NOVEL NEXT Ch. 34
– Yes, that’s right. Actually, I was so busy that I was planning to finish decorating the annex in the spring… but it seems fine if you, Young Master Dermi, could take care of it on my behalf.
At my words, I caught the second son’s lips twitching upward for a brief moment.
Though he quickly raised his hand to pretend to stroke his mustache and cover his mouth, he couldn’t hide it from me.
The foolish second son of Baron Dermi.
He was like a moth flying straight into a fire I had set, without even realizing it.
– Thank you for trusting me this much. I’ll do my best to help you, Lady Belladi.
The second son spoke with a friendly smile.
But in my ears, it sounded more like.
‘Great, I’ve caught a real sucker today-‘
… or something along those lines.
I, too, kept smiling as I looked at the second son.
– Then, later on, make sure to prepare a separate report on the account book and submit it to me.
Of course, my words also carried an implied meaning.
‘I know you’re going to embezzle comfortably. I’m giving you the authority knowingly. Do it well, alright?’
That was about three months ago, when we both hid our true intentions and smiled at each other.
Since then, the second son had completed the furniture work for the annex and presented the account book to me.
‘I was planning to ambush him a little later after he got more comfortable.’
But this opportunity—I would deal with him along with the spy.
I opened the account book to check how much my trapped prey had fattened.
“Alright, Akt Dermi. Let’s see how bold you are.”
Since I planned to blow it all up at once, I hadn’t even bothered to look at the account book until now.
Humming internally, I began to slowly go through the book, and soon one of my eyebrows crooked.
“What is this?”
The account book had attached receipts and contracts for the furniture the second son had purchased over time.
I flipped through the pages quickly, inspecting them closely. Other than the prices being slightly above average, there wasn’t much of an issue with the receipts.
Yes, the fact that there was no issue was the problem.
Grinding my teeth, I tore off one of the attached contracts.
The final payment was listed at the bottom of the contract.
Total Payment: 15,000 Gold.
“Huh, fifteen thousand gold?”
I had already inspected the furniture in the annex, which was now essentially my treasure vault. According to Emily, furniture of that level could be acquired for around five thousand gold.
In other words, the second son had inflated the amount on the account by ten thousand gold.
This was a typical trick of his—introduce a so-called
The problem was, compared to the five hundred million gold he embezzled in the original story, this amount was absurdly small.
‘Ha, both the spy and this guy—everyone trying to rob the Alton family is a fool.’
Of course, the five hundred million gold in the original story was money the second son had diligently siphoned off over four years.
I didn’t expect him to embezzle that much in one go. But I had laid everything out for him to take as much as possible, and yet…!
“Why is he being so timid?”
With such a small embezzlement, my profit would also be reduced.
Typically, the bigger the crime, the larger the reward for catching them. In that sense, ten thousand gold was an amount too insignificant to even bother with.
I tapped my finger on the desk, deep in thought.
‘Resetting the trap is a hassle.’
I realized the second son had a small appetite. Watching him continue to embezzle would just be a waste of time.
‘Well, there’s no helping it. I’ll have to step in myself.’
After all, waiting patiently for the trap to work didn’t suit my nature. I should have just shot him and dealt with it quickly, but I had been uncharacteristically patient.
I reached out and rang the bell on the desk. Soon after, the door opened, and Stia, who had been waiting, entered.
“You called for me, Lady Belladi?”
“Bring Zeppelin.”
Alright, time to set up a new game.
With various thoughts in mind, I smiled slyly.
***
Zeppelin leisurely roamed the back alleys of the capital.
He reached up and stroked the unfamiliar mustache on his upper lip.
‘Lady Belladi is truly a genius…!’
Managing her household duties, finishing her own training, and undergoing advanced education with her friend—she was already too busy for three lives. When did she have time to concoct such an entertaining plan?
Zeppelin was currently disguised as Akt Dermi, the second son of the Dermi family, under Belladi’s orders. Just like the time with William.
He hastened his steps to carry out his master’s command.
-Zeppelin, head to this place immediately.
-This is…
–That’s right.
Belladi handed him a slip of paper with an address, looking nonchalant as he spoke.
-It’s a private vault managed by a mercenary group.
Ding-
When Zeppelin opened the shabby door, an old bell hanging from it rang.
The place he entered was a tavern. In various corners of the bar, a few men were guzzling drinks or playing card games, chuckling among themselves.
However, those in the know were well aware that this tavern, which seemed like a typical back-alley dive, was just a front.
Zeppelin, who often frequented such places while acting as a watcher, headed to the bartender with familiarity.
The bartender, noticing Zeppelin with the face of the second son of Dermi, glanced at him and asked curtly.
“What’ll you have?”
Zeppelin stretched his neck, making sure his face was clearly visible, and said.
“The weather’s nice today.”
As he spoke, he pulled a fountain pen from his coat. The rough-looking bartender remained silent as he took the pen.
In the meantime, Zeppelin recalled his conversation with Belladi.
—You know how those storage vaults work, don’t you?
—Yes. After handing over the specially customized key provided by the mercenary group, you say the designated password, and they’ll lead you to the vault.
—Good. Here’s a copy of the completed key.
What Belladi handed over at that moment was the very fountain pen.
The bartender examined the pen carefully. Zeppelin watched with a relaxed demeanor.
‘There’s no way he can tell.’
The fountain pen was crafted by two former thieves-turned-watchers, based on the second son’s original. It was Zeppelin himself who pickpocketed it from the second son of Dermi’s pocket and returned it to him.
As expected, the bartender handed the pen back and asked.
“What’s so great about the weather?”
At this, Zeppelin stroked his mustache, mimicking the second son, and smiled innocently.
“The sunlight was shining clearly on the leaves.”
“Hmm…”
Hearing this, the bartender nodded.
“Follow me.”
The bartender’s tone had become polite. Zeppelin couldn’t help but quietly admire the change.
‘As expected of our Lady Belladi!’
This was a password that even Zeppelin hadn’t known.
‘To figure it out on her own without any help from the watchers!’
Internally praising Belladi’s brilliance, Zeppelin followed the bartender.
The bartender approached a corner of the tavern and opened an old door. Behind it was a staircase leading down to the basement.
“You can make your way down on your own, can’t you?”
“Of course.”
The layout of these private vaults was more or less the same everywhere.
Zeppelin leisurely descended the dark stairs. After walking down for quite a while, a bright light appeared at the bottom.
When he reached the end, Zeppelin saw a large, sturdy double-door, with two hefty guards standing on either side, and a thin man sitting at the counter in the center.
“It’s been a while, Mr. Akt.”
The man, clearly familiar with the second son of Dermi, stood up immediately to greet him.
Zeppelin shook the man’s outstretched hand and smiled.
“Yes, it has been a while.”
“Are you here to deposit new funds today as well?”
“Hahaha, today I’m here to leave something a bit special.”
At Zeppelin’s words, the man’s eyes gleamed with interest.
“Something special? That sounds intriguing.”
The vaults operated by the mercenary groups also served as pawnshops. Naturally, the more valuable the collateral, the larger the sum one could borrow.
Wearing the same smile as the second son, Zeppelin pulled out a box from inside his jacket. The weight of the box felt much heavier than usual as he thought about its contents.
“This is it.”
Zeppelin casually placed the box on the desk.
Seeing the thin and elegant design of the box, the man put on his monocle and smiled carefully.
“Well now, judging by the box alone, it seems to be quite a valuable item. Let’s see what we’ve got here.”
The man leisurely opened the box with delicate hands, but then froze in shock.
“M-Mr. Akt… this is…”
Zeppelin could fully understand the man’s reaction.
The item Zeppelin had brought was not something typically handled by mercenary pawnshops.
“Are these… are they all genuine?”
Inside the box were a pearl necklace and earrings, both shimmering with radiant colors.
The man’s hands trembled. Even without appraisal, he could tell that each pearl was of the highest quality.
Speaking with much more tension in his voice, the man said.
“In that case, we can’t take responsibility for them. It would be much safer to entrust this to the Empire’s Central Bank…”
“Shh, do you not understand why I came here?”
Zeppelin whispered, bringing his finger to his lips.
“You know very well how I accumulate my funds.”
Those who used the expensive private vaults of mercenary groups were all the same.
They were people who couldn’t afford to be open about their wealth, those who accumulated riches through illegal means.
While the Empire’s Central Bank only handled funds with clear origins, the mercenary groups didn’t ask any questions about where the money came from.
According to Belladi, that was why the second son of Dermi secretly stashed his ill-gotten money here as well.
At Zeppelin’s words, the man nodded.
“Well, yes, that’s true… in that case, how much are you looking to borrow?”
The man’s question was the same one Zeppelin had asked Belladi.
—So, how much should I borrow with these jewels?
With a sly smile, Belladi had answered.
—Ten million.
At that moment, the look in her eyes had sparkled with mischievousness.