The next topic to be brought up after Lock's admission of enjoying killing, was the matter of the nobles.

“You mentioned that the group is composed of people from the noble faction?” Tia asked, although she didn't seem very surprised. It was the obvious conclusion after all, and she'd had more time to think on it than her sister, who had been sort of busy fighting off veritable armies of earth golems.

Lock nodded. “Of course, they are after all the faction with the most to gain from the dungeon collapsing, although saying that they are of the noble faction might be a bit of a misnomer. More like they're connected to them, and are being used.” He pointed downwards, towards where Dog Breath should be located. “Look, that guy outside, who guards the door. He's an Inu, you probably didn’t notice due to his lack of a dog. What is an Inu without a dog companion?” He asked, at which Tia promptly answered.

“A failure.”

“Exactly, the rest of the Castouts are in similar situations, that's why I call them the Castouts. We have a Vídd who is too physically infirm to learn swordsmanship, therefore failing to uphold his family's tradition of that very discipline. We have a Curador who has hemophobia, therefore completely ending his chances of being a successful Healer. We have a Legil, they're actually kinda obscure. Well you only need to know that they're a family of mind-mages, and that Osha became an alcoholic at a fairly young age, transitioning into a full blown drug addict with the creation of Happy Time. The addiction made him incapable of learning the skills necessary to get his families treasured Class of Mind Mage.” He hesitated before naming the last one.

“There are five.” Tia ran a hand down her face. “What about the last one?” She asked.

“That's problematic... He's actually pretty competent, and the leader of the merry band, Light Shield is his name, and he was hailed as a prodigy for quite some time. You should have heard of him actually. The only problem with him, and the reason that he's been held at arm's distance from his family is the fact, well...” Lock didn't quite know how to phrase it.

“He raped a child.” Mia said in a serious voice.

Lock couldn't restrain a grimace. “Yes, he did. The only reason his family was capable of bailing him out of his prison sentence, or execution, depends, was the fact that it was a beastman child that he raped. Not strictly human, and therefore not protected by our laws, you see. Even the noble families have standards though. The ‘crime’ that Light committed was therefore enough for him to enter a sort of limbo state regarding his belonging to the family, just like the other four. I imagine that this mission is a sort of redemption for the Castouts, who knows. They probably think that if they handle it perfectly they might just be reinstated fully into their families, quietly.” He finished.

“You sure there won't be any problems with their families? Are they really just going to leave such an important mission to a bunch of rejects?” Tia asked worriedly, whereas Mia seemed much more composed. Probably because she had even greater delusions about his strength than her sister now that she'd seen him dispatch four hooligans and wield that very strength against her.

People always did prescribe a bit more power to those that had beaten them, Lock mused. Woe is the ego if its owner realized that the man holding a boot to their throat only appeared so large because they themselves were lying down. Realizing that all men were simply men and therefore vulnerable to one's own schemes and plots, was one of the first steps to becoming the master of one's own destiny. It wouldn't take much for Mia to learn the lesson. But he wasn't here to teach anyone, let alone someone who was contracted to him for only a short time.

“It's exactly because of the job at hand, that I trust no one of significant power or backing will be involved. The lower classes are starting to chafe under their rule, they are growing more numerous and powerful by the day. The noble clans really should have considered the implications of creating a country where humans could live in peace with ample access to food.” Lock shook his head ruefully. “The plebeians are still acting on their previous survival strategy of having as many children as possible, only that none of the children are dying in monster attacks or famines anymore. They will soon be able to overwhelm the noble clans levels with simple numbers. This, in addition to the fact that many of them have never lived in fear of monster attacks, will very soon compound in them asking the question of why the nobles who gained this role by protecting humanity are needed, when everyone is so safe already. The nobles meanwhile are only escalating the situation. Their newer generations have grown up with the privilege their families possess, but with none of the responsibilities. There is after all not much reason anymore why they would have to go on harsh missions anymore to help a small village survive just one more day. Nothing creates more entitlement than receiving something and not having to pay a price. Natural order demands that there is a price, and so the young ones simply believe that their very existence is a blessing upon the world, thereby becoming the price they pay for their current station. ” Lock said to the confused glances from the twins.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“What does this have to with the Castouts supposedly having no backing?” Tia eventually asked, causing Lock to slam down a fist onto the floor.

“Everything! Don't you see. While the peasants are crying about injustice and all, the noble factions are preparing eventual solutions to the overpopulation problem. The issue is however, that the powder keg is getting closer and closer to an explosion, while solutions are slow to come up with and implement. What the nobles have to do until they can solve the problem of a potential lower class revolution is to perform a balancing act to keep the conflict restrained until it can be dealt with.” Lock exclaimed passionately and was about to continue before Tia interrupted him.

“So the nobles can't interrupt directly, because if they were to be discovered this might just be the last drop in the barrel for the peasants? The beginner dungeon is after all one of the very few ways in which peasant adventurers can reliably gain combat levels without dying to monsters due to their bad equipment and inexperience.” Tia said with a furrowed brow. “But aren't the Castouts nobles as well?” She asked.

Lock vigorously shook his arms in the air. “Exactly. That's the point, they're nobles, but tell me, would anyone from the main families miss these fops?” The twins shook their heads hesitantly. “Don't you see?!” Lock raved. “First option, they die to the boss, no big loss, they won't be missed. Second option, they're discovered, and the nobles can have them executed to show the common folk that they're willing to side with them over their own family when justice must be served. It would definitely aid their failing reputation considering the string of crimes that the actually valuable young masters of the families have committed in their foolishness, knowing that their families would bail them out.” He took a deep breath and calmed himself. “Third option, the Castouts kill the boss and return. They're treated nicely for a while, as the common folk simmers. They will know who did the deed after all, who else would? And then, the noble families discover the foul criminals, the Castouts, lead them through a court, and summarily have them executed by the actually valuable members of their families. The peasants switch from the extreme emotion of rage, to joy, an emotional effect that is much more impactful than simply having them feel joy in the first place. The dungeon is destroyed, and the Castouts can serve their families one last time by being executed by nobles to appease the peasants. Not even mentioning the hefty dose of exp that the executioners, who by law need to be nobles, will receive.” Lock finished his explanation, slightly out of breath and looking expectantly at the twins.

“That's disgusting.” Mia commented flatly

“Do you really think they'd kill their own family?” Tia asked meanwhile, horror written on her face.

The twins shared an odd look, which Lock interrupted with an answer to Tia's question. “Of course I think they would. I wouldn't have mentioned it otherwise, and let's be honest here, do you really think them incapable of such a deed as long as they can package it in a public relations friendly way?” He asked.

Mia nodded begrudgingly, while Tia shook her head. “No.” She said. “I won't believe it.”

Lock shrugged. “It doesn't really matter, doesn't have anything to do with us after all.”

“Even so, didn't you say earlier that you had a moral compass preventing you from choosing your targets randomly? How are these poor fools worthy of your attention? Do not punish the sword, but the one who swings it.” Tia said while Mia remained silent, bare feet pressed against each other as she sat on his bed with closed eyes.

“I hate metaphors, they're so ambiguous and never manage to really encompass the original meaning anyway.” Lock said, annoyed. “If I was promised money for the act of raping you, would you simply forgive me and go after the man who gave the 'order'?” He asked.

Tia remained silent.

“The only person absolved from responsibility for his own actions is the one who has lost control of his actions. You always have a choice when given an order, maybe a refusal will see you having your throat slit, but nothing is absolute.” He said resolutely.

The room was engulfed in silence for a while, the only interruptions being Tia occasionally taking the enchanted horn and listening in on the people below.

“So what are our plans for the confrontation?” Mia eventually asked, breaking the stillness.

Lock gave her a grateful smile over Tia bending down to listen in on the Castouts. “It's pretty simple really...”