Knights, Let’s Smash Them

31 – The Sneaky Guest (1)

It’s already been a month since Ibona, the head of the Imperial Black Lion Knights, and Petra, the deputy chief administrator, started a journey to find the former administrator who had resigned and fled.

In fact, even at this moment, it was an absurd order to directly search for someone who might be wandering around.

What then?

No matter how much he is the administrative head of the Imperial Knights, he has no choice but to be rude to the head of the inspection department, who has come under the direct control of the imperial family.

Even to her, who has no aptitude for administration, the Black Lion Knights were 5 minutes before the show started.

No, it wasn’t even 5 minutes ago, and it was irrelevant to say that the scandal had already occurred.

Lubern Alroy was handling too many things by himself.

Management of documents of the Order of the Knights.

Inscription treatment.

Writing and sending official documents.

In addition to that, countless other administrative tasks.

Until now, the administrative staff that Lee Bo-na had thought of were, in fact, just hands and feet acting as Luvern Alroy ordered.

Because it was such a perfect job, the staff of the administration ranged from low-level apprentice officers to full-fledged administrators.

I didn’t even have the know-how to build my own work style.

-Officer! This is bureaucratic work! Why can’t you do it?

-Ah…… I just worked according to the manual the Lubern administrator made.

-Well, then, why don’t we look at that manual?

-You didn’t write a manual to deal with this situation.

Lee Bo-na, who had painfully confirmed how the administration had been going so far, was on the verge of going crazy and jumping.

And that goes hand in hand with the ethos of ‘work only as much as you get’, which was spreading throughout the administration.

Lubern Alroy had made the worst possible outcome as soon as it disappeared.

Is it only the administration?

From the next departments, the Strategic Tactics Planning Department, the Finance Department, the Dungeon Management Department, the Logistics Department, and the Training and Education Department.

There was not a single place in Luvern Alroy had not touched.

Still, it’s a shame that he was more of a responsible manager than an administrative manager who was close to dereliction of duty.

It wasn’t an absurd story that the Imperial Black Lion Knights would have been blown up in the air in an instant if they had relied on Luvern Alroy that far.

Because this was real.

Among other departments, the Dungeon Management Department, which was highly dependent on Lubern, is also bursting out just as much as Lee Bo-na’s administration.

‘If I can bring Luvern safely, I will have to retire. I can’t live like this anymore…….’

By the time Lee Bona closed her eyes tightly, she was thinking about getting out of this hell as soon as possible.

“Chief.”

She heard Petra’s voice dragging her back into her reality.

“Uh, yes… ….”

“This estate is the last. If you’re not here, it would mean that you’re wandering with us or outside the empire.”

“Then what should I do?”

“If it doesn’t work, I have to go back. Making an official request to the imperial family and distributing official letters across the country…….”

“Ha ha.”

Yvona let out a sigh as if her ground were about to disappear.

It’s been a month.

She had been wandering aimlessly for a month, and she was really exhausted.

“Okay, if it’s not here, let’s go back. Just…… It might be better to be cut off.”

“Manager…… Relax! You can’t give up just yet!”

“So? What kind of territory is this? Looking at the snowy mountains in the distance, it seems to be in the northern part…….”

Petra opened her mouth to her weakly driven boss.

“It’s the northern outskirts, the Rupel Manor.”

***

The Rupel Manor was a really ugly manor. Of course, it was only a county, and on top of that, there was the Duchy of Hebron, the largest territory in the north and one of the three major dukes of the empire, so it was understandable.

Except for Jarhead, a mining town famous for producing high-quality iron, Ibona had never heard of the name of a city or village in this territory.

Even the capital Petalonto!

In the first place, it is the first time that a territory has such a poor capital.

I visited numerous cities and villages during my one-month journey, and among them there were always cities that were treated as the capital of each province.

The capital of Rupel Territory was not inferior to being called the smallest and poorest-looking capital in the empire.

‘No, how could someone the size of a count not manage things like this?’

However, unlike the poor-looking exterior, a completely different atmosphere unfolded upon entering the city.

A lively downtown.

Children were running around with bright faces on the streets, and the owners of shops opened here and there were chatting with the residents with a smile.

Is it that the domestic demand is solid because it is in the northern region, where exchanges with other cities and territories are difficult?

Frighteningly for Petra, who has a bit of a knack for economy, to think of such a thing, a procession of giant troupes wearing the familiar troupe flags appeared on the other side of the street.

A top gear with a blue dragon on it.

“That’s the Blue Dragon Transcontinental Convoy, isn’t it?”

“Oh, really?”

I know that the upper ranks haven’t signed a contract with the Knights of the Black Lion lately, right?

Even with a certain young merchant—a man whose attire looked like an alchemist, the person in charge of the transaction was none other than the head of the convoy.

Such a tycoon would set his face in such a poor town? For what reason?

Petra was confused. This place was very different from the Rupel estate she had imagined.

There is only one reason why she came to Rupel Manor.

It was because one day, Lubern Alroy passed by a story that said, ‘I heard that the Lupel estate in the north sells amazing beer~’.

A manor with such an unusual atmosphere…….

I thought maybe Lubern Alroy might really be living here.

The beer is delicious.

The locals are friendly.

A place where an unknown warmth exists.

Still, three years had passed since we had worked together.

To that extent, Petra could confidently say that she knew quite a bit about the character of Lubern Eilroy.

And Petra’s her intuition.

“Lubern Alroy? Ah! What a wonderful person you are! You completely turned the city upside down?”

“That, that person!! Where are you now!?”

“Probably because you’ve been in Tiffen Village the past few weeks. I will still be there.”

Anyway, it seemed to hit the mark.

‘I’m sorry you didn’t tell me where you were going. That’s not what I expected, magistrate.’

***

“What, what is this place…… ? Why are there so many different races? I think the ratio is higher than the capital of the empire?”

As heard in Petalonto, the two women of the Black Lion Knights were finally able to reach the town of Tiffen.

A humble village in the outskirts of the county.

It was questionable why Luvern Alroy was staying here, but Petra was able to figure out the reason right away.

Obviously it was shown as a small town on the map.

It was because the present town of Tiffen was a bustling town where all sorts of small and medium sized merchants came and went to the elven wandering troupe and the dwarf smithy.

And above all.

“Goblins live with humans?”

“Geruk, guest, guest! New people come this way!”

Two goblins standing guard at the entrance, holding small wooden spears, approached Ivona and Petra slowly.

The two of them were nervous that they might attack, but the goblin guided them into the village with a very friendly beckoning gesture.

“Welcome. Welcome to Tiffen Village, where life and species live and breathe.”

The place the goblins led to was a snack stand. When a middle-aged man with a sad look greeted them, Petra had the feeling that she was dreaming.

“I would appreciate it if you could write your name, occupation, and business on this piece of paper.”

“Do I really have to pay attention to those things when entering and leaving the village?”

“Since there are a lot of different races, it was ordered by the knight commander of our county as a protective measure…… We ask for your understanding even if it is cumbersome.”

“The Commander of the Knights? Who the hell is that person…….”

Before Yvona, who was already completely exhausted and had no intention of doing such a chore, blurted out her words.

Petra stabbed her in the side.

“How did you know it was an order from the Lubern Magistrate?”

“Ah.”

“I think it’s better not to make a fuss, boss.”

“Okay…”

As Ivona’s spirits waned, Petra pulled out from her arms her mark proving that she was a member of the Imperial Black Lion Knights and showed it to her.

“Hello, we are Petra and Yvona from the Imperial Black Lion Knights. I heard that the former chief magistrate of Lubern Ayloy is in the town.”

“Ah! The Black Lion Knights! Were you an acquaintance of the Luverne magistrate? Tell me in advance…… !”

As soon as he identified himself, the middle-aged man jumped up from his seat and burst into laughter.

“As expected, he is from the best knights in the empire. Our village owes so much!”

“Yes, yes…… ?”

“You made this small rural town to develop this far, isn’t it natural? Big Eater, Three Eater! They are valuable guests. Please guide them to the village chief.”

“Okay!!”

“Follow me!”

The goblins, called Gluttony and Three-Eat, worked closely together to take Ivona and Petra further into the village.

I can’t fully accept this sight now.

The inside of the village was more spectacle.

“In the northern season when the refreshing wind blows, goblins have come down to the small village where the sun goddess is beating down.”

The elven minstrels were gathered in the plaza and playing with their respective instruments.

Aren’t the goblins dancing and playing with children in front of it?

Kang! Kang!

And on the other side, a dwarf artisan was processing a mountain of gold ore.

Beside him, a lizardman scholar was enjoying a date holding hands with a person who seemed to be a mercenary who was a cat beast.

What a terrible hybrid is this?

No matter how multiracial it is, it is said to be the capital of an empire, but Petra was the first to see all races mixed together in this way.

Of course, I was flustered for a while.

“Nice to meet you! My name is Ronz! A person who dreams of becoming the strongest knight on earth!”

A muscular knight appeared after hearing that there was a guest from the Black Lion Knights.

I wasn’t sure if this man, wearing only shorts, let alone armor, and exposing his upper body was really a knight.

He disappeared, saying that he would call in the Luvern Administrator Alroy soon.

Lonz reappeared shortly after, squealing.

“Breaking News! Trot!! The captain and the magistrate have a child!!”

“Hey!! Ronz!! It’s not like that!!”

“No way, let’s shoot!!”

A few people followed.

“Magic Missile!!”

“Cheer!!”

A ray of mana extends from the hand of a man with impressive sky blue hair and strikes the muscular man’s body.

“It was the perfect suppressive shot.”

“My mouth hurts when I say it twice.”

“Admin!! Sir Pirhak!! No matter what, what if we use magic on our knight!?”

“It’s okay, I won’t die.”

Petra immediately responds to the voice she missed because she wasn’t used to it.

But.

There was no Luvern Alroy that she had known until now.

There was a girl clinging tightly next to the former chief administrator’s hand.

Black eyes that look exactly like Luvern.

And a blonde woman who “Appears to be his wife” Guarding the magistrate’s side.

“…… Uh?”

“Petra? What happened all of a sudden…… “

The moment she witnessed the scene, something suddenly exploded in Petra’s mind.

“hahahaha, magistrate…… Were you married? Besides, such a big kid……. Then, every time you said you were on vacation, you went to see your daughter!?!?!”

“Yes? No, it’s not like that…….”

As it was clear that she had a misunderstanding, Lu Bern quickly came up with an explanation.

She didn’t hear anything about her.

In the end, Petra shouted at Lubern, even shedding her tears.

“You traitor!! I was the only one who was serious until now!!”

For a while, whenever she recalled this memory, her blanket would not come out.