I’m really glad I got here in time…

Rishe sighed softly as she sheathed her black sword.

The edge of the dagger she had flicked from Raul’s hand had been coated with poison. At that point, she figured what terrible plan he had.

My ominous premonition was right. If Raul was serious in fleeing, there was no way even His Highness Arnold’s knight guards could have spotted him that quickly.

First off, Raul left unguarded flaws here and there this time.

If it was him that Rishe knew, he wasn’t one to tell her all the rest himself, even if one part of his plan was exposed. If he wanted to give the enemy a numbing potion, he would have skillfully rounded them up and given it to everyone present, even if they resisted.

If he simply wanted to kidnap and kill, he wouldn’t have chosen an abandoned church at a prominent location. Since he did, I guessed that he wanted to take advantage of the high ceilings of the church and chose … a battlefield that was favorable to the hunters.

When she and Arnold arrived at the church, they found that it was surrounded by Fabranian knights, standing guard.

But that was to be expected. After asking Arnold to take care of them, Rishe climbed up to the roof of the church and jumped inside from there.

It was the best choice in her opinion, but Arnolt in front of her looked inexplicably disgruntled.

“Did you have to go through the trouble of breaking the stained glass to get in?”

“I thought it would be better to make a loud noise and attract everyone’s attention.”

Ordinary windows also existed, and the hunters seemed to have taken Harriet out through them, but she didn’t think that would have stopped Raul. Nevertheless, it was distressing to think that she had broken something.

“I’ll have to write to Bishop Schneider and apologize for breaking the glass…”

“It was an abandoned church that was going to be torn down anyway. As long as you are not hurt, let the rest go.”

“That’s not going to work. It might cause some inconvenience to the demolition work.”

But that was not the most important thing right now.

Sitting shallowly on the back of the congregation seat and holding his forehead, Raul had an air about him that Rishe had never seen before in her life as a hunter.

Just as Rishe was about to call out to Raul, a pained voice came from the doorway where her back was turned.

“R-Raul!”

“Miss Harriet!”

Harriet must have been running without rest. She sprinted into the church, gasping continuously for breath.

“Y-You’re alive…”

Her voice was so faint, as if she was on the verge of tears.

But Harriet didn’t let that stop her. She squeezed her lips together and quickly pulled her gaze away from Raul, who was now looking up at her.

She almost fell to her knees and bowed her head so deeply that her forehead touched the floor.

“Your Highness Arnold, Miss Rishe! I’m so sorry!”

“Oh, Harriet-sama, it’s okay! Please raise your head…”

There was a scratch on Harriet’s white wrist that looked like it had been abraded.

She must have struggled to get out of the noose. The painful bleeding told of her desperation.

Harriet kept her head down and spoke desperately with labored breathing.

“I apologize to Garkhain for all the trouble I’ve caused you. I take full responsibility for what this man, Raul, has done!”

“Stop it, Harriet.”

Raul got up unsteadily and kneeled down beside Harriet.

“You have nothing to do with this. You know it makes no sense to bow down for such a thing.”

“No! No!　You were trying to help me, and there’s no way I could have been ‘uninvolved’. I…”

Harriet coughed, as if her breathing has reached its limit. Rishe couldn’t stand to watch and tried to run to Harriet.

But Arnold, who was standing next to her, grabbed her by the arm.

“Your Highness…”

Arnold stopped Rishe and stepped forward instead.

Harriet’s shoulders jumped at the sound of his shoes. Raul raised an eyebrow, then looked up at Arnold with a wry smile.

“Your Highness, I’m sorry, but Harriet has nothing to do with this plan.”Arnold remained silent and looked at Raul. Rishe couldn’t see his face, but he probably had a cold expression on his face.

“Huh? I’ll tell you everything I’ve tried to do. After that, you can do whatever you want with me. Kill me all at once, beat me, or turn me into a slave you can play for entertainment, be my guest.”

“Raul! N-No, please don’t!”

Interrupting Harriet, Arnold asked Raul, “What are you going to do at the end of it?”

“That’s a mean thing to ask me.”

Raul frowned as he let out a self-mocking laugh.

“I’ve been disrespectful to the Great Nation of Garkhain. I have no choice but to pay for it with my life, don’t I?”

It was a frivolous attitude that did not resemble a bit of a serious apology. But the reason Raul was behaving in this manner was solely due to his intentions.

I’m sure Raul is being deliberately irreverent so that His Highness Arnold’s anger will be directed from Harriet to him…

Arnold spoke offhandedly.

“Words like ‘take responsibility’ are only meaningful if they are uttered by people who can take responsibility.”

Harriet cowered.

“The same goes for your silly offer to give up your life. Your life is of no value to me.”

Raul laughed and nodded in agreement.

“Then I wish you’d just let me die. Because of your unexpected intrusion, our whole plan went down the drain.”

“Raul, were you trying to rescue Harriet-sama from Fabrania by committing suicide?”

Rishe could imagine what Raul was thinking after putting together the situations she’d witnessed so far.

Rishe was positive. In her hunter life, Raul once said clearly.

“I am, in spite of my appearance, very loyal to the Sigwell royal family.”

That was in the future when he failed to save Harriet.

As a former colleague, Rishe knew that he sounded joking, but he meant every word of it.

Raul replied with a smile, “Because I don’t have a choice, do I? Simply filling Fabrania in on the forgeries would only result in Harriet being sacrificed. If I want to protect both Sigwell Country and Harriet, some measures must be taken.”

Raul was right.

If Garkhain made the accusation, incriminating Fabriana wouldn’t be enough. Fabrania would resist suspicions, and some countries might side with them. Some other countries might even take advantage of the confusion and start a war.

It would not be surprising if another war broke out without waiting for Arnold’s war.

Rishe couldn’t imagine what Arnold’s father, the current emperor of Garkhain, would do if he were to catch wind about this. Arnold must have taken this into consideration, too.

That’s why Raul wanted to use the poisoned dagger…Raul’s death would tilt public opinion in favor of Sigwell and against Fabrania.

Maybe he even forged evidence to accelerate the process. Even Rishe could guess the methods that Raul might have chosen under the circumstances.

At least, if Sigwell has Garkhain’s backing…

Just then, Arnold spoke.

“I’m not going to overlook the Fabrania forgery, of course.”

“Your Highness…”

Rishe stood next to him, looked up at his profile and said.

“Please, could you give me some time? I would like to see if there is a novel idea for an alliance between Sigwell and Garkhain, as there was with Koyor.”

Arnold told her that she had another way to help Harriet, not as a knight, but as the Crown Princess.

So long as they escaped the current emperor’s suspicions and found grounds to form an alliance with Sigwell, that matter would put Sigwell under Garkhain’s protection. Even if Sigwell was framed for counterfeiting, the prestige of Garkhain in the alliance would prevent Fabrania from unilaterally attacking them.

Rishe must find a way, no matter what it takes. However, Arnold paid no attention to Rishe.

“Your Highness…”

“No need for that.”

His tone carried a cold ring to it, which made Rishe gasp reflexively.

But the next moment, Arnold continued like this.

“Our country plans to rework our currency in the future.”Rishe blinked at his unheralded revelation.

“But I also believed that the current monetary system would eventually reach its limits. ―― Materials such as gold and silver are finite and will eventually run out.”

“…”

Raul and Harriet also seemed to be unable to grasp Arnold’s intentions. As if aware of this, Arnold spoke bluntly.

“The more complicated the construction to prevent counterfeit gold, the more expensive it is to manufacture. Casting requires a lot of skill and is not suitable for mass production. To solve this problem, we need to choose a completely different path from the very start.”

“Your Highness, what other path?”

“It should cost less than gold or silver coins and be made of materials that are invulnerable to depletion. It must be mass-producible, yet difficult to counterfeit.”

Arnold looked down at Harriet and Raul and expressed himself without hesitation.

“The best path for us now is to use paper money.”

“…?”

Harriet looked at Arnold blankly.

Even Raul was looking up at Arnold with a look of disbelief. But Rishe internally struggled to formulate the meaning of what Arnold had just said.

“It’s an unrealistic plan by any stretch of the imagination.”

“It’s almost a pipe dream, and I’d say it’s ridiculous. So, that other idea is just a foolish one that we’ve already cut off without even considering it.”

In response, Rishe said, “Isn’t that a dream that can come true if you really want it?” when Arnold denied it.

“How can anyone believe in the reality of something that has no form?” he added, as if trying to tell her something.

Maybe that statement wasn’t meant for Rishe, but to Arnold himself.

But something had changed Arnold’s mind.

“Paper money…”

Rishe muttered, and Arnold answered.

“Of course, there is no asset value in mere paper. That paper…bill can be redeemed for gold or silver in the amount written on the face value, or something to that effect.”

It was then she understood his explanation somehow.

“You mean I can use the paper money as a substitute for gold coins and use it for shopping? And, as before, if I ever need real gold or silver, can I exchange it at a money exchange counter?”

“Yes. It would be less bulky and more portable than carrying the same amount of gold coins. Even if the gold and silver in the country is depleted, the country’s economy will not be paralyzed if it is able to issue money stably.”

The value of gold coins could only be guaranteed if they were made of real gold.

However, Arnold’s plan fundamentally overturned that notion. It wasn’t about the actual value of the asset, but about using that ‘exchange bill for valuable gold and silver’ in everyday transactions.

Nowhere in the world has ever taken this approach…

Rishe’s heart began to beat faster and faster.

This man is trying to create this structure right now. No one has ever tried it before!

“The metal plates used to print the banknotes will be made using the skills of Koyol craftsmen.”

At Arnold’s words, Rishe’s eyes grew brighter and brighter.

“Rishe, one of the things that the alchemist Michel Evan invented was water-resistant ink and paper, right?”

“Y-Yes. I’ve heard that it doesn’t blur easily not only from water but also from friction.”

“If it’s a new material alchemist’s invention, it would be difficult for someone from that area to obtain and counterfeit it. We can also achieve our original goal of revamping the system to prevent counterfeit money.”

Rishe nodded excitedly, while Arnold continued.

“In order to promote the circulation of paper money, we can use the connections of the Aria Trading Company. If they’re able to collect that much information, they must have a strong network. But…”

Arnold cast his eyes down at that point.

“We have paper and ink, but even if we have to perfect an elaborate metal plate, without the technology to mass produce printed materials, it cannot be done.”

At this point, even Rishe caught exactly what he was implying. On the night of Harriet and Raul’s arrival, Rishe and Arnold had read a book.

It was a book gifted to her by Sigwell. It was delicately printed, down to the fine design of the cover.

“Sigwell has excellent printing technology, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah….!”

Harriet exclaimed in surprise.

“It is we who request the cooperation of Sigwell. Its printing technology will be indispensable for our country’s minting business in the future.”

Arnold then said quietly.

“We would like to form an alliance with Sigwell to that end.”

“…!!!”