Chapter 826

“Wait a minute!”

Inside the Meily Daily building, the only sound was the steady clatter of the printing press.

The staff, cigarettes dangling from their lips, stared at the hotel errand boy with bewildered eyes. One of them hesitated for a long moment before cautiously asking, “Have you been drinking?”

“No,” he replied firmly.

Though the question bordered on rude, no one seemed to mind. After all, the tip they’d just received was utterly shocking.

“So you’re saying Minister Ian Hielo abducted the youngest daughter of the Haiman family ten years ago and helped her escape? To chase after Rutherford?”

“That’s right.”

“And the source of this tip is Ian Hielo himself?”

“Exactly.”

“This is insane. Are you sure you’re not on something? Drugs, maybe?”

“I told you, no. If you want, I can take you to the hotel. You can ask him yourself.”

The errand boy’s firm denial drew a collective groan from the Meily Daily staff. The revelation was so overwhelming it felt almost unbearable.

They lit their cigarettes and gathered for an impromptu meeting, ignoring the errand boy who stood awkwardly by.

“If we publish this recklessly, it could backfire.”

“But the tip came from Ian Hielo himself. Doesn’t that make his intentions clear? If Meily Daily doesn’t run it, someone else will. Ian wants this spread throughout the Bariel region.”

“True. And he didn’t just send a letter—he sent a person. That means he doesn’t care if this leaks.”

“If we don’t publish it, someone else definitely will.”

“I agree. This isn’t just any story—it’s about treason. If we get this tip and don’t run it, people will think we’re siding with Ian Hielo.”

“But there’s no concrete evidence. Even if it’s from him, we can’t write an article based on hearsay.”

“We can’t exactly ask Ian Hielo to come here and verify it, can we? And we can’t go to him either. What a mess.”

An exclusive story is a race against time. Hesitate too long, and someone else will break it first.

And now that the source is the man himself, going to confirm the truth? With the Minister of Magic, Ian Hielo? Ridiculous.

“Uh, excuse me—”

The errand boy, who had been quietly listening, timidly raised his hand.

“I heard there might be evidence at the Ministry of Magic.”

“The Ministry? What kind of evidence?”

“He didn’t say.”

That gave them a way to report the story.

But—

“…”

The Meily Daily staff puffed on their cigarettes nervously, exchanging uneasy glances.

“Who’s going?”

“…”

Everyone knew the palace had been in turmoil lately—even the kids on the street. And now, of all places, the evidence was right in the middle of it.

What on earth was going on inside the palace?

“I don’t know the full story, but since the Minister of Magic himself reported it, the evidence must favor his side.”

“I have no clue what’s really happening. Why would the Haiman family get involved like this?”

“There aren’t any wizards at the Ministry right now.”

If the evidence favors the Ministry, it means it’s bad news for the palace. Would the palace even allow someone to investigate inside the Ministry? If you’re unlucky, you might get stuck there until the whole thing blows over. Or worse, it could quietly disappear without a trace.

“So, who’s going?”

“The boss should go.”

“What? Me?”

“The palace isn’t some back-alley warehouse. Only someone like you would get permission to enter.”

“Ah, you guys.”

Knock knock.

At that moment, someone knocked on the Meily Daily door. The startled staff flinched, and the errand boy nervously slipped behind a desk, though he hadn’t done anything wrong.

“Who is it?”

“Ian Hielo, Minister of Magic.”

The door swung open.

It was really him. With golden hair and emerald eyes, the staff who remembered him from ten years ago gaped in surprise.

Ian brushed past them and stepped inside, raising an eyebrow when he saw the printing press had stopped.

“Wh-what brings you here?”

“We were just talking about you,” someone muttered.

“My situation’s gotten complicated. I have a favor to ask.”

Knowing that the next Minister, Akorella, was still inside the palace, Ian needed someone to deliver a message to her. Meily Daily was discreet enough to move without drawing attention.

“A favor?”

“First, please verify if the tip is true—that I abducted the Haiman daughter.”

“Why would you do that? And why reveal it now?”

Shh. Ian raised a hand to quiet the staff. They instinctively grabbed pens and paper, determined not to miss a single word.

“It’s true.”

“Good heavens.”

“That’s not all. To gain the upper hand in palace power struggles, I even targeted the life of the Emperor’s favored paladin. I’ve done many ungrateful things, so the palace would be right to remove me from office.”

The Emperor’s favored paladin? You mean Eirin? If that’s true, Ian Hielo has really stirred up a storm.

“Also, at his deathbed, Rutherford called me Ian Verosion. Why he did that, we’ll never know. But the palace sees it as a deeply sacrilegious incident.”

The staff’s pens froze mid-air. The rumors that had dogged Ian Hielo since the battlefield were reignited. Maybe there really was something to this.

The Meily Daily boss raised a hand to pause the room.

“One more thing. Why come to us with this? I’d understand if you went through the palace. What’s your intention in dragging yourself into this mess? If we publish this and get caught up in palace politics—”

“Isn’t Meily Daily a newspaper?”

Ian cut him off softly.

“A newspaper that tells the truth. There’s no falsehood in what I’ve said, so there’s no problem with you reporting it. If you start weighing the consequences and calculating gains, is that what a true journalist does?”

He was reminding them of their duty. It was politicians’ job to navigate politics, not theirs.

“Well—”

“I want to step down, but His Majesty won’t let me. This is the only way. The next Minister is Akorella. She’s somewhere in the Ministry building. Find her and deliver this letter.”

Ian handed over a neatly folded sheet of paper.

The boss glanced at it, then tucked it away. Curious, but he wouldn’t dare read it in front of Ian.

“This isn’t something that will end with just your resignation, is it?”

“You never asked me to worry about that.”

“If we don’t publish, you’ll go to another paper, right?”

“You know me well. Just like ten years ago.”

The day Viviana came personally and threatened to take her story elsewhere if they didn’t print it.

The Meily Daily boss still remembered that day vividly. It was a turning point in his life. If he hadn’t accepted Viviana’s offer then, they wouldn’t be the empire’s top newspaper now.

And now, the opportunity had come again.

“You said there’s evidence at the Ministry?”

“There’s a report about Eastern wizards that mentions I was with Melania. I don’t know if the palace will hand over the evidence. If it’s hard to find, give the letter to Akorella and ask for her help.”

“Can I read it?”

“Of course. Feel free.”

Ian clapped his hands lightly, as if his business was done. The sharp sound snapped the staff to attention.

“Alright, everyone, get to work.”

His words carried a clear message: print the paper immediately. The evidence could be covered in follow-up articles. Information wars are a race against time—there’s no time to waste.

The boss nodded to his staff and grabbed his jacket.

“You’re going?”

“You told me to go.”

“Yes, but now that you actually are, it’s a bit…”

“Thanks for the empty praise.”

“Y-yes. Please ask all the right questions.”

The boss clicked his tongue and smiled. Then, as Ian was about to leave, he called him back and extended his hand.

“When else will I meet a great wizard of the empire?”

No one could guess what would become of Ian after the article ran. His past achievements might save him from execution, but dismissal was certain. If things went badly, he might never appear publicly again.

Ian shook the offered hand gently.

“I’m grateful, Minister. Whatever the truth, I support you.”

“That’s a dangerous thing to say.”

“So what? It’s the truth.”

Protector of the empire, genius wizard, bastard of the frontier, and now Minister—no words could fully capture Ian Hielo’s fate.

The boss shook Ian’s hand sincerely, and Ian smiled softly in return.

“May Meleydaily’s reputation endure. May it transcend the empire and define the era.”

“I will do my best.”

The child, who had just handed him the very blade that could tear him apart, walked away as if it were nothing. The sight was utterly surreal. The director watched Ian’s retreating figure until he disappeared, then finally climbed into the carriage.

“To the palace.”

He unfolded the letter Ian had instructed him to deliver to the next minister.

As he silently read the neat handwriting, his breath caught in sudden shock.

---

“C-Captain Akorella?”

“Why are you here, Captain?”

The officials gripped their pounding hearts and looked up at Akorella. Was this really happening? Who was telling whom to freeze in their tracks?

Akorella crossed her arms and lifted her chin, clearly intolerant of nonsense.

“Explain what you just said.”

“W-What did we say?”

“The matter of Ian’s dismissal—!”

Damn it, these fools! Akorella raised her fist as if to strike, and the officials instinctively shrank back, stammering their answers.

“W-we’ve only heard rumors. We don’t really know!”

“There’s been so much talk at the assembly!”

Through their words, Akorella pieced together what had transpired.

When Minister Rayburn’s faction submitted a petition, Ian rallied the nobles under the pretext of the Empress’s recommendation. In response, the Emperor imposed mandatory magic-sealing stones, and Ian brazenly wielded control over the Empress’s movements and Eirin’s safety.

And now, the entire Ministry of Magic was facing dismissal.

“The whole ministry?”

Akorella muttered in disbelief, then quickly realized this was Jin’s way of cornering Ian.

It was a lousy tactic, but she didn’t want Ian to step down either. Still, the Emperor had gone too far.

“Damn it, do you know how hard we fought to get here?”

An invisible storm seemed to swirl around her.

The real question was how to act now—how to support Ian while protecting the Ministry. From the looks of it, it was going to come down to choosing one or the other…

Swish.

While Akorella pondered, the officials quietly tried to back away and escape. Even just reaching the lower floor meant the palace guards would be there. If word got out that the captain was here—

Whizz!

A syringe flew past their earlobes and embedded itself in the wall. The officials froze like statues.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“C-Captain?”

“Please, have mercy…”

Akorella flicked the syringe on her finger, signaling them to stop their foolishness and come over.

“You’re not going anywhere now.”

Because I’m here.

“Come this way.”

It was best to hold them until she could get a clearer picture of the situation.

And while she was at it…

“By the way, have you been experiencing any memory lapses lately? Like something’s been erased, or you’ve forgotten something important?”

“Uh, no? We’re still young.”

“Who said you’re old?!”

“Eek!”

Akorella grabbed one by the collar and shook him, growling. The rumors were true—there were madmen in the Ministry of Magic.

With a dismissive snort, she dragged them along by their collars.

“Let’s have some tea and talk this through in detail. The palace’s state of affairs is a mess, and half-hearted efforts won’t get us the information we need.”

“Tea…?”

The officials noticed the strange liquid on the desk and trailed off. It shimmered with iridescent colors, but it didn’t look like anything edible.

Akorella smiled slyly, poured the liquid into mugs with a splash, and set them down on the table with a thud.

“Here. Drink up.”