Chapter 13
Chapter 13
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Secret Deal (2)
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The silver-haired maid set aside the silk cloth she had been covering it with.
She then took out the red gem inside and handed it to the princess disguised as a noble lady.
‘A high-grade barrier stone.’
That was when I finally understood why Irina was in disguise.
The gem she now held in her hand.
It was an artifact supplied only to imperial knights.
When inserted into slots on various protective gear, it formed a shield capable of blocking not just arrows but explosions as well.
Moreover, the red ones were nearly twice as strong as standard protective stones.
Thanks to their overwhelming performance, they were managed exclusively by the imperial family.
‘She was smuggling high-grade equipment behind the crown prince’s back.’
The imperial family didn’t welcome new rivals.
On the contrary, they made a habit of checking and threatening anyone who started building power.
Irina had been smuggling high-grade equipment like this in the past to build a knight order on the level needed to recruit me.
But now, she had started moving early to recruit me...
I swallowed hard.
And stared intently at Irina’s sharp eyes as she appraised the protective stone.
“This... it’s different in composition from the sample you showed me, isn’t it?”
“Ah— you mean that one?”
The merchant averted his gaze from Irina, speaking in his usual sly tone.
He clasped his hands together and spoke in a regretful voice.
“Since they’re replicas, there can ‘occasionally’ be issues with quality.”
“Of course, I knew that beforehand. But a full third of them are defective, aren’t they?”
Replicating protective stones was extremely difficult.
And doing it in secret made the quality even more inconsistent.
“I’m sorry. I’ll pay more attention in the replication process next time.”
The man apologized leisurely with a hand on his chest.
But Irina’s blue eyes remained piercing.
“Take them back. We’ll deal again when you bring proper ones.”
The princess turned noble lady.
She carelessly tossed the protective stone onto the cart.
“That might be difficult.”
The merchant picked up the fallen protective stone.
And smiled leisurely at the noble lady.
“What...?”
Was it because of the disguise?
The merchant was treating Irina like a poor noble who couldn’t even afford to buy the stones at full price.
He was starting to throw his weight around in earnest.
“It took a whopping ten alchemists just to replicate two hundred of them.”
He tapped his fingers on one palm as if calculating.
“Plus the bribes to the guards to get this cart into the castle, and these escort troops as well.”
His fingers moved busily.
Soon, he clapped his hands as if the math was done.
“You already owe a thousand gold just for what’s been delivered.”
A thousand gold.
In a world where a decent noble’s meal cost one gold, that was absurd.
‘Even if they’re replicas, the price is way too high.’
I glanced at Irina.
Sure enough, she was grinding her teeth, clearly thinking it was outrageous.
“For an additional order, it’ll be another thousand gold. Is that alright with you?”
The noble girl calmly shook her head.
“That won’t do.”
At that, the merchant bent his knees to meet Irina’s gaze.
And glared at her with the dark-ringed eyes typical of southerners.
“Then take these and just pay the thousand gold.”
The merchant’s gaze shifted to the thick pouch of gold coins the maid was holding.
Soon, he reached out toward the pouch.
But at that moment.
The noble lady grabbed the man’s thick wrist.
With her pale, soft hand.
“I said no.”
A chilling blank expression I’d never seen from her before.
Even the leisurely Toliso flinched at that look.
“There might be issues in the replication process. But you said beforehand that defects would only happen ‘occasionally.’”
Was it because of the blonde wig?
Her fierce face reminded me of His Imperial Majesty, who had the same hair color.
“Since when did a third of the batch count as ‘occasionally’?”
The merchant coughed repeatedly under her barrage of incisive words.
“Didn’t we set a limit on acceptable defects when we made the deal?”
He wore a bored expression, as if tired of explaining.
Toliso had never intended to honor the contract properly from the start.
“Just pay up nicely. You’re a noble, so you’ve got plenty of money, right?”
With Lea as his backer, Toliso.
Even if thrown in jail, he’d be out in no time.
But Irina would be dragged to an imperial hearing.
This could even be the end of the knight order she’d painstakingly built.
“If money’s the issue, well, there are other ways.”
The merchant slowly raised his head.
His thick-ringed eyes soon turned toward Dasha in her maid outfit.
“In Ekina, we sometimes accept women in lieu of payment.”
The moment those words were spoken.
Irina’s blue eyes flashed.
“If you hand over that girl, I’ll even throw in the next batch of replicas for free...”
As the man muttered while ogling Dasha’s appearance.
A white hand flew toward his cheek.
*SLAP!*
The sharp sound echoed.
The mercenaries on watch all turned to look at the two at once.
“I gave you a pass as a mere merchant from a defeated nation, but you’ve finally crossed the line.”
Irina wore a blank expression brimming with killing intent like the Conqueror King.
But her eyes wavered soon after.
Because her own weakness had led to her servant Dasha being propositioned.
“Ah... this is rather unpleasant.”
The merchant grimaced, flexing his cheek muscle.
And glared down at the noble lady with his fierce black eyes.
“No matter how noble you are, you can’t just strike people at will, can you?”
Emboldened by his words, the mercenaries began to move.
They approached Dasha and Irina with hands on their sword hilts.
“I may not be able to touch a noble, but a servant is fair game.”
The Ekina mercenaries drew their swords in unison.
Blades sharp enough to gleam even in the shadows.
“Dasha, the deal’s off.”
But Irina showed no fear whatsoever.
Instead, she snapped her fingers as if to make these fools pay a harsh price.
“Teach them their place.”
Dasha bowed her head in acknowledgment.
And strode confidently toward the hulking men.
“What, so she’s not just a simple servant?”
Toliso smirked at the maid approaching calmly before the mercenaries.
Then he sauntered forward, feigning nonchalance to get a closer look at the beautiful Dasha.
‘I wouldn’t do that.’
I knew from meeting her last night...
Dasha wasn’t an ordinary woman.
“Indeed, the women of the Empire are as arrogant as they are beautiful. How can you be so bold...”
The moment the hairs on the back of his hand were about to touch the servant.
Dasha’s skirt flared.
Her slender waist twisted.
At the same time, she lashed out with a long leg, striking the merchant’s cheek.
―――!!
Her white stockings peeked from beneath the skirt.
And the hulking man crumpled powerlessly to the ground.
I knew from crossing swords with her.
Dasha’s strength far surpassed that of an average knight.
“Draw your weapons! She’s no ordinary woman!”
The merchant clutched his stinging cheek and shouted.
The mercenaries charged at Dasha all at once.
Irina, far from hiding it, commanded with a fierce glint in her eyes.
“Leave them alive. It’d be a hassle to clean up corpses.”
Dasha rolled up both sleeves.
Small daggers poured out from between her raised sleeves.
“As you command.”
She slotted the falling weapons between her knuckles.
Her expression said she wouldn’t hesitate to kill for her master.
The moment I saw that look.
I stepped casually into the scene.
Even an elite from the intelligence unit.
Subduing that many mercenaries without killing any would be tough.
If even one died...
I’d have a murder case on my hands on my first day of patrol!
“Everyone, hold it for a moment.”
At my voice, all heads turned toward me at once.
Even Irina looked at me in surprise.
“I’m a knight on patrol nearby.”
I rummaged in my inner pocket.
And showed them my freshly issued, crisp knight badge.
「Defense Knight, Veil Mikhail.」
The mercenaries’ eyes went wide at the nameplate.
They exchanged panicked glances.
“Can I take this as a situation about to erupt into an incident?”
The noble lady Irina, who had been so bold moments ago.
She met my eyes and wore a dumbfounded expression.
Like any innocent girl her age.
“It looks like a private transaction was going on.”
I approached the noble lady and the merchant slowly.
First, I glanced down at Irina.
Golden blonde hair and blue eyes...
In this disguise, she resembled Princess Lea.
Of course, with a much more girlish air.
“You’re a lady of the Empire, and who might you be? I don’t recognize you from the capital.”
“I’m Toliso, a merchant from Ekina.”
When I asked, the merchant greeted me leisurely.
But that leisure didn’t last.
“Why is a mere foreign merchant threatening an Imperial noble lady?”
I cut straight to it before he could think.
“N-No, it’s not like that... We were doing business with the lady, but she suddenly slapped me because she didn’t like the terms.”
He put on an aggrieved face.
He responded brazenly to my sudden interrogation.
“And that servant even kicked me!”
Toliso clutched his cheek and whimpered like a wronged small businessman.
Damn... did he catch Princess Lea’s eye with that demonic acting skill?
Maybe that’s a talent too.
“With my employee attacked, what choice did the mercenaries have? They were just facing off to protect me...”
The soldiers gave awkward smiles in agreement.
But I knew.
This guy bowing his head now.
His lips were curled up.
“You’re leaving out all the important parts.”
Irina stepped forward, unable to stand it.
She explained her situation step by step.
“He breached the deal first, and even insulted my servant!”
Dasha nodded in agreement.
Right.
Of course, the circumstances pointed to the merchant being more at fault.
Mocking a noble alone warranted punishment.
But would he have been so rude for no reason?
He had the First Imperial Princess behind him.
Damn...
I’d barely escaped princess duty, and now this?
For the sake of my comfortable knight life, I had to settle this myself.
If a big incident like this reached the higher-ups on day one, it’d be a headache.
I cleared my throat calmly.
And spoke in a firm, judge-like tone.
“Well, whatever the deal, these are all illegal replicas.”
I reached for the cart and picked up a red gem.
And shook it for all to see.
“Illegal activity, so I’ll arrest everyone for now. Any objections?”
I looked back and forth between Irina and Toliso.
The noble lady tried not to show it but looked troubled.
But Toliso, unconcerned, grinned instead.
“Very well, let’s talk at the knight order.”
Yeah, I figured.
You’d get bailed out by Princess Lea even if locked up.
I set the illegal stone down carelessly on the cart.
And said flatly to the leisurely man.
“Fine, but first we’ll check your asset ledger.”
Toliso’s eyes flashed at the unexpected move.
“P-Pardon? Why my asset ledger...”
Exactly the reaction I wanted.
But this was just the beginning.
Now you’ll dread going to the knight order even if it kills you.
“Because in the Empire, all money gained illegally must be confiscated.”
“I-It’s not illegal! This is the first time we’ve done a deal like this!”
Sure, first time.
You’ve only dealt with the princess until now.
But from my position, who ‘just met’ Toliso today, that was completely unbelievable.
“How can I trust that?”
“I’ll show you all the transaction ledgers if you want.”
He suggested confidently.
But I shook my head firmly and demanded more.
“Fine, let’s go check them.”
At that, Toliso sighed in relief.
He’d dealt with the imperial family, so his ledgers were clean.
But soon he paled again.
Because I went one step further.
“Oh, and of course, we’ll have to meet everyone on the list ‘in person’ too.”
Everyone listed in the ledgers.
Including Princess Lea, the First Imperial Princess.
“Verification is essential.”