Chapter : 84
For Cassian, subduing Samuel Motty was far too easy.
Kaaang—!
The moment Samuel Motty’s sword snapped cleanly in two, Cassian kicked him away from us and immediately hurled a magical restraint orb.
“You think something like that would work—, ugh?!”
Samuel hurriedly waved his hands, trying to raise a black, curtain-like barrier to defend himself.
But the flying restraint orb greedily devoured the dark energy and completely neutralized Samuel Motty on the spot.
“T-This… what is this?! H-How did you—!”
“How did I what? Beat you?” I replied lightly. “For someone who claims to make a living gathering information, this just proves how sloppy you are, Mr. Criminal.”
I smiled faintly and activated another magical device.
At the same time, both the interior and the surroundings outside grew bright.
Samuel Motty looked around in disbelief.
Of course, his reaction was exactly what we had expected.
He was a rare spirit contractor—one said to have vanished from this world long ago.
That was precisely why we needed to meet Samuel Motty on that day.
To eliminate uncertainty.
I kindly decided to explain the situation to him.
“Did you know? Blocking the power of spirits is actually easier than you’d think.”
“Uh… uh…?”
“It’s been a long time since a light-attribute spirit contractor appeared, but those vicious mages of the past already figured out your weakness.”
Despite calling himself an information merchant, he looked utterly dumbfounded—as if he had never known any of this.
In the original story, mages barely played a role, so spirit contractors were practically invincible.
But reality was different.
Because I had only absorbed the ‘sweet parts’ of the original story, the circumstances had changed quite a bit.
It was unfortunate for Samuel Motty—but I had no obligation to sympathize.
“Now then, Mr. Motty. I’m going to carefully explain everything you’ve done wrong, so open your ears and listen closely.”
From minor offenses like invasion of privacy and tax evasion, to the fact that he had launched an ambush today knowing full well that his target was Second Prince Cassian Arteiz—thus earning himself a charge of attempted regicide.
*
Samuel Motty listened to my lengthy explanation with a completely vacant expression.
Then, when he briefly regained his senses—
“Information—can’t you at least tell me that much? You royal people don’t even need it! I just want to clear my father’s name!”
His desperate plea was pitiful.
Even more so because he had the wrong target for his revenge.
Samuel Motty’s father had been the younger brother of the First Empress.
He wasn’t an especially virtuous man, but he despised cowardly actions.
That alone had made him a constant obstacle to the ambition-driven First Empress.
The more her father—the previous Duke Jamotti—favored his younger son, the more intolerable it was for her.
To her, siblings were nothing more than chess pieces that should move exactly as she wished.
Then came the incident where her younger brother nearly ruined her path to becoming the Emperor’s concubine.
To the First Empress, his appeals were nothing more than naïve moral preaching from someone ignorant of the world.
So she decided to eliminate the brother who stood in her way.
But the First Empress was exceedingly skilled at keeping her own hands clean.
Instead of acting herself, she manipulated her elder brother—the current Duke Jamotti—into driving their father out.
Lacking the First Empress’s cunning, Samuel’s father was cast out penniless, left with nothing but resentment toward his older brother.
Samuel Motty grew up listening to that story over and over.
Then, unable to afford proper treatment due to poverty, he lost both parents in succession—fueling his hatred toward the Jamotti ducal house even further.
Both Samuel Motty and his father had cast aside their pride and begged the Jamotti family for help, only to be turned away.
That was why I didn’t give him the information directly—but I did leave him with one opportunity.
“There are ways to atone for your crimes—one of them is working for the Imperial Family. You’re a spirit contractor, and you’re capable of rehabilitation. If your value is recognized, it’s possible.”
“And what does that do for me…?”
“Isn’t Her Highness the First Empress herself the core figure of the Jamotti family?”
At my explanation, light finally returned to his dazed eyes.
He would still have to stand trial properly in the capital, but Samuel Motty would likely end up working for the Winter Palace without much trouble.
Once he learned the truth, he would naturally keep the First Empress in check.
I felt a slight bitterness in my mouth.
In the original story, Roselita had persuaded him as a child, so he never became a criminal and lived as an information merchant.
But honestly, the only thing I pitied was his childhood.
When his parents died, I was only five or six myself—and living far away in the Salice Barony, I couldn’t have helped even if I wanted to.
After that, looking back at the original story, his life was never particularly doomed or headed toward destruction.
And yet, he grew into a full-fledged criminal.
Wasn’t that simply a case of him tying his own noose?
If someone becomes a criminal just because no one guided them, they were broken from the start.
Some people lived their entire lives hiding their gender.
Others were treated as if they didn’t even exist.
And yet they didn’t become criminals.
And there were many people closely connected to Roselita whom I also never interfered with.
Unlike me, who lived quietly as a diligent extra, Roselita—the true protagonist—had several male leads who loved her from afar.
Most notably, the sons of the three great ducal houses.
Among them, had even one willingly become a criminal…?
Francis Ashwood became a respectable aide, and the Wilman brothers are people I only see during performance reports.
They only snarl at me with rivalry every time we meet.
As for the Jamotti ducal house—it was in a criminal state, yes, but not by choice.
They were used as scapegoats when someone tried to frame His Highness for stealing a divine stone.
By now, they were probably living quietly in some remote region.
So really, aside from his unhappy childhood, there wasn’t a single reason for me to sympathize with Samuel Motty.
*
When we stepped outside after finishing our conversation with Samuel Motty, natural darkness had already fallen.
“It looks like the train that went ahead arrived in the capital without incident.”
“All that suspicious staring from the station staff was worth it, then.”
“Yeah. Only the first-class carriage we were on was cleanly detached.”
Since we had deliberately lured Samuel Motty out, we had prepared for every contingency.
We requested that the first-class carriage be placed at the very end of the train.
Ignoring the flustered station staff, we even made preparations so that, in case of an emergency, only our carriage would be separated.
“And our knights clearly did their job well.”
Naturally, Winter Palace knights had been stationed in advance.
As a result, the Dark Guild members who ambushed us were now restrained and lined up before us.
On top of that, more hidden Dark Guild members were being dragged in, strung together like dried fish.
When I raised my hand in approval, a thunderous cheer erupted.
“Our Winter Palace knights would even overthrow a temple if Rose asked them to.”
“That wasn’t even Ian’s order, though?”
At my question, Cassian looked at me as if I were saying something ridiculous.
“Rose’s will is my will. Why would I need to distinguish between them?”
Seriously…
My superior had been trying to erase his own sense of self lately, and it was becoming a real problem.
*
[Dark Guild Annihilated! Where Will the Winter Palace Devils Strike Next?]
[The Fate of the Guild Master in the Hands of the Winter Palace Devils!]
[Dark Guild Compensation and Fines Finalized! Prison Sentence: 66 Years!]
After arriving in the capital, we immediately handed over the captured Dark Guild members for trial.
Interrogating the guild members and Samuel to locate their headquarters was child’s play.
Depending on their roles and the severity of their crimes, most members received anything from minor fines to short prison sentences.
As for the key figure, Samuel Motty—through a legitimate deal with His Majesty the Emperor—
“Where did you find such an adorable cat? For the Margrave of Clupea to return from a journey having annihilated the Dark Guild—and even bringing such a delightful gift.”
“Isn’t it lovely? Though it does dislike people a bit.”
“A proud cat has its own charm.”
—arrangements were made for him to be assigned to the Winter Palace.
The white-furred cat that stole the Emperor’s heart was named Coco, according to a passing remark from the chief attendant of the Sun Palace.
In any case, Samuel Motty was now destined to become a loyal worker under Prince Cassian for the next sixty-six years.
If he’s truly as capable an information broker as in the original story, he’ll figure it out on his own while working here.
The truth behind his father’s injustice—and the path he should have taken.
That was something he would have to uncover for himself, in time.
And since I wasn’t completely heartless, I decided to treat him as a newcomer for a while.
Partly because some sympathy for his childhood still remained.
So I kindly assigned him only a very small workload—especially compared to our criminal mages.
And yet Samuel Motty reacted with utter horror and shouted,
“Just let me serve my sentence doing manual labor! How is palace work harder than the Dark Guild?!”
That, truly, was something I couldn’t understand at all.
