Chapter: 119
Reuniting with the Minister was the worst.
“Come in.”
“No, please no.”
The scene I had seen a few months ago replayed right in front of me. Where on earth was a Minister who would exercise during work hours?
I opened the door but hesitated to step inside. Since it was the middle of a hot summer and he was working out, the Minister’s office was even hotter. Was this an office or a sauna? The Finance Ministry’s building is a total mess.
As I stood at the door, the Minister tilted his chin toward me with a look that said, “What are you doing?” Yeah, damn it, I have to go in.
“If you’re planning to switch to the military, please take me with you.”
“Did you get heatstroke? What nonsense are you talking about?”
I opened my mouth because his appearance was more fitting for an Imperial Commander than a Finance Minister, only to get immediately scolded.
Right, now was definitely too late for a switch to the military. I knew that, but I just wanted to take a stab at it. You know, sometimes you just try even when it’s clear it won’t work.
Anyway, the Minister frowned at my comment and threw a dumbbell at a noticeably dented part of the floor. There hadn’t been any dents like that the last time I was here. How many times had he been throwing them?
‘Was the floor below just a storage area?’
Luckily, it seemed like no one was suffering from the noise created by the Minister. I mean, who would complain when the culprit was the Minister himself?
As I stared blankly at the dumbbells, the Minister finally spoke while holding his shirt.
“What happened?”
“Nothing much. Just business as usual.”
I answered his abrupt question casually. He’d understand the meaning, anyway.
After nodding at my reply, the Minister’s expression soured again.
“A guy younger than me deciding to retire…”
The escapades of the former Count Horfeld seemed to have struck a chord with many civil servants.
Well, frankly, that made sense. The former Count Horfeld was now in his 40s. For a Minister in his 50s, that must have felt like a slap in the face.
“I envy him. Retiring at that age isn’t easy.”
Retiring in your 40s? That’s just unrealistic. If I could retire before I die, that would be a miracle.
The more I thought about it, the more curious I became. How did he manage to retire? He wasn’t just lingering at some insignificant job; he was a key figure. Did he have some dirt on the Emperor?
‘Good things should be shared, you know?’
Hoarding that information for himself is just plain selfish.
“I need to retire soon, too. That way, I can make you the Minister.”
“Don’t even joke about terrible things like that.”
I reflexively cursed at his sudden provocation. Who would want to ruin their life by taking on that Minister position?
The Executive Manager role was strenuous enough—becoming the Minister of Finance would probably make me want to bite my tongue off. I’ve never been cut out for office work to begin with.
But the Minister just laughed at my reaction.
‘What an ass.’
If only his character was half as good as his abilities.
The report wrapped up swiftly. Despite the incident’s importance, it ended too quietly, and I needed to say something.
“Speaking of which, I heard you visited your territory.”
“Yes, I just got back today.”
“What did Count Tailglehen say?”
“He’s not particularly interested in others, so he didn’t say much.”
Despite both being Counts, the reaction from the Patriarch was surprisingly underwhelming. I figured he’d at least call for me once since I was at the mansion, but he really didn’t do anything.
“Nothing else?”
Oh, was that not the question?
The Minister’s firm tone made me a bit taken aback. I assumed he was asking about Count Horfeld, but I was off the mark.
“If you were suddenly summoned to your territory, there had to be a reason, especially with those guests around.”
“I was called by my mother. It had nothing to do with the Patriarch.”
At that, the Minister’s hands, which were organizing reports, froze.
He must have thought the Patriarch had summoned me regarding work. There’s no way he would have imagined it was my mother calling. Even I was surprised when I received her invitation.
“Perhaps she was worried about her unmarried eldest son.”
To lighten the awkward atmosphere as the large Minister fidgeted awkwardly, I replied casually. After all, he knew that my relationship with my mother wasn’t exactly close. He must have felt uneasy if he touched a sensitive issue.
“I can only imagine how frustrated she must have been.”
The Minister immediately seized the opportunity as soon as the mood lightened, making me regret my words.
“Exactly. She even mentioned an engagement.”
“An engagement?”
He looked puzzled at the strange topic, so I nodded in response.
I had prepared myself for some marriage pressure while there. However, I didn’t expect to be cornered with Marghetta sitting right next to me, let alone have an engagement mentioned at the end.
If I hadn’t quickly thought of an excuse, I might have actually ended up engaged, even if that meant an engagement with no wedding date in sight.
“She suggested I get engaged to Lady Marghetta, but what’s the point of getting engaged at this moment? So, I postponed it for now.”
After my brief explanation, the Minister sighed and gestured for me to come closer.
“Come here for a moment.”
“What is it? Just say it from there. I can hear you just fine.”
“Come here, I said.”
I reluctantly approached as he insisted, only to feel something jab at my chest.
“How does it feel to taste the fist that made a damned fool out of a scoundrel like you?”
He followed this with some completely meaningless nonsense. Shit, has this guy really lost his marbles?
The surprise attack nearly knocked the wind out of me. It had been almost two years since I last took a hit from him.
*
What on earth should I do with this idiot?
‘Even calling him an idiot is too kind.’
If there were harsher words, I’d gladly apply them. I held my chest and looked down at the squirming fool. The baby was making a fuss over it.
I barely resisted a sigh. I knew that since that day, he’d been carrying a wound that wouldn’t just fade.
How could I not know? Even I, who was merely a supervisor, found it maddening. So how much worse had it been for him, who shared a closer bond with her?
‘I thought leaving him alone was the best remedy.’
Instead, it turned out to be poison. If I had interfered actively, perhaps this twisted outcome could have been avoided.
“Can’t you feel the punch since you’re already a wreck?”
“What the hell are you talking about? You just hit me out of nowhere!”
His loud protest nearly made me raise my fist again, but I held back. This brat wasn’t someone you could fix through brute force.
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