Episode 55
I made up my mind like that, and seeing Ron’s expression looking more relieved than usual, I asked,
“By the way, Captain, you’ve made your decision, right? You look at ease.”
“As expected, you catch on too quickly.”
“That’s a good thing, isn’t it? You’re good at your job.”
“It is… yeah.”
The last part almost sounded like a confession with a hint of personal feelings, but I decided to let it slide for now.
Ron’s firm tone showed his resolve. It seemed that the pebble I had tossed into his heart when I revealed my secret last time had settled neatly in one corner of it.
I grinned, cut my steak into pieces, and placed some on his plate. When Ron looked at me with a What’s this? expression, I winked and said,
“A compliment.”
Ron grumbled about how giving meat was hardly a compliment, that compliments should involve patting someone’s head, and he even leaned his head toward me. I dodged him and went to work.
When I opened the office door, I ended up closing it again.
That’s odd. Did I walk into the wrong office?
Tilting my head, I flung the door open again. Just as I was about to close it once more, a voice came from inside.
“Come in, Ail. Sorry for dropping by so suddenly.”
A polite and familiar voice.
I opened the half-shut door and looked at the man sitting in the middle of the office.
“Team Leader David?”
“Yes.”
“Uh… where’s Mien?”
“She said she felt uncomfortable, so she left.”
So very Mien-like honesty.
I checked Mien’s empty seat and cautiously stepped into the office. Until David left, Mien probably wouldn’t come back anyway. Knowing her, she’d be happily roaming the order’s compound collecting snacks.
But why had David come here so early in the morning? If he’d just called me, I would’ve gone to the Audit Team myself.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about what you said, so I came here first thing this morning.”
“What I said?”
“About auditing the royal family.”
Ah, that.
He must have been talking about when I subtly probed him about whether there might be a chance to investigate the Inner Palace. I’d tried to sound casual, but it must have stuck in his mind.
Although I had considered forcibly auditing the Inner Palace as a last resort, it wasn’t an urgent matter. If Narein really turned out to be a prince of Aint, then the treaty with the kingdom would still be intact, meaning the investigation could proceed slowly.
But David, unaware of these details, looked at me with firm determination.
“After you left, I checked the regulations just in case. As I thought, the Supervisory Department’s authority can be applied to the royal family as well. It requires the approval of a direct royal, but… you must have someone willing to grant it, right?”
“That’s true. But…”
“I, David Owen, have made my decision. As the Audit Team Leader of the Supervisory Department, I will risk my life to fulfill my duty.”
“…”
“If there’s anything you need done, tell me anytime. That’s why I came.”
It was clear this was a conclusion David had reached after much deliberation. The firmness of his lips alone was proof enough.
A textbook by-the-book type. If there’s a rule, you follow it, even if it might cost your life.
It was an admirable mindset. He truly was the perfect fit for the Supervisory Department. The fact that he could think that way in a world like this proved that David was a genuinely upright person.
I told him I understood and sent him off before taking my seat.
A last-resort option is always better to have than not. I’d have to wait for the results of Narein’s paternity test, but this was meaningful in its own way.
“I demand the reorganization of the Order and the punishment of Count Poison!”
Count Lev’s voice rang loud, and Rosen’s eyes grew cold as he looked at him. The resumed trial of Reinolf was not purely about judging his crimes—it was overflowing with Lev’s ambition to take down both the Order and Count Poison.
This was beyond stubbornness—it was exhausting to even listen to such nonsense.
Rosen’s eyes narrowed with irritation.
“Count Lev.”
At Rosen’s quiet call, the pro-Emperor nobles who had been yelling all fell silent at once. It wasn’t out of respect for the Crown Prince; rather, they wanted to see him squirm under Lev’s pressure. Rosen could sense that, and the wrinkle between his brows deepened.
“The evidence you’re presenting for Count Poison’s punishment is the handmaids’ bank transaction records, correct?”
“Yes. As Your Highness saw, they are official deposit statements issued by the Imperial Bank. This is proof of a vile scheme to frame an innocent knight and drive him out…”
“This, you mean.”
The paper fluttering in Rosen’s hand was the very same deposit statement that Lev had handed over himself, complete with the Imperial Bank’s seal.
Lev nodded in affirmation, though he looked uneasy. Why would the Crown Prince bring up something that should be more damaging to himself?
Rosen’s lips curled into a wicked smile.
“Isn’t it strange? The banker who prepared this document is the son of Viscount Pesillian. If I recall correctly, the Viscount is one of your men, isn’t he?”
“That’s a stretch. There are plenty of my house’s people working in the bank.”
“Really? Fine, let’s set that aside. When a large sum of money is deposited, the depositor receives a receipt. But according to these documents, there isn’t a single receipt issued in your name.”
“That’s because Count Poison’s household handled things carelessly…”
“And yet, on the dates before and after those deposits, a large sum was deposited under the name of the Pesillian son.”
Lev faltered for a moment but quickly put on a brazen face.
“That has nothing to do with this case.”
“Even so, if there’s suspicion, it should be investigated. Marquis Orion, I heard you looked into this?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
At Rosen’s summons, Marquis Orion rose to his feet. All eyes in the chamber turned to him. After disappearing for years and suddenly returning to side with the Crown Prince without warning, Orion was seen by pro-Emperor nobles as an enormous obstacle. Naturally, their gazes toward him were anything but friendly.
Orion seemed to relish their hostility, twitching his lips as he spoke.
“The one who deposited that large sum to the Pesillian son was none other than Viscount Pesillian himself. In other words, a father depositing money into his son’s account.”
“You see? There’s no problem there!”
“However, the Pesillian family doesn’t have enough liquid assets to make such a deposit. I investigated the Viscount’s transactions—spotless. No trace of such funds. It’s as if he received the money in cash from someone in secret.”
“He must have gotten it somewhere. The Viscount runs a merchant guild; large sums can come in as goods.”
Rosen had to resist the urge to sew Lev’s mouth shut for his constant retorts.
Orion signaled to the Crown Prince to be patient before continuing.
“Yes. So I investigated the Pesillian Merchant Guild’s goods transactions. And I found something interesting. There’s a record of Count Lev purchasing ceramics from them for a huge amount in cash—the exact same amount that the Viscount deposited to his son.”
“T-That’s… I simply bought ceramics! Rare ceramics imported from another country…”
“You mean this?”
Lev’s eyes widened in shock at the sight of the ceramic in Orion’s hand.
Why was that in his possession?
Seeing Lev’s reaction, Orion smirked.
“So this is the one.”
“Why do you have that, Marquis? Did you send thieves to my mansion?!”
Whether he thought he had found a chance to attack or was simply flustered, Lev raised his voice with absurd accusations. Orion just scoffed.
“This is common pottery used in the south. I’m sure the Count’s ceramics are still safe in your mansion. But tell me, Count, why pay such a huge amount for such cheap pottery?”
“T-Then… Viscount Pesillian must have swindled me!”
Oh-ho.
Lev’s target suddenly shifted to Viscount Pesillian. The Viscount, suddenly caught in the crossfire, leapt to his feet.
Finding the situation amusing, Rosen’s eyes gleamed. He gestured for Orion to hold off reporting further and just watch.
You dared try to cut off my limbs—now it’s your turn to lose one.
Marquis Orion shook his head at the Crown Prince’s unseemly enjoyment.
“What are you talking about, Count! You knew it was cheap pottery from the start and said it was fine!”
“What nonsense, Viscount! Why would I pay that much for cheap pottery?!”
The scene unfolded in an amusing way. Watching the two openly tear into each other, the pro-Emperor nobles could only hold their foreheads.
In truth, if Viscount Pesillian had just admitted to deceiving him, the matter would have ended without giving the Crown Prince much room to argue. Yes, a large sum had come through Lev, but there was no direct proof that the money was passed to the Pesillian son as part of document falsification. Even if the son had received it, that alone wasn’t proof of forging records.
Had they understood that and clung to it, even Orion would have been at a loss for words. Fools. At least Marquis Vareille wasn’t this stupid.
It seemed the Emperor had chosen his chess pieces poorly this time. Rosen crossed his legs and enjoyed the spectacle of the two men devouring each other.
With the two main pillars of the pro-Emperor faction now at odds, the remaining nobles were at a loss over whom to side with.
Count Lev still held real power, so siding with him made sense—but the Pesillian Merchant Guild actually managed the finances, so they couldn’t be abandoned entirely.
And seeing how quickly Viscount Pesillian lashed out after a single jab, they feared that if they made him an enemy, he might spill every secret he knew in a suicidal fit.
Those with skeletons in their closets quietly calculated their next move, watching and waiting.
