Chapter 100

‘No, it’s still better to keep Depine on my side.’

Arya still needed someone to control the southern aristocrats working for her. At least, until Emperor Valore builds a perfect throne.

“I am very tired today, let’s talk next time.”

“This is a very important and urgent matter.”

“What are you talking about, what is urgent?”

Arya asked him only after she and Depine entered her residence.

“The land routes linking the southern part of the country to the capital have been lost and blocked.”

“I’ve heard that before. That’s why we sent resources for you to recover it.”

Originally, even national roads were in charge of the rulers of the surrounding area, so it had to be handled on its own, but since the south accounts for most of the nation’s wheat production and rapid restoration was necessary, the capital has sent a support for the recovery of this route. The imperial bank provided a considerable amount of money. This was because it was such an important issue. At that time, the issue of equality with other regions was mentioned, but Arya almost pressed it to allocate the budget for the road restoration.

“That’s… it’s still not recovered.”

“It was a few months ago, and it hasn’t been recovered yet?”

Normally, Arya would have been on Depine’s back to continually check up and bother him to fix it, but there have been too many big problems recently. She couldn’t give enough care because the former emperor died and there was a lot of work to do to make Valore the emperor.

“It rained for a long time, and the lost roads and buried areas were vast. As you know, the mountain ranges are very rough. The war with Castro has made it difficult for us to find the right people…”

“Even then, do you remember how much money was put in there? You could have gotten more manpower with extra money. It could have been done by mobilizing the farmers. But does it make sense that we haven’t recovered it yet? What did you do without checking while things were going this way? What’s more, the budget…”

Arya’s eyes narrowed as she watched the Duke, who was flustered in front of her eyes.

“That’s…”

She understood without even asking. It was like blind money, so he must have used it like his own.

“Don’t bother. What can we do? Please proceed with the construction as soon as possible and come up with countermeasures. There is no extra wheat in the capital because of the war. It’s been a long time since all of them were sent to war. I don’t know about the rest of the country, but if the capital’s water storage is empty, then I won’t forgive you, even if it’s you, Duke of Panacio. So go ahead and find a way.”

“Would you consider talking to the Emperor and postpone the payment?”

“You mean the supply contract with the Leipsden Empire?”

Wheat sales were not only a signed supply contract with the merchants but also with the empire. The consumption of wheat in the imperial palace was quite large and the amount of wheat used in the army was enormous. If Arya used a hand, the contract with the Empire could be delayed for some time, if she came up with several reasons.

“That too, and also with other tradesmen and nobles…”

Arya touched her forehead as if she had a headache.

“What do you think is the position of the emperor? Are you now going to ask me to find the money you lost like some thugs in the neighborhood?”

“But because the amount on the line is enormous…”

“We will try to postpone the date of the contract with the Empire. However, other contracts are impossible even if the emperor’s grandfather comes. Although Valore is said to have ascended to the throne of the emperor, it is still like a sandcastle. Carl’s still alive. That’s what I’m fighting with Castro right now. They are supported by the people. If the nobles turn around, it will become difficult for Valore to keep his place.”

“Then not the nobles, but the merchants…”

She gave a sharp look at Depine and showed her irritation.

“Is that head for decoration? In some cases, a merchant is an aristocrat, and even if they are not, the merchant association is the place that distributes money to the aristocrats. Is that all? They may not be nobles, but they wield money like power. Are you going to lose your bet against those who have money?”

“But…”

“So you should have watched where you are taking money from! It’s not a goose that lays golden eggs! How did you fathom taking the road restoration budget?! Were you out of your mind?! Fix this as soon as possible, this is a critical time right now, there are rumors going around about Valore’s birth. Do not add any more stories to that.”

Depine backed away, startled at Arya’s cold tone. Although he was bowing his head as if to kneel down in front of Arya, as soon as she went outside, he cursed at her.

“Where’d all the money go?! Did she make Valore the emperor herself? So why would you spread jewelry to attract power?”

He struck his chest with rage. As soon as it was rumored that Arya had given jewelry to those who supported Valore, those who were originally on their side came to Depine and questioned him. It was Depine who quieted them, those who could not complain against Arya themselves.

Depine went straight to Arya and asked why she handed out jewels to the nobles without consulting him. Arya snapped and said that she had never done that, but he couldn’t believe what she said. If it wasn’t for her, who would have given jewels to the nobles? To the point where there were no more of the red jewels in the empire?

It was a time when the supporters of Valore should not turn their backs on them, so Depine tried to stop their opposition by using his own money. Depine spat out on the hallway of the shiny corridor.

‘The mean bitch got rude and cocky after she got power. She used to whine under me, and she doesn’t even know where her place is.’

When Arya’s knights, who were standing at the door, stared at him, Depine stared back at them and turned around. Then, he spat out phlegm in the hallway because he couldn’t release his anger, but then he walked out of the hall in fear that Arya might know about it.

“This is a big deal.”

Hain said in a worried voice.

“What’s the matter?”

“The price of wheat has skyrocketed. Some of the restaurants in the capital are now closed. The stores that used to sell wheat are hiding their belongings, so it’s hard to get them even if you give them extra money. There’s not much supply left in the palace warehouse either, so they have to get more, but I guess it’s hard to get supplies.”

“Why did the price of wheat go up suddenly?”

Siena asked Hain with a straight face.

“The roads to the South have been lost. And they still haven’t recovered it. Do you not know how long the rumor has been around? The Duke of Panacio received a lot of money for the road construction, but the construction didn’t even start. Moreover, because of the war, wheat was taken out of the capital and sent to the eastern front. That’s why even the backup supply is gone. That’s why there are a lot of complaints in the capital. There are a lot of citizens who think it’s not good that Empress Arya does politics on behalf of the Emperor, and then this happened. Everyone says the First Prince should have been crowned…”

Sienna was startled and shouted at Hain’s words.

“Hain!”

“Oops! What am I saying?…”

It was true that Valore, who was now on the throne of the emperor, and Arya, who was governing in Valore’s place, were unable to properly manage state affairs, but actually saying these out loud could result in a big punishment.

“You know how many ears there are in the palace, even if you are only here with me.”

“I’m sorry, but in the capital, it’s what everyone is talking about. If you take them all for committing a crime of defamation against the imperial court, the prison will be overcrowded.”

“They could punish one person greatly just to alert people. And that one person could be Hain.”

“That’s true. I’ll watch my mouth.”

Hain said, covering her mouth with her hands.

“Either way, many people would starve in such a serious situation.”

“I’ve heard that there’s already someone who’s starved to death. I don’t know if it’s real. Finding wheat is like picking a star in the sky. Even if you try to exchange meat with as much as the weight of the wheat, you can’t get it. In fact, our palace is also strengthening its crackdown on wheat theft. There are people sneaking away because they can’t see their families starve. It’s sad, but we don’t know how long the wheat famine in the capital will last.”

Hearing Hain’s story, the situation seemed pretty serious. Sienna’s heart was heavy. It was her who cut the road to the south and made it difficult to get wheat to the capital.