At sunrise, The Capital Gazette released an issue with a headline so large it could be read from across the street:
"People's Stability Fund Used to Finance the Golden City Project in Savina!"
Crowds gathered around the stands, fingers trembling as they flipped through the pages.
In the marketplace, the merchants whispered—yet their worry was louder than any shout:
"Is this true? Our money is leaving the kingdom?""But Darius… wasn't he the one who saved the economy?"
In the alleys, among the poor who had borne the heaviest taxes under the promise of "stability," an old woman asked her neighbor, voice breaking:
"They said it was for us… for our children…How did it become for a city we've never seen?"
At the military gate, Gray overheard soldiers muttering:
"Our equipment hasn't been updated in a year…and gold is being shipped to Savina?"
The city had not risen—not yet.But it had questioned.
And a question is more dangerous than anger.
At midday, Darius called for an emergency press conference inside the palace.A broad hall, strong lights, dozens of reporters… and an aura of confidence that did not belong to a man facing scandal.
He stepped up to the podium with a rehearsed smile, beginning in a calm, measured voice:
"The Golden City project is no secret.It is an investment—one that will benefit all of Orvalis."
A journalist raised a hand:
"Was the People's Stability Fund used to finance it?"
Despite the tension filling the hall, Darius's expression did not change.
"The people's money is used to build the people's future.As for whoever leaked these documents…they presented half the truth to betray their kingdom."
A stir swept through the hall.Nervous glances.Doubt stirring… but slowly dissolving before Darius's unshaken confidence.
He ended with words sharp enough to cut:
"Our enemies have infiltrated us.And we will hold accountable anyone who aided them…regardless of their status."
The crowd left divided:those who believed fiercely,and those who doubted in silence.
That afternoon, Ken was summoned to the king's office.The room felt smaller than he remembered—or perhaps it was the king's heart that had shrunk.
The moment he entered, accusations erupted:
"Did you leak the documents?!"
Ken did not raise his voice.
"I did not confirm it…and I did not deny it."
The king slammed his fist on the desk as if the answer struck him across the face.
"Darius is saving this kingdom! And you are lighting fires beneath our feet!"
Ken stepped closer, speaking without tremor:
"A man who builds a city with the people's money…is not building a kingdom, Father."
A heavy silence fell.In the king's eyes, something flickered—anger, disappointment, fear.It was impossible to tell which was winning.
Then he said sternly:
"I'm halting all investigations against Darius until this storm settles.I will not allow a war within the family."
Ken bowed slightly and withdrew.But before he closed the door, he murmured:
"Wars begin when we stay silent…not when we speak."
Gray was waiting in the corridor.
"People are talking, my lord.Not against him… but they're unsure."
Marvin arrived carrying a stack of papers.
"Common folk do not revolt against the one who feeds them, Ken…They revolt against the one who reveals who has been feeding them."
Ken sat on the edge of the table, scanning the scattered documents.
"Then we'll show them that the one feeding them…is also the one robbing them."
5 — Darius Strikes First: Eren's Arrest
Two days later, at dawn, the blow landed:
Eren — the financial records clerk — had been arrested for leaking documents harmful to public welfare.
Gray rushed to the detention center, but—
The place was empty.
"They pulled him out fifteen minutes before I arrived…"Gray hissed between his teeth.
Marvin ran through scenarios quickly:
"If we don't get Eren out of the capital tonight…we'll never see him again."
With the help of a nervous archivist—someone who owed Marvin an old favor—they disguised Eren and smuggled him through the service gate.
He left just before dawn…exhausted… shaking… but alive.
Meanwhile, Darius launched a far more polished counterattack.
He appeared before the Press Guild, surrounded by reporters, speaking in a voice coated with sorrow:
"I have been betrayed…by someone within my own family."
That single mournful tone was enough for newspapers to declare the next day:
"Darius — the hero stabbed by those closest to him."
And so…the accused became the victim,and the whistleblower became the suspect.
Late in the evening, as Ken walked through one of the palace corridors, Elaine appeared.
Worry clouded her face.
"My lord… my father was summoned by Darius yesterday.He returned shaken.He wouldn't tell me anything."
Ken asked, voice calm but sharp:
"Do you know what Darius wanted from him?"
She shook her head.
"No… but he looked as if he'd been threatened."
When she left, Ken remained still for a moment—his fist tightening at his side.
Darius was no longer merely protecting those who aligned with him.He had begun using dukedoms as political shields… and financial weapons.Elaine's father was now one of them.
End of chapter.