Li An leaned back in his office chair, slumping down as if all the strength had been drained from his body.
Ever since he became an imperial minister, he had been frequently called upon to attend all kinds of events.
Countless events of all sizes took place throughout the empire, and as a core official of the empire, Li An naturally received frequent invitations to the larger ones.
Shaking hands with the powerful and influential again and again.
Exchanging pleasantries with high-ranking officials again and again.
Getting to know those so-called “important figures” over and over again, using the opportunity to establish his presence in noble circles.
By the time this entire routine was finished, a person was basically no different from a half-dead zombie.
Leaning against the back of his chair, Li An had only one thought left in his mind.
The Kelly Kingdom.
He wanted to go to the Kelly Kingdom.
Ideally, he would do absolutely nothing and just spend the rest of his life there.
“Ah...”
“I really want to go to the Kelly Kingdom.”
He suddenly remembered a book he had read in his previous life. It said that if you truly desired something, you should constantly tell yourself in your heart that you already possessed it. That way, the wish would naturally come true.
Li An decided to give it a try.
“I am already in the Kelly Kingdom.”
“I am currently lying under the warm sun, sunbathing.”
“I am at the beach right now.”
“I am currently soaking in a comfortable hot spring.”
...
And then...
Nothing happened.
Li An fell silent.
When he was young, he had scrimped and saved, setting aside one bill after another from his allowance, eventually spending a whopping one hundred yuan to buy that book. Looking back now, he would have been better off buying some delicious food instead.
Li An immediately made a decision.
If he ever had the chance to return to his previous world, he would definitely hunt down that author.
And then sue him.
Just then...
“Minister Li An,” Isha politely reminded him, “it is time to attend the Cabinet meeting.”
Li An immediately wore a pained expression. “I’m feeling a bit under the weather today.”
“Regardless, the Cabinet meeting is an important assembly concerning the empire,” Isha said in a gentle tone, yet she did not back down in the slightest. “You must attend.”
“If only someone could take my place,” Li An sighed. “Preferably someone more capable than me and with a higher status...”
As he spoke, he snuck a glance at Isha. He happened to spot the hair tie in her hair. It was tied extremely tight. Excellent. There was no sign of it coming loose. Li An breathed a sigh of relief. At least today should be fine.
Lately, he had been constantly observing Isha's “tipping point.” Just how far did he have to push her to make her let her hair down? Ever since witnessing her dramatic face-changing acts with his own eyes a few times, Li An had become deeply aware that preparing himself mentally in advance was absolutely necessary.
Isha walked up behind him and gently massaged his shoulders.
“You look truly exhausted.”
“Your shoulders are all stiff.”
“Would you like me to prepare some sweets?”
“Thank you,” Li An said, feeling a touch moved.
Isha was not that easy to deal with, either. Faced with a Li An who had been getting increasingly irritable lately, she had instead adopted a soft approach. Not only did she not blame him, but she also continuously looked after him with gentleness. This indeed befitted the grace of an imperial princess.
“Let's work hard together today as well, Minister.”
“Go for it!”
Isha even clenched her small fist and waved it gently in front of Li An.
Li An stared at that fist. What did this mean? Was she implying that if he didn't behave, she would use this fist to crack his head open?
“I'll go,” Li An immediately stood up. “I'll go, alright?”
Isha watched him obediently put on his coat and tilted her head slightly.
...
The Cabinet meeting.
It was one of the highest-level assemblies where all the ministers of the empire gathered alongside the emperor to discuss major state affairs. It sounded exceptionally grand.
Unlike before, when the Evaluation Department—a mere third-rate department of the empire—wasn't even qualified to participate, it had officially become a department capable of attending the Cabinet meetings ever since Li An began his meteoric rise.
It was no exaggeration to say that Li An had made the Evaluation Department what it was.
But in reality, the empire's Cabinet had only recently begun to truly function. Li An was well aware of this.
In the past, what use was there even if discussions here grew incredibly heated? As long as those corrupt officials close to the emperor uttered a single word, everything would revert right back to square one. Who would want to waste their energy?
However, now that the traitors had been purged and the Crown Prince had begun handling state affairs on behalf of the emperor, the Cabinet had finally restored its proper function.
The attendance rate, which used to hover around a mere twenty percent, had now surpassed fifty percent.
As for the ministers who were still absent, most of them hailed from certain deep-rooted noble families. They put on an arrogant front.
Their meaning was clear.
“Do whatever you want. If you actually mess things up, would you really dare to execute us?”
As it turned out... they really did execute them.
Isha—who was actually Elizabeth—acting as the ultimate favorite in the emperor's eyes due to his reflected affection for Li An, had carried out this satisfying task.
She had now been completely dubbed a “tyrant” by the nobles in private. She simply couldn't be bothered to reason with these people. She disposed of them as she saw fit.
The Crown Prince scanned everyone present, a smile appearing on his face.
“Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend this meeting.”
“So as not to waste any more of your time, I will briefly outline today's agenda.”
Although the current Cabinet acted somewhat like an interim government, the Crown Prince had not officially ascended the throne yet. Therefore, he still maintained a considerable degree of respect for those ministers who possessed abundant practical working experience.
“The first agenda item is the export of improved mana stones.”
“As you all know, both the quality and effects of the mana stones produced by the empire far surpass similar products from other countries.”
“All of this is thanks to the Minister of the Evaluation Department.”
“Taking this opportunity, I would like to express my gratitude to Minister Li An once again.”
Li An waved his hands in a hurry. “It was just good luck.”
“Hahaha,” the Crown Prince laughed. “Luck itself is a form of strength.”
The subsequent Cabinet meeting went far more smoothly than Li An had anticipated. This was mainly because Robin, the Minister of the Ministry of Magic, and Sorbet, the Minister of Finance, carried most of the weight.
In fact, these two could practically be considered the only two ministers in the empire who were truly working diligently right now. Both were exceptionally proactive during meetings, as if they finally had the opportunity to fully showcase the capabilities they had been unable to deploy in the past due to the rampant presence of traitors.
Consequently, Li An ended up as the most idle person in the room.
Sitting there, his expression gradually turned stiff.
His entire being felt like it had transformed into a cactus.
Meanwhile, his mind was constantly preoccupied with another matter.
The Kelly Kingdom.
He really wanted to go.
Just then...
“The second agenda item concerns the Kelly Kingdom.”
“!”
Li An and Bernstein looked up at the exact same time.
The eyes of both men lit up almost simultaneously.
The Crown Prince continued:
“Recently, the number of missing persons in the hot spring region of the southern Kelly Kingdom has been steadily increasing.”
“They have launched their own investigation but have consistently failed to uncover the cause.”
“Therefore, they had no choice but to temporarily close the local hot springs.”
“This is indeed regrettable news.”
“As such, the Kelly Kingdom has sent a request for assistance to the empire.”
“If anyone is willing to travel to the Kelly Kingdom to investigate this unexplained disappearance incident...”
An alliance existed between the Kelly Kingdom and the empire. Of course, while it was called an alliance, it was actually infinitely close to a suzerain-vassal relationship. The Kelly Kingdom made a fortune through its tourism industry, while the empire took responsibility for protecting them. Both parties got what they needed, making it a highly typical mutually beneficial relationship.
No sooner had the Crown Prince finished speaking than two voices rang out almost simultaneously:
“The Evaluation Department will take responsibility for this matter.”
“The Development Department will take responsibility for this matter.”
Li An snapped his head around.
Bernstein turned his head at the exact same time.
The two stared at each other, and the air instantly froze.
Li An's gaze seemed to say:
Give it up, Bernstein. The Kelly Kingdom is mine.
Bernstein's eyes answered back:
No. You're the one who should give up. If I keep working like this, I'm literally going to die.
The two didn't even utter a word.
Through their gazes alone, they had completed an entire conversation.
The Crown Prince, however, burst out laughing.
“Oh?”
“To think both of you are willing to personally make the trip for the sake of the empire.”
“As expected of the Light of the Empire and the empire's greatest scientist.”
“Very well.”
“Then this matter shall be handled jointly by both of your departments.”
...
The two fell silent at once.
Naturally, they both understood.
In this sort of situation, they absolutely could not send their subordinates. In other words, it had to be the minister himself who personally went to the Kelly Kingdom. Then, under the guise of an investigation, he could rightfully enjoy a legitimate vacation.
But the problem was that both ministers could not leave the imperial capital at the same time.
In the end, only one of them could go.
“Let's flip a coin!”
“Fine!”
“I choose heads.”
“Then I'll take tails.”
Li An chose heads.
Bernstein chose tails.
The coin was tossed into the air.
Bernstein looked thoroughly smug.
I knew you'd pull this stunt, he sneered in his heart.
To prevent this exact situation, he had secretly prepared a double-tailed coin beforehand.
Yet, Li An was smiling too.
Because he had also anticipated this long ago.
He had swapped that coin for a normal one ahead of time.
Clack.
The coin landed on the table.
Heads up.
“Ah!”
“Heads!”
Li An violently pumped his fist.
Bernstein, on the other hand, clutched his head.
“My vacation!”
At that moment, he didn't even bother to hide his true emotions anymore.
“What a pity,” Li An patted Bernstein on the shoulder. “I'll have to trouble you to stay behind and support me this time.”
“Do you happen to have any useful tools on hand?”
“I'm not an all-powerful craftsman,” Bernstein grumbled, muttering curses as he complained for a while.
Ultimately, however, he pulled out a device that looked like a thermometer.
“This is a hot spring water pollution detector I made myself.”
“It has already passed guild certification.”
“Using it normally won't be an issue.”
Li An took it from him. “How long did it take to make this?”
“About a day.”
Li An fell silent.
He stared expressionlessly at Bernstein.
How on earth did this guy manage to be called an incompetent, lucky fraud while simultaneously creating something like this in a single day?
It was simply absurd.
An outstanding talent like him ought to be locked up inside the empire forever. Then forced to do hard labor every single day, serving the empire until the day he died.
Bernstein added, “Other than that, I will also prepare the other tools you need.”
“That would be a massive help.”
“Remember to bring me back a souvenir.”
“Don't worry,” Li An flashed a brilliant smile. “I'll definitely buy you the most expensive one.”
For some reason, Bernstein was exceptionally cooperative today.
Li An couldn't help but feel things weren't that simple.
And indeed.
“There's one more thing,” Bernstein suddenly said. “The Kelly Kingdom side specifically requested someone from the Development and Innovation Department to accompany you on this trip.”
“I apologize that I cannot go myself.”
“However, she is an exceptionally outstanding talent.”
“She should be able to assist you.”
Li An frowned. “An outstanding talent?”
“Does that word actually mean what you think it means?”
“Of course,” Bernstein nodded earnestly. “Her magical attainment is incredibly high, and she is also extremely intelligent.”
“Furthermore, you know her too.”
Li An fell into deep thought.
There was someone he knew in the Development and Innovation Department?
He pondered carefully for a long time.
No matter how he tried, he couldn't recall anyone.
...
A few days later.
The day of departure for the Kelly Kingdom had arrived.
Li An finally discovered who the “outstanding talent” Bernstein spoke of was.
“My name is Celi.”
“Starting today, I am a new member of the Development and Innovation Department.”
“Though I still have many shortcomings, please look after me from now on.”
Serena lifted the hem of her skirt and curtsied elegantly to Li An.
Li An: “...”
Excellent.
He finally understood.
What “exceptionally outstanding talent” meant.
What “you know her too” meant.
Bernstein.
You just wait.
Serena boarded the carriage with an air of complete nonchalance.
Then, she patted the seat beside her.
“Come on.”
“If we don't hurry and set off, Her Highness Elizabeth is going to find out, you know?”
Li An's face was completely stiff.
Having no other choice, he could only get into the carriage.
However, he didn't sit next to Serena. Instead, he intentionally sat directly across from her.
Serena didn't mind this in the least.
With a sweet smile, she stretched her leg out and gently nudged Li An's calf with the tip of her shoe.
Li An immediately nudged his leg aside.
Serena nudged hers over to pursue him.
“Your Highness, you really love playing jokes too much.”
“Princess?” Serena blinked. “I am no princess right now.”
“I am a tax officer.”
“Call me Celi.”
“Do that, and I'll stop teasing you.”
Li An naturally knew she was talking absolute nonsense.
He kept dodging Serena's foot.
Yet no matter where he hid, Serena relentlessly pursued him. Li An's face grew increasingly dark.
Bernstein.
He would remember this grudge.
He had originally thought he could finally enjoy a relaxing, private vacation. To avoid any hassle, he had even intentionally left his attendants behind.
But look how things turned out.
What kind of hot spring investigation was this?
He was clearly dragging a water ghost along to get dragged down to his death.
...
“Sing!”
“Celi!”
“Sing a song!”
The two who had just arrived in the hot spring region hadn't even had the chance to properly catch their breath.
A crisis sufficient to burn itself into their memories for a lifetime had already quietly descended upon them.
Rate on N.U.
