At the Union headquarters, the entire third floor was exclusively the president's domain.
Kaleno was carefully reviewing the reports submitted by the various management departments, occasionally writing down notes.
Anser, meanwhile, silently examined the latest intelligence, which included the information about the Iron Crown compiled by Quentin.
Iris sat across from him, leisurely sipping tea. Her task today was to help Anser become familiar with the various affairs and get into his role as quickly as possible.
After a long while, Anser casually tossed the papers aside and sighed. "Too brief."
Durlag had no intelligence organization, and neither did he. Most of the so-called intelligence was merely hearsay. Even when it concerned a major event, it contained only superficial information.
"Establishing an intelligence department takes both time and effort. It's difficult to see results in the short term. It would be better to buy information first—many thieves' guilds provide this service." Kaleno set down the document in his hand and replied with a smile.
"We'll talk about it later. I'll go take a look at the Iron Crown's headquarters myself in a moment and I'll know." Anser stood up and stretched lazily. "Sitting for so long is exhausting. It reminds me of my days studying at Fabian Wizard Tower."
Unfortunately, that had been the original owner of the body. He preferred walking around and found it difficult to endure being buried in piles of documents.
Kaleno curled his lips and shook his head with a strange smile. "I find it hard to imagine that scene."
The Anser in his memory was not someone who could stay put. That was the shared assessment he and his sister had reached. Thinking of that, his sister's figure surfaced in his mind again. His heart trembled, and his expression dimmed.
Iris looked at Kaleno with interest. She had met this moon elf once before. His strength was decent, and she had not expected him to handle mundane affairs so methodically. It seemed he came from a good background.
Her curiosity about Anser's extradimensional space deepened. She wondered how many people were inside it, and what it looked like…
Anser patted Kaleno on the shoulder without saying anything more, then looked at Iris.
"How much money is left in the accounts?"
The financial authority of Durlag had always been in Iris's hands.
"A little over twenty thousand gold coins. Stoll hasn't taken any money this year. What, do you want to use some?" Iris asked with a smiling squint. "How much?"
"Let's start with ten thousand gold coins. Do I need any procedures?" Anser raised one finger, showing no embarrassment. This had been one of his purposes.
"You just need to sign." Iris seemed to see through what he was thinking. She turned slightly sideways, resting her elbow on the table and supporting her chin with her hand. "Do you want me to convert it into supplies for you?"
"That would be even better." Anser opened the Avaricious Dragonhide Pouch and took out a list. "Follow this."
Iris casually glanced over it and looked a little disappointed. "This only comes to about a thousand gold coins."
"Then double the quantity. Save the rest of the money for now." Anser's goal was to vigorously develop Holrewen. Everything depended on actual needs, not on spending money just because he had it.
"You're actually pretty good at managing a household." Iris let out a light, tinkling laugh.
"One step at a time. What's the rush?" Anser did not pay it much mind.
If he wanted to build an island city from nothing, the burden was heavy and the road was long. This level of investment was, of course, nowhere near enough, but proper planning was necessary, and he could not act recklessly.
These supplies were mainly meant for land-clearing and daily life, including all kinds of tools, fruit, vegetables, and grain seeds, draft oxen, furniture, and daily necessities.
Thud, thud, thud.
A burst of footsteps came from downstairs, followed by a creak as the somewhat warped wooden door was pushed open.
"President, something's happened." Before the door had even been pushed halfway open, Quentin's voice rang out first.
"What happened?" Anser's brows lifted slightly. Could it be that someone was dissatisfied and was secretly making things difficult for him?
"Someone is spreading news of the former president's death, and they're also saying…" Quentin looked up at Iris, but the latter half of the sentence did not come out for a long time.
"And saying what?" Anser asked strangely.
"They're also saying that the former president was injured while pursuing the green dragon, and that you and Councilor Iris assassinated him just to… seize Durlag by force." Quentin stared fixedly at Anser, afraid he would explode the next second.
"This routine feels a little familiar." Anser was somewhat displeased, but he did not flare up immediately. "Didn't they say the two of us were having an affair? Not thorough enough."
"About that…" Quentin hesitated for a moment, then gave a dry laugh. "They actually did."
"Who's having an affair with you!" Iris's willow brows shot up, her face full of frost.
Anser smiled helplessly. "That's not the point, all right? The key now is to find the person behind this and deal with them as quickly as possible. We can't let it keep fermenting."
When many mouths repeat the same thing, even a Paladin's golden body might not hold up, let alone when oathbreaking is a common occurrence. People say rumors stop with the wise, but how many wise people are there? Most people in this world are mediocre.
"Whoever benefits is the one who did it." Iris calmed down, her expression turning cold and unreadable.
She was genuinely angry. She hated this kind of underhanded scheming the most, and this time it was aimed at two people she cared deeply about.
"Hard to say. There are only a dozen or so people who know the truth. The most likely one is Councilor Graham, but what would be the point of doing this? Without Anser, it would still be impossible for him to be elected president."
"And it's far too obvious. Other people would guess it was him very easily," Kaleno analyzed.
"It's most likely the Amnians," Quentin speculated. "They want to stir up unrest, drive a wedge into the Union, and try to force President Anser out. If they succeed, the Amnians stand to benefit the most."
Whenever something happened, he immediately thought of blaming the Amnians, clearly showing how deep his grudge ran.
"There's another possibility." Anser thought of the Mind Flayer's ugly octopus face, and his heart suddenly skipped a beat. He grabbed the Rod of Security and strode out the door. "I'm going to take a look at the Iron Crown's headquarters. Gather a squad of guards and wait for my message."
"Just you?" Quentin felt somewhat exhausted. Why did the new president's style of doing things resemble Stoll's so much?
"What else? Should I arrest a councilor directly?" Anser waved his hand and disappeared down the stairwell.
They had no evidence. Arresting a councilor right after taking office would only make the other senior members feel insecure, and public opinion would become even harder to control.
The forces behind each councilor were important pillars of Durlag. Forcing a few of them out would be no different from cutting off one's own arm, and it would also make outsiders look down on them.
By the time Anser left the headquarters, he had already turned into a completely unremarkable ordinary person. Wearing a sun hat with frayed edges, his body slightly hunched, he shuffled slowly westward along the street.
The South District of Durlag was the most prosperous, but most of the people there were ordinary folk and newly arrived adventurers. The West District bordered the Wood of Sharp Teeth, and large numbers of adventurers entered and exited every day. Many guilds and merchant associations were located there.
Anser kept his head lowered as he walked, but in reality he had Detect Evil and Good active, and the conditions of all creatures within a dozen meters around him flowed into his mind.
As he neared the West District, the crowd grew denser.
He walked all the way to the city gate, yet his attention focused on a rather imposing wooden building nearby. A plaque hung high over the entrance, with the words Iron Crown written on it.
'Nothing unusual.'
He casually moved into the shadowy alley beside it, squatted on the ground, and closed his eyes as if resting.
"ગુપ્તઆંખો"
Arcane Eye!
Accompanied by a nearly inaudible Draconic word, an invisible eye—perceptible only to him—floated in the air. It then drifted gently out of the alley and slipped into the wooden building.
'I'm just scouting enemy positions,' he reassured himself, though it still felt a bit awkward.
The Arcane Eye was different from normal eyes. It could observe in every direction at once, as though a god's-eye view had been activated. Through the mental link, these scenes streamed into his mind; every detail appeared with perfect clarity.
Unfortunately, it could only see, not hear.
Although the Arcane Eye was invisible, Anser still tried to guide it along the corners as it drifted through the building, searching floor by floor and room by room.
Yet even after the eye had roamed through every room and courtyard, it still found nothing unusual—ordinary people, ordinary goods, and no secret gatherings.
'One more check. If that fails, I'll go inside the first floor with Detect Evil and Good active and take a look.'
He maneuvered the Arcane Eye through every gap it could find, especially through the walls and underground. Then, inexplicably, from the first-floor storeroom it slipped into a pitch-black enclosed space.
'A secret vault?'
But before he could examine it, a flash of light swept past. The Arcane Eye was broken and collapsed instantly.
In the final instant before the vision vanished, a hideous face covered in writhing tentacles entered Anser's mind.
'What the hell…'
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