~Chapter 124~
The powder was far too dark gray to be called flour.
This time, even someone with no knowledge at all could see that something was wrong.
Mariana’s sharp gaze turned immediately to the manager.
“What is this? Don’t tell me you gave this to people to eat?!”
The staff, panicking, began to speak nonsense as excuses.
“N-No! Th-this is only used in emergencies!”
“Y-Yes! When donations are low, we cannot let the poor starve! We only store it just in case. We never use it normally!”
But the amount stored was far too large to be called “just in case.”
The sacks Gareth and the knights had taken out were only a small part of what was inside the warehouse.
Everything else was this trash flour.
It was far more believable that they usually handed this out, and only bought proper flour to cover the entrance before the Empress’s inspection.
Still, I asked calmly,
“Is that really so?”
“Of course! Th-this year donations were low… We simply could not let the poor starve…”
“I see? Then bring me the ledger.”
Such excuses would never work on me.
Trying to act clever in front of me was foolish.
I exposed everything—
diverted food supplies, stolen medicine, fake registered residents, forced labor, embezzled donations.
And this was only for one year.
If we counted the corruption accumulated over the years, it was impossible to guess how much had been stolen.
After learning the truth, Mariana was furious.
I had not seen her lose control like this since the day Joseph nearly died on the Holy Mother’s festival.
“Take them away and investigate thoroughly. I will allow no mercy.”
“P-Please spare us!”
“We were only following o-orders from above— n-no, I mean it was a clerical mistake…!”
Even the noblewomen who had come lightly for a social outing were shocked by the terrible state of the orphanage.
At the same time, they looked at me with surprise.
“How did the Duchess of Lombard uncover all this?”
“I manage my household accounts myself, but even I was completely fooled.”
“Double ledgers, fake records, false entries… Just thinking about it makes my head hurt.”
But I was thinking about something else.
‘Ah, God, please…!’
There is a saying: the tip of the iceberg.
What we see is only a small part. The real shape is hidden underwater.
After examining the double ledgers closely, I knew this would never end with just one orphanage.
Corruption on this scale could not happen by individual effort alone.
The entire system might need to be overturned.
Or perhaps something unimaginable would be dragged into the light.
Of course, I was tired.
Today as well, I had crushed the orphanage manager and staff with words— and honestly, with the sharp edge of a file folder too. I felt like lying down on the floor from exhaustion.
But I made up my mind.
Since I would leave the capital eventually, I would give the people a grand and unforgettable farewell gift.
As for blood pressure—everyone could handle their own.
“Aunt.”
“Yes, Elysia.”
Mariana turned from giving orders to her attendants.
Today I realized how useful it was to have the Empress’s authority behind me.
I convinced myself that my plan would also be good for her, since she truly cared for the people. Then I asked with bright, innocent eyes,
“May we inspect the other orphanages as well?”
“Of course. The schedule lasts two days. Tomorrow we can visit another—”
“No.”
“Hmm?”
“All of them.”
I smiled sweetly.
“All twelve imperial orphanages in the capital.”
Until now, I had thought Lombard was the greatest center of corruption in Baldin.
But that was only the view of a frog who had lived her whole life in the northern well.
The capital was different.
The scale of corruption far surpassed Lombard.
Because of the struggle for imperial power, because of the conversion issue, because war might break out—I had kept my temper buried.
Now it quickly returned.
“If I see documents like this and simply ignore them, I’ll feel less than human.”
Elysia, accompanied by the Empress, raided one orphanage per day at random.
There was no prior notice.
They threw the doors wide open so passing citizens could freely watch the investigation.
Words travel faster than feet.
By the fifth day of inspections, rumors had spread across the entire capital.
“They say at the imperial orphanages…”
“I heard too. My daughter saw it herself. They say the Duchess of Lombard struck a corrupt manager on the head with the edge of a file folder.”
“Ouch, that must have hurt.”
The massive scandal shook the capital.
Many imperial orphanages were found guilty of embezzlement and exploitation.
Most of the government funds and donations had been stolen. Residents were forced into labor for profit.
Patients were left untreated. When they died, money was extorted from their families in the name of funeral expenses.
As the deep-rooted corruption was revealed, public trust in the imperial family began to shake.
The establishment of orphanages and care for the poor had been one of Vittorio IV’s proudest achievements.
Public opinion was already unstable because of Rosalind’s conversion. Now even the orphanages were corrupt.
“Do you really think this is only the fault of local managers? If so many orphanages are corrupt, the real problem must be higher up.”
“Everyone knows that. The question is—how high?”
People began wondering who the true mastermind was.
At the same time, whispers started spreading.
“Wouldn’t it have been better if Lady Elysia became Emperor? If she ruled, this wouldn’t have happened.”
“Hey! That’s too much!”
“Am I wrong? She’s bold, and she truly cares for the people. Even at the palace tournament—”
Public opinion was starting to shift dangerously.
Only then did the silent palace finally begin a full investigation.
But the judges would find it troublesome.
The one who managed donations to the orphanages was Marquis Andre.
And he was also the chief official managing the Emperor’s private treasury.
The deeper they dug, the more it would harm the imperial family.
“Lady Rosalind, His Highness Nigel has arrived.”
Rosalind, who had been sitting at her dressing table lost in thought, raised her head.
A few days earlier, under her father’s absolute order, she had completed her conversion.
At the baptism led by Protestant priests, she declared that she abandoned her former faith and accepted the new one.
There was no turning back now.
The brightly shining imperial palace at night, the beauty of the capital Belenois, the glorious court culture of Baldin—
All of it had become a past she could never enjoy again.
Because of Mariana, that old fox!
“Rosalind.”
Just as burning hatred filled her mind, Nigel entered.
Even though she sensed him, Rosalind remained sitting before the mirror, unmoving.
She had desperately called for help, yet now she ignored him.
Nigel sighed quietly and dismissed all the maids.
Then he placed his hand on his sister’s shoulder.
