Chapter 344
Side Story – Memories of a Princess (60)
#75 Their Circumstances: The Circumstances of a Villain
“This is really impossible to handle!”
After the meeting ended, once I was alone, I buried my face in the bed and realized once again that earning money is truly difficult.
“They wouldn’t really cut my throat, would they?”
If something goes wrong, they said I’d have to put my life on the line.
“Usually, people would just say not to do it…”
But since it was an order from the organization, I had no choice.
It already seems like the organization has been looking at me suspiciously lately, and if I refuse their orders, I might end up living a life where assassins visit me every night.
Therefore, I had no choice but to carry out the orders as instructed.
“If it sells well, will they give me a cut?”
Howling was not only the worst evil organization in the Empire but also ranked among the top in the continent.
After all, Howling was one of only two organizations that controlled the darkness of the Karan Empire on the continent.
The larger and stronger the Empire grows, the larger Howling’s scale becomes and the more income they generate.
And just as our not-so-ancient ancestors said that human greed knows no bounds, Howling’s greed was also limitless.
If they’re the most prosperous organization on the continent, shouldn’t they share some wealth with other organizations!
Howling was truly befitting of an evil organization, trying to encroach on other organizations’ markets by taking advantage of the continent-wide war.
“If you’re going to earn, earn a lot.”
Of course, the organization probably didn’t purely order me to help Merdea Kingdom capture Fort Pesra just for trade relations.
They’re probably testing me, someone who’s been achieving great success and building up achievements in the Empire.
It’s essentially the same as asking, ‘Are you still loyal to the organization while holding that position?’
If I show a positive response here, the organization will likely trust me more.
At first glance, being a civil servant with high income and practically lifetime employment in the Empire might seem better, but in reality, the higher you climb, the more dangerous life becomes compared to organization missions.
To be honest, though I’ve been keeping it under wraps, how many death threats have I received so far?
Especially when rumors of my engagement to Lady Ria spread, my room was filled with threatening letters when I returned after work.
Of course, 100 percent of them were from female knights. [TL/N: lol]
The fact that there wasn’t even 1 percent from male knights showed Lady Ria’s status.
“Duke Raisha seems fine, but what comes after is the problem…”
I just went ahead with the operation without much thought.
“Things should work out somehow, right?”
With Duke Raisha’s abilities(?) and the Empire’s military power, they should be able to win whatever they do.
The problem was that I needed to receive compensation for handing over Fort Pesra.
“Hmm… Then…”
With the thought that suddenly occurred to me, I took out paper and ink.
Though they looked like ordinary paper and pen, they were secret letters given to spies used by the organization. Thanks to Howling’s cutting-edge technology in the paper and ink, the text couldn’t be read without special magic.
And of course,
“Ugh…”
Even I, who couldn’t use magic, couldn’t read it.
“What did I even write here?”
Although the finance department requested to use these expensive items sparingly, who cares?
I just roughly wrote down information about the Empire, making sure not to duplicate anything.
“Hmm… This should work?”
I said I’d come back in three days, so when I hand this information to the organization then, they’ll sell it to the Merdea army.
“If you don’t know how your enemy will act, make them act the way you want them to.”
It was an irresistible bait.
There’s no way a pig- I mean, a general as greedy as Duke Raisha wouldn’t take this bait.
“For my neck to stay attached! And for promotion!”
I’ll use everyone – the organization, the Empire, and the Merdea Kingdom!
#76 Their Circumstances: The Circumstances of an Evil Organization
“Ugh…!”
In Howling, the Empire’s greatest evil organization.
At its core, one member of the intelligence department, which collected all information about the Empire, was burying their head in their desk and groaning.
“Is there a problem?”
Another intelligence department member approached their superior who had their head buried in the desk, but soon nodded as if understanding.
“It’s intelligence from Agent Naran, isn’t it?”
“That’s right.”
Agent Naran.
As a spy who had risen to a position where he could access most of the Empire’s secrets, he was a person of great interest within the organization.
And he had been famous in the intelligence department for a very long time because,
“This bastard doesn’t need encryption.”
“Agent Naran’s terrible handwriting is famous.”
He was famous for his handwriting that was so bad it required decoding.
“Damn! While he writes official reports so neatly!”
“His handwriting was stable and powerful, though not flashy.”
“So why are only the reports to us like this?”
The intelligence department agent who was decoding Naran’s letter frowned deeply and threw down the paper they were decoding.
“Let me see…”
The intelligence agent picked up the letter thrown by his superior and began decoding it.
“The Empire is… Hmm… Hmm…”
The intelligence agent nodded, placed the letter in front of his superior, and smiled brightly.
“I wish you good luck with your work.”
“Hey, you bastard! Help me out! Just a little! Just the bottom part!”
“Isn’t the bottom part the most difficult? How many characters are overlapping there?”
“I don’t know! Check it while you decode it!”
“I cannot! I must carry out the director’s orders to monitor the situation in the Duchy of Leveserk!”
“Hey! Hey!”
The intelligence agent was left in despair as he watched his junior colleague quickly flee.
“How am I supposed to decode this by tomorrow…”
He had heard this matter was one that the organization was paying close attention to.
Countries that would remain superpowers regardless of the outcome of the Great War.
The Kingdom of Merdea was currently one of the greatest powers, and since it had formed an alliance with the Pernes Empire, it had a high probability of becoming the victor of the Great War.
Therefore, Howling was preparing negotiations with the Kingdom of Merdea in case the Empire was defeated.
Although currently an evil organization, Howling was originally an organization of kingdoms that had perished during the formation of the Karan Empire.
When the Karan Empire would be defeated, they were preparing plans to join hands with the Kingdom of Merdea and the Pernes Empire to bring down the Karan Empire.
And the most crucial puzzle piece of that plan was the information from Naran, who had become the First Princess’s closest confidant!
“If it’s such important information, they should assign more people to this!”
The intelligence agent, suffering from both the pressure of handling such an important task and Naran’s handwriting, once again banged his head on the desk.
“Damn… it…”
Looking at the letter that he hadn’t even decoded a quarter of, the intelligence agent could feel his future looking bleak.
“Still… I have to do it. Didn’t I resolve to overcome any unreasonable tasks when I joined this evil organization?”
With that, the intelligence department member raised his head and strengthened his resolve.
And then,
“That damn Naran bastard…!”
That resolve was shattered within just two hours.
Several days later.
“Hmm…. Is this true?”
Duke Religieus Lu Raisha, the Commander-in-chief of Merdea, tilted his head as he examined the results of one intelligence agent’s frustration, pain, effort, and patience.
“Yes, it is true.”
“How did you find this out?”
Facing the gaze that seemed to see through everything, Marvel Swift, the director of Howling’s Intelligence Bureau, thought to himself.
‘As expected of a great nation’s commander. It feels like his gaze alone can pierce through everything.’
As the director of the Intelligence Bureau, which oversees the intelligence department, Marvel Swift had met countless individuals befitting his position.
He had met with many militant group leaders, including Howling’s boss, in daily meetings, and had negotiated with ambitious imperial nobles to get what he wanted.
However, no one had made him as tense as the person before him.
‘This is someone I cannot let my guard down against.’
According to information from their capable informant who had reached the position of an imperial family member’s closest confidant, this man had deliberately lost numerous battles while waiting for a single opportunity.
Even that pig-like corpulent body was created as a strategy to make others underestimate him, and his seemingly thoughtless expression was also a type of poker face meant to lower others’ guards.
‘A formidable opponent.’
Such a level of acting skill.
Even Marvel Swift, who had carried out numerous missions before becoming the Intelligence Bureau director, had never reached such a perfect level of acting.
“We didn’t find it out. We guided it to happen.”
“Are you saying Howling has such power? A mere evil organization?”
A gaze looking down from above.
Duke Raisha’s appearance, looking as if he were watching an insignificant bug, was the very embodiment of arrogance.
‘Is he saying he doesn’t need our help? No, that can’t be. If that were the case, this meeting wouldn’t have happened in the first place.’
Fort Pesra was a fortress that the Empire had expanded to defend against the Kingdom of Merdea, a natural stronghold.
In fact, even when Merdea’s vanguard pushed forward with several times more soldiers, they hadn’t suffered much damage.
No commander would refuse an offer to take such a fortress without bloodshed.
‘He’s establishing dominance.’
By showing an attitude of not needing the other party, he was trying to establish dominance and lead the negotiations to his advantage.
Having made this assessment, Marvel Swift chose to yield slightly.
“Before being an evil organization, we are a gathering of various fallen kingdoms.”
“I heard it’s been almost a thousand years, yet you still claim to be royalty?”
“No. A thousand years have passed without a nation. How could there be royalty without a kingdom? However… If we were to rebuild the kingdom, we could once again claim to be royalty.”
“Hmm… Are you asking for help with that?”
“As they say, the enemy of my enemy is an ally. In the past, the Kingdom of Pelgras and the Kingdom of Marveluf had a good relationship, did they not?”
The Kingdom of Pelgras was one of the kingdoms that had fallen to the Empire and was the predecessor of Howling, while the Kingdom of Marveluf was essentially the predecessor of the Kingdom of Merdea.
Upon hearing Marvel Swift’s mention of the relationship between the two countries and suggestion to maintain good relations as in the past, Duke Raisha showed a contemplative expression.
‘Perfect…’
Seeing that expression, Marvel Swift could feel cold sweat running down his back.
Was that not an expression suggesting he didn’t even know about the Kingdom of Pelgras and the Kingdom of Marveluf?
An appearance that seemed to question why unfamiliar kingdoms were being mentioned here.
It was an expression indicating that the past was merely the past and had nothing to do with the present.
“I apologize. I misspoke. Rather than relying on past connections, the present is what matters. First, I will demonstrate Howling’s power.”
“Y-yes, that’s right. That’s what you should do.”
Watching Duke Raisha’s expression brighten, Marvel Swift decided to show his hand first.
“As promised, I will offer Fort Pesra to Grand General Raisha. Furthermore, I will provide you with the information we’ve gathered about the Empire.”
Seeing Marvel Swift’s confident demeanor, Duke Raisha nodded.
“Very well, first show me your sincerity. I will trust your words according to the sincerity you show.”
“Thank you.”
With this, it was done.
Marvel Swift believed that once they handed over Fort Pesra, Duke Raisha, who held the position of Grand General and was the head of the Raisha Duchy, the highest-ranking family in the Kingdom of Merdea, would keep his promise.
He was unaware that this was a misunderstanding created because all the information he had received about Duke Raisha was false!
#77 Their Circumstances: The Situation of Duke Religieus Lu Raisha
“Has he left?”
“Yes, sir.”
After sending off the Howling organization member, Duke Raisha spoke to his subordinate while looking out the window.
“It was a good deal.”
“As expected of you, Duke- no, Grand General! You obtained Fort Pesra from the opponent with perfect diplomatic skills.”
Perfect flattery.
Watching his subordinate grovel while rubbing his hands together, Duke Raisha nodded as if it were natural.
“Mere dirty blood from the underworld. Even if they were once royalty, that was a thousand years ago. How could they possibly match up to me, the head of the noble Raisha duchy?”
“Indeed, sir.”
“When we take Fort Pesra without bloodshed, the voices praising me will grow louder. At this rate, the position of Great Duke isn’t far off.”
What should I name the Great duchy?
As he was muttering thus, Duke Raisha suddenly exclaimed as if something had occurred to him.
“That’s right! Do you perhaps know about the Kingdom of Pelgras and the Kingdom of Marveluf?”
“Pardon?”
The subordinate was momentarily confused by such a basic question.
Even if one might not know about the Kingdom of Pelgras, wasn’t the Kingdom of Marveluf a name that always appeared in the basic history of the Kingdom of Merdea?
After all, the Kingdom of Merdea was established by the descendants of the fallen Kingdom of Marveluf!
“Hmm… I see you don’t know either. I was thrown off when that fellow from Howling spouted nonsense about how the two kingdoms had a good relationship.”
However, Duke Raisha seemed to think that his subordinate’s confusion was due to not knowing about the two countries, just like himself.
“I-is that so?”
The subordinate, trying his best not to show his bewilderment at Duke Raisha’s words, bowed his head.
“Well then, let’s look forward to Howling offering Fort Pesra. If it works out, good; if not, we lose nothing.”
And so Duke Raisha, who had passed on the information received from Howling to his subordinate, remained unaware.
Unaware that all the information he had received was hastily written by an information agent from an evil organization who couldn’t be bothered!
And unaware of how this would change the future of the Kingdom of Merdea!
