"Isn't it a miracle that we, commoners, learned to write in the first place? You should be proud that we read that far."
"Haha, the teachers had a hard time."
"What trouble? It was fun to get excited, so we joked around a few times, but then everyone quit. Because of that, we learned to read from General Nemeseus. I was scared."
"So only our knights are going? Without the Count?"
The conversation, which had been flowing as a stream of consciousness, instantly returned to its original state.
This type of conversation was a characteristic of the Lofty Knights. It was nothing new.
Cleter answered with a sigh.
"Okay."
"Why?"
"How do I know that?"
The pathetic look in his eyes immediately fell. He mumbled something about being hurt and walked away, and then silence came.
Cleter, who had been thinking deeply, suddenly looked around at his colleagues as the silence became longer than expected.
He appeared to be sitting calmly, which was rare, as if he was thinking deeply.
"...I'm drooling."[1]
"Use it."
Okay, what do you expect from these guys? You'll be lucky if you don't get into an accident.
In the end, it was this side that played the role of fortune-telling.
"First of all, the reason only our knights are going is because there is a border nearby."
It was rare to go out to subdue a monster with only one knight corps.
It was natural that the number of knights operating increased as the number of monsters to be subdued increases, and usually there were at least 2 to 3 knights on average, so in that sense, if it were a normal knights corps, this subjugation could have been a little dangerous...
Cleter chuckled.
That was just the case of a general knighthood.
'As long as monsters have feelings, there's no need to worry.'
Even if they couldn't kill them all, they could probably chase them away.
In that case, all that remained was the Count.
Considering the Count's personality, he would have definitely wanted to go with them. It must have been quite frustrating since it had been a while since he had seen blood and he lived in his office all day.
Such a great escape route had appeared before the eyes of such a person, so why did he not take it?
Just as he was about to seriously think about it, he heard a voice striking a candle.
"Why is that?"
Cleter's eyebrows furrowed.
He said these people were stupid, but they seem to have become twice as stupid.
Would it have been that difficult to say that only one knight corps could move because there was a border nearby?
"What do you think it will be like for the opposing kingdom if several knights rush in as if they are subduing ordinary monsters?"
"What are you doing, you idiot? I know that much, right? That's not what I'm saying. What's the problem with only our knights going? The Count even went alone."
"Oh, that? I heard that he led the army of a nearby lord to subdue them, so strictly speaking, he was not alone. And that's not what's important right now. The Count..."
"He isn't going with us? I think I know why."
A familiar voice intervened.
When he turned his head to find the source, Milan raised his hand.
It looks like he got beaten up a lot, so he looked like a mess.
Even if it was just dirt on your clothes, shake it off. Even though it was white, it stands out easily.
While thinking about this, Cleter paid attention to what he said instead of fussing over other people's clothes.
"You think you understand? What?"
"When I visited the office before, it was filled to the floor with documents. It looks like there's quite a bit of work behind him."
"In other words, he's so busy that he doesn't even have the energy to go out on a raid?"
"Oh my god."
"Why do I feel sorry for our Count..."
There was a stir among the members.
Come to think of it, they heard he fainted recently with a nosebleed. It seems like it was all due to the overload of processing the backlog of documents.
The moment he thought about it, the same thought appeared in the minds of all members.
"As expected, we should take the Count with us to the subjugation."
"Do you think we are the only ones who can rescue the Count?"
"The doctor also told him to be careful of fatigue and stress."
"Stress... after all, defeating monsters is the answer."
"Wouldn't the fatigue go away after defeating monsters? Not long ago, when the Count went on a raid alone, he came back with a very shiny face. Honestly, no one could tell that his face was completely relieved of fatigue, right?"
The Murderous Knights loved Deon Hardt.
He was respected as a superior, a benefactor who saved his life on the battlefield, and a great commander who not only did not discriminate against commoners based on their status, but also tried to avoid losing them as much as possible. How could they not like him?
Therefore, when they heard that he had collapsed, they were quite surprised, even though they did not show it.
Due to the nature of his weak body, it was greedy to hope that something like this would never happen again, but the knights, who hoped to reduce the number of incidents as much as possible, sought the best method in their own way, and the result was the current situation.
"Let's go! To harass the Count!"
For the Count's sake, they must take him to defeat monsters!
Men dressed in white knightly uniforms rushed towards the office with solemn expressions. A Count's knight, who was walking shakily carrying stomach medicine, happened to witness this scene and dropped the medicine bottle.
"What are you planning to do again..."
***
After making the decision to send the murderous knights to subjugate monsters, I was going about my work in a much more relaxed mood.
It felt like I could breathe again knowing that those crazy dogs had finally disappeared before my eyes.
It was a bit uneasy because the location is near the border, but they'll figure it out. They're not idiots who can't tell the difference.
"Count? Is there a problem?"
"Oh no. I'm fine."
I guess I've roughly solved the biggest problem. I was discussing the 'settlement' with the butler Remember.
Yes, about that bastard who quickly let the enemy know that I was back and had them attacked when I went to the imperial palace. There's no way we could just leave that bastard alone.
However, it was not possible to completely destroy all the users, and we have to filter them out in an efficient way with as little damage as possible...
"Count!"
"We can't subdue them by ourselves!!"
"Let's go together!"
Those who I wanted to go away quickly came in.
What are you guys doing? Where should we go together?
The pen in my hand fell out. As if this situation was quite interesting, Remember's eyes wrinkled with friendly wrinkles.
With a devastated face, I looked at the guys who proudly occupied one side of the office.
Are you rebelling against me sending you to a dangerous place?
Are you really asking me to go with you to kill me? Are you planning to wipe me out as soon as you arrive at the subjugation area?
"Exactly... it's not just you. Sir Lien will also go with you, right?"
"Isn't Sir Lien also a member of our knighthood? 'Just us' is correct!"
What the hell. There are always times when people say, "It's a stone."
Of course, it was only meant to be a joke and they did not truly ignore or despise her, but it was these guys who treated Sir Lien like an outsider.
I was unable to continue speaking due to the absurdity, but Remember, who had been observing the situation, slowly walked out.
"It's presumptuous to meddle, but please think of it as just the nonsense of an old man and listen to it. Why don't you go?"
"...Me?"
"Yes, this old man has been bothering the Count a lot for the past week. This is my apology for that, so please think of it as a short vacation."
If you apologize, doesn't that usually mean I have to do something I like...?
It's so absurd that I didn't even know what kind of expression I was making anymore.
Remember spoke with a serious smile on his face, as if my ambiguous feelings were reflected on it.
"Your doctor also told you to watch out for fatigue and stress, so shouldn't you take a break at least once in the middle of the day?"
Yes, I should 'rest'.
Slaying monsters was not a rest, it was 'work' of extreme difficulty!
Wasn't it common sense that both 'fatigue' and 'stress' accumulate after defeating monsters?
I also fell into that 'normal' range, so how on earth are you looking at me to say something like that?
"When the Count returned from defeating monsters alone not long ago, didn't he come back with a bright smile on his face? The dark shadows under his eyes had also disappeared. I couldn't tell you, but this old man was very surprised."
"Oh, that's..."
That's because I rested well in the demon realm.
There, I just lounge around all day without doing any paperwork or anything, so of course my dark circles disappeared.
Ah, thinking about it made me want to go to the demon realm again. There, I was just mentally tired, but here, my body was tired as well, so it was driving me crazy.
Well, if I went there, I would miss the human world again.
"It's overdue anyway. It won't be noticeable if you push further, so go with peace of mind. I will organize the documents to the best of my ability."
"That's..."
"That's right, Count! Let's go together!!"
"So..."
I don't want to go.
That's not the reason why my face is so bright.
But if I say that, I'll have to explain why the dark circles disappeared and I'll inevitably end up in a corner.
In the end, I had no choice. Remember's added words were the final blow.
"If the Count moves, the guy hiding in the Count's mansion will also move along. This old man will definitely catch him, so you can just enjoy it."
"Okay..."
What can I say when he says he's going to catch a traitor? There was no reason to object.
In the end, I said yes in a dying voice, and now.
"Count! I see a monster over there!"
"...Okay..."
"Let's kill it!"
"Where did you learn to rush in so recklessly without orders from your superiors?! Can't we sort it out right away!"
"Cluck, cluck, cluck... Captain..."
"It's not the Captain, it's 'Count.'"
Where am I. Who am I.
Why am I in this dangerous place with crazy people?
Meanwhile, Sir Lien was controlling these crazy dogs as surely as a ray of light.
Come to think of it, this was the reason Sir Lien came.
At first, Milan, who was the best fighter out of all of them, was put in the leader's position, but as soon as the guy who was supposed to lead the team saw the enemy, without saying a word, he ran to the front, shouting loudly.
So next, we put the calmest one, Cleter, in the position of leader.
"Hey guys, can you see the enemy over there? Then let's go! Charge!"
I realized. That guy wasn't calm, he just looked calm.
In the end, that guy was just one of those crazy dogs.
They think you are in command if you just shout 'charge'.
I should never choose a leader among these guys. If I did that, they'd be ruined. It will definitely fail.
The person who came thus was none other than Lien Reiner.
She had enough skills to officially join a good knighthood. I just felt sorry for her stuck with this lot.
So, like a mother who raised her child incorrectly, I always kept an eye on Sir Lien's feelings, but these bad guys didn't even know what I was thinking and just talked back and caused accidents.
It was even like that today.
"I don't know if it's recklessness, but the Count taught me how to rush at the enemy..."
"That's right, he said to rush at all costs."
"Didn't he say that you should become a crazy person that even crazy people don't like?"
Plus, a frame-up!
When did I say that?! I allowed you to stay at my mansion, and this is how you repay the favor?
I glanced at Sir Lien's gaze. I'm sure it's not a misunderstanding.
Anyone could see that her face looks tired.
'Damn it...'
That can't be possible. I definitely misunderstood.
What if she decided to quit being a knight commander? At least because of her, those guys can be controlled.
I was anxious that this might actually lead to her resignation, so I quickly tried to explain.
"I..."
"I didn't mean to insult the Count. Sorry."
Before I could say anything properly, a sincere apology came rushing in.
No, was there no assumption that I would not have taught that in the first place? What about the assumption that it was a frame-up by those bastards?
I was left speechless by the firm eyes without the slightest doubt.
[1] Here is probably a mistranslation but I have no idea what it's supposed to say. I've left it in so you can interpret it how you want.