Chapter 39: The Real Face of the Security Force

Kuro was spending his time observing an anthill.

He was so engrossed he didn’t even notice someone approaching.

I made a slight rustling sound on purpose.

Rustle!!

“Huh? Hello?”

A complete stranger had suddenly walked into his backyard, and the first thing he did was greet me?

This guy definitely wasn’t normal.

Or he was extraordinarily bold.

My plan to quickly introduce myself felt pointless.

“I came on Administrator Hozein’s recommendation. I heard you used to run a trading company.”

“I did, back when it was doing well—before some thug bastards ruined everything.”

Since the family fell because of the war, those “thug bastards” were probably the Empire.

Wouldn’t that make the atmosphere awkward?

I’m a duke of the Empire and the governor dispatched by the Empire.

Of course, I wasn’t offended.

I’m not exactly overflowing with patriotism.

Still, I had to say something.

“Sorry about that. I’m one of those thug bastards.”

“You’re from the Empire?”

“Yes.”

“What do you do?”

“Governor-general.”

…

Kuro’s face crumpled mercilessly.

He looked ready to swing, but then suddenly threw himself flat on the ground.

“Oh no! How could I call the great Empire thug bastards! My company failed because I took out bad loans. Are there a lot of loan sharks in Delriat? Yes, yes, of course!”

Such a dramatic 180—surprisingly entertaining guy.

The “exploitation” muttering earlier was worrying, though.

Let’s check his profile.

<Character Information> 

Name: Kuro Allegan 

Status: Viscount (vassal state) 

Position: None Relationship: No prior contact 

State: Burning desire for a new trading company, despair at being penniless, severe lethargy. 

Skill: Employee Exploitation 

Overall Ability: A

Not bad. But what the hell is that skill?

The window was normal except for one thing.

The word “Skill” was glowing.

This must be the reward I just received.

If only I could copy skills…

Eustia’s “One Followed by Heavenly Fortune” was extremely tempting.

I focused on the glowing text.

A new window popped up.

Skill Name: Employee Exploitation

<Skill Information>

Effect: Can draw out 150% of an employee’s potential. Achievable through motivation alone.

Side Effect: Overuse may cause rebellion.

“Oho?”

Unfortunately, the reward was just the ability to view skills—not copy them.

Still, it was an impressive skill.

150% performance just by talking?

Sure, there was a risk of rebellion, but that could be managed with moderation.

In that sense, Kuro was the perfect mid-level manager.

I can’t let a guy like this slip away.

I immediately handed him two sheets of paper.

“What’s this?”

“Organizational chart and contract. I’m starting a trading company. See the very top?”

“Yes… ‘Company Head’…”

“Can you take the position? The pay will be generous.”

Honestly, 50-50 chance.

He might hate working under someone or want his own company.

“So I’d be the highest authority in the company?”

“Yes. As long as you follow a few principles, everything else is up to you.”

“What are the principles?”

“Strictly obey the minimum wage law. Do nothing unjust.”

“That’s… all?”

But Kuro’s response was unexpected.

Delriat already had a minimum wage decree in effect—one silon per month.

Yet I’d heard some were secretly violating it—firing workers the day before payday, that kind of trick.

The administration was still too weak to crack down, but I was planning a massive purge later.

I thought Kuro would be the same type.

“You were muttering about exploitation earlier. I thought you didn’t care about the governor’s decrees.”

“Ah, that. It doesn’t mean I won’t pay.”

“Then?”

“It’s more like… exploiting their passion? I’m really good at motivating people.”

Now I got it.

He was a natural cheerleader.

He squeezes out enthusiasm, not actual exploitation.

That’s a relief.

Kuro immediately stamped the contract with a flashy jewel-encrusted seal—probably made in his glory days.

Even if he was a freeloading viscount living with his brother, he still had that much.

Hiring complete.

Then Kuro asked another question.

“So… no human trafficking?”

“Slave trading? I could if needed.”

To a modern person it sounds insane, but this is a brutal dark fantasy world.

Most imperial subjects are serfs.

Declaring the abolition of the class system here would be madness.

Delriat had been fully annexed; war prisoners and escaped slaves-turned-slaves abounded.

How could I block all of that when administration barely reached half the territory?

But Kuro meant something else.

“Not regular slaves—the expensive kind.”

“Huh?”

“You know, sometimes even nobles fall.”

“…Ah!”

I finally understood.

Hadn’t I just handled a case like that before becoming governor?

Skyler Sierre kidnapping noble ladies from the western nations.

“Seems that’s common here.”

“When security is unstable, all sorts of things happen. Anyway, since we’re not doing it, we just have to watch out for the Preta guys.”

“Preta?”

“They call themselves the underworld, but they’re just a bunch of dead-end scum. If you don’t hand over usable women, they retaliate like mad.”

“What? They demand that from trading companies? And no one wiped them out?”

“They operate very secretly, and surprisingly, they pay well. Everyone just keeps quiet.”

So they avoid it because it’s dirty, but also toss slaves to them for extra cash.

“But why kidnap noble ladies? Ransom from their families?”

“Probably. First they ship them to the Empire, then…”

Hearing this kind of insane crap in real life made my brow furrow.

But one part was oddly tempting.

“Why ship to the Empire? Why not sell locally?”

“They must have backers there. Someone with serious power or a big organization. Ack!”

Kuro suddenly clamped both hands over his mouth.

His eyes screamed I said too much.

But he already spilled everything.

This is highly suspicious.

I had a feeling the Preta organization was deeply tied to Skyler.

I curled the corner of my mouth and extended my hand to Kuro.

“I’ll take care of the rest. You just set up the company. It’ll be good to reconnect with old contacts.”

“Of course. I’ll show results soon.”

“Great. See you then.”

My steps back to the office were light as air.

I had unexpectedly found a thread to counterattack.

If I crushed the Preta, I could dig up Skyler’s other crimes too.

This time I’ll lock you up for good, you little bastard.

***

I asked everywhere, but catching the Preta’s tail wasn’t easy.

After Skyler stopped operating, they had vanished completely.

No wonder I hadn’t heard anything.

“I’ll issue wanted posters anyway. The security force has been greatly strengthened lately.”

Hozein said confidently.

Why does this make me uneasy?

Strange.

More security should feel reassuring—like police patrolling often in Korea.

But something felt deeply off.

Then I remembered one incident.

The director of corrections just released Skyler, right?

Corrupt officials were common.

If even the Empire had them, what about the chaos that was Delriat?

The governor-general’s office itself was mostly clean now—Hozein kept them in line, and performance bonuses were generous.

But what about the newly appointed ones?

Suddenly handed power, anyone would want to swing it.

Poorly trained security forces would probably revert to old habits—quietly taking bribes and looking the other way.

But who am I?

A man who fought on the front lines of public safety…

Well, mostly dealing with drunks and dirty, annoying cases.

That’s just how rookie cops are.

Still, my sense of duty as a police officer was alive and well.

“Let’s go to the security force headquarters.”

“Why there all of a sudden…?”

“Just curious if they’re doing their job properly. I issued new directives, remember?”

I had massively reformed the Delriat security force.

Dense patrol routes, shift work, solid pay.

They could live comfortably without taking bribes.

Yet if they still committed corruption…

That’s the problem.

Checking the Employee Management Window revealed several suspicious security members.

They earned a little over 2 silons a month but spent several goldens.

And visited entertainment districts almost daily.

Common sense said that was impossible.

The bigger issue: I couldn’t figure out what they were doing.

I watched for a long time and found nothing obviously wrong.

They worked their assigned hours, yet spent money like water.

It made no sense.

And they weren’t from rich families.

While lost in thought, Hozein’s guidance ended.

“This is the newly built security headquarters.”

“Nice.”

The building style looked very familiar.

Bringing in imperial engineers had naturally spread imperial architecture.

Surprisingly, the residents of Delriat didn’t complain.

According to Hozein, it was all thanks to me.

Trust in the governor-general was sky-high; people wanted to imitate anything I did.

Ah, this popularity can’t be stopped even out here.

I couldn’t say it out loud because it sounded like self-praise.

I just smiled inwardly.

“What did I even do wrong to get dragged in?”

“You pickpocketed, you bastard. Why so confident?”

SMACK!!

The inside was noisy.

After being a lawless zone for so long, there were just too many criminals.

Half would probably be released after education—many didn’t even know the law.

But some were genuinely evil.

“I’ll call the chief.”

“Wait. Who are those guys?”

I grabbed Hozein as he tried to go upstairs.

Rough-looking men were hurriedly slipping out the back door.

Very suspiciously.

Hozein gave an awkward laugh.

“Probably officers getting off work. They may look like that, but they’re loyal workers here.”

“Ah, I see?”

There’s that old saying: tell a detective from a gangster by whether there’s a computer on the desk.

I was about to let it go.

But then the status window flashed in my mind.

Wait—these are the ones blowing money in the red-light district.

Now the story changes.

I dragged Hozein with a meaningful smile.

“Let’s go. Time to film a spy thriller.”

“Huh? W-what are you suddenly…!”

It was time to show my frail administrator friend the true face of the security force.