The night we arrived at the fort after escorting the transport unit, Lucy and I
had a meeting with the overall person in charge of the fort.
Leaving the troops in the hands of the chief retainer old man who is also our
second-in-command, we head for the garrison commander, Legit.
He will be the one who will set up our meeting with the fort commander.
While we were waiting inside the fort's waiting room, the garrison
commander arrived with his men.
"Excuse me, did I keep you waiting?"
"No, not at all. We just got here."
Lucy said and continued to ask questions.
"Is the fort commander now ready to meet us?"
"Yes. I told them about you, and they wanted to see you right away."
I'm sure this chief has heard about Lucy as well.
If they know that we are a powerful force, they will not take us lightly.
But then, the commander of the garrison approached and advised me in a
whisper.
"If possible, Mr. Adjutant, I would like you to keep an eye on Viscount
Finlay."
"That's what I was going to do from the beginning, but what's the
problem?"
Then he continued to speak, though he seemed reluctant to say so.
"The commander is actually quite fond of women, and he also holds the
rank of Count, so if something should happen, he will…"
His words made me tense up.
I became afraid that, at worst, he might use his military and nobility ranks
to do something bad to Lucy.
"I understand. I'll make sure to keep him in check."
"Y-you sure? I apologize, but you don't look like a nobleman…."
"I don't, but Lady Finlay has many contacts I can use."
Then I move away from him and go to Lucy.
Apparently, the subordinate he brought along will guide us.
Soon, we were brought to the fort commander's office.
A large chair swiveled toward us behind the desk when we entered.
Seated in the chair was a man with a physique as large as their chair itself.
He was a middle-aged man with a large, protruding belly and a balding
head.
From the insignia on his clothing, he appeared to be the commander in
charge of the fort. If you ar e ab l e to re a d this mes sage , y ou are rea d
ing from an unau th ori zed agg r eg ate si te. Rea d at my Word Pr ess at sta
b b ing wi th a syr in ge. ho me. b log to su pp ort me and my tr ans latio ns.
He looked like he was up to some mischief, but Lucy stepped forward
without fear.
"Fort Commander, thank you for granting us the opportunity to meet with
you today. I am Finlay, and I was tasked to be the escort for the Transport
Unit just recently."
The commander responded to her greeting with a beaming expression.
"I have heard about your success in Krasland. I am Margaux, the man in
charge of this fort."
"I was just lucky. I am still a greenhorn in many affairs."
"Hahaha, you don't have to be so humble. Even I want to hear the tales of
your heroic deeds as well."
With these words, he advances his seat to Lucy.
I was about to sit back behind her on the couch, but then he called out to
me.
"Mhmm, what are you… ah, her adjutant. I would like to speak with
Viscount Finlay alone. You wait outside."
There you go. The garrison commander was right.
But I also had a talk with Lucy before I came here.
"I'm sorry, fort commander, but I'm still on duty, and I need my adjutant by
my side in case of an emergency."
Lucy interrupted the fort commander and me.
"But we are in a fortress. If the enemy comes, the outer wall will stop
them."
"The fort commander seems confident about the fort's defenses. But I also
have full confidence in his abilities, which is why I let him follow me
everywhere."
"Hmmm, I see…"
I can see that he is hiding a look of abhorrence on his face.
I bow once to him and stand back behind Lucy trying to be as
expressionless as I can be.
"Oh, well. Let's hear about what happened in Krasland anyway."
He cleared his throat as if to compose himself and sat down on the sofa
facing Lucy.
The two talked for a while, but then Lucy switched gears.
"Speaking of which, what kind of stuff was in the shipment we brought
today? I was so focused on the escort mission that I didn't have time to get
to know what was in the wagons."
"Oh, the shipment. Mainly foodstuffs, equipment repair tools, and a few
luxury items."
"Oh, you mean like booze and cigarettes?"
We already knew, but Lucy pretended she didn't know and waited for the
other party to show their tail.
"This fort is too far from Krasland. We have no choice but to maintain the
morale of our soldiers, which is always utterly horrific."
His words overflowed with hatred as he wondered why he even had to care
for the soldiers' wellbeing.
"The morale of the soldiers is very important. If they are not motivated
when the time comes… it will be too late to even talk about it…."
"I know that, but I can't help it. It would be great if we could make soldiers
out of golems that those of the Demon Race make or something…"
Golems. Anastasia told me about it.
Depending on the material, they can be more powerful and fearless than
ordinary soldiers.
On the other hand, they are not dexterous and will need support to be fully
effective.
"It can't be helped if you ask for something you don't have. Come to think
of it, I heard from the soldiers…"
"What is it?"
"Actually, I heard that the fort commander is reluctant to give these luxury
items to the soldiers?"
"…what a stupid thing. Who started it?"
There was anger in the fort commander's voice.
It seems that there is no doubt that he is hiding something.
"I heard from a good number of soldiers, including the garrison
commander."
"Then those soldiers are trying to deceive you!"
The general knocks on the desk and raises his voice.
"I'm doing my best to protect this fortress. It is just that some people seem
to disagree with my terms."
The fort commander's anger was still unchecked.
Lucy pushed through the middle of it.
"So, where is the last shipment of luxury goods that was sent here? The
warehouse was almost empty."
"Oh, that's…"
Lucy's question stifled the general.
Yes, the warehouse the soldiers visited before replenishing their rations was
almost empty. This cha pte r tran sl ati on is mad e po ssib le by st abb ing
with a sy ri nge tran slat io ns. Ch eck on ly up-to -d ate tra nsl at ions on
my Wo rdp r ess s ite.
"Where did all the 'goodies' that the general didn't provide for the soldiers
go?"
"By the way, fort commander, you have a very impressive physique. I
wonder if the food provided here would be enough to make you that big?"
"You, you…"
The fort commander finally made a clenched fist and began to tremble.
In short, Lucy believes that they are misappropriating luxury goods and
using the money to lavishly indulge in their pleasures.
Although the population of Krasland has increased and production capacity
has risen, it is still difficult to obtain luxury goods and other items.
In addition, the quality of the products delivered to the military is above
average, so they will guarantee to fetch a good price if they are sold to the
market.
Lucy stares straight ahead as if observing the fort commander's expression.
But the man, after catching his breath, retorts.
"Well, in the end, that's your own assumption. I discarded all the luxury
items I received last time."
Indeed, we don't have physical evidence to confirm that the accused fort
commander's statement is false.
Even though it is frustrating, we can only bear this negligence.
"If you want to accuse me, go ahead. But to do so, you will need evidence
and witnesses."
The fort commander, who had regained his composure, chuckled.
"…I see, I understand."
Since she can't step in any further, Lucy has no choice but to withdraw.
"You're wise not to stick your neck into unnecessary things from the
beginning."
The fort commander triumphantly rises from the sofa and sits at his office
desk.
"This fortress is my field, so don't think you can do whatever you want. I'll
keep a watchful eye on you until you return tomorrow morning."
Immediately after the fort commander said so, an explosion was heard
outside the building containing this office.
"Wha, what!?"
This surprised even the fort commander, who had regained his composure
until now.
The fact that he was surprised means that it was completely unexpected.
At the same time, an alarm rang out in the building. It was a sound we had
heard many times before.
It was the attack of monsters. And a sign that they have broken through the
fort.