Chapter 575

575 Accounts And Balances

Tidas had awaken early the following morning, despite their planning into the late hours of the night. He’d been used to running on little to no sleep for years, but having his own Shaman trait made it a hundred times easier to pull off. Skye always chided him for doing it too often, but they’d been getting a decent amount of sleep lately, so he didn’t think she’d say anything after waking up.

It didn’t surprise Tidas to see Peggy already awake as well, but she’d been thoroughly surprised by the shadowy figure standing outside of their bed chamber. Only after she’d yelped did she realize that it was Tidas, then scolded him for ‘trying to give her a heart attack’.

“Are ya bloody crazy?! At my age, yer lucky that I didna drop dead on the spot!”

Tidas sighed heavily; “It’s not like I meant it. I literally was just rubbing my face when you came out of that closet. How was I to know that you were in there?”

Peggy huffed as she patted her chest; “Ya coulda said somethin’ when I came out! Ya didna have ta wait til I’d shut the door, and couldna see anymore!”

“I apologize, okay? Why are you up so early? Everyone else is sleeping in because of last night. Why didn’t you sleep in?” Tidas asked, desperately trying to change the subject.

Peggy narrowed her eyes on him with suspicion, but answered his question; “If I sleep in today, then I willna wanna sleep tonight on time. Stayin’ up late always has consequences, and I’d rather they be limited ta today then have’em stretch out over a week.”

Tidas nodded his agreement, fully understanding Peggy’s point. He tried to wrap up their conversation, but Peggy wasn’t done yelling at him yet. He stood in place for well over ten minutes, listening to various scenarios that could happen if she wasn’t around.

After his lengthy admonishment, Tidas made his way to the kitchens to break his fast. He muttered and cursed under his breath all the way there, but quickly silenced himself when he came in to find Hang sipping tea. He had a stack of papers in front of him, and a scowl on his face as Tidas had walked over to him.

.....

Hang didn’t even realize that another person was in the room until Tidas had pulled the chair out. The servants had been busy rushing around, making breakfast, as well as miso for lunchtime. The three servants had just left to eat before Tidas had entered the room, so the sudden noise and movement made him jump.

Hang had been sitting at the servant’s table for an hour or so, and was becoming frustrated with the numbers he was seeing. As he sighed as relaxed into his chair, he asked Tidas; “What time did my relatives allow you and your wife to go to bed? You look rough.”

Tidas yawned as he reached out for the tea pot, and poured a cup as he replied; “Late.. Or ridiculously early, depending on how you look at it. Skye’s still sleeping, so I figured I’d come get something to eat. What are you doing this early? Those look like...account figures?”

“They are, and they don’t add up compared to the records my office has,” Hang set his cup down before continuing; “I was hoping to catch a flaw in the transcripts, but it all seems in order. Which is highly concerning..”

“Why? What kind of accounts are they?” Tidas inquired as he turned, and looked over one of the sheets.

Hang rubbed at his brow as he replied; “Tax records from this year, and last. The records should be similar, but this year’s files show a significant increase in many of the Senators’ accounts..”

“Let me guess: the ones that follow Tokuga?” Tidas more commented, than actually asked.

Hang nodded in the positive; “Every one of them. I noticed it right away, so I grabbed the records of a few high-ranking socialites that I know support him, and they’re all the same except for a few. I’m wondering if there was simply no need to pay them off, or if he just hasn’t done it yet.”

Tidas quirked an eyebrow; “Does Tokuga have that kind of money to throw around?”

Hang shook his head; “No, he doesn’t. I have no idea where he could’ve gotten this much wealth from. The royal family wasn’t wealthy on it’s own, so he had no family fortune to drain away.. Where the hell did he get the funds from?”

“Maybe he has a rich partner?” Tidas commented half-jokingly, but Hang took it seriously.

“That’s a strong possibility. But there is no one in Sai that has distributed this much of their own wealth. All other records are either normal, or over in what they should be. I’m not seeing any depleted accounts.”

Tidas thought a moment before he suggested; “Maybe an outside source? Like from another kingdom? Can he hold separate accounts in other kingdoms?”

Hang sighed heavily as he rubbed his forehead; “I don’t know. All I know is that a lot of bad people have a lot of money, and enough weapons to cause serious damage to the capital. I shudder to think of what he plans to do..”

A long moment of silence stretched between the two until Hang apologized for speaking on such a heavy topic so early in the morning. Tidas, of course, told him not to worry about it, and that he would help him until the servants returned. The sun was just beginning to tint the skies with morning light, which meant that Skye would be awake soon.

Skye always had a better start to the day when she got to eat right away, and she loved waking up to food. After he had helped Hang crunch some numbers, and the servants had returned; Tidas requested that the morning meal for him and his wife be made transportable. While waiting for the food, he and Hang tried to figure out where the money had come from..

While staring at a sheet that mentioned imports and exports, Tidas realized something; “What if the money isn’t coming in As money, but as an influx of goods, or services? Wouldn’t selling items within Sai to get Sai currency be less noticeable?”

Hang stared at Tidas for a few moments with slightly widened eyes. He’d been racking his brain trying to realize how the money was there, but not there..

“I still have all of the shipping logs from the past couple of years at my office. If I leave now, I should be able to stop my people from sending them all back to storage! Thank you, Tidas! I owe you one!”

With that final shout of gratitude, Hang was gone in a flurry of paperwork. Tidas watched him go, and cheered him with his tea before taking a sip.. ‘That poor, poor man.. He’ll be buried in paperwork until next year..’

Tidas drank his cup, and was halfway through a second when his tray of food was ready. The servants offered to carry the trays for him, but Tidas politely refused. All he needed was someone to accompany him back to his room; to open the door for him.

An elderly woman that must’ve been a cook stepped forward with a smile, and gestured to the door. Tidas thanked both her, and the staff again for their hospitality, then followed after the old woman. She was silent until they were right down the hall from the room..

“After so many years, men often forget how important things like this are. Hold your ground, Prince.”

Tidas stared at the old woman like she’d just grown a second head. He hadn’t spoken to Hang, or anyone about taking Skye out shopping except for Peggy.. ‘Servant gossip, perhaps?’

Peggy wasn’t the type to speak on another’s personal business, so he’d immediately banished the idea. He did consider that she might be a spy of some sort, but no one had been around when he’d talked to Peggy; he’d made sure of it.

‘Maybe when Peggy told Mei that I would be commandeering Skye for the day? No.. They both would’ve been secretive about it.. So what’s with this old woman?!’

Right as Tidas was about to question her, the elderly servant smiled sweetly, opened the door for him, then said; “Good day to you, Prince Tidas. Enjoy the sun, but I advise you to avoid the darkness in all aspects of your life..”

“What do you mean?” Tidas inquired, but became momentarily distracted by the sound of approaching armor.

When he looked back at the woman, she wasn’t there to be seen. When a couple regular guards came around the corner, Tidas asked if a little old woman had run passed them. After staring at the Alconian Prince like he was crazy for a few seconds, the guards replied that they hadn’t seen anyone but him as of that morning.

Thinking that the foreigner was just wasting their time, the guards left. Tidas stood staring as they walked away, and thought that maybe he had hallucinated the entire thing. Until he looked at the door..

It sat still, and slightly ajar; proving that the woman Had to have been there.. ‘Maybe she was some kind of crazy ninja master? I should ask Genie the next time I see him..’

Tidas’ face scrunched subconsciously as the name crossed his mind. He sighed heavily, frustrated with himself that he still hadn’t let it go after sleeping on it. The reason alluded him, but Tidas was determined to push his jealousy down..

‘He hasn’t given me a Real reason to suspect that he cares for Skye on an intimate level.. But that look he had was-No! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! I can’t think like that.. Not without a Real reason.. I’ll just have to keep shoving it down until it stays there..’

As the troublesome thought passed, Tidas came into the room; still holding the two trays in his hands. As he set them down at the bottom of the bed, he gingerly climbed back into bed. While laying on his side, Tidas watched his wife for a few peaceful moments before he gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear..

A sweet smile stretched across her face as she inhaled loudly, and stretched the rest of her body. Tidas grinned to himself at the fact that his wife was unbelievably gorgeous, even with her eyes closed. As warmth and love filled his heart and head, Skye turned to face him..

With heavy eyelids and a partial yawn, Tidas bid her good morning. She grinned back at him before saying three simple words.. Ones that had him shaking his head with a chuckle; “I smell food..”