“Hmm…”
As he walked through the corridors of the count’s estate, there was a man stroking his chin, narrowing his sleepy eyes.
His outfit, made of silk so luxurious that it could reflect light like a mirror, was stretched tight over his bulging belly, barely holding together without a wrinkle.
The clothes, adorned with silver and gold threads, were undeniably those of someone from a wealthy, well-fed noble family.
His name was Common, the treasurer and steward of the Evergarden Count’s estate.
When the head of the Evergarden family changed, and many nobles began to notice their misconduct, the lower-ranking noble families started to resign one by one.
As a result, Common, the fourth son of a merchant guild leader, a mere commoner, was hired out of necessity.
Though his attire and demeanor seemed far beyond what a noble’s servant could afford, Common had his ways.
The current head of the Evergarden family was an indolent, pretentious fool, which worked to Common’s advantage.
The first head of the Evergarden family was a young spearman in the wars when the Ovina Empire declared its conquest of the continent.
Due to his repeated military successes, though originally a commoner, he rose to the rank of knight by the end of the war.
When the empire finally announced its conquest, he was granted the title of count and an estate as a reward for his contributions.
Following this founder, the Evergarden family became a prestigious household of renowned military leaders.
However, their fame has since faded.
The current head is now an arrogant and pathetic nobleman, full of empty pride.
Normally, a third son like him would never have inherited the position, but the sudden deaths of his two elder brothers in accidents made him the heir.
This marked the beginning of the Evergarden family’s decline.
Dariann, the current head, had never been interested in studying and suddenly took on the role of head of the family one day.
Naturally, the family’s affairs fell apart.
After the death of his father, who grieved over his lost sons and eventually passed away, Dariann took full control of the Evergarden estate and squandered its once-honorable assets.
He neglected the management of the estate, throwing all paperwork at the staff while spending lavishly day and night.
Because of this, Common, the treasurer, ended up acting as an interim head, managing much of the estate’s business.
However, this also meant that Common could do as he pleased without anyone noticing.
At first, he nervously pocketed a few coins from the vault, forging documents.
But over time, his schemes grew bolder, and he began embezzling large sums from the Evergarden family.
As his wealth grew, so did his once frail frame, becoming round and hefty.
But.
“Why are those idiots suddenly acting like that…?”
Common muttered to himself, recalling the nobles of the Evergarden family who barged into the office yesterday.
They had never bothered to even look at the forged documents Common handed them, but suddenly, they seemed eager to take on their tasks.
It was strange, and Common couldn’t help but wonder why.
“That woman… she was acting a bit odd…”
As he thought back to the previous day, one person stood out in his memory: Freya Evergarden.
Even though she had two children, Freya still acted like an innocent noble girl.
Her behavior suggested she was naive, oblivious to the ways of the world, much like a sheltered young lady.
As the wife of the count and the mistress of the household, Freya should have been managing the estate, but like her husband, she showed no interest in the family’s affairs.
She was always busy hosting tea parties, flaunting her new dresses and jewelry.
Freya never grew out of her debutante phase, never maturing into the role of a proper lady of the house.
She was a foolish woman who never listened and never understood, no matter what was said to her.
That was, until a few days ago.
“Ah, and please return the seal my husband handed over as well, would you?”
Yesterday, before leaving the office, Freya called out to Common with a smile.
But this time, it wasn’t the usual vacant smile.
It felt as if an authoritative aura of true nobility radiated from her.
“…Well, maybe she’s just trying to play the role of a proper parent now.”
Though Common was puzzled by the sudden change in behavior of the couple, he brushed it off.
They probably wanted to teach their children how to act like nobles, but Common was sure that they would soon be back, unable to handle even the simplest paperwork, calling for his help again.
“When that happens, I’ll just forge the documents again and…”
“Oh, Common, is that you?”
“Uwaaah! You scared me!”
While lost in his scheming thoughts, Common was startled by a voice from behind.
“Oh, it’s you, Head Butler Gordon! What brings you here?”
Turning around, he saw the old butler smiling kindly at him.
Gordon, the head butler, had served the Evergarden family for generations, having worked for the previous heads of the family.
Despite witnessing the couple’s negligence and the mischief of their two children, Gordon never lost his smile.
Common found Gordon unnerving, always smiling yet inscrutable.
“Nothing in particular, I just saw you passing by and thought I’d say hello.”
“…Ahem, well, as you can see, I’m busy with work as usual.”
“Is that so?”
That gaze.
Even while smiling, Gordon’s eyes made Common feel uneasy, adding to the mystery surrounding the butler.
“Well, I have a lot of paperwork to do, so I’ll be on my way—”
Feeling uncomfortable, Common hurried to leave, but then.
“Oh, by the way, it seems the lady is up to something quite interesting.”
“…The lady, you say?”
At the mention of Freya, Common paused and turned back.
“Curious? Head to the central hall on the first floor, and you’ll see for yourself.”
“I see. I’ll check it out. Well then, goodbye.”
“Hohoho. Have a good day.”
“…Senile old man.”
Muttering under his breath, Common walked away, still confused by Gordon’s cryptic words.
“What could be going on in the central hall?”
Even though Common tried to dismiss it, he couldn’t shake the curiosity and began heading toward the central hall on the first floor.
“What in the world…?”
When he arrived, he was speechless, shocked by the sight before him.
“Madam, where should we move this?”
“Please take that to the furniture section.”
“Madam?”
“Ah, that looks valuable. Please move it to the art collection.”
“Excuse me—”
“And that one, to the valuables section.”
A large group of maids and butlers were busily moving expensive furniture and treasures, all under Freya’s direction.
“What is going on…?!”
Stunned, Common could only stand there in shock as he watched the scene unfold before him.
“Excuse me, coming through!”
As Common stood there, unable to comprehend the absurd situation as if there was a major relocation happening, the maids moving the massive paintings adorned with gleaming gold jewelry couldn’t avoid him and knocked him over.
He fell on his backside with a thud.
“Wait a moment…! Lady! What in the world is going on?!”
Instead of clutching his sore backside, Common quickly sprang to his feet, moving with surprising speed for someone of his hefty stature, and hurriedly pushed through the bustling maids to stand in front of Freya, shouting.
“Ah, let me see… It’s definitely Common, the treasurer, right?”
“Yes! Uh, no! That’s not the important thing!”
“What are you doing right now?”
“Uh?… Ah, yes! That’s exactly what I’m trying to figure out…”
Freya, remembering the person she had seen the previous day as she looked at Common’s face, fumbled through her memories to recall the name she had seen on the documents.
“The thing is, we have far too many unnecessary furniture and valuables in our home.
So, I plan to dispose of some of it while keeping only what’s essential, and until we find a proper place to sell the rest, I want to store them in the warehouse.”
“Unnecessary? Did you just say unnecessary?”
“Yes, is there a problem?”
“Ah, that’s not it, but… You gathered all this with so much effort, and now you want to sell it all…?”
Upon hearing Freya’s follow-up statement, Common doubted his ears.
He found it hard to believe that Freya, who took great pleasure in showcasing expensive valuables to other nobles, would sell off the furniture and jewels she had painstakingly collected.
“I’ve been neglecting the management of the territory for a while, and the situation is dire. The debts are significant…”
“Debts…?”
“Weren’t you aware? As the treasurer managing this count’s finances, you should know that…”
“Ah, I know! Of course, I’ve been running around trying to figure out ways to pay off the debts!”
“Haha. That’s quite reassuring.”
‘No… how did she find that out? Did someone help her?’
As Freya mentioned the current state of the territory and the family’s debts, Common tried to act nonchalant, but he found it difficult to hide the cold sweat trickling down his forehead.
No matter how much he tried, there was no way to fake documents proving the family had debts, but he believed that Freya, who struggled to read paperwork, wouldn’t catch on.
‘Gordon? That old man? Since when?’
Common, who didn’t even consider the possibility that Freya had independently grasped the information from the documents, was now connecting Gordon’s suspicious statement to the help he might have provided.
“Our relationship was essentially that of an employer and an employee, a purely business-like arrangement, but I never thought Common here would work so hard for my family.”
“Excuse me?”
“Then, once this matter is settled, shall we set aside some time to discuss that in depth?”
“Ah… yes! Of course…”
“How exciting! I have a lot to discuss regarding the ‘documents’ you submitted yesterday.”
“Ah… haha…! Is that so…! Well, I still have many things to take care of…”
“Oh dear. I’ve kept a busy person like you for too long. My apologies. I’ll call for you later.”
“Yes, then I’ll take my leave… excuse me.”
With that, Common finished his conversation with Freya and turned to stride away.
However, as he turned the corner of the hallway, he quickly broke into a run.
“This is bad… really bad…!”
As Common’s ample belly jiggled, he began running down the hallway toward his designated room.
By the time he arrived, he was drenched in a cold sweat, as if he had just been submerged in water.
“She specifically mentioned ‘documents’! I don’t know how, but I’ve been found out!”
He slammed the door shut with a loud bang and immediately began gathering his belongings, hurriedly stuffing the valuables and original documents he had secretly stolen and hidden into his bag.
The consequences of a commoner stealing a noble’s valuables, embezzlement, and forgery were severe.
If he got caught, he wouldn’t just end up in prison; he could be executed immediately, his body displayed in the marketplace for public humiliation.
After living so brazenly without a care, the grim consequences of his actions were now looming before him, making his legs tremble like a leaf.
Common was, in fact, quite intelligent.
Being a treasurer for a count’s family, someone of such high status, meant he was no ordinary person.
Even as a commoner, he had the wits to manage the count’s treasury.
But now, having found an easy way to fill his own pockets, that brilliance had dulled.
He was left trembling like a greedy fool, realizing he had dug his own grave.
“…Right! If I go to Count Bior, I might be able to escape somehow!”
In a hurry to flee, Common flung open the wardrobe and revealed a hidden secret space inside, pulling out a magical crystal orb that had been concealed within.
“The, the instructions clearly said to put the magical stone in… come on… hurry up!!”
As Common’s trembling hands inserted the magical stone into the hole, the previously dormant crystal orb began to glow brightly.
And then.
What’s going on?
The light from the crystal orb dimmed slightly before a male voice began to resonate from within.