After the incident in the back alley, Lucy and I returned to the barracks for
the officers.
Before this, I was told by Lucy that her legs and feet had gotten weak, so I
had to carry her in what is commonly called a princess carry back in my
world, also with the fact that giving a piggy-back ride to a noble is just too
shameful.
We passed by other officers and got some strange looks on the way, but we
didn't get stopped.
I only realized the problem the next day, after taking some urgent
documents to Lucy's office.
"...How in the world did this happen?"
Right now, Lucy is sitting in front of me, eating her breakfast.
"What's the matter, Yuushin? Don't you have an appetite?"
Her appearance is tidy, from her hair to her shoes, and there was no trace of
the disheveled appearance she had yesterday in the back alleys of the city.
As expected of an aristocrat, she is thoroughly groomed.
However, if you look around, it's the same for everyone.
After all, we are in a dining hall for noble officers.
Everyone seated here is moving the dishes with graceful movements.
I even saw some of them working their adjutants as if they were servants.
As for why I find it a problem, although this is only my speculations,
almost all of the adjutants eating in this place, together with their noble
commanders, are either sons or daughters of noble families.
The thought of this made me stiff and prevented me from having an
appetite.
"It's nothing, Lady Finlay. You're going back to your parents' house today
to inherit your title, aren't you?'
Yes, from now on, she will officially inherit the title of Baron Finlay at her
parents' home.
It's not unusual for a woman to take over a title in this world, and I even
heard that things are progressing smoothly for Lucy.
"Yes, I suppose so. I've heard that a messenger is coming from my uncle, so
we have to be polite to him."
"Uncle? The aristocracy seems to have more relatives than I thought."
Then again, this is a ceremony between aristocrats who are particular about
their prestige and pride.
As such, even though Lucy is the lowest in terms of noble title, she still has
to work hard as a host. If you are abl e to r ead th is mess age, you ar e read
ing from an unaut hori zed ag gre gate site. Re ad at my Wor dPress at stabb
ing wit h a syr ing e. ho me. bl og to sup po rt me and my tr anslat ions.
Even if the guest is way higher in rank than her.
"Oh, by the way, I haven't told Yuushin yet, have I?"
"What is it?"
I was just about to start on my breakfast when Lucy thought of something,
which I had to put down the dishes once again to listen.
"My uncle is Marquess Krall, the lord of this city of Krasland."
"Wha..."
I instantly froze when Lucy said it as if it wasof nothing trivial.
"Lucy is the niece of Marquis Krall, the lord of this city?"
I was unable to move from the shocking information, but Lucy continued
with her story.
"My mother is one of Marquis Krall's sisters. But, then again, Marquis
Krall has a lot of siblings, so this is not uncommon, and he has quite the
number of relatives outside as well."
"How many siblings does he have?"
That was the first thing I asked when my mind finally rebooted.
"Twelve. Some of them are married in other countries, but most of them are
in this city. In addition, his only son, Count Luke, has long established
himself in the military and is said to have already prepared for the
succession."
The Count... the one who was leading the cavalry troops at that time?
That is the unit that was active in the first battle I saw when I came to this
world.
With so much success, he is no doubt going to be popular.
"So he has many relatives to help out and his successor is doing well?
That's a solid foundation."
That being said, it is also fortunate that Lucy is a bloodline linked to
Marquis Krall.
As long as she is in this city, being a relative of a marquis is an advantage
that cannot be equated by a simple title.
"Thank you for sharing this information with me. It has given me a lot to
think about."
I bowed my head as I said frankly.
However, ever since the 'bribe incident', it was unknown if her trust in me
had plummeted, but Lucy has been questioning me on my every move ever
since.
Just like now.
"Yuushin, are you thinking of something suspicious again? Before you start
anything, please say something to me first."
"Of course, Ma'am. I'll make sure to report to you from here on."
I nodded at the moment, but Lucy didn't shake her suspicions.
I don't want to get on the wrong side of her, so I will report what I can.
However, due to the nature of what I want to do, many areas still must be
kept secret.
I guess I'll have to convince Lucy of that. After all, it is also for her own
safety.
"Curiosity kills the cat," as they say.
"Mou~"
Lucy let out a sigh, but she went to her breakfast again since she had no
other choice.
I also picked up my knife and fork again and began to eat.
Afterward, Lucy and I had a friendly chat about what happened when we
were in the city, and I successfully got her back into a good mood.
But I hadn't realized it yet.
That there was another presence looking at us with a sharp and unfriendly
gaze.
◆ ◆
A quick glance at that person and most people would immediately
understand that the person is an aristocrat.
If that's not sufficient for them, she also had a matching haughty gaze that
seemed to look down on others and two 'leftenants' waiting behind her like
servants.
Even though she is of the same age as Lucy, the woman had already
developed a complete awareness of being a person of superiority.
Her name is Krone. She is the only daughter of Viscount Karl, which
belonged to one of the houses that produced many of the military's brains
and chief strategists.
She is a daughter of an elite family, so to speak, but she is still a 'lowly
commander' of a frontline unit, or so what she viewed her position as.
"Hmph, having a leisurely breakfast with a commoner adjutant. Doesn't she
have any common sense?" T his ch apt er tran sla tion is ma de pos si ble by
sta bbing wi h a syri nge tran slatio ns. check only u p-to-d a te tran slat ions
on my Wor dp ress s ite.
Krone muttered while observing the woman from the far seat with disdain.
"Well, nominally, she can eat with her adjutant, but even I don't think it is a
good idea to share a table with a commoner."
"Lady Krone couldn't have said it any better. But, that woman, she seems to
be the daughter of Baron Finlay. And just the other day, I heard the news
that her forces managed to crush the force of five hundred with only a
hundred men."
The two men behind her also reacted to the murmur.
These two 'leftenants' attached to Krone are both sons of noble families.
However, they are born from concubines, so they are treated much less well
than the main wives' children.
Nevertheless, it is still appropriate for them to get a job in a store in town
through their parents' connections or become the adjutant of another noble
commander, just like they are now.
"Hmmm, they just got a stroke of luck. Speaking of the Finlay's, I heard
that the head of their family got killed in battle not long ago."
She spoke in a tone that lacked respect to those who died in battle.
However, this isn't as if she is merciless. It is because she is trained this
way by her father, who is also one of the chiefs of staff in the military.
Deaths in battle are just numbers, or so he would say to her.
"Having a so-called honorable death on the battlefield is not what a
commander should do. On the contrary, his death shows his incompetence.
And those who refute this fact and charge in the frontlines "for glory" are
considered as fools."
Krone then gave Lucy a condescending look.
If it had ended with this, it would just be a one-sided taunt, but the
following words of one of the leftenants changed everything.
"...Speaking of which, I saw her enter the chief commander's office
yesterday. Probably concerning the defensive battle."
"What, in the chief commander's office? Even I haven't been in that place
in my life!"
While she had participated in several actual battles before, Lucy had always
been placed in a safe position by her father.
Because of this, she hadn't been blessed with the opportunity to fight
monsters directly and hadn't achieved any notable results.
From her father's point of view, if she continued on this path for a few
years, she could just take the exam to become a general staff and she'd be in
a safe zone for the rest of her life.
For her father, it would be foolishness to let her to go out into dangerous
places, considering her fear of monsters at that time.
Krone thought the same, but when she found out that this girl around her
age had achieved greater battle results than her to the point of meeting with
the chief commander personally, her thoughts changed.
This was unforgivable, even more so for a woman like her with strong selfesteem.
"...getting audacious there, are we? Let's crush them."
The two deputies' expressions hardened at her words.
Because they knew that no one in Krone's unit would ever be safe once
they got her attention.
"Do some research on the girl."
Krone ordered her adjutant. After that, she relished the dessert that had been
brought to her gracefully, all while watching at the duo with a curious gaze.