50

The pompous bastard announced the accepted companies immediately after the interviews ended. The firms that failed were probably doubly shocked. Some of them, having prepared so hard, would not accept the reason for rejection. Also, the companies all know each other well.

The problem was that we had nothing to say in response.

‘Do I have to shield that pompous bastard too?’

My insides boiled. Lukan was doing his best to placate the head of the construction guild and send him off. His way of empathizing with each point and responding with a gentle smile was a model of the service industry. Soon he returned to me with a bitter smile.

“What did you say?”

“I just said it was a close call. Told them to aim for the next opportunity.”

It may have been meant as consideration, but it was a deception.

“It’s better not to say anything afterward.”

We weren’t tormenting them with false hope; why would we say that when the outcome was already decided? Better to say it was a decision from above and we didn’t know.

I felt a surge of irritation, grabbed a snack, and headed into the building first.

A few more weeks passed like that.

Nothing had changed. Pompous bastard’s retaliation continued stubbornly. We completed every task he gave, yet whatever his complaint, the frown between his brows only deepened.

“Cornelia!”

Suddenly the pompous bastard raised his voice. It was a pattern that had never occurred before; his usual skill was to belittle or ignore subtly.

“Yes. 1st grade secretary.”

When I went to his desk, his face was flushed with anger.

“How on earth did you do this job?!”

“What do you mean?”

Before I finished the sentence something flew in my face. I closed my eyes reflexively. When I opened them I saw what had happened: he had thrown the stack of documents he was holding. He panted and continued speaking.

“Did I not ask you to check something at the War Ministry yesterday?”

I kept my composure and answered calmly.

“You told me to confirm whether there were any issues with the security support for the palace event next month. The deputy commander of the Royal First Knights, who was to be in charge, was there so I reconfirmed and was told there was no problem.”

He raised one corner of his mouth as if incredulous and let out a sigh.

“Then why are they saying they can’t provide support?!”

“…What?”

What is he talking about?

“I went to the War Ministry to submit the support request, and the deputy commander himself said he never said that.”

That couldn’t be. I had asked clearly and received an answer that support was possible. His voice still rang in my ears.

Pompous bastard’s tirade didn’t end.

“Now they say if we submit the request now it might be difficult for them to provide support! How are you going to fix this?! It’s an event Her Highness the Princess will attend!”

I took a breath. Getting angry wouldn’t change anything.

“I’ll speak with the deputy commander again and find out where the problem occurred. If it’s not an issue on our side…”

“Is that even the problem right now?! How will you solve it!!!”

The pompous bastard yelled at me to get out of the Chancellery. His fit of rage, cutting off any explanation, made my blood boil.

“What’s the point of arguing right now! Solving it is the priority! It’s infuriating!”

“That’s not what I mean—I need to identify the cause.”

“If I don’t step in nothing will run! Even this is a senior scribe’s job. Move aside!”

The pompous bastard, unleashing a storm of rage, stormed out of the office without listening to the end of my sentence.

Bang!

A heavy silence fell. I was dazed by the sudden onslaught.

‘What mistake did I make?’

That thought was all I had. I had checked properly—how could it now be as if it never happened?

My heart pounded at the thought I had made a grave mistake. It was the first time since coming to this world. As I pondered how to fix it, Lukan approached and whispered.

“The deputy commander of the Royal First Knights is in Marcus’s chancellor line.”

“…!”

I turned my head with a creak. He nodded with a meaningful expression. The cold blood that had settled in me surged upward. I couldn’t stay still.

“I’m going out for a moment.”

Regardless of whether the seniors saw me, I left the Chancellery without looking back and went behind the central ministries, then slipped deep into a narrow garden alley I had noticed during a lunch walk.

I quickly confirmed no one was around and then shouted.

“You son of a b****!”

I kicked the wall like crazy and spit out the curse boiling inside me.

“With nothing but crap in your head you feed me this? You bastard, you fing piece of s!”

No matter how long I shouted, the anger didn’t ease. I snorted, roughly swept my disheveled hair back. It had been a long time since I felt like this.

“Fine, f***er. I don’t care anymore. Do whatever you want.”

I’ll use this anger as propulsion for what’s next.

“You won’t become the next Chancellor.”

I’ll thoroughly crush that bloated face of his.

The Minister of Finance felt a cold sweat watching the new senior scribe staring at him so intensely. He had scouted her because she seemed smart and he wanted to cultivate her properly, but today that gaze was not something to be dismissed. She radiated the aura of a predatory beast eyeing its prey.

“Calm down. It’s not as easy as you make it sound.”

He could more than understand the girl’s grievances—he had wanted to stop the abuse himself. But even dealing with Marcus had been an unexpected gain. It was impossible to remove all the hidden masterminds connected through every thread.

‘How much should I tell her?’

The Minister of Finance hesitated over how much of the dark underside he could reveal to the newcomer. She had shown remarkable promise since her first day as a junior scribe, which was why he promoted her straight to a senior scribe. If properly trained she could become a fine administrator. But telling the truth could also lead her to give up everything. He opened his mouth and closed it; words were hard to come by.

“The royal family is involved, right?”

He was surprised.

“No—how did you…!”

Cornelia said that for a manipulation of this scale to continue, there had to be backing, and after seeing the close rapport between the 1st grade secretary and the Crown Prince recently, she was convinced.

‘Huh, just from that she concluded this.’

Her insight exceeded his expectations. The Minister of Finance had nothing left to hide. Fortunately, Cornelia’s gaze did not lose its sharpness.

“You’re right. That’s why Marcus could keep giving Rinus opportunities. Shamefully, His Highness the Crown Prince has been looking out for him. So…”

“A financial lifeline.”

Cornelia nailed the point he was trying to make. How could a girl barely past her coming-of-age ceremony be so seasoned in the political arena… no—she was exceptionally talented.

“Yes. That’s why we can’t fire First-rank Secretary Dorian Vainglory right now. When we tried to remove Marcus, we searched everywhere, but the Crown Prince insisted on keeping his man, so it was blocked.”

Even if they couldn’t deal with it immediately, he intended to take measures regarding the unfair treatment of the girl. He had learned this after separate talks with Lucius and Victor.

‘How much suffering that young one must have endured to put up with such harsh tyranny.’

Imagining her short hair and plump, juicy cheeks pouting made his heart ache, unlike when he was crunching budget numbers.

“I know. I’m not here to beg you to fix it. I only came to ask one favor.”

But the girl seemed to have other ideas. He suddenly grew interested.

“What is it?”

“You’ve been using the same contract with Rinus up to now, right?”

“Yes. The contract itself doesn’t carry much weight. It’s just formalities.”

“But it’s a guaranteed contract drafted by the Ministry of Justice.”

“…That’s true.”

Something struck his mind. He couldn’t form it into a shape, but the new senior scribe’s eyes were as clear as they could be.

“Don’t sign the contract as-is; have it redrafted. Say it’s an old contract and needs to be updated with current information.”

To the Minister of Finance it didn’t seem like a particularly good plan.

“Adding a few clauses to the contract won’t change the situation.”

“I know. This is just laying the foundation.”

“What on earth are you planning to do?”

“It’s nothing special. I just think it’s wise to revise the contract in advance when we have the chance. It won’t harm the Minister of Finance.”

For some reason her manner of saying it looked oddly sly. Still, it wasn’t something he couldn’t do, so he readily promised.

At that time it was merely a fleeting interest; he couldn’t imagine the consequences it would bring.

Knock knock.

“Phew, I’m getting nervous for no reason.”

I had steeled myself to ruin that pompous bastard. The interview with the Minister of Finance was only the beginning.

“Come in.”

A man with long brown hair tied to one side and wearing glasses guided me in curtly. The room overwhelmed me: black tables and chairs lined in two rows, and shelves full of law books surrounding the office except for the windows. Gold pillars and ornaments stitched solidly among the dark furniture gave the place a fitting gravitas.

“Good day, Supreme Justice. Senior scribe, Cornelia Libertas of the Chancellery.”

The Minister of Finance responded to my request immediately. That was how a mere new senior scribe could have a private audience with the empire’s youngest Supreme Justice.

“I didn’t expect to be in this situation. Sit.”

A languid wolf folded his legs and regarded me with a cold, piercing gaze.