Cleaning Time (3): The Crown Prince Stands Above the Law
To be honest, I hadn't expected the Imperial Guard Knights to step up so aggressively.
Bringing the knights into the round table conference room with me hadn't been my idea. In fact, I hadn't even anticipated sneaking into the nobles' quarters at dawn to issue that warning.
Who knew a single phrase like 'they will be severely punished' carried this much weight.
With the Emperor missing and the Empress not actively involved in state affairs, the Crown Prince's authority was far beyond what I'd imagined.
Maybe it was because I'd lived in the 21st century before becoming the empire's Crown Prince in this romance fantasy world. The scale and actions of the people moving at my word exceeded all expectations.
It's a position even higher than an army division commander.
The level where if I said I didn't like that mountain, it would be gone by the next day. And the Crown Prince stood even higher than that.
To put it more extremely, it was an instant-death cheat. If I just pointed at someone on the street and said, "You're dead," they could be executed on the spot in a live show.
But that didn't make the current situation feel extreme at all.
Because corruption was at its worst, and the people responsible for making it so were right here in this room.
Trash who played around with the nation's money. The atmosphere was perfect for cleaning them out.
Ah, but that first polite remark felt a bit off.
Up until our first meeting, I'd been casual with them, but switching to formal speech in this situation?
I've never been nervous, but if they think I am, that could be a problem.
I couldn't afford to be underestimated. Next time, I'd switch straight back to casual.
I was scared to death.
What the hell is going on here?
The foreign affairs officer stared blankly at the investment list he'd slaved over all night, now scattered across the round table.
Is this why you had me prepare it?
He never imagined it. He'd thought it was just for double-checking the investment details.
To think he'd planned to track down the responsible parties and punish them severely.
This was so far from his usual image that the officer was frozen in terror.
His shoulders hunched high, swallowing even his own spit with caution—it spoke volumes about the gravity of the situation.
...Did he bring the entire Imperial Guard Knights? Not all of them... right? No, even if not all, it's still a problem.
The Imperial Guard Knights were the ones who protected the imperial family up close. Their skills were anything but ordinary.
No—straight up, every member of the Imperial Guard Knights was at the master level. Sword masters, bow masters, archmages, and so on.
Monsters who could single-handedly boost a nation's military power.
And now they stood fully armed behind him, silently watching the scene? What could be scarier than that?
Even though he hadn't committed any corruption himself, the foreign affairs officer felt his life was directly threatened.
No, if those knights behind him even slightly unleash their aura and swing, they could slice the castle like tofu.
One stood behind every noble in the round table conference room, as if turning this place into an execution ground.
Their presence was overwhelmingly intimidating. Nothing like this had ever happened in council meetings before.
The unfamiliar atmosphere choked his voice.
And then.
"Who managed the investments in the Maselin Kingdom?"
The Crown Prince's tone—completely unfamiliar—doubled the terror.
When he'd been casually banmal in a mild tone, the mood had been tolerable. But now, formal speech with a straight face made it feel like he was ending everything right here, today.
And that end... it'll be death for the corrupt nobles.
The foreign affairs officer barely turned his rusted neck to glance sideways.
Foreign investments should rightfully involve him, but somehow, the 2nd Prince and his cronies had handled everything exclusively.
He hadn't even known the details himself, let alone received reports. Especially the Maselin investments—how secretive they'd been.
This was the first time he'd seen the documents, summoned on the Crown Prince's order.
"No one's speaking? I see... You think keeping quiet will hide your crimes when I've already uncovered all the investment corruption?"
Back to banmal from formal. The nobles interpreted the sudden shift as mercy running out.
Just once... and that's when mercy ended?
The Crown Prince has never acted like this—what fury must he be feeling?
What did we do to provoke this...?
As the nobles' frantic thoughts began filling the room.
"Grand Marshal, since when has the round table conference room become a place for rolling eyes?"
The Crown Prince tossed out a light remark.
"Can't you hear what His Highness the Crown Prince said?"
The Grand Marshal naturally followed up, unleashing his presence.
No matter how much power nobles gained from good food and family secret arts, they lacked real combat experience. The Grand Marshal was the real deal among reals.
His sharp aura froze the nobles' darting eyes in place.
"Th-the... investment management... I believe it was handled by the 2nd Prince and his aides."
"Answers only come when we push nicely? Don't make me feel like I'm talking to beasts."
With a final warning tossed lightly, the Crown Prince.
"So, who are his aides?"
Glanced casually around the table, eyeing those who'd colluded with the lovesick madman for personal gain.
"Y-Your Highness... I humbly submit that there were no issues or corruption in the investments whatsoever."
"I-Indeed. Any personal gains from the process were already cleared, and the 2nd Prince himself vouched for it... so it hardly qualifies as corruption."
"In truth, the personal gains Your Highness mentioned were merely lubricants to smooth the investment process. Thanks to them, diplomacy with the Maselin Kingdom improved significantly."
"It may seem like we're just pouring money into Maselin right now, but the 2nd Prince foresaw that long-term, this would yield tremendous national benefits."
"A-And... Your Highness ultimately approved it, leading us to this stage. How could there be corruption or personal gain in a process like that? There are truly no issues."
Before his gaze even landed.
The terrified ones rushed to speak first. They talked fervently, but boiled down, it was one conclusion.
We're innocent; we just followed the 2nd Prince's orders, and you approved it in the end, right? So why is this a problem?
The 2nd Prince's aides had anticipated this day and prepared answers accordingly.
Though not in this form.
We froze at first from the pressure, but...
This should be airtight.
Dragging out perfectly processed administrative procedures to make an issue? To those nobles handling Maselin investments, that was incredibly difficult.
Challenging procedures meant touching established laws—and handling that here was absurd.
Besides, blaming it would implicate the 2nd Prince, the original proposer.
The Crown Prince, infamous for doting on his brother, holding him accountable?
As if.
Impossible.
Just scaring us to force confessions, huh? But we're not falling for it.
Why else not summon the 2nd Prince? To protect him while handling this.
As long as we're under him, he can't punish us—he has no right.
Procedures clean, no illegality. No crimes here; the meeting would pass uneventfully.
That was the conclusion among the 2nd Prince's aides and Maselin investment managers.
Forgetting one crucial thing in the process.
That crucial thing being.
"I'm the one making it an issue, yet here you are trying to lecture me."
The Crown Prince stood above the law.
To be honest, I'd planned to let them off with a sincere apology.
Killing was too much; confiscate their ill-gotten wealth, force unpaid labor to repay every backroom penny.
Ha.
But them brazenly denying guilt, red-faced and arguing? It was too infuriating to forgive.
Dragging the 2nd Prince into it, trying to climb over my head using my old personality.
"How insolent."
Did they think the 2nd Prince was a safe shield right now?
Whether they truly believed it, their faces remained calm as my words continued.
The terrified eyes from moments ago were gone. Now they lounged like they were in their own parlor, as if it was all over.
So.
"Grand Marshal, summon the 2nd Prince at once. He used Maselin investments as a pretext to line his pockets."
"Understood."
"By the way, if he refuses or resists, feel free to knock him out."
"Thank you."
I needed to show them directly.
How thin and fragile the lifeline they trusted was.
"I've extended my mercy multiple times, giving chances..."
Some leaving this room today.
"From the moment I depart..."
Would lose everything and vanish.
"You will no longer be nobles of the Bellos Empire."