The Mythical Path of a Princess from a Destroyed Kingdom

Someone embezzled.

Maginus had considered that such a thing might happen, but just like when the army conquered Riverman, she didn't expect that the officials and nobles would develop bad habits so quickly.

"what……"

She covered her head and sighed. She wasn't angry, just a little helpless, because she hadn't even conquered the entire Nesery yet.

As expected, we didn't kill enough. If we strengthen the high-pressure policy, they might be able to restrain their greed for a while longer.

Has the matter been definitively confirmed?

"Not yet. Those children heard it from their parents and then passed it on to their little leaders. I've already sent people to collect evidence."

Mira responded smoothly. Since taking over from the old housekeeper, her tasks have become much more demanding, but she still handles things in an orderly manner, saving Maginus a lot of trouble.

"Well, I understand that people are never satisfied. Once they have something, they'll try to want more."

Maginot picked up her teacup, looked at her veiled reflection in the water, and complained:

"But why don't they realize that some things shouldn't be taken and some rules shouldn't be broken? Do they really think the country can't function without them?"

Mira came up behind Maginos and began massaging her shoulders, while asking about the plan to proceed after the evidence was found:

"Your Majesty, what should I do after we find the evidence?"

"Well, you're still too young. Let your older sister come back and give it to you. Otherwise, Mia will definitely complain about me."

With his finger touching Mira's forehead, Maginus closed his eyes and stopped speaking, enjoying the girl's massage.

Chapter 520 Good Luck

“Sister, the children have found out. Those who are being cared for by their elders have confirmed with them that their salaries have indeed been reduced. I have also spoken with Treasurer Gordon, and at least with him, the pay has not been reduced.”

River City was captured, and Mia, who had been lying in wait, returned to Windward Territory. Without much rest, she was captured by Maginus and forced to do another mission.

However, since it was to help her younger sister, Mia readily accepted the task and is now investigating and compiling intelligence on the 7 ...

Who are the suspects?

Mia was in pain from seeing so much text while helping to organize the materials, and could only do some auxiliary work while pressing her temples.

She doesn't particularly enjoy reading, or rather, she doesn't like books. Compared to learning from books, she prefers to grow through practical experience and absorb knowledge from Maginus.

"We don't have a specific target yet. I'll need you to make a few more trips, but let's focus on these few people for now."

Mira selected the most suspicious individuals. After obtaining their addresses, Mia prepared to take action without hesitation, asking for a solution before leaving:

"What should we do if we get evidence?"

"Hmm... Lock him up first, take good care of the evidence, and remember to send a signal so I can call someone over."

"This is troublesome. If you ask me, it would be better to just kill them."

A ruthless glint flashed in Mia's eyes. Mira, still a child, shook her head helplessly and hugged her older sister.

"Don't do that. The country needs stability. Even if it's tyranny, His Majesty needs evidence to deal with these people, since it's just corruption."

The energy of shadow influences their personalities. Mia leans towards chaos, while Mira, who is more compatible with the element of shadow, doesn't have much of a problem and will become more profound as she gets older.

Maginot wanted rules in her country, and if it was "just corruption," she wouldn't mind presenting evidence to silence the nobles and officials, conducting a trial, and establishing her authority.

As for the crime of assassinating or plotting against Maginot and her loved ones, Maginot wouldn't bother with a "trial" process; she would simply kill them after confirming everything was in order.

"My little Mila!"

Mia picked up her younger sister and took a deep breath, then turned to say goodbye: "I was just joking. I'm not some kind of indiscriminate killer. Wait for my good news."

Mia visited each house one by one without finding anything suspicious. However, when she arrived at the fifth manor of a nobleman who was suspected of being a suspect, she heard conversations coming from inside.

"How much wheat did you harvest today?"

"Not much, just one bag. After all, the wheat isn't ripe yet, and harvesting too much would easily attract the attention of crows."

The two men spoke riddles that left Mia completely bewildered. But more suspicious than the riddles themselves were their identities.

First, the tone of their conversation indicated that they were on equal footing and there was no master-servant relationship between them.

If that's the case, what are these two nobles talking about so late at night instead of sleeping? There's something very wrong with them.

With the eye and awareness of a professional spy, Mia noted down the words, voices, and tones of the two men.

About half an hour later, they stopped talking and began discussing other things:

“Your Excellency, why don’t you stay a little longer? My dear maid, Jasmine, says she misses you very much.”

"Oh, really? Then I'll gladly accept your offer, hahaha..."

The two laughed loudly, their blush-inducing voices coming from inside the house. Mia waited, and after about four or five minutes, the sounds disappeared.

Around two o'clock in the morning, the baron finally came out of the room and got into the carriage. Mia memorized his appearance and hurried towards the castle.

It was already two in the morning. Nobles and officials weren't assassins; people who lived in luxury rarely discussed plans at this time.

"Hmm, a very suspicious family. Sister, your drawing skills are terrible. Go find His Majesty and share your memories with me."

Mira, along with Mia, rushed to Maginos's bedroom and knocked on the door. She only opened it after hearing the Queen say "Come in."

In fact, after Maginus took over the Safe Territory, she always changed her clothes herself. Mira, Mia, and the other children never saw her sleeping or getting up.

Even when you see Maginot in the bedroom, she is usually dressed neatly.

Today, the two witnessed a breathtaking view that will forever remain etched in their hearts. Even if they see similar scenery for hundreds of years to come, they will never forget this first glimpse.

Maginos was not wearing pajamas or a shirt.

She was still in a dream when she raised her left hand to press her blurry eyes, and placed her right hand in front of her chest as a shield, her long, loose hair covering her enviable body.

The thin blanket barely covered anything, leaving most of her skin exposed to the air. Judging from the fabric, Maginus was not wearing an undershirt either.

Moonlight streamed in through the window, and Maginot's dreamy yet tender gaze was so captivating, as was her body, which was like a painting.

Seeing the two women freeze in shock, Maginus raised an eyebrow and curled the corners of her lips, realizing what they were thinking. She raised her hand and gently tapped, her life force transforming into a light veil that covered her body.

"Waa...Mia Mira..."

The sudden sound broke the daze. Neko, who was huddled next to Maginos, tilted her head and waved to the two girls, then closed her eyes and lay down again, with only her tail wagging outside.

"Alright, stop looking. What do you need me for?"

He tapped their foreheads, and Mira, blushing, snapped back to reality and said:

"Your Majesty, I wish to see my sister's memories, she..."

Explaining the investigation process, Maginos extended her left and right hands to transfer memories to the two sisters. After the transfer was complete, she pressed down on the tops of their heads and ruffled their hair.

"It's getting late, you should get some rest."

"His Majesty"

"Well, we'll take our leave now."

Mia pulled her sister, who still wanted to say something, away as if fleeing. Maginus smiled, lay back on the bed, and continued to adjust the divine spark.

Mia pulled her younger sister back to the room, patted her cheeks, and realized that it wasn't too hot, probably thanks to the shadow element.

"Alright, hurry up and finish processing today's intelligence."

"it is good."

With a drawn-out tone, Mira, who wasn't in high spirits, recalled the scene that had just appeared in her mind. Upon seeing the baron's face, her expression immediately turned serious.

"Is there a situation?"

When business got down to business, the previously ambiguous atmosphere vanished, and Mira, after confirming several times, revealed an excited smile:

"Well, sister, you're lucky. You found it in just one night. The baron who walked out is called... well, I guess you don't care. Anyway, those two are definitely colluding and are the two most likely to embezzle."

Chapter 521 The Last Way Home

Finding the possibility that they colluded to embezzle would make things much easier; the worst thing is having no target at all.

Mia kept an eye on the two nobles' movements for the next few days and discovered that they wanted more than just some money for themselves.

Fearing that their actions would be discovered, the two nobles were actually trying to bring others into the fray.

Currently, many people are interested, and some officials have joined the team under duress.

How can we possibly build anything while surrounded by these insects!

"That's the situation, Your Majesty. Should we wait for things to escalate and arrest more people, or should we arrest the two main culprits now?"

"Talent is scarce... Arrest those two first. As for the others, tell the presiding judge to treat them leniently, since they were all bewitched by magic to do such things."

If there were no shortage of talent, Maginus would naturally choose to let things drift and then wipe them all out. The problem is that she can't do that now; the fragile system she's maintaining still needs these insects to support it.

Losing one or two is fine, but losing a whole group is unacceptable.

Saying that the others were simply bewitched by magic is a way of giving the many involved parties a way out.

"I see."

"A portion of the recovered assets will be used to compensate the people whose rewards were embezzled, and the rest will be put into the treasury."

In the past two years, Maginot's tax exemptions in various places and her practice of not accumulating wealth after conquering certain areas have indeed garnered her many followers and increased their loyalty to her.

However, the only drawback gradually became apparent: without a stable source of "side income," Maginus's own savings were running out.

"Almost empty," but it could actually last for another three years. Maginus is now taking the money from the confiscated nobles into his own hands, which can be considered as preparing for a rainy day.

"I need to find a way to make some money. Should I go to the Earth Elemental Plane to buy goods? Or go to the Astral Plane to get a precious metal meteorite? Or directly exchange faith power for gold and silver?"

Maginus pondered; Mira had already left and had a "friendly exchange" with Gordon, the current city guard officer and treasurer of Shelterlands.

While the two main culprits were still handling official business, guards suddenly appeared and took them into custody before they even realized what was happening.

Once they were subdued, the two realized something was wrong, their faces turned deathly pale, and they shouted, "I want to see Her Majesty the Queen!" but were thrown directly into the dungeon.

The main culprit was imprisoned, and the other nobles involved in the matter were filled with fear, feeling that they would not be spared by Maginus.

However, a monk soon arrived and examined them. He then shook his head and patted his thigh, feigning great distress.

“Sir, you are clearly under the influence of magic.”

"what?"

Some nobles didn't even realize what it meant at first, so the mage had to remind them again:

"Her Majesty the Queen asked me to examine you to make sure that you were not under the influence of magic when you did this. It seems that most of you have been affected by the magic of those two."

"Ah! By Your Majesty the Queen!"

Finally realizing they wouldn't be purged, the nobles, overjoyed and weeping, loudly praised Maginus's greatness and "insightful discernment."

"Your Majesty truly has eyes as sharp as an eagle's! It is indeed true that I was blinded by their evil magic, which is why I did things that were detrimental to the country!"

Apart from the two ringleaders, the rest were only fined. As for the two who attempted to embezzle, they were hanged without hesitation by the officials of the Shelter Territory and their bodies were displayed on the execution ground as a warning to others.

"Your Majesty, you don't seem very happy."

With her hand on Maginus's shoulder, Mira looked at Maginus's calm face and sensed that she wasn't very interested.

“You know what? Don’t be fooled by their current fear of me. Because I only dealt with the ringleader this time, they’ll soon realize that I can’t do without them.”

She swirled her wine glass, glancing at today's new newspaper, then took a sip of wine.

"Then they will develop a wrong perception and mindset, thinking that I can't live without them for the rest of my life, and then they will become bolder and bolder, forming cliques and engaging in corruption and bribery."

Having traveled to other planets and read books on the history of other worlds, Maginus knew that this was a flaw inherent in intelligent beings, and difficult to avoid.

What else could she do? At least for now, her Nesserai couldn't do without these people.

The good news is that now is the time. Once she has completely regained everything and established herself firmly, talent will no longer be a problem.

Anyone who dares to embezzle Maginus will be killed; after all, there will be plenty of people who want to enter government positions.

The problems within the city were resolved before their impact grew, and the most difficult city, Heman City, was completely conquered.

With her hometown and home just a step away, Maginos became even more cautious, gathering intelligence about the city through her succubi.

The capital has also undergone significant changes recently, the most noticeable of which is the persistent dark clouds in the sky.

At this moment, dark clouds completely shrouded the capital, just like those over Mirror City, and had not dissipated for nearly several months, with the sun only visible for a short period at noon each day.

This is very unusual. The Church of the Three Gods once staged a coup, but after inspecting the palace, they found nothing amiss. The streets of the capital were also calm, as if the dark clouds were just dark clouds.

However, according to information provided by Rolando, a small number of people have gone missing in the slums, five people disappearing in a single day. This has gone largely unnoticed, but they have indeed vanished.

Ebes may be planning to amass troops and fight him to the death, as he has nowhere left to retreat and the lower ranks of Maginus's army are far stronger than his.