Is the Empress involved in this?
And is it true that the Empress made a certain Lord borrow a large sum of money to fund rebellions and assassinations?
The debt is being paid by innocent civilians. How unfair. Thinking about it, Rose could understand why Efergan was in such a bad mood.
Rose went into the bedroom. Efergan said he would continue working. Once he was in work mode, he wouldn't listen to what Rose said, so Rose thought it would be best to let him do as he pleased.
It was only her second day in Tamara, and so much had already happened. To be honest, she was exhausted. Rose wasn't sure if she could keep up at this pace with Tamara. Feeling anxious, Rose closed her eyes and decided to go to sleep.
When she woke up in the morning, Efergan was still sleeping next to her. Wondering if he hadn't trained that morning, she looked at his sleeping face and saw that he looked fatigued. He had probably returned to his bedroom earlier in the morning. The winged ears on his head were as cute as ever. Rose couldn't help but touch them, and his eyelids opened. Those orange eyes were staring at her.
"Good morning."
Efergan's sleepy voice came. Rose laughed, nuzzling her nose against his.
"Good morning, meow!"
Efergan smiled and put his arms around Rose.
"Since when has my queen become a cat?"
"Just a moment ago."
Rose gave a random answer, and Efergan laughed.
"You'll be working at the medical facility starting today."
"Yes."
"I'll work here. We'll turn the guest wing into a town hall."
"Yes."
"Follett and the others will have a hard time this morning. They'll have to dismantle all the furniture in the guest wing. Instead, they'll need to set up desks, chairs, and shelves."
"Would you like me to help?"
"No. I'll have the officials do it. It would take too long with just the servants."
"Yes."
"Rose has four bodyguards: Haintz, Efain, Jawara, and Mirza. Rinka is off today, but Teresno will be looking after her, so don't worry."
"Yes."
"Take Amanjaya with you."
"Yes."
"I'll have Follett arrange for Rose's maids later. It'll be convenient to have someone to look after your personal needs."
"Thank you."
Efergan touched Rose's face with his fingers.
"I'd probably go crazy if it weren't for Rose."
"Why are you suddenly saying that?"
"I'm tired. The problems I'm carrying feel so heavy, I'm sick of them."
"Efergan."
"But when I heard what Rose said last night, I realized once again that this isn't a problem."
"My words?"
"That you love me..."
"Oh, okay."
"Don't seem confused."
"Hehehe♪"
Rose blushed and laughed, and Efergan laughed too. He then kissed her gently and sat down on the bed.
"Let's get up. Let's take a bath together."
Efergan laughed, waking Rose up and leading her to the bathroom.
After finishing her morning preparations and eating breakfast, which was a little late, Rose went to see the guest wing, where she saw servants, guards, and officials working together to move furniture. The furniture store had also been busy moving furniture since early morning. At this rate, they'd be able to make it to work on time as usual, she nodded.
Efain and the others were ready, so Rose said goodbye to Efergan in his workroom before riding her owl to work at the medical facility.
She put on her medical uniform and wore the emergency medicine doctor's necklace, the conventional medical trainee necklace, the pharmacist's pendant, the Crown Princess' necklace, and the Azai family pendant. Rose asked Efergan if there was anything she could do about her necklace, which was too cluttered. Still, it seemed like medical attire had to be clearly identified. She put all the pendants together on the necklace, but it was still too cluttered. Well, she shortened it so it wasn't a problem, Rose thought.
As you'd expect from a general medical facility in a big city. There were a lot of patients early in the morning. They were busy with patients and various ailments, from children with fevers to people with lower back pain, and some with broken bones.
She quickly had lunch at a nearby food stall, ate it, and then returned to the medical facility. However, the food stall today was delicious. The meal, served with rice, stewed meat, and vegetables, cost 50 copper coins. It was cheap and tasty! Rose thought. She decided to try something else tomorrow, having grown fond of Tamara's street food.
She managed to get through her afternoon's work, mixing potions and leaving magic recovery potions at the facility. She had a fulfilling time somehow, and her shift came to an end. On her way home, she stopped by the shopping district and checked the bookstore, where she found her books. She bought a few copies and had them wrapped. She autographed one and gave it to Jawara as a gift. Apparently, Jawara's wife likes cooking, so she thought the children would be delighted if she made these delicious sweets. Jawara happily accepted the book.
Candy was also on sale in Tamara's shopping district. Rose thought the taste was different from the candy in the capital and Dana's, and even from the candy she bought in Ureg. The flavor of candy also varies depending on the town. The sweets shop also sells Alhatross-baked goods. Rose bought a small box of it. This is to put in her medical bag. It's convenient, so she always carries it with her.
After finishing her shopping, she returned to the mansion and could see the town hall from the garden. Officials were busily working in the visitors' building, which had been turned into the town hall. The public reception desk had already closed, but the officials were busy cleaning up.
Rose entered the main building and went to Olefa's room to check on Rinka.
Rinka had already turned into a human and was sleeping. It seemed Teresno had given her medicine and instructed her to rest for the day. From Olefa's room, she went to check on Ash in the courtyard, where he came to greet Rose, wagging his tail enthusiastically.
"You're feeling much better now, Ash!"
"Woof! Woof!"
He really was a wolf, behaving like a dog. When she hugged cute Ash, he wagged his tail happily.
Rose went to the gazebo to relax with Ash, drinking tea and gazing out at the garden. Sometimes, doing nothing is important, she thought.
"Are you here?"
She heard Efergan's voice. Ash wagged his tail and went to greet his beloved master.
"Oh, welcome back. Are your shifts over already?"
Rose stood up and greeted Efergan. Efergan stroked Ash before sitting in a chair in the gazebo.
"How was work as a medic?"
Efergan gazed at Rose while drinking the hot water Hattie had brought over.
"It was a busy day, but a fulfilling one."
"I'm glad to hear that."
Efergan began eating some baked goods from the table. They were homemade by Emel.
"Yes."
"But try not to tire yourself out too much."
"Yes."
"I'm planning on inspecting the surrounding villages in a few days. It's official business, so I'll be in touch with the medical facilities, so keep that in mind."
"Yes."
"This estate is rustier than I thought."
Efergan sighed and stared out at the garden.
"Was it really that bad?"
"It was terrible."
Efergan answered immediately.
"Oh dear."
"I'll start with cleaning up. I arrested several officials today for obvious bribery and embezzlement. Some even confessed to their crimes. Well, that's a lesser punishment, so they won't lose their heads."
Heads...
Efergan has no mercy on officials who embezzle or take bribes. He's sent many bad officials to the execution block, and he'll continue to do so. He's so strict that severed heads are displayed in the square for several days.
"We need as many good executives as possible."
Rose said, and Efergan nodded.
"That's true. The hard part is just beginning. We confiscated Gemera's family's assets, but a huge amount of gold coins was stolen from the storage location. I really don't think the administrator is taking their job seriously."
Efergan spat out again.
"Maybe you should change all the locks."
"I've given the order. If we lose any more, Tamara will go bankrupt."
"Is it really that bad?"
"Yes, it's awful. We'll definitely get that money back."
"How?"
"I'll think about it."
Efergan munched on a pastry, deep in thought.
"Recalculate the contracted amount, payment amount, and interest, and then recalculate the maximum interest rate and everything under the law..."
Rose said something she'd seen on TV a long time ago. She thinks it was a lawyer's show, but she doesn't remember the details.
"That's an option."
Efergan looked at Rose and nodded.
"We've already repaid some contracts, so we'll review them. If they turn out to be illegal, we'll take them to court and recover the overpayments."
"Yes."
"And then..."
"Huh?"
"We'll also confiscate the assets of those who embezzled."
"That sounds like a lot of work..."
"We also need to look into the tax flow. If trade is going well, then we need to figure out why the money isn't coming in."
"We really need to start from the root, don't we?"
"Yeah. This is infuriating. Let's auction off Gemera's personal assets."
"I wonder if they'll sell?"
"We need to advertise them so they'll sell."
"Yes."
"And then... You see..."
"Huh?"
"We'll track any large transfers..."
"What if they lead to something dangerous?"
"We'll investigate."
"Are you okay?"
"It's the people's money."
"Yes."
"I have to work hard for the people. Just imagining what the Azai will tell Rose makes me uneasy."
Efergan said with a laugh. Then he pulled Rose to him.
"Before they say that, I'll complain to you first."
Rose put her finger under Efergan's nose.
"You're a reliable princess. Please take care of me."
"Certainly."
Efergan smiled.
"The sun will soon set. Let's take a bath."
"Yes."
The two quickly got ready for dinner and enjoyed it. After dinner, Efergan returned to work. Most of the executives had left, but Efergan was left alone to wrestle with documents. Several Black Ops members came and helped Efergan. Etule said that Black Ops was good at reviewing documents. However, it seems Etule himself is dreadful at desk work. What a boss. In the end, Etule left Efergan's work to his subordinates and left the mansion to go into town.
Rose studied a little more seriously for her thesis. Rose said that the custom-made library was her favorite place in the mansion.
"Lady Rose, I think it's about time you should go to bed."
Follett, bringing tea, entered the library. Amanjaya was also there, offering Rose some.
"Thank you. Is it that time already?"
"Yes. I think it would be bad for your health if you didn't get some rest."
"I understand. Thank you. I'll have this tea before I go to bed. What about His Highness?"
"He's still working."
"Oh."
Rose finished her tea. She put away the books she'd been studying and put her notebook in a drawer. Then, with Haintz and the others, she went into where Efergan was.
"Honey."
Rose called out, and Efergan emerged from under a pile of papers.
"Rose?"
"I'm going to bed first."
"Yeah. I'll be going to bed soon."
"Okay. If you stay out too late, you won't be able to train tomorrow morning."
"Yeah."
"Good night."
"Good night."
Efergan smiled brightly. He looked genuinely tired.
After greeting Efergan, Rose returned to her room and heard Ash howling. For some reason, she was curious, so she went to the courtyard and approached Ash.
"What's wrong, Ash?"
When Rose asked Ash, he was staring up. There was definitely something there.
"Guards! Tell His Highness!"
Rose ordered a nearby guard.
"Haintz, let's go up a bit."
"It's dangerous."
"You'll be fine if I'm with you, right?"
"Lady Rose..."
Rose willed herself to fly. And what she saw before her very eyes was the last thing she wanted to see in the world.
"It's an airship..."
As Rose spoke, Haintz quickly shouted out loud.
"An airship has appeared! Everyone, be aware! Be aware!"
Guards, bodyguards, and even the Knights came out from their respective positions. Eferghan also rushed in from his office.
"An airship has appeared?!"
Efergan quickly came to Rose's side in the air.
"Yes. That's an airship."
Several airships were visible in the western sky. They were already above town.
"This is bad. If we fall here, it'll be a disaster."
Efergan said.
"Olefa, stay with Rinka."
"But Your Highness..."
Olefa objected to Effergan's orders.
"They'll probably take advantage of the confusion and attack Rinka again. No matter how much she claims to have recovered, she's still taking her medicine."
Efergan asked Olefa for his understanding.
"Your Highness..."
"If anything happens to Rinka, it will become an international issue. So please, protect her."
"I understand."
Olefa nodded.
"Prepare for Dalcetta! Contact the Black Ops and General Elson. Evacuate the townspeople!"
The men of the mansion were moving under Efergan's orders.
"Rose, stay here."
"I can fight, too."
"Protect the town."
Efergan spoke kindly to Rose.
"If that were to fall on the town, Rose would be the only one who could protect it."
"Yes."
Efergan went out into the garden and climbed onto Dalcetta.
"Barrier for Efergan! Speed-boosting enchantment! Attack-boosting enchantment! Ability boost! Weapon strengthening!"
Efergan went up with Kerzek and the Knights.
After Efergan and the others went up, Rose looked down at the town from above. Mirza brought Rose's bag. The guards could be seen guiding the panicked people away. The nightmare from that time returned to her mind. A year ago, during the Tamara War, a Morg airship appeared in the town of Tagoe.
"Hey, Haintz."
"Yes."
"Do you still have the palm-mounted catapult?"
"I put it away on the shelf in my room... is there something?"
"Yeah. Also, please get some plant seeds from the gardener. If they don't have any, I'd like you to get a bag of beans from the kitchen. And a bag of soil, too."
"You can't be..."
"I want to get them out of town as soon as possible."
"I understand. Efain, I'll leave Lady Rose to you."
Haintz understood Rose's words. He immediately went downstairs, asked Follett for a few things, and then ran off to his room.
A little while later, Haintz and the servants were mixing seeds and soil in the courtyard, making some balls. Efergan and his men, the Security Guards, and the General appeared to be flying above.
"Barrier to Dalcetta! Speed-boosting enchantment! Attack-boosting enchantment! Ability boost!"
Rose provided support to Dalcetta from a distance.
"Lady Rose!"
Haintz came next to Rose and handed her a bag containing a ball of soil and the seeds.
"Thank you."
Rose activated her third eye and closed it.
"Nature! Rose commands: grant me power!"
A surge of power surged forth from her. Rose focused her energy on the bag in her hand. She channeled her energy into each seed. Seeds imbued with Rose's magical power would become deadly, so they needed to be handled with care. This was a biohazard-level weapon.
"Haintz, I'd like to give this to His Highness."
"No. You can't leave."
Haintz's face frowned.
"I'll go."
Mirza said.
"Okay, I'll leave it to you. Oh, wait a moment, I'll contact His Highness first."
Rose nodded.
"Efergan."
(What?)
Efergan, already fighting above, answered.
"I've prepared some plant seed weapons. I'm on my way to deliver them."
(It's dangerous!)
"It's not me. Mirza."
(I see, that's fine. I'll wait.)
Rose sent a barrier and full support to Mirza. He was the fastest of the guards, so he'd probably be able to deliver them somehow. Rose handed Mirza the bag and Haintz's catapult.
"Mirza, His Highness is waiting for you upstairs."
"Okay."
"I'll escort you partway."
"Huh?"
"Teleport!"
Rose carried Mirza upstairs, right next to Dalcetta.
"Be careful on the way back."
"Huh?!"
"Teleport!"
Rose returned to Haintz.
"Lady Rose! I told you not to go upstairs on your own!"
"I'm sorry..."
"Don't ever do anything on your own again!"
Haintz scolded Rose. He looked very worried.
"I'm sorry. I wanted to deliver it quickly, so I..."
"I was worried."
"Yeah. That's why I said I was sorry..."
"..."
Haintz was genuinely angry. Efain was angry too.
"Well, Lady Rose apologized, so I guess it's okay, Haintz, Efain."
Jawara spoke gently.
"I know, but... I still think my heart would stop in an instant, Jawara."
Haintz pouted and complained.
"She was worried about Mirza, so that's why you did that, Lady Rose, right?"
Jawara said, and Rose nodded.
"Some of the airships are still outside town, so I thought it would be more effective to deal with them first... to safely transport Mirza and the weapons... I thought... I'm sorry for worrying you."
As Rose spoke, Haintz and Efain's expressions changed.
"I understand. I am the one who was rude to Lady Rose. I apologize."
Haintz put his hand on his chest and bowed his head. Efain did the same.
"No. I am the one who deserves your scolding."
Rose also bowed her head.
"The enemy has begun attacking the town."
Hearing Jawara's words, they looked towards the western sky and saw a beam of high-intensity heat rays coming from the airship. It attacked a tower on the town's outer wall, causing an explosion and fire. This was terrible.
"Terra Barrier Shield!"
A gigantic magical shield appeared on the west side of town. It was larger than anything Rose had ever summoned before. It was even larger than the one she'd used to protect the Merap Village from the volcanic eruption. Furthermore, maintaining it required a tremendous amount of magical power. Efain took a magic potion from Rose's bag and handed it to her. Rose drank it, but it still wasn't enough.
"I'd like two more."
"Yes."
Efain handed her two more. Seven magic potions remained.
Thanks to the magical shield, no more enemy attacks were hitting the town. But maintaining it was challenging. After a while, Mirza returned from above.
"I'm back."
"Welcome back, Mirza. How was it?"
"I gave it to His Highness. He used it right away."
Mirza gestured to the airship outside town. Efergan shot the plant seeds from a catapult atop Dalcetta. He understood Rose's thoughts. He already knew how to use them without saying a word.
When the seeds land on the airship, seedlings emerge. These seedlings send out roots in search of nutrients, penetrating every corner of the ship. Any living creatures they find recognize them as a source of nutrition, absorbing them. The seeds are designed to blossom as they mature. The seed balls Efergan launched with his catapult sprouted. A short time later, beautiful, extra-large roses bloomed in the sky. The rose trees' roots penetrated the airship in search of nutrients, mercilessly devouring those inside. Because each ball contained multiple seeds, the branches intertwined and grew. Unable to control the airship, the two collided in mid-air and exploded. The debris fell outside the city and on part of the barrier. Haintz and the guards gazed unblinkingly at the garden of giant roses floating in the sky. Rose thought they must be more terrifying than beautiful.
An airship had already invaded the town. The knights and guards fought the airship's crew and seized control. Having fought against airships in the war a year ago, Efergan's subordinates seemed to understand how to pilot those ships, and they skillfully guided them out of town and brought them down.
"As expected."
A voice suddenly came from a different direction. It was a man's voice Rose didn't recognize, but she recognized the vibrations. It was the man who kidnapped Rinka yesterday. He was the man carrying Rinka's bag.
"Who's there?"
Haintz and the others all gathered around Rose at once. With her barrier still up, Rose couldn't go anywhere.
"Me? Right... I'm Taran. Nice to meet you, Princess Bara."
He introduced himself, keeping his distance. Haintz tried to move, but Rose stopped him.
"Call me Rose."
"Excuse me. Princess Rose...huh? I heard it's Bara..."
"It's written as Bara, but pronounced Rose."
"Thank you so kindly."
"No. So, are you here to steal my cat again?"
Rose asked, and the man gave a wry smile.
"I've fallen so far that I'm being called a cat thief."
"Oh, isn't that true?"
"Yeah. I did come to steal the Princess's cat yesterday."
"What were you planning to do with the cat? If you want to keep it, there are plenty of cats at the market."
"The princess's cat is special... someone wanted it, so I accepted the request."
"Please give the people who hired you another black cat. They're selling those cats at the market."
"That won't do. The client will be angry if it's not that cat."
"Then the client should come to me and tell me directly what they want. I'll refuse, though."
"I see. That's why the request came to me."
Taran looked at Rose with a wry smile.
"I see. So, you still want my cat?"
"I'll take it if you give it to me."
"Nope."
"I know. So I was going to use force, but..."
"That's impossible."
"I know. I can see it."
"True. So, tell the client that the job has been a failure."
Rose looked at him as she said this.
"Are you letting me go?"
"If that airship wasn't the one you summoned, you can go home."
"I wasn't the one. But I think my client did it."
"Why?"
"They had a business with some documents in the office. But that wasn't my job, so I just watched."
"Oh."
"Well, most of the people who tried to steal the documents were bitten and killed by that dog."
"That's a shame."
"Well, it can't be helped. I know I'd die if I fought that dog."
"Yeah. I'm telling you, it's not a normal dog. It's a wolf."
Rose said, and Taran laughed.
"That's amazing."
"I'm troubled by your praise, though."
"Yeah."
"Look, I'm curious about you."
"Why is that?"
"Well, you must be curious about me, right?"
"How could that be?"
"Otherwise, you wouldn't talk to me until you were putting yourself in danger."
"Yeah, I wonder... what's wrong with me?"
Taran scratched his head with his fingers.
"You can't tell me who the client is, can you?"
"I can't. It's work."
"I see. That's a shame."
"Anyway, I'm quitting this job. I won't attack the cat anymore."
"Really? That's a relief to hear."
"Haha, why do you believe what I say? I'm one of the darkness, you know? It's my job to lie, isn't it?"
"Because your vibrations don't lie."
"Vibrations..."
"I can tell that's your true feelings."
"..."
Taran blinked.
"Taran, right?"
"Yes."
"Stop being such a thief."
"Why did you suddenly say that?"
"Because I don't want someone as strong and intelligent as you to die like a bug."
"Bug..."
Taran stared at Rose in silence.
"That's your fate eventually."
"Why did you just assume that?"
"It's the fate of a thief. Especially those who mistreat cats, they'll be cursed by them."
Rose said with a serious face. But then, Taran burst out laughing.
"Hahahaha. That's funny. A cat curse... hahahahaha."
Taran laughed heartily, clutching his stomach.
"Oh, was it funny?"
"Yes, it's been a while since I laughed so heartily. Thank you."
"No."
"I like you, Princess. Okay, I'll quit my job."
"Really? That's good."
"I'll come to see you again, Princess."
"You can call me Rose."
"Rose... No, Princess is fine."
"Do as you please. And if you're going, you'd better hurry up, or His Highness will find you and you'll be dead."
"That's true."
"Make sure you wash your hands properly! Live a clean, honest life."
"I get it, Princess!"
The person vanished into the darkness.
"Is that okay? Otherwise, he'll get away."
Jawara said, and Rose nodded.
"Taran'll fight back under the cover of darkness and kill anyone pursuing him."
"Is he really that powerful?"
"Yes. I fought Taran yesterday. He was pretty strong."
"Really?!"
"Yes."
Rose drank two more magic potions. Maintaining this enormous barrier requires an incredible amount of energy.
More explosions were heard in the western sky. The sky north of town was also bright red. An airship had likely crashed and exploded there.
After about two or three hours, the airship attack ultimately failed. Most of the airships crashed outside the city, but two collided in mid-air, landing partially on the barrier. Efergan managed to shatter them, allowing the barrier to be lifted. Some airships retreated, either anxious or scared, after their comrades were attacked by the mysterious flowers and left in miserable condition. But Efergan wouldn't let them escape. Those biohazard-level seed balls hadn't let a single one of them escape. The rosebush devours all living things until the flowers are consumed by the fires of the explosion and wither.