Since they had come to the castle in Theresa's carriage, they were sent back in a carriage provided by the castle, all the way to their mansion.
Of course, it was the usual carriage of the Royal Guard.
"Thank you always."
Kain thanked the Royal Guards and got off the carriage with Alex.
The guards waved at Kain and left.
"Kain, do you always get the Royal Guard to drop you off?"
"When I don't use my own carriage, I always get a ride. Sometimes I have to accompany them in training."
"Kain, normally, no noble can use the Royal Guard for transportation. The Royal Guard is responsible for the security of the castle and the protection of the royal family. Using them for transportation is..."
Alex held his forehead and sighed.
After returning to the mansion, they immediately started a meeting in the parlor.
Kain explained to Alex that he wanted to create a household register for the residents of Drinthur, dismantle the slums, and provide jobs, as well as build a facility for orphans. Since Kain had never managed a territory in his previous life, he had to rely on Alex.
"It should be possible with Drinthur, which doesn't have that many residents. I heard there are about 3,000 people. After we get to Drinthur, we'll investigate and proceed from there. Can we go to Drinthur today?"
Kain nodded in response to Alex's question.
"You can use the magistrate's residence. I'll go to the territory every day after school."
"Sure. That's fine. I'll handle things during the day."
After their meeting, they informed the butler, Coran, that they were heading to Drinthur and immediately teleported.
Their vision changed in an instant. They arrived in the office of the Drinthur lord's residence.
"It really is a quick trip. This way, there won't be any problem traveling between the capital and Drinthur."
"I'll introduce the people in the Drinthur lord's residence."
As he said this, there was a knock on the office door.
Dalmecia entered the room.
"Lord Kain, I sensed your return."
As expected of a former general of the Demon Army, his ability to detect presence was excellent.
"Ah, Dalmecia. I just got back. Let me introduce you to my brother, Alex, who will be the new magistrate."
With Kain's introduction, Alex stepped forward.
"I'm Alex von Silford, Kain's brother. Dalmecia, nice to meet you. You're quite an excellent butler."
"I'm just a retired old man. I am Dalmecia, the butler of this mansion. Dinner will be ready soon. Would you like to join us? Lady Retia has just returned from the guild."
"Thank you, I'll join you. I want to introduce my brother to everyone."
"Then I'll call you when it's ready."
Dalmecia bowed and left the room.
After dinner was prepared and Dalmecia called them, Alex and Kain went to the dining table.
At the table, the Dash couple, Enak, and Retia were already seated.
Enak was happy to see Kain, who was not expected to return until next week.
"This is my brother, Alex, who will be the new magistrate of this town. He will be living in the adjacent magistrate's residence."
First, Kain introduced Alex to everyone. It was necessary for Retia to audit the town along with Alex in the future.
"I'm Alex von Silford. I've been appointed as the new magistrate of this town. I used to be an administrator in the Gracia territory, and I want to improve this town with Viscount Kain. Everyone, please work with me."
After that, everyone introduced themselves and started eating.
"After dinner, can I report on the audit I did at the guild today? Although it's only been one day, I've found a lot."
Retia began investigating the former sub-guild master, Betty, for misconduct as the new sub-guild master and auditor of the adventurer's guild.
"Sure, after dinner, let's talk in the office with Alex."
Kain and Alex nodded.
Enak seemed to be very fond of Dalmecia, who often played with him. The Dash couple watched the scene with smiles.
After dinner, Kain, Alex, Retia, and Dalmecia gathered in the office.
Retia reported what she had found today.
"First, the guild in this town is supposed to pay taxes. I found documents with Elive's signature that had been stamped. However, there were many unclear requests from the magistrate. They were designated requests for forest investigations, and a significant amount of money was involved. This money was paid to the A-rank adventurers who were recently arrested. The reports were simple forest entrance investigations that even a beginner could do, so it was clear that the money was being siphoned off."
"The guild is supposed to pay taxes. Elive's signature means he was pocketing the money personally. When I arrived, the guild said they weren't paying taxes. Also, the government's subsidies were being funneled back through the guild and adventurers."
Kain folded his arms and thought. The amount of money involved in taxes and subsidies was considerable.
"Excuse me for interrupting, but while cleaning the magistrate's residence today, I found a hidden room next to the office. I found these..."
Dalmecia brought out a ledger and bags of platinum and gold coins. The coins were in separate bags, and when counted, the amount was considerable.
Alex looked through the ledger Dalmecia brought out.
After finishing reading, Alex sighed and placed the ledger on the table.
"The ledger shows the flow of money. I haven't looked at it in detail yet. The money that was saved was partly used to hire a dark guild, and the rest was divided among Elive, Betty, Stag, and Rick. The amount of money embezzled is over 500 platinum coins."
500 platinum coins would be equivalent to 5 billion yen in Japanese currency. The government's annual subsidy was 20 platinum coins, and the annual tax from the guild was 10 platinum coins. The amount of money embezzled was clear.
Kain and Retia were surprised by the amount of money. Alex continued.
"Since the amount of money is considerable, they must have been trying to cover it up by putting pressure on the dark guild and the adventurer's guild from behind when a new lord arrived."
Kain nodded at Alex's words.
"I want to ask you, Alex, to investigate the problems in this town from tomorrow. I'll come to the town every day after school, but I think I'll have to leave it to you. When you go out, I think the dark guild members will still be around, so please have a guard. Retia, I think you'll be fine inside the guild, but please be careful when going to and from the lord's residence."
Kain's suggestion was met with nods from the two.
"Got it, Kain. I'll compare this ledger with the town's income and expenses. I'll investigate by the weekend and we'll discuss it again."
"I'll investigate the materials that the guild master had left to Betty. I think there will be more to find."
"Kain, I'll assign my familiar to both of you. It will wait invisibly, so no one else will know. If anything happens, it will communicate with me telepathically. It's quite capable."
"Thank you, Dalmecia. I'll leave it to you. Both of you are important to this town."
Kain's words were met with a bow from Dalmecia.
"First, we'll prepare to transfer the four to the capital at the station tomorrow. I think the others will become criminal slaves. Kain, can you talk to the slave traders in the capital? If there are about 50 people, we need to prepare accordingly."
"Understood, Alex. I'll stop by after school tomorrow. I'll return to the capital now."
"Alex, I've already prepared the magistrate's residence for you to stay."
Guided by the excellent butler, they each returned to their rooms.
"Still, Alex and Retia are quite capable. This town can be improved with them."
Kain muttered to himself and teleported back to his mansion in the capital.
Thank you for reading.
Since the stock has run out, the next chapter will be posted simultaneously on AlphaPolis.
Due to my work schedule, it will be difficult to post daily, so I will post about three times a week.