CHAPTER 136: CHAPTER 136: CONSPIRACY_1

Upon hearing this, all members of the Surrender Faction reacted unusually. What did this mean? Confess what?

Soon, Dismas dragged out a fellow who had been beaten half to death, providing them with the answer. "My lord, he has confessed."

Without hesitation, the man revealed his own misdeeds: embezzling a small sum of money by taking advantage of his position. Greed is uncontrollable anywhere, let alone among these merchants managing such a large conglomerate. Their hands were invariably unclean; the only difference was the extent. The fact that these people were willing to abandon the conglomerate at this time spoke volumes about their attitude; they certainly hadn’t held back from enriching themselves in the past.

Lance, however, was somewhat dissatisfied with the amount confessed. "Later, send a couple of people to search his home," Lance ordered. "If the numbers don’t match up, drag his entire family out of the city and bury them. No need to bring them back."

"No, my lord, please no! I’ll tell you everything, everything!" the man cried out, oblivious to his pain as he struggled and shouted.

"You see? Why bother?" Lance clicked his tongue and shook his head slightly. "If you had spoken earlier, couldn’t you have avoided such a fate? I can’t stand to watch this. Take him away."

With a sinister laugh, Dismas dragged the man off.

The members of the Surrender Faction, already restricted and in a state of extreme anxiety, were further agitated by this scene. The immense pressure plunged them into utter panic.

"If you confess on your own, clarify the situation, and return the money, you will be able to leave this place." Lance’s words made the meaning clear to everyone: it was a matter of trading money for their lives. If they wanted to get out, they had to pay up, regardless of whether they had embezzled or not.

Those merchants managing different parts of the business had ample opportunity and funds from which to embezzle, but what about the Guards? They had no channels for embezzlement, nor the means to pay for their own protection.

"I haven’t embezzled anything, but I want to blow the whistle!" one Guard suddenly shouted towards Lance. "The security missions we failed before were all purposefully sabotaged by Captain Bill; he ordered us to abandon the goods and flee!"

Another quick-witted Guard immediately chimed in, "That’s right! And the rescue mission previously organized by Miss? He ordered us to turn back halfway."

"It was all his doing! We never wanted to leave the Walter Conglomerate; he forced us!"

More accusations followed. Bill frantically defended himself, trying to stop the flood of denunciations. But it’s like they say, when a wall is about to fall, everyone gives it a push. They were all meat on the chopping block; why should they listen to him?

Instead, his denials led to even fiercer allegations. Soon, the outraged Guards were unearthing all sorts of hidden misdeeds. The more they revealed, the more alarmed onlookers became; they had never imagined Bill was so corrupt.

Even before the disaster, this Guard Captain had begun selling off goods, claiming losses due to bandits. He would then split the money, dragging the other Guards down with him. Anyone who didn’t play along was squeezed out using his power and influence. In just a few years, he had gathered a large group of loyal Guards, and the volume of goods he embezzled grew. He even dared to make entire shipments disappear, blaming it all on robbers and bandits. After all, how could a traveling merchant not incur some losses? So, with everyone involved in the conglomerate "on the same page," they managed to conceal it from Walter.

If this were all, he would merely be another fat parasite in the conglomerate, hardly unique.

But after Walter disappeared, the woman mobilized most of the conglomerate’s forces to form a rescue team, appointing Bill to lead it. And what did this fellow do? He went out, idled around for two days, then returned claiming the bandits on the road were too dangerous, everyone had been injured, and they needed more money to recruit people and buy equipment. The woman had no choice but to allocate the funds. However, he pocketed it all, merely taking a stroll outside before returning.

Consequently, rescue attempts for Walter failed repeatedly. Instead, the conglomerate’s funds rapidly depleted, leading to even greater problems.

And just before the recent coup, Bill had urged them to side with him. Since they had all benefited significantly under him and shared in the spoils, they naturally didn’t hesitate to follow. Only now did they realize they had been led into a trap. If they didn’t push him out, were they supposed to take the fall themselves?

Hearing these accusations, the woman clenched her teeth, the rage in her eyes blazing as if it would erupt and incinerate Bill.

As for Bill, his face was pale as he stood paralyzed, engulfed by fear. Witnessing the averted gazes of those around him and the accusations from the Guards, he seemed to realize his fate would be grim. His anger flared even more intensely against those who had taken money with him but now pinned all the blame on him.

"I also want to report someone!"

"Good!" Lance said, a brilliant smile on his face. "Speak out, and I’ll spare your family’s lives."

Lance wasn’t afraid of what they might say; he knew the conglomerate was rotten to the core. This was the perfect opportunity for a thorough cleanup.

With Lance’s assurance, Bill turned into a complete mad man, frantically trying to drag more people down with him. This time it was his turn to unleash on them. He couldn’t have fooled Walter and the woman with the help of just a few Guards; the real masterminds were higher up.

Suddenly, not only members of the Surrender Faction but even some of those who had remained loyal were implicated. York’s conspiracy, in particular, was laid bare for all to see.

Bill was just a Guard. How could he have had the audacity to pull off such schemes? And how did he dispose of all the goods he embezzled? In reality, he had merely been pushed to the forefront. He was just one of the more visible parasites among many.

Only after hearing all this did the woman realize she had been made a figurehead long ago. No wonder she couldn’t stop the conglomerate’s rapid decline, no matter how hard she tried. It turned out these people intended to devour the conglomerate entirely. If they dissolved it, all their past misdeeds would vanish. Then, with money in hand, they could relocate and live even better lives. Among them, York was the boldest and greediest, and therefore the most desperate. He constantly pushed this agenda, hoping to use the Walter Conglomerate as a stepping stone to elevate himself further.

Unfortunately for them, Lance’s arrival doomed their plans to failure, leaving them in this pitiful state.

"Take them all." Lance looked down upon them, his expression indifferent as his gaze swept over the crowd. Then, he slowly, deliberately uttered a single word: "Kill!"

HA! The soldiers showed no hesitation, thrusting their spears forward. As expected, faced with such erupting killing intent, no one dared to resist. York couldn’t even remain standing and was dragged away by two soldiers.

Lance turned his gaze to the remaining people. The sheer pressure of his stare made it impossible for them to meet his eyes. "Considering you haven’t committed treason, confess, return what you took, and this matter will be closed. However, if any of you dare to overreach again, don’t blame me for being severe."

Lance had no intention of escalating the situation. Although some among them had taken money, their loyalty had remained relatively firm. Besides, he needed the conglomerate to become operational again and had to retain some personnel. These individuals would be gradually replaced anyway. Those foolish enough to try embezzling again would be cut down without hesitation—after all, they had been given their chance.