On this particular Tuesday afternoon, the skies above Ruen were a rare, brilliant clear. Great white clouds drifted across the azure expanse, and beneath them, the conversation in the royal garden continued.
"Initially, banks were little more than warehouses or safes for storing wealth, represented by numbers on a ledger. But as the banking industry gained control over more and more of these figures—even if the wealth wasn't truly theirs—they became an invisible force, one with the potential to destabilize an entire nation in a very short time."
Dolores took a deep breath, preparing to voice some concepts she didn't entirely grasp herself. Sometimes, she truly envied her mathematics tutor, who seemed to fully comprehend every principle and theory Mr. Williams discussed.
"The connection between the Fabry fraud and the banking industry is fascinating. On a superficial level, she merely used banks as a clandestine way to pool funds. But from a deeper perspective, what banks do is no different from what Miss Fabry did—in fact, it's even better. If a bank were to charge no storage fees, but instead attract public funds by offering 'interest on deposits,' and then invest that enormous capital into ventures like mining, then..."
"Then, as long as the profits were sufficient, the Fabry fraud could theoretically run forever without collapsing. What's more, a bank could use that 'borrowed' capital—a quantitative accumulation leading to a qualitative shift in power—to leverage any industry, and in turn influence politics, the military... And all of this would be built on the promise of 'investment returns.' Imagine, countless sums of money flowing from the public into the hands of a single group, which then uses the power of that wealth to influence the entire kingdom..."
Brier Stuart suddenly interjected. The middle-aged king wore a smile he had never shown before, but his eyes held a chilling, sharp gleam. ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by NoveIＦire.net
"So that's how it is. I've been pondering these very things recently, and now it all makes sense. Oh, Dolores, you've explained it wonderfully. Please, continue. This is fascinating."
It was already seven in the evening by the time Jenkins saw Miss Stuart. He was seated in the study, leafing through a book from the shelf and exchanging occasional remarks with Alexia. His cat, bored, was dabbing its paws on a piece of paper on the desk, leaving an assortment of blots. Noticing three on the left and four on the right, it carefully added another to the left side to make it symmetrical.
Julia pushed open the study door, and a weary-looking Miss Stuart walked in. She went straight to the desk, pulled out a chair, and slumped into it, looking as if she never wanted to get up again.
Julia placed the teacup from the saucer beside her hand. The princess immediately reached for it, intending to gulp it down, but then she remembered who else was in the room. Suppressing the desperate thirst in her throat, she began to sip the tea in a very ladylike manner.
"You don't mind that I borrowed some of your theories, do you?"
She asked only after quenching her thirst. Jenkins had been there for quite a while and had already heard about what had happened from Julia.
As for how Julia knew what had transpired without being present, it was simply a matter of palace life. Royal family discussions always took place with guards and servants nearby, and those guards and servants eventually went off duty...
"Of course I don't mind. I've said before, they're just some very rudimentary theories, and some of the concepts are even flawed. If you like them, feel free to use them however you wish!"
"No, I only presented the simplest parts. Your theories are truly too profound."
The third princess said, her face flushing slightly:
"If I suddenly appeared too brilliant, it might arouse suspicion. This level is sufficient for now. I think my father will pay a little more attention to me from now on, which should make it easier to do certain things that were inconvenient before."
The discussion on this matter didn't last long, because aside from Julia, no one else here considered it a particularly important event.
The main topic of discussion tonight was the result of Stipe Stuart's interrogation. They needed to plan their next steps based on the other names that had been revealed. Jenkins hoped to help his friend get out of trouble; Alexia hoped to get closer to the Tower in the process; Julia hoped to help her highness clear the obstacles in her path; and as for Miss Stuart...
She didn't harbor so many ambitions; she just liked the feeling of her friends caring about her. At least up to this point, none of her actions had been initiated by her own will, but had begun due to all sorts of coincidences.
Dolores was content with her current life; she believed she already had everything she could ever want. Only when a certain seed of ambition quietly sprouted would this young woman truly reach out and race to contend with the siblings standing in her way.
Viewed in this light, a certain young author was truly a man of deep sin.
Miss Stuart had now finished reading Jenkins's new book. After they finished discussing serious matters, she excitedly began to talk with him about the fascinating stories. Even though she knew the book's conception had begun before they met, the sixteen-year-old girl still believed the little princess in the book was a reflection of herself.
She possessed a considerable literary education herself. Whether discussing the surface-level plot or delving into deeper literary techniques, she was able to display both her erudition and her admiration for Jenkins.
Julia and Alexia had obviously also read Jenkins's new book, but neither of them interjected, quietly watching Jenkins and Dolores converse.
The shorter of the ladies wore a faint smile, her pale fingers tapping lightly on the armrest of her chair. She had more or less figured out the matter of Jenkins's name in the book possessing power. The truth might be far from her conclusion, but that was irrelevant.
She understood Jenkins. No matter what he was, she understood this simple man. Perhaps most people saw him as a phantom hidden behind heavy curtains, but to Alexia, Jenkins was just a lonely child standing at the very center of the stage.
She loved this man. She loved everything about him. Even when he was so dense it was infuriating, Alexia swore she would still love him.
As for the other, simpler princess, she was nothing more than a child in Alexia's eyes. Right now, she wanted to use this child to achieve a certain goal, so she was willing to toss her some candy. But no one could have that foolish candy jar all to themselves. No one.
But the truly big news was something Jenkins only learned as the gathering was about to end. Somehow, the conversation with Miss Stuart had drifted to the system of nobility in his book. Then, Julia, who was standing to the side, cleared her throat, and Dolores remembered there was something else she hadn't said:
"Yes, I remember now. Mr. Williams, my... friend told me that the Fidektri Kingdom is planning to promote you to Viscount."
Jenkins suspected the word she had paused on was "spy."
"Because of the second book?"
"No, why would you think that? It's because of the Fabry fraud affair, of course."
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