Chapter 109

The Righteous Young Master (3)

As soon as they saw Settern’s expression when he returned to the office, Kairus and Irena were certain their plan was starting to work.

But starting to work wasn’t good enough. Kairus and Irena had a clear end goal.

‘I need to get this guy to Erens.’

If they could get Settern Volos to accompany them all the way to Erens, their objective would be complete.

In a rural backwater like Erens, there was no powerful police presence.

If they executed the operation Kairus and Irena had planned during lunch once they arrived in Erens, they wouldn’t have to deal with the police of Murdan City.

The only ones they'd have to handle would be the three bodyguards secretly protecting Settern Volos.

That much, they could manage.

“I’ll pause the interview and ask directly. How much do you know about Erens?”

Kairus had expected Settern to express his intentions indirectly. But it seemed Settern had no such plans.

Settern Volos looked directly between Kairus and Irena, bluntly throwing out a question.

“Erens…”

Kairus pretended to be a little surprised, then exchanged an awkward glance with Irena.

Since the other party was taking such a direct approach, Kairus and Irena had to take a step back in response.

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“My investigator has already checked the telegram you two received.”

“What? Even if you’re a prosecutor, are you allowed to just look at someone else’s telegram like that?”

Checking someone’s telegram without permission was a clear breach of etiquette. It was common sense.

Although this was the outcome Kairus and Irena had hoped for, they still put on a show of displeasure.

“It was necessary for the execution of justice. I trust you’ll understand.”

For a moment, Kairus doubted his own ears. He never imagined anyone in their right mind would actually say something as embarrassing as “execution of justice” out loud.

And to make it worse, what followed wasn’t even an apology—it was that bizarre line, “I trust you’ll understand.”

“I believe you’ve understood me,” could just as easily mean “I don’t care whether you did or not.”

Kairus found it to be a rather rude thing to say, and replied,

“…Of course, we understand this case might interest you as well, Prosecutor.”

“I knew it.”

Upon hearing that, Settern’s eyes lit up. He clenched his fist and declared,

“I’ll let you join me.”

Let us? Join you? Who the hell do you think you are, you little shit?

That retort nearly escaped Kairus’s throat before he swallowed it down.

‘No, this actually works better.’

A bratty, clueless young master who charged ahead without thinking was far easier to manipulate.

In truth, the fact that Settern had come out swinging so recklessly made things simpler than they'd originally planned—a small blessing.

“You speak of justice, but aren’t you really just using us as bait?”

At Kairus’s cold remark, Settern’s expression tightened slightly.

“What are you implying?”

“We’re heading to Erens, fully aware of the risks. Meanwhile, you're staying here, just expecting to take whatever we uncover—am I wrong?”

At that, Settern let out a scoffing breath.

“What the hell are these damn reporters talking about now?”

“We don’t mind being used. But in return, we expect something as well.”

The atmosphere instantly grew tense. Settern silently stared at Kairus before replying.

“Speak.”

Settern no longer used honorifics. From his point of view, there was no way he’d be pleased with someone like Kairus daring to challenge him head-on. Settern, who had always been on the winning side, had no intention of trying to understand Kairus’s attitude.

“Join us.”

“Join you?”

The moment the investigator, who had been quietly listening, heard Kairus’s words, his face stiffened.

“Do you even know who you're talking to?”

“To none other than Prosecutor Settern Volos of the Aylan Republic, who speaks of justice yet refuses to take on any personal risk.”

Kairus paused, and as if on cue, Irena stepped in.

“We believe you’re aware that this investigation carries certain dangers, Prosecutor.”

Settern gave a small nod in response. It was a village cultivating illegal crops. No one could predict what kind of danger might arise during a press investigation.

“But Prosecutor Settern Volos, you are a prosecutor of the Aylan Republic. If anything dangerous happens, you can protect us, right? No matter how violent the villagers of Erens may be.”

No matter how out-of-line the villagers got, they couldn’t harm a Republic prosecutor.

“You’re planning to use me as a shield?”

“Police have restrictions in their investigations. We don’t.”

Kairus spoke confidently.

“For a good story, we’re not bound by rules or procedures. Unlike the police, who are hemmed in on all sides.”

That was exactly why Settern Volos had planned to use Kairus and Irena in the first place. Kairus had hit the mark perfectly.

“We’ll do the investigating and hand everything over to you.”

“We’ll only publish it in the magazine after getting your permission.”

As if reading his mind, Irena and Kairus continued saying exactly what Settern Volos wanted to hear.

“All we’re asking is that you accompany us. If anything happens, just make sure we’re safe.”

Settern paused, deep in thought.

“You said this was for the execution of justice. Or… are you just like all the other dime-a-dozen prosecutors in this district office?”

Bang! Settern felt as if something had exploded inside his head and sprang to his feet.

“Once I finish preparations, we’ll head to Erens.”

“…Thank you. We’ll leave first and wait in Erens.”

There was no atmosphere left for continuing the interview anyway. Kairus and Irena bowed and left the prosecutor’s office.

The investigator who had been watching the whole sequence couldn’t hold back and finally spoke up.

“I’m opposed to this.”

“Are you telling me to just pass up this opportunity?”

Mass cultivation of illegal crops was an enormous case. If a prosecutor personally led the police to uproot its source, that alone would be a tremendous career achievement.

Settern Volos was a man who always charged toward success. He had overcome countless obstacles through his own efforts; his resolve and will were as strong as steel.

At least, Settern Volos was certain of that.

“Don’t interfere any further. I’ll be going on assignment soon, so consider it settled.”

After he finished speaking, Settern checked the time and stood.

Settern’s necessary tasks had already been completed. The sun was setting, and lights were beginning to come on, one by one, inside the prosecutor’s office that was still full of people working.

“I don’t know why people drag their work out until now. Folks ought to be diligent.”

He left a brief assessment aimed at the other prosecutors who were still finishing their day’s work, then departed from the prosecutor’s office.

Kairus and Irena also returned to the hotel.

“A drink?”

“Sounds good.”

Their plan had proceeded very smoothly. The newly opened bottle of wine filled the glasses Kairus and Irena held.

Glasses clinked clearly as the red liquid sloshed.

“That was easier than I expected.”

Kairus answered Irena briefly.

“It’s not over yet.”

He could change his mind at any moment. Even if the chance was low, if something like that happened, many things would become troublesome.

“That prosecutor has impressive initiative. Judging by his momentum, I wouldn’t be surprised if he left first thing tomorrow.”

Kairus nodded at Irena’s remark. Settern Volos would probably want to do exactly that.

“Will the necessary items be ready?”

“The Rose Garden branch will prepare them.”

The regular milk deliveries to Erens were a benefit provided by the Rose Garden.

Early tomorrow morning, Kairus and Irena planned to take the milk delivery truck to Erens.

“Items too?”

“Yes.”

The drugs needed to carry out the setup crime against Settern Volos were also expected to be placed on that milk delivery truck.

Kairus and Irena would ride the delivery truck to Erens and wait for Settern to arrive.

“I’ll drink quickly and go to bed.”

They needed to get enough sleep now if they were to leave at dawn the next day. After Kairus and Irena demolished a bottle of wine and some cheese in no time, they returned to their respective rooms and went to sleep.

The next morning, Kairus and Irena rode in a large car and headed for Erens.

“What if he doesn’t come?” Irena asked, and Kairus sighed softly.

“Then we’ll go back to the city and kill him.”

Even with bodyguards, it wasn’t an impossible task.

“Removing Settern Volos’s head won’t be hard. The problem comes after that.”

Afterward, meeting the Add-On craftsman in Erens whom Simid Kellogg had introduced would become difficult.

It would be very hard for the criminals who had killed a parliamentarian’s grandson to still be walking freely on the Republic’s soil.

“Let’s hope it goes well.”

If things went wrong beyond that point, Irena would also be in a lot of trouble.

Contrary to what Kairus and Irena worried about, Settern Volos was preparing for the assignment with the driving force of a wild horse.

No one could stop Settern Volos, not even a rookie prosecutor who had only recently taken up the position.

It wasn’t that people feared Settern himself so much as his grandfather, Lemington Volos, but that detail didn’t really matter.

“Good.”

What mattered was that Settern Volos would be in Erens in a week. Considering the weight carried by the title of prosecutor, he had wrapped things up absurdly quickly.

After they arrived in Erens by milk delivery truck and received the telegram, Kairus and Irena clicked their tongues.

“He really charged in like a bull.”

“He believed in his own success.”

[Just like he had succeeded every time before, he would succeed this time too.]

That conviction, born from his life experiences, was the source of Settern Volos’s overwhelming drive.

Of course, his confidence was not baseless.

‘If you were going to live with that kind of confidence, you should have kept living in the world you were born into.’

Becoming a prosecutor and then, suddenly inflamed with a sense of justice, meddling with the Rose Garden had been the decisive mistake.

It was a mistake to rush into a world he had no knowledge of, believing that the factors that had led him to success so far would still work.

Settern Volos was going to pay dearly for the mistake he had made in Erens.

“The Representative will like this, actually.”

“Because we’ll catch him with a weakness?”

Although Settern Volos was a low-level prosecutor, he was also the grandson of a parliamentarian.

If the Rose Garden succeeded in discovering a weakness, they could naturally use it to control him, which would be very useful to them.

Of course, Settern Volos’s life would rapidly collapse under the Rose Garden’s instructions.

For Irena, who belonged to the Order, it was, after all, just one enemy official ruined — so it was a good thing.

Kairus wasn’t the sort of soft-hearted person who would feel sorry about this.

In short, Settern Volos’s fate was not something for the two of them to worry about.

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