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080 Who is the
Mastermind!?
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Translator : PolterGlast
The Knight Commander
completely isolated the royal quarters, the area where the royal family lived.
No one could enter or leave the royal quarters without the Princess's or Knight
Commander's order. However, the Queen's subordinates were an exception. This
was because, behind the siege of the royal quarters, a mission was underway to
locate and rescue Chief Physician Dalenam's family.
The Princess,
accompanied by the Knight Commander, entered the royal quarters and headed
towards the Queen's location.
"Oh, Ermelda.
It's rare for you to come here," a well-dressed woman in her late
thirties, presumably the Queen, remarked. Her informal address of
"Ermelda" to the Princess confirmed she was either that idiot Akaba
or someone of higher standing.
"Your Majesty. I
have come today to make a report," the Princess stated.
"Oh, what is
it?" the Queen asked.
She hid her mouth with
a fan made of bird feathers, but her eyes were quite sharp. The reason such a
person was Queen must have been a political marriage. By the way, the Princess
was not this Queen's daughter. This Queen was a second consort—someone who
became Queen after the previous Queen's death. The Princess was the child of
the previous Queen, so there was no blood relation.
"We have
apprehended Chief Physician Dalenam, who was attempting to poison His Majesty
the King. We will summon a priest from the temple to detoxify His Majesty.
Furthermore, we believe there are others who assisted in His Majesty's
assassination, so I will have all record cards within the castle checked."
The Queen's flustered
reaction upon hearing this report was, though inappropriate, amusing to watch.
Panicking so openly was tantamount to confessing she was the culprit.
"As regent, I
could issue this order myself, but as it concerns His Majesty the King's life,
I thought it best to issue it under Your Majesty's name, which is why I have
come here," the Princess explained.
The Queen's eyes
darted around frantically, and her teacup rattled as she tried to lift it. My
image of the Queen was completely different from what I was seeing. I had
imagined an elderly woman with a poker face, skilled at playing mind games. But
the reality was an elderly woman who reeked of being a small-timer, far below
my expectations. However, I used Detailed Appraisal on the Queen and found out
she wasn't the mastermind. The Queen was one of the masterminds, but the true
mastermind was someone else.
"F-fine. Issue
the order in my name," the Queen stammered.
"Yes. Thank you.
Oh, by the way, Chief Physician Dalenam's family seems to have been abducted by
someone, so we are currently searching for them. We expect the background to
become clear soon, so please await good news. Also, I apologize, but for a
while, no one other than those I have arranged will be allowed into His Majesty
the King's chambers. Please forgive me," the Princess explained.
With that, the
Princess turned on her heel and left. It seemed she left before the Queen could
say anything after the Princess declared no one would be allowed into the
King's room. She's surprisingly firm.
"Barbados. As
planned," the Princess said in a low voice.
"Understood,"
Barbados replied.
The two quietly
conversed and exited the royal quarters. The Princess returned to her office,
and Barbados headed to command on-site.
Inside the Princess's
office, there were only two maids and Doren.
"Now, the one who
gave me this secret report, are you still here?" the Princess asked.
The Princess is doing
something like the Duke. Do nobles have these special abilities that don't show
up in their status? Of course, I wouldn't reply.
"You don't have
to reply. But tell me just one thing. How did you know His Majesty the King was
afflicted by poison?"
She said I didn't have
to reply, but then she asked such a thing. I really wouldn't reply.
"You won't tell
me... Very well, once this matter is resolved, I will thank you later."
I don't need thanks.
...Huh? This situation feels familiar, somehow? Déjà vu?
As the situation
seemed to be getting complicated, I decided to move away from the Princess. I
thought it might be good to go to the Queen's chambers and see the commotion,
but I decided to head back to the King's chambers instead.
The Princess had said
she summoned a priest. I wanted to see how the priest would treat the King's
poison. I hoped my curiosity wouldn't lead to my demise... Just kidding.
The King's room was
surrounded by knights, and inside the room, people were stationed at each of
the four corners, as well as by the windows and doors. Ignoring all that, I slipped
through the wall and entered the King's room.
I waited in a corner
of the room, and then a man who looked like a priest entered. He was a man in
his late forties, younger than I expected. The Princess also entered, following
the priest. She's busy.
"Chief Priest.
His Majesty the King is afflicted by a poison that causes symptoms similar to
Dargan's Disease. Can you detoxify him?" the Princess asked.
"I cannot
guarantee it, but I will do my best," Chief Priest replied.
Before the Chief
Priest could touch the King, I instantly approached him and struck him in the
neck.
Thud. The Chief Priest
fell to the floor, his eyes rolled back.
"Eh?
Wh-what!?"
"""Chief
Priest!?"""
This Chief Priest had
many criminal records. Moreover, he possessed a skill called Atonement, which
allowed him to erase his criminal history from his record card. In other words,
even if he committed a crime, the Atonement skill allowed him to conceal
various crimes. Furthermore, even if his job changed to Bandit, the skill carried
over, and he even had the added bonus of being able to change back to Priest on
his own through the Priest job's Job Change skill. It was no laughing matter.
He used the Atonement
skill to reset his record card, so how did I know? That's because my unique
skill, Detailed Appraisal, could see not only the record card's history but
also the individual's entire life.
I had thought he was
just an ordinary priest, but upon closer inspection, his life record was odd in
several places. That's when Detailed Appraisal truly showed its worth. Detailed
Appraisal showed me the records before they were tampered with. My Detailed
Appraisal is the best.
And this guy was the
very person who had changed Grissom's job to Bandit and then back to his
original Debuff Sorcerer job. I finally found the culprit!
The reason Grissom had
no record of the Chief Priest was because the Chief Priest hadn't met Grissom
as a Chief Priest. The Chief Priest had the Disguise skill, which he used to
disguise his appearance. Through this, he apparently manipulated Grissom's
record card and job as a member of an underground guild, not as a Chief Priest.
I never thought a
priest who engaged in misdeeds could restore his job to Priest on his own. And
since he could change jobs while keeping his level, he could do whatever he
wanted. Interestingly, the Disguise skill is dispelled if it's seen through.
Since he was unconscious now, he couldn't reactivate his disguise, so I decided
to inform the Princess of his true nature now.
A piece of paper fluttered
down. The Princess picked up the paper and read it, then immediately ordered
someone to be summoned. The man who arrived surprisingly had the Appraisal
(High) skill. And he also had the Discern skill. Furthermore! This man was,
surprisingly, Level 50! His job was Appraiser, and I never thought there was a
Level 50 person.
His complexion was
pale, so perhaps he was being forced to do appraisals constantly in a harsh
environment? But no, this person loved his work. If anything happened, he'd
immediately appraise it, and even if nothing happened, he'd appraise it. He
couldn't help but feel anxious if he wasn't appraising, appraising, appraising,
appraising, appraising, appraising. Yes, he was obsessed.
The Princess had this
obsessed Appraiser appraise the Chief Priest.
"No mistake.
Chief Priest... no, this Dandelid has traces of his job changing to Bandit. As
evidence, he possesses the skills Disguise, Theft, and Poison Synthesis. These
are all skills that a priest should not have! Furthermore, he can erase
criminal records from his record card using the Atonement skill. This man is
not a priest but a great criminal!"
The obsessed Appraiser
reported, excited and spitting. This revealed that the poison used on the King
was synthesized by this Chief Priest's Poison Synthesis skill. The Chief
Priest, the Queen, and the one behind them were all connected.
"How could this
be? A priest being a criminal! And attempting to assassinate the King..."
The Princess's
disappointment was immense. Whether she truly trusted him or not, she probably
had some faith in him because he was a priest.
The Princess checked
the unconscious Chief Priest's record card. However, the record card was
pristine. Was this the effect of the Atonement skill? If someone had a skill
like this, they could truly do whatever they pleased. I had to be careful
myself.
Alright, now's the
time to press the attack!
I let a memo flutter
down, and the Princess picked it up. She read the memo, and then her gaze fell
on a pile of evidence of corruption from the Minister of Finance, Count
Erbasil, and others. I had also written that Grissom had his criminal record
erased by the Chief Priest.
I felt like killing
Grissom with my own hands. But if I did that, my job would probably naturally
change to Avenger.
Grissom had just
entered the dungeon, so he probably wouldn't come out for a while. When he did
emerge from the dungeon, he would face a completely different reception than
before. I looked forward to seeing his face then.
As for Grissom, I
would list his past crimes and give them to the Princess. Just imagining
Grissom's miserable face in a cage made my chest feel lighter.
I never thought the
Chief Priest would be the catalyst for cornering Grissom. Just you wait,
Grissom!
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