Chapter 49 Declaration of Public Execution
The birds' jubilant cries filled the air on a post-rain morning, with the sun shining brightly and the air feeling much fresher.
Henry slowly opened his eyes, his vision still blurry from sleep. 'A rainy day is the best for sleeping,' he thought.
The door creaked open, and Willow entered with a maid carrying a basin of water. After Willow dismissed the maid, she greeted Henry, "Good morning, my lord."
"Morning, Willow," Henry replied with a yawn. As he approached the basin, a towel gently wiped his face. Willow had taken over even this task, considering it beneath a noble like Henry.
Henry wanted to protest, but seeing the sad look in Willow's eyes, he held back. In her view, nobles shouldn't bother with such trivial matters. Henry had no choice but to adapt.
Every time he thought about this, Henry wanted to say that the nobles of this world, apart from enjoying themselves, were on the road to enjoyment and then trying their best to enjoy more. He had no choice but to follow the local customs.
"How are Mila and Ellie doing?" Henry asked lazily.
Willow, understanding his concern, replied softly, "They left the city last night. Mila returned around four in the morning."
"Oh? Ellie didn't come back with her?" Henry raised an eyebrow, surprised.
"No, Ellie seemed to want to enter the city with her companions," Willow said as she tidied Henry's clothes.
"Alright, let's witness it together," Henry said, stretching. He then headed to the dining hall, ready to start the day's transformation.
By the time Henry finished his breakfast and arrived at the square outside the castle, it was already an hour later.
A platform had been hastily erected in the square overnight. Although it was very crude, it did have a gallows.
In front of the gallows, there was another platform. This one was pre-existing and was used by the lord for speeches and declarations.
At this time, the square was filled with the city's common people, nearly three thousand in number. The commoners who had been outside the city had also gradually entered the town over the past few days.
The commoners were all waiting for Henry's speech, discussing amongst themselves. They were no longer like before, needing the lord to send people to drive them to listen to the speech.
As soon as Henry's announcement was out, they voluntarily came to listen to the speech. With such a good lord, they didn't even have time to express their affection.
As Henry ascended the platform, he felt a tinge of nervousness, seeing the diverse crowd below, with their various hair colors and eyes.
Having been in this world for over a month, Henry realized he was the only one with black hair and eyes. Others had either black hair and green eyes or blonde hair and black eyes.
Mila stood by Henry's side, her slender fingers hidden under her sleeves, gripping a few daggers. Her sharp eyes scanned the surroundings, ready to act against any threat to Henry.
Even though the War Wolf Battle Squad had secured the area, Mila remained vigilant. Henry was her and Ellie's hope.
Henry raised his hand, and the murmuring crowd below fell silent, eagerly awaiting his words.
Henry said, "My people, I am your Lord, Lord Henry, the ruler of Eldoria. I have three announcements to make today."
At first, Henry was a bit nervous, but once he started, he quickly found his rhythm.
Henry said, "As you all know, the unscrupulous grain merchants have been raising the price of wheat, taking advantage of the upcoming autumn harvest, and extorting our people."
Henry added, "Even if it means starvation, they continue to raise the price, caring only about their profits and not the well-being of our people."
At this point, Henry looked at the resentful crowd below, knowing that the atmosphere he desired had been achieved.
Henry said, "As I seek to bring change to Eldoria, I have recruited all of you to help me. The treasury has limited funds, so we can only offer wheat as payment for your work."
The announcement was met with cheers from the crowd.
"Our Lord is a good nobleman!"
"We support you, Lord Henry."
"Rest assured, Lord Henry, leave the work to us. We'll make sure no one slacks off."
Henry looked at the excited commoners and knew it was time for the main course. He gestured for everyone to calm down and spoke in a low voice, "Because you can receive wheat as payment from me, those unscrupulous merchants won't be able to sell their overpriced wheat. They blame me for everything.
"Even those heartless merchants went so far as to plot the murder of a nobleman, hoping to make us lose our jobs so they could sell their expensive wheat at six copper coins per pound."
The crowd erupted in shock and anger. The memory of the high-priced wheat was still fresh in their minds. Six copper coins for a pound of wheat was unaffordable for most families.
"What? They dared to plot the murder of a nobleman and such a good one like Lord Henry?"
"Those despicable merchants! How dare they try to kill Lord Henry! They must be punished!"
"Lord, hang those merchants! Let them pay for their crimes and let the wild dogs devour their black hearts; let them be reincarnated as dog excrement in their next life."
"Yes! Hang them!"
"Hang them!"
The commoners shouted in unison, and Wyatt gestured to the guards, who immediately brought the six merchants, their heads covered in black hoods, to the gallows.
Henry intended to use a public execution to establish his authority.
