The Former Empress Roughly Hides Her Abilities - Chapter 77

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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【Chapter 77】

 

“That’s absolutely ridiculous!”

 

Callen shot up from his seat, then sat back down on the edge of his chair.

 

The place where they were having their conversation was a reception room separated by just one partition wall from the guest room where Rianel was staying.

 

Since Rianel was said to be sleeping just beyond that wall, it was difficult to raise his voice.

 

It hadn’t been that long since Rianel had been exposed to the Sacred Flower concentrate either.

 

But lowering his voice didn’t mean his emotions would calm down as well.

 

“How could my daughter possibly be in a relationship with you?”

 

Well.

 

Asil answered while resting his chin on the back of his hand.

 

“It’s because I’m quite the catch.”

 

What?

 

Callen momentarily doubted his own ears.

 

He couldn’t understand where that absurd confidence came from.

 

“I’m charming. The perfect conditions for seducing someone.”

 

Callen was dumbfounded.

 

His daughter, who would argue logically even in front of him as her father, couldn’t possibly be in a relationship with someone for such a trivial reason.

 

‘Is he lying?’

 

He suspected it might be the petty scheme of a man who wanted to monopolize the one he liked.

 

“Just let me meet my daughter first. We can discuss what comes after that later—”

 

Just then.

 

“You charming bastard.”

 

A faint voice came from the inner room.

 

Though she was half-drunk with sleep, it was unmistakably Rianel’s voice.

 

“Where did you go, leaving the doll behind?”

 

“!”

 

Callen was deeply shocked.

 

‘So it was true?’

 

* * *

 

An hour later.

 

Callen was able to sit face-to-face with Rianel as he had wanted.

 

Rianel was neatly dressed, but her eyes still looked drowsy.

 

“It’s been a long time.”

 

“Yes.”

 

An frustratingly short answer came back.

 

Seeing Rianel, who seemed to have eaten and rested well in someone else’s house, Callen felt relieved but also frustrated at the same time.

 

‘How can she be so comfortable staying at the house of a man with ulterior motives?’

 

Asil, showing no intention of hiding his relationship with Rianel, calmly sat down next to her.

 

Rianel naturally accepted his presence.

 

“….”

 

Callen pressed his lips tightly together.

 

He had many things he wanted to say, but he held back for now.

 

At this point, he had traveled too far to interfere in Rianel’s life.

 

“So what brings you here?”

 

Rianel asked, and Callen cleared his throat and pushed his teacup away.

 

“I came to check if you’re in a condition to return to work.”

 

The maximum sick leave a civil servant could use was 60 days.

 

Going beyond that would require taking a leave of absence.

 

Callen had come to ask about Rianel’s intention to return to work and to deliver orders from the Imperial Palace.

 

“Have you heard the news that a foreign diplomatic mission is visiting the Empire?”

 

Of course, neither Rianel nor Asil would know such things, having stayed only at home for the past few days.

 

“I didn’t know.”

 

“Then let me tell you. Prince Zarban is coming from the Garta Kingdom.”

 

‘But why are you telling me this?’

 

Rianel’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

 

The Duke had affection for his daughter, but he usually restrained himself from interfering too much.

 

For such a person to specifically mention this story meant there was a good reason for it.

 

“You’ve been appointed as the Prince’s protocol assistant.”

 

“Isn’t there some mistake?”

 

Receiving foreign diplomatic missions was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ responsibility.

 

It wasn’t something for Rianel, who dealt with taxes, to handle.

 

“His Majesty commanded it. After consulting with the Saint, he said it would be appropriate to entrust you with the role of assisting the chief protocol officer.”

 

That meant Rianel would do the actual work, while there would be someone else to serve as a figurehead.

 

“Who is the chief officer?”

 

“Her Highness Princess Tiren.”

 

Upon hearing the answer to her casually thrown question, Rianel clenched her teeth tightly.

 

‘What is this now.’

 

The reason for putting a mere twelve-year-old Princess in the position of chief protocol officer was obvious.

 

They were creating an excuse to keep the Prince and Princess together constantly, planning to arrange the Princess’s international marriage.

 

They would send the Princess abroad like that, and then devour the business left without an owner.

 

‘That bastard.’

 

* * *

 

Just as Rianel found her appointment as assistant puzzling, the people at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs couldn’t understand this situation either.

 

Diplomatic negotiations and assisting foreign dignitaries were strictly the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ domain.

 

“Having Her Highness the Princess as the head is one thing.”

 

After all, the actual work was done by subordinates, and it wasn’t entirely unprecedented for royalty to serve as figureheads when dignitaries visited.

 

The problem was that a team leader from another agency had been appointed to assist that royal and handle the actual work.

 

“Even if it’s a temporary position, still. Does it make sense to insert a non-expert into such work?”

 

They were indignant, feeling their expertise had been disregarded.

 

“It’s not like our department lacks managers, so why do we have to serve someone from outside as our superior?”

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was a proper ‘Ministry’ with both a minister and vice-minister. So why was a team leader from another agency suddenly being brought in?

 

Then they belatedly learned the full story.

 

“The Saint requested it?”

 

“Drop the honorific. What great thing has she done to deserve being called ‘Saint-nim’?”

 

“How much must they look down on our department to just insert an outsider at will?”

 

Since the Emperor had used the Saint as a shield to avoid taking blame himself, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs people thoroughly badmouthed the Saint.

 

“What, because she does tax work well, she’ll do protocol well too? Is this supposed to make sense?”

 

The areas of responsibility were completely different!

 

“Maybe she was appointed because she has connections with the Princess.”

 

This sounded a bit more plausible.

 

Even though she was royalty, she was still only twelve years old.

 

To consider her, as this was her first time with diplomatic duties, they might have assigned someone familiar to her.

 

“Then there’s nothing we can do?”

 

“…Probably?”

 

Though it was temporary, since they had to serve Rianel as their superior for the time being, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs people began gathering information about what kind of person she was.

 

Such things are usually best known by those closest to her.

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs people went to find Til, the most senior civil servant and well-connected person at the Special Tax Bureau.

 

“…That’s all?”

 

The response that came back as advice was this pathetic.

 

-Just endure it.

 

-Then everything will be resolved.

 

Even the Book of Revelation or the Holy Scripture would have been less cryptic than that.

 

“What on earth does that mean?”

 

“Maybe it means her personality is that difficult? So perhaps it means to treat her like a natural disaster….”

 

“Well, she was famous once. They said it took exactly 3 seconds from making eye contact to picking a fight.”

 

Soon they were convinced.

 

Though Rianel’s reputation had improved, the image from her past days of acting arrogantly hadn’t been completely erased.

 

Moreover, since the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was a department with little work-related connection to the Special Tax Bureau, though they had heard rumors that Rianel was competent, they didn’t know the details.

 

‘Who knows? Maybe the rumors about her working well were also obtained by extorting other people.’

 

If they had just recalled Rianel presenting at the Administrative Council, they would have known that didn’t make sense. But they were already full of complaints and viewing everything negatively.

 

‘Well, if something goes wrong, we’ll be the ones who have to clean it up.’

 

Since Rianel was just someone who would come briefly and leave.

 

Any diplomatic problems that arose afterward would inevitably become the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ responsibility.

 

‘It can’t be helped.’

 

‘Come on, we’ll endure it.’

 

They grimly steeled their resolve.

 

But three days later.

 

They were shocked in a different sense.

 

“You’re saying you checked all these many warehouses?”

 

“Yes. From my rough examination, there were discrepancies between the ledgers and actual inventory, so I’ve marked those sections.”

 

Being excellent with financial matters was understandable since she was originally someone who worked with ledgers.

 

“You had heaters installed in the detached palace?”

 

“The prince’s country has a desert climate, so he would feel the Empire’s temperature as relatively cold. Taking this into consideration, I had additional heaters installed. Also, since there are foods that are taboo for religious reasons, I delivered that list to the head chef.”

 

They couldn’t understand where she had obtained such information when she wasn’t even from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff looked at each other, then at the documents in Rianel’s hands.

 

Those documents densely filled with the prince’s dietary preferences, minor habits, as well as taboos and precautions for interaction….

 

“D-don’t tell me you obtained the protocol profile?”

 

“Yes. I received it yesterday from Prince Zarban’s servant.”

 

Sharing information from the advance party that announced the visit of high-ranking officials was a kind of custom.

 

That way they could reduce inconvenience and avoid committing discourtesy. If there were things like allergies, it was essential to understand them in advance.

 

“You already collected that information?”

 

“Before executing the budget, gathering information in advance saves us from having to do the work twice, doesn’t it?”

 

“Well, of course that’s true, but….”

 

The words were correct, but there was something they couldn’t understand.

 

‘Those people wouldn’t have been using the Imperial Language, would they?’

 

The foreigners from the desert didn’t know the Imperial Language and didn’t try to learn it either.

 

They were a people who took great pride in their own language.

 

On the other hand, it was also difficult for Empire citizens to speak Garta, since it had a different linguistic system from Imperial, so even in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, those who could speak it could be counted on one hand.

 

“Did you interpret for her by any chance?”

 

“Huh? Didn’t you go, senior?”

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs people exchanged glances and asked with a faint hope.

 

“Don’t tell me you can speak Garta?”

 

“I’m not fluent, but I could roughly understand. The servant explained things well. He was a kind person.”

 

“???”

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs people simultaneously made similar expressions.

 

She had finished the warehouse inventory investigation, reviewed the ledgers, and on top of that, created a protocol profile using information from conversations with the prince’s servant, yet called it ‘rough’?

 

‘What is this person really?’

 

Does she not know what ‘rough’ means?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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