Unbeknownst to Me, I am Secretly Dating the Emperor - Chapter 59

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

Chapter 59
I left work a little early and headed to the Capital Commercial District with Coni.
It was partly to mark my transfer with a proper celebration, and partly to pick out a birthday gift for Anika, whose special day was coming soon.
“I’ve already decided on Anika’s gift, so let’s eat first.”
After a brief consideration, I chose an upscale restaurant that had recently become all the rage among the capital’s young noblewomen—the kind with impressive crystal chandeliers.
Coni walked in with the haughty expression of someone who might actually be a duke’s daughter, then gave me a subtle thumbs-up.
It meant she loved it.
I matched her energy with my own disdainful look, then burst out laughing before hastily straightening my face to maintain the bit.
‘Though it didn’t really work.’
When our eyes met, Coni couldn’t help but laugh too, and the noble daughter roleplay ended on the spot.
We trailed after the waiter as he came to seat us, whispering about how ridiculous our expressions had been.
Fortunately, a table by the window with a view of the sunset was still available.
After we were seated and had placed our order, appetizers arrived shortly.
The moment the plates touched the table, Coni picked up her cutlery, then—as if remembering something belatedly—playfully bowed to me.
“Bon appétit.”
‘Enjoy your meal.’
Already with food in my mouth, I returned the greeting with a glance.
True to its reputation among picky noblewomen, every dish was delicious.
Coni and I ate quietly but with fierce determination.
After stopping by a dessert shop nearby to finish the meal, we made our way to a jeweler popular with young noble ladies to buy Anika’s gift.
‘Oh, that’s…’
On the way to the jeweler, I spotted Miller’s furniture shop.
The chair made by Heiman Miller that I’d experienced during the day was a different world entirely from the rigid, ergonomically ignorant seats in the Ministry of Finance.
I found myself thinking of three people who spent far more time sitting than lying down, even accounting for sleep.
‘Should I get gifts for Father and the twins too?’
I was now someone whose salary had increased fivefold.
This much indulgence was hardly out of reach.
“Coni, wait a moment.”
Having decided on an impulse purchase, I called out to Coni, who’d walked on ahead.
“What?”
“Let’s pop in here too.”
As we entered the furniture shop, a staff member approached us, unable to quite hide the troubled expression of someone preparing to close for the day.
“Welcome, customer. Is there something you’re looking for?”
Yet her well-trained tone remained perfectly polite.
‘Don’t worry. I’ll get you out on time.’
I smiled with the ease of someone thinking about next month’s account balance.
‘Normally shopping for high-end furniture takes quite a while.’
But since I knew exactly what I wanted, that didn’t apply to me.
I ordered three matching sets of the same desk and chair I used in my office.
The staff member taking my order stopped mid-write.
“Three sets?”
“Is there a problem?”
At my casual response, the previously matter-of-fact but polite staff member suddenly embodied the spirit of customer service, launching into explanation in a coaxing tone.
“These are special-order pieces requiring collaboration with the Magic Tower, so they do take some time. After ordering, production…”
Usually, when words like “Magic Tower” and “special order” get attached to anything, the price jumps.
I was starting to understand the staff member’s startled reaction.
‘So it was a made-to-order item?’
Even for an Inspection Unit office, I’d assumed the furniture would be standard-grade, so I was a bit surprised.
‘Wait, why would something like that be in an Inspection Unit office rather than a duke’s own study?’
The staff member interpreted my expression in some way and kept insisting that the work was so demanding, production was limited to only a handful of units per year, with an enormous waiting list.
That was actually good news for me.
I asked the staff member as if disappointed.
“Then could you show me the highest-grade piece available for immediate delivery?”
Whether the waiting list was truly as long as claimed, the staff member handed over a catalog with an almost relieved expression.
Fortunately, the products in the catalog she provided fell within the budget of my soon-to-be five times fatter account balance.
“I’ll take this one.”
I signed the order form she presented with gusto.
“Can you include a card when you deliver?”
I left a simple card with an explanation so my family wouldn’t be startled when the furniture suddenly arrived.
It was remarkably efficient shopping—from entry to completed purchase in less than ten minutes.
‘Spending money is way too fun.’
It felt like the small-time consumer spirit within me was awakening as a big spender.
I linked my arm through Coni’s, who’d hung back, and headed to the jeweler for the next purchase.
‘Can’t play favorites with family.’
Since I’d bought gifts for Father and the twins, now it was Anika and Mother’s turn.
Last year, I would have carefully selected hair pins while considering the fussy child’s tastes, but I was done with that.
‘Surely at least one of these will suit your fancy.’
I combed through all the girls’ accessories in the jeweler’s shop and snapped up anything that caught my eye.
‘Though there’s not much in my mother’s age range.’
But it was already late enough that stopping at another jeweler wasn’t practical.
I reluctantly purchased a classic pearl necklace instead.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
Coni, watching my spending spree unfold, tried to gently dissuade me in a quiet voice.
“I’m fine.”
I smiled at ease and handed Coni a shopping bag.
“A gift.”
It was the bracelet Coni had been unable to look away from while I was choosing Anika’s present.
After checking what was inside, Coni looked uncomfortable and tried to hand the bag back to me.
“Does the Inspection Unit have a quota on bribery convictions?”
It was a joke—while the jeweler catered to young noblewomen, the pieces were a bit pricey for everyday gifts.
“Yes. So accept it gracefully.”
I met her joke with one of my own and pushed the bag back into her hands.
‘I’ve been meaning to express something for a while now.’
To be honest, the fact that Coni had so readily taken on danger for me was genuinely moving.
But I was too weathered a person to express my gratitude honestly in words.
‘Gratitude is expressed through material goods.’
So I was doing this instead—wordlessly pressing gifts upon her.
When I refused with a firm expression, Coni finally accepted the bag with an embarrassed face.
“Fine then, today is my birthday this year. I’m accepting this as a birthday gift.”
“Sure.”
Coni had drifted into the Temple as a child, so her exact age was uncertain.
Like other children from the Charitable Orphanage in similar circumstances, she took the day she arrived at the Temple as her birthday.
Coni had never been comfortable with that.
So she’d decided that since her real birthday was uncertain anyway, she’d choose a different date each year as her birthday instead.
‘Though this year she’d already had one in February, claiming she wanted winter to come sooner.’
Either way, having given her a gift, the matter was settled.
* * *
The day after, at work.
Thanks to the concentration buff from the artisan-made chair, I read through documents without pause until lunch arrived.
The main case appeared to be the Western Region incident.
It was a continuation of the same incident that had led me to seek out Kyle after Donovan framed Coni.
‘This still hasn’t ended. I thought it was resolved when Duke Camelot had part of his fief confiscated and paid fines.’
It seemed that the Blue Hawk was continuing to trace the whereabouts of Iron Ore that had been smuggled away through manipulated accounting—likely just window dressing for external appearances.
‘Well, unlike other things, Iron Ore is a weapon material, so…’
It was something more likely to cause unrest than gold or jewels.
If left alone, it could become a weapon in the hands of dangerous elements or become a pretext for diplomatic disputes with other nations.
So it was necessary to confirm to the end how the smuggled Iron Ore had been disposed of.
‘The circumstances are suspicious too.’
Since Iron Ore was strategic material, there weren’t many merchants dealing in it, but the amount of Iron Ore that had reached them through Black Market Trade seemed far less than the quantity Duke Camelot had smuggled away.
Duke Camelot claimed the amount had been sold through Official Channels with duplication, and indeed, the quantity of Iron Ore from Camelot Territory that Military Supplier Merchants had purchased through Official Channels matched almost exactly with the mysteriously missing Iron Ore quantity.
‘No other Iron Ore smuggling route had been discovered, and since Duke Camelot insisted strongly, it was apparently swept aside as a documentation error.’
But who would believe that someone made such a ridiculous mistake while preparing important materials?
So they’d begun digging directly into Camelot Territory under the pretext of questioning the credibility of the fief’s reported data, and discovered that the number of employed mine workers was suspiciously high.

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