Chapter 850 - 860 - Problem

Chapter 850: Chapter 860 - Problem

Lucien noticed something was wrong before the wagon stopped.

Auren usually entered the village quickly after returning from the city.

This time, he slowed near the gate.

Mirelle sat beside him without speaking.

That alone was enough.

Lucien walked toward them.

Tavian noticed and followed.

Seran and Aurelia were nearby.

By the time Mirelle climbed down, several others had gathered.

"Did something happen?"

Lucien asked.

Mirelle shook her head.

"The goods sold."

Her expression remained dark.

"Better than last time."

Lucien waited.

Auren secured the reins before turning toward them.

"We were warned."

That changed the mood.

Mirelle looked toward the houses around them before lowering her voice.

"The Iron Jackals are asking questions."

Seran’s expression disappeared.

Aurelia went still.

Lucien noticed both reactions.

"About what?"

"Us."

Mirelle gestured toward herself.

"Mostly me. Where the goods come from. Why the quality improved so quickly. Whether the village has new craftsmen."

She paused.

"They have been asking more often for about a week."

Lucien’s eyes narrowed.

"Who told you?"

"The merchant who buys Aurelia’s work."

That merchant had become one of Mirelle’s better contacts.

He supplied decorative goods to minor nobles and wealthy households, which meant he had enough influence to avoid being bullied by street gangs.

"He said the Jackals cannot pressure him directly," Mirelle continued. "His patrons are too well connected."

Auren leaned against the wagon.

"Other merchants do not have that protection."

Lucien understood immediately.

Someone would talk.

Maybe for money.

Maybe because they disliked Mirelle.

Maybe because the Iron Jackals frightened them.

The reason hardly mattered.

The village had become visible.

That had always been the risk.

Lucien looked toward the stored materials near the forge.

They had been careful with the ore, but they had been less careful with the results.

Better goods drew attention.

Money drew more.

"Stop selling for now," Lucien said.

Mirelle nodded.

She had clearly reached the same conclusion already.

"No city trips unless necessary."

Auren looked toward the gate.

"What about the basin?"

Lucien considered it.

"Let’s pause that too."

Tavian frowned.

"We still need metal."

"We have enough stored for now."

Lucien looked around at the others.

"If they are already asking about the village, every wagon leaving becomes something they can follow."

Nobody argued.

The village had spent weeks preparing for danger from animals and whatever else might emerge from the changing world.

Now the threat had a human face.

Lucien’s gaze settled on Seran.

The young man had remained unusually quiet.

That was enough to confirm what Lucien already suspected.

The Iron Jackals had not noticed the village only because of Mirelle.

Lucien folded his arms.

"Seran."

Seran sighed.

"I knew this was coming."

Aurelia looked at him.

Lucien’s expression became curious.

"I forgot to ask before, what did you do to them?"

Several people looked toward Seran.

He scratched the back of his head.

For once, his usual humor did not immediately appear.

"I never told you because I hoped they would stop looking."

Lucien waited.

Seran looked toward the village.

His gaze moved across the houses, the wall, the people who had taken him and Aurelia in.

"I also hoped this place would not get dragged into it."

Lucien’s expression changed.

So it was worse than he thought.

"The village is already involved."

Seran gave a quiet sigh.

Lucien continued.

"They are investigating us. Whatever you are hiding, I need to know before they arrive."

Seran remained silent for several seconds.

Then he nodded.

"It started with a merchant."

Lucien listened.

The story was simple at first.

Seran and Aurelia had been in the city market when they saw several Iron Jackals cornering an elderly merchant behind a storage building.

The man sold cheap household goods.

Bowls. Rope. Wooden spoons. Small tools.

Nothing valuable enough to justify protection money.

That did not stop the gang.

They demanded payment anyway.

The merchant explained that he had barely earned enough to eat.

One of the Jackals took his coin pouch.

Another broke part of his cart when he protested.

Seran had watched the entire thing.

Lucien already knew what came next.

"You decided to teach them a lesson."

Seran smiled faintly.

"It seemed appropriate."

Aurelia sighed.

"He said it would be simple."

Seran looked away.

Lucien’s eyes narrowed.

"Start from the beginning."

Seran did.

He had followed the gang members, listened, and watched who they met.

He eventually learned that one of their regular contacts was expected to arrive from another district.

Seran had never seen the man before.

That was enough.

He copied the clothing style, changed his voice, and adjusted his posture.

He then walked into one of the Jackals’ storehouses as though he belonged there.

Lucien almost smiled.

’Of course he did.’

Seran convinced them that one of their existing storage locations had become unsafe.

He claimed the noble patron behind the gang wanted certain valuables moved temporarily.

The lie was helped by the fact that the Jackals already knew their contact was supposed to discuss security.

"So they showed you the treasury?" Tavian asked.

Seran grimaced.

"Not immediately."

He had spent most of the afternoon earning their trust.

He mentioned names overheard in advance.

Referenced a payment he knew had happened.

Complained about officials he knew the gang hated.

Eventually, one of their lieutenants took him below the warehouse.

Seran’s original plan had been modest.

Steal back what the gang had taken from the merchant, take a "little" extra, and disappear.

That’s when he saw the records.

The hidden room contained more than coin.

Several books had been stored there.

Most were ordinary ledgers.

One was different.

Seran opened it because he was curious.

That curiosity changed everything.

"It had names," he said.

The humor was gone again.

"Payments. Routes. Dates. Officials."

Lucien’s face became serious.

Seran continued.

"The Jackals do more than extort merchants."

They moved contraband through several districts.

They paid guards to ignore specific wagons.

They bribed clerks.

They transferred goods through warehouses owned by respectable businesses.

The ledger recorded every arrangement.

More importantly, it contained payments connected to the noble who protected them.

Lucien exhaled slowly.

"And you stole it."

Seran nodded.

"And some money."

Lucien stared at him.

Seran raised both hands.

"I was already there."

Aurelia closed her eyes.

Mirelle looked like she could not decide whether to admire him or strike him.

Lucien rubbed his forehead.

"How long did they take to figure it out?"

"Several days."

Seran had covered his tracks carefully.

The fake contact disappeared.

The real one eventually arrived.

By then, Seran and Aurelia had already moved twice.

The Jackals initially suspected an internal theft.

Then somebody remembered the impersonation.

Someone else remembered Seran.

The pattern became obvious.

Seran learned they were searching for him and immediately took Aurelia into hiding.

"That was the day we met," Lucien said.

Seran nodded.

"The market was already becoming dangerous."

Lucien thought back to the men carrying Seran’s crude poster.

Suddenly, their urgency made much more sense.

"They did not want revenge for a simple scam."

"No. They wanted the ledger."

Lucien’s thoughts accelerated.

The situation had changed.

The Iron Jackals were dangerous.

Their noble connection made them more dangerous.

The ledger also gave Lucien something he had not possessed before.

Leverage.

Evidence the kingdom could not easily ignore if presented to the right person.

Lucien smiled slowly.

Seran noticed.

"I do not like that face."

Lucien looked at him.

"This may actually help us."

Seran stared.

"How?"

Lucien glanced toward the village, then toward the direction of the mineral basin.

"We need formal rights to mine."

Mirelle understood first.

Her expression shifted.

Lucien continued.

"We were already planning to speak with the tax collector."

Seran’s eyes widened slightly.

"If we give him evidence of corruption tied to an organized gang and a noble..."

"It becomes merit," Lucien said.

"Potentially substantial merit."

Luke had joined them quietly during the explanation.

He frowned.

"That assumes the old man is willing to touch whoever protects the Jackals."

Lucien nodded.

That was true.

They could not simply hand over the ledger without understanding the political consequences.

"Let’s not rush."

Lucien looked at Seran.

"Where is it?"

Seran smiled.

"It’s safe."

"That does not answer the question."

"It answers the important part."

Lucien decided to let that go for now.

The ledger could become their path toward legitimacy. It could also become the reason armed men appeared at their gate.

The village needed to prepare before deciding what to do with it.

Lucien looked toward Seran again.

"You know the Jackals better than anyone here."

Seran’s expression became serious.

"Enough."

"Then tell us what they can actually do."

That conversation lasted much longer.

Seran described how they operated. How many men they could gather quickly. What weapons they preferred. Which members had experience fighting. How they intimidated people before violence. How they used numbers and reputation to make resistance collapse early.

Some carried short swords. Others used clubs, axes, heavy knives, and crossbows.

Their lieutenants were usually better trained. They preferred attacking people who believed nobody would help them.

Lucien listened carefully.

By the end, the village had already begun changing its routine.

Outside operations stopped. The stored ore remained hidden. Wagons stayed inside. Scouts watched the roads. People who normally worked far from the wall were told to remain closer for several days.

Lucien walked through the village that evening while the final preparations began.

The wall had been reinforced.

The gate had been improved.

Crossbows hung ready beneath covered racks.

Spears stood in bundles near assigned positions.

Several heavier mechanisms Tavian and Lucien had been experimenting with waited near the inner side of the wall.

They had been built with beasts in mind.

The Iron Jackals might become the first people to face them.

Lucien placed one hand against the wooden frame of a newly reinforced crossbow.

Weeks of work had gone into this village.

Soon, they might learn whether any of it was enough.

Lucien looked toward the road beyond the gate.

The next threat would walk on two legs.

This time, the village would be ready to meet it.