The Doomed Fief’s Dying Lord (3)

‘S+? Really S+?!’

Wait, wait, wait.

Hold on.

Don’t get swept up.

Do you think I haven’t played mobile games lately?

These days, every character starts at A-rank.

The real question is… how many ranks are stacked above that?

In extreme cases, there’s SSS rank, EX rank, awakenings, transcendence, and even separate legendary classes…

‘Anyway! So what’s the top rank here?’

The status window answered at once.

S+.

…So I really did recruit someone incredible.

“Hehe.”

A laugh slipped out from me.

Landing talent like this from the very beginning… this had to be considered an excellent start, right?

And then I realized something even more shocking.

‘Not just my own… I can see other people’s ranks too?’

The information from the status window wasn’t subjective. It was an objective assessment of talent.

And what’s the most important ability for a lord who rules a domain?

Nothing but the power to judge people.

‘On top of that, it even shows growth potential?’

For the first time, I was glad I’d been dragged into this world.

This was still before the prologue.

And right after the prologue… this entire domain would be destroyed by the Mana Plague.

Even after reading the original novel, there had never been enough information to work with.

‘But now it’s just handing me this kind of intel!’

Finally, it felt like a proper isekai.

Originally, I had considered gathering nameless extras for my team.

After all, Shane himself was practically an extra.

I didn’t want to get pulled along by the main characters.

So this unexpected stroke of fortune was especially welcome.

It hadn’t even been difficult to expose the administrator embezzling funds. The investigation was over in half a day.

‘The problem is… what do I do with her now?’

Ronari leaned close, watching the administrators, and whispered.

“I did as you asked. As expected, the culprit is… “

I pressed a finger to my lips.

“Shh.”

Not yet, miss.

‘Mercy… or example? I haven’t decided.’

Catching internal corruption and protecting the treasury… that was my first instinct.

But how exactly should I punish him?

What do I know about that?

‘I’ve never done this before… I’m not a cop.’

I glanced at Ronari.

Maybe I should just ask her.

‘Hey, S-rank potential. What’s your judgment?’

Maybe she’d give a clear answer.

But then a whisper echoed in my mind.

‘Who are you asking? This is something you started, Lee Jungwoo.’

I flinched.

‘What kind of idiot tries to shove responsibility for his own decision onto someone else?’

Back at the company, I could sometimes get away with pretending things weren’t my fault.

But this time… I had to own it.

If I was changing fate, then I had to take responsibility.

I spoke firmly.

“Tandel. I knew from the beginning it was you.”

The retort was instant.

“It wasn’t me…! I’ve served Denabi faithfully for decades. How could I possibly… ?”

“But Chief Administrator Tandel, who else could manipulate budgets as large as the defense funds besides you?”

“Th… that’s unfair! You can’t accuse me on that alone!”

“No. I never said that was the only evidence.”

God, this sounded cringe.

What was I doing, playing detective?

I sighed inwardly.

But once you start, you can’t just quit halfway.

I held a poker face and pressed on.

“While you were here, soldiers searched all the administrators’ homes. Only yours was strange… furniture packed as though your family were preparing to move. Weren’t you planning to steal the funds and flee?”

“I…”

“I also caught your accomplice… the vault guard. I had Ronari mention your name, and he immediately gave you up. He even explained the plan: with a few sacks of gold, 1.8 billion could be siphoned off in six days. Wasn’t that exactly what you intended?”

At that, Tandel’s shoulders collapsed. He slumped into his chair, head bowed in resignation.

Finally. You should’ve just done that from the start.

‘Modern financial criminals can embezzle trillions solo. Laundering is child’s play too.’

There are endless ways… foreign banks, crypto, shell companies.

But here?

You had to physically haul gold coins to steal 1.8 billion.

You needed accomplices, bribes, and a detailed escape plan.

‘Technically speaking, a lot of legwork.’

Which made catching them far easier.

As the case wrapped up, the Head Steward spoke.

“Guards, escort the criminal away.”

“Wait.”

I was the one who stopped them.

“…Young Master?”

“I still have something to say.”

The Head Steward looked flustered, then bowed his head, ready to listen.

I turned to Tandel.

“Tandel, those who are still out fighting for the domain are the sons, daughters, and parents you know. The money you tried to steal was their lifeline. Do you understand the gravity of your crime?”

God, this was embarrassing.

‘This isn’t the kind of line someone who’s only been here a day should be saying.’

My face burned.

But I had to go through with it.

Not because I wanted to play detective… there was a reason.

Tandel’s voice was heavy.

“…I know. Take me and hang me. I truly… have no honor.”

But I shook my head.

“No, I won’t hang you.”

“…What?”

Instead of answering his stunned exclamation, I turned to the Head Steward.

“Head Steward. If we dismissed the Chief Administrator right now, who would take over his duties?”

“It would be difficult… but perhaps someone from another domain… “

“Who on earth would come to this cesspool? Even with a fortune, they’d think three days and nights before refusing. Are you going to waste more money we don’t have?”

“That would… require reevaluating the castle’s budget…”

“We don’t have that kind of budget.”

The Head Steward fell silent.

Right.

Denabi Castle’s treasury was already filled with borrowed money, most of it already allocated.

There wasn’t a single coin to spare.

“But, Young Master, we cannot simply let a major criminal who embezzled from Denabi’s treasury go unpunished.”

“Yes. The law must be strict… if only as an example.”

Tandel’s pale face betrayed a fragile hope for mercy, now dashed.

Don’t look at me like that.

I’m not going to kill you.

No matter the law, I, Lee Jungwoo, am a coward.

Ordering someone’s death with a single word doesn’t suit me.

“But Tandel, you have children.”

“…?!”

“Two daughters and a son. All three together aren’t even thirty. They’re too young to remain in this dangerous domain.”

Denabi’s crystallization threshold was only 1.5% away.

Even I, Shane, was showing signs of erosion… and I was a noble youth who ate and slept well.

For children, it was deadly.

“You planned to stay, but send your wife and children away. That’s why you tried to steal that much. Your family would’ve struggled to survive elsewhere.”

“Young Master… How could you…”

Tandel stared at me in shock.

There was nothing surprising about it.

This was all in the novel.

When the Mana Plague spread, unable to seal all the dungeons, people tried to at least evacuate their children.

But the heads of households stayed behind.

They had to guard the land they would someday return to.

Tandel was just one of them.

’…But how could I just tell him to die?’

“I’m also partly responsible. You tried to steal because I failed to give you faith. As a member of the Denabi family, that failure is mine.”

“Young Master….”

“Still, I am the third son of House Denabi. So it’s only fair that you continue as Chief Administrator. Tandel.”

I extended my hand.

“Will you trust me, despite my shortcomings?”

‘What I should give him is not death, but faith.’

That was my choice.

Tandel clasped my hand and bowed, tears dripping onto the floor.

“Young Master… Thank you. Truly, thank you…”

Sighs filled the room.

Some clasped their hands to their chests.

Watching a man his age do that made my throat tighten.

Yes, forgiving him had been the right choice.

This domain was already struggling.

‘It would be madness to lose someone who’s protected it for decades over one mistake.’

Then, as always, the status window appeared.

The appearance of the status window felt like confirmation the matter was settled.

‘So if the status window pops up like this… does that mean he’s become mine?’

I couldn’t help but wonder what determined an “appointable human resource.”

‘I have a lot of other questions about this status window too.’

How far could I push it?

I needed to experiment.

“So… how many nose hairs does Shane Astrier have in his right nostril?”

“Then what about the price of the fountain pen Shane Astrier hid behind his left ear?”

“Does Shane have a girlfriend?”

“Then… a boyfriend?”

“…In a similar sense to ‘girlfriend’?”

“Damn it! Then why even ask?!”

Perhaps because of a [Permission Expansion], I could now converse with the status window.

But the more I checked, the more useless it seemed.

“This is worthless!”

It wasn’t some all-knowing AI that could answer anything.

At best, it was like a cheap encyclopedia.

‘Even for Shane… me… it barely permits any information?’

In the end, the functions boiled down to just a few things:

1. The treasury’s total cash balance and equivalent assets.

2. The deadline until Denabi’s destruction (crystallization threshold).

3. Simple domain statistics (like population).

4. Current and potential ability ranks of people I’d grown close to.

Even the fourth function, which I thought was great, was limited.

I couldn’t just check anyone’s rank at will.

“What are those ranks based on, anyway? Overall ability?”

Even if it says S, that could mean healer, tank, or anything else.

Without context, it’s not much use.

‘What a half-baked feature…’

At least I could roughly guess the specialties of the two people I’d recruited so far… administration and intelligence.

They were both administrators, after all.

But beyond that? Impossible.

“So in the end, I have to change fate with my own hands…”

It sounded romantic, but the reality was harsh.

I lowered my eyes back to the desk.

The same ledger from this morning sat open.

After the other administrators left, I remained in the office, poring over it.

For now, I’d stopped Tandel’s embezzlement.

But that wasn’t the end of Denabi’s problems.

“There’s no way this rotten domain only has one issue… tch.”

I focused on the tax records.

“No matter how bad things are, revenue can’t be this broken…”

Compared to the population the status window had shown, the taxes collected were far too little.

“Status window. How many soldiers are currently serving in place of taxes?”

“421. With an average household of five, that’s about 2,000 people. Even if none of them paid taxes, the revenue’s still too low.”

There was definitely a leak.

And right then, the office door flew open.