Chapter 177: A Tale Of The Past, The Insider
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 177: A Tale Of The Past, The Insider
The history of the Military State is intertwined with the Clothing Packet.
Improved over two generations, the Clothing Packet was a truly revolutionary invention. Simple, durable clothes that would instantly wrap around the body with just an infusion of mana. For soldiers, to whom the basic necessities of life were just another part of their labor, the convenience of the Clothing Packet was intoxicating.
However, the salons and tailors who led the fashion trends of the time found the very existence of the Clothing Packet distasteful. Lacking in skill but not in money or connections, they approached the knights with a box of gold coins.
The effect was immediate. Just a few weeks later, a decree banning the use of Clothing Packets was issued throughout the kingdom. The official reason was to prevent extravagance and debauchery among the soldiers, but in truth, it was the result of the knights in power weighing a box of gold coins against the ‘minor’ inconvenience of their soldiers.
Furthermore, Seamless Cloths received a duel request from a mysterious knight, and the successor who would have become the 3rd Seamless Cloth was defeated. She was given no right to refuse.
If the knight who accepted that box of gold coins were still alive today, he would surely regret it.
While the coup didn't happen solely because of that incident, its absence would have delayed it by several years.
“…The 2nd Seamless Cloth was devoted to the Military State. Thanks to her material and moral support, no soldier in the State ever went cold, even when we were struggling. We are truly grateful for that fact, but…”
Peto replied, a troubled look on his face.
“Still, the matter of the holding company is beyond our jurisdiction. We are Public Affairs soldiers, and while we handle all sorts of odd jobs, including domestic affairs, a company’s succession issues are not something we can deal with.”
Even the young girl, who had been standing bravely among strangers, couldn't hide her disappointment at Peto’s words.
“B-But they told me to come here if I wanted help!”
“Who on earth told you that?”
“My friend said a rich, fearless girl like me could go to a host bar and find the perfect man to help her!”
You should cut ties with that friend immediately.
The words nearly escaped the lips of everyone listening. But as long as they didn't know the full story, it was taboo to carelessly offer advice on someone else's private life.
Deeper conversations were for deeper relationships. That was the ironclad rule of the Public Affairs soldiers.
“Hmm. How intriguing.”
It was then that Hughes, who had been uncharacteristically quiet and focused, straightened up with an expression as intrigued as his words suggested.
Just as Peto muttered, “Don’t tell me…”
“Senior. I’ll help.”
His fears became reality.
“What? You?”
“You told me to go look after some kids, didn't you? Well, since I've been demoted anyway, I might as well lend a hand with Miss Bakiya's problem.”
As if his involvement would solve everything, Hughes stepped forward with unwavering confidence. The face of the Seamless Cloths’ granddaughter brightened.
Peto spoke, feeling the urge to rip out his own sideburns.
“Help with what? We might go around calling ourselves fancy Public Affairs soldiers, but we're no different from a host bar!”
“So you admit it yourself.”
“You have to admit what’s true! What do we have besides our faces and a silver tongue?!”
With each of Peto’s declarations, Sephier’s slightly brightened expression darkened in real-time. Sensing the guest’s displeasure with his entire being, Peto grabbed Hughes by the collar and whispered in his ear.
“Know your place, Hughes. You and I are nothing but empty husks with a shiny exterior. If we want to protect even this host bar, we have to lie low!”
“So we should just send her away? The successor to Seamless Cloths, the greatest holding company in the Military State, came asking for help, and we’re just going to pretend we didn’t see her? Is that what a proud soldier of the Military State should be saying?”
“It’s a shame for us, too. But what can we do? We’re just a couple of useless loafers! We don’t have the ability or the responsibility to get involved in something this big!”
Distinguishing between public and private matters was a virtue required in all public offices, but for Public Affairs soldiers, the duty was several times greater.
It was an unholy union of a soldier who could die in a public capacity and a host who could die in a private one, and the responsibility was greater than one could imagine. To prevent an enraged officer from storming in with a sword, they had to know when to keep their heads down.
Peto, for whom this attitude had become second nature, actively tried to dissuade Hughes. In the end, Hughes seemed to concede.
“Ah. Then this won’t do.”
“Right? Good think…”
Hughes deactivated his packet. The various gaudy ornaments he had attached clattered to the floor, and he was left in a simple shirt.
Having shed his uniform in an instant, Hughes handed the uniform packet to Peto.
“I've always wanted to say this. I quit, effective today.”
“You crazy bastard…”
“I'm not your junior anymore. Watch your mouth, Mr. Peto.”
“You really are a crazy bastard…”
Hughes shoved the packet into the arms of the stunned Peto and approached Sephier. The girl, who had been trying to hide her disappointment, looked up at the young man who had just walked over.
“That’s an interesting story. May I be of assistance, Miss Sephier?”
“…Thank you. But.”
She hadn't noticed before because of his flashy uniform, but now that it was off, Hughes looked less like an adult and more like a peer of hers, just a few years older. Sephier glanced at Peto with a suspicious look and asked.
“Is this man also a Public Affairs soldier?”
Peto squeezed his eyes shut and answered.
“Not anymore.”
“Does that mean he was one, at some point?”
“He was a substitute, but yes, that’s correct.”
He had the lanky height characteristic of a boy who had gone through a sudden growth spurt. His face still held a trace of youthfulness. He was so young that even the word ‘youth’ felt a bit too mature.
Sephier looked Hughes up and down and tilted her head.
“Are you sure he's not just a kid who borrowed a cool-looking uniform?”
“Puhahahaha! Hey, Hughes! She said you borrowed it!”
Peto roared with laughter for the first time all year.
They say a drowning person will clutch at a straw, but if you actually shove a real straw in their face, they're bound to look disgusted. That was exactly how Sephier felt right now.
Sephier gave Hughes a dubious look before turning her head away. Whether he knew what was on her mind or not, Hughes just smiled brightly and walked alongside the girl.
“So, to put it simply,”
Hughes summarized the situation concisely.
“While the 2nd Seamless Cloth’s chronic illness has worsened, your other relatives are trying to usurp your position as successor, is that right?”
“…Yes. For now.”
“For now?”
Sephier clutched the Clothing Packet in her hand tightly and answered.
“Right now, the only people in the Military State who can create Arch-Avatars are me and my grandmother. When she was well, she taught me and watched my back. But…”
As the 2nd Seamless Cloth’s health deteriorated and she could no longer exert her influence, there was no one left to protect Sephier.
Hughes asked the faltering girl.
“That’s strange. I heard Arch-Avatars are essential tools for making Clothing Packets. What do they plan to do if you wash your hands of it completely?”
Sephier hesitated before answering.
“…As long as they don't want to destroy Seamless Cloths, they can't just not make Arch-Avatars.”
“Aha. So no matter how unfair it is, you don't want to destroy the company. And they know that.”
“Seamless Cloths is a historic draper’s shop that has been passed down for generations. After a long period of hardship, it has only recently regained its prosperity. For me to ruin it for my own selfish reasons… it’s impossible.”
“Hmm. What to do about this.”
Sephier spoke with a heavy heart, but Hughes’s response was endlessly light. Finding him completely unreliable, Sephier cautiously asked.
“…It’s my turn to ask a question. How old are you?”
“Eighteen.”
“You’re only two years older than me…”
“Age isn’t very important when you’re doing big things.”
“Do you have some kind of plan?”
Instead of an answer, Hughes gave her an ominous smile. A shiver instantly ran down Sephier’s spine.
It was a smile that seemed to belong to either a reckless troublemaker or a master strategist of the century. Sephier felt an inexplicable sense of foreboding, and at the same time, relief.
It wasn't relief that this man was an ally. It was the relief of knowing that this unpredictable man was, at the very least, not an enemy…
“Miss, can you trust me?”
…But if she played along now, it would feel like she was losing. Sephier swallowed hard and replied.
“No. I can’t trust you at all.”
“How wise. But you’re going to have to.”
“Why?”
“Because.”
Before they knew it, the two had arrived at the Seamless Cloths headquarters in District 3. Hired guards glared at them from the main entrance of the building, which occupied all seven floors.
Hughes pointed a finger in their direction and answered.
“I’m going to tell on you.”
Alexei Bakiya, the acting president managing the company in place of the 2nd Seamless Cloth who was bedridden with old age, was receiving an unexpected guest.
After hearing the whole story from Hughes, he laughed until his sides hurt at what was the most amusing news he’d heard all year.
“Khahahaha! That foolish little wench! She had nowhere to go, so she went to the Public Affairs soldiers! To a bunch of mere hosts! A kid will always be a kid!”
“Considering she went straight to a host bar without knowing anything… wouldn’t you say she’s rather precocious? Khehelhel!”
“Hahahaha! You, I like you! Your silver tongue, your attitude!”
After a long laugh, Alexei continued with a sly smile.
“…And the fact that you were quick-witted enough to come straight to me.”
As they say, it takes one to know one. Hughes returned a similar smile and picked up where Alexei left off.
“So you had a rough idea of her whereabouts, then?”
“Ah, of course. A little girl who’s never set foot in another district could only have gone somewhere around here… Though I admit I lost her, never imagining she’d stop by a host bar.”
“But in a way, she walked right into a much more dangerous place. A place full of empty husks who only think about making a quick buck… Kehkehkek.”
“Khahahahaha! What a ridiculous joke!”
“Kehelhelhelhel!”
After laughing for a while like two peas in a pod, the two finally got down to business.
Alexei, who had been laughing so merrily just moments before, hardened his expression. With an extremely defensive and reluctant look, he asked Hughes about his compensation.
“Alright. You. What is it you want from me?”
“I am a host. To be precise, my job is to be a woman’s conversational partner and to disturb them so much that they dare not think of anything else in my presence.”
“Hoh. And?”
The part about ‘disturbing them’ got a positive reaction. Sensing his success, Hughes rubbed his hands together and said.
“It would be troublesome for you too, President, if that little lady were to go running around, wouldn’t it? Especially in two years when she gets her citizen registration, there’s no telling where she’ll bolt. Don’t you need someone to keep an eye on her?”
“You’ll watch her?”
“‘Watch’ has a bit of a negative connotation. I meant, don’t you think she needs a tutor, President?”
More than anything else, the choice of the word ‘President’ clearly pleased Alexei. He extended a hand to Hughes, his laughter much heartier and more genuine than before.
“I’ll be counting on you. From today, you are Sephier’s tutor. She won’t be attending secondary school because of her succession lessons, so I suppose it’s a godfather's duty to get her a tutor!”
Hughes bowed obsequiously and shook his hand. The gesture pleased Alexei even more.
“Leave it to me. I’ll push her into a corner so she won't even dream of rebelling again, and make it so she can do nothing but create Arch-Avatars!”
If Sephier had a gun at that moment, she would have shot Hughes. Unfortunately for her, she did not have one at the time.
Sephier paid dearly for the mistake of trusting someone so easily.
And so, a year passed.