43. There’s No Retirement Age at Castle Inkheart! (1)

“It’s a shame. Mr. Nicola was good at spotting these things.”

“Not at all. I’m already grateful for Sir Daniel’s help. But… Mr. Nicola? Who is that?”

“Ah, yes. He was Castle Inkheart’s former tax officer. When we returned from inspecting the territory with Lord Darius, who was still the heir then, he was no longer at the castle.”

Daniel added.

“That was around the time Lady Ygret took over the castle’s household affairs. According to Lady Ygret, he retired due to his age.”

Daniel said, as if belatedly regretting it.

“Now that I think about it, I suspect Mr. Nicola might have been driven out because he opposed Lady Ygret with his accounting knowledge.”

I opened my mouth wide and dropped the quill I was holding.

“Lady Anette?”

“Where is he? Where is he now?”

Eureka. There was someone who could work for me instead!

* * *

Nicola Graus was a gentleman with a neat mustache. Having served as a tax officer for one territory for 30 years, he was now enjoying a comfortable retirement that anyone would envy.

“Mr. Nicola Graus?”

At least he was until the Grand Duchess from Castle Inkheart tracked him down.

“Wow, you look healthy.”

Why? Nicola felt a chill run down his spine for the first time in a long while.

“Please become my Hwang Hui Jeongseung.”

I’ll work you as hard as King Sejong did.

Nicola didn’t know exactly what that meant, but he instinctively felt he shouldn’t accept this offer.

“Haha, this old man has been retired and living a leisurely life for a long time.”

Look at my house. I have a comfortable rocking chair and a hunting dog. I’ve achieved everything I wanted. Why would I go back to work? Especially at this age?

“I’ve seen the documents you processed when you were working. They were all clearly documented, and the accounting was transparent.”

Anette had almost cried when she saw those documents. Found him, my human calculator! My human Excel!

They were completely different in quality from the accounting documents that Lady Ygret had haphazardly covered up.

So she decided. I must bring this person back. I will definitely bring him back. And then I’ll make him do all my work.

“Oh my, that was years ago. I’m embarrassed.”

“You left the castle after fighting with Lady Ygret, didn’t you? It wasn’t a voluntary retirement.”

Nicola’s face, which had been pretending to be pleasant, hardened.

The previous Grand Duke fell ill, and Darius went on a tour to calm the unstable territory.

Taking advantage of the Grand Duke’s illness and the heir’s weak position, Lady Ygret, who took over the household affairs, lined her own pockets.

〈This is absurd! The Grand Duke clearly ordered to lower the tax rate in consideration of the poor harvest, but instead you issued a proclamation to raise it!〉

〈Mr. Nicola, during poor harvests, not only the people but also those in the castle suffer. We need to collect taxes to give them even a piece of bread more.〉

〈Do you think I haven’t checked the warehouse where I collect and store taxes? The taxes that were supposed to be lowered were raised, but what was collected is less than that. What is going on here!〉

‘……’

After briefly recalling the situation at that time, Nicola emerged from his reminiscence and spoke calmly.

“In my decades as a tax officer, I’ve seen all sorts of methods people use to avoid paying taxes. Lady Ygret used every single one of those methods I had seen.”

Nevertheless, Lady Ygret couldn’t escape Nicola’s eyes. Nicola was the most meticulous tax officer in the Inkheart territory.

“Only after Lady Ygret, who blinded everyone’s eyes, died did we realize what talent the Grand Duke’s family had lost.”

Anette consoled him.

“The situation wasn’t good. If the previous Grand Duke had been healthy then, or if my husband had remained at Castle Inkheart, they wouldn’t have allowed a capable talent like you to be driven out.”

Nicola sighed with regret at the belated but righteous judgment. Live long enough, and eventually it’s proven that I was right.

“I appreciate your words, but it’s too late now.”

He had served Inkheart for decades, but Inkheart hadn’t recognized his loyalty.

No matter how unavoidable the circumstances were, what hurt was still painful.

“Mr. Nicola.”

Anette sincerely took Nicola’s wrinkled hand, who could be her grandfather’s age.

“They say a servant dies for the master who recognizes him. Conversely, a lord who fails to recognize a capable servant has no right to complain when that servant leaves.”

Moisture slightly appeared in Nicola’s wrinkled eyes.

“But isn’t it a shame that your decades of effort end in dishonor? I promise you. This time will be different. This time, I will be your backing. It’s never too late at any age to fulfill your ambitions.”

“I appreciate your words, but……”

If only I had met you a little earlier.

The youth that promised everything was dazzling.

If not for these creaking limbs, if not for a lifespan that couldn’t guarantee tomorrow morning, Nicola might have reluctantly followed Anette back to the castle.

“My lady, I am old and tired. I am just happy that you told me I am useful in the last moments of my life.”

Nicola slowly tried to withdraw his hand from Anette’s. Or rather, he tried to.

“My lady…?”

“So it won’t work? I thought it wouldn’t be easy to convince you. Well, the workload of a tax officer should be somewhat murderous.”

Anette stuck to him like a leech and wouldn’t let go of his hand.

“I should pass the future to young people and wrap up my life now.”

“Mmm, no, no. Life begins at 100. You’re still young, Mr. Nicola. You’re at the prime age to contribute to your retirement pension.”

“Wh-what are you saying……”

As for retirement pension, Nicola was already receiving it, and he even had grandchildren. He was at the age to sit his grandchildren on his knee and watch them play.

So please let go of my hand.

“No matter how persuasively I speak, you won’t withdraw your retirement decision, will you?”

Anette sighed.

“Mr. Nicola Graus, I understand. This expensive house with cultured neighbors. You’ve chosen a good location for your home. It’s close to a doctor and there’s a park nearby. The location is excellent.”

‘If you understand, then let me go. Don’t interfere with my comfortable retirement.’

“But how did you make money after retiring?”

“Huh-urgh.”

“You seem to be wealthier now in retirement than when you were working.”

“That’s…… I studied more than others…… investments…… everything I touched turned out well…… so……”

“Wow, you have the Midas touch. Have you thought about using that talent to further develop our territory?”

“No! That civil servant salary was so meager!”

“I admit it was meager, but still, investing with the development information you learned while serving as a civil servant is quite something.”

Nicola Graus, who was forced to retire by Lady Ygret, was no longer a civil servant, so he freely bought land and made money with the development information he knew.

“It-it might be a bit morally questionable, but it’s not illegal! I bought everything after I retired anyway!”

I did profit a bit from speculation, but this house is my actual residence, and I didn’t make that much…

Well. In fact, Nicola had thought that such a day might come someday.

From the moment he confronted Lady Ygret, he prepared himself for the possibility that she might not be satisfied with just driving him out but might come to completely crush him.

That’s why his preparations were thorough.

“Legally, there’s nothing wrong with my actions!”

“Oh, that’s right. There’s no problem now.”

Anette raised her index finger to point at herself.

“But who am I?”

“You’re the Grand Duchess.”

“Can I make a law stating that retired civil servants cannot buy land using information they learned during their service, or not?”

“Even if such a law is made, my land purchases are already in the past!”

“Can I make an absurd law that applies current laws to past events in an absurd way, or not?”

“What is this!”

“It’s called power. Come on, you know this.”

The power I wield is supreme. It feels thrilling, so good. If someone treated me like this, I would file a lawsuit with a law book in hand, but now I’m the lord’s wife, so what can you do?

“I’ll sue.”

“In a world where even banks can’t collect royal debts? When His Majesty the King decides to have a debt party, even banks have to write it off.”

In comparison, she was recognizing his career and offering to pay him a salary. She was more merciful than the king.

“After Lady Ygret died, she left behind a bunch of documents full of holes, and there’s no one in the family who can solve this. You say you’re old, but in my opinion, you’re the only one who can solve this.”

“The current tax officers at the castle are all people I trained……”

“Those young tax officers all say that Nicola Graus is the best at accounting.”

“Th-that kind of talk won’t convince me!”

“Then let’s adjust the salary?”

“What?”

“Three times your original wage. But since even that is still a meager civil servant salary, I’ll add another condition. Improve the tax revenue situation that Lady Ygret messed up, and take a percentage of the results as a bonus.”

“You think you can buy me with mere money…!”

“I won’t say anything even if you take more than twenty times your original salary. As long as you have the ability to improve that much.”

Twenty times?

“I-I…..”

To think you can buy me with mere money.

“……Then when will I be able to retire?”

The amount was too large to say that mere money couldn’t sway him.

Even twenty rat tails together can become a tiger’s tail.

“Age of retirement, let’s discuss that as we go along.”

Huh? Since when is retirement age something to discuss? Nicola Graus, blinded by money, missed an important fact.

Thanks to someone’s wrong choice driven by greed, the Inkheart territory became a slightly better place to live today. Anette felt satisfied.