I Became the Tyrant's Servant

As soon as I returned to the Imperial Palace, I held a Cabinet meeting first as a sincere Prime Minister.

Having addressed all the issues very quickly, I lowered my back and raised my voice.

“Your Majesty, may I put up a personal agenda for the last time?”

“Ho, I’m very curious about the Duke’s personal agenda. What is it?”

He had already matched his words with me, but Cardan’s eyes twinkling with his chin on his hand seemed to be really curious about my agenda. I couldn’t help but acknowledge his acting skills.

“A while ago, I almost had a fatal accident on my way back to the palace from the coast.”

“What do you mean, an accident? What happened?”

When Cardan urged me with a serious face, I made a miserable expression and lowered my voice to a full extent.

“I was attacked by a group of assassins.”

There was a gasp of surprise everywhere.

Perhaps thanks to my diligent efforts to recover the emperor’s reputation ruined by the Duke of Baloa, the aristocrats around me gave me worried eyes.

Except for the Marquis of Sherrington, who is politely lowering his head.

I smiled contentedly inside.

The information shared at this venue today will surely reach the Empress Dowager’s ears.

In the past, when I was attacked by the assassins, I didn’t want to touch the Empress Dowager for no reason in the face of my exile. Therefore, I brushed it off roughly.

The Empress Dowager must feel a sense of crisis at the news that I am revealing the incident now.

“We couldn’t bring this up at the Cabinet meeting because there was no clear evidence before, but we’ve made significant progress in our recent investigation.”

There was nothing to investigate, thanks to the death of all the assassins at Cardan’s hands, but I shook my mouth hard.

“We succeeded in capturing one of the assassins alive. We found a tattoo that is believed to be a pattern on their body. I think it will be of substantial help to catch the rest of the assassins. At this rate, it seems that we can quickly find out their background.”

There’s nothing more reliable than a lie with the right amount of truth.

All of the bodies of the assassins were destroyed by fire, but according to Cardan’s report, all of them had tattoos of the same pattern engraved on their bodies.

I recited with my back bent deeper.

“Your Majesty! I request the authority to formally investigate and impose punishment in this case.”

Cardan immediately responded.

“What a peculiar group that dares to harm the reign of the empire. I will entrust all authority to our Duke, so that the group and those behind them must be severely punished by the law.”

“Of course, Your Majesty. I will never let you down.”

***

“If Your Majesty hadn’t killed all the assassins at that time, we could have really pressured the Empress Dowager. Why did you run amok for no reason? Hah.”

Lying down on the couch in Cardan’s office, I smacked my lips.

“I heard you’re dead, so I have no choice but to lose my reason.”

Instead of reprimanding the Prime Minister as always, Cardan, who was looking at state affairs himself, responded by putting the documents aside for a while.

Unlike Cardan, who looks calm, the tips of my ears are hot.

“Haha, if you want to get my revenge, you should think about catching the Empress Dowager first, so why take it out on the assassins who will be precious evidence?”

Cardan, who turned his eyes back to the document, turned over one more page and replied insignificantly.

“I was planning to kill the Empress Dowager if I returned back to the palace.”

I didn’t fully comprehend his words, so I blinked, but Cardan smiled lightly.

“I’m a tyrant by name. Do I need a trial to kill a person?”

When he made that sincere remark, I couldn’t bear to say anything.

As a way to avenge me, he will claim to play the role of a tyrant that he hates so much.

I ended up turning around on the sofa.

I didn’t want my face to be seen looking stupid, obviously.

At the same time, Cardan sighed from behind. He seemed to have misunderstood that he was in trouble for killing the assassins.

“Anyways, it’s okay as long as there’s no problem with pressuring the Empress Dowager.”

“That’s right.

Still unable to turn my head, I mumbled on the sofa.

Cardan clicked his tongue.

“When you almost died from the assassins, you didn’t even rush to do this, but because of the princess who only shed tears, now you’re like this.”

“…….”

“It’s something you would have done when we were young, but at times like this, I miss the Duke of Baloa, who had no blood or tears.”

I was suffocated for a moment as if I had inhaled smoke.

At his words, my expression seemed to collapse miserably, so I had no choice but to bury my face deeper on the sofa.

I blamed myself for making all sorts of jokes. This is because I foresaw myself being unable to escape this posture of looking at the sofa for a very long time.

Because I didn’t want to show my face to him even if I died.

***

“As expected, I shouldn’t play with the emperor.”

I headed to my office muttering.

As soon as I walked around the corner of the corridor, I heard a call for me from afar.

“Duke Baloa!”

“Duke! Why are you only coming now?”

“Congratulations on your return!”

There was a reason why I took refuge in Cardan’s office.

As soon as I saw the nobles gathered in front of my office like a cloud, I thought hard about heading back to Cardan’s office.

“Haha, this enthusiastic welcome is quite burdensome.”

Amidst the clamor, I found Count Linoa sighing heavily as if he had lost his soul among them.

Even in the midst of stumbling, he seemed to be worried because he even took the first seat in the line in front of the office.

“Then come in first, Count Linoa.”

I finally brought the count into the office.

Having settled down, I solemnly held my hands together and opened my mouth.

“You’re here for Harvey, aren’t you?”

The count shut his mouth.

“How… As expected, you know everything.”

And he sighed deeply and shook his head.

“I thought he was quietly staying on the East continent, yet he dared to go to the lawless city in the wilderness.”

“The lawless city…….”

I already knew it because I received a letter from the prince, but I felt a sense of wonder today.

Count Linoa, who took a handkerchief from his sleeve, began to wipe his eyes.

“Yes, it drives me crazy. Every day in Howard’s name, astronomical bills keep coming, and even if I try to ignore them, they’re camped out in front of every business site I have, so my head hurts to the point of exploding.”

The count’s face has turned red. I felt like his head was going to explode at this rate.

“But there’s no such thing as breaking things or threatening employees, so I can’t report them to the security forces and put them in jail! There are rumors among my investors that we are suffering from huge debts, so everyone is going crazy to take back their investment.”

The count stopped sniffling and glanced at me.

“This all happened because the Duke obeyed the law too meticulously! If it was before, I would have given the security forces a few pennies and pulled them all out.”

Suddenly, my eyes widened at his words aimed at me.

“You must have gotten a lot more comfortable, count.”

Following Cardan’s lines, Count Linoa shook his hand in contemplation.

As expected, the effect was immediate because I copied the dirty personality of the original Erina.

“I’m not, by all rights, Duke! I was just frustrated…….”

I sighed.

“It’s not that I don’t understand the count’s mind. It’s like the feeling of someone else throwing away my hard-earned money.”

The Count of Linoa nodded vigorously.

“But there’s nothing I can do for you either. As you know, it’s outside of imperial territory and even those who come to collect money don’t do anything illegal in the empire……. The only way is to get Harvey out of there.”

“Howard.”

The count sniffed as he corrected my words.

“Yes, Howard.”

I waved at the unimportant little information.

“So, where is the location of the lawless city? Since Harvey is there, can’t you ask him where he is by letter?”

I asked the prince of the East continent about this. He only replied that he did not know the exact location.

“I don’t know.”

The Count of Linoa shook his head lonesomely.

“I asked Howard, but he said he couldn’t see where he was heading because his eyes and ears covered thoroughly before entering the city. I think the same holds true for other customers in the city.”

I frowned at the strange sense of wonder rising again.

Count Linoa burst into tears as if he had misunderstood it as an expression of my endless refusal.

“Oh, it’s because I don’t have anyone else to ask for help, Duke. Last month, there was a notice that he spent 1,000 rue only on pub tips, and this month, the news came that he had bet all his money on a soldier with one eye!”

The Count of Linoa began to tear off his hair, which was scarce.

“No, if he’s planning to gamble on gladiators, he should bet on the winning side! What is he doing, betting on a soldier with one eye? One eye!”

“…… one eye.”

The feeling of deja vu that has been bothering me for a while has reached its peak.

Lores, which means lawlessness.

The thorough security of preventing anyone from being able to locate it reminded me of a boarded-up wagon window when I was taken to the slave base.

The one-eyed gladiator must be…….

“Peter…?”

It became clearer when I spit it out.

The Empress Dowager, who lost her slave market, needed a new cash cow.

However, in an empire where the law was strengthened, the risk was too high to call black money for illegal activities.

That’s why she turned to a place that was not subject to the law.

“Her way of raking in money is amazing. I envy her.”

“What?”

I smiled brightly when Count Linoa asked, sniffing.

“Count. If I do well, I think I can solve your problem.”

I will be able to help Janet, smash the Empress Dowager’s dirty tricks, and save the Count’s family. It was three birds with one stone.

“Really?”

I was startled by Count Linoa, who grabbed my hand with his hand that was rubbing his nose earlier.

“Yes.”

I lowered my voice in secret, subtly pulling my hand out.

“Instead, there is something the Count must do.”

“Yes, anything! Say anything!”

A smile of satisfaction naturally appeared on my face.

“Spread the rumor among the noble people. The duke is sharpening her sword to find out who is behind the assassins.”

It was time to start the rabbit hunting in earnest.