Especially to those who have been waiting for that rumor.
The Imperial Capital, the church that worships the Sun God.
"Hehehe…"
The Angel of the Empire, the Face of the Empire, the 3rd Princess… Solana
burst into a girlish laugh. It was a face that was hard to imagine from her
usual kind and mature demeanor.
"A bet. And with the former captain of the Imperial Guard, no less."
However, there was no sign of concern on Solana's face. Her expression
was only filled with interest.
"Simply astonishing. To cause this much commotion right after taking
office, this kind of auditor is an exceptional figure. Isn't that right?"
Meanwhile, the priest who brought the information quietly thought…
…It's not exceptional, it's unprecedented.
However, at this moment, he didn't dare to speak his thoughts aloud.
"Yes. This is the first time I've seen such an auditor in my life."
Still, he nodded. An unprecedented auditor—he could fully agree with that.
What was the auditor of the tower?
Most auditors just spent their term comfortably and retired. As long as they
didn't cause any trouble, it was a cushy job. Just that much.
But an auditor who takes action himself?
…It had been a long time since she had seen that. No, this was the first
time.
"Hmm."
In any case, Solana seemed to like the news the priest had brought, as she
occasionally let out an inscrutable smile.
The priest, having nothing appropriate to say, spoke.
"I'm sorry. It seems my unnecessary news has disturbed your morning
prayer, Princess."
"Not at all. It was the information I requested in the first place."
"Then I will take my leave."
As the priest withdrew, Solana was left alone again. Now she would begin
her day as a saint.
She pushed aside all thoughts except for one person, then clasped her hands
and gently closed her eyes.
"O Sun God…"
At dawn.
Without fail, every day, Solana's routine begins with a prayer for one man's
peace.
"Your Highness, Princess."
"Speak."
"Forgive me for asking, but what is your relationship with the auditor?"
On the top floor of the tower, while resting in the VIP room meant only for
the 2nd Princess, Hedera frowned.
"…"
Hedera looked at Valcon in silence for a moment.
"Sigh."
Then she sighed deeply as if she understood.
Now that she thought about it, yes. When she encountered Jaekiel in the
tower's hallway, the actions and conversations they had… Valcon had been
watching everything from the side.
Letters, sincerity, and so on. There were provocative words for someone
who didn't know the situation. It wouldn't be strange to think of it as a
romantic relationship.
Fortunately, Hedera was in a position where she only needed to give orders.
"Forget it."
"Yes. As you command, I will forget it."
Valcon bowed politely.
"I have long known it was not my place to interfere. But, Your Highness,
what I am concerned about is…"
"I know what you're thinking. You were worried about my Ascension
Ceremony."
Hedera interrupted Valcon's words abruptly.
"Valcon, I know your loyalty well. But there is nothing I value more than
the Ascension Ceremony. Whatever attitude I take towards the tower and
the auditor, there are no emotions involved."
"…Yes. You are perfect, Your Highness."
─You are perfect, Your Highness.
A phrase Valcon had said countless times while serving Hedera.
But for the first time, as Valcon said those words, he felt like a stone was
lodged in his heart.
Because the current 2nd Princess felt incomplete.
Ascension Ceremony.
To pass it safely, one must achieve perfection. In other words, the more one
abandoned human traits and became a true dragon, the more advantageous
it was.
…But the current Hedera was definitely not like that.
As a skilled knight, Valcon could not miss it. He noticed the subtle
differences in Hedera's facial muscles and hand movements when dealing
with Jaekiel.
Surely, Hedera had some emotions at that time.
'Jaekiel, who on earth is he?'
Because of this, Valcon's only question was that.
"This proposal regarding performance was purely out of curiosity about the
auditor's skills. The matter grew as it turned into a bet with you, but it
won't be bad."
"Do you think the bet will be valid?"
Valcon asked back, seemingly incredulous.
But Hedera continued speaking calmly.
"You can tell just from his presentation. He's not just good at magic. He has
boundless creativity."
"It was certainly impressive."
"Impressive? It's not something that can be expressed with such a simple
word. It's more like…"
She suddenly stopped speaking and waved her hand lightly.
"Hmm, no. I'm rambling. It's undignified."
To Valcon's eyes, it seemed that the Princess, who had been about to
continue speaking with some excitement, consciously stopped herself.
"Anyway, my bodyguard, do your best."
"…Your Highness. I am Valcon."
Valcon spoke with a somewhat suppressed expression.
The strength of a knight who wielded sword energy was never inferior to
that of a magician. Valcon, a former captain of the renowned Royal Guard,
had rarely experienced defeat.
Sometimes Valcon felt disappointed by this aspect of Hedera.
Despite being in a position of receiving admiration from other knights,
Hedera would always make a comment to Valcon as if he fell short.
As if she had seen something too extraordinary. As if nothing could impress
her.
"I know. I'm saying it because I know you're amazing, Valcon."
But the next moment, Valcon doubted his eyes.
That sense of excitement.
He thought he saw it lightly reflected in the Princess's eyes.
"…This bet might be very tough."
In the hallway of the tower.
Nox, the head of the Practical Faction, was a connoisseur who enjoyed
drinking. The problem was that he was drunk from early in the day.
"Hahaha! Hahahahaha…!"
He burst into a near-maniacal laugh.
"Finally! The tower has finally avoided being sold!"
But then, he suddenly collapsed.
"Sob… Sniffle…! Hwaaah!"
He gasped and wailed, shaking his head furiously.
"We're doomed. Doomed, I say! A bet with the 2nd Princess's
bodyguard…! Are we leaping to a greater fall? What's going to happen to
this tower now…?!"
"Is it bipolar disorder? It's a pity at such a young age."
Jaekiel, watching the scene, made a remark.
Anes, watching Jaekiel, also made a comment.
"Isn't this all thanks to you, Auditor?"
Although Nox seemed out of his mind, the whole tower was actually in this
atmosphere. It was good to avoid the sale, but how could they win the bet?
It was a situation where they couldn't grasp any sense of it.
…Of course, the person involved, Jaekiel, was more than peaceful.
"Thank me after the bet is over. It's too early now."
"It was never meant as thanks. This is called irony. Irony is–"
"Enough. You'll be thankful anyway. Because I'll win."
"Where does that confidence come from…? Anyway, look here."
As they walked down the hallway, Anes suddenly stopped.
In the center of the tower's hallway was a large blackboard-like structure,
on which documents of different colors were densely attached at regular
intervals.
"The Imperial Tower is not operated solely by taxes. Requests received are
attached here in document form, and you get rewards for resolving them."
"It's densely packed. Are requests always overflowing?"
"Hardly any come in. They piled up because they weren't resolved."
"You're saying it's been in the red for almost 10 years."
"…Yes."
Anes, expressionless, cleared her throat.
"In fact, these requests don't just come to our tower. They go to other
towers, knight orders… all at the same time."
"Of course. As long as someone resolves it."
"The important thing is that it's not because we're incompetent that it looks
so crowded. Only the ones that other towers and knight orders couldn't
resolve are left."
Anes spoke with a serious, expressionless face.
In any case, what stood out more than the current tasks was the color.
Among the documents attached in white, there was one prominently in
yellow.
"There's one with a different color. What's that?"
"We differentiate the paper colors based on difficulty. White is medium,
yellow is high, and red is extreme. That's how it goes."
Jaekiel carefully examined the yellow paper.
[ Request for Purification of Erosion Phenomenon ]
[ The erosion phenomenon in the Luiple region is severe. Monsters and
demons are appearing. As soon as possible…]
"These days, the erosion phenomenon in the Luiple region is severe. We
cleared the monsters and demons several times, but they keep reappearing
as if nothing happened."
"It's a request to identify the cause, not just to deal with it."
"Exactly. The Blue Tower has already attempted it twice but failed, so
there's talk of upgrading it to a red request recently."
Jaekiel understood why the paper was yellow.
Simply clearing monsters was not difficult, but if the goal was to find and
eliminate the recurring cause, the difficulty increased significantly.
"I'll take my time to choose by today. Understood."
Anes silently nodded at those words.
At the same time, she felt relieved.
Was there a more important strategy than carefully selecting requests that
had a high chance of success?
In fact, Anes was very worried about what would happen if Jaekiel decided
to take the request for the Luiple region.
…It was practically impossible. It was a request that shouldn't be taken.
Moreover, the request for the Luiple region had already been accepted by
Valcon. If Jaekiel accepted it too, they would have to compete in real time
in the same area…
…The thought alone was terrifying.
Of course, Anes now knew Jaekiel's greatness.
But.
'Performance tasks require at least three people.'
If the other two held Jaekiel back, the situation would become very
difficult. The opposing team would consist of at least three knights of
Valcon's caliber working together.
So there was a better strategy.
"Anyway, it would be advantageous for us to handle multiple white
requests. Quantity over quality."
Yellow requests were worth 10 points, white requests 1 point. If they
handled about ten white requests diligently, they might at least draw.
Fortunately, Jaekiel nodded.
"Got it. I'll think about it."
Feeling relieved, Anes added one more comment.
"Yes. I'll assist as much as I can."
Then Jaekiel suddenly handed her a box.
"Fill this with Sun Grass."
"…"
Anes tried to protest but closed her mouth. She remembered that she had
just offered her assistance.
Just a moment ago.
Eventually, she mumbled and protested.
"These days, it's been really hard to get Sun Grass."
Jaekiel's gaze turned to Anes's cube.
"…It's true."
A bead of sweat formed on Anes's forehead.
"You can't threaten me with the cube as a hostage."
"Then explain why."
"The largest production area for Sun Grass is Luiple. Recently, the erosion
phenomenon has been causing headaches, and distribution has been cut off
due to the demons."
"I see."
Anes finally sighed in relief.
But the next moment.
She realized it was not a moment for relief.
"…!"
The yellow request paper attached to the board.
The request that Valcon had already accepted.
Luiple region, high difficulty, identifying the cause of erosion—Jaekiel was
carefully examining the request he had just torn off the board.
"…Arrogant demons."
The auditor muttered with a serious expression.
"It seems I'll have to show them what fear is."
"…"
…Anes felt like she already knew what fear was.