The Spider That Collects Gold Coins
“Haa…”
A sigh heavy enough to fill the entire quiet room. It was a sound Beatrice had been making constantly these days.
Staring at a lone bird flying beyond the window, Beatrice let out yet another sigh before shifting her gaze to the documents spread across her desk. They contained reports on the movements of Aleph-grade members—the highest priority tier that required the most careful monitoring and management within the Beatrice Trading Company.
An Aleph-grade member of one of the Empire’s five great merchant groups already wielded considerable social influence by default. Because of that, meaningful reports rarely arrived. When they did, they were usually trivial: someone declaring they were off to the barbarian-infested North for a vacation, or suddenly announcing a desire for a lover and proceeding to kidnap a man.
All except for one person.
“Just what in the world is he doing there…?”
Priority Intelligence Report — Aleph Grade: Kyle Amillan
Current Status: Engaged in combat against a sudden Contaminant legion in the southern Empire.
The Empire’s Second Star, Scarlet Frausia, has personally issued a mobilization order. Minimum 5-Ring. Total of 58 superhumans have responded.
Raziel’s First Princess and an Aleph-grade member are jointly confronting the Contaminants. All detailed battlefield information is currently under the control of the Empire’s Special Affairs Division.
Beatrice picked up the document that had been marked with multiple stars, indicating it was the most critical of all the Aleph-grade files. The name written there was Kyle Amillan.
She absorbed every piece of information on the page in a single glance, then began to mentally reconstruct the battlefield Kyle must be facing.
“There may be no clear cause for the Contaminants’ appearance, but a legion of this scale doesn’t form without reason.”
“Saying they’ve simply dealt with something that’s been around for a long time feels too convenient. The sudden arrival of Raziel’s First Princess in the South, followed immediately by the appearance of Contaminants near her.”
“It would be more logical to look for a connection between the Contaminants’ gathering and the princess’s summoning. Preferably in the form of the Contaminants following her summons.”
Beatrice’s previously languid eyes flashed with brilliant light for a moment. She continued muttering to herself, piecing together the information from the documents.
“Scarlet Frausia’s mobilization order, and Kyle suddenly taking charge of escorting the princess while bringing agents from both the Special Affairs Division and the Intelligence Bureau.”
“That woman, Scarlet Frausia, must have given Kyle some kind of request. She hoards money like a dragon and never spends it, so she probably paid him handsomely.”
“Still… no matter how much of a Sword Master she is, even she couldn’t have predicted both the princess’s appearance and the mass outbreak of Contaminants at the same time…”
Beatrice tapped her fingers on the desk while staring at the documents, then reached her conclusion.
“It was pure luck. What started as a simple escort mission somehow escalated into a full Contaminant extermination?”
While the beginning may have relied on luck, everything that followed—the mobilization order, the army of superhumans—must have been the result of meticulous planning. And Beatrice already knew the face of the monster capable of pulling off such an absurd scheme.
“This is exactly why I wanted to keep him tied down…!!”
She had gathered all the information. Even if the Empire’s Special Affairs Division and Intelligence Bureau were desperately trying to bury it, there was no such thing as a perfect lie in this world. The truth would eventually come out. In that case, the one who seized the information first would reap the greatest benefit.
In that sense, Beatrice’s rational mind had already generated dozens of ways to profit from this information. However—
“Why can’t I catch him?!”
Her emotions were instead obsessing over the loss she had just suffered rather than the gains that lay ahead.
“Haa…. Haa…. Haa….”
The repeated sighs were not ordinary. They belonged to a 5-Ring manipulation mage, and perhaps because of that unique attribute, her sighs began to exert physical influence beyond mere air currents. For example, a quill lying on its side would stand up on its own and write the onomatopoeia of her sigh on blank paper, or even reveal her inner thoughts.
It was nothing to pay attention to, but—
“If it bothers you that much, then just catch him already!”
The secretary who had been quietly enduring her employer’s hysteria in the same room apparently could not ignore it any longer. She looked at the company president she served with genuine pity and spoke.
“You don’t even need the debt as an excuse. You could just tell him you want him to stay at the company!”
“But… that man’s past is a bit too colorful. Just look at the debt. Do you know how much money that was? And he’s already paid most of it back.”
At Beatrice’s grumbling, the secretary fell silent for a moment. As one of the only two people who knew Kyle’s true identity alongside Beatrice, she understood exactly what kind of person he was and how enormous that debt had been.
The first time she saw it, her mouth had fallen open. Two billion cells. An astronomical sum that an ordinary person could never repay in a lifetime. Yet that man named Kyle had reduced it to around one hundred million in less than three years.
If the debt disappeared, what reason would that man have to remain at the company? Although the Beatrice Trading Company was no ordinary merchant group—it was one of the Empire’s five great powers—before the name Kyle Amillan, even that prestige lost some of its luster. The secretary could at least understand a fraction of her employer’s worries.
“Sigh. Then what? Just try to hold onto him somehow.”
“…Hold onto him? How?”
“Hmm. I hear private tutoring is becoming fashionable among nobles these days. You could use that as an excuse.”
It had been said half in jest. Her employer, Beatrice, was a 5-Ring mage. The secretary had never once heard a rumor of a mage of such caliber receiving one-on-one tutoring. Come to think of it, it could even be considered an insult to the pride of high-ranking superhumans.
What superhuman would swallow their pride and take on expensive tutoring just to keep one person around? Anyone in their right mind would never do such a thing. And if it was her employer—who was practically the embodiment of reason—then even more so.
“Ah, that was a bad idea. Just forget I—”
The secretary tried to immediately retract her words, but—
“That’s not bad at all…?”
Her employer had taken the suggestion completely seriously.
And now, back to the present.
“Why did you submit a request like this, Beatrice?”
Kyle frowned as he looked down at her. Unlike before, clear irritation was etched across his face. Beatrice could more or less understand his reaction. It was because of the rumors that circulated about her.
The Spider that Collects Gold Coins has never once made a deal that resulted in a loss for herself.
It was a perfectly natural statement. One might even call it the basic mindset of any merchant. The problem was that the private tutoring she was attempting now went directly against that very principle.
If it benefited both parties, that would be one thing. But teaching a superhuman was something that would become poison for her if she could not advance to the next Ring. Once someone reached the level of 5-Ring, they naturally developed their own firm convictions.
“Are you trying to toy with me?”
“It’s not that I particularly wanted to toy with you…”
“If that’s not the case, then there’s no reason for you to take lessons yourself, is there? Especially when you’ve never really cared about your own Rank in the first place.”
At Kyle’s words, Beatrice nodded inwardly. Just as she understood why he was angry, she possessed a clear self-awareness regarding herself. She held no particular attachment to advancing her Rank.
The desire to reach the next level that most superhumans possessed was intense enough that they would pursue it even at a loss. But she had never felt such a urge. In other words, she lacked the natural drive for growth—the mindset to strive for the next Ring—that superhumans typically possessed.
The only reason she had built up her Rings was for survival. In an Empire teeming with superhumans, anyone with real influence needed to be at least 5-Ring to protect themselves. Besides, becoming a mage had many convenient advantages.
But that was only up to 5-Ring. In Beatrice’s own opinion, there was no reason to invest the time and effort required to reach 6-Ring. Even if she did, there was no guarantee she would succeed, and simply managing the affairs of the company she had already built left her with little free time.
“That’s how it was originally.”
Therefore, everything she was saying now was a complete lie.
“But lately, with the increasing frequency of Contaminant appearances, I realized that 5-Ring might not be enough. I think I need to reach 6-Ring if I want to avoid threats to my life…”
“Threats to your life?”
“When you run one of the Empire’s five great merchant groups, there are naturally many people who target the president’s neck. And it’s not just one or two enemies.”
At Beatrice’s lie, Kyle’s frown eased slightly. At the same time, the man who had seemed completely uninterested in her words now wore a thoughtful expression.
A true lie was not simply telling falsehoods, but melting lies into the truth. What Beatrice had said a moment ago was the same. While many did target her life, none posed a real threat. And although Contaminant appearances had increased, 5-Ring was still more than sufficient for now. It was the same technique she usually used when conducting business for the company.
“Advancement tied to preserving one’s life… and considering how much time you usually spend on company affairs… taking lessons would indeed be the most efficient choice.”
“Right?”
The moment she finally obtained Kyle’s understanding and permission, Beatrice smiled. Even though she had spoken lies, she had achieved her goal.
Yet even though she had gotten what she wanted, Beatrice could not understand why her chest felt so tight. She simply gripped the fan in her hand more tightly.
And so, the one-on-one tutoring of a superhuman began.