Reborn Financier-Chapter 15: Corruption and Consequences

Kaidën knew the moment the presence broke into his bedroom. His senses were heightened, his body was tense, his fists were clenched, ready to kill. Silent and deadly, he crept forward with speed to eliminate the intruder.

"Young master! Where have you been to? I have waited!"

The voice was familiar.

Kaidën exhale, releasing the tension with which he came on wearing the voice. "Steven? What in the world are you doing here?" Slurred was how he sounded, but he also tried to imbue the sound with a modicum of amusement. "I almost sent your head flying."

Steven went white at the reckless remark, sweat beads forming on his forehead. His eyes were filled with terror, but he regained control.

"I. I just wanted to look after you, young master," Steven dared, his own voice tight with a mix of fear and devotion. "To ensure that you were safe."

Kaidën let out a weary sigh. "Who is going to hurt me, for goodness’s sake?" he burst out, his fervent eyes sparkling in the gentle moonlight. He marched over to his bed and collapsed back onto it, gazing up at the ceiling. "It’s late, Steven. Sleep. I need mine."

Steven stopped, then obligingly bowed and stepped back from the room, closing the door behind him.

By himself, Kaidën turned his attention to the window. Outside, the world was softly lit by the pale light of the moon, and the shadows of the devastated city stretched long across it.

He narrowed his eyes.

"What’s happening to me?"

****

Morning broke, and the home of Valtorin was alive with activity.

Kaidën’s mother, Princess Sofia, sat in her own library, digging through piles of accounting ledgers and books. Her eyebrows furrowed with each turned page, her frown deepening.

The more she read, the clearer the picture—Aschel, the glittering old capital of the kingdom, had fallen into little better than a cesspool of crime, poverty, and corruption. The city was rotting from the inside and now she understood why.

A hundred years ago, under the rule of King Austin, Aschel used to be the center of the kingdom, a hub of merchants, philosophers, and knights. Its mana was the most dense in the kingdom, and there were nobles and peasants by the thousands who were all aspiring for prosperity and power. All of that was lost in the war with the Horsen Empire, the most powerful in the western continent as well as the death of the Great King Austin.

The destruction and the loss had been debilitating. The King Austin’s heir had decided to abandon the city entirely rather than rebuild it, and let it disintegrate under the same burden of crime.

Sofia clenched her teeth as she went through the ten-year-old account books. The local Lord of the land, the man who was supposed to be guarding the survivors of Aschel, had been exploiting the people instead of helping them.

Over-taxation. Unaccounted gold. Missing money. Exploitation of commoners rights. Spread of Ocni, a deadly and addictive drug that spreading at an incredible pace.

The statistics were not misleading. The citizens were being robbed blind, shoved into poverty and the so-called lord luxuriated in comfort.

Sofia slammed the ledger shut, her face darkening with anger.

"Steven!" she bellowed, her voice cracking like a whip.

Steven rushed into the room, bending his head. "Yes, my lady?"

"Prepare the carriage," she commanded, her tone short. "I’m going to confront this son of a bitch in person."

Steven lingered for a second before he bowed again. "At once, my lady."

****

The sun was shining brightly in the sky as Steven and Princess Sofia came to the local lord’s residence.

It was in vivid contrast to the rest of Aschel. The city lay littered with charred structures, dirty roads, and poor subjects merely existing. Amidst the destruction, however, the lord’s palace towered—unblemished, opulent, and remorseless.

Sofia’s brows furrowed.

The mansion gates were gold-plated, the walls spotless, and the smell of money nauseating. She was filled with rage at the mere sight.

A moment and a half later, the main doors creaked open and the local lord emerged with a entourage of fat guards. His robe was gold-threaded, and his fingers sparkled with rings no ordinary administrator could have possibly dreamed of. His oily grin faltered slightly at the sight of Sofia.

"My lady!" he exclaimed, his warmly welcoming voice with effort. "How delightful to welcome you to my modest manor. If I had known you were coming, a feast worthy of—"

"Spare me the protocol," Sofia cut in brusquely. "Where are the books?"

The smile of the lord wavered, his fist clenching. "Ledgers?" he asked. "Surely, my lady, you would prefer to speak of such matters in a more. comfortable setting. Permit me to welcome you indoors first, if you will."

Sofia’s eyebrows furrowed. She knew delay tactics when she saw them.

But she leaned her head. "Very well. Go on."

The lord breathed a sigh of relief, inviting her to move along with him to the mansion.

Inside, the contrast was even more frustrating. The floors were marble, gleaming with polish, the chandeliers blazed with enchanted crystals, and the walls were hung with costly tapestries. Sumptuous feasts remained untouched on plates of gold.

Outside the walls, however, children were starving in the streets.

Her hands were balled at her waist, but she was serene.

****

When they sat in the big hall, the region’s lord clicked his fingers to call for a young maid. She hurried in with a massive leather-bound book.

Sofia’s sharp eyes instantly saw the bruises on the girl’s face and arms.

Her stomach churned with revulsion.

She was about to speak when the lord suddenly laughed and waved his hand. "Oh, don’t pay attention to her, my lady. She’s rather clumsy, you see. Tripped in the kitchen a few days ago."

Sofia remained silent, but her gaze locked on Steven. He cut through the subtext—that this was not something they were going to forget.

For the moment, they had greater issues to solve.

She took the ledger from the servant’s shaking hands and began to read.

Initially, the figures were what she had anticipated—embezzlement, fraud, misspending. But the deeper she delved into the papers, something was off.

Her face fell.

Her fingers gripped the pages.

She went on reading, and her heart pounded with surprise.

There was more to such corruption than greed.

The numbers did not merely suggest wealth accumulating to the lord—they suggested something much darker.

Her gaze shifted up to the lord, who was now perspiring under her scrutiny.

"What is this?" she snarled, her tone low and menacing.

The lord swallowed. "I—I don’t know what you mean, my lady—" Sofia closed the book on the table, cutting him off. What she had just learned changed everything.

To be continued...