"He's tougher than I thought."

After finishing my meeting with Prince Cleo and the purveying merchants, I was in my hotel room, thinking.

I had thought Prince Cleo was just some rich kid who'd recently come of age, but he didn't flinch even when I showed him a casual attitude.

He accepted it without so much as raising an eyebrow.

It's a shame. If he'd gotten a little irritated, I could have shown him the difference in our power.

Still, maybe because he was originally a woman, he was an androgynous beauty.

His bone structure was male, but I could still sense something feminine about him.

I wonder if the sex change wasn't perfect?

As I was lost in thought, Rosetta opened the door and came in.

"Darling, I heard that Prince Linus is putting pressure on the Banfield house! Is it true!?"

Seeing Rosetta in a panic made me feel dejected.

The sight of the 'Iron Woman' fallen from grace, now completely fawning over me, is unbearable.

Watching her makes me feel fidgety and embarrassed.

"—It's not a problem."

"It's a huge problem! We can't trade the rare metals that support the Banfield family's finances!"

Rosetta, flailing her hands and panicking, is fun to watch.

I'll tease her a bit.

"That's right. We'll be living in poverty, stuck with rare metals we can't sell anywhere. Eventually, someone will take advantage of our weakness and buy them off us for cheap. Are you going to abandon me and run?"

When I tested her, Rosetta stared at my face with a serious expression.

"—Even if you become poor, Darling, I'll stay with you. Even if you can't earn anything, I'll provide for you!"

—That's not the response I was hoping for.

She really is a disappointingly easy-to-win-over heroine.

"I'm kidding. In the first place, we're not short on business partners. If I wanted to, I could just sell them to foreign countries."

"Foreign countries—isn't that a crime if you're not careful?"

"Prince Linus is the one who picked this fight. I'll make him pay for it. Besides, we have other sources of income that are fine even if we can't trade rare metals."

Well, I have my trump card, the alchemy box.

With this, I can mass-produce and sell rare metals—other than the ones the Empire has export restrictions on—and there won't be any problem.

If they regulate even that, I have other means.

In fact, it's just that our rare metal trade volume is so large that it overshadows everything else, but our other businesses are also quite profitable.

Even without the rare metals, we're still earning on the scale of a Count's house.

Diversifying risk is fundamental.

"But, this might be a good opportunity to join hands with foreign countries."

Seeing me smile, Rosetta sat down next to me.

"With foreign countries? Do you mean creating your own channels?"

"I side with whoever benefits me. It doesn't matter if they're an enemy."

Rosetta is speechless after hearing my true intentions.

Was that a bit too much for Miss Goody-Two-Shoes?

Well, if she's surprised by something like this, she won't be able to serve as the wife of an evil lord.

Wait a minute. I feel like she's misunderstanding me. Maybe this is a good chance to further appeal the fact that I'm a villain?

"Remember this, Rosetta. A true villain joins hands with the enemy to kill his allies."

Rosetta was shocked to hear my words.

I don't care if it's detrimental to the Empire.

I will pursue only my own happiness!

◇

Walking down the hotel corridor on her way back to her room, Rosetta muttered.

"A true villain—I wonder who he's talking about?"

For Rosetta, it was difficult to connect Liam with the idea of a 'true villain'.

After all, from Rosetta's perspective, Liam was a good person.

She figured he must be indignant towards that 'true villain'.

Considering Liam's actions up to now, such extreme moves weren't unusual.

But he had brushed aside the hands extended by Calvin and Linus, and was now supporting the prince furthest from the emperor's throne.

What could be the meaning of this?

Liam's current power was so great that even the Empire couldn't ignore it.

If Liam were to side with him, even Linus, who was losing the succession race, would have a chance of winning.

It should have been possible to put Linus in his debt and further advance the Banfield house.

And the same applied to Calvin.

While not to the same extent as with Linus, he would surely take a significant lead in the succession dispute.

"Darling is a powerful noble, so those two would surely offer him good treatment to win him over. But he refused and went with the third prince... in that case..."

Rosetta couldn't help but read deeply into Liam's reckless actions, thinking there must be something more to it.

"Are Prince Calvin and Prince Linus colluding with the enemy?"

Could it be that Liam, who was actively seeking his own connections with foreign countries, had information she couldn't possibly know?

Was the reason he didn't tell her because it would be dangerous for her to know?

A chill ran down Rosetta's spine.

"—Is this what they call the darkness of the Empire?"

She hadn't known it until now, but it seemed the Empire was a very dark place.

When she thought about how Liam was living in the midst of all that, Rosetta was genuinely impressed.

It felt as if Liam was fighting alone while his own country's princes were colluding with the enemy, acting against the Empire's interests.

As Rosetta stood there with a pale face, Marie approached her.

"There you are, Lady Rosetta."

"Marie? You've returned."

"Actually, I've received orders from Lord Liam. I will be leaving the Empire for a short while. I was thinking of paying my respects before I left, but—is something troubling you?"

"—Marie, where are you headed, leaving the Empire?"

A foreign country—she was probably being dispatched to another nation on Liam's orders.

Rosetta decided to ask Marie for the details.

Marie hesitated for a moment, but then said it was probably fine to talk about it.

"To the Lustuour. I'll be infiltrating the interstellar nation known as the Unified Government, disguised as a mercenary guarding some merchants."

Marie had been chosen to be Patrice's bodyguard.

"The Unified Government? —Have you heard anything from Darling?"

"I haven't heard directly, but Lord Liam intends to create his own connections within the Unified Government. I also plan to make contact with important figures there. It seems they're busy with internal strife, so I'll be investigating that as well."

(I knew it!)

Rosetta felt like something had just clicked into place in her mind.

"Lady Rosetta, is something the matter?"

Marie had spoken this much because Rosetta was Liam's wife and an important figure in the Banfield house.

Since Liam hadn't told her it was top secret, she was explaining the detailed circumstances.

"In that case, I'll prepare a budget, so could you gather as much information on the Unified Government as possible? I want you to investigate whether the Empire is involved in the cause of their internal strife."

Marie narrowed her eyes.

"—Understood."

Marie also sensed that something was happening behind the scenes and agreed to Rosetta's request.

◇

"'You damn former special operations staff officer!'"

The one cursing at me over the comms was Wallace's older brother, Cedric.

Despite being royalty, he lived as a soldier and was now a Rear Admiral in command of several thousand ships.

The reason I was meekly accepting his curses was that everyone around us now recognized him as being part of my faction.

"My bad. But don't worry. I'll send you some state-of-the-art ships."

"'You think that's enough to reassure me?! I decided to live by my own strength and had no intention of getting involved in the murky court disputes!'"

"Well, calm down. I'll provide you with funds."

The reason Cedric was complaining to me was that, despite being assigned to a regular fleet, he had suddenly started receiving the cold shoulder.

The funds for operating his fleet were cut, and he was being visibly ostracized.

"'And what's with this Cleo guy?! He has no chance of winning! If you just wanted to help him, there are plenty of other ways, like smuggling him out in secret!'"

"That would be meaningless. I've decided to make him the emperor."

It's more profitable for me that way.

Besides, the emperor and the other princes are likely enemies, and Linus is already an enemy.

"Cedric, there's no escape now. Just be a good boy, follow my lead, and take control of the fleet. I'll provide you with an abundant budget and the latest weapons."

"'—If you go that far, even I can win over my subordinates. But hey, I can only move about a thousand ships. I don't think I can be of much help to you.'"

"No problem. I'll get you promoted right away."

"'Stop it! There's jealousy involved. I want to get promoted by earning merits the normal way!'"

It's good that he's motivated.

"Then rejoice. I'll let you play an active role."

"'Huh?'"

Weapons that aren't used are meaningless.

If Cedric is being given the cold shoulder in the regular fleet, I'll just poach him and put him somewhere he can shine.

"Actually, Cleo—His Highness—has started receiving petitions. There are many requests for pirate extermination, but it's more than even my fleet can handle. You're going to work too."

"'What!?'"

"Make a list of what you want. Also, I'll prepare an additional thousand ships for you. There are plenty of guys in the military getting the short end of the stick! They came flocking when I called out to them."

The Empire has plenty of weaknesses to exploit!

In the first place, an interstellar nation is full of openings.

It's so large that managing the whole thing is impossible.

I learned how to do it with the previous patrol fleet.

I'll gather up those outcasts and put them to good use.

"Also, I've told the space force commanders I know about you. If you need supplies, rely on those commanders."

The annual bribes—no, I mean, greeting gifts—are very important.

They gladly accepted.

"'Wait a—'"

I cut the comms and gleefully considered my next move.

"Now then, what kind of evil deed should I do next!"

Being an evil lord is fun!

◇

The Banfield family's territory.

A trembling Brian was reading a report with the head maid, Serena.

"N-not only is he putting all his effort into development, but the military is also on a full mobilization footing?"

Currently, the Banfield house is extremely busy with the development of the new planets it has acquired.

Colonization has also begun, and enormous budgets, manpower, and resources are being poured into it.

In the midst of all this, orders had been issued to almost the entire military.

Excluding the fleets undergoing reorganization or training, a fleet of thirty thousand ships was on the move.

The remaining fleets were also dispersed throughout the territory and were essential for its defense.

Serena was also surprised.

"It's like they're in a slugfest with no guard up. There's a danger that if even one gear slips, the whole thing will collapse."

If even one thing goes wrong, they'll stumble badly.

If things went poorly, there was a risk the Banfield house could be crushed.

"Lord Liam! Why won't you consult with us!"

As Brian cried, Serena found it amusing.

"Even if he did consult us, we couldn't stop him. Still, this is a huge gamble. If it succeeds, Prince Cleo becoming emperor will actually become a possibility."

A possibility that was previously zero would become a plausible story of a few percent.

Serena felt that Liam was serious about making Cleo the emperor, but that didn't matter to Brian.

"Why is he always so extreme! B-but, this is Lord Liam, after all. Even in this emergency, there's not much burden on the populace."

It was possible to fully mobilize the populace, but Liam didn't do it.

Brian perceived that as kindness.

Serena shook her head.

"He's naive, but I don't dislike it. Still, turning his eyes to neighboring countries... I wonder if something's up? Brian, haven't you heard anything?"

"This Brian has heard nothing. Well, as long as he isn't trading in rare metals, it's not a crime, so there shouldn't be a problem."

"—Yes, that's right. If he's really not dealing in rare metals, that is."

Serena seemed quite concerned.

Brian replied with a laugh.

"I've seen the list of goods to be traded, and they were all unproblematic. You're worrying too much, Serena."

"I hope so."

The Guide (｀・ω・´) looking sharp! "I won't do anything!"