Chapter 58
Solinor came looking to give a proper lesson to the treacherous officials, but instead, he encountered an ace.
For a while, Solinor reviewed documents with Patrick.
One page, then another—meticulously, ensuring nothing was overlooked.
“Oh-ho, aha, so that’s what it was.”
“Yes, Princess. What is visible is not everything; you must read the intentions hidden beneath.”
The princess had already returned to speaking formally.
Earlier, she had deliberately come in ready for a fight, bringing enough force to make her threats credible.
However, after a brief conversation, she realized that the man before her was an exceptionally rare ethical official in Silbrenoa.
“I really had no idea about these details. So I just skimmed over them.”
“Yes. Bureaucrats are quite clever when it comes to these matters.”
To be honest, when reviewing documents alone or with Anton, she had overlooked many things.
No matter how much experience she had as a ruler, how well could she truly understand paperwork?
The same applied to Anton. He knew how to read budget reports, but ultimately, he was a historian.
“But now that I know, I’m even angrier. To think there were officials stealing the nation’s money in such a calculated way.”
“Yes, Princess. It truly is a lamentable matter.”
The officials who had deliberately devised ways to embezzle taxes had hidden their schemes with great skill.
It was impossible for two non-experts to catch everything on their own.
However, working alongside Patrick, all these hidden tricks quickly came to light.
Truly, the expertise of a high-ranking official who had spent years in the budget department.
“Sigh, when I reviewed this before, I missed more than half of it. I’ll need to be more careful from now on. Though, if I do it alone, I’ll probably miss things again.”
“No, Princess. Someone as perceptive as you will quickly grasp the key points.”
Solinor thought about how he would boast about what he learned today when he had his next lesson with Anton.
Of course, since Mondays were spent with Adeline, it would have to wait until Wednesday.
“I should teach these methods to Anton next time.”
“Oh, Anton? Come to think of it, he talks about you quite often, Princess. Now that I’ve met you in person, you are far sharper than what I heard.”
“…What?”
Solinor was startled. This official knew Anton?
“You know Anton? He’s my history teacher.”
“Yes, of course. Anton has been a friend of mine for decades.”
“Hmm, then what’s your name, mister? I’ll ask Anton about you.”
“My name is Patrick, Princess. And please, you may speak casually with me. I feel unworthy of such respect from someone of your stature.”
Princess Muriela shook her head.
“No, if you are Anton’s friend, and if you have worked hard to minimize national treasury waste with such integrity, then you deserve to have your abilities and loyalty recognized. On the contrary, as a member of the royal family who has allowed such corruption to persist, I should be the one apologizing and expressing my gratitude.”
“Oh, please rise, Princess! Someone of your noble status should not bow to a mere servant like me!”
Princess Muriela lowered her head in a formal bow.
Patrick hurriedly knelt to match her gesture.
However, since the young princess was so small, it created an amusing scene.
Even while kneeling, Patrick’s head remained much higher than hers.
Even when the princess finally stood up, Patrick remained on his knees.
Of course, Solinor already understood this etiquette.
He had seen Sir Hamilton do the same when they had gone into the city of Solineum.
“You may rise now.”
After a moment, Patrick stood up and let out a sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, Sir Hamilton, who had been watching from the side, chuckled quietly to himself.
Watching the scene unfold reminded him of something both bewildering and heartwarming.
‘Our adorable little princess seems to have a habit of suddenly bowing to her subordinates and catching them off guard.’
There was no way he could forget—after all, she had done the same thing to him not too long ago.
And because of that moment, he had sworn his absolute loyalty to her.
Perhaps this was a special charm unique to the princess.
Of course, it wasn’t just words—her sincerity carried an overwhelming weight, making it all the more effective.
‘It seems that the princess plans to win over the bureaucrats one by one like this.’
Hamilton was astonished by the grand ambition of the young princess.
She was only eight years old, without a mother… Ah, that wasn’t meant to be an insult—anyway, a motherless princess at such a young age, yet with such remarkable skills.
At this rate, by the time she came of age, she might have complete control over the entire royal palace.
Bianca, who stood beside them, was secretly impressed.
The smile on her lips couldn’t have looked more pleased. Our little girl(?) is this amazing!
Of course, with her limited understanding, it was beyond her ability to grasp what was actually happening.
‘Not sure what’s going on, but as expected of our princess!’
She barely understood what Muriela and Patrick were excitedly discussing, only blinking in confusion.
But she wasn’t particularly surprised.
‘As Muriela’s personal attendant, would I really be startled by something like this?’
It wasn’t the first time Princess Muriela had pulled off something astonishing. At this point, she was completely used to it.
‘Though I do wish she’d cause fewer problems.’
Of course, not all of Muriela’s incredible actions had been positive.
The garden sabotage incident, the destruction of the window safety locks, the unauthorized exploration of the royal gardens—just to name a few.
Many of them had been exhausting, baffling, or outright troublesome.
‘But I suppose raising a child is like that.’
Even if it wasn’t actually her child.
Still, if she ever got married and had children, she wanted a child like Muriela.
Not that she had any time to meet someone, thanks to her work as a lady-in-waiting.
Fortunately, after two years, a new recruit, Florina, had arrived, finally giving her occasional days off.
But between their overlapping shifts and her constant responsibilities, romance was out of the question.
‘Well, I’m only in my early twenties. I still have time!’
Though, realistically, she didn’t have that much time.
In this world, people usually married in their late teens or early twenties.
Which meant Bianca was on the edge of the marriage market.
Solinor, who had married at nearly forty, was considered extremely late.
Still, she wasn’t without options.
Even if she was slightly older, having served as the princess’s lady-in-waiting was an unbeatable credential.
Especially if that princess became an influential figure.
In other words, the more renowned Muriela became, the greater Bianca’s prospects would be.
As she enjoyed watching the princess, both the knight and the lady-in-waiting were suddenly startled.
“Patrick. Then all of this is Father’s fault!”
“Th-that is not quite the case. How can we blame His Majesty for the greed of bureaucrats embezzling tax money?”
“Really?”
Muriela tilted her head.
“Yes, it was my colleagues and I who carelessly approved their fraudulent budgets.”
“But wasn’t it still wrong for my father to approve them without paying any attention?”
“No, the real fault lies with me—knowing about it and failing to report it.”
“Then why didn’t you report it?”
“…Because I am a coward, Princess.”
Patrick swallowed the words he truly wanted to say.
It wasn’t something trivial like You should call him ‘Royal Father,’ not just ‘Father’.
His fellow officials, those in charge of the budget department, not only approved these fabricated expenses but also accepted bribes in return.
He wanted to expose them.
But Eldric, the king, was the type who would demote the whistleblower instead.
And the princess standing before him was still too young.
Reporting a problem they couldn’t fix immediately would achieve nothing.
‘Unless His Majesty himself wakes up to the reality of this corruption, this issue will never be solved.’
Of course, today’s conversation had given him a glimmer of hope.
Just as Anton had claimed, Princess Muriela was truly remarkable.
Since her rank in the line of succession was too low, Patrick had always brushed off Anton’s praise.
“Oh, come on. No matter how exceptional she is, Crown Prince Alfred will be king. Why take such a risky gamble?”
Yet despite saying that, he had still joined this ‘pointless risk’ by leaking financial documents.
Part of it was because he couldn’t ignore his old friend’s desperate plea.
But beyond that, even if he had dismissed it as impossible, a small part of him had wanted to believe in her.
And now, after witnessing her insight, her ambition, and her character firsthand, he realized—
She really might become the next ruler.
I may not live long enough to see her take the throne, but the future…
Patrick let out a bittersweet smile.
But at that moment, a shocking sentence reached his ears.
“All right. Then tell me where your colleagues live.”
“…What?”
Startled, Patrick turned to look at the princess.
She was smiling.
Not with the innocence of a child, but with a firm, determined smile that carried an undeniable weight.
—
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