Chapter 55
“Then I’ll come back on the weekend. Let’s go outside the Academy and eat something delicious. By the way, when do you need to leave?”
Aaron’s cheerful voice cut through the two men’s thoughts.
“I’m planning to leave in time for dinner.”
Blair glanced at the time. Five in the afternoon. There was still some time left.
“What’s this, what’s this? Are you dating someone? Ooooh, well done, Blair Shuho Monetery. Who is it? Who? Older? Younger? Is she pretty? What does she look like?”
Aaron’s expression dissolved into a sly grin. The Academy strongly discouraged romantic relationships between students to keep them focused on their studies, but rules alone couldn’t stop the burning passion of youth. Though no one openly flaunted it, the conspicuously low graduation rate among female students at the Academy was partly due to pregnancies. Of course, in such cases, the family would publicly announce that a marriage had been arranged.
Blair certainly stood out in many ways. It was slightly different from how Kyle caught attention with his bright and splendid appearance. Among all the indistinguishable young students, Blair was composed and somehow mature beyond his years, not to mention handsome—qualities sufficient to catch the eye of female students. Aaron was well aware that Blair’s name circulated among the female students.
“It’s nothing like that.”
Blair dismissed it casually. It truly wasn’t anything like that, and there was no way someone their age could possibly meet Blair’s standards now. Kyle flinched each time Aaron’s words flew out, but neither of them noticed his slight movements.
“Hooo. Really suspicious!”
“Oh, come on. Go rest inside. See you on the weekend.”
Blair, whose head was starting to ache from all the commotion, practically forced Aaron out. Kyle, who was swept out along with him, blinked his eyes blankly at the door.
“Wow, what’s the big deal? No one’s going to eat you for dating someone.”
Aaron grumbled beside him, but somehow to Kyle’s ears, it didn’t sound like just a joke. Kyle’s expression hardened.
At seven-thirty, Blair came out of his room wearing a robe. After leaving the dormitory, he pulled the robe down deeply over his hair to keep his face hidden. After walking a bit outside with his exit permit, someone tapped Blair’s shoulder. It was a guide sent by Clara.
Blair and the man made eye contact and nodded simultaneously. Blair immediately followed the man. The place the man guided Blair to was an upscale restaurant serving the most expensive cuisine near the Academy. It was a place often mentioned among the countless students from prestigious families at the Academy as somewhere with decent food.
Was this the only place that would suit Clara’s taste? Blair tilted his head slightly as he followed the man. Blair opened the door to a private room separated from the main area. It seemed Clara hadn’t arrived yet. Blair ordered a few dishes that would suit Clara’s taste, then interlaced his fingers and rested his chin on them.
The food arrived shortly after. It seemed this room received special attention. Blair had no intention of starting before Clara arrived and was simply staring at the food when the door suddenly swung open.
“Blair!”
Blair greeted Clara with a bright smile. Clara was always energetic, lively, and overflowing with vigor—a person who scattered that energy wherever she went. Blair was very fond of Clara. Though her personality was unique in many ways, she was bold and spirited, and competently fulfilled her responsibilities. There was no reason to dislike such a person.
Blair had commanded a diverse range of people from a leadership position throughout his life, and what he disliked most was incompetence. A unique personality was no obstacle at all.
“Sister, you must be tired from coming all this way.”
Blair placed kisses on both of Clara’s cheeks.
“If you had called for me, I would have come to you. Why did you come all the way here when you’re so busy?”
“I wanted some fresh air, and to see my youngest sibling. I came for both purposes.”
“I received your gift well. It was truly a magnificent sword. I’ll use it well. It’s the best gift.”
“I thought so! I put in quite the effort to find that one.”
Clara raised her nose proudly.
“Let’s sit before the food gets cold. I haven’t eaten much and I’m getting hungry. Let’s eat.”
Clara despised talking during meals. Her reason was that it “gets in the way.” She would often exclaim with an agonized expression: There’s barely enough time to enjoy delicious food, does it make sense to talk about boring matters? Blair also quietly picked up his utensils.
The main topic began after Clara’s stomach was full and tea was served as dessert.
“Yes, there are several things I wanted to tell you in person, which is why I came all the way here. Since I have quite a bit to say, I thought it would be better to talk face-to-face rather than send a letter.”
Blair composed his expression into a serious one.
“A bloodbath will soon begin at the Imperial Palace. It seems Theodore has also caught all the people who received bribes. Even with the Emperor’s extraordinary favor toward Empress Spirenda, nothing can be done once it’s revealed she was involved in the attempted assassination of the Imperial Princess and sold official positions for bribes. It’s practically a mockery of state affairs. Brother seems concerned in many ways since Empress Spirenda is heavily pregnant, but it can’t be helped since it’s something that must be done.”
“I see.”
“The Imperial Palace matter will be concluded with a trial by the end of this year. I also looked into the Yureho market you mentioned.”
“How is it?”
“It’s exactly as you said. They buy and sell people with rare hair colors or appearances. Of course, some are sold as ordinary slaves, but those with beautiful or distinctive appearances are mostly sold as sex slaves. What’s more, they even trade children who haven’t yet come of age. It’s horrific.”
Clara frowned. Hearing this, Blair nodded with an uncomfortable expression.
“If you don’t know, you don’t know, but once you do know, as a human being, it’s something that needs to be resolved morally. And of course, it’s even better if it helps someone. Theodore seems to be racking his brain on how to handle the Yureho situation, especially since it overlaps with the Imperial Palace matter.”
“I have a few ideas in mind.”
“What are they?”
“Send well-trained knights disguised into the market.”
“Hmm.”
“The fact that it never reached your ears until you specifically investigated, despite its scale, means they’re hiding it quite thoroughly. The scale of funds involved must be enormous. There must be someone backing them, likely someone powerful. They’ll have their own iron-clad security. The probability of finding anything by searching all of Yureho is low.”
“That’s true.”
“I think it’s somewhere underground, or in a completely sealed building. Somewhere not visible from the outside. A place where they can block escape routes and disappear without being found.”
Clara nodded. There was reason in Blair’s words.
“So rather than rushing, it would be better to send in well-trained knights to determine the exact location of the market, then bring in the army or guard to round them all up at once. Of course, the army or guard should be unrelated to Yureho City. Honestly, I suspect the Yureho city officials are also involved. There’s a saying that darkness lies beneath the light, but most people are very interested in what happens in their own backyard.”
“I’ll take care of that part separately.”
“The scale of private soldiers our family has won’t be enough. It might be possible if the Sichen Ducal family’s soldiers join in. But for matters like this, borrowing the army’s strength is better than mercenaries or private soldiers. We need to give the impression that we’re executing national business, not pursuing personal vendettas.”
“That’s right.”
“Even if private soldiers could cover it, including some of the army would present a better picture. But it concerns me that there aren’t many trustworthy people in the military.”
In the past, this wouldn’t have concerned him at all. Blair was the ultimate commander of the military, so he could move forces of a certain scale at his discretion. He somewhat missed his past authority.
“I’ll take care of that, so don’t worry. Finding people with connections to that side is just a matter of looking. It’s not like we’re planning to do anything wrong.”
“That person could also be the one backing the human trafficking market. You need to be careful.”
Blair pointed out the blind spot. Since it was long before he held military authority, Blair didn’t know all the current military personnel. This was entirely a matter for Theodore or Adriana to resolve.
“I understand, I’ll investigate carefully.”
“Yes, understood. Please contact me after the Imperial Palace matter is concluded. Or I can go directly to the Monetery estate.”
“Hmm.”
“Ah, and sister. I’m not sure if it’s possible, but if it is, I’d like you to spare that maid’s life.”
“The maid? Ah, the girl serving Imperial Princess Adriana?”
Blair nodded.
“Yes.”
“It won’t be easy. If she were a noble, she might only lose her title, but a commoner girl would find it hard to keep her life. It’s the crime of attempting to assassinate a member of the imperial family.”
Clara frowned.
“I actually think the maid girl was likely coerced into participating. She probably has a frail family member. Unless the money she received to keep quiet was enormous, I’d like to request that you reconsider the death penalty at least once.”
[To be continued in the next part…]
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
