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85.

When Samuel Motty was the leader of the Dark Guild, he seemed to embody the taciturn archetype.
Or rather, even in the original work.
Having shed one layer and now operating as an unabashed criminal, Samuel Motty had become considerably more talkative.
Of course, perhaps....
"That's right, that's right. The witch deserves praise when she does her work well."
"The newcomer's not bad—we've heard spirit summoners have nearly all disappeared, so we were lacking research materials, but you're perfect!"
"Ahem, I'm saying I'm not valuable solely as a spirit summoner."
"Exactly, exactly. Your criminal career has been longer than ours, so it makes sense you handle the tasks Salice Advisor assigns with such efficiency."
I wondered if he'd transferred to the chatty Criminal Mages by chance.
I'd considered whether I'd need to ‌‌‌separate them if they started fighting, but I was relieved they got along well.
Seeing how they didn't engage in pointless scheming and instead put their heads together over efficient prison labor, it seemed Samuel ‌‌‌Motty had integrated well into the Winter Palace atmosphere.
In any case, Samuel Motty proved to have considerable aptitude for ledger calculations—it wasn't ‌‌‌for nothing that he'd been both the Dark ‌Guild leader and a merchant guild proprietor.
Especially. ‌‌‌‌
"Look at this, Administrative Official. You mustn't fall for ‌‌this kind of thing. This ‌‌‌is the ledger from those kids at address 35 in the Western District, right? If you don't stay sharp with how they pull ‌‌the wool over your eyes like this, you'll be had in no time."
He proved invaluable in identifying the schemes of criminals, making him ‌‌genuinely useful to the other staff members as well.
Indeed, if there was any hope for ‌‌‌rehabilitation, one should put them to demanding work and observe.

*

Though Samuel Motty had only suffered defeats before us, he had ‌‌been the leader ‌of a truly substantial Dark Guild within the Empire, so the effects ‌‌‌we could obtain were considerable.

[Illegal Gambling Establishment in Western District of Capital Raided!]
[Criminal Gang Operating in Southern Region Turns Themselves In Rather Than Face Capture....]
[Duke Ashwood Exposes Smuggling Ring.]
[Young Duke Jamoti Reports Art Forgers!]

With him—the very pillar of the criminal underworld—extracted, the parasites that other nobles had long suffered from became far easier to uproot.
Of course, unlike elsewhere, House of Jamoti had simply sold ‌‌‌out those they'd been quietly sponsoring.
'The First Empress must be exhausted.'
Most of the follow-up measures reported in the news hadn't been handled ‌‌by the Winter ‌‌‌‌Palace.
In particular, the gambling establishment case in the Western District of the Capital had been directed by the Fourth Prince, who had been newly assigned a palace by imperial decree.

'Don't be too disappointed—rather, think of it deeply as a sign of my affection ‌‌for you, and it will be all the better.'

Before issuing orders to the Fourth Prince, the Emperor summoned us and spoke with us personally.
It seemed ‌‌he still hadn't permitted anyone to touch the white-furred cat Coco, yet the fact that she lay quietly curled up nearby ‌appeared to satisfy him—a serene joy lingered in the corners of his eyes.

'I'm bound to face criticism from the Second Empress over this matter, so you must understand my position. Isn't that right?'

The Emperor, rolling a toy toward Coco as he spoke, appeared ‌‌‌genuinely at peace.
Moreover, one might say he seemed composed, as though he were conserving his strength and allowing himself leisure.
In any case, we did not misinterpret the Emperor's intentions.
The First Empress was already fuming merely from the collapse of the Dark Guild and the confiscation of all its assets.
'So he intends to disperse the reach of her anger.'
The Second Empress's mind would certainly become more complicated, but we trusted she was not a ‌fragile woman and would handle it well.
We were ‌‌‌prepared to offer our cooperation whenever she found it difficult.
As a note, First Prince Charlie was hardly idle during our absence from the Capital City.
He was not exceptionally talented, ‌‌but neither was he incompetent—he executed his assigned duties quite competently.
This was largely thanks to a rather clever advisor from a baron's family who entered the Summer Palace after Francis Ashwood's departure, filling the ‌‌‌‌vacancy admirably.
Unlike before, this advisor was chosen directly by Charlie himself, not by the First Empress.
She was truly a capable talent who had shared academy life with Wilhelmina.
The First Empress dismissed ‌her as merely the second daughter of an obscure baron's house with only a long history to its name, but approved her solely because she was Wilhelmina's academy classmate.
'In short, the First Empress still hasn't abandoned Wilhelmina as First Prince Charlie's intended bride.'
This was thanks to the rumor that Wilhelmina harbored unrequited feelings for Cassian Artez having largely faded since the Hanella Marquis Family tea party.
Wilhelmina had written me a letter regarding that matter.

It was fortunate that after Samuel Motty began working at the Winter Palace, I recalled Wilhelmina's circumstances from before ‌‍‌and quickly had ‌‌‌him search for medicinal herbs.
The illness of Duchess Lopez, Wilhelmina's grandmother, was not incurable, but the difficulty lay in the scarcity of the medicinal herbs needed to treat it—their cultivation was simply too challenging.
It was a condition requiring large quantities of the herb to be brewed and consumed at once to show improvement, but because it was so difficult to obtain, most cases received only palliative care. ‌‌‌
Naturally, the Lopez Duchy had conducted searches for the medicinal herbs, but it was not an easy task with human effort alone.
Even a duchy had limits to how many people it could employ indefinitely.
However, as long ‌‌‌‌as the location wasn't buried deep underground, some light would reach it, so for an information merchant like Samuel Motty, tracking the herb's location was hardly a difficult task.
Samuel Motty grumbled about receiving letters from numerous physicians, ‌‌‌including the ‌‌Imperial Palace's chief physician, following that ‌‌matter, yet he seemed secretly pleased.
He readily acknowledged that his spirits, which had ‌previously only gathered information related to others' romantic disputes ‌and suffered exploitation at gambling establishments, seemed to have found their proper place.
Though he likely didn't realize it, this became excellent grounds for us to judge whether Samuel Motty's crimes could be repaid through labor.
In any case, as good fortune continued to befall only ‌‌the Winter Palace in succession, the First Empress grew increasingly anxious.
A trivial train inspection had become a major achievement, while what should ‌‌‌have been important trade negotiations with Snowland were handled so smoothly they became minor matters.
Moreover, the fact that her own son Charlie suffered for ‌‌‌‌several days in the process was surely displeasing to her.
Furthermore, the very existence of Coco, the white cat beloved by the Emperor, must have grated on her nerves.
Her anger was so intense that merely breaking expensive teacups could not quell it.

*

By ‌the end of February, I could already feel the gentle touch of spring breeze.
Though he had only recently taken up the position, the Fourth Prince proved to be quite astute—living up to his reputation as someone who had spent his days buried in books.
Thanks to his competence, the workload at the Sun Palace diminished somewhat, and even the Winter Palace Administration's burden eased, if only slightly.
At least to the point where the Emperor would hold tea time at noon, needlessly stealing my working hours to show off his white cat, Coco. ‌‌‌
"He's put on quite a bit ‌of weight, hasn't he? When you all first brought him, he couldn't even ‌‌‌‌‌open his eyes properly."
"I heard Your Majesty has been taking wonderful care of him. Ian—no, Cassian has ‌grown quite fond of him as well."
I deliberately misspoke the title to ‌prove my relationship with Cassian, then ‌‌‌corrected myself, and the Emperor chuckled.
"How many people don't know you two are engaged? You can call him by his name as usual. And ‌‌‌‌Cassian is..."
The ‌‌‌‌‌Emperor playfully directed his words toward the Second Empress, who sat beside him quietly brewing tea.
"I don't think that's the case, but what do you ‌‌‌‌think?"
"They're such a devoted couple, Your Majesty. I think it would be enough if you simply looked kindly upon Salice ‌Advisor. After ‌‌‌‌all, you've already said such pleasant things, haven't you?"
At the Second Empress's words, the Emperor laughed heartily and nodded.
Coco batted at a soft toy mouse the Emperor had recently made for him, playing contentedly.
And beside him, Sixth Prince Joel followed cautiously, observing Coco with evident affection.
"Do you enjoy it so much, Your Majesty?"
The Emperor did not answer the Second Empress's question, but his gaze alone spoke volumes.
He was yearning for something.
Perhaps not the past, but something he had once dreamed of yet never managed to achieve. ‌‌‌‌
With that thought, we all drank the tea the Second Empress had expertly brewed.
Though I still didn't fully appreciate the taste of tea, the brewer's touch was so skillful that I found myself ‌‌‌‌thinking it was quite good.
The soft crackling of the fireplace, the ‌‌gentle sunlight filtering through the lightly drawn curtains.
Even the cool ‌breeze tinged with spring warmth that drifted weakly through the slightly open window.
It all felt like evidence of ‌‌‌a moment of perfect peace and tranquility. ‌‌‌
Crash—!
Until that explosive sound shattered everything.
"C-Coco, e-everyone, step b-back...!"
The Emperor, who had been enjoying his tea with an unusually serene expression, suddenly gasped for breath.
"Your Majesty!" ‌‌‌
Thud—!
And the Emperor's massive frame, which had been desperately trying to convey something to me and the cat, simply ‌‌‌tilted to the side.

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