Chapter 94

Princess Siena had just returned from her mission to crack down on the opium organization.

Her demeanor seemed a bit off.

I expected her to give a vivid account of how she lured the opium dealers into a trap and how cruelly she tormented them.

However, Siena didn’t say a single word about the opium fields.

“Those things are not worth mentioning.”

“…Is that so.”

“Yeah.”

In fact, Siena subtly steered the conversation away.

“Ah, by the way, there’s something strange. They were dealing with hallucinogenic mushrooms too. Even the herbalists used for mushroom collection were the same group Alan utilized the first time you acquired psilocybin. But the strange part is… it wasn’t psilocybin?”

“Were there any mushrooms with red caps?”

“Yeah, those.”

“Given the ease of selection, that’s likely why they chose them. They probably lacked the ability to filter out only the mushrooms containing psilocybin. There are dozens of similar-looking mushrooms, some of which can be fatal even in small amounts.”

“So instead of something that can kill, they went for one that induces chills and nausea.”

This was certainly the kind of story Siena would enjoy.

Still, it felt like it was all just beating around the bush.

Considering customers as well, there were probably hundreds involved in the opium organization, the majority of whom were either current or former academy students. For such a massive case to be treated so nonchalantly—it seemed strange that there was no emotional impact from ruining so many lives.

Even the mushroom discussion was brief.

She stared at me intently before asking an unexpected question.

“How’s your family?”

“My family?”

“Yes. Your family.”

I did have a family.

The Medoff family. Honestly, they didn’t have the stature to be called a “clan.”

A few generations ago, they sold all their rights to their territory to the Imperial Court, leading to their decline. They couldn’t integrate into the central aristocracy as bankers or merchants and instead ended up as minor landowners in the countryside.

Naturally, I was aware of their recent affairs.

“My family lives in Longkenny Prefecture.”

“It’s rural, huh.”

“Yes, and even in the countryside, they live on the outskirts. They hire a few laborers to run a small farm.”

“An opium farm?”

“No. Just regular wheat. They’re unable to cultivate anything as labor-intensive as opium flowers. During the busy season, my siblings might even have to use farming tools directly themselves. It’s that humble of a farm.”

“You mentioned siblings?”

“I don’t have much contact with them.”

Since I reincarnated, I haven’t exchanged any correspondence with my family.

Truthfully, the original owner of this body also had a very distant relationship with the family. He was too busy carrying out missions from the State for Princess Siena to worry about family matters.

Siena seemed to sense a kindred spirit in me.

“Maybe we’re the normal ones, Alan.”

“…”

“Focusing too much on family just creates weaknesses. It’s better to maintain a faint connection, just strong enough for them to support you when necessary. Like Victoria, if you end up too emotionally bound to your family, it just creates more liabilities.”

…While there are cases where keeping distance only causes more harm, I kept quiet. I knew Siena was happy to find this common ground between us.

Everything was fine, but there was something irritating about the current situation.

Why was Victoria mentioned by Siena, and precisely at this moment?

Opium organization, Siena’s attitude, Victoria.

Connecting the dots wasn’t hard.

“Princess Siena, did the Wolphall family have any involvement with the opium farms?”

Siena gave a sly grin as if she had been waiting for the question.

“Involved? That sounds strange. Smoking or selling opium isn’t even against national law.”

“While opium might not be the issue, morphine certainly is. An opium organization dealing in morphine isn’t unusual, but the only access they would have to morphine is through the military. That’s why the Wolphalls came to mind.”

“But the Wolphalls might not necessarily be the culprits, right?”

“If it were anyone else, Your Highness wouldn’t have been so circumspect with your words. You would have already identified and tormented all the leaks by now.”

My guess: Siena found some big leads in the opium dens but delayed the operation for a bigger opportunity.

Judging by Siena’s patience, it was reasonable to assume the Wolphalls, Victoria’s maternal relatives, were involved.

This assumption wasn’t wrong.

“You really are interesting, Alan.”

“Please, weren’t you deliberately mentioning Princess Victoria? Were you testing how quickly I could figure it out?”

“You got that right.”

Siena readily agreed and lightly grabbed my right hand, pulling it towards her.

She then examined it curiously.

She scrutinized whether all the fingers were intact, the size and color of the nails, even feeling the calluses on my fingers.

Then she smiled brightly.

“Big sister Victoria is about to deliver some good news.”

“Good news?”

Instead of answering, Siena tilted her head and gave my hand a quick kiss on the back. She smiled playfully as she looked up at me.

It was clear that Victoria was in a significant bind with Siena. I could also deduce that Victoria had been given an incredibly difficult request in exchange for leniency—an issue that likely concerned me.

“Victoria wouldn’t give up her maternal family, would she?”

Siena’s face radiated certainty.

—

Inside Victoria’s palace.

Officers from the Empire’s army were gathered, dressed in formal military attire.

All were generals or colonels at least.

They all shared an important commonality: they either carried the Wolphall surname or were sons-in-law married to Wolphall women. Except for a few stationed far away, they were all present due to a summons, not a family gathering.

The summons was issued by Princess Victoria Carrail.

The heir most likely to ascend the throne.

“The Second Princess’s trap is obvious! We need to react quickly!”

“React? What kind of reaction? There’s no such faction over there. It’s just temporary minions Princess Siena uses and discards. Acting hastily will only give her unnecessary excuses.”

“But for just a few grams of morphine, it’s not worth all this…”

“It’s not a few grams. Over 300 grams were stolen.”

“I mean, how could Timothy.”

“Timothy didn’t do it alone. Be careful speaking in front of Her Highness later.”

Even before the military police uncovered the full details of the incident, the Wolphall clan was already sharing and strategizing.

This leverage came from their influence within the military.

A prominent martial family backing the princess designated to become the next empress. Normally, they wouldn’t feel much fear, but tension was evident on their faces.

It was because they couldn’t gauge Princess Victoria’s mood.

“Princess Victoria will surely protect Timothy…”

Timothy Wolphall’s father blurted out with a pale face.

A person who didn’t carry the Wolphall name answered.

“No intention of protecting him.”

The first princess, Victoria, appeared with a stern expression.

The elder mid-ranking members of the Wolphalls fell silent as they stared at her.

Looking around her vast family who had responded to her summons, Victoria noted the number of officers.

Tall and handsome people regardless of gender predominated. Originally renowned for their beauty before establishing their military fame, they also boasted considerable wealth and military connections.

Victoria had always managed this powerful family meticulously to avoid accusations of favoritism.

Not a single member of the Wolphalls held the rank of major general or served in the royal guard.

‘Even if they felt sorry…’

In this situation, rank or post mattered little.

Take Timothy, an army supply corps lieutenant who had smuggled morphine despite (or with the knowledge of) his superiors.

The crux lay in punishment for the family.

Should the Wolphalls just punish Timothy and his cousin who helped him, then reject Siena’s demands?

‘That isn’t going to cut it. Do you know who Siena is?’

But she couldn’t arbitrarily punish members who hadn’t erred; punishment needs justification. Besides, hadn’t Victoria herself built the influence of the Wolphalls? Did she even have the right to punish them?

While Victoria was deep in thought,

“Your Highness.”

Her oldest maternal uncle, Hayden, stood up.

He was the one leading Victoria’s faction while she managed her busy state affairs.

Victoria assumed he would plead for Timothy, his fifth cousin, and use the excuse of family protection.

Instead,

“Transfer Timothy to the military police. His accomplice, Henry, too. And I take responsibility for failing to manage the children. I’ll resign from the army. I’ll retire from my brigade commander position to my hometown for self-reflection.”

Hayden’s surprising decision to retire.

Victoria was momentarily surprised but was glad to have her uncle on her side in this.

If the head of the Wolphall clan, Hayden, stepped down, and the morphine smugglers were severely punished, there would be no need to accede to Siena’s demands. Criticism of favoritism toward her maternal family would also be avoided.

Then there would be no need to abandon Alan as her consort…

‘No, wait.’

A strange feeling stirred within Victoria.

Why was her uncle giving up his career so easily?

Out of guilt?

She wanted to believe that, but another possibility lingered—he might be confident in maintaining his influence without staying in active duty.

‘Or maybe he’s stepping down early to create a sense of obligation toward me. These people know me best.’

Victoria glanced at the elders to verify her suspicion.

Her uncle, aunt, uncle-by-marriage, and even distant uncle all responded with solemn smiles. Even Timothy’s father was trembling but smiling.

“For you, Your Highness, we are willing to make sacrifices.”

The mention of sacrifice from Ian, her second uncle, confirmed her suspicions.

This wasn’t an issue that could be resolved with a couple of dismissals. Much as she didn’t want to admit it, that was the reality.

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