“Uh, um.”
In the suddenly awkward atmosphere, I dazedly stared into space for a moment, scratched my head, and then smiled as I opened my mouth.
“You have youngers sibling, Runiel?”
“M-my apologies.”
Runiel, who had been nervously lowering her gaze, suddenly flinched and replied.
“I should have reported it in advance… but the timing wasn’t right. I’m sorry.”
“No, there’s no need to apologize.”
Seeing Runiel, who was usually stoic, flustered like that, I softened my voice, not wanting to make the situation even more awkward.
“If it’s you, Runiel, I’m sure you judged them strictly without any bias for family, so there’s no need to worry. That’s good enough.”
“…”
“Huh? Why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t tell me, is this a case of favoritism?”
But upon hearing my words, Runiel flinched and swallowed her words, making me tilt my head and press her for an answer.
“…What is favoritism?”
“Ah, um. I mean… You didn’t show any leniency during the assessment, right?”
Although an old-world phrase slipped out, fortunately, no one seemed to find it odd.
“I have already severed ties with my family.”
“That means…”
“I no longer have younger siblings. If you wish, Master, I can even abandon the Mistilane name.”
After a brief pause, Runiel answered with a solemn voice, so heavy and dark that everyone’s attention naturally turned toward her.
“Haha, there’s no need to go that far. I was merely confirming about the assessment process.”
“…I apologize again. I was just slightly flustered.”
Trying to somehow ease the growing awkwardness, I tilted my head at Runiel’s words and searched my memory.
‘Come to think of it, the Mistilane family, which Runiel belongs to, was a count’s house just like ours. But their children are applying to join our knight order?’
If it were a house with a long-standing, prestigious knight order, like a duchy or the imperial knights, it wouldn’t be that surprising.
But even if the Lingard count house has been gaining some fame lately, it’s still strange for children of another count house to apply here.
Legally, there’s no problem, but according to the current noble social customs of the Empire, it’s definitely not normal.
“Master, in case you’re unaware, the Mistilane family is on the verge of bankruptcy.”
“Huh?”
As I stood there looking slightly confused, Parsha, who had been quietly observing me, suddenly leaned in and whispered this information.
“To explain it in more detail, it’s similar to how the Lingard family was about a year before I arrived.”
“Then…”
“Yes, it means they could collapse at any moment.”
Although it was slightly unpleasant to hear, it was true that just a few months ago, the Lingard family had been barely clinging to their noble status.
If the Mistilane family has been in that state for a year, I can pretty much guess how bad things have gotten.
But how does Parsha even know such information?
Normally, it’s my job to pick up gossip at noble gatherings and relay it back.
“How do you know that?”
“…Grandfather’s old network of servants turned out to be surprisingly useful.”
“I see.”
I asked Parsha out of curiosity, but she just answered with a cheeky smile.
‘No way… she couldn’t have built her own information network already, right?’
In the original game, she did end up creating a secret organization without Meredia’s knowledge and almost got purged for it, so I couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
But that incident was set a few years into the future in the game.
It’s barely been half a year since I hired Parsha — there’s no way such an organization could already exist.
‘No way… right?’
Remembering Parsha’s wicked smile from the original story, a chill ran down my spine, but for now, I decided to let it go.
“Then, the reason the Mistilane family’s children are requesting to join our knight order is…”
“Probably trying to use whatever connections they have left to create a final lifeline.”
Even that tsundere villainess Meredia was someone I managed to reform, so surely, I can handle Parsha too.
“Parsha, you tend to speak rather harshly sometimes.”
“….”
“A bad child has no right to be my subordinate.”
Smiling quietly with that thought in mind, I gently scolded Parsha, and her twitching lips showed she was affected.
“…I’m sorry.”
Lowering her gaze, she apologized meekly.
“Whether you’re a good kid or a bad one… I can never figure you out.”
Meredia, who had been sneaking glances at us, muttered something, but unfortunately, I couldn’t quite catch it.
“Y-young master… all the interviewees are ready now…”
“…Ah, I see.”
Just then, Sasha, who had entered the temporary interview hall, approached timidly and asked.
“Sh-should we bring them in one by one?”
“No, bring them two at a time. I have a plan in mind.”
As soon as she heard that, Sasha turned and quickly scurried away.
I added in a soft voice.
“Oh, and when I give the signal… bring a stretcher.”
“…Excuse me?”
“No, not you, Sasha. Assign it to a discreet maid.”
In case an assassin tried something stupid in a hall guarded by two living weapons, we needed a quick way to clean up.
“Please?”
“…Yes.”
Thankfully, Sasha, who had recently been promoted to head maid and become more capable, only nodded with a dark expression rather than bursting into tears like she used to.
“Still, only one today…”
“…What on earth do you usually do?”
“Pardon?”
Hearing Sasha mutter to herself, Lady Meredia shot her a suspicious look and pressed her with questions, but I could only return an unjustly wronged expression since I had no idea either.
*****
“Ah, hello. I’m Johan, a graduate of the 113th class of Bywork Knight Academy….”
After a brief preparation period, the knight order interview finally began, but I hadn’t expected this kind of pairing right from the first round.
‘The luckiest man, Johan, and an assassin who came to kill me. What an interesting combination.’
Two of the candidates I had my eyes on were already standing before me.
‘Still, that assassin is truly remarkable.’
Although she couldn’t deceive Parsha’s eyes, the assassin standing in front of me didn’t emit the slightest trace of killing intent.
Well, if she had leaked even a hint of bloodlust, she might have been folded in half by Meredia standing next to me.
Still, to completely suppress her killing intent even with the target right in front of her — that’s a skill comparable to Bergen’s.
‘But why did Johan end up paired with someone like that…?’
One thing bothered me: Johan, whose luck should be overwhelming, somehow ended up paired with a terrifying assassin.
As far as I know, apart from his luck stat, all of Johan’s abilities are average, so he shouldn’t be able to handle the assassin.
Yet here they are, together — could it be a sign that something unexpected is about to happen?
“Hey, you.”
As I was nervously observing the situation, the princess next to me, with a sharp look, was the first to speak.
“Y-yes, ma’am?”
“Not you.”
Johan, frozen stiff by the unimaginable fact that the Empire’s only princess was acting as an interviewer, was the one who answered first.
But Meredia wasn’t speaking to him.
“How long do you intend to keep that robe on?”
“……”
“If you’re here for an interview, show at least a minimum level of courtesy.”
At her stern command, the unidentified assassin, who had been hiding under the robe, finally pulled it back and spoke.
“…Understood.”
In the next instant, a variety of expressions flickered across everyone’s faces.
“A beastkin?”
As soon as the robe came off, sharp wolf ears poked out, instantly revealing the assassin’s identity.
“…Another woman?”
Strangely, a different reaction escaped from Meredia’s mouth.
“Coming all the way from the Eastern Continent, huh.”
“But why apply to the Lingard Count’s knight order?”
In the moment of heavy silence in the interview room, it was again Lady Meredia who broke it.
“I simply followed the flow of the wind.”
“I wasn’t asking for a poetic answer.”
Despite her sharp questioning, the wolf beastkin remained expressionless and turned her gaze toward me.
“Didn’t the recruitment notice clearly state that lineage would not be questioned?”
“…?”
“?”
“I don’t understand why you keep prying into my personal background.”
After hearing that, the princess, stunned for a moment, shifted her gaze toward me and asked.
“Is what she said true?”
“…It is.”
“Haah, unbelievable.”
As soon as I sheepishly answered, harsh criticism began to pour from the princess’s lips.
“Is there a fool anywhere in this world who wouldn’t care about the origins of the sword they’ll wield?”
“…There is, right here.”
“This isn’t a joke.”
Of course, I wasn’t in any position to be picky, so I had decided not to care about anyone’s origin, but it seemed the princess had a different philosophy.
“Even if I give you a hundred steps of leeway, accepting a knight academy graduate with no background is one thing. But a beastkin whose background is completely unknown?”
“Are you planning to build a mercenary band instead of a knight order, Whitney?”
Although her argument included some dangerous remarks, I chose to believe in the changed Meredia.
“Lady Meredia.”
“What.”
“Racial discrimination is wrong.”
I spoke with a slightly serious expression, and Meredia, who was briefly stunned, whispered quietly back to me.
“That’s not the point I’m trying to make.”
“…Lady Meredia.”
“Haah, fine. I get it. Sorry.”
But when I maintained a firm attitude, thankfully, she backed down this time.
“Still, female beastkin shed a lot of fur, and they go through troublesome periods regularly…”
…Tch.
Still, as expected from someone once called a villainess — the fundamental problem remained unresolved.
Well, I’ll correct that gradually.
“Hey, I won’t ask about your past anymore, but at least tell me your name.”
Carefully monitoring Lady Meredia’s words, I let out a sigh of relief when she said something acceptable and turned my attention back to the interviewees.
“…That much, I can say.”
But that moment of relief was short-lived.
“Please call me Ferris.”
“…Ah.”
Hearing the name from the wolf beastkin’s mouth, I finally remembered who the assassin was.
“Ah, um… I see.”
“…What’s wrong?”
From my memory, the wolf beastkin who introduced herself as Ferris was—
“Nothing… nothing at all.”
She was the slave knight, the right hand of Meyer, one of Meredia’s greatest enemies and the person she hated most in the world.
Cliche Novel 