Alice & Alicia: Religious Twin Daughter

The City of Marianna

Count de Bourne's Residence, Director of the Central Supervisory Hall

"What's? Pearl Palace asking for a report on Marianna City?" Count de Bourne put down his drink and refocused on reading a letter he received. A dim lantern accompanied that night. Remnants of undiluted parchment still piled up on the table.

"Wait, I've never heard of it. How did the Pearl Palace get this kind of info?" Count de Bourne pressed his forehead trying to focus. The mustachioed man sure never heard of the problem in the report related to Marianna City. His face began to wrinkle.

"Free, prepare the horses and follow me to the Central Supervisory Hall," the Count de Bourne was still unable to believe. He followed the instructions in the letter to check his report immediately. Tomorrow morning, all reports over these past few months should be submitted to the Pearl Palace.

The night is not too late. The mansions of the nobles are still bright. So, Count de Bourne and his butler, Sebas had no trouble going to the Central Supervisory Hall. They visited the homes of several other employees first before going there.

"Why is there such a sudden overtime task?" complained of an officer. He really wanted to reject it if only the one who came was not the Director of the Central Supervisory Hall directly. Another employee chimed in, "We should double-check the report from one of the cities suspected of falsifying the documents."

"Does it really exist?"

"Everyone gathered here is a Marianna City auditor. Have we missed anything important?"

"See the reports are mediocre. What's suspicious?"

"The Pearl Palace got complaints in a row today. The Saville Trade Union has even confirmed the veracity of the news it brings, "the Count de Bourne said.

Before sending her letter, Alice had already contacted Anna to investigate the matter that was in Marianna City. The union sent every detail of its observations. They suffered considerable losses in the city.

"Saville Trade Union? It should be accepted directly by the Pearl Palace, "an official commented. The proximity of the Pearl Palace and Saville Trade Union is well known to the public. Although they were not from among the nobles in the royal circle of el Vierum Kingdom, they always kept the mandate so as to gain high trust from the government.

"Shut up and search!" Count de Bourne yelled at his employees who were still noisy even though they had arrived at the Central Supervisory Hall. His hands were nimble to sort through every document he was looking for.

In another room, a group of people who had lately dealt directly with Marianna City gathered. Not all Marianna City auditors are. However, it was already more than half of their members.

"How's this? The Pearl Palace already knew it," a young noble asked worriedly, "Just wait for the time until this news is heard by the king."

"Ck!" decak was a more senior noble, "What can the newly-appointed little girl do to be the crown princess?"

"Yes, despite his excellent reputation this past year, it doesn't guarantee he can find evidence on the documents we've made."

"Everything is certain there is nothing suspicious. Just send us the documents we have. The little princess won't find anything."

Among the corrupt servants in the room, a middle-aged man was trembling in fear. The fact that the Pearl Palace had already suspected the falsification of the document made it unsettled. At midnight that night, he knocked on the door of the Witch Tower branch in the capital. The next day, he disappeared, never to be seen again.

The next day, the Count de Bourne delivers all the documents related to Marianna City to Alice. He had already examined some of them and did not accept any oddities.

During this time, he only struggled with documents without knowing the state of the field. With the data his emissary reported, he knew that there was no problem whatsoever in the port city.

"How can the hall not know this, Count de Bourne?" ask Alice later.

Count de Bourne is still silent. His eyes examined more thoroughly the unreasonable tax withdrawal letter on his hands. The letter had the original stamp of the ruler of Marianna City. One hundred percent official without any falsehood.

"I asked for it from the guild yesterday," Alice seemed to be able to read Count de Bourne's incredulous expression wondering where she got the evidence from, "They're too generous to not complain unless asked."

"Sorry for the negligence of the servant, Princess," Count de Bourne bowed in. Cold sweat for some time pours out on his forehead. The charismatic pressure that Alice exuded was no less distant than that of her mother, the Master of Wisdom. His piercing cold gaze made the Count de Bourne not dare to look directly at him.

"Is the hall not performing its duties properly? How will you be responsible, Count de Bourne?" although her voice sounded calm, Alice's question was like a chunk of ice cold that was very pressing. For a while, the Count de Bourne kept his head down and was unable to answer anything.

Anna, who had been sitting at another table in the room, also felt the pressure Alice was emitting. He almost lost focus on his job. The girl in the hood had forgotten that the woman was still a 10-year-old girl.

When she was the same age as Alice, she still often played alongside her busy study schedule. He could not be compared to the little princess even though he was considered a genius among his friends.

"There may have been a uniformed rat among the Supervisory Hall employees, the Princess," the Count de Bourne replied. He still bowed deeply, not daring to straighten his body until allowed. "It is the servant's fault for not realizing it."

"Stand!" Alice expressed her disappointment, "The Pearl Palace has given you this trust because you have always had a good reputation. I will report this matter to the king's majesty."

Alice was silent for a moment. He did not find any suspicious moves from the middle-aged man before him. Deep regret filled the noble man's face. Alice decided, "Clean the Supervisory Hall from any contemptible dirt that hinders its performance. Prove that you are trustworthy!"

"Well, Princess," replied the Count de Bourne. Obviously the order told him to re-investigate every employee in the Supervisory Hall. The job will get harder after this. He also resigned himself. With a furious face, he left from the Pearl Palace. After that, many changes occurred to the Supervisory Hall.

...***...

The Marianna City Ruler's Residence

The night that the Count de Bourne was conducting an inspection at the Central Supervisory Hall, the residence of Viscount Illumity was having a party. They did not know that Marianna City was under suspicion. No one was careful there. They thought, "Everything has been going well for months."

"Captain, how about the flowers we just picked?" viscount Illumity asked with a sycophant smile. He had a glass of wine in his hand. The fat man with the multilayered fat was clearly not talking about the real flower. He entertained the man in front of him with a girl he had just kidnapped yesterday.

The large man with a thick beard and mustache before Viscount Illumity chuckled loudly. His voice caught the attention of the other guests. But no one dared to rebuke him. He was a very feared figure in this port city.

"She's so beautiful and beautiful. You should look more for something like that for me next time," the man called Captain chuckled again.

Among the hundreds of guests, a young man appeared to stand up and give a sharp look at the two figures. The wine in his hand he drank nothing. From the beginning, he had no intention of drinking it.

"When will the rotten pig be dealt with?" he muttered furiously, "Has the Kingdom of el Vierum lost its authority to allow this?"