Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Neglect
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The largest gate in Vain Castle.
This was a heavily trafficked spot for merchants, raking in a tidy sum in taxes.
A long line stretched out from the gate.
It was the scene of countless merchants paying their taxes to enter Vain Castle.
The tax system here was vastly different from the modern world.
One example was the gate tax.
Merchants passing through had to pay one-tenth of their goods as tax.
And amusingly enough, this applied to every single gate.
For instance, if there were two gates between City A and City B, you'd pay 10% at the first, then 10% of what remained at the second...
By modern standards, it was an utterly barbaric system.
Honestly, 10% per gate was just absurd.
That's why merchants found it advantageous to slip bribes to the guards and fudge the ledgers for lower taxes.
And in this corrupt guard post, that was par for the course...
"Why'd the guard captain show up all of a sudden?"
"No idea? Thought we'd slide through easy this time... damn."
"Shit... we're screwed."
The merchants clicked their tongues at the sight of me, while the guards looked like they were facing death.
From their perspective, they'd been pocketing sweet bribes, only for me to crash the party and ruin it.
How dare they try to take money when even I couldn't?
The guards meticulously inspected the wagons' contents.
I watched contentedly as they properly collected the taxes and issued the receipts.
"Everyone seems to be working awfully diligently today."
Diligently my ass.
The higher-ups in the Grand Duchy might not notice from their fancy crests on the wagons, but from what I'd seen passing through, it was a joke.
Especially...
"Ivan, you're suddenly demanding full taxes?"
"See that? The captain's watching. Can't help you this time."
A merchant who glanced my way with a tongue-click approached, his face lighting up.
"Good day, sir. I'm Yorente, branch manager of the Pierre Merchant Guild. If I may, are you the new guard captain who's just been posted here?"
"Yes. But what can I do for you...?"
"Just looking out for our hardworking captain, of course. Here, take this."
He glanced around furtively and extended his fist toward me.
"What's this?"
A heavy leather pouch dropped into my hand...
Shrrrk!
I put on a stern face as I watched Jin scribble on a piece of paper he'd pulled out of nowhere against the castle wall.
"Heavens! I don't know about the previous captain, but I don't take bribes. I'll let this slide once, but try it again, and you'll face charges for corruption!"
I grabbed the merchant's wrist and forced the pouch back into his hand.
His face twisted viciously...
Ptooey!
He spat and stormed off.
Damn... it felt seriously loaded. Why couldn't I take it?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Late into the night...
"Haa... not enough. This doesn't recapture that feeling from back then."
A nearly nude raven-haired beauty caressed her own body, but the sensations from that day refused to revive.
She reached climax, but without that warm embrace, it wasn't the same.
Afterward came not the blissful afterglow of fulfillment, but a hollow, profound loneliness.
Despite the emptiness, her hand moved again, driven by intense lust.
Luna was deep in a serious masturbation addiction.
Her body chased the raw pleasure, while her reason knew the bitter aftermath and wanted to stop—a constant clash.
But her body always won, leaving reason to swallow the bitterness of defeat.
"Lately, that guy's been on my mind."
Her words betrayed her.
Luna consciously tried not to think of Aiden, but he surfaced unconsciously.
His embrace, his scent, his body heat.
And...
She shook her head vigorously, pushing thoughts of Aiden aside.
She was the Grand Duchess.
If word got out she'd slept with a mere commoner, the scandal would be catastrophic.
It would trample the honor she cherished like her life.
So, to cool her fevered body, she headed to work.
At least in her office, the arousal was less intense.
Creeak.
The Grand Duchess's office came into view as she opened the door.
Luxurious carpets covered the floor, alongside portraits of past Grand Dukes and family paintings.
"Whew, time to get to work."
Luna eyed the papers on her desk, preparing for next year's affairs.
Lately, what muddled her mind was...
Vain City's tax revenue issues.
Vain City, the capital of Heyron Grand Duchy, was Luna's direct territory.
Her personal domain, ruled by her hand.
Of course, she collected revenue from many sources, but the capital's shortfall meant injecting government taxes to cover it.
'If only I could just go out and swing a sword to fix this.'
The Grand Duchy frequently warred with northern orcs and barbarians.
Luna, with her overwhelming prowess, trusted her body over these numerical games.
After wrestling with documents for a while, she glanced at the next one.
"Jin?"
The surveillance she'd assigned to Aiden came to mind, drawing an unwitting faint smile.
"Heh, let's see what kind of man you are."
Flip.
Luna turned the page.
[Report.] [Captain Aiden appears to be a man of utmost integrity. Despite countless temptations and bribes from merchants, he rejects them all with firm resolve.] [After Captain Aiden took command, guard squad leaders brazenly offered bribes, but he turned them down flat.] [Refused bribes from numerous merchants at the gate trying to underreport taxes.] [Caught a smuggling ring attempting to bribe their way out; handled firmly.] [Dismissed and reported guards who took bribes.] [Plus, wiped out three criminal organizations.] [Confiscated smuggled goods, etc... Captain Aiden has racked up incredible achievements.] [In under a month, he's handled all this and is now hailed as a hero by the people.] [Lately, word around Vain City is...] [Thanks to Captain Aiden, spring has come to Vain City.] Having read the full report, Luna furrowed her brow.
"Gotta praise him moderately to make it believable."
Instead, she reasonably suspected Jin had taken a bribe from Aiden.
It was hard to believe so much had been accomplished in under a month.
"Well, whatever. If he's getting this much praise, he must be doing alright."
With that, she shoved thoughts of Aiden from her mind.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry was stunned by last month's tax collections.
"What... what is this?"
"No way."
The officials' shock stemmed from...
Vain City's monthly revenue having jumped over 25%.
"Get the detailed breakdown! Now!"
They pored over the details and were floored.
Gate taxes had surged 86% from the previous month.
"This?"
The previous guard captain Bill and his crew had underreported taxes to Finance after pocketing bribes.
In contrast, Aiden—unable to take bribes himself—ensured no one else did either, aggressively clamping down and boosting revenue as a result.
Of course, the officials couldn't fathom Aiden's petty motives...
"Heh, heard the old captain was greedy, but I never imagined this much..."
The report reached Finance Minister Goethe.
He scrutinized the month's revenue figures, rubbing his eyes as if he'd misread.
"What? Why's revenue up so much? Who cooked the books?"
The numbers on paper showed an increase rate unseen in his long career.
Nearly 25%.
Assuming it was falsified, Goethe told the reporting section chief,
"Recalculate this properly and bring it back."
"It's not falsified, sir. Check the detailed breakdown on the next page."
Goethe puzzledly flipped to the details.
"Huh? Why's gate tax so high?"
Seeing over 80% more than last month, he cleaned his glasses and looked again.
"Is this real? Taxes jumping like this in one month?"
Even accounting for Vain City's festival, it didn't add up compared to last year.
"Double-check it."
The section chief replied curtly,
"We've verified it dozens of times in shock. It's accurate."
Goethe scowled.
"What? What the hell happened in one month to cause this? You messing with me?!"
As Goethe fumed, the chief reported awkwardly,
"Word is, former captain Bill took bribes and didn't collect gate taxes properly. With the new captain, it's being done right now."
The chief meant to calm him, but it only irked Goethe more.
"What? A mere guard captain skimping on taxes, and you just watched?!"
"Well... ultimately, investigations fall to the Interior Ministry."
Regardless, Goethe couldn't help but rage.
"You idiot! Don't you know that's neglect?!"
"But there's no evidence, is there?"
Gate tax was 10% based on inspecting wagons at the gate.
No direct verification, no evidence.
Besides, guards were under the Interior Ministry.
Even as the Grand Duke's direct organ, Finance couldn't boss another department without proof.
Goethe understood logically but fumed emotionally.
"Damn it... we were all blind. Heading to the Grand Palace now."