At the very heart of the Kingdom of Haldoria, in the palace, was a heavily guarded area where Adel had decided to set up her office. After signing a few documents, she stretched like a cat.
“Mistress Adel! That is unbecoming of a princess!”
“Oh, who cares? No one’s watching anyway!”
“I’m watching!” The exasperated young woman complaining was Maoran. The ever-serious waiting maid frowning at her mistress was a common sight in this room.
“Do you think Eiwass is doing a good job?” Adel asked.
“Who knows?” Maoran replied. “I can’t read that man.”
“He is hard to read. But he’s also very competent. I need him, so I’m keeping him next to me, but never lower your guard around him,” Adel warned.
“I won’t.”
“Roselia’s with him, so he can’t mess up too badly. Although I imagine Roselia is having a terrible time.”
“That’s likely. When they return, you must remember to show her appreciation for her efforts.”
“You’re right. By the way...” Adel stopped for a moment to drink a mouthful of tea before finishing, “how is my brother doing?”
“According to the reports, he’s still completing his work seriously. The guards say he barely ever leaves his living quarters. Lady Sylvia, on the other hand, seems to have finally understood her own situation. They say she’s on edge these days. Well, it’s not like there’s anything much she can do anyway.”
“Still, I’m surprised. I thought she’d come and try her luck with me.”
“Indeed, she hasn’t tried to approach you at all,” Maoran said. “Oh, it looks like it’s time, mistress.”
“Got it. Let’s go, then.”
Adel was scheduled to meet with several nobles today. She planned to bring the decent ones to her side, little by little.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Miss Ellie, I’m done summarizing our firm’s damage and casualty reports.”
“Thank you, Lunoa.” I took a look at the document she’d just handed me. “Sadly, some of our employees lost their lives in Spider’s attack...”
“Lunoa, could you go to the financial department and ask them to send condolence money to the bereaved families?” I asked.
“Of course.”
“Misha, you go to the human resources department and ask them to start preparing to fill these open positions.”
“Yes, Miss Ellie.”
Lunoa and Misha had just left my office when Mireille walked in with a cup of coffee for me.
“There ended up being more casualties than during the king poison slime incident,” she said.
“That’s true,” I replied. “Although I suppose that was to be expected with undead monsters rampaging in the center of the city during the festival. There were even several high-level monsters.” I picked up a biscuit and took a bite to offset the bitterness of my drink. “So, tell me, Mireille. Have you been able to find out any information about Spider’s mysterious organization?”
“No, not yet. I put Barl on the case, but he has yet to uncover anything. Apparently, there were no traces left whatsoever—except for the document that incriminated Friede.”
“How troublesome,” I said with a sigh. “What do the imperial authorities think?”
“At first, they appeared to be skeptical too. They thought the document found in Spider’s hideout might have been a fake left there on purpose. But according to what I’ve heard, the more they investigate, the more evidence they seem to find. In addition, many nobles are utterly convinced Haldoria is to blame because the Haldorian delegation changed its plans without prior notice and departed before the attack. The imperial family is trying to remain cautious, but those who call for war are gaining more and more traction.”
“My brother and Roselia colluding with Friede? That’s unthinkable.”
“The nobles of the empire treat the Haldorian nobility as a monolith. And they’re not necessarily wrong to assume that. Many nobles publicly act like they’re on bad terms with one another while conducting secret deals behind closed doors.”
“Roselia and the others truly picked the worst time to leave.”
“But isn’t this a good opportunity for you?” Mireille asked. “If we fan the flames, there’s a good chance a war will break out. This would differ a lot from your original plan, but you could rely on the empire’s military strength this way.”
In the past, I would have wholeheartedly agreed with Mireille. Manipulating the prices of strategic resources now would drastically increase the likelihood of a war. And if I got close to the warmongering nobles while this was happening, I could push for war and secure a spot for myself as a supplier of the army.
“I can’t do that,” I replied.
“Why not?” Mireille asked.
“If a war breaks out, the people will be hurt. My contract with Roselia prevents me from deliberately choosing to harm the masses.”
“A contract? With Lady Roselia?! When in the world did you—”
“I’ll explain the details later,” I told her. “But what matters is that from now on, any plan should exclusively target the royal family or nobles, not the common people.”
While I couldn’t push for war, if one started without any meddling from me, I would still be free to join it on the empire’s side. That was one of the tricky things about magic contracts. Actively breaking the terms of the contract was not an option, but doing so passively was perfectly acceptable and wouldn’t be counted as a violation.
“I took on bothersome limitations, but so did the other side,” I said.
“What do you mean?”
“Roselia is just too soft. That’s why she easily forgets about some things. A contract does not only bind one party. It binds two.” I smirked.
◇◆☆◆◇
“The names of dozens of citizens of the empire are carved into the cenotaph that stands in the Central Square. However, the events that led to the construction of this monument are still unknown. Once every five years, during the parade that opens the festival, the imperial family offers a prayer at the cenotaph. This tradition has led many to believe that the truth behind the cenotaph is passed down through the imperial family. If one dives into the history of the period during which the memorial was erected, one will discover that this period matches with the sudden deterioration of the relationship between the Yutear Empire and the Kingdom of Haldoria (currently the Dukedom of Haldoria). As a result, many surmise that some violent incident involving the two nations might have taken place at the time.”
Linda let out a “Phew,” then reread through her manuscript one more time before stretching. She’d been forced to stay overnight at the company, but she’d made her deadline.
Linda had just finished writing the very first installment of her series dealing with the historical mysteries of the empire. This was the first time Linda had gotten to work on a project she’d pitched and launched from the very start, so she absolutely wanted it to succeed.
“All right. Now, time to figure out my investigation schedule for next month’s story...”
— A scene at the editing department of Empire Publishers, late at night.