However, one thing had struck her as strange. The plan had been going smoothly until, for some reason, over the past year, multiple organizations of hers had been exposed one after the other within the borders of Emeroade. Thanks to her spy, her close subordinates had barely escaped safely, but even then, Juliette had been impressed by the skill of the investigators—even Emeroade had talented people working for them.
Wanting to know who exactly was getting in the way of her plans, Juliette had received multiple scraps of paper from her spy as they passed in the castle corridors. The information on those paper slips surprised her: the department that had been such a thorn in her side was commanded by Second Prince Marcus under the unassuming name of the Second Financial Audit Division. It sounded as if its staff were all civil servants—bookish types, mostly—but in reality, it was made up of a select few former knights, mercenaries, and some magic users, who formed quite an effective squad.
What’s more, one of those enforcers was someone she had thought was just a shameless maid—Cesia. That meant that Marcus’s subordinates had been observing Juliette since she had arrived in Emeroade.
Juliette was relieved that she had taken care beforehand to decide that contact with her spy would be limited to exchanges on scraps of paper they passed each other. It would’ve been dangerous to speak directly with the spy she had secretly placed in Emeroade castle several years before.
“But still, Cesia…! That shameless woman… I should’ve given her a harsher punishment.”
Juliette visited Emeroade, this time as the kingdom of Gwyllt’s representative, in part to confirm whether her spy hadn’t betrayed her. Her businesses had been exposed, and while her subordinates had escaped, the organizations themselves were nearly completely destroyed. Couldn’t her spy have leaked information to her faster? Could they have been won over to Emeroade’s side? All questions she came in person to answer.
In the end, she learned her spy hadn’t betrayed her, but also that there were new, large obstacles, and as a result, her plans weren’t proceeding on schedule.
Marcus was a vital piece in her plan. She had thought his stupidity was perfect for her plans, but that man’s carefree smile hid someone unexpectedly sharp.
“Oh, well… I’ll have to make a slight change of plans,” she said to herself. Her tone was disappointed, but she was smiling.
Cesia.
An idea to frame that pest of a maid while simultaneously realizing her plans took shape in her head. Juliette was delighted.
At the same time, the Second Division was getting closer to the truth that Juliette was the secret mastermind of the criminal syndicate. Besides Cesia, the other members of the Second Division were men, and it was difficult for them to observe their targets as closely as she could. Luckily, though, because of their recent distinguished achievements, all of which had gone to the Security Bureau, the Bureau was in their debt. So, they were able to indirectly request that castle security take the time to monitor their targets while they were in the middle of the present state of high alert.
Thus, unknown to Cesia, who was spending her time being harassed by Juliette while diligently working as a maid, the other members of the Second Division had time to spare for investigative duties besides surveillance. As a result, they obtained information that showed that the profits of the criminal organizations had been flowing into Gwyllt, strengthening the probability that Juliette was the mastermind behind everything.
Because of Juliette’s extensive business operations in her own country, she could also be said to have the expertise necessary to run a criminal organization. Additionally, because of the large scale of the criminal organization, the possibility emerged that the Gwyllt royal family knew what Juliette was doing and gave their tacit approval.
“Isn’t this an international issue, then?” Roy said, his expression serious.
The Second Division was operating under the pretense that it had dispatched personnel to places that needed extra workers, so they were making the utmost effort not to enter the division’s office. Nevertheless, it was the middle of the night, and everyone besides Cesia was in the office. Gathering at a time like this was all the more suspicious, but it had been the only time that everyone’s schedules allowed, and besides, they couldn’t meet normally during the day.
“It is.” Marcus nodded. His face betrayed no emotion.
His cheerful smile suited him, but in front of recruits like Cesia, Roy, and Felix, he often had a severe expression during discussions like this. For his butler, Chris, who always accompanied the prince during overtime even when he was told to go home for the day, it was an expression he was more familiar with.
If it was the king and crown prince’s role to protect the country publicly, then Marcus’s role was to protect it privately. Though the activities of the Second Division might have seemed like the idle amusement of a prince, thanks to Marcus’s effective management, authority, and judgment, the division had often prevented crimes before they even happened. He couldn’t support the country as a king or contribute by marrying to strengthen its bonds with nobles and other countries as a princess. Still, his simple desire to, at the very least, contribute using his methods spurred him on, which were available to him only because he was born as a prince. If he was told that he was already doing plenty, he would just push himself harder, telling himself that he had much more to accomplish and improve on, no matter how clever or talented he might seem.
“She’s a state guest, and we don’t have any definitive evidence, so we can’t detain her,” Marcus said.
Layne nodded with a vexed expression. “That’s right. If we could at least figure out who the spy is, then things would be different, but…”
“Any information from Cesia?” Keith asked.
Felix, who had been flipping through her report, shook his head. “She’s struggling. Princess Juliette hates her, not that I don’t understand the princess’s feelings. She really is shameless…” he said. Having insulted Cesia in the past by calling her shameless, he hung his head apologetically. Still, it was a failure as an undercover investigator for one’s target to behave with hostility and distance themselves.
Keith scratched his cheek. “Rather than magic or martial arts, maybe we should’ve made her practice her customer service skills.”
“I’ll make that her next assignment,” Marcus said, kneading his temples as if he had a headache.
Still, Juliette might hate Cesia and avoid her, but it would be noticeable if the princess met with anyone suspicious. The spy would have to be someone in an important position for them not to be questioned by Cesia or the guards. If they weren’t able to, to a certain degree, freely obtain information, then it would be impossible to leak anything to Juliette.
Just who exactly was the spy? Despite the ongoing high alert, that question remained unanswered.
After it was decided to focus their attention on Juliette, the night’s meeting ended.