Chapter 90

Four days after the commotion at the Academy auditorium.

Leon Rothe Dale confessed to his crimes in court and departed from The State afterward.

Crimes against the royal family usually followed this basic procedure. Arguing on legal points itself is considered disrespectful.

Minor blasphemy results in the forfeiture of assets.

Serious damage to the royal family’s honor leads to the revocation of one’s title and house arrest.

Graver offenses just lead to execution outright.

But Leon Rothe Dale was too valuable a talent to just let die.

That’s why he only received a sentence to the penal military unit. Most penal unit members get assigned to deck sweeping or worse and die miserable deaths, but…

Leon was set to have a relatively comfortable military life.

Because I sent some medicine along with him.

Since giving it directly to him would likely result in an overdose, I handed it over to the military officers in charge of his supervision instead. They were personally recommended by Victoria.

I didn’t just hand over the medicine – I gave them instructions on how to manage Leon as well.

“Give him three doses a day.”

“He’ll constantly lie to get more medicine – he’ll say he’s lost it or that it got stolen, maybe even that someone took it from him despite being a master. When caught in one lie, he’ll immediately come up with another.”

“Make it so that he has to accomplish something to receive more than three doses a day. If there are no enemies around, assign him chores. If he’s confident he’ll consistently receive the medicine, he won’t rebel.”

These were simple instructions.

Frankly, other than this, there wasn’t much more to worry about.

They said that even during his time at the military prison, Leon had been sitting quietly. The jailers must’ve been tense guarding someone who could break out without weapons, but Leon just spent those few days eating the medicine and causing no trouble.

He was a superhuman controllable by medicine.

The real problem wouldn’t be Leon himself but the commanders who might come up with strange ideas regarding him. It wouldn’t be impossible for a commanding officer to give problem soldiers morphine. While there were regulations through military supplies management laws for morphine…

“Victoria needs to be reminded again.”

She’s the type to handle things obsessively if entrusted.

From here on out, it’s her responsibility.

With Leon gone, he would likely live happily while consuming drugs, and as for me, I just had to handle my severely tarnished reputation to an extent.

The one remaining task was the Academy’s drug dealers who were likely deeply impressed by Leon.

There were self-volunteered candidates willing to handle them, though.

“Preparations are complete.”

Of course, the protagonist here was the Second Princess, Siena.

Judging by the gleam in her eyes, it seemed like she had already finished planning everything.

It was clearly not from a sense of justice to eradicate drugs from the school grounds; it was just that she was happy to finally have someone safe to torment.

“You seem quite pleased.”

“Yes, obviously.”

“You can speak frankly.”

Siena briefly hesitated.

Judging by her expression, she seemed aware that I wasn’t particularly in a good situation.

At the moment, I was an object openly avoided by The State.

There were no direct curses or criticism in front of me, but it was clear that I had become an unsettling presence. First, I caused the fall of the elves and then made one of the most famous students in the empire suffer a terrible downfall.

“Probably, I need to stay low.”

But that’s for regular people.

Siena wasn’t regular, nor was I.

When I nodded to indicate that I was fine, Siena slowly began to speak.

“I’ve already identified the situation.”

“When did you…?”

“While you were at the Great Forest, I kept an eye on the Academy. There are two groups: a bunch who profited wildly from the Health Syrup trade until they ran out of resources and declined, and others who are collaborating with two opium field owners to run an opium den.”

“…”

“The ones I’m targeting are the latter. I already have someone embedded within them.”

So she had already secured an informant. Even better, the informant was a friend of Leon’s. I could predict how she intended to operate.

“Still… Alan?”

“Do you need advice?”

“No, I can handle that myself. However…”

At this moment, Siena’s pupils began to waver again. It signified her trying to do something completely against her nature (caring about others).

Witnessing her struggle with worrying about me was an indication of just how hard it is to change someone’s innate tendencies.

I had a pretty good idea of what was running through that tiny head of hers.

“You’re worried that the public’s perception of me might get worse.”

“…”

“You don’t need to bother going out of your way with something like that. Yes, if you crack down on the drug sellers, many people will feel a sense of injustice. They’ll say that Medoff Pharmaceuticals can openly sell while others can’t. The rules won’t always align.”

Siena let out a short sigh.

“You’re right. It doesn’t make sense.”

“It doesn’t have to make sense. We can’t explain to everyone why pain patients are allowed to use morphine while others aren’t. Also, there’s no point explaining to someone who has already tasted the substance.”

“Alright.”

“To those who criticize us for hypocrisy, all we need to show them is that we don’t care.”

Seemingly having received the answers she wanted, Siena nodded her head. Her trembling eyes had finally returned to normal.

“Alright, then I’ll start now.”

Siena moved to capture the rival organization.

She was starting by laying a trap in the opium den.

The bait would be Leon Rothe Dale’s name.

The specifics weren’t questioned.

***

A former hotel in the Aring District of The State.

About fifty students were scattered across several rooms, inhaling opium.

Some wealthy students were consuming morphine.

Their behaviors varied greatly.

“My stomach hurts… or am I hungry? I ate a bowl of stew a few days ago, so I shouldn’t be hungry… why does it hurt? Why? Why do I have to hurt?”

A first-year Military Studies student complained about stomach pain while deeply inhaling opium fumes.

“That… will Bulongyi really make you ‘Bulong’ as its name suggests? I heard from Leon before that it felt more like ‘Jjeolit Jjeolit.’ Speaking of which, I really wanted to kill that bastard Leon for acting all high and mighty, but I couldn’t, since I wasn’t good at fighting. But now, he seems just a bit pitiable. Or not.”

An Academy dropout reminiscing about Leon, who had been sent to the penal unit.

“3 grams… no, 4 grams. Today, I’ll challenge my limits!”

A second-year Political Science major (long-term absentee) vowed, dissolving opium powder into rum.

And the majority of customers, quietly indulging in their opium smoking.

To these peaceful scenes, the managers of the opium den looked on with worried expressions.

While the line between customers and merchants might be blurred within the opium den, nonetheless, these managers constantly dreamed of expansion.

More opium, more pipes, more customers.

And…

“We need Bulongyi again.”

A passion for new products.

No one disagreed with the assertion that they needed Bulongyi, otherwise known as ephedrine.

Indeed, they had made various attempts to acquire Bulongyi over the past few months. They had once tried to persuade Leon Rothe Dale by offering him a large sum of money to resell what he received for free. They had also attempted to bribe Medoff Pharmaceuticals employees.

Until now, those were just attempts.

However, currently, the management was truly desperate.

Due to the many Academy students who had witnessed Leon Rothe Dale’s erratic behavior, the students running the opium den and those using it had both personally experienced the potent effect of mixing substances.

What was once a dispensable item had now become an indispensable drug.

Fortunately, they had just found a way to obtain Bulongyi.

“Leon left a ‘legacy.'”

“…Didn’t he survive?”

“Oh, but regardless, there is a legacy. Someone who shared a dorm room with Leon received the Bulongyi he left behind. It seems we can buy it if we can afford it. They say that morphine and ephedrine should be combined.”

“Of course, that’s how it should be.”

It was Leon’s friend who first approached the opium den organization with the offer to sell Bulongyi.

The quantity was eighty capsules.

Even though a new path to ephedrine had finally opened up, they hesitated due to one reason: the price was too high.

Leon’s friend demanded one gram of morphine and 5,000 talers as payment for 80 ephedrine pills. The morphine was to be sent to Leon, while the cash would be for himself. Even to the opium den management, who had successfully operated for so long, this was a somewhat burdensome amount.

“Hmm… So we’re paying nearly 140 talers per pill. Is it really worth it?”

“The customers are demanding it. We can’t keep them satisfied with just opium forever.”

“…”

“Sigh. Do we really have to buy it?”

Ultimately, the opium den’s top management decided to proceed with the significant expense.

The goal was clear: customer satisfaction. Specifically, it was for the wealthy customers whose families had deep pockets.

After reaching an agreement, they immediately summoned Leon’s friend to the hotel where the opium den was located.

It was to finalize the transfer of Leon’s “legacy.”

…

The next day, Leon’s friend visited the opium den.

“Here’s the morphine. You’ll get the money after we confirm the effectiveness of the drugs.”

The curt announcement from the opium den owners.

It was now time to hand over the Bulongyi, but Leon’s friend kept hesitating – looking like someone who was holding something back and fidgeting around.

“What’s this guy trying to pull now…!”

The atmosphere grew tense for a moment and then even more so.

An uninvited guest had arrived.

“Princess Siena?”

A noblewoman with silver hair reaching down to her waist, violet eyes, and a black dress.

There might be other noblewomen in the empire who looked like this, but only one could bring along several knights.

The second princess of the empire, Siena Caralyn, a shareholder in Medoff Pharmaceuticals, which produced all the best drugs in the empire.

Why had a princess graced such a place?

Everyone was puzzled at this question.

Just then—

Siena, while looking around the opium den, began to speak.

“Your smoking of opium here doesn’t violate any laws.”

“Your Highness…?”

“But paying morphine to purchase ephedrine is a different story. Where did you get the morphine? All of it is for military use. Moreover, you knew it was property belonging to a person under suspicion of attempted regicide and yet you still attempted to buy it at a high price—this raises suspicion.”

The gaze of everyone in the opium den turned toward Siena.

Among them, some realized they had fallen into a trap, some were oblivious to the tension, and others simply sighed.

In this daze, Siena was the only one smiling.

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