who could provide answers anytime soon.
“They’ll figure it out on their own.”
In the end, Keldric decided to step away from the bizarre murder case.
Since the incident had occurred in Spitzenberg, it was only natural that the responsibility of resolving it fell on Baron Spitzenberg, the ruler of the land.
Keldric had neither the energy nor the reason to dig into it. His only concern was receiving a response from the baron who was undoubtedly troubled by the monster situation so he could leave this place as soon as possible.
Besides, getting involved in something like this felt like an invitation for an unbearable amount of trouble.
But regardless of Keldric’s intentions, the very next afternoon, he was summoned by Baron Spitzenberg.
“Sir Keldric, would you be willing to help us hunt this monster?”
“…What?”
That was, something he hadn’t anticipated in the slightest.
☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩
Baron Spitzenberg would not seek Keldric’s assistance.
There were two reasons why Keldric had thought so from the start.
One was that, as the lord ruling over Spitzenberg, it would be disgraceful to ask a knight serving another noble for such a favor. If it were at the very beginning of this commotion, it might have been a different story, but from what he had heard, there had already been eight victims.
If a lord could not guarantee the safety and livelihood of his own people, the productivity of the land would naturally decline, and the people would lose trust in their ruler. At that point, worrying about dignity would be meaningless his priority would be salvaging his honor.
Since there was no effective solution within, it was only natural to seek an external remedy. Given the circumstances, that meant either temporarily hiring a knight like Keldric or employing a renowned hunter.
But doing so would admit that he could not uncover the source of the chaos within his own land a disgrace beyond all else for a lord.
Another reason it would be humiliating was Baron Spitzenberg’s political standing.
He was already precariously balancing between Count Lassau and Count Bogenberg. If such a serious disturbance arose within his domain, the two counts would inevitably reassess his importance.
In that case, they would use his incompetence against him to renegotiate the terms of his standing, effectively devaluing him.
That would be as humiliating as being insulted to his face. The only difference was that an insult was just words thrown at random, whereas this would be a cold, factual breakdown of his failures.
Keldric had no particular talent for noble politics, but from a broad perspective, he had assumed this meant he would not be involved in the matter.
However, Baron Spitzenberg’s predicament was far more desperate than Keldric had imagined.
“My people, eight of them are already dead. Killed in the exact same way by the exact same culprit!”
Keldric awkwardly watched as Baron Spitzenberg slammed his fist on the dining table in frustration.
When he had been summoned, he had wondered what the baron wanted from him, only to find the man shouting into the air, demanding help.
But Keldric could understand it only meant that the situation in Spitzenberg was truly dire.
“I regret to hear that, Lord Spitzenberg. His Grace would surely wish for that heinous criminal to be punished as well.”
“That’s right. This fiend is taking my people one by one how could divine punishment not befall such a wicked being?”
“Indeed.”
“That’s precisely why I say this…”
Baron Spitzenberg once again wore a serious expression. Keldric simply looked on indifferently.
“Sir Keldric, how about we hunt down this monstrous fiend that is terrorizing my good and faithful people together?”
It was a difficult offer for Keldric to respond to.
He wasn’t forbidden from outright refusing. As a knight, he had the right to decline anything that did not befit his honor.
However, hunting down such a heinous monster was precisely the kind of task suited to knights or hunters.
Moreover, if this creature was truly as evil and dangerous as described, the honor and prestige of slaying it would be immense.
In other words, it was a duty worthy of a knight. If Keldric tried to make excuses to avoid it, he would have no argument if others called him a coward.
On top of that, refusing here might also lead to an unfavorable response being sent to Count Bogenberg.
“It would be an honor. If it is indeed a wicked beast or monster, then I shall consider it a sacred duty bestowed upon me by the Divine and hunt it down.”
“In that case—”
“But, Lord Spitzenberg, I am currently bound by a solemn and sworn contract with Count Bogenberg. My duty is to deliver your response.”
With that, Spitzenberg was at a loss for words.
Keldric had pledged himself to Count Bogenberg under the watchful eyes of the clergy, vowing never to break the contract.
Prioritizing a monster hunt over that duty would not be right. As a result, Baron Spitzenberg’s expression grew slightly awkward.
“Ah, I see. Well… yes, that is true.”
“I regret that I cannot assist you.”
“Ughh, then…”
The baron let out a groan.
Keldric found himself puzzled why was the baron asking him for help instead of relying on his own knights?
“Are there no other knights? Or perhaps hunters…?”
“…….”
Baron Spitzenberg cautiously glanced around. The small room contained only the two of them.
Keldric watched in confusion as the baron subtly lowered his posture and whispered,
“I once tasked my vassal, Sir Hilfrich, with the hunt.”
“And what happened?”
“He returned severely wounded. He survived, but he is still recovering.”
Keldric’s expression immediately turned cold.
So the baron had been about to recklessly throw him into something that had already gravely injured another knight?
“Lord Spitzenberg.”
Sensing the chill in Keldric’s tone, the baron hastily added,
“N-no, that’s not it! Sir Keldric, please, hear me out!”
“I’m listening.”
“……Yes. You won the tournament, didn’t you?”
“You read Count Bogenberg’s letter.”
“He wrote that you displayed overwhelming skill and claimed victory in the tournament, correct?”
“That’s why I sought your help! I meant to properly explain the situation to you!”
It was unlikely that Count Bogenberg had mentioned Keldric’s tournament victory in anticipation of this situation.
It was more of a warning an assertion that Keldric was a great knight with such and such achievements, so Baron Spitzenberg had better not act recklessly and should instead keep his head down.
However, a well-intended statement ultimately revealed the card that was Keldric. The Count of Bogenberg surely hadn’t anticipated getting entangled with a monster.
“Knight Keldric, I must ask you could you hunt the monster for us?”
“No…….”
But even so, there was no reason for Keldric’s stance to change.
As Keldric hesitated with a troubled expression, it was Baron Spitzenberg who grew more desperate.
“I will respond positively to Count Bogenberg’s proposal. Would that suffice?”
“Are you sincere?”
“Yes. To be honest, this monster is becoming a real headache.”
According to Baron Spitzenberg, Count Lassau had once promised to send knights to aid in the hunt.
Keldric’s judgment that Baron Spitzenberg leaned slightly toward Count Lassau was correct. Since Lassau had pledged to hunt the monster, Spitzenberg must have been swayed by that.
But the reason he hadn’t gone along with it yet was simple Count Lassau had yet to send an appropriate hunter or knight.
“The byproducts will naturally be yours, and I will make sure the reward is satisfactory.”
“And the reply to Count Bogenberg…?”
“I will respond positively. I swear it before God.”
At this point, Keldric reconsidered.
Baron Spitzenberg was the one in a dire situation, but if the reward was reasonable and the matter with Count Bogenberg was secured, it would also be beneficial for Keldric.
“I cannot delay my promise to Count Bogenberg… However, the honorable concern you have for your people, Baron Spitzenberg, is not something I can ignore.”
“Does that mean…?”
“Given the circumstances, I will take on the hunt.”
“Oh…! Thank you! Truly, thank you! I shall place my full trust in you!”
Keldric still felt reluctant, but with Baron Spitzenberg conceding this much, he figured there was no harm in giving it a try.
‘Looks like I’ll be staying a few more days.’
That meant his time in Spitzenberg would be extended.