Chapter 17 - Wesley's Warning

Wesley spent the next five or so hours reading inside the study. The study was insulated so that noises from outside wouldn’t disturb those inside; however, the ruckus outside could still be heard. Wesley just ignored the noises and continued immersing himself in his reading.

The book he was currently reading was titled [Terrid the Honest]. It was a biography of one of the most famous kings of the Royaume Empire. He was known for improving the empire's tax laws so that the common people wouldn’t be exploited by the nobility. Naturally, the laws of the Royaume Empire were shunned by the four kingdoms, and while each kingdom did have a similar law, it was neither as comprehensive nor as effective as Terrid's law.

'I guess we would rather maintain our independence from a long-gone Empire than even consider what is best for their people.'

Wesley was really disappointed by the current governments of the world. These four governments struggled for wealth and domination, yet they forgot that the only reason they existed was by the will of the people. How could there be kings and rulers if the common people didn’t choose to make them so? Where does one get a mandate to declare themselves above others if not from the consent of others?

While Wesley was pondering the legal and philosophical justification for the existence of social classes, a knock on the door interrupted him.

"Yes, come in." Wesley was slightly annoyed that he was interrupted, but he didn’t mind it too much.

Lane walked in with a slightly apologetic look on his face, as if he noticed Wesley’s irritation at his interruption. He bowed slightly and spoke:

"Master, pardon me for the interruption, but there are some people who wish to meet you."

'I wonder who it could be. It can't be an unimportant matter, or Lane would have handled it.'

"Who are they, Lane?"

"They said they are from the Central Government of the City."

Wesley was somewhat startled, as only one thought passed through his mind:

'For the central government to come to me so soon after the Shorn Family incident…'

"Let them in, Lane."

"Yes, Master."

Lane bowed and immediately went out. Almost half a minute later, Lane came back with three white-robed men in tow. The one who walked furthest ahead of the three seemed to be the leader. He was an amiable-looking old man with a long white beard that matched his white robe. He had his hands behind his back and gave off an air of dignity that the other two simply didn’t.

Wesley was slightly worried, but he kept it from showing on his face. He simply kept sitting on his chair and continued reading until the three men with Lane were about ten feet away. Wesley then looked up from his book with a smile on his face and spoke in a clear but non-condescending voice:

"Welcome. Please have a seat."

The old man didn’t smile. He didn’t even blink. He simply looked at Wesley without a hint of emotion on his face. Wesley had absolutely no way to know what this old man was thinking. The old man bowed slightly and spoke in a soft voice brimming with authority as he said respectfully:

"Thank you, Your Royal Highness."

'It seems like he knows who I am.'

"Please, no need to be so formal. I am but a guest in your great city."

Wesley maintained his smile as he spoke. However, Lane, who was standing slightly behind the three men, had an incomprehensibly confused look on his face. He knew Wesley was someone with a powerful background, but he had just assumed he was a simple noble.

The old man was now sitting across from Wesley, with the two other men standing respectfully behind him. He maintained his expressionless face and spoke once again:

"Thank you, Your Royal Highness."

Wesley only continued smiling without acknowledging the old man’s continued formality, which meant he was here for business. Wesley was starting to get agitated by this old man's stoicism, so he slightly changed his tone from a friendly one to a more businesslike one.

"Well then, why has the Central Government come to visit me?"

The old man raised his eyebrows slightly at Wesley's change of tone, but his face was still as rigid as a sculpture.

"Your Royal Highness, my name is Wale, and I am from the Central Government's Office of Management. We have come to inform you of a few rules regarding royalty from the four kingdoms that stay in our city."

'Royalty that stays in the city? Hmm, it seems there are others like me around. Interesting.'

"I see. Please go on."

"First, in Blackreach City, your status as a member of a royal family does not entitle you to any rights or privileges beyond that of normal nobles."

The old man paused to see if Wesley had anything to say, but Wesley simply nodded as if this wasn’t news at all. The old man continued:

"Second, you may not participate in anything regarding the functions of Blackreach City."

The old man paused again, but Wesley continued to smile and nod. This was really odd, since the old man half expected Wesley to start shouting or at least complaining, but he was met with an unconcerned attitude.

"And finally, anyone under your command is excluded from meddling with or influencing any of the functions of the city."

The moment the old man said these words, he slightly glanced towards Lane, who was off to the side. Lane noticed this but ignored it, still preoccupied with Wesley's identity. Wesley, on the other hand, was surprised by the old man's actions.

‘Could it be that he knows who Lane is? There is something I am missing.’

"Is that all, Mr. Wale?"

"Yes, Your Royal Highness. These are laws extending from the Blackreach Treaty, and failure to comply will lead to expulsion from the city and heavy fines on the Ject Kingdom."

‘Hmm, this city is really hostile towards foreign powers. That almost sounded like a threat.’

"Understood. Lane, please see Mr. Wale out." Wesley's tone turned slightly cold after the old man's threat-like statement, but the smile remained.

"Yes... Master."

Lane was somewhat confused. He didn’t know if he should say "Your Royal Highness" or "Master." He immediately motioned to the three men, who followed him promptly after bowing respectfully to Wesley. Wesley turned back to his book as if this were an insignificant interruption.

‘I am sure that there will be people watching me from now on.’

Wesley wasn’t that interested in interfering with Blackreach City to begin with, but he couldn’t help but frown at the thought that there would be people watching his every move. He really did enjoy his freedom, and the idea that he would be constantly monitored didn’t sit well with him. He was also worried that their monitoring operation was already underway, making his actions at the Shorn residence known.

‘I guess it can't be helped. I'll just have to take some extra precautions from now on.’

Lane returned a few minutes later. Wesley looked up and noticed that the confusion was still visible on his face, and he seemed somewhat unsure about how he should act. Wesley, seeing this, was extremely amused.

‘I sometimes forget this Lane is still but a child.’

"Haha, Lane. You seem rather pale. What is the matter?" Wesley was enjoying how flustered Lane was, since it was rare to see the normally calm-headed Lane act this way.

"Uhm, Master... Your Royal Highness?"

"Haha, don’t mind that, Lane. You can call me like you always do. Anyway, come sit. We have things to discuss."

Lane was slightly relieved that Wesley wasn’t acting differently, but he was still somewhat reserved; after all, this was a royal prince. He walked forward hesitantly and sat across from Wesley in the spot where the old man had been sitting just a moment ago. Wesley was the first to speak, his voice turning serious as the laughter and amusement disappeared from his face:

"What do you think about what just happened?"

Lane, upon seeing Wesley's change in demeanor, was startled. He had listened to everything that happened and understood it, but none of it seemed as serious as Wesley's true identity, so he hadn’t paid it much mind. Now that Wesley asked him so seriously, he immediately forgot his initial worries and spoke in a calm voice:

"This was most likely a warning. Blackreach City is rather serious about the influence of foreign powers."

"I thought so too. What do you think we should do?"

Wesley wanted to see how far ahead Lane could think. He really wanted a glimpse into the complicated mind of this kid.

"I believe we should hire a few more guards. Also, I will make the hiring process a little stricter to weed out any potential spies."

‘Haha, this kid is something else.’

"Good, good. I'll leave it up to you, Lane. Also, I want you to come up with some way for us to earn a decent income. I won't be able to support us indefinitely."

Wesley actually had enough gold to last them for a long time without any worries, but he didn’t want to attract too much attention. He also didn’t want Lane to become too complacent in luxury, so he'd have to be innovative. Wesley really wanted to temper this little treasure of his.

"I was thinking about that lately, Master. As long as we have decent capital, we can invest in some of the businesses in the city for a return on their profits."

‘Oh, that is an impressive idea. This Lane seems to have a knack for management.’

"That sounds like a good idea. How much gold do you think will be enough?"

Lane was silent for a short period, calculating something in his head, then he spoke:

"Around a million gold should be enough. The profits will need to be reinvested, so we'll get even more return in the future."

Lane hesitated slightly while he spoke. How much was a million gold? Very few people could even imagine such a sum, and even fewer could spend it, considering the average wealthy family only made around two hundred thousand gold a year. However, Wesley was not alarmed, and his next words shocked Lane to his core.

"That is acceptable. I'll arrange for the gold. Do you have any potential businesses in mind?"

Lane was shocked. How could someone who wasn't much older than him— even if he was a prince—have such wealth? But he wasn't distracted for long, and he answered.

"Yes, Master. The construction company that's currently doing the renovations is a great candidate. They are based in the Seventh District, so they get access to a lot of cheap labor, making them the favorite of anyone who wants to build something in the city. Also, when I was talking to the owner of the company yesterday, he let slip that they were recently commissioned by the City to renovate the city walls. Such a massive project is bound to bring in a lot of profits."

‘Haha. It seems that when it comes to finances, this Lane has no equal.’

"Good. You seem to have everything figured out. You will deal with financial matters from now on."

Lane simply nodded and was about to get up when a thought surfaced in his mind, making him hesitate. Wesley noticed this and immediately asked:

"Is there anything else, Lane?"

Lane was somewhat hesitant, but he still spoke his mind.

"Uhm, Master, do you want the others to know about your identity?"

The others, meaning his siblings. Lane didn't want to hide anything from his siblings, but if his master wanted him to do it, then he’d have no other choice.

‘This Lane has a tendency to overthink. That might be good sometimes, but other times…’

"My identity was never a secret, Lane. I just didn't say anything. There should be no problem in telling them."

Lane seemed to light up at Wesley's words; it seemed he didn’t like keeping secrets from his siblings.

"Yes, Master."

‘Good grief. Such an honest person. It seems that there is no such thing as a flawless treasure. But out of all the possible flaws one could have, honesty is not too bad.’

Lane immediately left the study, and Wesley was left alone with his thoughts.

‘I will read for some time, go refine for a few hours, then get some sleep. Sigh... Tomorrow is going to be a long day.’

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A few hours later, in the building currently occupied by the Office of Management, in a large, impressive office, a blue-robed man sat behind a desk, staring at some sheets of paper. In front of the desk stood a white-robed elder with a white beard and an emotionless face.

"What did you think of him, Wale?"

"Lord, he is an odd child. His face doesn’t show any change even when I half-threatened him. I couldn’t glean anything from his expression. One could immediately sense that there is more to him than meets the eye."

The blue-robed man's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he continued staring at the sheets in his hand.

"I don't like his being here, but there is nothing we can do. Did you notice anything else?"

"Yes, Lord. His attendant is a survivor of the Black Family. I saw him once before, a few years ago."

The blue-robed man immediately looked up, his face a mix of anger and fear. He almost roared at the old man:

"Why is there a survivor of the Black Family? What the hell are those Shorn idiots doing?"

"Lord, the Shorn Family was wiped out last night. None of them are left."

The blue-robed man's face turned even uglier as he heard the old man's words.

"How? Do you think it has anything to do with that prince brat?"

"I don't think so, Lord. The investigators concluded that it was a professional who killed them. And as far as our intelligence goes, the prince is here alone, but we can't ignore the fact that he might be involved somehow."

The blue-robed man seemed to be caught in a torrent of thoughts, his face still retaining its ugliness.

"Increase surveillance on the prince brat and the Black descendant. Also, inform the other three families about your findings, but omit the details about the Black Family. If they find out on their own, we'll just blame it on the incompetence of the Shorn."

"Yes, Lord."

The old man bowed respectfully and promptly exited the office. The blue-robed man, however, didn’t relax. His face twitched with worry, and his eyes reflected his deep thoughts.