Extra Story: Ellelaura Heads Home to the Capital

Extra Story:
Ellelaura Heads Home to the Capital

 

“AHH...” I sighed.

I had so wanted to see Noa that I came to Sheelin after seeking permission from the king himself, but I’d never expected matters to become so grave.

I made my way to Sheelin on the pretense of inspecting the town, though I really was only there to see Noa. The peculiar quirk of Sheelin is that it’s governed by two noble families—the Fahrengrams and the Salbards.

The families had gotten along swimmingly at first, but their relationship had soured after they handed the reins to their children. One reason that things had gotten so bad was that Gajurdo had taken over as head of the Salbard family. Rumors of his wrongdoings were everywhere, but no one had enough proof to get in his way.

He couldn’t be judged on the basis of rumor, after all. Condemning people based on hearsay would spell the end of the nation. Before we charged him with anything, we needed evidence.

On my trip to see Noa, I’d hoped to grasp some hint of the Salbards’ villainy.

 

Such an opportunity presented itself the second night after my arrival at Sheelin.

Gran Fahrengram’s granddaughter, Misana, had been kidnapped…and Yuna had funneled her rage into a rampage. She sleuthed out Misana’s location using her summoned bears and charged into the Salbards’ on her own. Just as I left the merchant guild, I found Yuna charging right down the street on Kumayuru, a lunatic gleam in her eye.

I followed her with my three guards in tow and, as we chased her, I realized that she was headed to Gajurdo’s estate. The gate had been demolished—not a trace of the door remained.

Inside, I found that Yuna was about to punch that toad-faced creep. I tried shouting for her to stop, but I hadn’t reached her in time. The blow had landed on Gajurdo.

That was the moment of House Salbard’s downfall.

The Salbards had the unfortunate fate of Yuna being in town.

Only Yuna could bring Zelef, the head palace chef, here from the capital. Only Yuna could’ve made sure that the chef made it to the party on time. Only Yuna could’ve figured out who had kidnapped Misana, could’ve charged into this place without any help, could’ve defeated the skilled guards.

Yuna was the Salbards’ worst nightmare…but to the Fahrengrams, she was the goddess of luck.

“Ha ha!” The thought of the girl in her adorable bear outfit, punching away, always made me laugh. Any good people who crossed Yuna’s path seemed to meet good fortune. On the other hand, anyone or anything that opposed her—be they monsters or adventurers—met an ill end. She was like an odd goddess, perhaps.

And to the two families, she was a very different sort of goddess.

 

I was putting together a report for His Majesty, to my frustration. I would’ve much preferred to spend time with my daughter. My one saving grace was that I could watch her play with the others and the bears. Seeing my daughter dressed as a bear, playing with Kumakyu and Kumayuru, was an enchantingly adorable sight.

All the while, I looked into Gajurdo’s crimes, collected testimonies using his contracts, and investigated how they had actually been executed.

Gran, Cliff, and Leonardo also helped, but I was an agent of His Majesty. Naturally, my pile of work only grew.

There were many servants and involved parties willing to speak up, but Gajurdo’s own interrogation had been quite an ordeal. The moment he opened his mouth, rancid insults came pouring out. The apple did not fall far from the tree either—his boy was no better. However, as the evidence and testimony closed in on him, Gajurdo steadily became more sensible.

Still, Gajurdo’s misdeeds only seemed to grow more horrific the more we learned. How could one man commit so many crimes?

 

Once we had enough evidence, I went to the capital with Gran. The two of us rode in a carriage together.

“If this hadn’t happened,” I groaned, “I could’ve stopped by Crimonia. You know, by pretending to go for an inspection.” But this mess had ruined my plans and my trip to Crimonia.

“I’m very sorry about that,” said Gran.

“It’s quite all right. It wasn’t your fault, Gran. It was all that awful Gajurdo.”

“I’m terribly thankful you came. Had you not, matters may have spun out of control.”

“It’s Yuna you should thank. She was the one who figured out that Misana was taken to the Salbards’ estate. She made that whole fuss about it.”

“Quite right. I am bound from doing the sorts of things she is capable of. Had we not found Misana, I would’ve…been left a frail shell of myself. I would have lost all my political influence and caved to Gajurdo’s will.”

Yuna’s actions had saved us. Disciplining the nobility took a certain amount of authority. We wouldn’t have been able to waltz into their estate simply out of suspicion. Had we forced them to allow an inspection and come out empty-handed, they would’ve surely retaliated.

“This will likely be the end of the Salbards,” I said.

Though the kidnapping of a noble’s daughter was quite the crime—and we had proof of their many other wrongdoings. Murder, kidnappings, bribery, embezzlement…they had crossed the line.

Gajurdo seemed well aware of that. But he’d only hung his head in shame when we left for the capital. His son Randle, on the other hand, seemed ignorant of the enormity of his crimes. I suppose that went to show just how spoiled the boy was.

It made me glad that I hadn’t raised my girls like that. Although I was a bit worried about the penchant for bears that Noa had developed thanks to Yuna. It was inevitable, I suppose, considering how adorable Yuna was, as well as Kumayuru and Kumakyu. I wasn’t planning to give any of them a scolding…as long as they behaved.

And yes, I admit it…the bears were rather cute.

 

Once we arrived at the capital, Gajurdo and Randle were taken away by the soldiers. Gran and I entered the castle to report back to His Majesty.

“Ah, Gran, Ellelaura. You’re back!”

“I am, and just when I thought I’d have some quality time with my daughter.”

“Enough of that. Just get on with the report, will you?”

We reported Misana’s kidnapping—the reason for the whole mess—to the impatient king.

The king laughed after hearing our tale. “The bear girl did what...?”

“Yuna saved us,” Gran said.

“I suppose that means you’ve collected evidence?”

“We’ve seized the documents, and we’ve interviewed the merchants in question. I’ll have the inspection team I left behind give you the details.”

“In that case, just give me the general gist of what has happened with Gajurdo for now.”

I gave him the details of the Salbard family’s crimes, with an emphasis on the data I’d collected.

The king’s expression grew grave. “Ellelaura, I would like to serve him his sentence immediately.”

“Your Majesty.”

“He’s had his fun at the expense of my kingdom. What was his relationship with the Merchant Guild?”

“The guild master of Sheelin was conspiring with him, it seems.”

“And are they connected to the Bornardt firm?”

“At present, we haven’t found a link between them.” The current guild master had transferred to Sheelin because the prior person in charge had supposedly retired. Perhaps the Bornardt firm had been involved, and perhaps not. It was unclear.

“I see.”

Since we had already reported this to the capital’s guild master, the guild would be appointing someone new to Sheelin any day now to restore normality.

 

With the report out of the way, the Salbard family’s punishment was decided upon in due time.

The Salbards were stripped of their count status, and their estate was seized. As for Gajurdo, he was sentenced to death. Randle would be put into the care of a distant relative and would be barred from entering Sheelin again. Never again would he be permitted to regain his status as an aristocrat.

The section of Sheelin that the Salbards had once governed would come under the control of the Fahrengrams. Gran would withdraw from his position as Sheelin’s lord, and his son Leonardo would succeed him.

“The moment is ripe for my retirement, now that Gajurdo is out of the picture. I think that Leonardo should be able to manage on his own. Sheelin will be a brand-new town…and I think that calls for a new lord in turn.”

Gran paused for a moment, and then he sighed. “And if I had been a better lord, this whole mess never would have come to be. Gajurdo wasn’t the only one to blame. I was at fault as well.”

The king was quick to acquiesce to Gran’s request.

 

It was decided Gran would be going back to Sheelin, now that the report was done.

Before he did, I wanted to ask him something. “What will happen to that girl?”

“Which girl?”

“Lufa, that girl who was with Gajurdo.”

“Ah, yes. Her…”

“I could take her in.” The girl had been by Gajurdo’s side, and she knew many things. Though she’d also been a victim, we couldn’t acquit her just yet. Still… as long as she was under my supervision, she would be allowed some freedom.

“You needn’t worry about the girl. I plan to take her in,” said Gran.

“I see.” Fair enough—I left her in Gran’s hands. I knew he could be trusted.