The Reluctant Imperialist - Chapter 21

WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Reluctant Imperialist

Chapter 21

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In the End, the Problem Is People (2)

Kiiiiiiing──! Kiiiiiiing──!

At the foothills of the Rommilton Mountains, where people were scarce and the terrain was so harsh that wild beasts and monsters appeared all the time,

a mana engineering drill chewed through the hard bedrock.

Krrr-krk-krk──!

Ancient trees that had stood for centuries snapped like paper. The slope collapsed, and clouds of dust rose.

Kwa-dududud──!

"Oh my, so this is where you were."

Mayor Jensen of Hermes approached the bustling mining site with a bright smile. Just a few days ago he had been hostile, but he turned around in an instant. He really was a politician who understood how things worked.

"Administrator Dieter-nim. Is everything proceeding well?"

Jensen asked as he put on a hard hat.

"Yes, smoothly."

"Haha, good, good. Lately there have been ugly rumors that the southern mines are running dry, so we've been very worried too. I truly hope this turns into a huge hit."

To be honest, Dieter had his doubts.

This was Maximilian's first business assignment.

As far as Dieter knew, mana stone prospecting was a high-risk, low-odds gamble. Even if you found a faint trace of mana at the surface, that did not necessarily lead to a large mana stone vein.

Even so, Maximilian was half convinced, and Dieter followed his orders as an employee.

"Um, Administrator-nim."

Right then, a field expert walked over, wiping sweat from his face.

"If we've gone this deep, I'd say we dig for about two weeks. If nothing shows up by then, there's nothing there."

"Understood."

"Ah, it'll be there. It'll come out. Hahaha......"

Jensen laughed, and Dieter quietly watched the site.

At minimum, they had to strike a vein within three months. That deadline accounted for the initial capital, the sunk costs so far, and all operating costs still to come.

* * *

Sebestian received a report from his butler, Engi. It was about Maximilian's first business.

"So the business that brat started is just mining?"

Tsk. He clicked his tongue and flung the documents aside.

"He kicked up all this chaos just to dig a mine?"

Quite a few petitions had come in from the south of the Empire. Of course, the moment people learned Ebenholtz was involved, they tucked their tails between their legs.

Engi spoke carefully.

"It seems the young master has a vision of his own."

"What vision? He probably picked up some cheap rumor somewhere. He's always been gullible. His ears are thinner than paper."

Sebestian had both literary and martial excellence. He had grown House Ebenholtz assets to more than double what he inherited, and he himself was recognized as one of the strongest swordsmen in the Empire. Naturally, his standards for judging others, especially a successor, were extremely high.

"If by any chance this gets a good result, then-"

"Engi. Do you know why land diggers are treated like fools?"

Sebestian continued in a contemptuous tone.

"Because they cannot quit. Once they start digging, they cannot rest until they've torn up every piece of land they bought. They poke around here and there, wasting time and money, and until they put down the shovel, they fool themselves into thinking they have not failed yet. They are moles, nothing more."

Engi gave a bitter smile.

"The young master is changing little by little."

"......It is already too late."

Sebestian cut him off coldly while looking out the window.

"Watching him for over twenty years was enough."

* * *

"......Maybe I shouldn't have taken this."

Right now, I was conducting undercover surveillance as a knight of the Sentinel Order.

Location: Noble Street in the imperial capital. More specifically, Kerios Mansion, an extremely expensive luxury enclave. A place strongly suspected, no, confirmed, to house the Head-Eater.

I watched it from inside a car.

Without question, an Izenheim called the Head-Eater was lurking in there.

"Hm."

I got out of the car and stood a short distance from the entrance to Kerios Mansion.

"Who are you?"

A guard stopped me immediately. I was in plain clothes.

"......I came to look at houses."

"Houses?"

The guard looked at me suspiciously.

"Please show identification."

"Mm? Knight Maximilian?"

Just as the guard's tone hardened, an overly greasy voice called my name.

"What brings you here?"

It was Jun Kandel. The guy who got that porcelain from me last time.

"......Loyalty!"

The guard saluted him, then bowed to me and apologized for the discourtesy.

Well, I was an acquaintance of Jun's.

Still, how could someone's name be Jun? So damn annoying.

"I'm looking at houses."

"Again? Looks like you've taken an interest in real estate."

Jun Kandel brushed back his long hair. I hated that horse-tail look he kept.

"I heard you recently bought one too."

"Yes. It's a given that land prices in the capital will rise, right? It's a good business."

"Haha, what book are you grabbing this time to buy with...... but there will be no listings in Kerios. And the low-level method you used before won't work here either."

I smiled at Jun Kandel's mocking tone.

Getting angry at that snake tongue would only hurt me.

"If there are no listings-"

"Ah, right. You became a Sentinel knight this time, didn't you? I should have congratulated you, my apologies. I've been busy with matters at the magic tower."

For reference, this gentleman was a mage.

"There's no need to congratulate-"

"But for people like us, hearing news in passing is more than enough, isn't it?"

"That-"

"Then come inside. I can't put Kerios up for sale, of course, but since you're here, I'll give you a tour. For the record, it took me quite a long time to buy into this mansion too."

You son of a bitch, let me talk too.

"To begin with, expansion magic has been applied inside Kerios."

Jun guided me into the mansion. There was a wide park inside.

"The park is more than three times larger than it looks. Perfect for soaking in sunlight and reflecting. Though I can't imagine what you'd reflect on while clutching a sword. For a high-ranking mage like me, though, it's very important......"

While I walked along, half tuning out this idiot's chatter,

-thump.

My heart suddenly pounded.

-thump.

It was the virus signal.

-thump.

I quickly looked over.

-thump.

A woman descended the central staircase with elegant steps. Skin white as snow. Pitch-black hair flowing to her waist. Blue eyes with impossible depth. A necklace shimmering at her collarbone, a ring sparkling on her finger.

Around 173 centimeters tall, slender ankles and wrists. The golden ratio of the human body.

All that information flooded into me.

"......"

Jun Kandel stopped walking too.

For a brief moment, their eyes met.

Jun knew this woman.

The woman knew Jun.

So these two had a Link.

The woman read the room and passed us without saying anything, and I asked Jun,

"Do you know her?"

"......I've seen her in passing."

"She's beautiful."

Jun's brow twitched for a second. This bastard was terrible at controlling his expression.

No wonder he always got pushed around by his younger brother.

"You said you came to look at houses. Did you come to look at people instead?"

Jun asked in a prickly tone. His refined act cracked because of that woman just now.

I hid a smile and nodded.

"Ah. I picked up a little hobby."

"A hobby?"

"Yes."

I suddenly felt cheerful. My mood lightened too.

"There were a few articles recently."

I calmly clasped my hands behind my back.

"These days, I'm absurdly good at catching people who pretend to be Imperials."

That woman was Izenheim. An Izenheim was staying in a place where only pure Imperial nobles could reside.

Did Jun know that fact?

"......So?"

"I was thinking maybe, just maybe, there are that kind of people in this mansion too......"

"......What?"

"If so, listings would come out naturally."

Jun fell silent for a moment. His eyes scanned my face, then one corner of his mouth twisted up.

"As if that would happen. This is Kerios."

"You never know. Not unless there's a full inspection later."

"A full inspection of nobles? Are you insane?"

His neck veins bulged suddenly.

I gave a dry smile and ran a hand through my hair.

"I was only talking."

"What kind of-"

"Well, I've seen enough."

I tilted my head slightly. Once more, I took in the woman's retreating figure, now farther away.

"I'll be going now."

Step.

I turned away from Jun. Jun glared hard at my back as I left.

Thanks to that, I learned something new I had not known before my regression.

Jun Kandel was unexpectedly a romantic.

......I returned to the office. I turned on the computer and checked the resident registry for Kerios Mansion.

[Name: Pexy von Arzen]

[Birth: Imperial Year 1012, November 1, Capital Arcadia]

[Status: Eldest daughter of House Arzen]

[Occupation: Fifth-Rank Mage, Sentio Magic Tower]

"I've identified the culprit."

By chance, I also found my rival's weak point.

Why had the Head-Eater suddenly stopped killing? The answer was simple. She had gotten a chance to operate at a higher level.

"I've identified her, but......"

No matter how I thought about it, I was not enough on my own. My job as a knight was not fieldwork, and I could not split myself in two.

Dieter could cover Engi's administrative side well enough, but he lacked force.

"People."

I needed them. An investigator, or an informant. Someone who could handle field operations. Someone who could lead the hidden front from the shadows.

I rubbed my chin. Before I knew it, rough stubble had grown in.

"......Wait."

Then [Prisoner List] on the computer caught my eye.

Knights could build private organizations themselves. Imperial law had a gray zone that granted knights a degree of discretion, and using imprisoned criminals as informants through "limited pardon" was entirely possible.

I leaned forward. I scanned the prisoner list spread across the monitor.

Drk. Drk.

I spun the wheel and searched for a name.

In case there was a name familiar to me...... there was.

"Found you."

* * *

Imperial Prison. The Empire's Thirteenth Prison, located in the west of the Empire.

"Welcome, sir. Loyalty."

When I got out in the parking lot, the warden and guards greeted me. I only gave a small nod.

Lately I had realized something. Acting authoritative with subordinates was much easier. It was not that they tried to treat me as an equal if I looked soft, but they kept bothering me with questions.

"I heard the rough outline from your administrator. You're considering a limited pardon......"

"Please guide me."

"Yes, sir."

The warden led me inside the prison.

Kooong-! Kooong-! Kooong-!

Heavy security gates opened one after another as we moved forward.

Kooong-! Kooong-! Kooong-!

Layer upon layer of gates. Past the yard and ordinary housing blocks, we reached a separately built structure.

"These are solitary cells. Inmates with worse crimes, or those who cause disturbances, are locked here."

One person was confined in each small room, like cells in a beehive. Inmate number, charge, and name were written in front of each iron door.

I scanned them with my eyes as I walked down the corridor.

Step. Step.

Then I stopped.

"......"

Beyond the bars was a woman with sharp eyes. Wild black hair covered half her face, and the gaze visible through it was razor sharp.

She was the one I was looking for.

I pointed at the row that included her cell.

"I'll conduct interviews. Everyone on this row."

If I singled out only one person, it could invite pointless suspicion.

"Yes, understood. Number 771, 3910, 391......"

The warden's behavior was strange, though. He skipped the number I actually wanted.

I asked him,

"Why are you leaving out 330?"

"Ah, um...... inmate 330 has very severe charges. Shows no sign of remorse at all, and is tied to several other unresolved cases...... there are even trials still pending. For your safety, Knight-nim, it would be best to exclude that one."

The warden suddenly started listing flimsy excuses. I answered flatly.

"I make that decision."

Something smelled rotten. For some reason, both this prison and this inmate seemed tangled up with some so-called high-ranking figures of the Empire.

"B-but, Knight-nim......"

"Silence."

So what.

Unless those high-ranking figures were the Emperor, they were not above me.

I had no intention of looking into every story behind their stench.

So.

"Do not talk back."

"......Yes, understood."

The warden lowered his head and bit his lip quietly.