Overlord: Start from the Goblin Lair.

Chapter 207: Delusion of the Tyrant

"Wait a minute," Ron said, stopping the shapeshifter in his tracks. "Why are you in such a hurry? This matter isn't over yet - I haven't dealt with him yet."

"I don't understand what the difference is," the self-confessed spy returned in confusion, "he just stole from the merchant, and the stolen goods have been recovered."

"Although I heard that you came from Fromm Town, your words and deeds seem to be closer to those of the City-State Alliance. I think you will also follow similar laws."

"Whip, fine, hard labor, and then release. This is the most severe punishment for theft, but what's the use? He will still come back to us, and when he changes his form and commits evil again, no one can match him with Hubert the Shapeshifter. Others will only blame the problem on the race of the doppelganger rather than on him personally - because even we ourselves cannot catch him again. Every time he commits a crime, the reputation of our entire race will become a little worse."

The spy sighed. "In order to avoid seeing the shapeshifters here suffer the same fate as in other places, I'd better leave as soon as possible."

"I have been a spy for three generations of lords for more than a hundred years. If you are willing, just listen to my advice: do not try to cater to Quest's ideas, no matter how much he has helped you."

“You can’t build castles in the air.”

"Unless I'm a wizard," Ron shrugged, "You know what, uh, sorry?"

"You can just call me Fitz."

"Thank you - you know what, Fitz, I'm not a judge," Ron sat on the chair and crossed his legs, "I'm not a lawyer, a politician, or a businessman. Compared to following case law or articles to sentence criminals, I see it as a lesion, and I prefer to use a short, simple and fast way to solve this kind of thing as thoroughly as possible."

Ron looked at Quest, then at the other shapeshifters: "You all think that it was this stinky fish Hubert that spoiled the whole pot of soup, right?"

"Please rest assured," Quest had already guessed what Ron was going to do, "I will screen them again later to make sure no one else has sneaked in."

"There will be no one else," the halfling said sharply, "It is just as you said, my lord. If it were not for him, we would definitely be a group of lawful and good citizens!"

"You should send him back and let Rose City handle it, so that you can ensure that he won't continue to harm your territory!"

"Send him away? No, no, no," Ron shook his head. "That would be troublesome. Rose City is not that close to here. I have to send someone to escort him. Even worse, what if he escapes midway?"

"Karad?"

"I'm listening." The hobgoblin licked his lips and took Hubert from Quest.

"Look around the trading post, and try to get at least one resident from each village to gather here to watch: Shapeshifters, let's just say the race is a doppelganger. The citizens of this race are selfless and have collectively identified the bad apples that have tarnished the reputation of the race, making a huge contribution to the prosperity and development of Delusion Land."

"But since the territory is just starting out, we are short on manpower and time is tight. For a criminal like this who has committed a heinous crime, we will skip the detention period and execute him today."

"Remember to ask the residents who watched to go back and spread the word. The focus should be on the deeds of the new citizens. Got it?"

"What to kill?" the hobgoblin asked. "You are a warlord and I am a warlord?" Ron glared, "Of course you should come up with the idea for this kind of thing - remember to leave a deep impression on everyone, so that you can form a sharp contrast with the citizens with conscience."

"Then I understand." Kalade grinned at Hubert and walked out. But at this time, Hubert, who was inexplicably sentenced to death, was no longer calm and howled like a pig being slaughtered.

"Wait a minute! You can't just kill me like this, you're tyrannizing! You tyrant!"

"Quest, you idiots, do you think he won't treat you like this?! Do you still remember our traditions?"

"A creature that kills our species, we must gather together and bite him to death!"

"Sir, don't listen to his nonsense!" Quest panicked and waved his hands at Ron, "I know you are not that kind of person!"

"But they don't know," Victoria suddenly said, "Ron, you'd better charge him. If he is sentenced just for attempted theft, would it still be..."

This might set a precedent in their little territory, which would not be a good thing if the tradition of precedent was followed.

"Who said it was because of his attempted theft?" Ron looked at the priest in surprise, then slapped his forehead in regret. "Karad, come back quickly! Haven't I explained the reason for his trial yet?"

"Hubert, you just confessed to murdering a silk merchant, and the victim was a member of your own clan, right?"

"I can testify," said Fitz, Quest's former colleague, as he came to his senses. "This beastly behavior is simply horrifying. Even according to the traditions of our race, it is intolerable!"

"Yes, yes, that's right! It cannot be tolerated!" Many shapeshifters survived by relying on their own adaptability and flexibility. At this point, how could they not understand what Ron meant?
A human lord who was cruel and merciless, and killed their doppelgangers for a minor mistake, would undoubtedly be a terrible tyrant, and it would be difficult for them to accept living under such a person in the future. But what if the lord executed a shapeshifter who had a long criminal record and even killed his compatriots?

This is acting in the name of justice!
As we all know, most shapeshifters cannot get into the upper class, so they have no power to judge, and lynching within their own race is unacceptable to everyone - but as a lord, Ron does not have these problems!

"You are overstepping your authority!" Hubert was still trying to struggle. "Even if you charge me with murder, you still have to send me back to Rose City! This is against the rules!"

The hobgoblin went up and slapped him: "Shut up! We didn't join the city-state alliance as an independent city-state, so how can we cross the line? You're here on our territory, and you still want to use Rose City to suppress us?!"

"We have enough young people here to form the next generation of the Rose Council," Ivy curled her lips, "If you insist on following the procedure, it's the same here."

"Besides, even if we follow the procedure, Ron's letter of appointment was granted by Mayor Victor of Fromm Town. Even if we need to send it, it has to be sent to Fromm Town. Rose City has no right to directly interfere in the internal affairs of its allies."

"Forget about sending it to Fromm," Ron pointed to the letter of appointment that was prominently displayed in the hall. This was the basis for his legal possession of this place. "Did you see that? I was fantasizing that I could exercise full lordship without having to report everything to Mayor Victor."

"Satisfied? Kalade, drag him out."

(End of this chapter)