MILND 69

Chapter 69

Although almost extinct in modern times, audiovisual teaching aids were still occasionally used in this world’s academies.

She used half of the amount I gave her to make this chart.

I told her she must use only high-quality paper, spare no expense on the quality of the materials included, and if necessary, hire an artist to add illustrations.

The first task in preparing for a presentation was an effective visual aid.

“Wait, if it’s Goldrail…”

As the merchants began to murmur, Jane’s voice cut through the noise, sharp and commanding in a way it hadn’t been before.

Begin with a clear statement, and capture everyone’s attention in an instant.

“Corrupt merchants leading this market—you are the ones who have committed these crimes. The proof is right here.”

“What…?”

“Honorable Duke Layton, I present this to you. For the prosperity of the Layton territory, I implore you to make the right decision.”

It was an audacious and confident declaration, something she could say only because she knew Mikhail wouldn’t punish her.

She turned the first page of the pristine chart.

[Investigation Report on Tax Evasion, Trade Malpractices, and Ledger Tampering]

What Jane had prepared wasn’t a bribe or promotional material for her guild—it was an indictment aimed at every enemy gathered in this room.

If all competitors vanished, the last one standing would be the winner.

She had never even considered evaluations or bribery.

‘…You need to become the accuser.’

In truth, Wilhelmina’s plan was a gamble with enormous risk.

To accuse a fellow merchant was equivalent to declaring you’d never do business in that region’s market again.

That was why guilds never reported each other’s wrongdoings, even when they knew about them.

If everyone committed the same malpractice, it was far more practical to turn a blind eye and join in.

‘Even if you report them, they’ll just post bail and walk free.’

Crimes committed with money were atoned for with money. That was the law of commerce.

Unless a noble held an extraordinary grudge, wealth could always buy a reduced sentence.

On the other hand, the accuser received no protection and would be quietly ostracized from the market.

Unless driven by vengeance, there was no such thing as a whistleblower acting out of goodwill.

Wilhelmina intended to exploit that loophole.

The morning after securing Jane’s agreement, Wilhelmina laid out the details of her plan.

‘First, we need perfect evidence. Something inescapable, that you’ll unveil during the evaluation meeting—make it provocative, biting. As I said, you have three months. Can you manage that?’

She wanted Jane to dig up the guilds’ hidden corruption and compile it into a report.

Jane, who had some experience in such matters, nodded without hesitation.

As long as there was enough time and budget, it was perfectly feasible.

‘Second, you’ll need to find someone to supply the materials. You can’t use Goldrail’s distribution, so you’ll have to secure it yourself. If that’s difficult, you can appoint a proxy, but…’

‘No, I can do it.’

Jane wasn’t sure if it was coincidence or if Wilhelmina somehow knew, but she had a complicated expression.

By chance, some materials required for her business had to be imported from the east, and Jane had close ties there.

Rohan would return from his leave before spring, so she could easily ask him for help.

Even after memorizing every detail of the plan, Jane still couldn’t understand Wilhelmina’s ultimate goal.

When Jane voiced her curiosity, Wilhelmina hesitated briefly, then fetched a book from the library.

It was a children’s book titled The Shepherd’s Wisdom.

Jane had seen Mirinae carrying it before.

‘Do you know the story?’

‘No, I’ve never read a fairy tale before…’

She had read plenty of scholarly works, but never a fairy tale.

Wilhelmina gave her a short summary.

The protagonist was a shepherd who had lost his sheepdog. While guarding his flock, he pondered how to drive away wolves. He had no money to buy a new dog, and guarding the flock alone was impossible. So, what did he decide to do?

‘He tamed a wolf.’

He brought in a clever wolf and raised it as his new sheepdog.

Being a fairy tale, the wolf could talk and confessed his wrongdoing to the shepherd.

He realized it was far more righteous to protect sheep alongside the shepherd than to hunt defenseless ones.

The wolf shared his knowledge of wolf habits to help guard the flock, and with his powerful legs, he ran across the meadows leading the sheep.

It was a tale of friendship between a wise shepherd and a repentant wolf—heavily laced with human ideals of justice.

After hearing it, Jane understood what Wilhelmina meant.

‘You’re telling me to become a noble’s wolf.’

‘No—to become a wolf of justice.’

She closed the book and turned to reality.

‘But you won’t get a fairy-tale ending. You’ll never return to being an ordinary merchant. Goldrail will end up as a vassal of Layton or some other noble, and fellow merchants will despise you. Even so…’

‘I’ll do it.’

Such contempt was something Jane had already prepared for.

She had no other options left.

To achieve both vengeance and her dream of becoming a merchant, this was the best path.

Once assured of Jane’s firm resolve, Wilhelmina smiled bitterly.

‘Good, then…’

‘…Let’s hunt the wolves.’

Three months later.

Jane stood here, sharpened by her thirst for revenge.

Feeling Wilhelmina’s gaze upon her, Jane opened her mouth before twenty wolves.

“Forty-two cases of price manipulation in one year, fifteen instances of falsified ledgers, one hundred twenty-one fake employee registrations, thirty-one cases of false crop supply entries… All of these crimes were committed by the twenty people standing before me.”

“What…!”

“First, the Milkci Guild.”

Before the merchants could even protest, she flipped the chart to show the evidence.

“Recently, potato production surged, but to minimize losses and manipulate prices, they engaged in false transactions. Forty percent of the potatoes supplied by Milkci Guild were purchased by an operator named ‘Tikel,’ with whom they haven’t traded once in the last three years. And the owner of this so-called Tikel Guild is…”

She produced a long pointer from somewhere and tapped an adorable drawing of a child.

“Jake, the nephew of Guildmaster Roick. He’s only five years old, but they registered a guild under his name.”

A shell company. A practice she had long suspected, but Wilhelmina had taught her the exact term.

They inflated trade volume and manipulated prices using a guild that existed only on paper.

Of course, no money ever changed hands—just ledger entries.

“The purchased potatoes were all disposed of. They dug holes near the northern lakes and buried them. Here is the location; if you investigate, you’ll find them easily. It’s too much to hide overnight—they’ve already taken root in the ground.”

Thus, Jane exposed the misdeeds of all twenty guilds, one by one, in painstaking detail.

The amount of evidence was staggering—no matter how many pages she turned, the chart seemed endless.

Confidential information spilled out nonstop, leaving the merchants utterly shocked.

She even knew things that the guild executives themselves were unaware of.

‘Once you know the tricks, it’s easy.’

No matter how large a guild was, it was impossible to monitor every low-level employee.

As long as she pretended to be a fellow merchant, they opened up easily. If necessary, she used bribes.

Espionage, infiltration, tailing, and persuasion.

She used every possible means to uncover their corruption.

It was a moment when even Wilhelmina hadn’t foreseen Jane’s talent shining so brightly.

Of course, she hadn’t acted alone.

“It was an accident! A clerical error on the employee roster! I’ll question the responsible staff immediately…”