Published: January 4, 2026
The next day, I came to the shop again, bringing Zoe along.
Once again, conveniently, a seat was available.
I couldn’t help but bitterly smile to myself about the coincidence, but I didn’t show it and continued listening to Alice’s singing.
As the performance progressed and most of the customers were focused on Alice, I took the opportunity to ‘connect’ with Zoe.
“Can you hear my voice?”
“Yes, master… Huh?”
Zoe turned toward me as usual and responded normally.
But she quickly noticed something strange.
“The voice… it’s not my own?”
“No, it’s correct. Human voices sound different to your own ears compared to others’ ears.”
“I see? Ah, I can hear it very clearly.”
Zoe muttered this quietly as she looked around.
Inside the shop where Alice was singing, most other sounds were drowned out by her voice, making it hard to hear.
In fact, when the staff came to take orders, they spoke loudly close to the ear—almost shouting.
Despite this, our exchange could be heard clearly and normally, which seemed strange to her.
“Have you ever played with a tin can telephone?”
“Yes, I have…”
“Think of this as a transparent tin can telephone using Fuwawa.”
Strictly speaking, it’s a bit more complicated, but there’s no need to explain so much.
“I see… Ah, master, your mouth isn’t moving.”
“Only those connected by the string can hear, and I can speak without moving my mouth.”
“A secret conversation, huh? As expected of Your Majesty (,,,)”
Zoe immediately understood the advantage of this technique and simultaneously switched back to the formal title.
That’s how it is.
Sounds and voices usually travel through the air.
But like a tin can telephone, they can travel through objects.
Putting your ear to the ground to hear distant sounds works for the same reason.
Using Fuwawa like this eliminates the air, carrying the voice only through the invisible string, so only the connected person can hear it.
It’s a level above soundproof magic in preventing eavesdropping.
“Did you tell them?”
“Yes, when I said Your Majesty liked Alice and planned to stay for a while, they looked very displeased.”
“I see, then it’s fine. That makes things easier.”
“Easier?”
Now that she understood it was a secret conversation, instead of tilting her head as usual, Zoe conveyed her wonder using only her eyes.
“If I don’t move, they get anxious. Zoe, who do you think is more anxious in this matter?”
“Well… Your Majesty… has no reason to be anxious, right?”
I nodded.
I asked this question to use the situation for her growth, and she understood it perfectly.
“That’s right. The decline in the salt tax is like a chronic wound in the empire. Even if it’s not solved now, the situation won’t change drastically.”
“But the other side—cannot smuggle as long as Your Majesty is here.”
“Exactly. Threatening the whole town and making large-scale changes costs money, and income stops at the same time. Considering the salt tax lost by the empire goes straight into their pockets, just one day stopped means at least one hundred thousand Liens lost.”
“That much…”
Zoe was speechless.
For a mere maid, that was an enormous amount of money she couldn’t even put into words.
“That’s why. If I don’t act, they will get anxious and move. So I can relax.”
“I see! As expected of Your Majesty!”
I smiled faintly at Zoe, took a sip of sake, and popped a piece of snack into my mouth.
“But… one hundred thousand… Such a huge amount is unforgivable. After everything is uncovered, they must be executed.”
“…”
I said nothing.
I understood what Zoe said, and how she felt.
But humans are generally more useful alive than dead.
Especially those who created a system to siphon off tax from the empire like this—if handled well, they could be placated...
People are treasures and possibilities.
I hope I can placate them well.
Thinking that, I listened to the song, took a bite of the snack, and pretended to enjoy myself.
The staff brought a new dish.