Chapter 42

Even though their shackles had been removed, and he was technically no longer working under them, Aivert still insisted on calling him over?

“You called for me?”

Ah. Maybe Lorenz had been the one managing the ledgers… Wait, but why him?

While Rodella was busy puzzling that out, Aivert led the two of them to a secluded area, then turned to face them.

“Sir Lorenz. Let me introduce you. This is Quartermaster Rodella Syveric, who will be joining our ledger-forging operation as of today.”

‘It was Lorenz??’

No—’before that!’

“I’m not your accomplice!”

Despite Rodella jumping up and down in protest, Lorenz beamed.

“I knew you’d join us, sister-in-law! It’s an honor!”

‘Who the hell are you calling “sister-in-law,” you little—!’

***

After sharing a moment of awkward sweat under Aivert’s disapproving glare—he hated that “sister-in-law” nickname too—Lorenz finally led them to where the ledgers were stored.

For the first time, Rodella got to see just how good he was.

“This is the real one, and this is the version you sent to the Administration Bureau, right?”

She laid both ledgers side by side and began comparing them.

Barely a page in, her eyes narrowed at the discrepancy.

“…If an outsider ever finds this, it’ll be a disaster.”

“Exactly. That’s why I kept it well hidden—in the Vice Commander’s office.”

Indeed, they were standing in the Vice Commander’s room.

Rodella gave Lorenz a flat look.

“You hid it in a place this obvious? What if someone checks?”

It was Aivert who answered, his voice casual.

“My office? Are they trying to die?”

Ah. Rodella massaged her forehead.

Fair point. Anyone who dared sneak in here—and had the skills and guts to avoid Aivert—wouldn’t be working under someone else in the first place.

With Aivert’s temperament, even brushing against him uninvited could be fatal. No one would risk it.

“Besides, it’s inside the knights’ compound. Making a whole separate space would draw more attention.”

Aivert’s voice had dropped its usual playfulness.

“That’s true…”

Better to disguise it as a regular book, sitting among ordinary files.

And that’s exactly what it looked like. Without knowing, it just seemed like a dusty old training log, even the inside formatted like one—requiring some interpretation.

In short, only someone in-the-know could decipher it.

And Lorenz’s skill in pulling that off was impressive.

“…You’re surprisingly good at this. Sir Lorenz, what did you do before this?”

She asked with genuine curiosity.

He couldn’t be from a commoner family—they wouldn’t even have access to ledgers. And if he came from a merchant family, this good at doctoring books? That entire family needed an audit—

“I was born into a merchant family.”

“…What’s your surname?”

Rodella asked instinctively.

Lorenz went pale. Aivert cut in.

“They’re gone. His house fell. After that, he ended up with a bandit crew before we scouted him.”

“…Huh? Bandits?”

Rodella blinked. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how a fallen merchant heir ended up as a bandit and then a knight.

“The underboss locked me and my brother up and made us forge the ledgers so he could skim off the top without the boss knowing.”

“…?”

Wait. Even bandits keep ledgers now?

The world was getting stranger by the day.

“Then the Commander saved me. He was like a light in the darkness.”

Lorenz’s eyes sparkled with fervent loyalty.

“I have a duty not to let anyone find out. That’s the only way I can repay his kindness.”

Rodella wasn’t sure what to make of that. Loyalty? Fraud? Both?

She decided to pretend she hadn’t heard any of it.

“Let’s go to the liquor storage.”

That had to be where the real stash was.

It was a solid choice. Better to guard one well-hidden location than spread secrets around.

As she turned confidently to go, Aivert naturally followed.

Lorenz stared after them, puzzled.

“You already told her where the secret storage is?”

Even if she was his fiancée, wasn’t that a bit much? Especially someone from the Administration Bureau?

That was what his expression clearly said.

Aivert responded without even turning around.

“I didn’t say anything.”

Rodella figured it out on her own.

Lorenz scratched his cheek, stunned.

One thing was clear—if she’d come here as part of a formal audit, the Azure Order would’ve been shredded.

The only reason she wasn’t launching a full-blown investigation was because she was the Vice-Commander’s fiancée.

Because Rodella didn’t go easy.

And with that, the three of them headed to the liquor storage.

And—

“….”

Rodella was soon greeted with a sight that nearly brought her to tears.

***

At first glance, the liquor storage was just a neatly carved-out underground room.

Cool, as a wine cellar should be.

Rodella admired the craftsmanship.

“They really carved this out of solid rock?”

But that wasn’t the real surprise.

Lorenz looked around briefly, then pressed his fingers into a small gap on the floor.

—Krrrrk.

A thin seam shifted open.

From it emerged what looked like a hidden door carved from stone—lifted seamlessly out of the floor, a chunk of rock itself shaped and used as a perfect trapdoor.

Unless you already knew it was there—and had the strength to lift it—you’d never find it.

Only someone with serious training or a Azure Order knight could even manage it.

“…No wonder the Administration Bureau never found this.”

Even spotting the hairline crack in the stone floor would require superhuman eyesight. And lifting the stone?

If someone that capable worked in finance, they were wasted there. They should be in recon—or a knight.

“Shall we?”

Lorenz held up the door with ease and gestured.

Rodella descended carefully down the carved staircase.

It was breathtaking how precisely they had chiseled through the rock.

But when she reached the bottom and saw what was inside, she was speechless.

“…Is this… a military supply vault?”

She’d expected something suspicious—something unrelated to knight operations—especially with how carefully it had been hidden behind the liquor stash.

But instead, it was filled with new swords and armor.

“What else is supposed to be hidden here?”

But there wasn’t room for anything else. She even tapped the walls, wondering if there was another secret chamber.

Aivert spoke.

“This is the hidden stash. There’s no more space.”

“…?”

Rodella blinked.

“Then why hide it?”

That’s when a voice chimed in—one that hadn’t made a sound until now.

“So Dame Syveric saw it too, I see.”

As if she had stumbled onto something forbidden.

Rodella turned. Aivert greeted the man calmly.

“Commander.”

It was Latine.

Lorenz looked startled, but Aivert clearly knew he’d be coming.

“…Was I not supposed to see this?”

Rodella frowned. It didn’t seem like something that had to be hidden.

Sure, the inventory mismatch was an issue, but it wasn’t like these were strange or illegal items. They were just… standard equipment.

The Azure Order did go through gear faster than the Red Order. Everyone knew that.

It could probably be written off with a few explanations and a warning.

Rodella flipped through the ledgers again.

“…But would a few missing weapons really explain this kind of number difference?”

The real vs. fake ledgers were off by two entire units of measurement.

And even the real books didn’t include all of Latine’s losses.

He had secretly absorbed much of the expense himself.

As Rodella mulled it over, she finally asked: “…What about the dignity expenses*?”

[*T/N: Funds used to maintain the public appearance, status, or decorum of a high-ranking individual or institution.]

Everyone’s eyes snapped to Latine.

Come to think of it, he didn’t seem to have many outfits.

Sure, he usually wore his uniform, but nobles in high positions were also expected to keep up appearances. Especially someone responsible for guarding the royal family.

Rodella checked the “fake” ledger.

[Fabric damaged in incident — discarded.]

[Decoration broken during combat — replacement cost exceeded original, item discarded.]

Most of his clothes met tragic ends.

But the latest entry was different—it had a purchase record but no “tragic end.”

Meaning… that outfit should still exist.

“Is it in your office?”

She figured he hadn’t bothered to hide it.

Just as she asked— Latine turned to Lorenz.

“…You didn’t rip that one yet?”

…What?