If the princess was left unchecked like this, who knew how much she’d interfere with his work? However, there wasn’t an easy way to deal with her.
‘Wait a minute.’
The 4th Knight Commander, who had been leaning back in his chair, suddenly sat up straight.
‘Then, why don’t I create a situation where the princess will leave voluntarily?’
For example, causing a major problem that would be blamed on the Azure Dawn Knights!
No matter how much the Administrative Officer pretended to be competent, she’d been raised comfortably in the palace all her life.
If she were given a task she couldn’t handle, she’d be frustrated enough to abandon her duties and leave.
‘Come to think of it, there’s that barrier stone replacement task, isn’t there?’
The 4th Knight Order Commander’s eyes gleamed wickedly.
If the barrier stone weren’t replaced on time, the barrier sealing the portal would loosen.
Naturally, if you’re unlucky, a monster or two might pop out.
But.
‘Aren’t those monster bastards of the Azure Dawn Knights already there to handle it?’
Since the Azure Dawn Knights had already cleaned up after them several times, the 4th Knight Commander thought confidently this time as well.
‘What if I deliberately let monsters escape?’
Since it would be easy for them to deal with one or two monsters, it would be better to escalate things a bit.
And if I can pin the blame for the monsters’ escape on the Azure Dawn Knights…
The 4th Knight Commander twisted the corner of his lips.
His face was full of a sinister expression.
‘Honestly, how would she even know?’
After all, isn’t the princess just a delicately raised young lady?
She won’t even come near the outpost where the portal guard duty is being done, so it will
be difficult to refute the fabricated evidence.
Plus, Administrative Officers typically don’t accompany the portal guard missions, so the princess’ safety would be ensured.
As a bonus, I can also get back at that annoying Giscard who always acts so high and mighty.
‘Good.’
The smile on his lips grew a little wider.
The 4th Knight Commander opened his mouth loudly.
“Is anyone there?”
After a while.
The door opened, and a knight bowed his head politely.
“Did you call for me, Knight Commander?”
“There are guys who are on the guard duty right now, right? Contact them.”
The 4th Knight Commander continued in a cheerful tone.
“Tell them to postpone this barrier stone replacement just a little.”
At that, the knight’s eyes gleamed wickedly.
“By that, you mean…”
“Exactly.”
The Knight Commander whispered softly.
His voice was quite sinister.
“Let’s teach those monster bastards a lesson.”
* * *
“Haaaaa…”
Cassia let out a deep sigh from the bottom of her chest as she stood before the quarters that looked like they might collapse at any moment.
“Really, I knew it would be like this…”
Cassia was currently standing at an outpost that carried out portal guard duties.
Two knight’s quarters were built on the same property, facing each other.
Unlike the well-maintained and clean quarters of the 4th Knight Order, the Azure Dawn Knights’ quarters were practically a ruin…
‘This place could easily pass for a haunted house’
Cassia frowned deeply.
Just then,
“Ow, my back.”
A knight who had gotten off the wagon groaned, patting his back.
Cassia, who had turned over unconsciously, clicked her tongue inwardly.
‘He’s such a pain, really.’
That man was none other than the commander of the 4th Knight Order.
It was already unsightly that he was the only one riding in a wagon while all the other knights were riding their own horses.
The sight of him only caring about his own comfort was infuriating.
‘With him like that, the horses carrying the supplies must be even more exhausted.’
As if sensing her cold gaze, the commander of the 4th Knight Order glanced back at Cassia.
Their eyes met.
“……”
“……”
Silence fell.
The commander of the 4th Knight Order froze in place.
‘Wait a minute. Why is the princess here?!’
He was silently shocked.
Cold sweat ran down his spine.
It didn’t matter when there were only the Azure Dawn Knights, but things were different with the princess present.
If the seal of the portal were to loosen and a monster were to escape…
‘The princess would witness the portal’s problem firsthand!’
When there were only the Azure Dawn Knights, he could easily shift the blame onto those monster bastards.
But this strict princess was different.
She might insist on checking the problem herself.
And if she were to get hurt in the process…
‘Damn it.’
The commander of the 4th Knight Order cursed silently.
‘This situation is getting out of hand!’
Quite some time had passed since he ordered the knights to wait without replacing the barrier stone.
Even now, it was long past time to replace the barrier stone.
‘Why couldn’t that woman just stay where she belongs in the rear, like a proper lady?!’
He ground his teeth in frustration.
‘Why did she have to follow all the way to the forward base and mess things up?!’
Since things had turned out this way, he would have to cancel the plan to intentionally loosen the seal.
It seemed like he would need to discreetly send a knight to fix the situation.
The barrier stone had to be replaced as soon as possible, before the seal weakened any further!
With that decision, the commander of the 4th Knight Order quickly scanned his surroundings.
‘Who should I assign this task to?’
As his urgent gaze scanned the faces of the knights,
The deputy commander happened to pass by the commander, carrying a load on his shoulder.
Unlike the commander who was staying behind under the pretext of supervision, the deputy commander was helping the other knights unload the supplies from the wagon.
“Can’t you move any faster?!”
The commander vented his anger on the deputy commander who happened to be in sight.
“You want the sun to set on us, huh?!”
“Commander of the 4th Knight Order.”
Unable to watch any longer, Giscard spoke up, reprimanding the Commander.
“If I were you, instead of standing here worrying about the sun setting, I would be helping to move the supplies.”
“……”
He was hit right on the mark.
The commander’s face turned red.
Regardless, Giscard shrugged his shoulders smugly while carrying a full load on both arms.
“That way, the work will be done much faster, don’t you think?”
Unlike the commander who was idling, Giscard had been helping the knights with the supplies from the beginning.
After reprimanding him, Giscard walked away with brisk steps.
The 4th Knight Order commander watched Giscard’s retreating back with resentful eyes.
‘Well, well, our male lead is finally learning to give satisfying retorts.’
Meanwhile, Cassia, who was watching the scene, had a face that seemed like she was about to die from schadenfreude.
That’s right, you should speak your mind.
It would be a disaster if our future savior were to fall ill from pent-up anger, right?
Casia, who was giggling inwardly, approached Giscard with quick steps.
“Commander.”
“What is it, Astrid, the administrative officer?”
Giscard glanced at Cassia.
Cassia smiled brightly.
“Could you take care of sorting the supplies? I’m going to take a look around the quarters.”
It was clear from one look that the place was ready to host a haunted house event, but she needed to check for areas that needed repair.
‘I’d love to just tear the whole thing down and build it again. But….’
Cassia thought with a sullen expression.
‘Since the knights would have nowhere to go in the meantime, that idea’s out.’
Giscard nodded.
“Sure, no problem.”
At his straightforward answer, Cassia’s eyes widened.
She burst into a short laugh.
“Hehe.”
If it had been the old Giscard, he would have been wary of what Cassia was saying.
Now, he no longer doubted Cassia’s intentions.
He trusted Cassia’s goodwill.
And Cassia…
‘I’m happy.’
She was overjoyed at the fact.
Meanwhile, Giscard looked down at Cassia with slightly narrowed eyes.
“…Why are you smiling like that?”
“Hmm, it’s a secret.”
Cassia’s smile grew a little deeper.
Then.
“Anyway, don’t cause any trouble. Do you understand?”
…Giscard, whose face had suddenly turned pale, began to warn her earnestly.
I mean, why did he always have to ruin the moment when I was about to feel touched?!
Cassia pouted slightly.
* * * *
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