At the same time, there was a slight disturbance in the imperial palace.
The eldest son of Viscount Erinol, who was aide-de-camp to the First Prince, was taken out on Cassian's orders.
“-Prince!
Please, I am innocent!”
Although Cassian gave the order, the eldest son ed First Prince Charlie to save him.
But Charlie ignored the eldest son's pleas and spoke to Cassian with a bored look.
“Cassian, if you are going to take someone, I prefer this person.”
He pointed to the Duke's eldest son, acting as if Cassian had chosen the wrong person.
“That's a good playmate for me, unlike the young duke who always tells me to go to work.”
Despite Charlie's expression, the Young Duke continued to process the documents with an indifferent face.
He was certainly the assistant that the Empress had managed to recruit with great effort, even in the situation of working only three mornings a week..
“If you want, brother, you can change it at any time.”
The young duke's hand paused briefly before moving again.
Cassian thought it was a sign of anticipation, not anxiety.
"Haha, you know this is hard, Cassian.
Do you want to see me get scolded by mom?"
As Charlie spoke and tilted his head, his red hair, similar to that of the Empress, fell over his shoulders.
As the young duke's shoulders hunched slightly, as if in frustration, Cassian laughed softly at his brother's carefree tone.
“Of course not, just imagining Her Majesty summoning you hurts me.”
“Ah, really.
Cassian, this is too much.
Because of you, my father will scold me again.”
Although his words were a bit sarcastic, Charlie laughed stupidly..
"But it's okay.
You were just doing your job, Cassian.
I'm not a narrow-minded brother to hate you for this."
Cassian thought briefly that this person might be more difficult to deal with than the Empress.
“So, why don't we stop using formal nicknames and call each other like we were kids, Cassian?
'Brother,' for example.”
No, this guy is just an idiot
In addition, he had never used such an embarrassing nickname before.
Cassian sighed deeply, straightened the situation, and bowed to Charlie.
“Okay, I'm leaving, brother.”
"Have you ever?
I thought we'd have lunch together this time.
But I guess we can't do anything because you're busy."
It was long past lunchtime
If Roita had heard this, she would have scolded him for not valuing time.
Cassian bowed his head in greeting without responding and withdrew from his place.
Charlie watched his brother's retreating figure for a moment before muttering softly...
"I'm jealous.
I want to work with a pretty assistant too."
The young Duke frowned, finding it ridiculous.
January 7.
The name of Viscount Erinault was erased from the register of the central peerage
Common charges and even crimes unbecoming of nobility were revealed.
Embezzlement, tax evasion, and exploitation of the region’s residents.
Moreover, they were discovered to have committed fraud in the spice trade contracts they dealt with during their trade with the Kingdom last year.
If it had not been detected this time, it would have resulted in huge losses for the kingdom.
'In the original work, this was revealed later, so Cassian and Roita had a lot of difficulty cleaning up the mess.'
However, since it was detected early and not much time had passed, it seemed possible to reach an amicable agreement with the Kingdom with appropriate compensation.
Naturally, the Empress also had to face a severe rebuke from the Emperor during this process
“How are you trying to hide this matter!
Empress, how could you do such a thing?”
“I didn’t know, Your Majesty.
It was something done by the husband of a maid I trusted.”
Naturally, I cut ties with them
Viscount Erinole lost most of his lands and retained only the secondary title of Baron.
This title was not hereditary.
Viscount Erinault was stripped of his title and had to serve a long sentence of hard labour.
“How could you do this to those who could have been your family!”
The Viscountess continued to blather on about her delusions, but fortunately, the trial was private, so it seemed unlikely that rumors would spread.
If she had remained silent, she could have remained a viscountess for about half a year...
Of course, she would have been punished regardless
The Second Prince was so addicted to work that he actually sensed something was wrong by the end of the year.
I replied to the Viscountess with a smile,
“I'm sorry, but I have no interest in those who aren't even of Baron rank.”
After hearing my kind words, Viscountess Ernoul caused a commotion and asked to see the Empress, but calmed down after realizing that she had broken off relations with her.
The family of her son’s fiancée also appealed for help, but thanks to my advance warning before the confiscation and search operation, they were able to break off the engagement amicably.
“Thank you, Miss Saliss.
If it weren’t for you, our daughter would have been in big trouble.
We were supposed to sign the gift exchange agreement the day you informed us.”
They were also a baronial family and intended to promise valuable gifts, including high-value mines, in the hope that their daughter would marry into a more prestigious family.
Knowing that I saved someone made me feel more satisfied.
As expected, it seemed likely that the Empress's punishment would end with a brief period of reflection on her actions
But there was a little disaster for me too.
{The Demon of the Winter Palace saves the empire from crisis!}
{Peace has been maintained with the kingdom.}
In mid-January, when it was all over, I muttered in disbelief at the newspaper headline that greeted me as soon as I arrived at work.
“It's not fair.”
"What is it?"
“Why am I the Devil of the Winter Palace instead of His Highness?”
I just used Cassian's name.
Although Cassian was only signing, he was the one who investigated everything related to the kingdom based on my information!
“You're right, it's disappointing.”
Cassian agreed with me, which was unusual.
I stared at him, not expecting such an answer, so he smiled gently.
“It should be ‘Demons of the Winter Palace’.
It is a precious name for you and me only, Rose.”
“…Please do not say such terrible things, Your Highness!”
He added more words with a happy expression, enjoying my reaction.
It was a truly terrifying story
So please, Your Highness, take responsibility and make my salary higher as compensation
Despite everything, I was hoping that a punishment for the Empress would lead to some down time for a while..
If we think back to the original work, when the Empress was caught plotting and entered into a period of f-reflection, there was a beautiful period of peace...
So this time, I planned a happy weekend..
I deserve a reward after all the trouble I went through at the beginning of the new year with the affairs of Viscount Erinol and the thorough investigation into trade with the kingdom!
I planned to buy the books I couldn't read during the last vacation, eat the delicious meals prepared by the maid, and relax comfortably.
“Hello Rose.”
For some reason, as soon as the holiday started, I ran into Cassian.
And not only that.
“I would like to ask you out on a date.
Would you accept?”
He was deliberately dressed as one of the nouveau riche men.
His hair was dyed light brown for disguise, and he was still very handsome.
If you get involved, it's sure to become a problem.
With this thought, I tried to quickly escape, but the devil was incredibly cunning..
“Three times the salary, and everything I offer during the appointment is yours.”
Cassian offered me his hand with a very beautiful smile.
“Your Highness, do you know that you are always unfair?”
“How cruel.
I always honestly try to give you what you like.”
Why does he talk about making money fairly in such a sweet tone?
“An ambassador in the central shopping district.
I will give you anything you want from there.”
I was really afraid of Cassian Artiz.
The ambassador was full of all kinds of beautiful things.
It was a shop where painters, craftsmen and writers poured all their tastes into creating one beautiful and unique piece.
I once logged in and felt like my bank account was going to be completely drained, so I never logged in again..
Did you say something illogical to Cassian by chance?
After immersing myf in working in front of him several times, I couldn't trust myf.
“…So what’s the point?”
“Raiding illegal gambling dens.”
Strangely enough, this reassured me.
I've been keeping an eye on this place for a long time as well, because it was one of the sources of the Empress's money.
When she sighed deeply, Cassian waved his hand again and asked very politely
“Miss Roslita, can you go out on a date with me?”
L's beautiful smile
For a hero using his natural appearance..
I was telling myf that I was only tempted by money when I reluctantly took his outstretched hand.
As soon as I touched it, Cassian playfully kissed the back of my hand and met my gaze.
My cherished holiday was crumbling before my eyes