Chapter 109: Chapter 109 : Sins of the Fathers

I stood before the two corpses.

It was the morning the consular election officially began.

The cold morning air swirled around us as I stared down at the bodies.

Their faces were drained of color, pale as marble.

Both wore the exact same uniform—the new one I had recently issued exclusively to the tower operators.

"Judging by the precision of the cuts, one had his throat slit with a dagger. The other took a throwing knife directly to the heart."

"There had to be multiple attackers."

"We can’t be certain of that," Felix sighed, shaking his head.

"I can’t even begin to fathom what kind of lunatic would murder our operators, let alone why."

"You and me both."

I turned my gaze toward the signal tower.

The news had reached me early this morning.

Sometime during the night, one of the towers connecting Ostia to Rome had gone dark. It had simply stopped transmitting.

When the silence dragged on, the operators stationed at the next tower sensed something was wrong and came to investigate...

"And they found the bodies."

"Yes. One was lying dead on the paved road, and the other had been thrown from the top of the tower."

"So the killer slit one’s throat at close range, then immediately hurled a blade at the other."

I calculated the distance.

To throw a knife from the ground and strike a man’s heart dead-center at the top of the tower...

"No ordinary bandit could have done this."

"I agree. Bandits have no reason to attack the operators," Felix said.

"There’s no coin stashed in these towers, and most of our operators are hardened legionary veterans. They’re far too dangerous a target just to scrounge up a few loose sesterces."

"And yet, these two veterans were slaughtered before they could even put up a fight. Whoever did this is a professional."

I scanned the dirt.

There were no signs of any struggle.

The operators were armed with swords for self-defense, but neither man had even managed to draw his blade.

"Who do you think is behind this, Young Master?"

"..."

When I remained silent, Felix pressed on.

"If this is someone trying to sabotage the signal towers..."

"I can’t rule out the possibility, but it’s a reckless method."

Murdering Roman citizens was no trivial matter, even in this brutal era.

Even if the culprit were a fellow citizen, it was a capital offense punishable by total asset confiscation and exile.

And if a slave murdered a Roman citizen...

Well, the consequences of that didn’t even need to be spoken.

"First, bring me the operators who discovered the bodies. Then, gather everyone else who worked the night shift along this specific line. I need to know if any of them remember seeing someone pass by around the time of the murders."

Fortunately, this wasn’t one of the primary roads.

It was a smaller, secondary road we had recently established to handle the surge in communication traffic.

Foot traffic here would have been sparse.

If we were lucky, one of the operators might have spotted the killer.

Just as I was deep in thought...

"Laberius!"

A woman sprinted toward us, wailing in agony.

She collapsed to her knees beside the corpse and broke into sobs.

"How could you leave me like this?! What am I supposed to do with our son...?" 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

A little boy stood trembling behind her. He looked no older than three or four, tugging at his mother’s clothes.

"Are you Laberius’s family?" I asked.

The woman nodded, choking on her tears.

"He is my husband. He served in Hispania under Gaius Julius Caesar. He was so happy when he finally returned to Rome and secured a position as an operator..."

She swayed, looking as though she might faint on the spot.

I quickly stepped forward and supported her.

"I swear to you in the name of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, I will see to it that your family is provided for from this day forward."

But the woman merely continued to weep.

"Just promise me one thing," she said, finally looking up at me.

Unlike before, her eyes blazed with anger.

"Promise me you will find the monster who murdered my husband and make him pay."

I looked at the little boy clinging to her side and gave a firm nod.

Truth be told, she didn’t even need to ask.

I fully intended to hunt down the bastard who had murdered my operators.

Whoever it was, I was going to make them bleed for this.

"I swear it on my life."

***

Rome was buzzing with election fever.

Even though only two candidates were running for the two consular seats, crowds still marched to the voting booths to cast their ballots.

However, my attention was focused elsewhere.

"Two wagons and a lone man on horseback passed by?"

"Yes. Between the time the tower went dark and the time the bodies were discovered, only those three passed through. They weren’t traveling together; they passed through at different times. The operators stationed at the adjacent towers confirmed it."

Felix nodded grimly.

"The towers were undergoing a brief, scheduled maintenance check at the time. Due to the darkness, no one caught a clear look at their faces, but they all distinctly remembered the two wagons and the single rider."

"Two wagons and a lone rider."

"They said there were two men in each wagon."

"Which brings our suspect pool to exactly five men."

"They were all heading straight for Rome. It’s highly probable they’ve already slipped into the city."

"..."

I scanned the bustling streets around us.

Nearly a million people lived in Rome right now.

Finding five specific men in this sprawling metropolis was like finding a needle in a haystack.

Given the route they took, they almost certainly passed through the gates of the Servian Wall.

Hundreds of merchants and wagons moved through those gates every single night.

In an era without security cameras, there was no way to track who had entered the city.

"So, how do you plan to track them down?"

"If this murder wasn’t just a random act of violence..."

I fell into deep thought.

The mysterious woman who had reincarnated me into this era had warned me of an impending storm.

Was this cold-blooded murder the first gust of wind?

"The killer will undoubtedly strike again."

"Strike again? Do you believe another murder is going to happen?"

"I can’t be certain. But my gut is screaming that something is terribly wrong."

As Felix said, there was nothing to gain from murdering a signal operator.

No one in their right mind would make an enemy out of me without a massive payoff.

Unless the killer was a complete psychopath, there had to be a calculated motive behind this.

"I’ll double your escort detail immediately, Young Master. No matter how slim the chances, it’s better to be prepared."

"Do that. And tighten the security around the estate as well."

Just then, two very familiar faces approached us.

"Lucius Julius Caesar. We’ve been looking all over for you. It has been some time since we last met."

I looked at the two men clad in pristine togas. They were Metellus’s son and one of his relatives.

The very same duo I had competed against in the Vigintisexviri elections.

After losing the road maintenance post to me, they had settled for the positions overseeing the prisons.

"We heard the grim news regarding the murders yesterday. We wanted to offer our assistance..."

Metellus’s son hesitated before continuing.

"Murder is not something to be taken lightly. If you require our help, you need only ask."

"I truly appreciate the offer."

Come to think of it, these two actually held offices related to public security.

The Roman Republic didn’t possess an organized police force.

If a theft or murder occurred, the citizens had to personally hunt down the culprit, gather the evidence, and drag him before the courts.

However, there were a handful of magistrates who dealt with law enforcement.

These two men managed the prisons, executed death sentences, and tracked down runaway slaves—making them the closest thing Rome had to an organized police force.

"I will let you know if I need your help."

At my response, the two men nodded politely and went on their way.

"Do you think the House of Metellus orchestrated this?" Felix stepped closer and whispered.

"They commit the murders, then swoop in to ’help’ and make you owe them a political favor."

"If they pulled a stunt like that and got caught, their entire family would be wiped off the political map. Metellus is a lot of things, but he isn’t that stupid."

I let out a dry chuckle.

Still, in Rome, nothing was entirely impossible. I would keep it in mind.

Walking through the streets in heavy silence, we finally returned to the estate.

I found Pompeia waiting for me in the atrium.

Her expression was completely rigid, and she hurried over the moment I walked through the door.

"Pompeia? Is something wrong?"

"Read this. It arrived shortly after you left this morning."

"A letter?"

"Someone left it at the front gates. There’s no name or seal on it."

An anonymous letter.

I’ve got a very bad feeling about this.

I took the letter from Pompeia’s hands.

It was written on the paper I had recently invented.

I unfolded the sheet, revealing a single, ominous sentence written in Latin.

[Beware the ludaei.]

"’Beware the Iudaei.’ What does that mean?" Felix whispered, peering over my shoulder.

"I have no idea."

ludaei was the Latin term for the Jewish people.

I looked at Pompeia, but she merely shook her head, looking just as baffled as I was.

A sudden double murder, followed immediately by an anonymous letter carrying a cryptic warning.

"Well, it wouldn’t be Rome without shadowy conspiracies and anonymous accusations," I muttered, staring at the paper.

Who had sent this warning, and why? It was far too brief to be a proper warning, and too vague to be a threat.

It felt like a deliberate attempt to steer my attention in a specific direction.

As silence hung in the air, a household servant approached us.

"Master, a guest has requested an audience with you."

"Tell them I am busy," I replied firmly.

I did not have the luxury of making small talk with political clients right now.

"He is being incredibly persistent, sir..." the servant said, looking distressed.

"He claims he has critical information he must deliver to you personally."

"Did he give you his name?"

"Eleazar ben Mattathias, sir."

"Eleazar?"

"Yes, sir, I am certain that was his name."

The servant nodded, startled by my reaction.

Eleazar. A distinctly Jewish name.

"He introduced himself as a Jewish scholar of the law."

Pompeia, Felix, and I exchanged loaded glances.

An anonymous letter warning me to beware the Jews had arrived, and moments later, a Jewish scholar appeared at my gate.

"Bring him inside."

I paused, then added.

"But search him for weapons before you let him cross the threshold."

***

Thousands of Jewish people lived in Rome now.

While an exact census had never been conducted, the population was estimated at nearly ten thousand.

A significant portion of them were merchants who had migrated from Alexandria, while many others had been brought back as captives after Pompey’s recent campaigns in the East.

Pompey had successfully besieged Jerusalem a few years ago, dragging the captured prisoners of war back to Rome.

Over time, many of these captives were emancipated, and the local Jewish community began to grow rapidly.

However, prejudice and xenophobia against them were growing just as quickly.

Many Romans viewed their monotheistic religion and insular culture as dangerously alien, resenting their refusal to participate in public festivals and civic rites.

Cicero had once sneered in court that the Jews were a people ’born for slavery.’

To many Romans, their refusal to participate in public festivals looked like an insult to the gods, even treason, though for the Jews themselves it was a matter of faith.

"I am deeply grateful that you have welcomed me despite the abrupt nature of my visit, Lucius Julius Caesar. Our community sent a few wedding gifts to your household not long ago, though I do not know whether you remember them."

The man bowed his head.

He wore a simple white tunic beneath a grayish-brown cloak.

He didn’t exactly look like a Jewish scholar.

Aside from the small leather pouch of writing implements tied to his waist, he looked like any ordinary Roman plebeian.

"Please, take a seat, Eleazar. I remember the gifts, and I am grateful for them."

I offered him a chair.

Why on earth would a Jewish scholar seek me out at a time like this?

I couldn’t recall having any meaningful interactions with the Jewish community.

They had sent wedding gifts to my household not long ago, but that was the extent of it.

"First and foremost, I wish to express the profound respect our community holds for you, Caesar. To have accomplished so much for Rome at such a young age..."

His tone was measured and calm, but his fingers kept clenching and unclenching around his leather pouch.

"I apologize, but I am currently dealing with a highly sensitive crisis. I would appreciate it if you could get straight to the point."

"Understood."

He coughed lightly, glancing hesitantly at Pompeia beside me.

The words that left his mouth next caused my brow to furrow.

"A small radical faction within our community is plotting against General Pompey and Lady Pompeia. They do not speak for us, Caesar. If they act, all of us will be blamed for their madness."

"A plot targeting my wife and her father?"

Before I even realized it, my knuckles had gone white around my clenched fists.

Pompeia glared at the scholar, her expression mirroring mine.

I exchanged a look with her before leaning forward.

"You had better explain yourself clearly."

First, an anonymous letter told me to beware the Jews. Then, almost immediately, a Jewish scholar appeared at my door to warn me of an assassination plot.

I had a feeling this was only the beginning.

If this man was telling the truth, there could be only one reason.

Jerusalem.