A Famous Traitor and Treacherous Genius

7 – These funds are now mine (2)

‘I’ve never tried to do anything special until now.’

I have never taken the initiative in doing anything, but I was faithful to my role in my position.

‘When I was young, I was just an ordinary master.’

Before he turned 20, before the kingdom collapsed, he became the heir to the count’s family.

‘Even though I became an adult, all I did was run the count family as a count.’

After turning 20, after the empire took over the kingdom, he became a count.

‘He just did what his father told him to do.’

Whether as a child or as an adult, I followed my father’s orders.

‘I tried many things while on the throne, but I didn’t do them with sincerity.’

I had a variety of experiences in that position, and even tried to run my own fiefdom as a count.

‘All she knows how to do is manage her business, so what can I do for her?’

Where should I use that experience?

How can I use it?

How can I repay Naria?

‘What should I do?’

By doing so, what do I want to achieve?

‘For Princess Naria, what should I do?’

First of all, as a starting point for the question, we begin with one clear premise.

‘This country has no answer.’

The Kingdom of Nostrum must be destroyed.

‘The parts that need to be cut out are spread throughout the kingdom.’

There are so many ills in this country.

This is true of nobles, merchants, and even ordinary farmers.

‘Just look at the king. He’s a crazy guy who messed with the Margrave’s wife because of his past love.’

Just looking at the king, the pinnacle of the situation, isn’t he an ‘incompetent king’?

Only by cutting out all of that can the kingdom become stable.

Or rather, overthrow the entire kingdom.

‘But we can’t hand over the kingdom to the empire.’

The emperor of the empire was crazy.

‘Handing over the kingdom to the empire? Princess Naria will definitely be killed.’

As soon as they occupy the kingdom, they will enslave its citizens and play with them cruelly.

The royal family will be killed, the nobles will be overthrown and made into slaves, and the people will live in fear as residents of the colony for the rest of their lives.

‘I’ll use it as much as I can as a rag, but when I get a new rag, I’ll throw it away without mercy.’

Just as they threw down the Earl of Gibraltar, who had contributed greatly to ruling the kingdom.

‘Then, stay still?’

Let it go on like this?

The future will repeat itself again.

‘What is living right? Dethrones his father, and fulfills his honor as Earl of Gibraltar?’

So, as the Earl of Gibraltar, I become the shield that protects the empire?

‘It’s possible, but what’s the point?’

History will repeat itself.

The kingdom and nobles will take Gibraltar’s sacrifice for granted, and there will be no glory or reward.

‘You will get her approval, but that’s all she is. Even compensation will be blocked from those around me.’

Ah.

I don’t know what it is like for her, but I’m sure those around her will try to sabotage her.

If you think about what you can do for a bright future.

‘For sewage, disinfection is the answer.’

How to brighten the country is not my role.

‘I don’t know anything about proper politics.’

I don’t know much about that, and I’ve never thought about it in the first place.

I’ve lived without thinking about anything for 30 years, and there’s no point in worrying about it now.

Instead.

‘You can clean up unclean things.’

You can do as much as wiping off dirt.

Then, if you were to pick the most unclean thing at the moment –

Incompetent King.

Nobles.

Emperor of the Empire.

It would be nice if we could process all three at once, but it’s impossible right now.

In that case, you can move step by step as if you are stacking stairs.

Someday, when Princess Naria holds her coronation, at least there won’t be a traitor next to her.

What if I become the focal point of traitors and they are all purged along with me?

‘It’s not a perfect plan.’

There is no such thing as perfection.

‘But, at least I can erase it as much as possible.’

If there is only enough left for Naria to deal with, I can take the rest with me.

‘Trash knows best when it comes to trash.’

Just like maggots entangled in dirty water, those who stand in Naria’s way will become Naria’s antipodes.

So.

‘Should we gather all the traitors together and have a party?’

Based on what I do best, I gather all trash under me.

‘It would be nice if we all drank poisoned wine and died on the spot.’

For him, I must become a thorough traitor.

Garbage that sells the country.

I don’t know anything else.

Because that’s what I’m best at.

* * *

“Has your father ever wasted his budget?”

“…….”

“You probably don’t have one. Yes, of course. My father was a ‘Gibraltarian’ more than anyone else.”

My father quietly listened to my voice.

“Let’s think about my father’s public image. Integrity and innocence. This one word can define the Margrave of Gibraltar.”

“Hmm.”

My father was embarrassed and touched his chin with his hand.

Who would think that face was in his late 30s, but unfortunately, the same was true for the Incompetent King and his mother.

“If such an innocent person suddenly commits corruption and engages in crime, the kingdom will certainly think strange of him.”

“…….”

“So, as a son, I am stepping forward. Just like my father asked me to do.”

“No, I didn’t go that far-“

“You must do this thoroughly.”

My father denies it, but I know the truth.

“I will take care of the corruption. Didn’t I tell you? You can just live as a margrave with a foolish son and trouble yourself with your children’s farming.”

“…….”

“No one will be able to doubt you. I will attract all the attention, so please just take care of my mishaps and play the role of a good father to my younger siblings.”

“…I feel like I’m putting a big burden on you, I’m sorry.”

“You can’t be sorry.”

There is no reason to be sorry.

“In the end, I do it for my own convenience.”

“…….”

“I guess I’m not Gibraltar-like to live as a good and benevolent person.”

“hahahahaha!”

My father burst into laughter.

“So, are you saying Gibraltar is a hot spot?”

“Was it wrong?”

“No, that’s right. It’s a vulgar expression, but historically – for generations, he was a bully. A fool with patriotism and loyalty.”

It was an extreme thing to say in a study where ancestors were watching, but my father did not take back what he said.

“… Even our ancestors will understand. My wife was molested by the king. How could she remain silent?”

Is it an illusion?

It feels like the portraits of our ancestors looking solemnly ahead are nodding their heads.

‘Maybe it’s because I sympathize with that too.’

The woman I love is harassed by another man.

No matter what the reality may be, the father’s anger is justified, at least in terms of ‘the fact that the father is aware of.’

“Then what can we do to prevent Gibraltar from becoming a tyrant? Now, let’s get to the point.”

My father opened one of the locked drawers and took out a large pile of parchment on the desk.

“These are materials about the Gibraltar Gate.”

“…….”

Actually, I know because I’ve already seen it all.

I know everything, including data from 10 years later and data I wrote myself.

“Where should I start explaining? About the origin of the gate?”

“It’s okay. I’ll look into the details. For now… I think it’s enough to just talk about the ‘Cloud Bridge’.”

“Hmm, really?”

My father looks slightly disappointed.

Since it is Gibraltar, it seems they expected me to talk about history.

‘That’s for Noir or Lettar, give it to her younger siblings.’

Origin of the gateway?

One. The founder of Gibraltar was a wizard.

Two. He was a close friend of the first king, and the founder decided to become a shield that would protect the kingdom for generations to come.

Three. Instead, they pledged to provide all possible support for Gibraltar.

My father would like to tell a long story about the founders of the two families, but what I want to focus on is this third one.

“The kingdom has an obligation to provide sufficient support for the maintenance and repair of the gateway.”

“That is….”

“Yes. It is a customary law based on a long-standing covenant. From the time of our ancestors…It was a law that virtually disappeared from the time of my great-grandfather.”

The current ladder and viaduct were built long after the canyon was built.

“During my great-grandfather’s reign, the margrave had to go out to inspect the gates and open the gates and do maintenance every time.”

“Yes. Did you have to open and check at least two of the three doors every time?”

“My great-grandfather built a 50m ladder and allowed workers to climb up and down the ladder.”

“Yes. In fact, it is semi-permanent….”

“In other words, there is no problem even if we strengthen the facilities a bit in our time.”

“…….”

My father rubbed his chin again and tilted his head.

“Are you saying we should remove the ladder and install a new one? Or build another ladder next to it?”

“Rather than a ladder… Yes, that would be better. There has to be a purpose that can be understood in the kingdom as well.”

If you are going to make it, it would be nice to make something that is convenient for ‘her’ as well.

When Princess Naria comes here someday, I want to be able to comfortably see over the 50m wall.

“Let’s make an elevator.”

As expected, the answer would be to create a device that can automatically go up and down.

“It’s an elevator… I know it, but it’s hard to make it…”

“Yes. It will cost more than just maintenance. It will not be passed easily. So, I will ask your permission for one thing.”

At least for this moment, I have to put my neck on the line.

“You use your mother.”

“……What?”

The temperature in the study is dropping coldly.

He is his own son, he is his own son, and he does not reap the life he shed in an instant.

“What did you just say?”

“For now, you have to use your mother. I am a 10-year-old child, and that is the only way to get a huge budget from the king.”

“……You.”

“I will persuade my mother.”

“…….”

My father furrows his eyebrows.

At a glance, you can see that a lover of his mother and a traitor who has decided to rebel are arguing inside.

“Using her Charlotte, you’re going to extract a budget from that bastard? Ugh….”

However, the lover’s temperament is still greater, and the father is unable to let go of his displeasure and desperation.

“And this is also for my father.”

“This is for me?”

“Yes.”

Use whatever is available.

“If you do it right, you might be able to reunite with your mother.”

“!!”

After returning from the palace.

To this day, the Earl of Gibraltar and his wife are living separately.

“…….”

“It may be a child who can comfort a mother for a moment, but the one who can pat a mother by her side every night is -“

“It’s just me.”

Permission was obtained.

* * *

My father kept raising doubts about the ‘how’ part, but I did not tell him in detail about the method.

Why?

“Are you threatening me now…?”

“Yes.”

I did not come to appease and persuade her mother, but to exploit her weaknesses and threaten her.

“My father’s treason has been confirmed. Then, as the eldest son, I must do my best behind the scenes to make the treason successful.”

“You….”

“Mother. Even if I commit treason, it does not mean killing His Majesty the King.”

“!!”

We delve into the part that the mother was most worried about.

“This is a kind of rebellion. It is a regime change that deposes King Saint Geo Nostrum and appoints someone else as king.”

“Government…Change?”

“Yes. My father is not rebelling against Nostrum, but he is rebelling against Saint Geo Nostrum.”

“…….”

“The conclusion was that we would join hands with the empire through that method, which was a bit extreme, but I understand it. Right now, even my mother has a negative stance on treason, so which of the Count’s soldiers would truly go along with treason?”

Treason without cause has no cause.

And currently there is only an emotional half justification.

“Soon, a proposal for canyon redevelopment and new civil engineering projects will be written centered on my father. All my mother needs to do is write a letter under the proposal that will be delivered to the king.”

“Letter….”

“I didn’t get caught. But I don’t know what will happen, so let’s not provoke my father for the time being.”

“!!”

My mother trembled, but I answered by placing my hand on her chest.

“I will personally deliver my mother’s letter. That will be okay, right?”

“…….”

“Ah. Of course, you have to seal it. I’m just an innocent eldest son who, following my mother’s orders, delivers a letter to His Majesty the King without knowing anything.”

Even if there is a secret letter, I would never have opened it.

“Even if I can’t cheer you on, I can help you to that extent. hehehehe.”

“…Are you my son…?”

“Of course.”

Because he is my son, I take care of him.

“If I were a bastard, I would have reported my mother a long time ago and taken her place as the legitimate son.”