How Swiftly Time Flows
Time slipped by with dizzying speed. After granting Theodora full authority over the chemical fertilizer project, she took charge of managing the academy professors, handling any questions I had on her own. Before I knew it, the biweekly night market had opened once again. And today, as always, Agrippa and I slipped out of the Imperial Palace under the pretext of an undercover inspection.
"Ah... I'm so jealous. I want to go to Wyn too."
Wyn, the capital of the Grand Duchy. It had been so long since I last set foot there that the sudden wave of homesickness caught me off guard.
"Then why don't you just come along?" Agrippa asked.
I let out a heavy sigh. "You know I can't."
Leaving Theodora behind in Roman to travel to the Grand Duchy would be tantamount to abandoning the capital altogether. Thus, I could not attend the engagement ceremony of my own sister, Mary, and my closest friend, Agrippa.
"Still, I'm sorry. It's your engagement to Mary, and I can't even make it."
When I offered my sincere apologies, Agrippa let out a soft chuckle. "Well, it can't be helped. You're practically running yourself ragged for the Empire. Besides, you already promised to pass the Grand Duchy down to Mary's and my future children, so the least we can do is be understanding."
His gracious words eased my guilt, if only a little. Chatting idly, we finally arrived at the restaurant we had agreed on. A male server who looked to be in his mid-twenties guided us to a table.
"What's good here?" I asked.
The server smiled warmly. "Our wine and fondue are highly recommended, sir."
Agrippa and I nodded in unison. "We'll have that, then."
As the server bowed politely and withdrew to prepare our order, I turned back to Agrippa.
"Honestly, if it weren't for these small moments of escape, I think I would have lost my mind by now. The workload has been absolutely brutal lately."
The endless mountain of reports and documents piled up on my desk every single day. Because we were recruiting for vacant high-level public offices across various departments, the lower-level administrative positions remained largely empty. I couldn't sleep at night, plagued by the anxiety that if this grueling pace continued, everyone would start avoiding civil service altogether. And if that happened... I would literally drown in paperwork.
Agrippa flashed a wry smile at my lament. "You brought this on yourself, you know."
I shook my head defensively. "What do you mean, I brought this on myself...?"
Though, thinking about it, he wasn't entirely wrong. Having stripped the Empress of her executive power, the last thing I wanted was to go down in history as a tyrannical, corrupt minister who ruined the nation. To avoid that fate, I poured my heart and soul into reviewing every detail, striving to drag this Empire into a prosperous future. That desire was precisely why I pushed myself so hard.
"Still, thanks to your suffering, things are finally falling into place, aren't they?" Agrippa noted.
It was true. The chaotic political landscape had indeed begun to stabilize.
"Don't just brush it off. Why don't you take it easy for once? Keep this up, and you'll end up in an early grave. You review everything far too meticulously."
Agrippa clearly didn't buy my excuses. Lately, my daily routine consisted of reviewing endless reports and proposals, drafting plans for the establishment of the Information Department, preparing to suppress the rogue remnants of the Emperor Faction, and orchestrating the manipulation of the bond market.
Wait... that actually is a lot, isn't it?
When I factored in all the microscopic details of each task, it did feel a bit overwhelming.
"No, it's fine. Once the Information Department is officially established and the Emperor Faction is dealt with, things will quiet down."
Besides, the ministers of the Five Ministries had finally assumed their duties, which had already alleviated some of my burden.
"Then how about you start by cutting down the reports from the ministries? Just reading through those takes up a ridiculous amount of your time."
He had a point. The sheer volume of paperwork flooding in from the various departments was staggering. Given the vast scope of the Five Ministries' operations across the entire Empire, it would actually be stranger if the stack of reports were small.
I let out a weary sigh. "Whew... Still, if I'm going to run a country, I at least need to know how the gears are turning."
The Grand Ducal Department primarily functioned as an auditing body, keeping me informed of the inner workings of each ministry. It was far more efficient to have officials dispatched directly from the Grand Ducal Department compile these reports rather than having each individual ministry submit separate daily updates.
"Sigh... Having a strong sense of responsibility is great and all, but you need to pace yourself. You're going to work yourself to death at this rate."
Hearing Agrippa's genuine concern, I chuckled softly. "Come on. I'm not going to die that easily."
As we conversed, the server returned, setting down a small burner to melt the cheese alongside a basket of freshly baked bread.
"Here we are, gentlemen."
He uncorked a bottle of wine and poured a glass for each of us. I took a light sip, and my eyes instantly widened. A sharp, spicy kick cut through the rich, robust flavor of the wine, followed by a distinct alcoholic aroma that tickled my nose.
"Oh? This has a very unique taste."
"Right? It's got a bit of a spicy kick. Fascinating."
Seeing our surprised reactions, the server explained with a proud smile, "It's a specialty of our establishment—wine from the Ramier region, aged with a generous amount of black pepper. It pairs exquisitely with the fondue."
Agrippa dipped a piece of bread into the bubbling fondue, took a bite, and nodded in agreement. "I can see why. Now, since we have some rather serious matters to discuss..."
Catching the hint as Agrippa trailed off, the server bowed apologetically. "Ah, forgive me. I didn't mean to intrude."
As the server quickly made his exit, Agrippa turned his gaze back to me.
"Devi, how on earth do you always find these hidden gems?"
"Well, since I can't slip out every day, I make sure to ask the palace maids which stalls and restaurants are popular whenever the night market is about to open."
I skewered a piece of bread, swirled it in the melted cheese, and popped it into my mouth. The savory, velvety richness of the cheese danced delightfully across my tongue. We enjoyed the fondue and wine in comfortable silence for a moment before I finally brought up the topic weighing on my mind.
"Agrippa... about that market manipulation plan we discussed..."
Agrippa, who was currently busy dipping a piece of meat into the cheese, looked up. "Munch, munch... Hmm? What about it?"
"Are you sure it's going to be alright?"
At my hesitant question, Agrippa fell silent, lost in thought for a brief moment.
"Hmm... I don't know much about high finance. I'm sure you're entirely correct that manipulating the market will cause some collateral damage somewhere. But aren't you doing this to develop the Empire?"
"Well, yes, but..."
Agrippa was right.
"Besides, you weren't even planning on doing this initially. Didn't you say it was to fund that chemical fertilizer project? The one that increases crop yields?"
"That's true, but..."
To be completely honest, I felt a heavy pang of guilt. At its core, market manipulation meant I was essentially stealing the hard-earned wealth of others through artificial price control.
"Merchants spread false rumors and manipulate prices all the time for their own greed. You're doing this for the sake of the Empire and its people, so what's the issue?"
I sighed, my voice laced with conflict. "Still... those people are just trying their best to make a living. As the ruler, I'm supposed to be the referee of the game. Doing this feels like fixing the match for my own benefit."
In actual tournaments, some knights did occasionally engage in match-fixing. Of course, if they were caught, they faced imprisonment and the stripping of their knighthood, but such scandals still erupted from time to time.
"Who cares? It's for the greater good of the Empire. It's not like you're pocketing the money to fund a lavish lifestyle. You're doing this so the common folk can buy cheap food, right?"
"Yes, that's the goal."
"Then it's the right thing to do. Do you have any idea how many people in this Empire are starving to death as we speak?"
His words plunged me into deep contemplation. "Honestly... I don't even know what's right or wrong anymore."
Logically, I understood his point. Yet, my conscience refused to let go of the fact that my actions would inevitably ruin someone else's life.
"Exactly. So stop beating yourself up over it. If you really feel that guilty, just make absolutely sure the fertilizer project succeeds."
"I suppose... that's all I can do."
Lost in thought, I gazed out the window. Roman, the Queen of Cities, the wealthiest metropolis in the world. Here, the streets were relatively free of vagrants, but other cities were teeming with beggars. Even in Wyn, the capital of the Grand Duchy, lines of homeless people gathered outside the city gates, boiling pots of questionable soup just to survive. If we successfully produced chemical fertilizer, would those tragic scenes finally disappear?
"Besides, the only ones who'll take a hit from this market manipulation are the giant merchant coalitions and the massive banking houses. A loss of this scale won't ruin them."
He was right. If the blow were enough to bankrupt them, I wouldn't have even dreamed of attempting it. Their collapse would plunge the Empire into absolute chaos, paralyzing its financial systems, distribution networks, and manufacturing industries.
"So, ease up on the guilt. You're doing a fantastic job. Come on, a toast!"
Amused by Agrippa's clumsy attempt to cheer me up, I let out a soft chuckle. "Cheers."
Clink!
Listening to the clear, resonant ring of our wine glasses, I smiled. "Thanks for saying that."
Meanwhile, back at the Imperial Palace.
"Where on earth did that man go?"
It was the same story two weeks ago, and now it was happening again. The man who usually spent every waking hour cooped up in his office was nowhere to be found within the palace walls. When the hour of his usual return to our bedchamber passed, worry had driven me to his office, but the room was empty, save for the towering stacks of paperwork.
This makes no sense... Where could he possibly be?
Lying in bed, I racked my brain trying to think of where he might have gone, but nothing came to mind. I had even ordered the servants to search for Deviang, but they returned empty-handed. If the servants, who knew the labyrinthine layout of the Imperial Palace better than anyone, couldn't find him, then he was almost certainly not inside the palace.
Did he go outside? But why? Deviang rarely, if ever, left the palace grounds. The realization that he was sneaking out in the dead of night filled me with a profound sense of unease.
Unless... could it be...?
Does he have a mistress outside the palace?
No, that couldn't be. I trusted that Deviang wasn't the kind of man to indulge in such cheap flings. Yet, despite my rational mind, my imagination began to run wild. The vivid image of my handsome, dark-haired husband whispering sweet nothings to some vulgar, low-born woman outside the palace flashed before my eyes...
Grit.
A hot surge of anger flared deep within my chest.
At first, I simply couldn't comprehend it. He claimed to love me, didn't he? And yet... Ah. Of course. That's how he's been able to keep his hands off me all this time.
It all made sense now. I had always found it incredibly bizarre. I knew that a man's libido was supposed to peak between his late teens and late twenties. Newlyweds were said to ignite with passion at the mere locking of eyes.
Deviang was in his early twenties. At that age, any healthy man would be practically clawing at the walls to be with a woman. Yet, despite marrying the woman he supposedly loved, he hadn't touched me once. Of course, it could have been my own delusion, but based on what Mother and Joy had said, there was no doubt that his feelings for me were genuine. Under those circumstances, now that we were legally wed, his complete lack of physical advances was utterly baffling.
But what if... what if he was satisfying his desires elsewhere?
Grind!
I ground my teeth so hard they clicked, a habit I hadn't succumbed to in ages. I forced myself to calm down and think about the Deviang I had come to know.
"No... He isn't that kind of man!"
He was a noble soul, a man whose mind was entirely consumed by the welfare of the Empire. He would never commit such a base act of infidelity and tarnish my honor. Yes... he even sleeps in my room every night just to quell the rumors that he's neglecting me. I need to have more faith in him.
I repeated the mantra to myself, but a devilish whisper continued to hiss in the back of my mind. What else would a wealthy, powerful young man sneak out of the palace for in the dead of night?
I recalled a memory from when I was nineteen. My eldest brother had frequently stayed out late, prompting Mother to order the servants to tail him in secret. The very next day, my brother had received a brutal thrashing from Mother right in the middle of the palace. It was the first time I had ever seen her that furious. Consumed by curiosity, I had pried the truth from the servants: my brother had been spending his nights at high-end brothels, sleeping with countless women.
I had been so utterly disgusted with him that I refused to speak to him for days.
And now, could Deviang really be no different?
"If I confront him, he'll only deny it..."
From what I had observed of Deviang, he was the most meticulously calculating man I had ever met. He would easily cover his tracks.
"Which means... I need concrete evidence."
If he really was cheating on me... I would make him pay.