Chapter 15
I didn’t even hope for integrity.
Honestly, I felt diligence was hard to expect.
Since The Center was rotten, expecting a Local Region to be fine was a truly ridiculous difficulty level.
But I thought they would at least commit corruption within reasonable bounds, while keeping basic Human decency.
However
[To think that no one did, wow.]
It was as if they had learned it as a group somewhere.
[No, they actually did learn it as a group, didn’t they? They’re called the Eastern Alliance, after all.]
Everything they did was exactly the same.
With the thought that the Empire would be strong forever, it was fine to embezzle this and that.
They really sold out everything else except their immediate surroundings.
They exchanged it for money to live in luxury, eat delicious food, and buy expensive alcohol.
If something became popular in the Maselin Kingdom, Kailen himself would step up and do a Group Purchase.
[A Group Purchase… To think he even does group purchases, he’s a total SNS Star.]
Mirne really isn’t an ordinary person.
Perhaps because she’s a 21st-Century Modern Person, she thinks she’s already spreading the greatness of the Group Purchase in a Romance Fantasy.
And how well did she do the marketing? Every Eastern Alliance member I met had accessories bought from Maselin in his or her hands.
Whiiiir.
As soon as a finger flicked the top-like object resting on it, it began to spin.
“Oh, ooh… As this board studded with expensive jewels spins wildly, This Humble Woman’s mind empties of all thoughts!”
Arveda widened her eyes in surprise, like a caveman discovering fire.
I realized what that was the moment I saw it.
“…A Fidget Spinner.”
A Fidget Spinner, that item that briefly became a worldwide trend in the past.
That very thing was now resting on the palm of an unidentified dragon, working hard to draw the dragon’s attention.
“Is the name of this a Fidget Spinner?”
“It is.”
The reason was that the Empire’s National Treasury was being depleted in real time.
[To think one of those reasons is a jewel-studded Fidget Spinner.]
What a ridiculous story this was.
[They’ll probably mass-produce a lot of these from now on.]
It was even funny that the Maselin Kingdom, known to be poor and weak, was suddenly making and selling Fidget Spinners.
Let’s say this became a trend; then making and distributing them would all cost money.
[Where did all that money come from?]
Actually, the answer to this was already clearly laid out.
[ You have eliminated a significant number of corrupt Eastern Alliance Nobles. ]
[ The Empire Destruction Probability decreases by 2.5%. ]
[ Current Empire Destruction Probability: 70% ]
[ Status Summary: The Empire has a fairly high probability of destruction within 5 years. ]
Naturally, the Empire must have given it to them.
So they were doing this absolute bullshit of making these things with the Empire’s money and then selling them back to the Empire.
No, if they made it with our money, shouldn’t they at least just give it to us?
No one raised any objections during this process.
Because the very top of the head who should have been raising those objections,
Kailen hadn’t expressed any dissatisfaction.
“Haha.”
The feeling I got when I saw this entire process kindly documented.
It was to the point where I could feel adrenaline rush through my head and spread throughout my entire body.
For a matter like this, information should normally reach the Imperial Center as well.
Somehow they had worked hard to pass it around among themselves, kissing each other’s asses and covering it up.
I was only able to Check this document after going all the way to a Territory near Marinapolis, the capital of the Eastern Region.
“They are doing business with the support they received. Yeah, later on they’ll probably sell malatang, and tanghulu too… I bet.”
Why did the Maselin Kingdom have no money despite receiving so much support from the Male Leads?
I felt like the answer to this had been somewhat resolved.
[So they were preparing for business.]
There was no need to make separate investments to make the country rich and powerful.
Why? It was because our Empire built the bridges in the Maselin Kingdom for free right away.
Like a grandmother seeing her grandson who lost half his weight, the people of the Empire just gave endlessly.
They just kept working hard to give money to another Kingdom, completely unaware that their own country was going to ruin.
[And thanks to that, I’m on a 5-year time limit.]
Thanks, Mirne.
Let’s definitely meet later.
Making that vow internally.
I quietly and secretly entered Marinapolis.
I considered this place to at least have a minimum standard.
Because the guards actually made a show of checking the identities of the people trying to enter Marinapolis.
Of course, even that was at the level where slipping them a single silver coin would get you a pass without them even checking what was inside the carriage.
“…Do I have to feel like just pretending to Check is doing the bare minimum now? Just how low has the Eastern Region’s average fallen?”
I was just sighing in lament over the severely dropped Eastern Region average.
“His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, is it truly an Infiltration this time?”
At Arveda’s words, I recalled my vow to actually do an Infiltration this time.
“Yes, it is.”
Until now, when robbing the Eastern Alliance Nobles, I had tried to do some level of Infiltration to observe the surroundings before making a move.
But my body, developed to the extreme, would always spot the face of a Noble inside a window.
And every time, an unbearable rage would surge up, and I would just blow everything away before I could even observe the surroundings or whatever.
So this time, I vowed to really hold it in and wander around Marinapolis to some extent.
To listen to this and that about how people lived, and figure out the rumors circulating in the Marketplace.
“This Humble Woman will prepare Illusion Magic.”
“I leave it to you.”
Just at that moment when we sneaked in and were about to look around Marinapolis.
Swish.
My body, trained to the extreme, automatically captured Kailen’s figure once again.
Despite the incredibly long distance, I could see Kailen smiling leisurely with the sea in the background.
There was no need to even assume the possibility that it wasn’t Kailen.
Because his very art style was different from the people walking around him.
He was handsome, with blue hair and a refreshing impression, just looking at him.
An appearance that anyone could tell belonged to the Grand Duke of the East in charge of the sea.
“Ah.”
And the moment I saw that figure, an unbearable rage surged up.
Someone had come all the way from The Center to the Eastern Region cleaning up messes.
While someone else woke up leisurely, laughed and chatted, and was now holding an Artifact and trying to spin a Fidget Spinner.
Was this right? Did I still have to Check the situation in Marinapolis even after seeing this sight?
It was right when my thoughts reached that point.
“Your Highness, are you going immediately?”
I had already leaped high into the air.
I didn’t even think about the worry of being spotted by others.
Because I knew Arveda would cover everything from the side anyway.
Was it because a dragon, called the Pinnacle of Magic, was attached to me?
I advanced toward the Grand Duke’s Castle even more ruthlessly.
Honestly, I had a lot of things I wanted to say, and the picture I had in mind when I was going to spit those words out is very different from now.
I had wanted to politely call Kailen and interrogate him about this and that.
I was going to Check how far the Novel Progress had gone, and do a simple Dusting Operation before the full-scale cleaning.
But.
SMACK!
When I came to my senses, my knee was planted exactly into Kailen’s jaw.
“Keugh!”
The striking sound that ought to be heard entered my ears.
“I am truly glad to see you like this.”
I calmly looked down at Kailen, who was bleeding from his mouth, and continued speaking.
“As a result of personally cleaning up the Eastern Region and observing everything, I have realized that you are eating away at the Eastern Region.”
Actually, I wanted to speak refreshingly, without caring about dignity or face.
His good days were all gone now.
++++++
To prove that Kailen was definitely the Male Lead of Jupeobae.
“Even though you had to send tributes to the Imperial Center, you didn’t send them… Why did you send what you were supposed to send to the Maselin side? Didn’t the report clearly state that it was to make the Eastern Region richer and stronger?”
“Th-That’s…”
Despite being kicked with enough force to accurately shatter his jaw, he was in a state where he could answer perfectly fine.
If there was a problem, it was that a body capable of answering perfectly fine and a sane mind were two different things.
“His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, I can answer that. Please allow me to speak…”
Thus, the Vassal stuck by his side tried to answer in his stead.
“Arveda.”
“You lowly thing, how insolent.”
BANG!
I immediately blocked that.
To dare try to interject without receiving any permission while the Crown Prince and a Grand Duke were having a conversation.
It was a part that showed just how ruined the system of the Eastern Region was.
“Guh, guheuuuugh…”
Leaving behind the mannerless Vassal who was slowly being crushed into the floor.
I fixed my gaze on Kailen once again.
“Why can’t you answer?”
“Th-That is…”
“Is Maselin the Eastern Region of the Grand Duke?”
Why couldn’t he answer properly even though it was obvious he had sent it to Maselin?
Because he was terrified? That couldn’t be it.
He wouldn’t be so fragile as to be terrified just from getting hit in the jaw once.
The fact that he was still withholding his answer meant something.
“Are you perhaps withholding your answer because you’re worried the Maselin Kingdom will suffer damage even in this situation, without thinking of the damage caused to the Empire?”
It was proof that he was thinking of something completely different.
“H-How could there be damage to the Empire? Of course, there might be short-term damage, but looking at it long-term…”
Like a pufferfish inflating its body, I let out a hollow laugh at the reaction that suddenly popped out.
“Ha! So in the end, you’re worrying about another country even in this situation?”
“How could you call it another country, another Kingdom? If we form a close relationship with the Empire and later even marry…”
To think he could discuss marriage with Mirne even in this situation.
“Why on earth do both the Second Prince and the Grand Duke sell out the country to win love?”
If you’re going to do it, you can just do it with your own strength.
Why on earth do they keep trying to sell out the country just to buy some favor?
The scariest part was that these bastards had no guilt about this.
Even if they took a loss, it was the Empire’s money anyway, meaning they were doing it with Public Funds, so what did it matter?
If you asked them how they were going to recover the money after continuously pouring it into the Maselin side with this mindset, what would they say?
[Because it’s the country we’ll marry into, this will all become our money anyway. Do they come out with this kind of logic?]
It was so ridiculously funny that such an absurd answer would come out.
If there was one fortunate thing in the current situation?
“There is no need to talk further. I will strip Grand Duke Kailen of his rank right here and now.”
It was to the point where I could strip a Grand Duke of his rank in real time without any complex procedures.
The imperial authority of the current Empire was incredibly strong.
Originally, I was going to thoroughly dig into his rights and wrongs and then carry out the Deprivation of Rank based on that.
But the traitorous remark he just made was the greatest sin itself, so I didn’t feel the need to bother finding other faults.
“Furthermore, I will abolish the Cultivation Method of Kailen Marin, who is ruining the Empire.”
Killing him here was just the worst method to relieve my immediate anger.
If I had been going to end it by killing in the first place, I would have killed the Second Prince a long time ago.
[Kailen’s parents must rule the Eastern Region again.]
Just how many fathers would swear loyalty to the Empire that killed their child?
From what I heard, the Former Grand Duke, Zabairen, cherished his son very much.
Here, rather than killing Zabairen’s son, it was right to drop Zabairen’s strength and rank to the level of a Commoner.
“Kailen Marin, you can no longer interfere in any Imperial Affairs, and you will not be able to build up any martial power from now on.”
I had to take away his rank and ruin his body so he couldn’t use mana.
And finally, I had to normalize the Eastern Region as soon as possible.
[I will banish this completely useless bastard to the Maselin Kingdom.]
Will Mirne give you the exact same love as she does now, when you can’t give her anything at all?
I became incredibly curious about what the situation would be like when that truth was confirmed.
[But why isn’t he saying anything?]
Amidst that curiosity, my gaze was still fixed on Kailen.
He was so eager to open his mouth whenever Mirne was mentioned.
But regarding the punishment handed down to him, he kept his mouth shut and only kept his eyes on me.
If.
If by any chance, [main clause]
If Kailen resisted right here.
[I’ll kill him.]
I couldn’t leave a bastard alive who bared his fangs at the Crown Prince.
That was a matter of order and discipline before normalization or whatever.
Just what kind of answer would he give?
[I don’t understand why he’s dragging out the time here.]
It would be right to just abolish his Cultivation Method first.
The moment I was about to give Arveda a look, that thought came.
“It’s unfair! It’s unjust! If it’s His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, shouldn’t you know? The heat of love! Can you not understand this heart as refreshing as the sea?! Please believe in me! You must help me continue to build a good relationship with the Maselin Kingdom like this! This is the path that is truly for the Empire!”
Kailen thumped his chest and poured out his words with glaring eyes.
“…”
As soon as I heard those words, I was so surprised that I opened my eyes wide and stared at Kailen.
What is this guy saying right now?
Is this something a person on the verge of being stripped of his Grand Duke rank and having his Cultivation Method abolished should say?
[So the Crown Prince had just been smiling and letting these guys run wild all this time?]
This is why he gets called a pushover.
Moreover, Kailen’s words didn’t end there.
“But Brother Crown Prince, honestly, you’re joking, right? It doesn’t make sense for you to suddenly come and do this. You were putting on a bit of a play, so I played along. Getting kneed did hurt, though… Hehe, want some snacks?”
It was a succession of sentences that only gave shock.
Even Arveda, who rarely used honorifics, was so surprised she watched with her mouth open.
Even the Vassal, who was about to scream in the pain of his body being crushed, stared blankly at Kailen.
While saying those words, Kailen acted as if this entire situation up until now had been WWE.
He even shrugged his shoulders while looking at me with blue eyes that seemed to say, “The joke is over now!”
So right now, that bastard thinks this entire situation is just a play, a joke.
Step.
I immediately threw my body forward as soon as Kailen’s words ended.
This was not a situation that could be resolved by talking more.
“Arveda.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Arveda immediately realized what she had to do as soon as her name was called.
Vertical Pupils formed in her black eyes, and their color became radiant as if imbued with opals.
At the same time, Kailen’s body was instantly bound by Magic.
“Wh-What, B-Brother Crown Prince?”
What kind of Brother Crown Prince nonsense is he still spouting.
[You’re really a lost cause.]
Fwoosh.
A flame dyed in gold formed at the tip of my index finger.
Stab!
And it plunged straight into Kailen’s dantian, where his mana was gathered.
CRACK - !
“Kuaaaaaaaagh!!!”
Just how much of a joke did he think the current situation was, and just how much was the Crown Prince being looked down upon.
For him to not have taken any protective stance even when the words about abolishing his Cultivation Method came out.
He was even completely off guard.
There was absolutely no feeling of mana moving even while his dantian was being shattered.
“Kuheuuuugh!”
The feeling of the mana in his body draining out in an instant was a sensation.
A pain worse than having his nerves burned away must be assaulting his entire body.
[They say an incompetent Ally is more dangerous than an enemy.]
Those words were exactly right.
and actually
[ You have put the Grand Duke of the East, Kailen Marin, into a Mana Unusable State. ]
[ The Empire Destruction Probability decreases by 10%. ]
[ Current Empire Destruction Probability: 60% ]
[ Status Summary: The Empire has a fairly high probability of destruction within 6 years. ]
As soon as I destroyed Kailen’s dantian, the Empire Destruction Probability dropped by 10%.
I changed my mind.
Originally, I was going to leave Kailen alone until the Eastern Region was normalized.
[I need to deport this guy out of the country immediately.]
Mirne, I can finally send you my first gift.
He is an incompetent, lovestruck Former Grand Duke of the East (penniless).
Our Empire has used him for a long time, so you try using him too.
I bet he’ll taste great.