Book 4: Chapter 18


    I didnt see a mountain of copper coins in the warehouse like I imagined Well I guess its impossible. Nobody would just casually make a mountain out of money like that. Inside were neatly ced money chests. Every single chest had seals on them. The money chests were very familiar because not everybody can create them. The empire determines the dimensions of the chests and distributes them, so regardless of locations and regions, theyre all the same.


    Your majesty, please feel free.


    If this massive collection of chests were filled with gold coins, then how would the church have financial issues? I was fine after I saw so many chests. Inside of them are definitely copper coins, otherwise, thered be no reason for there to be so many chests.


    Now, your majesty, please start Your majesty! Your majesty!


    Just as the archbishop was about topare the books I had already walked up to a chest and crouched down. I tore off the seal and then said: Open this chest.


    Butparing the books.


    There wont be a need for that. Open the chest.


    I turned my head around and looked at him. The archbishops expression showed a hint of suspicion and anxiety. I smiled taciturnly to myself. Could it be that he doesnt know what I want to do? Did he really think I came here to check the books? Did you people think that I wouldnt notice that there was a problem with the copper coins if you forged the records? But if I didnt purchase things, I wouldnt understand this either. I dont think finance as a subject is advanced as I know it in this era.


    The archbishop passed me the key. I nodded. Nier walked up to my side, looked at the chest and asked: Do you want to open it, your majesty?


    Yes.


    I inserted the key into the key hole and turned it. After I heard a click, I removed the lock with anticipation. Nier reached her hand out to open the chest before us.


    There was nothing shiny inside. Instead, it was littered with copper coins. The coins were in all sorts of conditions, some even covered with mud. The print of some coins had begun to fade due to the friction created when counting. There were even some copper coins with some green stuff on them. These coins were given to the church from the lower-ssbourers. They personally gave them to the church with their own hands. These were the coins they donated.


    I smiled. Its just as I thought. The church epted arge sum of copper coins without the approval of the royal family. No organisation is allowed to collect and stash distributed coins like this as it would impact the finance system. Even Castor had to resort to scheming, getting exchangers to spread rumours to incite people into exchanging their currency.


    Lets see you exin yourselves now.


    Id like to hear you exin this stash of copper coins.


    I locked up the chest and then sat on it. I looked at the archbishop while wearing the smile of a victor. They have no way of ying this off now. Since this ce is filled with copper coins, can you tell me that these dozens of chests of copper coins came from donations? Youre telling me that they donated a warehouse worth of coins? You call this donation? Not even robbers make this much.


    The archbishop froze up. He wore a strange smile and looked like he was going to burst out inughter. I waited. Itse to this already. Ive found this stash of copper coins. How is he still able tough? Do they have a means ofundering this stash or something?


    They cantunder it with just a few numbers on paper. They have to exin its origins and how it will be spent. We arent talking about a few hundred dor bills that could beundered under the name of questionablepanies. What, theyre going to do business with copper coins? Doing big business with copper coins is honestly pointless. How many people would you need to move the money out of this warehouse?


    Your majesty, this stash of copper coins is the donations we received over a month. There are a total of one thousand coins. Please verify it.


    He slowly flipped through the records in his hand and ced it in front of me. After a pause, I smiled and said: Yes, I know that this must be the donations you received. But dont tell me this


    Your majesty, I am referring to this one chest of copper coins. I am not talking about the other chests.


    Other chests?!


    I was greatly astonished. He revealed a what-did-you-expect look. I clenched my teeth. It looks like I was overconfident. What I was after was this warehouse being filled with copper coins, not just there being copper coins here. However, all the chests here were chests for copper coins. The chests for silver and gold coins are different sizes because each chest is designed to fit the coins specific dimensions. If you ce the coins properly, a copper coin chest can fit one thousand copper coins and a gold coin chest can fit five hundred gold coins. This is done so that when you check them, you just need to see if the coins line up and youll be able to determine if the number of coins present is correct or not. Theyre designed that way for convenience in business.


    In other words, the chests before me right now are all the same. They can all store a thousand copper coins each. Theyre copper coin chests. Could the church have used copper coin chests to store gold coins? If they did, then what of the copper coins then? Did they just mysteriously vanish? They didnt obtain them from a business deal. The church couldnt possibly have ced it in the bank.


    It would be much simpler to investigate it if it was ced in the bank. The safest ce to hide money with shady origins like this is your own home. So, the other chests


    I looked at Nier who opened a second chest with a stunned look. It was empty.


    The third chest was empty.


    The fourth chest was empty.


    The fifth, sixth and seventh chest was empty.


    Bring me one with something in it!!


    I looked at the people moving the chests and shouted. I anxiously looked at the chest in front of me. Yes. Yes, I could see a collection of chests, but I wasnt sure if they had anything inside. If the chests here didnt have coins, then they can write it off as a months worth of donations, and Ill be empty handed!


    So where are the copper coins?! I want to know the whereabouts of the copper coins! Where are the missing copper coins that have impacted the entire coin system? If theyre not at the church, are you telling me theyre at the pce?! So who on Earth repossessed the huge sum of copper coins then?! Nobody else besides the church and the royal court could repossess the copper coins! I dont believe there to be anyone like that! I dont believe that mom would repossess the copper coins because its meaningless!!


    The archbishop revealed a scheming smilebined with extreme satisfaction. He wore a look like a zookeeper who caught a monkey in his zoo and wasughing at me mockingly. I wanted to find his weakness and exploit it, yet I got yed by them. Did they know what my intent was right from the get-go? So everything was within the archbishops control and I got yed?!


    A strong sense of defeat and mortification brushed my heart. I clenched my teeth tightly. Layers of sweat formed on my forehead. The archbishop looked at a heavy chest ced in front of me with satisfaction. This chest wasnt empty. If there are copper coins in here, I can still turn it around. If inside it is


    My body shook. I crouched down and opened the lock. The sound of the lock unlocking was like a rope slowly tightening itself around my neck. I stared at the chest intently as though there was a bomb inside. I dont think I was this nervous when I conducted experiments with explosives with fellow ssmates.


    *Kachik*


    The lock unlocked. Nier reached her hand out and pushed the chest open.


    Inside were shiny gold coins.


    This. This.


    Everything in front of me turned dark. My legs went weak and I dropped onto the ground, nkly looking at the gold coins before me utterly stunned.


    Your majesty, I know what you want.


    The archbishop finally revealed a happyugh as if he was performing a fantasticedy skit for me. I got yed like a clown and yet I proudly thought I had everything under control. The archbishop walked up to my side, bent over and by my ear said withughter: If you are looking for arge stash of copper coins, I trust that it would be more appropriate to ask the people in the pce.