Enforcement (1)
"You in there? I'm putting in for some leave."
I threw open the office door and thrust the leave request straight at her. Elena, who'd been scribbling away alone at her desk, nearly leapt out of her skin. She scrambled to clear her papers and shot to her feet.
"Leave? Now? Why?!"
"Do I need a reason?"
"Of course you do! That's basic! You can't just waltz in with a signature and nothing else!"
"Everyone just writes 'personal circumstances' anyway. It's not like it matters."
"N-no, that's not what I mean…"
Watching her fidget and glance around like something was about to explode, I felt my brow crease on its own.
"Are you hiding something from me?"
"What would I possibly be hiding from you?"
"Then what's with the act? You work me to the bone and now I can't even take a break?"
"It's not like that, damn it!"
Under my continued prodding, Elena finally snapped. She squeezed her eyes shut and barked the words out—so something really was going on.
"If it's not, just say it's not. Why get angry? That only makes you look guiltier."
"I'm going to lose my mind…"
"Join the club."
"Stop joking around. I'm not in the mood."
"Who's joking?"
"Oh, for heaven's sake!"
I snorted at her outburst and settled naturally onto the guest sofa, tipping my chin at her.
"So? What is it?"
"Didn't you see the memo from Intelligence this morning?"
"Ah. The one telling us to watch our backs?"
"Yes. That. Do you have any idea how much of a headache it's been?"
"Why? Did someone die?"
"Not yet—but it's dangerous."
"For who? Me? Or you?"
"Ugh. I told you to stop joking. Even if the two of us are fine, your only aide—Rhea—could actually get killed."
Elena shook her head with the gravest expression in the world. Then she shoved the leave request right back into my hands.
"The Guard is stationing troops at every intersection between the official residences and the Ministry of Finance. If it comes to it, they'll set up lodging inside the Ministry itself. So forget leave. Keep your head down for a while."
"Don't go home, just work? You've lost it. You're not right in the head."
"That's not what I meant."
"Tsk. If you hadn't teamed up with Intelligence and dumped this job on me in the first place…"
"Are you going to keep sniping at me? Someone had to do it."
"You wouldn't take my resignation, and now you won't take my leave request either."
Aigoo. So why did that "someone" have to be me?
I wanted nothing more than to flick a knuckle right off the Minister's forehead—thwack. But this was exactly the kind of moment that called for composure. I steadied myself and spoke again, calm and even.
"These aren't some back-alley thugs. If posting a few soldiers at street corners were enough to fix this, Intelligence never would have bothered sending a memo."
"Even so, we have to protect the majority. And if Intelligence sent a memo, it means they've picked up on some kind of hostile movement."
"Or maybe, if they actually had something solid, they would've handled it quietly before the memo ever went out and pretended nothing happened. Intelligence has suspicions. They don't have proof."
"Either way, the danger is real."
"Which is exactly why I want the leave."
"I genuinely cannot understand you."
Elena clicked her tongue and stared at me like I'd grown a second head. I ignored it and kept explaining, unhurried.
"Even a cornered rat will bite a cat. So yes—there's a real chance the nobles facing the tax audit will turn violent, just like the memo says. But do you honestly think they'll act without thinking it through?"
"What are you getting at?"
"They know Intelligence is watching them. They know the Ministry is posting guards for staff safety. Even if they somehow didn't know, they'd find out. And yet—"
"But right now—"
"Right. We can't exactly call in the knight orders without hard evidence, so this is the best the Ministry can do. But 'best available' is not the same as 'best possible.'"
I took the pen and filled in the blank Reason field with two words: Safety.
Then I held the leave request out to Elena again, my eyes gone cold and still.
"These are people who fabricated liabilities and ran systematic, organized tax evasion. They'll cut their losses cleanly—probably through loan sharks—and hit us in ways you haven't even imagined."
"L-like… assassins?"
"Assassins wouldn't be the worst option. Worst case, they grab some desperate souls from the slums who need to feed their families and have them start fires. Arson is the most efficient weapon you can use in a capital packed with buildings."
"You're insane."
"And if they prioritize targets, they'll go after the ones with no powerful backing first—the ones they can touch without consequences. Say, a bastard son like me. Or a dirt-poor commoner like Rhea."
"……"
The incredulous breath Elena had been holding turned into a long sigh. She thought hard for a moment. Then, right in front of me, she tore the leave request clean in half.
"Officially, I'll just mark you as on duty."
"Now we're speaking the same language."
"So where do you plan on going?"
I was already rising from the sofa, a satisfied smile tugging at my mouth, when Elena caught my arm in a hurry.
I crooked one corner of my lips and shrugged.
"The safest place in the capital after the Imperial Palace."
A soft peal of bells rolled through the air.
Light filtered through the stained glass and painted the floor in countless patterns, while incense rose in wavering threads like heat haze. All around, heads were bowed as people murmured their private wishes.
"Tax Collector, you said this was leave…"
In an atmosphere so hushed that even breathing felt like a crime, Rhea shot me a sidelong glare, her voice thick with complaint.
"Shh."
I'd been sitting with my eyes closed, praying for resignation from the bottom of my heart. I scowled and pressed a finger to my lips. But Rhea had clearly stockpiled too many grievances from overwork; she kept grumbling, her face still sulky.
"I mean, honestly—who on earth spends their leave at a temple?"
"This guy, apparently."
"Not one day. Not two days. How can you even think about eating and sleeping here for a whole week? You're not even a believer!"
"Figured I might give faith a try while I'm at it."
"Wow. Lying in a temple will get you smited, you know. There's a reason the priests don't lie. Ugh. If you'd come alone, fine—but what kind of leave is this? The second we get back to the office, I'm filing for hazard pay."
Rhea's endless muttering only stopped when the priest conducting the mass up front shot us a pointed look. Maybe I should have explained the situation before we came.
Still. Nowhere else is this safe.
That was the truth. This was the temple—the safest place in the capital after the Imperial Palace itself.
A branch temple in some other city might have been different, but the capital's temple was nearly as vast and formidable as the Holy See where the Pope resided. Holy knights who could stand toe-to-toe with the Imperial Knight Order were stationed here in force. On top of that, the empire's finest mages had laid down defensive magic circles, and the priests had woven barriers of divine power.
So for Rhea's safety, I'd decided we'd impose on the temple for a week.
You can't even bring weapons inside. There is nowhere better.
No matter how I turned it over, nothing short of the palace itself was safer. And yet Rhea, blissfully unaware of my concern and consideration, still looked thoroughly put out.
Ah. How could a sparrow understand the mind of a phoenix?
Goddess, please forgive this pitiful soul.
We'll sit tight here until things settle down.
In truth, I could have left Rhea here and gone out on my own. But the last thing I needed was to get tangled up in more trouble, so I'd decided to stay with her. Somehow I doubted the tax audit was going to go smoothly.
Do you run from dung because you're scared of it? No. You run because it's filthy.
Frankly, whether they hired assassins or wandering knights didn't matter to me in the slightest. They were all the same breed of problem. But why should I be the one to deal with them?
I'd done more than enough. Elena and those Intelligence bastards could handle the cleanup. If you plant yourself at a table someone else set and eat your fill, the least you can do is clear the dishes. If they expected me to do that too, they weren't even human.
"Brother. How was it? Did you feel the Goddess's grace?"
The mass had ended. As the congregation filed out in a noisy stream, a priest approached and addressed me. I wet my lips, composed my face into something solemn, stern, and deeply serious, and bowed my head.
"The Goddess's grace fills my heart to overflowing."
"Haha. Wonderful. May the Goddess watch over you, and may all that you hope and wish for come to pass…"
"All things according to the Goddess's will…"
Beside me, Rhea was staring as if she'd found a particularly large insect. I armored my face in shameless iron and bowed again.
"The novice priests should have finished preparing your rooms by now. Please go and rest well."
"I am grateful for your boundless grace, consideration, and love."
"Then I shall see you at mealtime."
With that brief exchange concluded, I set off at a slow, leisurely pace. Rhea was saying something behind me, but my heart—having escaped the Ministry of Finance, if only for a little while—was as serene as a buddha's. I hummed under my breath and strolled cheerfully toward the lodgings.
It didn't last.
Someone in a hooded robe came barreling toward me at a dead run.
What now?
I didn't sense killing intent. Just a raw, frantic urgency. I was still wondering what it could be when—
—Eeeeeeeeh!!
The demon that had been quiet for so long let out a piercing scream.
In that instant I knew something was wrong—but it was already too late. The robe flew back, and a face I'd almost managed to forget stepped into the light.
"Found you!"
Clear-eyed and beaming, the madwoman looked straight at me.
The Saintess.
Why is she here?
I'd dodged a snake only to walk straight into a tiger.