British hegemon

Chapter 18 You Pay, I'll Risk My Life

Roger, who was "far away" four miles away, had no idea about the extraordinary genius's deeds. At this moment, he was dealing with White-faced John at Baron Brodick Castle.

Like most lords' mansions, this building was constructed of stone at the base and wood at the top, with a red-tiled roof and two stone chimneys. The basement served as a prison, holding petty thugs and scoundrels who fought, stole chickens, and other troublemakers who owed taxes and offended the lord; two guards stood watch there.

The hall on the first floor is very spacious and can accommodate fifty or sixty people for a banquet. At the head of the hall is a main table with two steps, a long table and a tall chair. On one side of the hall is a large kitchen used to prepare food for the banquet. There is also a study, office and living room where the baron usually meets guests and gentry and lords. There is a wooden table, a few chairs and stools.

In addition, there was a government office where the castle's officials worked: the steward of Arron Island, the sheriff and enforcer, the tax collector and market supervisor, and the baron's advisor, clerk, and judge—four civil officials crammed into this room to assist Baron John in ruling Arron Island.

The sheriff was supposed to work in the barracks, but in recent years Baron John has strengthened the inner court's armed forces. The barracks are now crammed with inner court knights and his dozen or so soldiers. Moreover, the one-armed sheriff has a residence in the market town, so he has to work alongside the civil officials. His five sheriffs are also crammed into the castle's storeroom.

The second and third floors of the mansion were private spaces for Baron John and his family, with more than ten rooms. The top floor of the mansion was connected to the castle tower by a corridor, so that in case of emergency, people in the mansion could go through the corridor to the tower for refuge.

The main hall of the mansion was as spacious as the church, one hundred feet long and thirty feet wide. Because the span was too wide, and the timber needed to cross the thirty-foot roof was both difficult to find and expensive, the main hall was separated by a row of wooden pillars supporting the beams. The interior walls were covered with tapestries, the windows were stained glass, and two enormous fireplaces kept the lord's family's rooms warm in the winter.

When Roger barged into the Baron’s mansion without prior notice, John the White was doing his business with his lover in the rooftop veranda. Naturally, he was displeased to be disturbed.

But the servant said Roger had something extremely urgent to discuss with him. Despite his disgust, the pale-faced man still pulled up his pants and went to the small study on the first floor.

Upon entering the study, one sees Roger lying on the armchair behind his father's desk, his legs crossed on the desk, and a glass bottle full of wine in his hand.

"Who told you to serve him drinks?" the pale-faced man shouted at the servants behind him.

The servant behind him looked aggrieved and muttered, "He went to the kitchen and took it by force himself."

The pale-faced man ignored the servant's words and went into the study to find a seat near the fireplace, the furthest from the desk. Roger's purpose in coming to the room at this time was obvious.

The pale-faced man leaned back in the chair by the fireplace with a disdainful look, raising his smooth hand and stroking it back and forth. "You caused this mess. Don't try to drag the whole of Brodick into it. If you're really worried about everyone's safety, go and die with the pirates."

Seeing that Roger didn't answer, the pale-faced man became somewhat annoyed. "If you have anything else to say, say it quickly. I'm very busy."

"Busy messing around with your pretty boy?" Roger raised his head, a sly grin on his face.

The pale-faced man jumped to his feet and turned to leave.

"Wait a minute," Roger said in a low voice, then softened his tone. "You're the heir to the Baron of Aran Island, after all. If you can't even maintain this composure, how will you gain the trust of the islanders in the future?"

"My baronial title is a gift from God, and I do not need the obedience of commoners." The pale-faced man was full of arrogance. He was Baron John's only son and had no worries about the issue of succession.

Roger had already gotten up from his chair and was slowly walking towards the pale-faced man, clutching the neck of his neck.

"God-given?" Roger chuckled. "I don't think so."

The pale-faced man turned around, squinting at him, and asked, "What do you mean?"

Roger stood in front of the pale-faced man, shaking the bottle. "I've heard that my great uncle really dislikes certain habits of someone, and seems to often threaten to disinherit that person."

Since Baron John learned of his only son's homosexuality, he had indeed repeatedly threatened to disinherit him to force him to change his ways, though these were merely threats. However, some things, when said too often, are eventually taken to heart by those with ulterior motives.

Roger glanced at the pale-faced man as he raised his hand to chug the wine; the man's cheeks visibly trembled slightly.

"My uncle is only forty and in good health. He might even be able to have three or five more heirs to his liking," Roger added. "By the way, there are rumors that the Baron of Alan Island already has several illegitimate children on the mainland. Perhaps he can pick one he likes from among those bastards."

"Hmm, illegitimate children might not be so good, but titles don't necessarily have to be passed down to sons; brothers and nephews also have inheritance rights." Roger made a look of sudden realization. "These past years, Uncle has always taken my equally brave and warlike brother with him to every battle. Could it be...?"

Roger lingered on the word "Could it be?" for a long time, then clicked his tongue and said, "No wonder some people on the island say that the apprentice knight Colin II inherited all the good qualities of his father and grandfather."

After saying that, he poured the wine from the bottle into his mouth in one gulp, and glanced at the pale-faced man with a strange expression.

Seeing that he had grasped the other party's weakness, Roger got to the point, "This time it was indeed a disaster that I caused, but it happened during the time you were in charge of the island's affairs."

"If there's really no chance of survival, I'll run away immediately. Those pirates might not dare to attack Brodick, but if they can't find their enemies, they can easily slaughter and plunder a few villages."

"Imagine a cowardly acting lord cowering in his castle, watching pirates massacre the village and kill people. How will the islanders view their future Baron? Your uncle will be returning soon. How will you deal with his wrath, cousin?" Roger emphasized the words "Baron" and "wrath."

The pale-faced man looked up and stared straight at Roger's serious expression, as if he were truly considering everything for his own benefit.

Since the sudden turn of events yesterday afternoon, he dared not sleep soundly all night. Although he had gathered a dozen or so middle-aged strong men from the town to guard the castle, he could not defend the vast island of Arren. Whether the pirates came to Brodick for revenge, to seek retribution at the "Milk House," or to slaughter a few villages at will, he would inevitably be branded as someone who failed to defend the territory.

Roger's words just now really hit white-faced John right in the heart.

"What do you want to say?" John's tone was still harsh, but his attitude had softened considerably.

Roger wanted to hear those words, so he revealed his plan to send Baldy out to gather the strongest islanders, while he himself would lead brave warriors to the north to wipe out the pirates.

"Young Master Roger is quite the audacity of a villain." This was not the voice of Whiteface John.

A middle-aged noblewoman, over forty years old, with a full figure and gorgeous clothes, stood at the door of the study. Behind her was a young woman wearing a soft pink dress with a square neckline that revealed the fair skin of her slender neck.

This woman was the bride that Whiteface John married last spring. Whiteface John did not invite Roger, who was "far away" in Argyle, to his wedding. Last month, Roger came to Brodick and was slapped away by Baron John as soon as he entered the door. So Roger looked around for a long time but could not recall this cousin-in-law he had never seen before.

Roger, the capable-looking steward behind his beautiful cousin-in-law, was more familiar with her. After all, Roger had stood there sneering when Baron John slapped him last time.

Roger had to look away from his young and beautiful cousin-in-law, because the middle-aged noblewoman's eyes were enough to kill him.

"Auntie!" Roger bowed slightly to the noblewoman as a sign of greeting.

The noblewoman turned slightly to the side, refusing Roger's bow. "Young Master Roger, you should just call me Baroness. The Baron has already stated that the Colin family has no second son, and I dare not disobey him."

Roger sensed that things were not going well; this middle-aged noblewoman was not as easy to deal with as the pale-faced John.

After a pause, Roger reverted to his roguish manner and said without any respect, "Baroness, you must have overheard this. John will gain fame, and I will risk my life. If we fail, Aran Island will be rid of a menace, and my uncle and father will not blame you. If we succeed, I will be spared half a life, and young master John will gain all the glory."

When it came to her only son's vital interests, the middle-aged lady became shrewd, stating bluntly, "Besides the title, what other conditions do you need John to offer?"

Although this noblewoman was certainly unpleasant, she also had a straightforward temperament.

Roger was pleased with this, as it saved him a lot of trouble. "I will urgently recruit dozens of strong men from the islanders who are willing to fight pirates to the death. Time is of the essence, and it cannot be accomplished without a hefty reward. Therefore, I need a five-pound bounty to buy someone's life."

After Roger finished speaking and saw that the other party did not respond, he continued, "Since we are fighting pirates and bandits, farm tools and sticks are definitely not enough. Therefore, I need the acting lord to open the castle armory. I need to select some weapons and armor to distribute to the recruited warriors."

The other party still did not speak.

"Of course, as the acting lord, young master John should naturally encourage the islanders who came to apply, and by the way, grant me the command to lead the troops to suppress the bandits."

Roger laid out his conditions in one breath, his eyes slowly scanning the faces of the pale-faced John and the middle-aged noblewoman.

"I..." John was about to speak.

"We cannot agree to all your conditions." The middle-aged lady interrupted her son abruptly, her pale face turning red with embarrassment.

"The lives of the commoners are not worth that much. I will give you a pound penny, but it must be distributed to the islanders you have gathered under the personal supervision of the steward, John." The middle-aged noblewoman was really worried that Roger, that bastard, would take the money and run away.

"You don't need to remind John to encourage the islanders to fight; he already possesses all the leadership qualities a lord should have."

"As for opening the armory, since you're going to lead men to fight the pirates and bandits to the death, you certainly won't be allowed to go empty-handed."

"Once you've gathered your men, go directly to the sheriff. He'll open the castle armory, and you can choose whatever you want, but you must return everything afterwards."