A Brewing Crisis and a Calculated Gambit

“Indeed, a major problem is brewing.”

Steward Ark gazed at the document in his hand, his expression grave as he carefully put it away. He then hastened to the study door of the family head.

“Family Head, I have urgent matters to report.”

“Come in.”

Ark pushed the door open. His gaze immediately fell upon Reyn, who was hunched over his desk, looking utterly haggard.

Weary beyond measure, Reyn forced himself to lift his head, his voice raspy as he asked, “What is it?”

Ark presented the document he held. “The family is on the verge of bankruptcy,” he declared.

Reyn froze for a moment. Then, he snatched the document from Ark’s hand, his head bowed as he scrutinized it meticulously. His brows furrowed deeper with each passing line.

The Rheinhebo family, with its centuries of legacy, had accumulated astonishing wealth. Yet, no matter how vast their fortune, it could not withstand Reyn’s extravagant expenditures.

After assuming his position, he had focused heavily on renovating the Lower City. For this, he hired a massive workforce, which already constituted an enormous outlay.

However, even this was merely a small fraction of Reyn’s overall plan.

Ark stood silently by. The vast majority of the expenses stemmed from the relocation compensation Reyn had specified. The Lower City was densely populated, and if the standards Reyn set were truly followed, the family would need to mortgage substantial assets to settle the payments in one go.

Even for rebuilding an old city, was there truly a need to consider the common people?

To a noble, everything in their territory belonged to them. If any other noble were to undertake such a project, they would simply send men to forcibly demolish homes, never bothering with the commoners’ plight.

Then again, no other noble would ever consider renovating the Lower City in the first place. That area had always been the territory’s refuse heap.

As Ark waited with growing unease, Reyn finally broke the silence. “Is the family truly that poor? Am I not a noble?”

Ark was at a loss for how to explain, yet he could not remain silent. “Family Head, the standards you set for relocation compensation are simply too high.”

Reyn tapped the desktop, his expression calm as he spoke. “Ark, that money is necessary. The people of the Lower City are ignorant; only tangible cash in hand will truly put their minds at ease.”

Ark bowed his head and waist, responding respectfully, “Family Head, please forgive my ignorance. However, if you are merely concerned about them causing trouble, then there is no need for such an expense.”

Reyn shook his head. “Ark, violence must not be rampant. If a problem can be resolved with money, it is better for everyone.”

His gaze returned to the document, and the corner of his mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

That being said, the problem was that he currently had no money.

The family’s inherent assets absolutely could not be mortgaged. If he wished to pursue his ambitions, maintaining his reign was paramount.

‘Hmm… let me see… the funding gap is… three hundred and eighty million?’

Suddenly, his eyes narrowed slightly. This figure was not far from the aid amount provided by Victoria Michelle. Had she anticipated such a significant funding shortfall on his part all along?

‘Tsk, I have a feeling I’ve fallen into a trap.’

Reyn closed his eyes in contemplation, his index finger lightly tapping the desktop. After a long moment, he opened his eyes, his voice deep as he said, “Ark, where is Victoria Michelle staying now?”

Ark bowed in response. “The Tulip Hotel.”

“Prepare the carriage. I need to meet her.”

An hour later, Reyn stepped through the hotel’s grand entrance.

This hotel was not an asset of the Rheinhebo family; it belonged to the Magic Tower. Precisely because of this, no family head throughout history had ever harbored ill intentions toward it.

Ark approached the front desk and addressed a young, beautiful redhead. “The gentleman behind me is the Head of the Rheinhebo family. Please arrange a meeting with Miss Victoria Michelle for him.”

The redhead smiled faintly. “I apologize, but we do not disclose any guest information.”

Ark frowned. “I don’t recall such a regulation here.”

The redhead’s lips twitched. “There is now.”

Ark’s expression instantly turned grim. He stared at the redhead, his voice low and dangerous. “This is Rheinhebo family territory!”

The redhead paid no mind to Ark’s warning, letting out a soft chuckle. “Are you planning to cause trouble here? In the Tulip Hotel?”

Ark fell silent. This hotel was, after all, an asset of the Magic Tower. With such a formidable name attached to it, what noble would be foolish enough to offend the Magic Tower?

Moreover, the Magic Tower itself was essentially the inner circle of the empire’s nobility.

Reyn suddenly stepped forward and patted Ark’s shoulder, then met the gaze of the haughty redhead. After a brief pause, he suddenly grinned. “Ark, let’s go.”

He strode out of the hotel. Once inside the carriage, he spoke again. “Ark, assemble the Blackwing Knights and coordinate with the enforcers. Under the guise of searching for heretics, sweep through the Upper City, focusing primarily on various gray industries.”

Upon hearing the words “heretics,” Ark’s expression instantly changed. “Family Head, are you suggesting there are heretics at work behind this?”

Reyn’s expression flickered, then he chuckled softly, shaking his head. “The Tulip Hotel was clearly acting under someone else’s instruction. Someone does not want me to meet Miss Victoria Michelle. Didn’t you report that the wealthy residents of the Upper City seemed to have found new backing? Perhaps their patrons are not the Rose Merchant Guild, but someone else entirely.”

“If that is the case, wouldn’t doing this alert them?”

“No matter. Since they don’t want me to contact Miss Victoria Michelle, they are clearly wary of the Michelle family. Given that, why shouldn’t I stir the waters even more? Furthermore, I intend to legislate against those gray industries sooner or later anyway. This is an opportune moment to use this pretext and test their strength!”

Upon hearing this, Ark’s heart settled. But the very next moment, he jolted awake. Though his expression remained unchanged, his mind was awash with tumultuous thoughts.

‘Was that truly the case?’

Reyn Rheinhebo’s ambitious plan to rebuild the old city indeed required immense funds. Yet, the owner of the ghost fleet currently roaming the boundless sea was none other than the Greed Witch of the Witch’s Assembly. Over the years, she had plundered hundreds of city-states, accumulating an unimaginable fortune.

Rumor had it that she possessed long green hair. And among the girls Reyn Rheinhebo sponsored, there happened to be one with long green hair.

‘He remembered… her name was…’

‘Victoria!’

Ark’s pupils involuntarily contracted. The esteemed lady from the Michelle family was also named Victoria. Was this a mere coincidence?

Or had that noble lady long since been stripped of everything, even her very existence?

In that case, Victoria Michelle’s so-called aid was merely a trick of passing money from one hand to the other. All of it was simply to make the funding source for the Reyn Rheinhebo territory appear less suspicious.

If so, Reyn Rheinhebo had no genuine need to meet Victoria Michelle. So why had he come here?

‘Could it be that he already knew someone didn’t want him to meet Victoria Michelle? Was everything that transpired today within his expectations?’

‘And if that’s the case, when he spoke of using the pretext of sweeping out heretics, did true heretics actually exist? Was he merely playing along with the other party to conceal his true involvement in the matter?’

‘Which means, there genuinely are heretics within the Upper City, and specifically within those gray industries Reyn Rheinhebo emphasized!’