Kibun remained completely calm, and even his gestures were elegant.
Of course, this was all planned in advance based on my instructions.
“Ah…”
The Finance Minister looked on the verge of tears.
'naturally.
The numbers are impeccable.'
I had already calculated the maximum amount that the Ministry of Finance could allocate to us.
Certainly the number the minister had in mind was exactly that amount.
It was also very close to the additional cost if a new investigation were opened.
'We have to secure as much funding as possible from the start.'
I smiled gently as I looked at the Minister of Finance.
He sighed deeply, then said in a low voice:
“This is the initial budget, isn’t it?
The Scroll Management Department’s budget will be determined based on this amount starting next year.
I will make it triple.
Let’s agree on that.”
“…….”
"Okay.
I'll raise it fivefold.
Isn't that generous of me?"
“…….”
There was no point in prolonging the negotiations any further; The numbers had already been decided.
Finally, the minister hit the ground with his foot and shouted angrily:
“You should have asked ten times as much!
Then I would have been angry and said it was ridiculous!
But no, you should have asked for the exact amount!”
“…….”
"Fuck, okay.
Seven times.
Seven times!"
“Ah, yes.”
At that moment, Kibun, who was standing next to me, suddenly started bleeding from his nose.
"Oh, what's going on!
Kibune?
Are you okay?"
I was shocked, so I grabbed Kibun's head and pulled him back.
His usual pallor seemed even more severe as bright red blood flowed from his nose.
Kibun looked a bit shocked as well.
“I apologize for a moment.”
He pinched his nose with a handkerchief and quickly left the minister's office.
The Minister of Finance was also shocked, so he said:
“Isn't this the apprentice who was struggling with the Imperial language?
How much have you been overworking him?”
“Well, I'm not sure.”
I felt confused too.
Honestly, we've been working overtime every day since day one.
But there was no other choice.
Securing the initial budget from the Ministry of Finance was crucial, so it was necessary to be well prepared.
“Just…enough to get it all done?
And I did all the rough drafts myself.”
I pointed to the stack of reports piled up on the desk.
The Minister of Finance's mouth was open in astonishment.
“…You prepared all of this during this time?
Is that even possible?”
“That's why we had to work overtime.”
In fact, I was exhausted as well.
But there was no escape.
‘I don’t want to be known only as a minister appointed by the Master of the Magic Tower.
In addition, our department staff deserve to eat in comfort in the cafeteria!'
Preventing war was important, but since there was no urgent crisis at the moment, I decided to focus a little on my own life.
‘This has always been my dream ever since I joined this department…’
So, I poured all my passion into this work.
But it seems that this had a big impact on Kibun.
I muttered in confusion:
“But we never worked all night.
We always finished by 10 p.m...”
“Really?”
The Minister of Finance tilted his head slightly and replied:
“So, that young man seems to be weak.
What?
You didn't stay up all night constantly, and yet he got a nosebleed?
But he looks perfectly healthy...”
As I expected, the Finance Minister was a hard-working person.
Apparently he didn't consider working overtime for several days worth even mentioning.
Although I viewed overtime the same way, if I had known it would result in a nosebleed, I would have been more careful.
“I made sure we ate separately, without side conversations, and everyone went home after work, so I thought things would be okay...”
“Hmm, shouldn’t that cut the fatigue from overtime in half?
It’s pretty weak.”
“Exactly.
I even made sure he got his snacks separately.”
“This is important.
If so, he's just weak, and it's not your fault.”
The conversation continued between me and the Minister of Finance, and we were both surprised.
'What is this?
We get along very well!'
“Oh...hmm.”
The weather wasn't bad at all.
Because of the Kibun bleeding incident, it seemed as if a strange bond of friendship had formed between me and the Minister of Finance.
I smiled broadly.
“Thank you very much for approving the budget.”
Then, as I patted the reports, I added:
“I realize that it is a risk to allocate an initial budget of this size, but I promise we will not waste it and we will achieve tangible results.”
The Minister of Finance crossed his arms and stared at me, then laughed and said:
“I agreed to it because I trust you.
From what I saw earlier, the project proposal was very good.”
“So, why did you start with only 1.2 times…?”
“It's my job to limit the demands first.
You know that.”
The Minister of Finance pointed to his secretary who was waiting outside the office.
When the secretary looked at the reports that Kibun and I had prepared, his eyes widened in astonishment.
“Copy these documents and send them all to the Ministry of Finance.
And empty my office.”
Despite his confident words, it seemed like he intended to review everything from the beginning himself.
What a meticulous person in his work.
I loved that.
I have never seen such dedication since I joined this department...
“A big budget is a double-edged sword.
Do your best.”
“Really, thank you very much.
I will never forget this moment, and I will not give you a disappointing result.”
“This is not something to say lightly.”
“I will fully dedicate myself, put everything I have into this department, and prepare with the utmost seriousness.”
“Don't underestimate this.”
“I will prove to you that it is worth this budget.”
“Exactly!
This is the enthusiasm required!
You have to have this level of determination.”
The Minister of Finance tapped me on the shoulder, and I realized it was his way of encouraging me, before he suddenly got up from his seat.
“Oh my God.
I feel like I walked out of here completely drained.”
Despite those words, he seemed satisfied.
“I've been completely deceived!
How annoying!”
Then he looked at me and casually commented:
“Victor is fine, right?”
“Ah, yes.”
“You know he's my adopted son, right?
He's a nosy and intrusive person, so I bet he was popular at the academy...”
It was difficult to find someone in the academy who wasn't on good terms with Victor.
He was the type of person who got along with a huge number of students.
[Although I'm not sure about Victor-senpai.]
Luca had good reason to say that.
Despite my general coldness towards others, the only person I got along with was Victor.
"Did you two get along well in managing the manuscripts?
Well, knowing him, it couldn't be otherwise.
Originally, I intended to have him join the Ministry of Finance immediately upon his return from abroad, but…"
The Minister of Finance continued his speech with a thoughtful look in his eyes.
“For now, it might be a good idea for him to work under your supervision.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Normally, wouldn't you ask why?”
The Finance Minister laughed as if he was amused, then turned around and made a surprising comment.
“If you decide to get married, I will agree.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Normally, wouldn’t you ask why I suddenly said something like that?”
Without looking back, he laughed again and actually left the office this time.
Even with the Finance Minister out of sight, Kibon has not returned yet.
I was left alone in the office.
“Ha…”
In any case, securing the initial budget was a success.
All the late nights have paid off.
I finally felt some of the tension ease.
“The current crisis has been dealt with...”
The Finance Minister seems to like me, which suggests that the atmosphere at the next ministerial meeting may be more positive.
Achieving results will contribute to improving the atmosphere further.
“I should give Kibun a vacation.
It seems like a few days of overtime were too much for him.”
A nosebleed indicates that he is weaker than I thought, and if this continues, his instinct to escape may overpower his desire to learn and work hard.
“I cannot afford to lose such a competent employee.”
When Kibun comes back from the bathroom, I'll make sure to give him a forced vacation.
It was important for me to reassure him that the workload would not always be this heavy.
“It is not the time to hesitate.
I must act before he decides to resign.”
He quit once before.
It was important to show him that his supervisor cared about him.
With this determination, I stormed out of the minister's office.