༺ There was a Brief Commotion (1) ༻
Compared to the notorious reputation of the Twilight Cult, their suppression ended quite smoothly. It didn’t matter that they’d been roaming around for hundreds of years. Their downfall came in an instant.
In fact, from the moment Enen won the religious battle, the downfall of the cults that worshipped other gods was inevitable. Only the Twilight Cult refused to acknowledge this and persisted until now. With such determination and effort, they would have succeeded in anything, but what they chose was blind faith.
“We’ve captured the cult leader, so he should be useful.”
The Vice Captain of the Masked Unit took the cult leader from the former army commander’s spear and brought it to the Ministry of Intelligence. Since he was the leader, they would probably squeeze a good amount of information from him.
If he’d died on the spot, there was a chance that his name would have been immortalized as a martyr. It was questionable if anyone would consider this heretic a martyr, but given that this heretic cult had survived for hundreds of years, one had to be careful.
— Good job, Prosecutor’s Executive Manager.
“Thank you.”
Shortly after returning to the Capital, I was contacted by the Minister of Intelligence, who thanked me for a job well done. The subjugation operation was now officially over.
— They had a trick or two up to their sleeves. However, even that failed.
“It seems like some people are just doomed no matter what they do.”
— I agree.
After the cult leader was sent to the Ministry of Intelligence, he immediately started giving information. It seemed like they had a plan.
They planned to intentionally spread information about an assassination attempt on the next Saint candidate in the Capital to draw attention. Then, they were going to maximize their sacrifices through a spectacular self-destruction. They aimed to make the name of the Twilight Cult so notorious that neither the Empire nor the Holy Kingdom could ignore it.
Since their sole purpose was to give a blow to the Dawn Sect and the Empire, it was a plausible plan. At least, until they got beaten up.
‘Did Enen curse them?’
If some of the soldiers were killed or injured, rumors about the Twilight Cult would have inevitably spread.
But thanks to the large healing field, none of the soldiers fell. They also couldn’t flee the battlefield to terrorize elsewhere. Not only that, but Tannian’s Holy Spell suppressed the Cult leader’s final attempt at self-destruction. It was surprising how unlucky they’d gotten.
But what could I do? They should have converted. Getting on the right line was also a skill.
— After the interrogation, the heretic will be sent to court, although the result will be execution.
I nodded after hearing the Minister of Intelligence say that the body would be cremated after the execution. The Empire was under the protection of Enen, so there was no need to respect the burial tradition of heretics.
— I’m busy, so I’ll end the call here. Take care.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
After conveying the information, the Minister of Intelligence cut the call. While the subjugation of the Twilight Cult had ended, each of us still had work left to do.
I glanced down at the piece of paper on my desk. On the paper, there was a single word written at the top.
Report.
‘Fuck.’
The pressure coming from these six letters was no joke. While the subjugation was over, the responsibility for documentation remained.
The result was good. By positioning Tannian at the forefront, we managed to ensure that there would be no casualties or disturbances in the Capital. Successfully suppressing the Twilight Cult without offending the Emperor was undeniably a grand success.
However, the very fact of having put Tannian at the forefront was a problem that couldn’t be overlooked.
— The Holy Kingdom has been fervently contacting us. It reminded me of my younger days when I was quite popular.
It seemed that the Minister of Foreign Affairs had to face some heated protests while I was away. He seemed so overwhelmed that he reached a breaking point.
At least, there was a justification that ‘Isn’t the real problem the fact that the next Saint Candidate is in the Capital in the first place?’ and since Tannian emerged unscathed, the situation didn’t escalate into a major problem. The obliteration of the Twilight Cult was a success as well, so it was difficult for them to protest further.
Still, the Empire should at least show some regret about this incident. Thanks to that, I was in this situation. After all, I was the one who initially proposed involving Tannian. By now, the Ministers of Intelligence and Foreign Affairs should also be writing their reports.
‘I’m… Deeply… Reflecting… About… This… Incident…’
I wrote the report with a heavy heart.
‘This incident concluded without any mishaps. However, in the future, to make sure something like this doesn’t happen, I’ll r, re, rectify…’
Damn it. You guys also did things wrong. Why is it that I’m the only one getting all the blame?
‘Ah.’
As I wrote how I felt, I ended up making a mistake. This is ink, so it’s hard to erase. Should I just submit it like this?
I inadvertently looked out of the window behind me. Contrary to my gloomy mood, the sky outside is bright and blue. Shouldn’t I also have the right to play freely under that sky?
Today was another day I desperately wanted to resign. I should also submit my resignation on my way to submit the report.
If it were something that happened at the Ministry of Finance, I would have dealt with it without writing a report. Unfortunately, this involved not only another department but also a foreign country, so I had to go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
“You’re here again?”
“Yes. It turned out that way.”
The moment I entered the disciplinary chief’s office, the first greeting I received was cold. You’re asking me why I’m here again? I didn’t come here because I wanted to.
I presented the report awkwardly, and the disciplinary chief chuckled while rising from his seat. I had achieved the miraculous feat of having submitted a report nine times. Damn it.
“Usually, even Managers don’t write reports often. But somehow, you’re writing them more after getting promoted.”
“I guess I’m doing this now because I didn’t have to write them while I was the Team Leader.”
“Hahaha, you don’t need to do those things all at once.”
The disciplinary chief nodded and quickly skimmed through the report I handed over. Although it was his job to check the reports, having him go through it before me was embarrassing.
“Your handwriting seems to be getting better.”
He even left a review. Don’t do this to me.
The disciplinary chief laughed at my shameful expression and put the report on his desk. Thankfully, he didn’t ask me to rewrite it. The first time I wrote a report, I had to redo it several times.
“From what I heard, the Emperor isn’t angry. While it’s important to show that some disciplinary action has been taken, we can’t send the Prosecutor’s Executive Manager to the Ministry of Justice, right?”
“I’m deeply grateful for His Majesty’s mercy.”
A report was a very light form of punishment. It was even embarrassing to use the word ‘punishment.’ While it was embarrassing and irritating to write, there was no real harm done.
The fact that I was asked to write a report for this incident was a positive sign. At least it meant they didn’t plan to purge me because of this incident. I would have been more scared if they had ignored it.
It was a fortune among misfortunes. Honestly, I don’t want to label it as fortunate, but it is what it is.
“I’ll be on my—”
—Knock, knock.
“It’s the Minister of Intelligence.”
“Ah.”
‘Damn it.’
Because I didn’t run away immediately after submitting it, I encountered a superior who’d also written a report.
How can embarrassing things happen to me until the very end? Is this the last curse of the Twilight Cult?
After the painfully awkward eye contact with the Minister of Intelligence, I fled to the Prosecutor’s Office. I felt that if I stayed longer, I would run into the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Usually, my bad premonitions weren’t wrong.
“Executive Manager? W-why are you here?”
That was how the Managers greeted me after I finally returned.
“Weren’t you going to submit the report?”
“I did. It’s just a submission, so what’s all the fuss about?”
After I said that, the 3rd Manager looked at the 1st Manager, who was next to him. It seemed like he was saying that this was different from what she told him. So, it was the 1st Manager again. Since the 2nd Manager had left, she was causing trouble for two people.
The 1st Manager tilted her head in confusion.
“Don’t you get penalized after submitting a report ten times? That’s why I thought you went to your mansion.”
You bastard.
“How can you say that when half of the reports I wrote were because of you brats?”
Moreover, the fact that she counted the times meant that she secretly hoped I’d get penalized, right? I grabbed the 1st Manager’s lips in anger. I’d been holding myself back since I thought I was doing it too often, but I couldn’t hold myself back this time.
This was the 9th time I submitted a report. I still had one life left before I got the penalty.
‘Fuck.’
I closed my eyes after thinking about the number ‘one.’ Was I collecting the coupons of a restaurant? What kind of Executive Manager collects enough reports that would lead to a penalty?
I was relieved, thinking that I wouldn’t have to write a report while I was dispatched to the Academy, but I had to write one as soon as I returned. At this rate, I might really get penalized this winter.
“If you’re penalized three times, the next is imprisonment, right?”
“Yes.”
I nodded at the cautious words of the 3rd Manager. Right, if one were penalized for the 3rd time, it evolved from a penalty into imprisonment. Although the period was just a few days at most, its symbolic significance was huge.
I’ve already been penalized twice. There was no way out if I wrote one more report and got another penalty.
‘I fucking laughed at him.’
The Minister had already been imprisoned several times. Initially, I wondered what one would have to do to get there, but now I was close to it.
At least the Minister had a long career as a Civil Servant. But I’ve only been working for four years. Not even the Minister got imprisoned in just four years.
‘The problem has gotten pretty big.’
To think that the price for having listened to Tannian’s request would end up in possible imprisonment. I knew this could happen, but it hurt.
I decided to ignore the 1st Manager, who was patting my arm.
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