Blood, and the Empire - 9
The small office was filled with a cold, hostile air.
I leaned back in my chair, one eyebrow raised in a silent question.
My entire posture radiated casual ease.
Sierty stared at me with narrowed, wary eyes. The dagger in her hand glinted sharply.
I could see her blue irises sinking deeper into rage.
“Rather than trust the Empire’s dog… I’d sooner die with you for treason.”
“The Empire’s dog, huh…”
I ignored the blade entirely, letting out a long sigh as I turned my gaze away.
Why is she saying something like that?
Of course, I didn’t know Sierty all that well.
I’d simply cut off Carten’s head after he used illegal trade to line his pockets and commit treason, then killed her too.
After that, I handed the trading business to her younger sister and used her like a puppet.
The reason I was deliberately handing the guild’s ownership to Sierty this time was…
I knew it would turn out like this, boss. Why don’t you just drop dead and go to hell?
Because she harbored an extreme hatred for Carten.
But right now, I lacked a solid justification to kill Carten, and I didn’t have the luxury of moving a puppet myself.
Sierty was necessary.
“From what I overheard between you and Carten earlier…”
“Don’t you dare speak that dog’s name.”
Sierty muttered in a frigid voice.
It came from right behind me, so I glanced over my shoulder.
Her face was twisted with clear disgust.
The dagger’s blade was pressed tight against my throat.
I let out a small, amused snort.
“This is getting a bit dangerous.”
She must have slipped behind me while I was thinking.
Her skills were impressive.
Almost as if she had practiced assassination.
Hmmm…
Why, though?
Sierty was clearly a woman with considerable ambition.
I ignored the blade in front of me and frowned in thought.
“If I listen to the likes of you, we’ll all die anyway. If I slit your throat and run away with my sister…”
“Ah, so that’s what you were thinking.”
I smiled bitterly.
Sierty clicked her tongue and pressed the blade even closer.
My attitude must have looked reckless to her.
The blade trembled slightly before it nicked my skin.
Blood welled up.
It trickled down my neck.
A burning pain followed.
I finally understood.
No wonder she had killed only the boss while sparing her sister.
…Her sister is the key, isn’t she?
Even when I eavesdropped on her argument with the boss earlier, he had mentioned her sister.
“Hospital bills must be expensive, right?”
“…What?”
“Sierty. You have one frail younger sister. She must be… about twenty years old now. Quite beautiful too, but unfortunately struck with that illness.”
Sierty blurted out in confusion.
“There’s nothing the Empire doesn’t know! Kill me and run if you want. I… I gave you one clear path to become the owner of this guild and save your sister.”
To lead her to the answer I wanted, I had to frame every other option as impossibly difficult and terrifying.
And I had to present my choice as if it were her one and only salvation.
“This trading company is finished anyway, isn’t it? Once you’re caught, that’s it. Especially with treason involved. Heh. But as long as it’s still operating, it’s useful.”
“What the hell are you saying!”
Sierty shouted from behind, clearly rattled by my calm demeanor.
The blade dug deeper into my flesh.
It was reaching a truly dangerous point, yet the smile never left my lips.
“You still don’t get it? Ah, and here I thought you were clever! Kill me, then!”
Sierty wore a dazed expression, as if lost in thought.
And at that moment,
I gently caught the dagger with my hand, twisted it, and yanked it from her grasp.
Sierty’s eyes widened in shock at my unexpected move.
Her horrified gaze belatedly followed the dagger now in my hand.
I spun the blade playfully between my fingers and spoke with polite respect.
“Sierty, I like you. The moment I said I was from the Imperial Palace, you immediately put a dagger to my throat… Not many people would do that, you know?”
“…”
“Have you made your decision? Will you kill me, or will you become the owner of the guild? I sincerely hope you choose wisely.”
With that, I drove the dagger into the floor.
Thwang!
The blade embedded itself in the wooden planks and vibrated from the impact.
She stared at it blankly, as if she couldn’t comprehend what was happening, and murmured,
“Why… me, of all people?”
“Just because something is buried in dirt doesn’t mean it isn’t a jewel… isn’t that right? Carten grew fat off the money you earned running this guild, but look at yourself.”
“…!”
I pointed at her with a mocking grin.
Her eyes widened.
“You, Sierty. You who worked like a dog yet were only ever made a sacrifice. Doesn’t that infuriate you?”
“I’ll give you time to think it over.”
Sierty hesitated before answering.
Her confused gaze darted back and forth between me and the dagger.
“…Make your choice within one hour. I’m also in a position where I must decide quickly. You are the only one who can do this.”
Sierty flinched, then looked at me with an odd glint in her eyes.
It was almost unsettling.
“Fine.”
Sierty nodded and left the room.
I wiped away the blood streaming down my neck and let out a deep sigh.
“Haaaa…”
The crucial deduction and choice would be made by Sierty herself…
People always believe the answer they reach through their own reasoning is the absolute truth.
The information I had fed her was limited to just a few points.
If she killed me, both her sister and she would die.
The guild was a necessary existence.
I would entrust its ownership to her.
Although everything had already fallen into my hands, Sierty was proving far less pliable than expected.
…When will it be?
When will the Imperial Princess finally be happy?
The handkerchief was stained with blood.
I stared at it silently for a moment before letting out a hollow laugh.
“When will I finally be able to sleep in peace…?”
…
Sierty left the room with a dark expression.
She walked down the long corridor, organizing her thoughts again and again, but they only grew more tangled.
He’s probably telling the truth about coming from the Imperial Palace.
That man—Hawin—knew about her sister and held evidence of the treason.
Sierty had tried to erase that evidence and somehow use the person who provided the bribes, but…
She bit her lip hard.
“…Damn it.”
That man held her weakness.
The fact that he already knew about her sister.
And the fact that he had deliberately spoken it aloud meant others knew as well.
Moreover, although he had shown many openings, he had done so on purpose.
Guild owner… revenge against Carten…
Her head burned.
Sierty clutched her forehead with a troubled look.
It was getting hard to breathe.
She wanted nothing more than to slit that pig’s throat right now and display his head beautifully.
Even when she tried to think rationally, her heart raced.
She had rolled in this cursed trading company, enduring endless humiliation just to be recognized, eventually rising to the position of secretary.
She had earned money for her sister and swallowed every insult.
Even when slapped, even when leered at, she had endured it all.
“An opportunity… is this an opportunity?”
That man had acknowledged her.
He said she had the ability, that she could lead the guild.
Rationally, it sounded ridiculous.
Why would the Imperial Palace place someone like her in such an important position?
Obviously… obviously they would give it to another noble.
It would be used for political purposes.
“Me? Really… me?”
Sierty murmured with a slightly unhinged smile.
What had that Carten pig ever done?
Wasn’t she the one who had actually run this guild?
She knew he was trying to use her.
But… but…
If that bastard’s face twisted in agony and he screamed at her feet… how wonderful, how utterly satisfying would that be…
“Heh heh… it would be… ecstatic.”
Perhaps.
Just maybe.
If she became the guild’s owner, couldn’t she sit in a position everyone looked up to?
In that place where she would finally be recognized…
Her sister would be happy too.
Definitely.
If this was the opportunity that had finally arrived after a life of scavenging through trash and enduring contempt,
then her blue eyes flashed with madness.
Trembling with ecstasy, she whispered in a shaking voice.
If I’m going to do it anyway… I should choose the best possible outcome.
She would protect her sister.
She would rise to become the guild’s owner.
She would be recognized.
She would run endlessly toward those three goals.
Sierty thought to herself.
Even if it was only a fleeting delusion, even if it was merely grasping at the result that man had described,
wouldn’t that be an overwhelming happiness?
“Haaa…”
She clutched her face and let out a strange, ragged breath.
Through the gaps in her fingers, her blue eyes could be seen trembling faintly.
Her body shook from excitement.
“That’s how it is.”
Sierty opened the door.
She strode straight toward the man who was busy wiping blood from his neck.
He let out a startled “Eh?” and reached out to stop her, seemingly confused by her sudden change, but
Sierty paid him no mind and thrust her face right in front of his.
Her eyes, overflowing with ecstasy and madness, met his bewildered gaze.
How cute…
“Huu… Is this for real?”
“It is.”
The man answered, struggling to maintain his composure.
“You won’t touch my sister? You’ll make me the guild’s owner? Is this really true?!”
“…Yes, it is.”
“Hah! Of course. That’s how it is.”
Sierty gripped his shoulders tightly and spoke like a madwoman.
“What, what do I need to do? What’s your name?”
“…Bring me the trade ledger. You can call me Hawin.”
Hawin said with a sly grin.
I like her…
The smile never left Sierty’s lips.