Liv felt like she had finally caught the tail end of the truth.
This kind of systematic falsification of accounts was clearly not the act of just one person attempting to line their own pockets.
After all, it required a connection between the shipyard, the naval office, the Shipbuilding Bureau, the Dock Naval Office, and even the merchants providing timber and cast iron.
Every level from the bottom up had to ensure the accounts were unified.
…
This was how they gathered together, bypassing the council’s approval to divert a portion of this year’s full naval budget elsewhere, pooling the money into a single fund.
‘That must be it.’
‘Then what do they intend to do with this money?’
Liv continued to flip through the documents repeatedly.
Ship names, repair locations, amounts spent, damage reports, repair times—Liv did not let a single detail escape her, recording every suspicious point on a blank sheet of paper.
Then she cross-referenced them again and again.
The entire morning passed, and she skipped lunch entirely.
It wasn’t until she caught the names of four inland gunboats that things became clear.
These four ships had entered dry dock for maintenance at the same time over the past few days, yet no damage had been reported.
In other words, this was maintenance performed without any actual damage.
At the same time, these four ships had been fully stocked with ammunition, but the labor costs for manual transport were incredibly high.
Based on an average calculation, the cost of moving shells for these vessels was far higher than that of other warships.
Either this was another instance of fake accounting used to siphon off naval funds, or those workers had transported more than just shells—they had moved other things that far exceeded reasonable limits.
‘What could those things be? What else would be prepared on those ships?’
Liv knew that while the shipyard was responsible for the labor costs of supplies, the actual cost of naval supplies did not pass through the shipyard or the Shipbuilding Bureau; it was handled directly by the Navy.
Therefore, she did not have a list of expenditures for logistics and supplies in her hands.
But that didn’t matter.
Clues were hidden within these files.
Liv began flipping back to the records of labor costs for different ships from a time when repair costs were still normal.
She then estimated the required endurance for their voyages based on the size and type of the ships.
This “endurance” was a concept Liv had learned at the Shipbuilding Bureau: the maximum time or distance a ship or fleet could continue its mission without docking or receiving external supplies, relying solely on the fuel, fresh water, food, ammunition, and other consumables it carried.
Clearly, labor costs were positively correlated with the size of the ship and the endurance required for the mission they were about to execute.
Liv began to focus on the endurance required for the inland gunboats.
She had an assistant fetch a detailed map of the continent.
However, it was obvious that while the coastline was roughly estimated, the interior was a disorganized mess.
Even for the interior of the Frostweave Kingdom, the markings were extremely crude.
But the Great River basin was very detailed; her subordinate guaranteed that the accuracy in this area was extremely high.
Liv performed repeated measurements and calculations.
Her final conclusion was that the endurance formed by the supplies carried by these four inland gunboats far exceeded general requirements.
If the currents and monsoons were favorable, they could sail non-stop to the naval port at the mouth of the Great River.
Generally speaking, there was no need for this, as there were several Republic ports and accessible Dwarf ports along the way where they could resupply multiple times.
‘Unless they don’t want to waste any time at all, and they don’t want to go anywhere near the Dwarf ports.’
If that were the case, there was almost no need to further ponder the nature of the mission these four gunboats were carrying out.
They were going to war, or they were secretly transporting something.
Thinking of this, Liv immediately searched through all the repair records for transport ships.
During this period, a large number of military transport ships had undergone maintenance—some had damage, while others were undamaged.
There were many transport ships to begin with, and in ordinary times, these repairs wouldn’t have meant much.
But now, the nature of it was entirely different.
Liv discovered that the labor costs for maintaining some of these transport ships were also highly abnormal.
Their endurance was also sufficient to reach the mouth of the Great River directly.
‘What does this mean?’
‘Does the Republic intend to tear up the treaty and launch a direct attack on the Great River’s mouth?’
‘Of course not. If that were the case, Sister Tess would never help Sister Julia hide it.’
If it wasn’t an attack on the river’s mouth, then they intended to reach it before conducting their first round of resupply.
Thinking of this, Liv decided to immediately write a letter to the Elf Governor at the mouth of the Great River to ask if the Republic had pre-ordered a large amount of supplies.
She needed to know exactly how much had been ordered and where those supplies would allow the ships to reach along the Great River.
…
However, the clever Liv already had a rough answer in her heart.
The Republic wanted to attack the coast of the Frostweave Kingdom.
As for whether it was coastal privateering, a landing for plunder, or perhaps something even more horrific, she could not say.
Furthermore, where would the Republic gather an army capable of a long-distance campaign?
It was impossible for the Republican Guard; their combat effectiveness was barely enough to defend a city.
‘Mercenaries? The cost would be too high. Even for stationary garrison duty, mercenaries require massive wages. How much would it cost to have them participate in an expedition that offers almost no hope of return?’
Even if the Republic had that kind of money, they wouldn’t choose this method to strike back at the Kingdom.
‘Is it the recently conscripted militia?’
Liv felt this was the least likely option, but it wasn’t absolutely impossible.
They were merely civilians without training, starving and barely surviving thanks to the grain she had brought in.
If they were carried by ship into the heart of the Kingdom, it would be a miracle if they didn’t mutiny or flee on the spot.
How could they possibly engage the Kingdom’s regular army?
It would be a one-sided slaughter.
Not one of those poor civilians would survive.
In the end, she theorized that it might be a mixed force of a small number of Republican Guards and mercenaries.
If the numbers weren’t enough, they would draw civilians from those 1,500 people, sent to their deaths by the Governor’s Mansion to achieve a political propaganda goal.
‘Domenico, oh Domenico, you really are acting out of desperation. It seems you have no faith that Marino can survive this year.’
‘I wonder who you will push to the front if Marino falls. Will it be Emilia? Or another political ally willing to take the bullet for you?’
This only strengthened her resolve to support Sister Julia.
Domenico was a shrewd, seasoned politician—perhaps even a reformer who acted for the Republic’s interests—but he was absolutely not a leader.
He was too obsessed with calculations, treating everything like a game of chess.
If the opponent moved a pawn, he moved a pawn.
If the opponent traded a piece, he traded a piece.
He held no initiative and cared nothing for the cost.
This was the judgment of a young woman who knew she was immature but trusted her intuition.
At least, that was how it felt for now. With these thoughts in mind, Liv organized all the documents into categories and locked them in her desk drawer.
Over the next few days, she would work diligently here.
Because she needed the truth.
She no longer wanted to be protected in a delicate cage, acting as the submissive little sister.
She wanted to be a sister with a bit of initiative, a bit of a temper, and a bit of her own identity.
Liv felt very confident now.
This confidence came from the abundant, unconditional love she received, and from the fact that, within reasonable limits, she could still mobilize resources herself.
It came from her belief that she was being treated with tenderness, even if that treatment included well-intentioned deception.