Several days had already passed since I escaped the blood-reeking sewers of Londinium.
While I had been wandering through the drains, the season had somehow passed the tail end of spring and reached the threshold of summer. Greenery grew thick in place of flowers, and the once-warm sunlight grew hotter by the day.
In contrast to the unprecedented incident in Londinium, which had plunged the entire world into shock and terror, my personal daily life was extremely—and surprisingly—peaceful.
Ding—
[You have survived in a hostile environment.]
Ding—
[You preserved your unit and ensured the survival of all key members of the diplomatic mission.]
Ding—
[You rescued key figures from the Royal Guard and the United Kingdom Intelligence Bureau.]
System messages poured in for the first time in a while.
[You led the Londinium Sewer Sweep Operation to victory and killed a key enemy figure.]
Ding!
[You have obtained a massive amount of experience as a reward.]
[Your level has risen to 24!]
[You have obtained 1 new skill point.]
‘I don’t even know how long it’s been since I leveled up.’
[Available Skill Points: 2]
This time as well, I decided to save my skill points.
*
I lightly closed the skill window and left the house. Then I got straight into the black sedan waiting in front of the entrance.
The dazzling scenery of Eisenburg swept past rapidly beyond the car window.
Our destination was District 1, the very heart of the imperial capital and an area lined with the finest residences.
Screech—
The car came to a stop with a smooth braking sound.
Before the driver could open the door, someone outside beat him to it.
“Welcome back safely, Lieutenant Colonel.”
A neat suit. Hair combed back without a single strand out of place.
My dedicated asset manager, the man handling my vast slush fund, and a former black-ops agent of the United Kingdom Royal Intelligence Bureau. Major Arthur.
“You’ve worked hard, Lieutenant Hunt.”
After getting out of the car, I gave a slight nod and examined his condition.
Because I was curious what this elite spy, who had witnessed the fall of his homeland, was feeling.
‘Status Analysis.’
[Name: Arthur]
[Status: Deep relief, bitterness over the loss of his homeland, firm loyalty]
[Emotion: Thank goodness the Lieutenant Colonel returned alive. My homeland has fallen to the red rabble, but this man’s grand vision was not wrong. This place is my new affiliation.]
I smiled inwardly in satisfaction.
I already knew he had turned green on the [Minimap], but to think he had defected so completely. The fall of his homeland seemed to have become the final nail.
“You don’t look very cheerful.”
“…With the international situation being so turbulent, there are many things to be concerned about.”
Arthur answered with a faint smile. I didn’t bother digging into his true feelings.
“Lead the way. Let’s take a look at the house first.”
“Of course. Please come this way.”
As I followed Arthur, a picturesque mansion appeared beyond the enormous front gate.
A massive three-story Western-style mansion finished in white marble. A neatly trimmed green garden, a garage on one side, and even a splendid fountain.
It was the very definition of an ultra-luxury mansion.
Click—
We opened the door and went inside.
The interior was far more splendid than the exterior. The floor was covered in top-quality carpeting, and a magnificent chandelier hung in the center.
“I purchased the property in the best condition and the quietest location. There are six bedrooms in total, along with a study and reception room, and in the basement, a large vault for you, Lieutenant Colonel, has been fully installed.”
Arthur explained.
“All the servants have been carefully selected for discretion and verified identities.”
“Excellent.”
I plopped down onto the soft leather sofa in the middle of the living room. Then I asked,
“How are my assets looking?”
Arthur handed over a file he had prepared in advance.
“To state the conclusion first, they are explosive.”
“Hmm…”
I flipped through the file and examined the major items. The most important part was, of course, the stocks.
Sure enough, the stock prices of the military corporations I had invested in weren’t merely breaking through the ceiling—they were punching through the sky and breaching the atmosphere.
“The imperial court raised the defense posture, so it was only natural.”
“Indeed. The empire’s economic growth rate has easily exceeded the forecasts of the experts. The pace of military expansion is also at its highest since the Great Depression.”
Even accounting for wartime profiteering, it was an astonishing result.
“If we add together your current liquid assets, real estate, and stock valuations, Lieutenant Colonel, the total exceeds approximately 180,000 gold. That is an increase of more than 40,000 gold since the previous report.”
In Korean won, that was roughly 180 billion.
The saying that money begets money was true. Even if I combined the prize money and allowances I had earned by working myself half to death in Londinium, it only amounted to about 500 gold.
In the same span of time, I had earned eighty times that here without any danger at all.
‘Ah, how sweet.’
At this point, I had to start thinking about something else.
“Lieutenant Hunt.”
“Yes, Lieutenant Colonel.”
“The numbers have far outstripped my rank insignia. From now on, it’s more important to protect and hide the money than simply increase it.”
No matter how tolerant the empire was of meritocracy, and no matter how commonplace corruption among the upper ranks was, the fact that a field-grade officer of common birth with no foundation had accumulated this much wealth stood out far too much.
If the stuffed shirts in parliament or the jackals of the Inspectorate like Zwinger caught the scent, then even with Marshal Ludwig backing me, it would be easy for them to find something to latch onto.
“You have inspections and political checks in mind.”
Arthur gave a small nod. As expected, he understood immediately.
“That’s right. I have no intention whatsoever of getting my name on the list of the empire’s richest men while still wearing a military uniform. We need to erase the smell of money.”
“I have already prepared countermeasures for that matter.”
As if he had been waiting for this, Arthur opened to the back pages of the file. There, complicated organizational charts and unfamiliar aliases were listed.
“I have established four shell companies under borrowed names in the outskirts of the imperial capital and in neutral nations. All future profits will be dispersed through them and legally laundered. In addition, I am constructing pipelines to create lobbying funds and lawful political contributions for influential figures.”
“Pipelines?”
“We are buying shields with money. If a portion of your funds is placed in the mouths of parliamentarians and high-ranking military officials, even if the Inspectorate catches the scent, they will step forward first to cover it up.”
Arthur’s finger pointed to several familiar names written in the corner of the document.
“And for the military corporations in which you are the largest shareholder, especially ‘Sternberg Trading Company’ and ‘Han-Metal,’ I have placed the names of relatives of high-ranking military officials and members of the parliamentary defense committee in advisory positions and on the board of directors.”
“…Instead of handing them under-the-table money, we’ll give them stakes and dividends from legitimate military suppliers?”
“They value appearances, after all. Rather than blatant bribes, they much prefer the pretext of ‘proper compensation for patriotic defense industry work.’”
A hollow laugh escaped me on its own.
Even if the Inspectorate, having smelled money, tried to shake me down and dig through the ledgers, what would pop out at the end would ultimately be Marshal Ludwig’s faction and members of parliament. It was a structure that would force them to bury the investigation.
A community of shared interests. A perfect, sticky cartel of the military-industrial complex.
‘That’s what I’m talking about.’
Of course, it could be galling to shove the hard-earned money I had made straight into the maws of those old geezers.
But this was purely a matter of perspective.
180,000 gold.
From here on, I had to think of that sum as not entirely my money.
If I failed to understand my place and tried to eat it all by myself, it was exactly the kind of size that would get me dusted down by the jackals of the Inspectorate or the stuffed shirts in parliament, leaving my tail exposed.
Rather than lose all 180,000 gold and my own lifeline along with it, it was a hundred times better to take out reliable insurance. While the shield stood in front of me, I could increase my weight class, and when the board grew bigger in the future, I could simply sweep in twice as much.
Barely suppressing the corners of my mouth as they tried to rise, I nonchalantly closed the file.
“As expected, you never disappoint, Lieutenant Hunt.”
“…It is all thanks to your foresight, Lieutenant Colonel. I merely moved the funds according to your instructions.”
Arthur lowered his head. I leaned deep into the sofa’s backrest and looked up at him. Now, it was time to talk about that.
“I cannot imagine what it feels like to have your homeland vanish from the map overnight.”
“……Pardon?”
[Emotion: How?!]
Arthur’s shoulders flinched and stiffened.
The reason he was flustered was not the sudden change of subject.
He must have thought he had perfectly concealed the fact that he was from the United Kingdom, and that he was a spy.
“Did you think I wouldn’t know? Yes, I didn’t. Not until I met Director Wellesley in Londinium.”
I mixed in a suitable lie. The effect was excellent. Arthur’s complexion turned deathly pale.
[Status: Despair]
[Emotion: No…! Now there’s nowhere left that will take me…!]
“But my promise has not changed. As long as you are under me, I will make sure no intelligence bureau or secret police can touch you.”
“……!”
“So… you, too, must keep your promise. Aiden.”
Thud.
Aiden dropped to his knees on the floor. There was not the slightest hesitation in his movement.
“…My life and loyalty will be directed only toward Lieutenant Colonel Max Jaeger.”
[Name: Arthur]
[Status: Absolute submission]
[Hidden Desire: To dedicate everything to Max Jaeger.]
It was over.
On the [Minimap], he was the same green as before, but the reality was completely different. If there had been a color beyond green, perhaps it would have been Aiden’s current state.
“Good.”
I rose from my seat with a satisfied smile.
“Then I suppose I should finish taking a look around the house.”
My steps as I climbed the marble staircase were lighter than ever before.