Chapter 175
Chapter: 175
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 175
>Chapter Title: § 175. The Contract Ledger (1)
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The day Seongjin left the imperial capital.
His siblings who had seen him off gathered in the Pearl Palace at lunchtime, as if by prior agreement, in a place now empty of its master. Before they knew it, having lunch together like this had become a habit.
With even Seriseo in Cadmos mode joining them, lunches at the Pearl Palace had become the most intimidating meal in the entire imperial palace.
Princes, princesses, and even a saintess to attend to.
The servants inwardly screamed.
‘With Prince Mores gone, I thought we’d have some peace for a while!’
Only the head chef felt a swell of pride, secretly clenching his fist.
‘My cooking skills are the best in the imperial palace!’
Even with the lavish meal laid out before them, the siblings sat in silence for a moment. Mores had left the palace just today, and his absence—his sullen face that had seemed so natural—was leaving them feeling emptier than expected.
Amelia in particular, who had spent nearly every day with him since he awoke from his fever, was completely dejected.
[Why so quiet?]
When Cadmos asked in bewilderment, Amelia sighed.
“Where do you think he is by now? I hope he’s doing well and safe.”
[Of course he is. It’s only been a few hours since he left.]
Cissle then said glumly.
“Whatever it is, it must pale compared to the imperial palace. I wonder if he’s eating properly…”
[He probably hasn’t even reached Regina yet. Enough of that, descendant. You’re acting like he went off to some backwater wilderness.]
Cadmos was exasperated, but Logan added in a subdued voice.
“No matter how I think about it, the escort is too small. I hope nothing dangerous happens.”
[……]
Cadmos lost his appetite completely. He had never experienced this since entering his new body—what were they doing with a feast right in front of them?
Srrrrk.
The golden light faded from his eyes, replaced soon after by deep brown irises.
“…Huh?”
Seriseo blinked her dazed eyes for a moment before spotting the elaborate course meal before her and tearing up.
“F-Food! It’s food!”
Sob! How long had it been since she’d had a proper meal?
Unable to eat properly since acquiring the divine descent passive skill, Seriseo began shoving food into her mouth frantically, tears and snot streaming down her face.
It was a bonus that the Pearl Palace head chef, hearing the saintess had tearfully emptied every plate in, burned with even greater zeal.
And the next day.
Faced with an even more lavish lunch, Amelia, Logan, and Cissle were even more downcast.
“For some reason, I couldn’t calm down since morning—it felt ominous. Three teacups Mirabel handed me shattered one after another.”
[You were trembling so much, of course you kept dropping them!]
“Today definitely felt off. The training dummies in the sparring grounds were all smashed to bits from the morning.”
[That’s because you whacked them with that brutish weapon of yours, descendant!]
“I was shortsighted. I shouldn’t have relied on the escorts. At the very least, I should have made sure he mastered the seventh form of the Imperial Knights’ standard swordsmanship…”
[……]
Cadmos clicked his tongue.
[Sigh. I’d rather not see this mess… Tsk.]
And once again, Seriseo, who had safely regained her body during mealtime, burst into emotional tears at the sight of the table.
“Food! Is this a dream? Sob!”
That day, Head Steward Louis received inquiries one by one from the princes and princesses.
“…So he was terribly worried about Prince Mores and asked if there was any way to check on him briefly.”
The Holy Emperor, having just wrapped up a lengthy council meeting and hearing this from Louis in the late afternoon, was inwardly flustered.
‘I planned to peek in once work was done, but how did the kids know?’
* * *
After Seongjin left the inn with his escort knights, Bruno Green, left alone in the room, briefly regretted his choice.
He had avoided people thinking he’d be tired, but that left him stuck with an even more bothersome woman—an exorcist who spent the whole day receiving unfiltered stray thoughts through channels and blasting them right back out.
[Beep boop, beep boop. Hehehe! When will you return? Cha-ring. This is an important list. Phew, whoosh! He’s annoyed—how cute! Ahh! Beep beep. Let’s hurry after him! Kyahaha!]
Bruno groaned, pressing a pillow over his head. Wouldn’t it have been better to follow His Highness after all?
Then, at some point, the noisy racket suddenly stopped completely.
[……]
Bruno focused his attention, listening intently, before jumping to his feet. Silence was nice now that it had come, but the sudden quiet without reason felt unsettling.
As he stepped out of the room, he spotted the exorcist creeping down the hallway just then.
“Where are you headed, Lady Sharon?”
The exorcist’s stealthy steps halted with a twitch.
“Lady Sharon?”
But the eyes glancing back at him weren’t Lady Sharon’s characteristic pitch-black ones—they were a familiar silvery gray.
An immense presence even his clumsy channeling could sense. The distinct, restrained flow of aura.
Bruno couldn’t help but ask.
“…Could it be Your Majesty? What are you doing here?”
The exorcist—no, the Holy Emperor—sighed.
[I’m sorry for startling you. Could you pretend you didn’t see me? I just came to check on the child briefly.]
“……”
Bruno, who usually showed utmost courtesy to the Holy Imperial family, was so flabbergasted this time that he couldn’t speak easily, despite knowing it was irreverent.
Check on him? It had only been a day since he left?
There were limits to worry. Just what did this man think of a fully grown prince?
“Huh? Aren’t you two eating? What are you doing here?”
In the flowing silence, a young man carrying a lyre noticed them and asked. It was Lorang, the bard with his long braided hair wrapped around his neck.
He had been sternly warned by the prince that it might be dangerous today, so to stay in the inn as much as possible.
But the Holy Emperor’s eyes, which had been scanning him with a peculiar glint, suddenly widened.
[A dead man…]
“…Pardon?”
The Holy Emperor’s expression turned gravely serious.
Someone who should have died yesterday or today had been granted extra life. And even received some unique calling on top of it.
It was impossible not to know whose influence this was.
And right then.
The Holy Emperor sensed a bizarre flow of power slicing through the air. Scattered karmic threads, drawn haphazardly by something, raced like arrows toward a single point.
The world, watching this sudden movement, buzzed in unison.
With growing anxiety, the Holy Emperor turned his gaze northward, where the karmas were converging.
It had only been a day since leaving the capital.
Just what are you up to, son!
* * *
“A visit appointment?”
When the guard asked dubiously, Seongjin nodded.
“We didn’t set a specific time. I just sent a letter saying I’d drop by Regina soon and we should talk. Surely it didn’t fail to arrive?”
“Even if you say that so suddenly…”
The guard trailed off awkwardly.
A young boy appearing out of nowhere with proper knights in tow, demanding an audience with the Merchant Alliance branch chief on the basis of some appointment.
It was absurd, but they couldn’t turn him away because the identity he presented was so ironclad.
The guard said to wait a moment and disappeared into the logistics relay station.
Soon after, a middle-aged man in fine clothes was summoned. One of the administrators employed by the Merchant Alliance, no doubt.
“By coincidence, the branch chief is out on an errand, Your Highness. If it’s not too rude, may I hear your business and relay it to him instead?”
“Is that so?”
Seongjin said, sounding disappointed. Of course, he hadn’t really expected to meet the branch chief right away.
“Then pass this on to him: I’d like to dine with him this evening, so contact the inn. I have a business idea I’ve been mulling over lately, and I absolutely need the branch chief’s help.”
“…A business?”
“Yes. I’m planning to open a restaurant in the capital specializing in salmon. I’ll need a stable supply of ingredients, so in the letter, I ‘detailed’ a request to increase shipments of Ortona salmon through the logistics relay. Surely the letter arrived?”
Before even hearing a reply, he tilted his head and added.
“Well, I suppose it didn’t. Otherwise, why would he go out on an errand at this exact timing when I’ve arrived in Regina?”
Naturally, word had already spread through back channels that the Sacred Empire’s prince would be passing through Regina.
If there really had been such an appointment, this would be blatant disregard for a member of the Holy Imperial family. The manager felt cold sweat trickling down his back.
“Well, don’t worry about it—just make sure to relay the message to contact the inn.”
After leaving those words with the manager bowing and scraping, Seongjin turned and walked out. Masain hurried after him and asked.
“A salmon restaurant? Since when have you been interested in such a venture? You’ve always focused only on swordsmanship lessons, so I must have overlooked it, Your Highness.”
Seongjin looked at Masain with pitiful eyes.
You still don’t get it, Sir Masain? That was obviously made up on the spot.
‘How’s the magi? Any changes?’
[No, it’s still in place, not moving.]
Hmm. Even after deliberately baiting the branch chief specifically, no movement at all. So the branch chief or his close aides aren’t it?
‘I assumed if there was a demonkin, it’d be tied to the top brass of the logistics relay…’
Seongjin pondered deeply as he walked.
He had half-expected to run into a demonkin soon.
The Dark Church that worshipped the Demon King as a god.
The Milo Merchant Group scattering their insignia everywhere.
The Merchant Alliance tolerating and supporting the Milo Group’s northern expansion.
So he’d always thought there was a chance a demonkin was somewhere in that chain.
But to think one was hiding out in the open in a major city like this?
‘Dasha might be infiltrating there right now. And Orden’s group following the Milo chairman. Is it okay to leave the demon like that?’
[It’s still suppressing its presence and hiding. It probably won’t act rashly.]
‘Got it. Let’s watch a bit longer, then.’
He had some confidence, at least.
Seongjin’s sudden visit to the logistics relay wasn’t just to probe the branch chief—it was above all a warning to whoever, not to act recklessly today.
He was disguised as a resident knight of the Pearl Palace for now, but anyone in the know would know that part of the prince’s entourage were holy knights from the monster suppression unit.
‘Plus, I mentioned dinner on purpose, so it could sneak in alone before then and strike while off-guard.’
Just then, a breeze from somewhere gently wrapped around his arm and swirled. Seongjin, lost in thought, didn’t notice.
Leading his still-bewildered group, Seongjin headed to the restaurant district like that.
“Wow, the rumors were true—it was incredibly delicious!”
The restaurant recommended by Lady Claudia was exceptional. He’d been taken aback at first by the crowd filling the place and the long line outside, but being so famous, they had a VIP section.
Thanks to that, Seongjin’s group paid extra but enjoyed their meal comfortably without waiting.
“I’m glad it suited your taste. It’s been a while since Your Highness ate this much at a meal.”
Masain said happily. Seongjin, who hadn’t eaten more than his controlled portions since adjusting his weight, had unusually stuffed himself full.
Of course, it was tasty, but the main reason was something else.
[Already done? Just one more bite of steak! Huh? It’d be a waste to leave it like this, right? Ah! That cheese pie! Just a little more cheese pie!]
If Seongjin hadn’t finally snapped and told it to cut it out, the Demon King probably would have emptied the plates of those around them too.
And finally, after the meal, the sated Demon King sprawled out in his mind, muttering blatantly.
[Uwaaah! This is living! I’m so happy~.]
Seongjin was dumbfounded.
Happy? You, a demon who feeds on human misery—happy?
[You don’t get it. Demons use misery as fuel to make themselves happy—that’s what makes us demons. We don’t pursue misery itself. Think about it: what demon in this world would want to make itself miserable?]
…Hearing it that way, it made sense.
[The demon realm rarely offers these sensory pleasures. That’s why demons desperately seek contracts with humans. Primal urges like gluttony or lust are incredibly appealing to demons too.]
The pleased Demon King rolled around happily in his head.
[That’s why novice demons sometimes fail to control these urges, endangering their contractors. They turn them into pigs in an instant or devolve them into pleasure killers. They can’t overcome a momentary craving and ruin everything. So foolish.]
Hey, is that something you should say?
After trying to lick Sir Masain’s plate clean!