Time passed after the incident with the Ryan family.
Fortunately, contrary to my worries, the Ryan family’s response was quiet.
They were so quiet that I wondered if they were truly the same boar-like Ryan family I had seen in World Archive, and I felt relieved.
If there was a problem, rather, it was in my territory—more precisely, in my office.
In other words, after the clash with the Ryan family… Noah began clinging to me a great deal.
“My lord, I have completed this month’s financial report. Please review it.”
Before, when she reported to me, she would stand in front of me and deliver her report in the proper manner.
There was nothing particularly unusual, aside from the bright smile with which she looked at me, one whose thoughts I could not read.
But now…
“My lord, I’ve organized the budget allocation for migrant support. Please take a look. Ah! There are some difficult parts, so I’ll explain them to you.”
Saying that, she stuck right beside me and explained.
It was good that she was explaining.
The problem was that Noah pressed herself so close to me that I could feel her large breasts, making it impossible for me to keep my head straight.
On top of that, when I caught the scent of hydrangeas coming from Noah, whew…
It felt like I was indirectly experiencing the feelings of an adventurer being tempted by a succubus.
“The key point is the adjustment plan for the tax rate on migrants and support funds. I classified the free citizens into those who can pay the migration costs and those who cannot, then adjusted the tax rate accordingly.”
Noah said something.
But none of it entered my ears.
I felt it again as I looked at her—Noah was truly unrealistically pretty.
No, beyond pretty, she was as beautiful as a goddess of snow.
How could someone be that beautiful? Was it because this was another world?
“My lord… My lord! Are you listening to me?”
“Hm…? Ah! I’m listening. Yes, I understood everything. Let’s proceed in this direction.”
In any case, having a beautiful girl like Noah cling to me was a very happy thing.
However, lately, whenever I saw Noah’s smiling grin, a chill sometimes ran down my spine.
It felt like that gaze I had felt while playing a raising simulation game like Princess Maker.
…It was probably just my imagination, right?
* * *
While I was enjoying those small events and savoring brief happiness,
an event occurred, as befitting the world of World Archive, which never left its characters alone.
A few days later, Hart came to see me with a grave expression.
“Bandits have begun appearing.”
“Bandits?”
Hadn’t our knights wiped out all the bandits?
As if reading my thoughts, Hart continued his explanation.
“The bandits within our territory have been completely rounded up by Rikain and the knights.”
Hart explained while looking at the map.
Within the area of our territory, skull marks clearly showed the bandits who had been subjugated.
Seeing it like this, our knights really had wiped out the bandits.
It was a good thing I supported them.
While I was thinking about something else, Hart pointed toward the border of our territory and said,
“However, bandits who appear to have flowed in from outside the territory have begun showing up.”
“They flowed in from outside the territory?”
“Yes. They are said to be appearing in the border area between our territory and the Ryan family’s territory.”
“What about damage? Are there any of my people injured by those bandit bastards?”
If bandit bastards had appeared and laid hands on my precious people, as a beloved lord, I could not sit still.
At my words, Hart answered calmly.
“Fortunately, none of our people have been injured. However… the free citizens attempting to migrate to our territory have suffered heavy damage.”
“The free citizens were hurt!?”
After listening to Hart in detail, the situation was serious.
Some of the free citizens traveling to our territory had apparently been attacked by bandits and were found dead, bearing sword wounds.
Their bodies had been stripped of everything they owned as if looted by bandits, and the women had suffered things too horrible to speak of.
“Is it possible to protect the migrants?”
“It will not be easy. Even if we deploy all the knights of our territory, it would be difficult to protect every migrant.”
Hart explained while looking at the map.
He marked the areas where the bandits had appeared, and even to my eyes, they were emerging across an extremely wide area along the territorial border, making it seem difficult to deal with them.
Their intelligent movements even gave me the impression of an army.
“What we can do is guide the migrants to gather during the day and move safely as much as possible.”
“I see… For now, let’s proceed with even that method and do everything we can to prevent the migrants from being hurt.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Seeing this after living in a country where it was fine to walk around even at night made me feel that this truly was another world.
“And tell the people that bandits are appearing, so they must be careful, and if they are in danger, they must run away no matter what.”
“Yes, understood, my lord.”
Thus, I discussed our response to the bandits with Hart.
And after Hart left, I looked at Noah, who had been quietly listening beside me.
Feeling my heart pound at Noah’s smile as she grinned at me again, I hurriedly opened my mouth.
“Noah, is there anything more I should prepare for the sake of the people?”
I subtly probed to see if there was any way to increase spending.
Then Noah smiled and said,
“From what I see, I don’t think you need to prepare anything more in particular, my lord.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. The people of Cron are already thoroughly prepared, after all.”
Noah said while gazing out the window.
As both the treasurer and the heir to the White Trading Company, Noah seemed to see something that I could not.
I asked Noah,
“What do you mean, prepared?”
When I asked, Noah was startled.
But soon she smiled with an expression that said she understood everything.
“My lord, your skill at pretending not to know is truly on the level of a great merchant. You prepared everything in advance so it would turn out this way, and yet you say that?”
“No, I…”
“Ah… It’s because of the Ryan family, isn’t it? I understand. If you say so, my lord, then I shall pretend not to know as well.”
No, seriously, what the hell was she talking about?
I really didn’t know!!
I didn’t understand a single thing Noah was saying, and though I wanted to ask her if I could, my dignity as a lord made me hold back.
And not long after, I came to understand the meaning of what Noah had said.
* * *
Garche liked this mission quite a bit.
Before he had been hired(?) by the Ryan family, he had been a bandit.
He had lived happily and modestly in the mountains, robbing passing travelers and merchants, until he unfortunately laid hands on a carriage of the Ryan family.
And then he met the Ryan family’s “Messenger of Hell,” Hadem Ryan, whom he had only heard of in rumors.
That day, his bandit group was annihilated, and he, barely surviving, was forcibly hired by the Ryan family—or rather, effectively conscripted.
While undergoing training in the Ryan family that was close to abuse, Lieutenant Lagos, the right-hand man of Lord Hadem, came to him and gave him a secret mission.
It was to become a bandit and harass the Cron family.
Garche accepted the mission immediately.
If he could escape that hellish training and go back to being a free bandit, enjoying himself again, it would be strange to refuse.
After that, his days became enjoyable for the first time in a long while.
First, he attacked the free citizens heading toward the Cron family’s territory.
This was partly because Lieutenant Lagos had ordered him to deal with the free citizens fleeing even from the Ryan family, and partly because entering the Cron family’s territory directly was dangerous.
With the know-how he had gained from his long life as a bandit, his method for reaping the greatest harvest was to first launch small attacks around the outskirts of the border, scatter the knights guarding the boundary, and then aim for a big prize.
After carrying out around ten small attacks along the outskirts of the territorial border, Garche made his preparations, and at last he spotted his prey.
It was news that a carriage delivering salt and taxes to the imperial capital had departed.
Normally, such carriages would be guarded as tightly as a fortress by knights, but this carriage had departed late, so there were almost no escorts.
Garche immediately led his subordinates and prepared the ambush.
On a night when the full moon had risen, around the time the late-night air of early dawn felt cold against the bridge of his nose, the lights of the carriage began to come into view.
“Lord Garche… Ah, no, boss. It looks like they’ve come.”
“Yeah, I saw it too. Looks like tomorrow night, we’ll be able to gild our asses for the first time in a while. Kehkehkeh.”
Even from afar, he could sense that the carriage was loaded with incredible goods.
He had heard that they could do whatever they wanted with the plunder.
If they looted that and sold it, they would be able to go to the entertainment district for the first time in a while and play until they were utterly spent.
Garche drew his sword and shouted.
“Let’s go!! You bastards!! It’s time for the hunt!!!”
“Uoooooooooh!!!!”
“Let’s go!!! Hyah!!!”
When Garche gave the signal, all his subordinates rushed out and began charging toward the carriage.
He enjoyed this moment the most.
When they began rushing out of the darkness, people would become frightened rabbits, busy fleeing from him.
Garche loved more than anything the moment when he felt that omnipotence, the power to decide their lives and deaths.
“Kahaha!!! Rape the men and kill the women!!!”
“Go on, try running as hard as you can, rabbits!!! Hahaha!!!”
As he was charging toward the carriage with all his might, he noticed something slightly strange.
The people in the carriage were not running away.
Usually, as soon as they saw them, they would be frantic to flee, so what were those bastards?
Just as he thought that, a sudden roar rang out.
Bang—!!
“Kraaaagh!!!”
Along with the roar, the subordinate beside him fell straight off his horse.
He had seen that before.
That was definitely…
“It’s a gun!”
“Those bastards have guns!!”
That was definitely a gun, something only knights used.
Garche had only ever seen one; it was a magic tool so expensive he had never used one himself, and yet the bastards from that carriage had it.
At some point, the people from the carriage had armed themselves with gleaming swords and spears and started rushing toward them.
“You rotten bastards, do you even know whose goods you’re trying to touch!!!?”
“You dare try to touch our lord’s property!! You’re all dead today!!”
What the hell was this sight?
Garche could not understand it.
According to the information, they were supposed to be ordinary people, but their armaments were absolutely not those of ordinary people.
“Re-retreat!!! It’s a trap!!! They set a trap!!!!”
Bang—!!
“Where do you think you’re going, you sons of bitches!!! Leave your heads behind before you go!!!”
Garche abandoned his comrades and fled with all his might, while the comrades who fell behind were caught by the people of Cron and began suffering a terrible fate.
And until the moment they died, they never knew.
That the people who had counterattacked them were truly ordinary citizens of Cron.
After hearing that a band of bandits had appeared, the people of Cron spent their own money to arm themselves in order to protect themselves—and their lord’s property.
They even purchased two guns, said to cost as much as a year’s wages for one citizen.
The reason that was possible was very simple.
With their increased daily wages, they had the money to buy weapons,
and with more merchants coming in, there were trading companies from which to buy those weapons.
However, the people of Cron did this in secret.
Because if their lord found out, he might once again use his own private wealth to support them.
The people of Cron, who believed they had received far too much from their lord, thought that this time, they had to protect their lord’s property themselves, and so they prepared this in secret.
Thus, that day, the people of Cron annihilated the band of bandits, created a legend, and gifted the bards another song.
And that song invited her to Cron.