Chapter 155

Chapter 155:  Red Mithril (3)

Poor facilities, and untrained workers pulled from the village.

The result was obvious, even without seeing it.

Drawn in only by the promise of earning money, the village youths had been thrown into this without any proper training.

In a situation like this, even in a fake mine, problems were bound to arise.

‘Edward must’ve been quite shaken inside.’

He probably intended to only pretend to dig the mine—just scratch the surface.

But Nordic was the region with the weakest ground even in the North.

In the first stage of tunneling, rocks fell from above, causing a string of injuries.

Then, during the mining process, a second collapse occurred.

After that, the village youths became terrified and refused to go near the site until proper tools and experts arrived.

Edward must have heard about all this.

Even so, there was no way he would willingly bring in proper mining equipment.

Bringing in outside personnel would mean the disastrous situation in the mine might leak to the outside.

“Priests, please come with me and check on the most urgent patients first.”

“Yes, Saint……!!”

Istina, who was always strangely impish, wore a serious expression for the first time today.

She began tending to the wounded with a look befitting her title of "Saint."

Still, it wasn’t as if she could perform surgery herself.

All she could do was administer treatment that eased bruises and pain.

For severe injuries like dislocated or broken bones, surgical procedures were necessary.

“What exactly does the Luton family think of its people? Even slavers wouldn’t treat them this way.”

Istina asked me in a voice brimming with rage.

I couldn’t bring myself to answer easily.

“……”

In my previous life, whether willingly or not, I had taken part in the evil deeds of that family.

And in this life, I had come here to settle that karmic debt.

“I’ll speak to him myself.”

I turned my gaze toward Foreman Duncan, who was watching the situation from a distance with a pained expression.

Despite the fact that the young men—like his own sons—were receiving treatment, his face was still full of complicated emotions.

“Foreman, step outside with me for a moment.”

“……”

He approached me with slow steps.

He couldn’t even look me in the eye, just stood there with his head hanging low.

“How much did Edward offer you? How many gold coins did you pocket for the lives of these village youths?”

“I didn’t take anything…….”

That couldn’t be true.

What kind of responsible adult would send his village’s precious youths into a hell like this without compensation?

Especially at a time when most of the younger generation had already left for Nord.

In a world like this, he must have received some kind of reward—that’s why he was so desperate to hide and ignore the situation.

“If you keep trying to cover this up, you’ll be dragged to the tribunal yourself.”

The tribunal.

That single cold remark—I knew it would make him speak in the end.

Nord was known across the Empire for its harsh punishments and the highest sentences.

“F-Foreman didn’t do anything wrong……!! We did this because we wanted to!!”

“That’s right, Foundation Director. Mr. Duncan is not to blame!!”

But strangely enough, the injured youths didn’t seem to agree with my assumption at all.

Instead, they were eager to defend the bearded man before them.

Among them, Luca’s voice—now clear thanks to his pain having subsided—rang out the loudest.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I’ll explain…….”

Duncan finally opened his mouth with a worn-out voice.

“It all began when we met Prince Edward’s secretary.”

Letting out a long sigh, he seemed to be reliving a sorrowful memory.

“He looked around our village, and after seeing how underdeveloped it was, he promised to help modernize it. That’s how he got our agreement to develop the mine.”

The foreman and I stood together at the entrance to the hut.

While listening to the gradually fading screams of the injured, he continued.

“At first, it seemed so promising. Unlike other nobles, the Luton family even had us sign a formal agreement, and real equipment started arriving in the village.”

“But as we can see, the development didn’t proceed properly, did it?”

Duncan slowly shook his head, as if to say I was right.

“That’s right… The equipment was pitifully insufficient and shabby. Which is why, in the end, this accident happened.”

“They must’ve wanted to cover up the accident so that the company’s poor management wouldn’t be exposed.”

The foreman stayed silent for a moment.

Then, he slipped a hand into the inside pocket of his worn-out jacket...

And pulled out a check written for a considerable amount.

“He said he’d send proper medical staff soon. Until then, he told me to use this money to take care of the injured.”

Ten million gold.

It could be seen as a little, or a lot.

Especially in a neglected place like this.

What doctor would willingly step into such a dangerous region for ten million gold to treat dozens of injured workers?

In the end, this was nothing more than hush money—an allowance tossed at the foreman to buy his silence.

“But in a place like this, no matter how much money you have, there’s nothing you can actually do.”

“That’s right. Money’s only good if there’s somewhere to spend it.”

The nearest hospital was absurdly far away, and there was nowhere nearby that sold medical equipment either.

Knowing all this, yet still holding onto the money so carefully…

It meant that this middle-aged man standing before me wasn’t someone who had acted out of greed.

That was likely why the injured youths were so quick to defend him.

“I’m sorry… I only started this hoping we could all have a better life… I never imagined it would turn out like this.”

Transparent tears began to fall from the eyes of the foreman—old enough to be their father.

Not wanting to show weakness, he bowed his head even deeper.

And so, the tears collecting in his eyes fell helplessly to the ground.

“I always thought the Grand Duke’s House was the most virtuous and noble place in the North… but now I feel betrayed……”

I closed my eyes for a moment.

There was no doubt—I was not a member of the Grand Duke’s House.

I wasn’t Duke Luton’s son, nor even one of his employees.

And yet, for some reason, a dull ache settled in my chest.

As if all of this was part of my karmic burden.

“Would you be willing to give me an honest interview?”

“But… wouldn’t that invite retaliation from the Grand Duke’s House…?”

The foreman glanced nervously toward the village youths being treated.

In response, I pulled out the spirit stone I had prepared earlier from inside my coat.

“It’s fine. I’ll take care of everything.”

The very same item I had used once before—back when I handled a certain Nordique official.

“This is a magic stone that can record your voice. Through this, I plan to document everything that happened today…”

My eyes gleamed sharply.

With the same ominous expression I’d worn when I dealt with Freya.

“And send it to someone even higher than the Grand Duke.”

Someone higher than the Grand Duke.

For a man who had spent his entire life in the rural reaches of Nord, that idea seemed unimaginable.

“Higher than the Grand Duke? Then, don’t tell me…”

I gave him a knowing smile as he caught on.

“Yes. I’m going to report this directly to His Majesty the Emperor.”

To him, the Emperor was like a god—someone seen only during grand ceremonies in the capital.

Especially for people in remote villages, even dreaming of such an encounter was unthinkable.

And yet here I was, barely twenty years old, promising to make it happen right in front of him.

“Who… exactly are you…?”

The middle-aged man seemed to lose strength in his legs. He swayed and stared blankly at me.

“I’m just a young man who wants to see the North—my home—thrive.”

To that man, I replied with a bold expression.

“Just like you.”

「――――――」

About an hour later.

I finally managed to get an honest interview from Foreman Duncan.

Afterward, I headed down to the shabby village park with Istina, who had just finished tending to the wounded.

“Haa—look at what I’m doing in the middle of nowhere, all thanks to a certain someone.”

The Saint gently pulled down the hood she had been wearing low over her face.

Sure enough, she looked like she’d been through a lot. Her silver hair clung slightly to her pale face.

Beads of sweat glided down her smooth neck and into the deep line of her collarbone.

“From the way you’re talking, it doesn’t sound like you came here for regular volunteer work. More like you happened to get dragged along.”

I narrowed my sly eyes and turned toward the shameless Saint, staring straight at her.

Because I already had a pretty good idea that she wasn’t here out of pure charity.

“Usually in rural areas, you just patch up a scraped knee or take care of an elder with aches.”

But she wasn’t about to back down either.

As eloquent as I was, she was just as skilled in speech—always ready with a clever reply.

“How did you even know to chase me all the way here?”

“I didn’t follow you. It just so happened that our volunteer schedules overlapped.”

At that, I decided to come out and ask directly.

“Then why did I see your knights trailing after me? And after that, you showed up.”

“……”

At the mention of being caught tailing me, the Saint slowly turned her head.

With her eyes shut tight, she murmured quietly,

“I told them to be more careful with the surveillance…”

She let out a soft sigh.

Then, looking at me like I was some naïve boy, she narrowed her eyes and scolded me.

“Can’t you just pretend you didn’t notice things like that?”

“The stares your holy knights were giving me were so intense, I started wondering if I’d committed blasphemy or something.”

Istina lightly brushed off her hood.

From the white fabric came a faint, mixed scent of her skin and a deep soap fragrance—subtle but distinct.

“I didn’t mean anything bad. When I heard you were suddenly heading into some remote countryside, I thought you were trying to run off after stirring up a mess.”

She rested her soft chin on the palm of her hand.

Then, like a goddess looking down on the world, she opened her eyes wide and spoke.

“If you were really running away, I was going to catch you and drag you back.”

“Me? Do I really seem that irresponsible to you?”

Istina raised her index finger to form the number one.

“You already ran away from the Grand Duke’s House once. That makes you a repeat offender.”

“Let’s call that an evacuation, shall we? As you saw for yourself, the Grand Duke’s House is a sinking ship right now.”

She let out a short laugh, amused by my refusal to concede even one word.

Then, like a sulking girl, she muttered again to herself.

“You really are like a fox.”

“Pardon…?”

When I tilted my head in confusion, she gave a small laugh and moved on.

“Never mind. So, you're really planning to report all this to the Emperor yourself?”

“I have to. Reporters from Gold Morning will be arriving soon. Once they finish their on-site coverage, the report will head straight for the Imperial Palace.”

I rested a hand on the park bench and gazed out at the quiet village.

“Edward’s twisted expression should be quite the sight.”

“So, are you planning to stay here until then?”

Istina gently swayed her head from side to side like a bored young lady in the countryside.

She looked just like a metronome resting on top of a piano.

“Yes. I’ve already unpacked my things at the inn.”

“Hmmm—”

The Saint turned to look at the shabby inn I had pointed to.

Then, her blue eyes flicked sideways, as if an odd thought had come to mind...

A faint smile touched her lips.

“I see… And I just so happen to be exhausted after all that healing work—”

She lightly tapped her perfectly fine-looking shoulder.

“I suppose I should stay here and rest for the night too.”

“Go ahead. It’s a quiet enough town—you’ll sleep well.”

I smiled softly at the Saint.

Thanks to her being here, the weight of my past guilt felt just a little bit lighter.

“Yes. It really is quiet.”

Istina didn’t seem displeased either.

“So quiet, it's like no one would even notice.”

「――――――.」

Meanwhile, at that very moment—

In a luxurious villa located on the outskirts of Nord.

Basking in the warm autumn sunlight for the first time in a while, a man was sunbathing peacefully.

Thanks to the tax benefits from the mining operation, he had been steadily amassing wealth.

Though a minor accident had occurred, he wasn’t the least bit concerned, savoring the peace that had been handed to him.

It seemed no one could disturb the peace of Edward, the second son.

But—

“Young Master, Young Master……!!”

That peace was about to be shattered completely.

The secretary Duncan had met came rushing in, flustered, searching for Edward.

“What is it? Can’t you see I’m resting?”

The second son lifted his head, voice laced with irritation.

But then, upon seeing the secretary’s severely contorted face, he sensed that something was wrong.

“R-Roger Julius has shown up at the Nordic mining village…!!”

“Ro—who…?”

Edward furrowed his brows deeply and asked again.

And then, suddenly, he recalled the arrogant man who had rejected the opportunity he’d been offered and fled.

“You mean Roger Julius?”

“Yes…!! The intel just came in—he’s met with the foreman of the mine village!!”

At that moment, Edward remembered a recent incident.

That time when Freya had completely surrendered to Echina.

“No way… that bastard…?”

Edward sprang up from his chair.

Wearing only his pajama gown, he hastily pulled it closed and shouted at his secretary.

“Find him…!! Whatever it takes, I want that bastard caught!!”

True to the bloodline of the Grand Duke of the North, his instincts told him immediately.

After the eldest daughter—he would be next.