Side Chapter 9

There is someone who has made a great contribution to the peace the Empire enjoys now.

That person is Alfred, who was once a spy for Cortina and Lennaeus’ secretary.

After the death of Mariatti, thanks to Alfred’s cooperation with the Empire, all the secret terrorist plans that Cortina had been preparing were thwarted.

Crucially, he also played a significant role in persuading the remaining Cortina informants to defect to the Empire.

As a reward, he was released from Bartz and has been living quietly in a remote place under the surveillance of the Imperial Army, doing small tasks.

Then, Lennaeus and I, after figuring out the truth behind the carriage and phantom thief incidents, hurriedly arrived at the small cabin where Alfred lives.

“Alfred!”

“It’s been a while, Alfred.”

“Your Highness the Crown Princess, and Your Excellency the Grand Duke. It has been a long time.”

His cheeks were more sunken than before, and he gave us a faint smile. He was weeding the overgrown garden.

A moment later, Alfred led us inside and served us a cup of bitter herbal tea. It was a small but neat home.

“The only thing I can offer is tea made from herbs I grew myself.”

“A cup of tea is more than enough.”

I smiled warmly at Alfred’s face, which seemed somewhat at ease. Adjusting his glasses, Alfred spoke calmly.

“For both of you to come to such a humble place… what brings you here?”

“Well… there’s something we need to discuss with you—ugh.”

Was it because of the strong herbal scent of the tea? Suddenly, I felt nauseous, and rudely, I ended up spitting out the tea I had just sipped.

“Charlotte!”

Lennaeus’ face stiffened instantly. He abruptly stood up and pointed a gun at Alfred.

“Did you dare do something to the Crown Princess’s teacup?”

“N-no! Why would I do such a thing?”

Alfred looked flustered, unsure of what to do. Then, with a pale face, he quickly inspected the tea I had been drinking.

“Ah, there’s nothing wrong with it…”

He muttered, his eyes trembling.

I was just as startled. It was simply that the herbal tea didn’t suit my taste. Trying to ease the tense atmosphere, I hastily waved my hands toward the two of them.

“Lennaeus, it’s fine! I just felt a little nauseous. Sorry, Alfred. I must have been a bit nervous.”

With a sorry smile, Lennaeus’ mood slightly softened. He looked at me with a worried expression.

“Charlotte, if you’re not feeling well, how about returning to the palace?”

“No, it’s fine. This matter is more important right now.”

I shook my head and placed the sack I had brought on the table with a thud. The wooden table rattled with the weight. Alfred looked at the sack curiously.

“What do you think of this?”

“This is…”

Alfred picked up the mana stone inside the sack and inspected it, tilting his head. Soon, suspicion appeared on his face.

“It’s a mana stone. Destruction attribute. This isn’t a mana stone distributed in the Empire, is it?”

“That’s right.”

“But surely… you’re not preparing for war again, are you?”

Alfred’s expression darkened. I crossed my arms and frowned as I replied.

“If by ‘the Empire’ you mean the Imperial family, then the answer is ‘no’.”

“…”

“However, it seems that someone in the Empire is preparing for war.”

Alfred’s mouth hung open with a blank expression. I continued.

“Have you heard about the thief who’s been targeting the nobles recently?”

“Yes, I’ve read about it in the articles.”

“The item he stole from the noble estates is this mana stone. And he handed it over to me.”

“What? What do you mean…?”

“In other words, the Empire’s nobles have been siphoning off destruction-attribute mana stones from the mines.”

The mana stones the nobles stole were the kind that could be used as weapons. And these nobles all had one thing in common: they were dissatisfied with the peace treaty.

That’s why the nobles whose estates were robbed refused to cooperate with the investigation. The thief had stolen none other than the mana stones they had siphoned. They feared their illegal activities would be exposed if the robbery was investigated.

“How did a mere thief know something even the Imperial family didn’t? And why would he go out of his way to give the stolen mana stone to Your Highness?”

Alfred mumbled in confusion, and I looked directly at him.

“That’s why I’ve come to you. Because I think you know the identity of that thief.”

A puzzled expression appeared on Alfred’s face.

“You think I would know the identity of the thief?”

“Silver hair, violet eyes. Slender build, pale skin. And quite handsome.”

I described the appearance of the phantom thief to Alfred. It wasn’t a common look, after all. Hearing the description, Alfred stroked his chin as if something came to mind.

“You seem to remember other men’s faces a little too well…”

I heard Lennaeus mutter something under his breath beside me, but I ignored it and handed Alfred the note the thief had left behind.

“This is the letter he left behind. Do you recognize the handwriting?”

“Ah…”

Soon, Alfred’s face shifted as if he had realized something. Noticing this, Lennaeus raised an eyebrow.

“Is it someone you know?”

“It seems so.”

Lennaeus frowned.

“Don’t tell me that he is…”

“Yes. I think it’s an old colleague of mine, someone I trained with. From Cortina’s Intelligence Agency. He was skilled in disguise and infiltration. I haven’t known his whereabouts for a long time…”

A faint trace of longing seemed to flicker on Alfred’s face. I clenched my fist tightly.

It was just as I expected.

The phantom thief knew a lot about mana stones. And when he moved, his body was as swift as someone who had been trained. Just as Alfred had once slipped past the security of the Crown Princess’s palace, the thief had easily bypassed the security of the noble estates. Plus, when he tied the sack of mana stones, he used a Cortina-style knot.

Lennaeus asked in a stiff voice.

“Why would a former Cortina agent steal mana stones from the Empire’s nobles and hand them over to the Crown Princess?”

“Probably… because he desires peace. If it’s Lupin, he’s likely grateful to Your Highness for bringing peace to his homeland.”

“Is his name Lupin?”

Alfred nodded. I narrowed my eyes.

“The important thing is who is siphoning off the mana stones and why they are trying to start a war in the Empire.”

“It’s almost as good as revealed already. The reason is their dissatisfaction with the Imperial family leading the peace treaty. I will immediately arrest the nobles suspected of siphoning off the mana stones.”

Lennaeus’ voice was chillingly cold as he spoke.

“There’s someone pulling their strings from behind.”

“……?”

Two pairs of eyes fixed on my face. I placed one shining crystal shard from the box, along with the note Lupin had left me, on the table with a thud.

I am returning this to its rightful owner.

“Lupin handed me all the mana stones and crystals. And that means their rightful owner is me.”

“……!”

Lennaeus’ eyes widened as if he had realized my intention. Then, with a terrifying expression, he rose from his seat.

“James von Dem Killian. I must go kill him right now.”

The crystal in the box was a piece of the crystal swan statue from the garden of the Crown Princess’s palace, the one I had returned to Kilian. The statue that Martha had marveled at, saying it was worth 1 billion gold.

*

Northern Empire.

Although it was midsummer in the Imperial capital, the air inside the study of the Northern Grand Duke’s residence was cool.

The interior of the Grand Duke’s residence, made of dark stone, was dim even in the middle of the day. Around the dark oak desk sat nobles with grave expressions.

These were the nobles who harbored dissatisfaction with the current Imperial family, more specifically, with Crown Princess Charlotte.

“This Empire was built with the blood of our ancestors, wasn’t it? And now, peace? Even a passing pigeon would laugh.”

“Peace comes from strong military power. At the current state of the Imperial army, the Empire’s collapse is only a matter of time.”

Grumbling voices erupted here and there. The conservative nobles were extremely displeased with the peace treaty.

Creak—.

The sound of a heavy door moving could be heard.

In the dimly lit study, a figure moved within the long shadows. Immediately, the atmosphere of dissatisfaction turned to stillness.

Soon, a man with a masculine and strong frame stepped out of the darkness.

He was twice the size of most men, with ebony hair long enough to cover his ears, and he was armed with protective gear and weapons.

“We greet Your Excellency, the Grand Duke.”

The gathered nobles all rose to show their respect.

Under the hissing flames of the oil lamp, the man’s face was finally revealed. Seeing his pale, gaunt face, the nobles flinched and glanced at each other in surprise.

Ignoring all their looks, the man finally sat in the seat of honor. Soon, a hoarse voice came from his pale lips.

“If it weren’t for General Croft, we wouldn’t have been able to gather like this.”

“You flatter me. I was merely doing my duty.”

The man with red hair and a massive build, General Croft, twisted his scarred face into a sneer. He was the one who had disappeared when Cortina’s dictator surrendered to the Empire.

“If the General hadn’t told me about the secret passageways in the underground tunnels and how to siphon off the mana stones, I wouldn’t have been able to prepare for this grand scheme.”

The man slowly raised his gaze, and between his shaggy bangs, his red eyes gleamed. That gaze still sparkled as brightly as in his most glorious moments.

“Weren’t those the tunnels Your Excellency had already investigated first? That made things easier. I am deeply grateful that you brought me in for this grand mission to overthrow the Imperial family.”

Croft bowed obsequiously. He had been the one in charge of the Empire’s underground tunnels, constructed by Cortina. As Croft took the lead, the other nobles, who had been merely watching for cues, quickly began fawning and rubbing their hands together.

“It is such a relief that Your Excellency has recovered.”

“We were so worried! An Empire without the Killian Grand Duchy is unthinkable.”

“Grand Duke Adler is nothing but a love-stricken child.”

Bang!

The heavy sound of a fist slamming on the desk echoed against the stone walls, causing the entire study to hum. In an instant, all the seated nobles turned their gaze toward Killian.

(T/N: Hello! The rest of the chapters will be uploaded in pasteltales.com. Make sure to visit the site and thank you for all the support ??)