Kays Translations

Chapter 301: Adoption Approved

　The morning after transporting Salaman, head of the Dragonfolk Village Adventurers’ Guild branch, to the Floor 110 rest room, Tauro prepared for the final adoption procedure.

　Ragune collected him through [Dimensional Corridor], and Tauro then used [Spatial Transfer] to reach Marquis Van Dyne’s residence in the Royal Capital.

　“Good morning, Tauro. Today’s interview is only the final confirmation. Once you and Count Graunewald sign the documents, the adoption will be complete.”

　Aeris welcomed him with a smile and immediately explained the day’s schedule.

　“Afterward, we’ll formally report that Viscount Saissi arranged my assassination, correct?”

　“Yes. At noon, Count Dareder of the Prime Minister’s faction will accompany us when we submit the accusation and documentary evidence. Once you become the son and heir of a prominent neutral-faction count, the authorities should act quickly. At last, you’ll no longer have to live under constant threat from assassins.”

　“Then I must report everything to Prince Fleue immediately afterward.”

　Tauro mentioned his royal friend.

　“That would be wise. Prince Fleue has gained influence within the royal family, and once you’re a noble, he may be able to support the case directly.”

　Aeris misunderstood Tauro’s concern.

　“That isn’t what worries me. I’m about to become a noble and have kept the entire matter from him. If I don’t explain in person immediately, he may be hurt—or furious. I’ve continued writing to him, but I said nothing about this.”

　Although Prince Fleue was Tauro’s friend, Tauro had deliberately kept the plan secret.

　If the prince learned that assassins were targeting Tauro and that adoption was being used to bring the mastermind to justice, his loyalty might lead him to mobilize the royal family on behalf of a commoner.

　That response would be far too large and politically dangerous.

　The steps had to occur in the proper order.

　First, Tauro would become Count Graunewald’s adopted son and heir. Next, he’d accuse Viscount Saissi using the recovered evidence. Only after that could Prince Fleue and the royal family safely lend their support.

　If the royal family openly intervened for an unaffiliated commoner, Marquis Halagoura—the head of Saissi’s faction—could portray the action as an attack on every noble aligned with him and respond with full political force.

　Once Tauro became a noble, however, the situation changed completely.

　Ordering the assassination of Count Graunewald’s heir was a grave crime. With documentary evidence proving Saissi’s responsibility, even Marquis Halagoura would find it difficult to defend the viscount publicly.

　Royal involvement after the formal accusation would then reinforce a lawful case rather than appear to create one.

　That was why Tauro hadn’t confided in Prince Fleue, however much he trusted him.

　The prince was intelligent enough to understand the reasoning, but he was also loyal enough to resent being excluded from danger faced by a friend. Tauro therefore intended to visit him and explain everything as soon as the accusation was submitted.

　Even asking Fleue to keep the matter secret had been too risky. The royal palace was filled with agents and informants from every faction, and no one could know where a leak might begin.

　The entire sequence therefore had to be completed before the end of the day:

　Adoption approved.

　Formal accusation against Viscount Saissi submitted.

　Full report delivered to Prince Fleue.

　Moving without delay would leave Saissi’s faction no time to prepare a countermeasure.

　The most important objective was preventing Marquis Halagoura—the opponent Tauro feared far more than Saissi—from intervening effectively.

　Viscount Saissi had risen to an important position within the Halagoura faction during the previous few years, largely because his wealth made him a valuable source of funding. Even so, he remained only one viscount among many.

　The plan was designed to force Marquis Halagoura to abandon him as a liability.

　If the accusation had come solely from the Prime Minister’s faction, Halagoura might have reacted aggressively and used every political weapon available. This case, however, centered on Count Graunewald, one of the neutral faction’s leading figures.

　Protecting Saissi would risk turning the entire neutral faction into Halagoura’s enemy. Cutting the viscount loose was therefore the far more likely choice.

　Aeris had created the foundation of this strategy.

　Marquis Van Dyne, Count Graunewald, and their allies had undoubtedly refined the details, but the solution began with Aeris’s determination to protect Tauro.

　Tauro felt nothing but gratitude toward her.

　He had always intended to solve the problem through his own strength and had never imagined becoming a noble as an option.

　His original plans had been far more dangerous and time-consuming: wait until surveillance weakened, use the dragonfolk’s intelligence to attack the Assassins’ Guild directly, or uncover leverage against Viscount Saissi and force him either to cancel the contract or relinquish his title.

　Dragging Saissi from the viscountcy could have taken years. Tauro had never expected the threat to be resolved so quickly.

　Aeris had grown remarkably during the time they spent apart.

　While Tauro considered everything she had accomplished, the government official arrived and the final adoption interview began.

　The official separately confirmed that Tauro and Count Graunewald still consented, then presented the final documents for their signatures.

　“The procedure is complete. Congratulations. Count Graunewald now has a worthy son and successor.”

　“Thank you for handling the process so smoothly,” Marquis Van Dyne said.

　As the official departed with the signed documents, the marquis discreetly presented the customary gratuity associated with such aristocratic formalities.

　The official accepted it with visible relief and returned to the government office.

　Marquis Van Dyne turned to his friend with a broad smile.

　“Congratulations, Count Graunewald. Once Count Dareder arrives, we proceed to the authorities and place Viscount Saissi’s crimes before them.”

　The marquis appeared almost as delighted by his friend gaining an heir as Count Graunewald himself.

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