Walking down the street to Silvia’s office.
A brisk, chilly wind blew from her.
‘Have I returned to the North again?’
Ian rubbed his arms.
The chill was enough to make him momentarily think he had returned to the North.
That’s how they arrived at Silvia’s office.
“Please have a seat.”
Now he could feel the drop in temperature.
As he sat down, Ian swallowed dryly.
It felt like sitting in an interrogation room.
Silvia opened her mouth, straightening her own light golden eyebrows and her purple eyes.
“When did you return to Lichten?”
“Today.”
“Did you go straight to the library?”
“… I had something on my mind.”
Pause.
Silvia, sitting at her desk, scrutinized Ian sharply.
“Hmm.”
In truth, she was slightly upset.
Every time news of Ian’s trip to the North reached her, it kept her awake at night. When the Princess hurried to the North, her anxiety was almost overwhelming.
While everyone else waited anxiously for Ian’s return, he simply dashed off to the library.
Even rational Silvia couldn’t help but purse her lips.
“He went to the library to see the librarian rather than books. He stood there just looking at her without reading anything.”
A muttered remark, almost audible.
Meanwhile, Ian blankly stared at Silvia’s foot poking out from under the desk.
It was an adorable sight, a fluffy slipper with a character on it.
‘Why would Silvia wear something like that?’
Ian lost in his thoughts, looking at the tips of Sylvia’s feet.
His thoughtful expression seemed reflective, softening Silvia’s tone.
“Huh. So, what’s the relationship with the librarian?”
“The librarian?”
“Yes.”
“No relationship at all?”
A straightforward reply.
Silvia twirled her hair.
She was already less annoyed.
No. Rather, she was at a stage where she suddenly became embarrassed and wondered why she was like this.
“Ahem!”
Though Silvia had already relaxed considerably, there were still some points to address. Silvia composed herself.
“In fact, news of Mr. Ian’s exploits in the North is spreading far and wide.”
“Already?”
“Yes. There haven’t been any official reports from the Empire yet, but rumors are circulating. To think the Northern Duke was Bloodstone Cultist is quite shocking. It’s bound to spread quickly.”
“Hmm.”
“Moreover, the person who defeated such a Northern Duke is a student of Lichten Academy. It’s truly remarkable.”
“I see.”
“You’ve done something truly remarkable, Mr. Ian.”
Ian did not respond.
Silvia’s smiling face somehow felt cold.
‘It doesn’t seem like a compliment.’
Silvia’s mouth opened.
“So, I understand perfectly now.”
“…?”
“Now that you’ve become famous, you must not care about being Laurent’s successor anymore.”
Smile.
Her smile was chilling.
The air around them tightened like a noose.
Ian swallowed again.
There was truth in Silvia’s words.
Despite everything, Ian had received a lot of help from her. He had even made a request before going to the North.
‘I should have brought a gift at least.’
Yeah.
It was like leaving work to a teammate and going on a trip abroad.
The problem was coming empty-handed and being greeted by her first, the worst-case scenario.
“…”
He only just realized it was a crisis.
A cold sweat ran down Ian’s forehead.
In the midst of the crisis, Ian’s brain began to spin at an incredible speed.
Instinctively, Ian formulated a sentence to get out of this situation.
“Thank you for your concern, Silvia.”
Intentionally stimulating her embarrassment.
At this point, Silvia would respond, ‘Oh, I wasn’t worried!’ Then Ian would counter with, ‘But you still showed concern,’ finding a way to conclude the conversation.
A tailored strategy that played to Silvia’s understanding.
But Ian’s sly plan was shattered by Silvia’s fastball.
Silvia declared with a quiver in her voice.
“I-I was worried!”
“…?”
“I was worried! A high-ranking noble… and not just any noble but fighting the Northern Duke directly… I couldn’t sleep because I was so worried…”
Ian stood before Silvia, lightly biting his lip.
After the possession.
It was the first time he had felt someone genuinely worry about him from behind.
Silvia, who usually looked down on him, had her eyes slightly sad and emotional.
Tear drops hung from her eyes, beautifully reflecting the light.
Relieving herself, Ian sincerely spoke.
“Thank you for worrying, Silvia.”
“…!”
But would that sincerity be conveyed properly?
Silvia’s face suddenly turned red.
She blinked, cleared her throat, and exclaimed.
“I-I was worried in case… I might lose a colleague! That’s why I was worried!”
Bam.
Silvia, who had risen from her desk, bowed her head and swiftly sat in her spinning chair.
“Hmm!”
She huffed and spun in her chair.
After a few minutes of fidgeting, Silvia returned to her seat with her usual calm and rational face.
“Ahem. Let’s get to the point.”
“… Wasn’t that the point earlier? You said you were worried.”
“No, that’s not it!”
Excited Silvia regained her composure as she cleared her throat.
“The church will probably reward you soon. Probably with a significant reward. Maybe even a minimum of a deputy ranking.”
“The church? But I’m not even a believer.”
Silvia nodded.
“That’s the point. To make you appear as a devout follower of Deus.”
As Ian looked puzzled, Silvia explained.
“While you were in the North, there were some unfavorable rumors about the Saintess candidate circulating. The church covered her up, and the process of handling the rumors was somewhat oppressive. Thanks to using inquisitorial methods, there was tension between the Empire and the autonomous government of Lichten.”
In short, the continent’s major religion, the Deus Church, and the Empire were becoming strained.
“In such a situation, you, Mr. Ian, who defeated Richard, the Northern Duke and a member of the Bloodstone Cult. If the church embraces you, they can use Richard’s status as the Northern Duke for a public opinion campaign against the Empire, and conversely, the Empire can defend against such campaigns and criticize the church for failing to properly track down a member of the Bloodstone Cult.”
It was complex, but the summary was simple.
“So it’s a competition between the Empire and the Church. How long they can hold onto Ian’s heart.”
Emphasized by a deep breath, Silvia explained.
“Substantial rewards await Mr. Ian.”
Gulp.
Ian swallowed.
Not out of greed.
It was because of the tension.
A substantial reward?
Of course, many rewards are good.
But he couldn’t just smile.
The stakes surrounding Ian had increased, meaning he could be exposed to stronger adversaries.
“Surprisingly, you don’t seem too thrilled?”
“Well, that’s because normally, neither the Church nor the Empire would bring such significant rewards.”
“That’s right. If anything, under usual circumstances, they would have done their best to quietly bury the Richard incident.”
“Indeed, it suggests that there are factions within each side who surely oppose excessive rewards.”
“… You’re sharp.”
With the conflict between them, Ian’s potential rewards increased. But at the same time, so did the risks.
When receiving rewards from each faction, one had to be mindful of the other’s scrutiny and even the internal opposition within those factions.
It was like being caught in the midst of political warfare.
‘… But could this actually be beneficial?’
Upon reflection, Ian realized that while the risks were greater, the potential for greater rewards was also apparent.
It wasn’t just about ordinary rewards.
Hidden Pieces that can only be obtained if you are involved with the church or the imperial family.
He might be able to get a chance to access them.
‘… Maybe it’s actually a good thing.’
However, Ian was beginning to feel a slight chill.
“Isn’t it a bit cold in here?”
At first, he thought it was because of Silvia’s mood, but no.
The office was genuinely cold.
Silvia’s attire was definitely unusual.
She always wore stylish clothes, but today she was dressed in a fluffy outfit.
“Silvia, your style today is a bit different.”
As he stared at her, she embraced her upper body as if someone had seen her n*ked.
“Don’t look too much.”
“Huh?”
“I didn’t want to show myself like this.”
Desperately hiding herself under her desk.
… Uhm.
“Hmph. Embarrassing.”
Cute.
The gap with Silvia was no joke.
It felt like dressing a sophisticated noble lady in animal pajamas?
Come to think of it, animal pajamas would suit her well, wouldn’t they?
Something with cat ears to match her image, or perhaps cute rabbit ears.
‘I should give her a gift later.’
For now, leave that as a hopeful thought.
Ian shook his head to clear his imagination.
Unlike Silvia’s cuteness, the fact that the noble lady wore such clothes meant she was in quite a serious situation.
Silvia’s obsession with fashion was a part of her branding strategy. It meant she was pushed to the edge to give up on that.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s because of Raymond. The Lichten Autonomous Government is trying to increase their influence amidst the chaos caused by Raymond Senior.”
Worry settled in Silvia’s eyes.
“… They’re fighting over money. We’re scrimping because we don’t have any funds left due to fighting them. It’s basically a capital fight.”
Indeed.
In terms of capital, Emilia’s Raymond would overwhelm Silvia’s Laurent.
But money.
Ian suddenly remembered something he had completely forgotten.
“Oh right, the stocks.”
Surely, with the surge of interest in the Northern Mountain Train, EcoMana should have skyrocketed.
But then…
Silvia’s face turned thoughtful.
“What… what happened?”
“Uh… well.”
