Steel, Guns, and the Industrial Party in Another World
Chapter 35: In the Name of the People

TL: Etude

The day after the liberation of Port Fran, Paul Grayman ordered the townsfolk to gather in the square in front of the church. He intended to hold a public trial there, to judge the pirates openly.

Soldiers began notifying every household early in the morning, and by nine o’clock, the entire town had congregated in the square. There, people noticed four ominous gallows erected and began speculating about how many pirates the lord would execute.

Over two hundred members of the Shark Gang, the pirate captives, were bound and kneeling in front of the church’s steps. Seeing these scoundrels who had tyrannized Port Fran in recent months, the townspeople’s emotions surged.

Now, these pirates, looking like defeated curs, were no longer a threat. The crowd began pelting them with rotten fish and stones, with some captives suffering bloody injuries from the barrage.

Several people attempted to break through the security cordon to physically assault the captives but were promptly pushed back by soldiers with drawn weapons.

If it weren’t for the soldiers on guard, the pirates would likely have been beaten to death by the angry mob.

“They stole my family’s life savings!”

“My daughter was violated by these scoundrels, oh…”

“Oh Lord of Light, send these demons to hell!”

Complaints and curses like these filled the air, creating a cacophonous scene in the square.

…

Paul stood silently on the second-floor balcony, observing everything below.

Suddenly, he asked, “Do you see that, Schroeder?”

The person behind him promptly replied, “Yes, Count. It seems the townspeople utterly despise the pirates.”

Paul continued, “I was just thinking, what if I had been the one to lose yesterday’s battle? What if I were the one bound down there? How would these townspeople treat me?”

Schroeder fell silent, unsure of how to respond.

Paul mused, “Probably no different from these pirates, I suppose. Rotten fish and stones would be hurled at my head just the same.”

“This… How could that be? My Lord, you are their lord,” Schroeder replied, trying to be comforting, though his uncertainty was evident. S~ᴇaʀᴄh the NovᴇlFɪre .ɴᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Paul scoffed, “Yes, a lord whose family abandoned them to pirates for over twenty years and then shamelessly came back to collect taxes.”

The old knight didn’t know how to continue the conversation and chose silence.

Paul observed, “Did you see how some of the townsfolk looked at me yesterday? I could tell, their eyes were no different from those they cast at the sharks behind them. It’s just that my stick is heavier, having beaten down the shark. They only show me superficial respect. If the shark had beaten me, it would just mean a change of lord for them. After all, either way, it’s about oppression and extortion.”

The young count sighed, “Winning the hearts of the people is a long and arduous task. Let’s start by letting them vent their anger on these pirates.”

…

At ten o’clock in the morning, the public trial commenced.

Captain Holman, with a booming voice, was chosen to read out the crimes of the pirates.

Unfurling the scroll, he began loudly:

“In the holy year of 1990, June… in the name of Count Paul Grayman of Alda, this public trial is convened to announce the heinous acts of the pirate gang, the Shark Gang, summarized as follows…”

“Plundering wealth, amassing fortunes illicitly.”

“Raping women, utterly shameless.”

“Massacring the innocent, brutal and inhumane.”

“Blocking trade routes, insatiably greedy.”

“Violently defying the law, unrepentant.”

…

As each accusation was read out, the faces of the pirates at the foot of the steps turned ashen.

“Kill them! Kill them!” The townspeople’s cries merged into waves of sound, relentlessly crashing over the condemned.

After the enumeration of their crimes, sentencing for the pirates began. Based on the previous day’s discussions, the fate of Shark, the gang leader, was sealed; his murder of the old lord alone was enough for multiple death sentences. Even if Paul didn’t sentence him to death, other high-ranking officials in the territory wouldn’t let him off.

The other major and minor leaders of the Shark Gang also couldn’t be spared. Anyone who rose to a leadership position in the gang was invariably cruel and bloodthirsty, with countless lives on their hands.

As for the lower-ranking gang members, a show of discernment was necessary. Those who had committed murder or rape were to be executed, while others involved in lesser crimes were sentenced to hard labor.

The task of identification was left to the townspeople. Any townsfolk claiming to have been wronged by the pirates were allowed inside the cordon to identify the personal crimes committed by these lower-ranking members.

A townsman dragged a pirate out from the group of captives, declaring, “It was him! I saw with my own eyes how this man stabbed poor old Glen in the stomach for demanding payment for his meal.”

An older woman, scratching at a brute who had violated her daughter, cried out, “This fiend defiled my daughter, please seek justice for her!”

Scenes like these unfolded continuously until three in the afternoon, when the identification was finally complete. The pirates convicted of serious crimes were dragged out, knowing their end was near, and closed their eyes to await their final judgment.

Paul, standing on the balcony, shouted down to the crowd:

“People of Port Fran! I, Paul Grayman, Lord of Alda, hereby announce the sentences for these pirates! For those whose crimes are lesser, I sentence them to 3 to 5 years of hard labor.”

He then solemnly turned his gaze to the more serious offenders and said, “For those proven to be the most vile and heinous, only death can quell your outrage. Thus, I sentence them to hanging! In the name of the people, execute them immediately!”

The soldiers promptly led the condemned to the gallows. The nooses were placed around their necks, and with a kick to remove the stools beneath them, the prisoners struggled in vain before losing their lives. The crowd erupted in cheers as each life was taken, in successive batches.

After the executions, Paul again addressed the crowd: “People of Alda, to offset the losses caused by the pirates, I declare a one-year tax exemption for the coastal regions of Alda!”

The townspeople gasped in surprise at the good news.

Before their astonishment subsided, they heard the lord loudly proclaim: “Before God as my witness, I, Paul Grayman, swear from this day forward—”

Paul hesitated, and someone gently nudged his waist.

“—regardless of who the enemy is, no matter how powerful, whether they come from sea or land, I will never abandon you. I will always share your honor and disgrace.”

“I shall regard your safety as my own, your happiness as my happiness.”

“I, will devote my life to defending your safety and happiness!”

The people of Port Fran were moved. In these simpler times, they were genuinely touched.

They were reminded of the noble legends sung by bards, portraying nobles as just, compassionate, and paternal. Once regarded as mere jokes, they now witnessed a living example.

Paul turned his head and quietly complained to Cecil, “Damn, where did you get this cheesy speech from, some third-rate poet? It’s making my skin crawl.”

Cecil chuckled, “My lord, that’s exactly the effect we wanted. The cheesier, the better at stirring emotions. That’s what our people love.”

Father Morsen, who had been watching the trial from a corner, clasped his hands over his chest and prayed softly, “Omnipotent Lord, may Your glory shine forever upon Lord Paul Grayman.”

With the conclusion of the public trial, the pirate turmoil that had plagued Alda since the spring finally came to an end.

Sᴇarch the N0vᴇlFire(.)nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.