The Duel (2)

"What? I didn't do anything special. I simply noticed that a portion of the employees' salaries seemed to be flowing into some unknown alias accounts, so I seized all the suspicious ones. It really looked like someone was embezzling. Do you happen to know anything about that, Leon?"

"Young Master!!!"

If there was one thing I realized while inspecting the family's affairs over the past few days, it was that there were far too many rats inside the house. Did they think that since the family was already on the brink of ruin, they could embezzle openly without anyone noticing?

But now that I was here, I couldn't let the Belmont family collapse. Not by force, and certainly not because of these internal vermin.

"Are you suspecting me? Me, Leon Vercus, who has served the Belmont family with unwavering loyalty for generations since my grandfather's time?"

Now I understood why Leon's favorability had been so high. The previous Young Master had holed himself up in the archive all day with zero interest in actual work. It was the perfect environment for someone to line their own pockets. In short, he'd seen Aslan as a complete pushover.

But now that Aslan was suddenly acting like a different person, it was only natural for that favorability to drop.

"Why would I ever do something like that? I'm practically a member of the Belmont family myself! If anyone was embezzling, it must have been that ill-bred commoner woman!"

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"What!? Have you lost your mind? How dare you spout such nonsense about me, when my integrity rating was always number one during my time in the knight order...!"

"Shut your mouth, half-wit. Now that you can't even use mana, have you sold off your conscience too? You were probably terrified of not being able to make ends meet, so you started skimming money."

"Hmm. That does sound plausible."

"Hah...!"

Silvia clutched her chest, speechless with disbelief. Her eyes swirled with a messy mix of rage and betrayal.

"Young Master, please entrust the investigation to me. I will find irrefutable evidence that she cannot deny, punish that woman, and return the seized funds to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠where they rightfully belong."

"You're confident, then."

"Yes, of course."

Leon knelt on one knee before me and bowed his head. Silvia's face twisted in utter dismay. Her expression practically screamed, You idiot, you're actually buying this?

"Hmm. What you say does make sense, but I'm still not entirely convinced. It seems we'll need to conduct a public opinion poll."

"A public opinion poll, sir?"

"That's right. Gather everyone who agrees with your position. I need to hear what others have to say before making a decision."

"Understood. I will do so."

Leon's lips twitched before he forced his expression back into a rigid mask and bowed again. Soon after, he left with light steps. Only Charlotte and Silvia remained, staring at me with looks of utter betrayal.

"The sun is rather harsh today. I should head inside."

"You really are...! I actually thought you'd changed a little!"

"You two should get out of this scorching sun and rest as well. It's good to be motivated, but if you collapse, it'll all be for nothing."

"You really haven't changed at all! You won't even listen to me just because I'm a commoner! You're really going to trust that sleazy bastard? Do I actually look like the culprit to you!?"

Tears welled in Silvia's eyes as she shouted at me. Would the old Aslan have ever provoked this much anger? Probably not. She'd believed he'd changed. That faith had been betrayed, and now it was exploding.

But the one who hadn't changed wasn't me. It was Silvia.

"You're really the same as ever. Dense, foolish, and hot-tempered. How is it possible for a person to never change? Isn't it about time you learned something?"

"What are you even...!"

"I'm telling you to stop jumping to conclusions and wait patiently."

"...?"

Silvia's face went blank. The tears that had pooled in her eyes finally spilled over. She really did have the most airheaded expression I'd ever seen. I tossed handkerchiefs to both Charlotte and Silvia before turning away.

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If I stayed out here any longer, I'd actually get sunburned...

At that, the fury in Silvia's eyes vanished as if it had never been there. She really was easy to handle.

"Can I... really trust you, Young Master...?"

"Do as you please. Believe me or don't. It doesn't matter to me. All I want are employees who benefit both me and the family. I have no interest in things like loyalty or trust."

"..."

Now it was time to wait. I'd cast the net. All that remained was watching the fish scramble to get caught.

"Ah, I almost forgot. Since you spoke rudely to me again, I'm docking another fifty percent of your pay."

"..."

This masochist... It's starting to get creepy.

.

.

.

"Damn it, damn it! Damn it all...! He really took everything without leaving a single coin!?"

Frozen. Frozen. And frozen again.

Leon’s face grew increasingly rotten as he looked through the confirmation documents one by one. How the hell had he found out? He’d been careful, skimming just a little at a time so it wouldn’t be noticeable. He’d deliberately avoided creating any official records and had only touched the salaries of employees who weren’t properly documented.

Most employees had no idea how much they were actually supposed to receive. It wasn’t uncommon for them to lose up to fifty percent of their pay without ever realizing it. Yet somehow, not only had the embezzlement been discovered, but every single alias account he’d funneled the money into had been exposed.

How had that brain-dead Aslan figured it out? He’d never once touched the paperwork!

"It must have been someone who leaked the evidence."

That damned bitch. It had to be Silvia’s doing. She must have fabricated documents and encouraged Aslan to check them.

"Heh heh heh. Too bad it didn’t go the way you wanted, huh?"

But Aslan hadn’t moved exactly as Silvia hoped. There was evidence of embezzlement, sure, but since the accounts were under false names, there was no proof it was him. Naturally, Aslan would suspect Silvia or the other commoner employees instead. Those street rats who clearly hadn’t shaken off their old pickpocketing habits.

"That idiot Aslan is so consistently stupid. I love it!"

Even if he got caught stealing, the fool would never suspect it was him. A completely incompetent man who believed he was clever. Truly the ideal lord to serve. Aslan would probably keep blaming the commoner employees right up until the day the family went completely bankrupt.

"Still, that indecisiveness of his is really annoying..."

Leon’s smirk gradually hardened. With all his accounts seized, every coin he’d saved was now locked away. He needed to get the freeze lifted as quickly as possible, but that spineless Aslan couldn’t even make a decision on his own and had demanded a public opinion poll instead.

Well, there were plenty of accomplices. There were loads of employees who’d happily shared in the spoils with him. All he had to do was get their signatures. Leon began running around in a hurry.

He obtained signatures from the butler, the knights, the head chef—basically everyone in any major position within the family!

This should be more than enough for public opinion, right?

Less than twenty-four hours later, Leon had completed his signature collection. Forgetting even the pretense of dignity he usually maintained, he sprinted toward the archive, panting heavily.

"Young Master! I’ve finished... the...?"

When he flung open the archive door, what greeted him was a massive crowd of people. Leon froze, utterly bewildered.

Why were there so many people in this usually deserted archive?

"Oh. You’re here, Leon."

"Young Master. What exactly is going on here?"

"It was too much of a hassle to go outside, so I’ve been conducting employee interviews right here."

"Employee interviews...?"

Was he hiring new staff? Ah! He was probably planning to fire Silvia and needed someone to replace her. Leon quickly arrived at what he thought was a logical conclusion and smiled.

But if it was just replacing one person, why were so many people showing up for interviews?

"I’ve kept you waiting, Young Master. Here it is. The signatures of everyone who supports my position."

"Hmm. So this is everyone’s opinion, is it?"

"Yes! That’s correct!"

"There are more than I expected. There are even two names not on the list I prepared in advance. You really are thorough."

"Y-yes... Thank... you...?"

List? What was he talking about? Sensing something was off, Leon’s voice began to tremble. This felt ominous...

"Then let me confirm one more time. Everyone included here is claiming that you are innocent and that Silvia is the one who embezzled, correct?"

"T-that’s right. Is there... some kind of problem...?"

"No. There’s no problem at all. Everything is perfect."

The corners of Aslan’s mouth curled up into a grin. It was an utterly satisfied—and utterly chilling—smile. When Leon looked up and saw that smile, goosebumps erupted across his entire body.

"Leon. It must have been exhausting gathering all those signatures."

"Not at all. It wasn’t particularly difficult."

"No, I’m sure it was. That’s why I’m giving you a vacation."

"Thank you, Young Master! But... how long is the vacation...?"

"You can rest for the rest of your life. It would be lonely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠going on vacation alone, wouldn’t it? Take everyone who signed this with you."

"Huh? What? Yes?"

Leon’s eyes widened. A vacation for the rest of his life...? That was just firing him! What the hell was this!? The absurdity hit him first, followed quickly by rage. His fists clenched tightly.

Leon’s sharp gaze turned toward Silvia, who had been lurking in the shadows.

"Young Master! Did that woman trick you again!?"

"Well. Let’s go with that. Pack your things and get out today. I’m sick of smelling your foul breath any longer."

"I cannot accept this! I am a hereditary knight who has served this family my entire life! You haven’t even inherited the family head position yet. How can you fire me!?"

"Do you want to leave after getting beaten, or leave on your own? I’ll give you the choice."

"Hah! You’re saying you’ll beat up a Sword Expert like me and throw me out? If you think that’s possible, then go ahead and try! If there’s anyone here who can defeat me, I’ll walk out myself!"

Leon shouted, spittle flying from his mouth. He had no idea how Silvia had seduced Aslan, but it didn’t matter. With the family head position vacant, there was no way he could actually fire him. Of course, if he got beaten and thrown out, that would be a different story. Since he was the only Sword Expert among the Belmont knights, if rumors spread that he’d been beaten to a pulp, the shame alone would make it impossible for him to stay.

"Alright. Did you hear that, Silvia?"

"Yes?"

"Go on, Silvia-mon. Show this sleazy bastard what you’re made of."

"...?"

"...!?"

A look of utter shock spread across Leon’s face. In the shadows, Silvia’s eyes widened as she blinked rapidly. Excuse me? You want me—who can’t even use mana—to defeat a Sword Expert?