I Shall Infiltrate!
The next morning, I opened my eyes and headed straight for the conference room.
“From this moment onward, this princess shall conduct a meeting for the future of the empire.”
“W-what sort of meeting…?”
“Bring him in.”
I gestured to one of the ministers. After a short wait, two guards dragged in the slave trader from last night, his wrists and ankles tightly bound to a chair.
“This princess learned something from this man last night. There exists an ‘auction house’ that buys and sells people.”
“……!”
Every pair of eyes in the room widened slightly.
“There was one question this princess did not ask you yesterday.”
“…What is it?”
“The date the auction begins. Speak it.”
Auctions probably weren’t held every day, so striking right when one started seemed smartest.
“If you promise to release me, I’ll gladly tell you everything.”
“Very well. This princess gives her word. Should the information prove true, I shall release you myself.”
Of course it was a lie. Not a complete lie—I planned to free him after the raid was over.
If I let him go now and he runs straight to his associates and spills everything, it’ll be a massive headache.
“…The auction house opens three days from now.”
“Is that the truth?”
“What would I gain by lying… Just hurry up and release me already!”
“We have the information. Take him away again.”
Hey, buddy. Life isn’t that simple. What do you think society is, exactly?
“Aaaagh…! You tricked me! I won’t let this slide! I’ll never forgive you! I’ll kill you!!!”
Shouting all the way, the slave trader was dragged off by the two guards. The door closed, and a heavy silence fell over the room. The one who eventually broke it was, of course, me.
“As you can see, there are those who tarnish the empire’s public order. This princess intends to purge them. What do my ministers think?”
“…….”
The ministers remained silent for a long time. Maybe they were internally screaming ‘Ugh, this kid is dumping annoying work on us again!’ or simply staring into space with empty brains.
When the silence refused to break, I singled out one of them.
“What is your opinion?”
“W-what exactly are you referring to…?”
“How suspicious.”
The minister broke into a cold sweat, his body going rigid.
“You wouldn’t happen to be… involved in this matter, would you?”
“N-no, absolutely not! After devoting decades of my life to the empire, how could Your Highness even suggest—!”
Even more suspicious. The classic stench of a backer was thick in the air. Well, whether he had a backer, whether he was connected or not, I could just check.
“Then prove it.”
“H-how…?”
What are you even asking? It’s obvious. If there’s something fishy, you conduct a thorough search. I felt in my bones how urgently we needed to distribute modern dramas.
“Search this man’s residence with special focus.”
“Regent Princess! Isn’t this going too far…!”
Absolute Obedience
“Too far? If you are a loyal subject of this princess, you should gladly submit to the search. I would prefer you not disappoint me any further.”
“Ugh… Understood…”
I swept my gaze across the room. Ministers dripping with cold sweat. Ministers breathing roughly. Every single one seated here looked suspicious.
“None of you are exempt. This princess plans to conduct intensive searches on all high-ranking ministers of Barshain. Should any of you dare object to my words—”
I gestured to Liana, who had been standing silently beside me. She drew her sword from its sheath.
“—it shall be regarded as treason, and this princess will punish you personally.”
“Hiiik…!”
In truth, I wasn’t going to execute anyone or impose slavery. At worst, maybe a pay cut? Everyone sitting here was a genius once hailed as a prodigy in their region. I didn’t want to lose capable ministers if I could help it.
They were all trembling violently, clearly terrified. I looked at each of their faces in turn and gave them a gentle, smiling glance.
“Today’s meeting ends here. Liana, let us go.”
With those words, I left the conference room. On the way to my office, Liana spoke up.
“Your Highness… if something is discovered in the ministers’ homes…”
“It would mean they are connected to the auction house.”
“You’re not actually planning to behead them… are you?”
Do I really look like the kind of person who would? I was starting to feel a little hurt. Yesterday was an exception! My precious Liana had nearly been sullied by filthy, disgusting scum!
Worry was flooding Liana’s face, on the verge of overflowing. She stood on her tiptoes.
“I merely gave them a light scare, so there is no need for concern. This princess knows very well how capable my ministers are.”
I stroked Liana’s head for a long while.
“Your Highness…”
Liana basked in my touch with deep satisfaction.
She really is like a puppy.
If Liana had a tail right now, it would definitely be wagging furiously.
“Liana, have you calmed down a little? In that case, this princess must now attend to her duties… What exactly do you think you are doing?”
Liana had suddenly lifted me into the air. She was puffing her cheeks, clearly upset about something.
“More, please…! Head pats!”
“This princess is busy right now! I will do it when I return, so put me down first…!”
After a fierce battle with zero concessions on either side, the result was—
“You have to do it after work, okay? Head pats.”
“…Very well.”
In the end, it was my victory. That night, Liana fell asleep beneath my gentle touch.
Three days passed.
It meant the time had finally come to raid the auction house.
Before the final operation, I summoned the high-ranking ministers once more.
“Loyal ministers of the empire, unidentified large sums of money have been discovered in their residences. Every single one of them.”
“T-that is, Regent Princess…”
“Silence. Is this princess not speaking?”
Absolute Obedience
“If you lie to this princess, even I may become quite angry. Reveal the source of those funds.”
They all looked reluctant to speak, but resistance is futile before Absolute Obedience.
One of the ministers carefully opened his trembling lips.
“We merely accepted money to look the other way for them…! We never bought or sold anything at that auction house…!”
With Absolute Obedience active, the chance they were lying was zero percent. I had assumed these guys were the masterminds behind the auction. How anticlimactic.
“What is the scale of the auction house?”
“Roughly 1,000 pyeong… There are many guards, and entry requires a ticket. Also carnival masks…”
Oh? So it really is a fairly successful operation?
“There are many requirements. What about the tickets?”
One minister hesitated briefly before answering.
“Since we do not participate in the auctions, we do not possess any tickets…”
“How unhelpful.”
“I apologize…”
Well, with Absolute Obedience I could probably force my way in somehow, so entry itself shouldn’t be an issue. The biggest problem lay elsewhere.
What the hell do I do about the carnival masks?!
There was no way I could find carnival masks in this world. It had been on my bucket list for ages—trying on a carnival mask. I’d wanted to wear one for Halloween, but my hikikomori powers wouldn’t even allow that.
“Prepare carnival masks for myself and Liana. The two of us shall subdue the auction house.”
“Y-yes…!”
There were roughly three hours left until the auction began. Plenty of time to obtain the masks and grab a quick meal.
Preparations for entering the auction house were already complete. I had nothing to do. While wondering how to fill the time, I asked Liana a question.
“Liana, would it not be better to bring your weapon?”
Even without a weapon Liana was plenty strong, but raiding a massive auction house unarmed seemed a bit much, so I asked just to be sure.
“But if I carry a weapon, I won’t be able to hide it…”
I thought quickly, searching for a way for Liana to bring her weapon safely.
Registering it as an auction item was impossible since the registration period had already passed…
“…Would it not be fine to simply carry it in? This princess shall take care of the rest.”
Liana let out a sigh.
“Yes. If it comes to it, we can just knock the guards out and enter.”
Right. As long as we don’t kill anyone, it’s all good. Yep, yep.
While exchanging idle chatter with Liana as we waited for the masks to arrive, I spotted a minister running toward us from afar.
“Huff…! Huff…! I’ve… I’ve brought them…!”
The red carnival mask and purple carnival mask both exuded a glamorous, mysterious atmosphere.
“This princess shall wear the red mask.”
“Then I’ll take the purple one.”
The fit was slightly uncomfortable, but that was all. I look like some highborn young lady right now.
Liana wearing the purple carnival mask looked absolutely stunning. She no longer resembled a knight at all.
“Then let us depart! Ah, once the auction begins, station guards around the perimeter. If you fail to do so… you understand, yes?”
“Hiiik…! Y-yes!”
And so our auction house cleanup operation began.
. . .
Before long, Liana and I stood right in front of the auction house.
“I will check your tickets. Yes, confirmed. Please enjoy the auction.”
Just as the ministers had described. Men who looked like security guards were checking tickets from everyone approaching the entrance.
“Liana, act as naturally as possible! Understood?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Step by step. Liana and I approached the guard as casually as we could.
“Welcome. I will check your tickets. May I see them?”
Absolute Obedience
“Just let us through. We are not bad people, after all.”
Gulp.
The guard remained silent for a while. The description had said it didn’t work on people with strong mental fortitude.
Is this one of those cases…?
I clutched my wildly pounding heart and stared at the guard with trembling eyes. After several seconds, the guard finally spoke.
“…Yes. Please enjoy the auction.”
It worked! I thought my heart was going to burst out of my chest. No one can stop my skill, you bastards!
“Liana, let us enter.”