It's so hard being a hero!

"It's not worth it to let a top expert harbor resentment towards the empire for a little money. No matter how you look at it, it's not worth it."

Samira nodded.

"That's what I meant too."

"But if we just let it go like this, who will take the blame for the losses suffered by Kyle City? What about the rules of the Empire?"

Drummond rubbed his temples; this was his biggest headache right now.

Vlad stood to the side, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty.

He certainly hoped to receive compensation; 800,000 gold coins was no small sum and would be enough to make up for most of the losses at the mine.

But Drummond and Samira's attitude made him realize that this matter was beyond his control.

"So what do you mean?"

He asked tentatively.

Drummond pondered for a moment, then made a decision.

"I'd better ask my superiors first."

He stood up, preparing to contact the Empire using magical items.

Vlad opened his mouth, but in the end said nothing and just nodded.

Drummond walked to the door, then stopped and looked back at Vlad.

“My Lord Earl, there is something I still need to say.”

"Please speak."

"You'd better not mess with that little girl named Sophia in the future."

Drummond's tone was very serious.

"Since her teacher is willing to stand up for her, it means she holds a significant place in the teacher's heart. If you continue to make things difficult for her, the next time it might not just be a simple letter!"

Vlad's face turned pale instantly.

He could certainly tell the weight of those words.

"I...I understand."

He nodded hurriedly, his voice trembling slightly.

Drummond said nothing more and turned to leave the living room.

Samira followed behind, and stopped when they reached the door.

"Your Excellency."

"Ok?"

"You saw how that little girl behaved today."

Samira's voice was soft, but every word was clearly audible.

"A 12-year-old with silver-level combat power, affinity for all elements, proficiency in both magic and martial arts, and the ability to use tactics to compensate for a lack of strength—this kind of person is definitely a potential star of the empire. As long as he doesn't die halfway through, he will surely become a pillar of the empire in the future."

After saying that, she left without looking back.

Vlad stood rooted to the spot, his expression completely frozen.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found that he couldn't utter a single word.

Harris, who was standing next to him, hadn't said a word until now, when he finally sighed.

“My Lord Earl, I’ve said it before, that little girl is no ordinary person.”

Vlad turned his head and glared at him.

"What's the use of saying all this now? It's just hindsight."

Harris shook his head, said nothing more, and turned to leave the living room.

Vlad stood alone in the empty living room, looking at the loss statistics document that hadn't been put away on the table. He felt terrible.

"Harris."

"exist."

"Go and prepare some gifts and send them to Sulot's house."

Harris paused for a moment.

"Your Excellency, what brings you here?"

"Repair the relationship."

Vlad gritted his teeth, and when he uttered those two words, his face looked as if he had swallowed a live fly.

"Lord Drummond is right. I can't afford to offend someone like that."

Harris paused for a moment, then nodded.

"Yes, I'll take care of it right away."

Chapter 53 The Unspoken Ending

After arriving at his temporary residence, Drummond immediately used a magical communication device to contact his superiors.

After he infused the communication device with magic, its surface quickly lit up with a pale blue light, which then coalesced into a blurry human face.

This man was none other than Ogre, the Minister of the Imperial Resources Coordination Department.

"Drummond, what's wrong?" Ogre asked sternly.

Drummond immediately recounted everything that had happened that day.

After he finished speaking, there was a long silence on the other side.

"Did you see clearly?"

Ogre's expression turned serious.

"I've seen it clearly, I definitely won't mistake it."

Drummond nodded.

"Minister, how should this matter be handled?"

Drummond asked tentatively.

Ogre paused for a moment, then gave a reply that Drummond hadn't expected.

"You need to collect the money."

Drummond paused for a moment.

"Huh? You'll accept it?"

Ogre answered calmly.

"Yes, we have to accept it."

"If someone brings you the money and you don't accept it, that's disrespectful. If you accept it, the matter is settled, it's an official matter, and no one can say anything about it."

Drummond opened his mouth as if to say something, but then he thought about it again and realized that it really made sense.

"What about that little girl? Should we continue to pursue this matter?"

"Investigate what?"

Ogre rolled his eyes.

"Which law in the Empire states that helping monsters move is a crime? In fact, by sending the monsters away, she is protecting the safety of the local people."

Drummond was speechless.

"But she did cause economic losses to the empire."

Ogre interrupted him.

"So they compensated us."

"We've already accepted the compensation, what else do you want to pursue? That would just be deliberately causing trouble."

Drummond was speechless for a moment.

"Alright, let's do it this way."

Ogre's tone carried a hint of impatience.

"The loss will be deducted from the card, and as for that little girl, just pretend this never happened."

Drummond finally nodded.

"Yes, I understand."

Then the communication was lost.

Drummond immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

He looked down at the purple-gold card on the table and couldn't help but smile bitterly.

Having been an official for so many years, this is the first time I've encountered something like this.

They came here to investigate and hold people accountable, but ended up getting a cold shoulder.

A 12-year-old girl with the empire's top experts standing behind her—that's the source of her confidence.

Drummond put away the purple-gold card, stood up, and walked out of the room.

He had to go and tell Count Vlad.

In the living room, Vlad waited anxiously.

Seeing Drummond walk in, he quickly stood up.

"Lord Drummond, what did they say?"

Drummond glanced at him.

"The higher-ups said that the compensation has been received, but the matter will not be pursued further."