Chapter 57
Uh… the Avengers?
The Minister of Finance has an annoying habit of dumping more work on me whenever he’s in a good mood.
I had a bad feeling about this, but I still held onto a sliver of hope as I opened my mouth.
“Minister, I’m still adjusting to the Chancellor’s Office. I hardly know anyone from other departments, and I’m not familiar with their work. I’m worried I might make mistakes.”
“Haha, this is a good opportunity to get acquainted, isn’t it? You won’t often have the chance to work with four departments at once. And since you’ve been promoted quickly, I’m giving you some special attention.”
It didn’t work at all.
If this is the so-called Minister of Finance’s ‘line,’ I’d rather not have one.
Everyone would definitely be watching this newly promoted, much-talked-about recruit to see how well she worked. Just the thought weighed heavily on me. And I was still getting used to my new responsibilities as a second-class secretary.
“Lucan, help Secretary Cornelia as much as you can.”
“Of course, Minister.”
For some reason, the guy was grinning from ear to ear.
That afternoon, the joint departmental meeting was held.
The messenger—which I was half convinced didn’t actually work—sent out the meeting schedule without issue.
“Second-class Secretary, let’s go.”
Lucan nudged me with his usual breezy nature. In formal settings or in front of senior staff, he instinctively spoke politely. But when it was just clerks or people his age, he spoke casually. It didn’t feel strange, so I let it be.
The meeting took place in the large conference hall. I spotted several unfamiliar faces. It looked like two people from each department had been assigned.
“If everyone’s here, let’s begin.”
At the command of the highest-ranking person present—Ariadne’s Duke, the Chief Justice—his bull-like aide sitting beside him began leading the meeting.
“Greetings. I am Illya Bern, Senior Judge and aide to the Chief Justice. As you were informed, today’s meeting brings together representatives from several departments to establish a new law addressing the hidden overseas assets of former Chancellor Marcus and former first-class secretary Dorian Vainglory. His Majesty has personally ordered that measures be put in place to prevent such incidents from ever occurring again. To handle this swiftly, we’ve gathered all relevant personnel. Today’s session is simply to offer a brief explanation and introductions. Beginning next week, you will report to the newly prepared offices on the fourth floor. You will spend three days a week in the joint division, and the rest of the week in your original department.”
I sighed.
“The fourth floor…?”
Three floors was my limit. Without an elevator, the fourth floor felt like a personal punishment.
Just then, a balding middle-aged man raised his hand.
“Since this will be our workplace for some time, calling it simply a ‘joint division’ feels awkward. Why don’t we give it a name?”
The Duke gave him a slight nod—permission to continue.
“How about the Division of Overseas Asset Concealment?”
That sounds less like legislation and more like we’re the ones doing the concealing…
But the Duke simply nodded, uninterested.
“As you wish.”
Names seemed to mean nothing to him. Lucan whispered softly beside me,
“They’ll 100% call it the Concealment Division.”
He was right. The formal name didn’t last a day. Everyone—including the members—called it the Concealment Division before long.
The Duke raised his hand to stop Illya Bern’s explanation and spoke.
“As for this matter, I, Vespera, the Chief Justice, will take responsibility. His Majesty expects a law that will satisfy him, and that depends on your ability. Since many of you may not know one another, introduce yourselves, and we’ll end for today.”
Most people had already lost focus during Illya’s lengthy briefing. We went around the circular table, starting from the Duke’s left.
The first two were familiar faces from the Ministry of Finance.
“First-class Financial Officer, Layla Janel.”
“Second-class Financial Officer, Abel Wayne.”
The very same people who always looked icy and clicked their abacus like weapons whenever I visited the Finance Ministry. They seemed capable of spotting missing budget numbers from a mile away.
“First-class Diplomat, Simon Port.”
“Second-class Diplomat, Shaun Lames.”
Diplomats from the Foreign Ministry. The middle-aged man who had cheerfully renamed our division earlier was Simon Port. Maybe because he frequently traveled abroad, he had a bright, sociable energy that contrasted heavily with the Finance Ministry duo.
Then it was our turn.
“Second-class Secretary, Cornelia Libertas.”
“Junior Clerk, Lucan Fairbern.”
Suddenly, the eyes of the entire conference room focused on me. A blatant assessment.
I expected this, but it’s still unpleasant.
They must have been curious about the woman who rose from junior clerk to second-class secretary in just a few months.
Then Shaun Lames spoke.
“Every department has sent first- and second-class officers. Why has the Chancellor’s Office sent a second-class secretary and a junior clerk? From what I know, Secretary Cornelia only became second-class a few days ago, isn’t that right?”
A perfect summary of the question I wanted to throw at the Minister of Finance.
I wonder that myself, Diplomat.
I tried to answer, but Lucan stepped in first.
“Diplomat, I’m ashamed to admit that the Chancellor’s Office is short-staffed after a series of major incidents. I hope you’ll understand—”
“Ahem.”
Lucan’s easy smile silenced Shaun. Judging by their expressions, they seemed to know each other.
Is there anyone in the central ministries he doesn’t know?
People with wide networks always seemed to have endless energy. It wasn’t even a realm I could envy.
I thought the matter had passed—until an unexpected person intervened.
“Lucan Fairbern, was it?”
It was the Duke. Lucan bowed immediately.
“Yes, Chief Justice.”
“Diplomat Shaun addressed Secretary Cornelia. Why did you answer instead? Did the Chancellor’s Office send someone incapable of answering questions to this joint division?”
His question was sharp enough to cut.
Even the diplomat who had asked the question, Shaun, flinched and looked away awkwardly.
“No, sir. It’s just that Corn—”
“It’s fine. I’ll answer.”
I raised a hand slightly toward Lucan, signaling him to stop, then met the Chief Justice’s eyes.
“I apologize. From now on, I’ll answer questions directed at me personally.”
Then I turned back to Diplomat Shaun.
“I understand the concern. Every other department has sent first- and second-class officers, yet our positions don’t match that level. Unfortunately, the suspects in this case are former Chancellor Marcus and former first-class secretary Dorian, which means the Chancellor’s Office has lost several core personnel. Our titles may fall short, but we’ll do our utmost to fulfill our roles. I hope you’ll be understanding.”
When I smiled, Shaun cleared his throat and looked away. It was shameful for the Chancellor’s Office, but some things needed to be said plainly.
Simon, his superior, burst into hearty laughter.
“As expected of the famous young secretary! Don’t mind Shaun.”
“Not at all. His question was reasonable.”
If we tried to gloss over it, someone else would definitely bring it up to make trouble later.
“Mm. You seem interesting. Chief Justice, shall we end it here? I see no issue with Secretary Cornelia handling this case.”
The Duke nodded once, rose from his seat, and left. Very different from the last time I’d seen him regarding the contract issue.
Is it because we’re now meeting as equals in an official capacity?
Judging from his presence alone, both I and Illya Bern would find him difficult to handle. Still, knowing what he was really like in private kept me from feeling intimidated.
I’ll just do my work the way I always do.
I would simply focus on finishing this collaborative project safely.
The first day at the Concealment Division had arrived.
Climbing to the fourth floor of the central ministries left me slightly short of breath, but a clean wooden office greeted me. The wood and gold interior was pleasantly harmonious.
The Chief Justice’s desk sat at the head, above the clusters of desks arranged by department.
“Morning, Cornelia.”
“Morning, Lucan.”
I set down my bag as Lucan walked in and greeted me. Having even one coworker from my department made me feel a bit more at ease.
A little before nine, people began filing in and starting their tasks.
“By next meeting, each department representative must bring proposals for preventing nobles from concealing overseas assets.”
The Duke’s directive was simple. He seemed to consider endless meetings pointless without substantive thought. I agreed with him.
“What a headache…”
The order was one sentence, but finding answers wasn’t easy. People scattered into the library, searching through books with increasingly strained faces.
I watched them for a while, then casually flipped through some newspapers.
Because this group was made of mixed departments, the atmosphere was tense—almost suffocating. The oppressive feeling probably came from the presence of the man sitting at the head of the room.
At six o’clock, I closed what I’d been reading and got ready to leave.
“See you tomorrow.”
I bowed politely and headed toward the door—
“Stop.”
The Duke’s voice halted me.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
