The city named ‘Rund’, located in the border region closest to the El Sion Kingdom, that is, in the Jissen Kingdom, was a fairly developed commercial city.

It was a base for bringing the abundant fruits, grains, and alcohol from the El Sion Kingdom into the Jissen Kingdom, and the nearby coast was overflowing with giant fish due to the cold currents. The fish, gutted and well-salted, were valuable exports heading to the El Sion Kingdom.

However, from the moment the number of monsters exceeded a certain limit, the developed city merely became the place with the most prey.

“Goodness, it’s so shabby.”

“Have you been here before?”

“Yes, once as a diplomatic envoy. Back then, I thought it was an amazingly beautiful city…”

Ives Greer kept letting out regretful sighs.

It couldn’t be helped. The wide space that must have been a beautiful circular plaza was now full of cracked and broken tiles, and along the following paths, only broken wooden stalls lay desolately.

In the distance, thin black smoke from burning something rose ceaselessly, and it clearly smelled like death.

Compared to this place, the El Sion Kingdom was nothing short of heaven.

The subjugation team walked in silence, following the traces of the road.

Then, several skinny children popped out from among the debris piles and kept extending their hands while following the subjugation team. Their faces, with protruding cheekbones, were full of pain instead of vitality.

A few soft-hearted individuals tried to give them something, but Axel shook his head.

“It’s better to give some supplies to the lord of this place. If we let them follow, it’ll get out of hand, so stop.”

The knights at the front deliberately sped up, and soon they arrived at the center of the city. There, the lord who ruled the city and his vassals were already waiting for the subjugation team.

A man wearing a pointed hat with a long red cloth draped near his neck stepped forward and smiled.

“Welcome. I am Cale Mäkinen Sio. The lord of Rund.”

“I’m Leon Vaintz. Thank you for coming out to greet us first.”

“Not at all. We received your message, but we didn’t think you’d really come… We should be the ones thanking you.”

The man called Cale was very tall, but he was so thin and his cheeks were so hollow that he gave the impression of a candlestick.

But that thinness didn’t seem natural, but rather pathological. On his pale skin, a thin, unkempt beard stretched out.

“This is a welcome gift.”

Axel gestured to the soldiers. Someone pulled out a cart with a rumbling sound. Cale narrowed his eyes.

“What is this?”

“There was a monster like a swamp creature. This is its corpse. I assume you have mages here too, so before it rots, you can do some quick research together, and then burning it afterwards might bring comfort to those who have died.”

As soon as Axel finished speaking, the lord of Rund began to shed tears.

“That, near the rocky mountain just after crossing the Rhine George River…”

“That’s correct.”

The man, who pulled down his pointed hat with trembling hands and hugged it to his chest while sobbing loudly, looked so sorrowful that no one could ask about the circumstances.

The subjugation team from the El Sion Kingdom simply offered a brief prayer for those who had died at the hands of the monster.

After a while, the lord, having honestly poured out all the emotions buried in his heart, seemed a bit more at ease. He smiled with reddened eyes.

“I will provide you with ample space. Although it won’t be the best accommodation due to many collapsed and broken places, please accept it as a gesture of hospitality.”

“It’s more than enough. It feels rather excessive.”

There weren’t even enough houses to borrow due to the extensive damage in the city, but when it became known that the subjugation team had killed the swamp-like monster, the city’s people voluntarily started offering their homes. It seemed many had died at the hands of that creature.

Axel returned after a long conversation with Cale, the lord of Rund, without even settling on his own lodgings.

“You can rest well today.”

Just as everyone, tired from the journey, was letting out a sigh of relief, Axel mercilessly added,

“Just know that from tomorrow, there won’t be time to rest, day or night.”

“Oh my.”

Blake Roman couldn’t hide his disappointment and unconsciously let out a sound, then looked around nervously. But Axel didn’t seem to care much.

Instead, he singled out a few from among the command staff.

“Sir Ives, Sir Jenerson, Sir Rigel, and… Lady Jade.”

The last name was clearly tinged with displeasure. Even as he chose her, his face showed that he wasn’t entirely satisfied with the selection.

Jade was bewildered but tried not to show it in front of everyone as she stood before him.

Axel, perhaps tired from the long conversation with the lord, cracked his neck.

“From tomorrow, we’ll sweep the surroundings clean. I assume you remember the shared goal.”

“Yes. To the extent that distrust and resentment towards their king grows among the people of the Jissen Kingdom. Is that correct?”

As Ives pinpointed it accurately, Axel smirked.

“That’s right. It’s already in an elevated state, so it shouldn’t be difficult. Sir Rigel, if there are any unusual specimens among the captured monsters, I’d like you to research them freely. Not for the Jissen Kingdom, but for the El Sion Kingdom. I’ll allocate the necessary mages separately. Lady Jade…”

Jade gazed at him as calmly as possible, with the mindset of separating public and private matters.

Regardless of what kind of nerve war they had earlier, he was currently the commander-in-chief leading the subjugation team, so he deserved respect in front of others.

However, something displeased him, and Axel’s face became crooked again.

His face slightly tilted to one side, eyes narrowed in thought, and his lips strangely twisted.

The longer the silence continued, the more anxiety built up.

“…Is there something you want?”

“I was going to ask you to oversee the mages since I’m not very close with them…”

“I understa-”

“Do that, and also accompany me. Let’s form a temporary pair.”

“Pardon?”

“Why?”

“Is that true?”

Jade, Ives, and Jenerson all asked in succession. Their reactions were so strong that Rigel, who frowned, missed the chance to speak.

“Don’t you need a separate mage, my lord? Anyway, why so suddenly?”

“Didn’t you subtly recommend last time that Lady Jade would be a good match for me?”

“My temporary pair is Sir Emmett!”

Axel ignored the two knights clamoring with curiosity and the one mage shrieking in defiance.

“I heard you were looking for a different pair instead of Sir Emmett earlier. Am I wrong?”

She had clearly only told Blake, but somehow the information had leaked. Jade decided to grab Blake by the collar and shake him thoroughly later.

“I heard you didn’t get along very well with Sir Emmett, so try matching with me. It would be better to locate the positions of some larger ones during the day with me, and then attack together with everyone at night.”

“Find locations during the day…? Together with everyone at night…?”

“You seem to like taking the lead as bait. I’m like that too. We’ll match very well.”

So he had clearly taken to heart her voluntary act of drawing the monster’s attention.

No, more than that, it wasn’t a problem of having a bad or awkward relationship with him. Day and night? Then when am I supposed to rest?

Jade glared, but he was already nodding as if pleased with his own decision.

“Yes, that’ll do. Sir Rigel, please let me know the names of the mages you want. Please share what we’ve discussed now with the other members of the subjugation team. Have a good night.”

Axel left the four people behind with quick steps.

“Wow.”

Ives Greer let out an indescribable exclamation while watching his retreating figure. Jade clutched her head.

Just when I thought I was free from being commander-in-chief, now this! I need to handle family matters during my free time, but now I have no free time at all!

“Isn’t that too much! Lady Jade is a mage, not a knight. Should I say he wants her as a research colleague instead?”

Rigel asked with a somewhat angry face, but Jade grumbled through gritted teeth.

“What help… could I… possibly be… in such important work…”

Still, some conscience remained. Among the abundance of talented mages here, she was definitely not qualified to join the research. Investigating monsters and determining their condition was also a very important part.

She wasn’t confident at all in careful observation, even if it was just a matter of memorizing things.

“Perhaps it’s because Lady Jade has experience as the commander-in-chief of the Western Subjugation Team, so it might be easier to relay information to everyone in the afternoon if you move together in the morning. Especially the mages, I find them a bit difficult to approach for some reason. Could it be because my wife is a mage?”

Hearing Ives’ words, it seemed plausible. In any case, it was clear that Axel would suffer more, so it felt odd to grumble openly. A sigh escaped involuntarily.

“Hah…”

“We’ll help you as much as we can, so don’t worry.”

“How? Are you going to ride horses in my place?”

When Jade asked with a gloomy face, Sir Jenerson scratched his bearded cheek and said,

“Well, at least we can cheer you on.”

“Have a good night…”

She trudged away. The door she was entering to seek sleep somehow looked like a monster’s black maw. Probably because of tomorrow’s dreadful schedule.