[Lifespan Remaining: 25 days, 18 hours, 39 minutes.]
The entire city of Altaire was in chaos.
Amelia had more sway in Altaire than Noct initially thought. And word reached his ears about her...not so elegant methods.
Diamond Merchantry wagons had been positioned across every road leading in and out of the city. Merchants affiliated with her argued that their carriages had broken down due to various problems.
Thankfully, just Aurora’s presence alone had discouraged any of the knights from clearing the blockade using force.
Obviously, there was massive backlash, but at this point, Amelia had gambled a large portion of her influence on Noct being right. Fortunately, the gamble had produced something.
The black carriage had been found in a nearby warehouse close to the port, completely abandoned in a hurry. However, the old Port Master really had been telling the truth.
Several eyewitnesses were asked and all of them had said the same thing:
"There were no ships that left last night."
There was a chance that they were all accomplices that were covering for each other. But the chances were extremely low when Noelle had made sure to ask at least twenty people from the different backgrounds the exact same thing.
The second possibility that Noct had thought of was that the kidnappers had been stowing away on one of the vessels, waiting to depart in the morning. But thorough searches carried out by Amelia’s party had proved fruitless as well.
Furthermore, Baron Altaire had announced for the representatives of both controlling sides of Altaire to appear in a public hearing.
Which, in hindsight, was an awkward situation the Baron had gotten himself in. He ruled the city on paper as one of Arcadia’s vassals. But in practice, Faust and Amelia had long since usurped his influence.
Normally, a hearing like this would be inconsequential. But the fact that both Faust and Amelia have decided to show up could only mean one thing:
Arcadia, more likely, Amon de Arcadia has finally decided to do something.
That was where Noct was headed to now, sticking next to Noelle with his hood drawn up high. They crossed the merchant district, only to stop at the Altaire Bridge, the sole crossing connecting the city’s two halves.
A crowd had gathered at the foot of the bridge. At first, Noct thought they were simply waiting to cross. But as he got closer, their voices became clear.
"Stop hassling the common folks!"
"Tell those merchants to move their damned wagons!"
"So the officials can take another cut before anything reaches us?!"
People pressed against a line of knights that were clearly struggling to fend them off without resorting to violence. Some carried baskets, while others tools, as though they abandoned their work to come here.
Most held scraps of wood with hastily painted demands, ranging from things like: lowering the prices, stop the inspections, and bring the missing home.
Noct lingered on the last one, finding that its owner was a woman clutching the wrist of a boy who couldn’t have been older than ten.
"My husband has been missing for six days!" she shouted. "Every time I ask, you tell me to come back tomorrow!"
"File your complaint at the appropriate office."
"I already did!"
Beside her, a merchant raised a bundle of papers above his head. "I have approval from your office right here! Why did your men seize my goods this morning?"
"Stand back."
"Then give me an answer!"
"Stand. Back."
Noct slowed, deciding to monitor the situation for a bit before beginning to drift closer to the crowd. Noelle followed close behind, but it was apparent that she didn’t like where the situation was going.
"Young Master...?"
"Shh...let’s get closer."
They pushed past a few people, and from the crowd, Noct could see the space the knights had cleared on the bridge. Apparently, the public hearing hadn’t started yet.
Though judging by the crowd, the people were already tired of waiting. They had been for a while now.
"The Baron should come down here himself!"
"Forget the Baron! Where’s Amelia? She started this blockade!"
"And who made her block the roads in the first place?"
There was no single demand holding these people together, but the consequences of Faust and Amelia’s cold war were clear as day. And the people of Altaire would not have it for any longer.
That was until...
"Make way!"
A familiar young man approached from the opposite bank, walking at an unhurried pace despite the noise ahead of him. He wore an elegant white suit with a red half-cape draping to his side, and the contrast in colors made his hair and eyes stand out even more.
"Hear me, citizens!" Faust spoke loudly. "I’ve heard your troubles! Believe me, I want nothing more than to just live a peaceful life like all of you!"
He began going on about various promises that Noct knew he wasn’t going to keep, trying to muster sweet words into the crowd’s ears to try to win their favor and appease them.
"Really, we were going to send an investigation team for the missing today!" Faust continued. "However, it’s quite unfortunate that Diamond Merchantry’s wagons were faulty."
But throughout it all, Noct’s attention found itself on the man next to Faust.
He was broad through the shoulders, dressed in heavy armor bearing Altaire’s crest. A sword hung by his waist, plain but it had clearly seen much use. The man’s face was intimidating, and unlike Faust, he was watching the crowd closely.
’That’s...the Knight Captain?!’
Don Maverick, once a Platoon Leader with Rexford’s National Army, he quickly lost his title due to an extramarital scandal. Now, someone who was once well-respected and powerful was relegated to being Knight Captain in a Tier-2 city.
But more than that, he was the right-hand man of the first act’s main villain.
Noct never expected that this man would be here, but the very fact that he was changed everything he thought he knew about the plot.
’Was Altaire hiding something deeper than I initially thought...?’
Judging by how readily the officials deferred to him as well, the picture was starting to align better than Noct thought. With someone like Don being the Knight Captain, no wonder those bandits were able to procure the paralyzing poison.
’Were you the one who supplied them...?’