Mammon forced the pain and discomfort locked away in a corner of his mind and straightened his back as he approached the crowd of relieved and angry party-goers. It was clear that this supposed happy social event was all but over and ruined, but there were still things that needed to be addressed.
One of the guards rushed over when they saw Mammon, a mix of shock and awe filled his features once he saw Mammon’s apparent immaculate look, a stark contrast to what they saw just moments before. That awe quickly turned to dread once he saw the demon’s dark mood and the poor servant could only imagine what kinds of consequences awaited him if he chose to displease such an obviously mighty magician.
“Th-” he cleared his throat, “The children are with a healer now, the best in the city! They’re safe, unharmed, and should recover no later than tomorrow morning.”
Mammon nodded. “And the prisoner?”
He pointed toward the center of the fairground, where a mass of people stood. “He’s held there. We’ve employed every measure to ensure that he doesn’t escape, we won’t make the same mistakes as before. He is surrounded by close to half the mages in this city; he won’t escape, my lord.”
“Good,” Mammon said simply, “Tell the others that I have an announcement to make.”
“The podium is still ready for use, lord Amon.”
“Bring the prisoner there,” the demon continued, “Have everyone there in 15 minutes.”
“By your will!”
Mammon walked to the meeting spot calmly, ignoring the questioning glances of the civilians. No one made the mistake of trying to get in his way. He stepped up to the raised wooden platform and surveyed the once-happy festival ground. He saw the various servants frantically moving around to secure the grounds for a crowd to gather, while the guards were extra vigilant in case a repeat attack happened. The rich and powerful were quietly whispering to each other, while others were roaring furiously at the uselessness of their own personal security detail.
Mammon simply watched on in silence, observing the worthless busy work of the humans. No one disturbed the demon’s thoughts, and before long, the whole venue was starting to fill with worried people from all walks of life. At the centerpiece of the entire thing was a tightly bound individual, surrounded by half a dozen sentries. That was the signal for Mammon to take the stage.
He walked up to the podium, and without needing to do anything else, the gathered crowd stopped talking all at once. The sheer presence of the man made all who saw him stop everything else they were doing to await his words.
“Ladies, gentlemen,” Mammon began, “I would like to begin by apologizing for the disturbance that was caused in what should have been a joyous event. Although the culprits have been dealt with and caught, and none of the victims were harmed, the fault ultimately lies with me, and I would like to apologize.” The demon bowed low to the people. Sometimes, it pays to play a humble leader.
“No no, Master Amon,” the leader of the hired guards hurriedly said, “It’s our-”
A quick, glacial stare from Mammon stopped the man from continuing. The guard winced and immediately went back to stand with the others. No one else dared to speak up.
“As I was saying,” Mammon continued, “The fault is mine, and I will ensure that all those that are affected today are thoroughly compensated for their troubles.” A wave of distilled Greed filled the demon’s senses then, but he ignored it. “But there is one thing I want to address now.”
As if on cue, the prisoner was forced up by the guards and taken to stand beside Mammon.
“Speak.” Mammon demand, and walked slightly to the left so that all eyes were on the burnt individual. The demon only hoped that his fried mind could still remember what he had instructed. “Tell us who instructed you to do this.”
“I- it-” the man coughed, his voice so hoarse from the ash and heat that he could barely speak at all. Someone quickly came to give him some water, to which the prisoner drank deeply. “It was my fault! We- no, I… please-”
Mammon frowned. “Speak clearly! We only need to know who sent you!”
“It… it was governor Al- Altiac,” he gibbered, “he told us to catch the kids so he could rescue them himself. It- it was a conspiracy so that he could seize power now that the Baron and his son are dead!”
All eyes turned to the governor in question.
“That’s slanderous!” he shouted, “I would never commit such a heinous crime!”
Of course, with just the confession of one half deranged prisoner as proof, yet under the intense pressure of Mammon, the various nobles and security detail subconsciously moved to surround the man.
“What are you doing?” he said again, “Get away from me! I am just as much a victim here as the rest of you!”
“We will address this after,” Mammon stated, “If you are truly innocent as you claim, then we will find the true culprit ourselves.”
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“But-”
“We address this after,” The demon repeated, leaving no room for further interruption. He made sure that there was a contingent of mages watching the governor’s every move.
Of course, Mammon knew that although this Altiac individual was as corrupt as they came, this particular crime was not his doing. However, thanks to Mammon’s other identity as the de facto crime lord of the region, he did have some damning evidence of a lot of his shadier business transactions. He’d just have to bring to light some of the corruption that the governor was responsible for, and the crowd will do the rest; Mammon wouldn’t even need to convince them of his guilt.
“Now, what is this about the Baron and his son’s demise?” Mammon continued.
“That’s nonsense!” Altiac blurted, “Everyone knows that he is only sick!”
“Let the prisoner speak!”
This time, several guards forced the now panicking governor to calm down. From his increasingly nervous expression, people were beginning to become suspicious of his conduct and innocence, exactly what Mammon wanted.
The man responded without missing a beat. “It’s true! The Baron is under a curse, evil magic that’s keeping his spirit tied to a deceased body. It’s why no one but his inner circle has ever seen him!”
The prisoner looked pleadingly at Mammon, and the demon nodded. He had spoken exactly what he needed, and the rest was up to the CEO of Hell. “Take him to the prisons, he has spoken his due."
His jailers nodded and did as told.
"Those are heavy acquisitions,” Mammon muttered, looking toward the named suspect.
“R-right!” a new individual said, another of the conspirators it seemed, “Everyone was here three months ago when the Baron gave the news that he would be house-bound until his health improved. Plus, we’ve seen his signatures in all of the new legislations, there was one signed just yesterday about the rise in crime! This prisoner is speaking nonsense!”
“Perhaps,” Mammon continued, “But I, and many of the esteemed ladies and gentlemen gathered here are from out of town. Surely with so many nobles impacted by this horrible incident, the Baron could make a statement, even if it is from the confines of his home.”
“But-”
“And you said it yourself,” Mammon continued, not allowing anyone else from derailing his plan, “If the Baron well enough to read and sign new laws, then surely he is able to at least speak a few words for the respected foreign delegates?”
The speaker turned deathly pale. “I…”
“Or is the prisoner speaking the truth?” the demon stared into the eyes of the sweat soaked man below. “I think everyone here has the right to know for themselves.”
“T-that would go against the very rule of law!” Another government official spoke up, “The Baron himself forbade any outsiders from disturbing his rest.”
Mammon nodded, but he was prepared for a situation like this. One of the only texts that he could get his hands on was a thick book on law, and he had memorized every iota of its content for such a situation.
“However,” the demon began, “The Baron, as a member of the Empire’s nobility, has a duty to appear before the people in the case of an emergency, and this is certainly one such case. That is not to mention it is highly improper to neglect his formal duties by ignoring the arrival of so many important guests.”
“But…” the man stumbled, “That’s-”
Mammon glared at the trembling man. “Or am I wrong in the interpretation of the Empire’s laws?”
The foreign delegates nodded. “That is true, and I have heard abundant rumors…”
“And speaking of the law,” Mammon took out several pieces of papers from his coat pocket. He threw them nonchalantly into the gathered crowd, and grinned as he saw the looks of shock and horror as the various nobles read what the documents entailed.
“These are…”
“Ledgers, receipts, and documentation that link one Governor Altiac to various illegal activities, found at the scene of the kidnapping,” Mammon answered, his eyes pinned on the man in question. “Everything from extortion, embezzlement, illegal arms trades can be found on those ledgers. See for yourselves.”
“These are his signatures,” someone else said, “And it has traces of his his magic as well. These are real.”
“N-nonsense!” Altiac shouted, “Those are forgeries!”
No one believed him, and for good reason. It was an open secret that the people governing this tiny northern settlement had been less than forthcoming about their less-than-legal activities, but no one had the guts or the authority to question those suspicion. Had it been anyone else, in any other situation, Mammon would have no doubt that these officials would do everything in their powers to quietly silence him, either with bribes or with force, but with so many witnesses, and high standing men and women from across the land, such tactics would be worthless.
Thus, the upper echelons of society found themselves in a difficult position where they could do nothing but lie, and it wasn’t working.
“Take them away,” Mammon ordered, “All of the people who had access to the Baron and his mansion. This corruption has festered for long enough!”
“You can’t do this!” another woman screamed as the bodyguards of various influential households did as Mammon ordered. “You’re a nobody! You can’t unlawfully detain us! We- we demand a proper trial!”
The CEO of Hell laughed. A full, hearty laughter that silenced everyone else around him. “You think this is the time to make demands of me? In this time of crisis, what were you people, the so-called leaders of the populace, doing to help? While I and everyone else from out of town were desperately searching for our kidnapped children, what were all of you, the safekeepers of this tiny city, doing?”
“We-”
“Nothing!” he shouted, “And now that the crisis, one that your very own people have conspired to unleash, has been resolved, you have the audacity to make demands of me? No. You have no such right!”
The various guards and soldiers hurried with their tasks, and at this point, the local governing officials already knew that their fates were sealed. They made a pointless struggle to free themselves from the grasps of the armed men and women. Everyone else who were in cahoots with these officials also looked around in abject fear, some undoubtedly thinking of ways to either escape or salvage this situation. No matter the case, everyone knew that a major change was taking place, one that would inevitably change the fate of this barony.
“But there is one way to definitively prove your innocence or guilt,” Mammon continued, his face stony, “And that is seek an audience with the Baron. Given the current unstable landscape, it is fully within my right to seek an audience with the ruler, and so is everyone else present here.”
Momentum was growing with the crowd, which made sense since most of the people here didn’t have deep ties with the baron or its people, and it made it easy for the demon to manipulate the course of events. He strode toward the Baron’s mansion, no one daring to obstruct his way.
“Guard the people involved,” he spoke as he walked, “And ensure that no one escapes. We will find out the truth of the matter today.”