The Shadow Organization Members Raised Through Pay-To-Win Are Too Strong

Count Benedict Hartwell sighed deeply as he stared out the window.

Though the view of his territory beyond the window looked peaceful, his heart felt like it was in the midst of a storm.

“Haah…”

His second sigh contained all his fatigue and anguish.

Naturally, nobles who rule territories carry heavy responsibilities, befitting their status.

But today especially, the weight of that responsibility pressed down on the Count’s shoulders.

The Count’s gaze turned to the pile of documents on his desk. Among them, one report caught his attention.

It was a horrific case where a priest was murdered in the temple within the territory.

The problem was that during the investigation of this case, evidence of contact between his wife Lavender and the murdered priest had emerged, giving him a headache.

The contact merely involved passing money, and direct connection was unlikely.

However, this was more than enough reason for the Holy Kingdom to intervene at any time.

“Haah, what was she thinking…”

The Count shook his head.

Actually, giving money to a priest itself wasn’t problematic.

Many nobles made offerings out of religious devotion.

Moreover, his wife had called the priest for Ethan’s health, who had lived as a commoner for a long time.

If they emphasized this, they might be able to avoid the Holy Kingdom’s attention.

Of course, this was assuming the Holy Kingdom would believe their explanation.

However, Benedict Count was pessimistic about this.

‘The possibility is low.’

The Holy Kingdom’s investigations were infamously thorough.

If there was even a slight suspicion, they would immediately dispatch an Inquisitor to turn the territory upside down.

“At this rate, the entire family could be in danger.”

The one fortunate thing was that the Count currently held investigation authority.

For some reason, the Holy Kingdom unusually hadn’t dispatched an Inquisitor.

Not only that, but they had granted investigation authority to Count Benedict.

‘I have no choice.’

The Count’s eyes flashed.

With no progress in the case, the Holy Kingdom could intervene again at any time.

Before that happened, the Count planned to find his own way out.

“Edgar!”

“Yes, Count.”

The head butler waiting outside the office responded quickly.

“Send someone to His Grace the Grand Duke. Right now!”

“Understood. I’ll prepare immediately.”

As Edgar swiftly withdrew, the Count leaned his heavy body back in his chair.

Now, his power alone was insufficient.

To overcome this situation, he needed greater power.

This was the sorrow of a family without power.

Still, the situation wasn’t completely hopeless.

He could find some hope in his children who would lead the family in the future.

“I can only trust in my children.”

The faces of his children flashed through the Count’s mind.

His first son, Albert, showed extraordinary talent in magic and grew up to be the family’s reliable heir.

Though he was currently studying in the Empire, Hartwell’s status would rise once he inherited the family.

‘If only Bastel had taken after his eldest brother.’

Unfortunately, Bastel’s personality was completely opposite that of that of his eldest brother.

Though his business skills were decent, that was only with help from his maternal family.

And recently, after being confined to his room due to trauma from the attack incident, even his remaining strengths had disappeared.

Honestly, the Count had become disappointed in Bastel.

As a noble, one must overcome difficult hurdles.

There was no time to hesitate just because of being attacked.

“Tsk, it would have been good if he’d taken after even half of Ethan.”

The Count’s eyes brightened at the sudden thought of Ethan.

A child who showed remarkable adaptability and insight despite difficult circumstances.

Even his tutors praised Ethan, so despite being only half-blooded, the Count felt proud.

‘If raised well, he could be an excellent asset to the family.’

The Count’s gaze changed subtly.

At first, he had considered using him merely as a disposable piece, but now his mind had changed.

Ethan’s abilities had moved the Count’s heart.

‘Above all, Ethan is skilled at handling subordinates.’

Perhaps because he grew up as a commoner for so long, Ethan didn’t flaunt noble authority.

Moreover, the Count highly valued that he volunteered at the orphanage and brought children who would follow him.

This wasn’t something that could be learned.

Thanks to this, Ethan was gaining favor among the mansion’s servants.

Even Edgar, the head butler, showed goodwill toward Ethan, so no further verification was needed.

What if Ethan, who understood the hearts of subordinates well, helped lead the family alongside the first son?

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

Now Ethan had become more important to the Count than Bastel.

“Hehe.”

He pulled a paper from his desk as if he’d made up his mind.

‘I should give the reward as promised.’

He planned to let Ethan learn magic as he wanted.

The Count quickly wrote a letter with his pen.

This letter would go to each magic tower.

Since he was teaching him anyway, he had no intention of bringing in just any mage as a tutor.

It would cost a lot of money, but this much investment was natural.

Even if Ethan had no talent for magic, it didn’t matter.

Then, he would find other ways to maximize Ethan’s potential.

* * *

My busy daily life continued.

The Count had assigned another tutor, a mage who would teach me magic.

I applied myself diligently to the lessons since having power to protect myself was essential for survival.

Fortunately, I could sense mana.

“This is truly amazing!”

I could sense it extremely well.

“It usually takes weeks to sense mana, but young master accomplished it in just a few days! I thought you were extraordinary from the theory lessons, but…”

Aaron, who was teaching me magic, praised me with a shocked expression.

He was a young mage from the Water Tower who had reached 2-star. He could be considered talented, planning to challenge the 3-star barrier soon.

‘Though not as good as Adeline or Bella, he’s not bad.’

Rather, talented mages often can’t understand slow learners.

I wasn’t sure if this body itself was naturally good at accepting mana or if it was a privilege to be the Black Raven’s leader.

One thing certain was that Aaron taught very clearly, making it easy to follow.

“This is all thanks to Master’s teaching.”

I bowed my head with a humble smile. This was sincere.

Even though I quickly grasped mana, I couldn’t have come this far without his explanations.

Aaron quickly waved his hands and spoke urgently.

“M-Master? I’m just a tutor teaching magic. And this is purely due to young master’s talent!”

Aaron continued speaking in an excited voice.

“Moreover, your skill at controlling mana flow is excellent, and you seem to quickly understand the principles of spells. At this rate, you could master all basic magic within a few months!”

“You’re too kind, Master.”

I continued calling Aaron ‘Master’.

The more connections with mages, the better for me.

It seems Aaron became okay with being called Master after I kept using it.

She cleared her throat unnecessarily.

“Ahem, maybe having a diligent disciple isn’t so bad…?”

My daily schedule didn’t end just because magic lessons were over.

Next, Bella came to see me.

My work had increased after acquiring all the Golden Wing Merchant Group shares.

Though Bella was the major shareholder on the surface, I was the actual owner.

Until I found a figurehead president, I had to handle the merchant group’s operations.

Only Bella and I knew this fact.

‘Ah, Emilia too.’

Let’s consider Emilia an exception.

It was best to consider her as not existing even though she did.

Though I knew Emilia was a Phantom, nothing changed.

Both Emilia and I just lived normally.

“What have you been thinking about for so long?”

Bella spoke coldly.

She regularly visited the mansion for the merchant group’s operations, but her expression wasn’t good.

“If I knew it would be like this, I could have come as a tutor, right?”

Bella complained.

I just shrugged and answered.

“That’s not possible.”

When the Count was trying to hire a magic tutor, Bella had expressed interest in doing it. But I refused.

‘If you came, my abilities would be exposed.’

Her intention to become my tutor was too obvious.

‘Rather than teaching magic, she’d probably ask to learn from me.’

Since she thought I was a Phantom, I needed to hide myself.

It would be troublesome if she realized I actually had no power.

That’s why I chose Aaron instead of Bella.

After brief small talk, we moved on to the main conversation.

“So what’s going on? There wasn’t supposed to be any appointment today?”

Today originally had no schedule.

But Bella urgently came to see me.

“We have a problem.”

She lowered her voice while extending her fingers.

“What’s so serious? Tell me quickly.”

Given how she was suddenly setting the mood, something must have happened.

“You might have heard, but an Inquisitor will arrive in Hartwell territory soon.”

Well, a priest was murdered within the territory.

It was strange that the Inquisitors hadn’t intervened until now, given they weren’t the type to stay quiet.

“And?”

When I responded nonchalantly, Bella tilted her head.

“That’s all the reaction you have?”

“An Inquisitor is coming?!”

Seeing even a mage make such a fuss, the Inquisitor’s influence must be remarkable.

‘It feels different from the game atmosphere.’

Though the Count who had to manage the territory might care, it didn’t matter to me if an Inquisitor came.

‘I have no connection to the priest’s death anyway…’

Suddenly, an ominous thought crossed my mind.

A priest in the temple was killed without any evidence.

Doesn’t it seem like someone secretly assassinated him?

And didn’t the head of the Merchant Association die recently too?

‘No way… it couldn’t be?’

Emilia’s face came to mind.

* * *

Behind the massive cathedral of the Holy Kingdom, a man was pacing anxiously in the deeply shadowed cloister.

He was Inquisitor Lorenzo.

Lorenzo’s eyes were filled with tension.

Just before departing for Hartwell territory, he had received a summons from an unexpected figure.

“Inquisitor Lorenzo.”

A deep, dignified voice came from behind him.

Lorenzo quickly turned and bowed to the owner of the voice.

“Yes, Cardinal Raphael.”

Cardinal Raphael.

He was one of only six Cardinals in the Holy Kingdom.

As the Cardinals’ words could determine the Pope’s position, Cardinal Raphael was an extraordinary figure.

Cold sweat ran down Lorenzo’s spine.

“I heard you’re departing for Hartwell territory.”

The Cardinal’s words carried heavy authority.

“Yes, that’s correct. I’m going to investigate a case involving a priest.”

Raphael nodded and took a step closer to Lorenzo.

“I called you because I have special instructions regarding that case.”

Lorenzo’s eyes widened at the Cardinal’s words.

“W-what do you mean?”

“Cover up this case appropriately.”

Raphael’s voice lowered.

“If possible, it would be good to blame it on a dark mage.”

Lorenzo couldn’t hide his surprise.

A Cardinal making requests about a case…

But due to the difference in rank and status, he couldn’t openly object.

“But Cardinal, that’s…”

“I understand.”

Raphael cut him off.

“But what would happen if people learned that a mere murderer breached the temple of the great Holy Kingdom? This case is like our shame.”

Lorenzo seemed to hesitate for a moment. Conflict could be read in his eyes.

Raphael noticed his hesitation and smiled gently.

“Don’t worry. I’ll strongly recommend you in the next personnel appointment. How about the position of High Inquisitor?”

Lorenzo’s eyes sparkled at those words.

The Holy Kingdom emphasized the equality of all under God, but the reality was different.

Without connections or noble status, one couldn’t rise to high positions.

The same was true for Lorenzo.

How many times had he been passed over in personnel movements?

But if he gained the Cardinal’s trust?

‘I must do this!’

After a moment of silence, he bowed his head.

“Understood, Cardinal. I will do as you command!”

“Good. I’ll be counting on you. Now go.”

After the Inquisitor left, silence returned to the cloister.

The gentle smile disappeared from Raphael’s face, replaced by a cold gaze.

“I kept my promise.”

He muttered toward the darkly shadowed ceiling.

“Go and tell the Eighth Elder.”

At that moment, a faint voice came from the darkness.

“Thank you, Third Elder.”

The owner of the voice was Lucy, who served the Eighth Elder.

Having conveyed his intentions, Raphael moved on as if nothing had happened.

Then, as if remembering something, he raised his head toward the ceiling again.

“Ah.”

His voice was cold as ice.

“I trust the hound will be dealt with appropriately.”

A hound that has completed its mission becomes useless.

With Raphael’s statement just now, Inquisitor Lorenzo’s fate was decided.