Chapter 95
Chapter 95
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 95
Chapter Title: Two Rabbits!
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I had five pieces of information at my disposal right now.
1. The Crown Prince was harboring some shady scheme.
2. The Crown Prince and the Temple were in cahoots.
3. The Temple was trying to establish an academy based on faith in themselves. But they were leaving the high nobles alone and only targeting kids with divine power who had no backing.
4. Lately, the Temple had been putting all their effort into donation events to get people to believe in the gods.
5. The total amount of divine power held by the Temple's priests who were hostile to us, as well as the Pope's total divine power, fluctuated based on how much the empire's people loved the gods. The current Pope's divine power was on the higher side.
So...
"First things first, we absolutely cannot let the Temple get what they want."
Which meant my plan of attack was...
To make people stop believing in the gods, and to block the kids from slipping away to the academy.
Once all the informants had left the room, Delphia, who had stayed behind, let out a soft chuckle and looked at me.
"Just what exactly do you want to do, little one?"
"If I tell you, will you help me, sis?"
I flashed her the cutest Sien-style smile and gazed at Delphia. She responded with a captivating smile of her own.
"Of course. So, what is it you want?"
"I don't know what the Temple and the palace ultimately want. But I do know what they want right now. To stop that, we're going to use a two-pronged approach."
Delphia blinked in confusion.
"Two-pronged?"
"First off, we're going to run this merchant house properly."
Her face flickered with the thought, *What's that got to do with running the merchant house?*
I grinned.
"Starting now!"
Delphia would figure it all out soon enough anyway.
"What do you mean by 'running the merchant house properly'? Huh? Hmm?"
"You'll see..."
Tomorrow, I said with a big, beaming smile.
***
The next morning, things were absolute chaos in front of the newspaper stand.
"What the heck is Sien Merchant House up to?"
"They're implementing a massive scholarship program for the academy?!"
People passing by the stand nonstop were chattering away about Sien Merchant House.
"Apparently it's just for kids with divine power!"
The rumor-spreaders Sien had planted were doing their jobs effectively.
"Isn't that different from the sponsorship the Mirmod family is doing?"
"Impressive stuff!"
Even those who didn't care about worldly affairs were made curious enough about what Sien Merchant House had done to perk up their ears.
Before long, word spread—not just among the commoners, but to the nobles, and even the Temple—that Sien Merchant House was sponsoring kids with divine power.
Sien Merchant House's new venture seemed to be sailing smoothly, with the wind at its back.
But not even half a day later, the tide had completely turned.
"Didn't the Temple say they were sponsoring kids with divine power too?"
"That could turn into a real problem."
The market vendors tilted their heads as they spoke.
"Honestly speaking, though..."
"Hmm?"
"If you've got divine power, wouldn't you go to the Temple instead of Sien Merchant House?"
"Hmm..."
They nodded at one another emphatically.
And they had a point.
Divine power was a god-given force, so it made sense it'd be more closely tied to the Temple.
"You think Sien Merchant House didn't realize that?"
"If they didn't, it's a real shame."
***
Sien sat there, chin propped on her hand, foot jiggling.
Her merchant house always had Dedri and Bench on standby, doubling as secretaries. Bench hesitantly opened his mouth toward Sien.
"Um, Lady Sien."
"Yeah?"
"About the scholarship program..."
"Yeah? How's it going? Good?"
Dedri, stuck to Bench's side like a twin, scratched the back of his head and averted his gaze.
"Uh, well. Not many have come yet..."
"Why not? It's a great program. What'd they say? Bad publicity?"
"Oh, no... We advertised in every newspaper. But..."
Bench's eyes brimmed with pity.
Sien looked at them and tilted her head.
"Whyyy? What's going on?"
Her drawn-out words almost sounded innocently naive. Bench hesitated before speaking up.
"The Temple took them all."
"Hmm? The Temple?"
"Yes. They said the Temple scooped up every kid who was going to apply for Sien Merchant House scholarships. Kids with divine power probably have faith too, so they'd prefer the Temple. Especially since the qualifications are exactly the same as ours..."
"How about sponsoring kids with mana instead of divine power?"
At that moment, Sien broke into a smile so perfectly beautiful it looked drawn on.
"Nah, no need. We're good."
She hopped down to the floor.
"If the Temple's playing it that way, I've got a counter."
Sien now knew exactly how desperate the Temple was.
*They need young kids with no backing and divine power. Whatever they're planning, I can figure that out later.*
They must have rushed to snag the scholarship kids when it looked like Sien Merchant House was going to take them all. Dragging their underwater scheme to the surface like that was bound to have backlash. Sien grinned.
"All we have to do now is wait for the Temple to screw up."
She stared straight at Bench and Dedri. Bench blurted out,
"We can really just wait?"
"No."
Sien smiled softly.
"We've got a second option too."
"Pardon? You already thought of it?"
"What's the second one?"
Seeing the spark in Dedri and Bench's eyes, Sien hopped down from her chair to the floor.
"Can you call the Captain for me?"
"The Captain? Suddenly?"
The Captain—the gypsy boy from the orphanage.
They still couldn't follow her thinking. Sien said brightly, like she was talking to a child.
"Yeah!"
She smiled gently.
"Bring the Captain right up front. He'll handle the rest with me."
***
Right then, nearby, some people were waiting for Sien.
Duke Sebastian and Matthias Mirmod.
Matthias leaned quietly against the brick wall right in front of Sien Merchant House.
They watched the familiar face of the "Captain" heading into Sien Merchant House, chatting idly all the while.
"So the Temple's blocking Sien's path again?"
"Looks like it."
Duke Sebastian made a face like it was ridiculous.
"What, are they bullying a fifteen-year-old now? Sien must be pretty upset. You thinking of helping?"
Matthias replied nonchalantly.
"Our girl's tough. She'll handle it. But..."
"But?"
"Wiping out a few Temples? Easy."
Duke Sebastian looked utterly floored.
"...You're still hiding this sinister side from your daughter, right?"
Matthias furrowed his brow at that.
"Someday... I'll have to tell her. Ah, there it goes again."
He stared at the vine climbing the brick wall, then raised his sword and sliced it clean off in one stroke. The magic beast disguised as a thorny vine writhed and fell to the ground.
With Sien Merchant House thriving, the surrounding merchant houses had started directing their envy and jealousy its way. Especially from nobles backed by the Crown Prince—their spite was intense.
They often tried dirty tricks on Sien Merchant House, like nasty curses or magic beasts—methods that left no evidence.
"Idiots forgetting she's a Mirmod."
His face remained cold and rigid.
"She's fifteen. Easy to underestimate. That's why you've doubled security, right?"
Matthias answered icily.
"You never know what the future holds. I'm tripling it."
"...Triple from now would be three hundred."
"Not enough. Quadrupling it."
Matthias was inherently as cold as ice to begin with.
Even Duke Sebastian, a swordmaster who'd roamed battlefields, had to yield to that level of chill. How had he turned into such a doting dad?
Sebastian shook his head and muttered.
"Scary."
"Kill the beast first."
"It's already in pieces."
He raised his sword with a ferocious glare.
The vine monster that had scaled the wall was long since shredded, but it needed a proper finishing blow.
That was when he went to lift his bloodied sword.
"...Daddy?"
Sien must have finished her business and come out of the merchant house.
The instant he heard his daughter's voice, Matthias sheathed his sword in a flash. Sien was approaching him with a puzzled look.
"Daddy, were you holding a swor—"
Right then, Matthias started staggering.
"Huh? Daddy?"
He looked at Sien with a pitiful expression. It was the classic "pushover dad smile" she always fell for.
"Ah, Daddy's heart was hurting for a sec, so I needed a cane and the sword was right there..."
"Huh? Why's your heart hurting?"
"A cute little squirrel went by with an acorn in its mouth. So adorable, just like our girl—made my heart ache."
Seeing that split-personality display, Sebastian choked back a laugh like something had gone down wrong.
"Pfft."
Sien eyed the duke suspiciously and accused,
"What? Why are you like that? You look like you're laughing."
"...I might've chuckled a bit. Haha."
Sien's eyes sharpened as she supported her dad's body.
"Don't tell me you think it's funny that my dad's heart hurts?"
"No, no."
"Then what?"
"...Uncle's got a respiratory issue, that's all."
Sien's round eyes instantly softened into docility.
"Ohhh, gotcha..."
Seeing her expression melt right away, Sebastian felt a pang of guilt for fooling such an innocent girl. But right then—
"...You think I'm gonna buy that? You con artist uncle!"
"But you believe your dad!"
Instead of arguing, Sien bellowed into the merchant house.
"Sis! Get the carriage quick! Daddy's sick! We're rushing home so I can show him lots of acorn-munching squirrels!"
Watching her support her much taller father as they headed for the carriage filled him with mixed feelings.
Duke Sebastian mouthed silently at Matthias, who was weakly clutching his heart.
*'You said you'd tell her someday you're the villain?'*
...At that moment, Matthias mouthed back where Sien couldn't see.
*'Someday, but not today.'*
Whether he meant to or not, it sounded like a pretty cowardly excuse.
Sebastian shook his head.
The father-daughter duo's road ahead suddenly looked a long way off.