The journey from the Northern Front to the Capital usually took three weeks by royal carriage. We did it in four days on horseback.
My thighs were screaming, my skin was wind-chapped, and I was fairly certain my internal organs had been rearranged by the constant jarring of the gallop. But as the white spires of the Capital finally appeared on the horizon, the physical pain was eclipsed by a cold, calculating rage.
The Imperial Flag—the silver raven on a field of blue—had been lowered. In its place flew a golden banner emblazoned with a pair of scales.
The Foreign Merchant Guild.
"They haven't just occupied the city," Alaric said, pulling his horse to a halt beside mine. His face was a mask of thunderous calm, but the air around him hummed with enough magical static to make my hair stand on end. "They've barricaded the main gates. Those aren't city guards on the walls; they're mercenaries. 'The Iron Ledger' company."
"They're protecting their investment," I said, squinting as my [Venture Capitalist's Eye] scanned the battlements.
"Alaric," I said, turning to him. "They think this is a standard coup. They think they can hold the city, declare the Crown insolvent, and install a puppet council to manage the 'Empire Corporation.' They are playing by the old rules of greed."
"And you?" Alaric asked, his sapphire eyes burning. "What rules are you playing by?"
"I'm going to trigger a Poison Pill Strategy," I replied. "In my world, when a hostile entity tries to swallow a company they can't afford, we make the company so toxic that the act of eating it kills them."
"Explain," Alaric commanded.
"They want our gold, our land, and our titles. Fine. We're going to give them exactly what they want—along with every single bit of 'Bad Debt' this Empire has accumulated for three hundred years. We're going to tether the national liability to their personal souls."
[System Prompt: Skill 'Aggressive Takeover' Initializing...] [Warning: This action will permanently alter the Imperial Economy.] [Do you wish to proceed?]
Proceed, I thought. Liquidate the bastards.
The Negotiation at the Gate
We didn't sneak in. We rode straight to the main gate.
A man stood on the precipice of the gatehouse, dressed in robes of shimmering silk that cost more than a knight's annual salary. Chairman Silas, the head of the Merchant Guild. He held a glass of wine in one hand and a signed "Notice of Foreclosure" in the other.
"Emperor Alaric!" Silas called down, his voice amplified by a megaphone-charm. "And the 'Golden Empress.' Welcome home. I'm afraid you'll find the locks have been changed. The Crown has failed to meet its interest payments to the Guild for the last three quarters. By the laws of the International Merchant Code, this city is now collateral."
Alaric's horse reared, sensing his master's fury. "Silas! You hold my mother and my people hostage. Release them, or I will raze this city to the ground with you inside it."
"And destroy your only remaining asset?" Silas tutted. "I think not. You're broke, Alaric. You spent your last gold on Northern grain. You have no army to pay, no food to give, and no throne to sit on. Bow down, sign the abdication papers, and we might let you keep a small estate in the countryside."
I stepped my horse forward, shielding my eyes from the sun. "Chairman Silas! A word on your valuation!"
Silas looked down at me, a smirk playing on his thin lips. "Ah, the audit-mistress. I must thank you, Evelyn. By clearing out the corrupt Dukes, you made it much easier for us to consolidate the debt. You did the legwork for us."
"I did," I admitted, smiling back. It was the smile of a shark that had just spotted a leaking cage. "But you made a classic mistake in your 'Due Diligence.' You only looked at the assets. You forgot to check the Contingent Liabilities."
Silas frowned. "The what?"
"The Debt of Blood and Faith," I said, raising my hand. The System glowed with a blinding, incandescent white light—the power I had siphoned from the Sun God, Sol.
"I am the Imperial Chancellor," I roared, my voice suddenly echoing with a divine resonance that shook the gatehouse stones. "And I hereby declare a National Debt Consolidation!"
[Skill Activated: 'Aggressive Takeover - The Poison Pill'!] [Effect: All Imperial Debts are now legally bound to the Current Occupiers of the Throne Room.]
A shockwave of golden energy erupted from me, racing across the ground like a wildfire. It slammed into the city walls, turning the grey stone into a shimmering, translucent gold.
Inside the city, screams erupted.
"What... what is this?" Silas gasped, dropping his wine glass. He looked at his hands—black veins were beginning to crawl up his arms.
"The Empire owes the Sun God three million in faith-interest," I shouted. "It owes the Northern Tribes twenty years of grain. It owes the widows of the 4th Infantry their lives. Since you've claimed the 'Imperial Assets,' the Law of Sol dictates you must also claim the Imperial Sins."
The screen in my vision went wild.
[Transferring Liability: 1,500,000 Gold Debt -> Chairman Silas.] [Transferring Karma: 300 Years of Imperial Corruption -> The Merchant Guild Board of Directors.] [Status: The Guild is now 'Soul-Bankrupt'.]
Silas fell to his knees, clutching his chest. The "Iron Ledger" mercenaries on the walls suddenly dropped their weapons, their armor turning into leaden weight. In this world, when you owed a debt to a God-Empress, your very life-force was the collateral.
"You... you poisoned the throne!" Silas choked out.
"I made it unaffordable," I said, turning to Alaric. "The gates are open, Alaric. Their 'Credit Score' just hit zero. They can't even lift their swords."
Alaric didn't wait. He drew his blade, the blue lightning now mixing with the golden light of my audit-magic.
"For the Empire!" he roared.
The gates didn't just open; they disintegrated.
The Throne Room Confrontation
We swept through the city like a cleansing fire. The mercenaries, crippled by the sudden 'Soul-Debt' I had placed on them, couldn't put up a fight. By the time we reached the Throne Room, the Merchant Guild was in total disarray.
I found the Dowager Empress Catherine sitting on her throne, as calm as ever, while two merchants tried—and failed—to pull the rings off her fingers. Every time they touched her, a spark of 'Interest-Pain' shocked them back.
"You're late, Evelyn," Catherine said, adjusting her pearls. "I've had to listen to these men discuss 'profit margins' for three hours. It was dreadfully boring."
"Sorry, Mother," I said, stepping over a fainted merchant. "The North had a better ROI."
Alaric strode to the center of the room, grabbing Silas by the collar of his expensive robes. The Chairman was a ghost of a man now, his eyes hollow.
"The takeover is over, Silas," Alaric hissed. "Give me the keys to the treasury and the release forms for the hostages."
"It... it doesn't matter," Silas wheezed. "Even if you kill us... the Empire is still bankrupt. You have no currency left. The people will starve by morning."
I walked up to the Imperial Throne, looking at the empty seat.
"That's where you're wrong, Silas," I said. "I'm not going back to the old currency. The 'Gold Standard' is dead. As of today, the Empire is moving to Imperial Credits—backed by the Frost-Iron of the North and the literal word of the Sun God."
I turned to the window, looking out over the confused, frightened city.
"Lila!" I shouted.
My maid appeared from behind a curtain, looking remarkably unfazed. "Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Prepare the printing presses. We're launching an Initial Public Offering (IPO) for the Ravenstone Empire. And tell the people: for every 'Debt' they help us clear, they get a share of the new world."
Alaric looked at me, a look of pure, unadulterated devotion in his eyes. He didn't care about the money. He cared that I had turned a massacre into a merger.
"You really are going to own the world, aren't you?" he asked, walking over to stand beside me at the window.
"Not own it, Alaric," I said, taking his hand. "I'm just going to manage the portfolio."
[System Notification!] [Reputation: -30 -> +20 (The People see you as a Savior)] [Alaric's Interest: 65% -> 80% (Title Unlocked: 'Power Couple')] [New Quest: Global Expansion.]