Chapter 348: Chapter 251 Part 2

Translator: “Hakou” Editor: “Weasalopes”

「You’ve finally returned. Some slow knight commander you are」

The commander of the frontier knight order scratched his head as the Margrave told him while laughing. At first glance, he looks like a dull middle-aged man.

Following behind him are the maids and servants.

「It’s late, but why don’t we have one more round? I’ll give a vacation to those who participated」

Originally, he promised to give them a morning break, but as expected a half day break is just not enough. He decided and raised the rewards.

Apparently, the bald middle-aged man was quite frustrated with his loss earlier.

(I invited her because the maid team is just too weak)

In the evening, the captain of the Yellow Lily Team came to report on the number of golems she had defeated in the great pit. Seeing her, he invited her on a whim.

But the result was greater than he expected.

『A flock of sheep led by a wolf will defeat a flock of wolves led by sheep』

He was made to realize this.

(I was naive)

The feeling of frustration towards himself wouldn’t stop. He wants to fight more seriously from the beginning next time.

「I’m off duty tomorrow, so I’m fine with another round」

Onee-sama with braided blonde hair wrapped around her head smiles gently. While the maids were happy to hear that they can have a day off.

Seeing this, the second-in-command, Handlebar mustache shrugged his shoulders with a troubled expression.

「It can’t be helped. But we have work to do in the afternoon」

The Margrave’s face lights up when he allows another round. Then, as if an idea came to him, he struck his palm with his fist.

「This is a suggestion from the second in command. The women team also have to put the stick in the back」

The maids gasped as they looked at him, and Handlebar mustache waved his hands from side to side panically. He did say, “The damage is disadvantageous for us”, but said no more than that.

His superior, however, clapped his hands in a good mood.

「Now, let’s get back to our initial position and get ready for the next round」

The perplexed maid blushes and walks away.

(No, I didn’t suggest such a thing!)

Handlebar mustache sighed as the passerby gave him an indescribable look.

(Hm?)n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

He caught the look on the captain of the yellow lily squad face. Her mouth bent in the shape of a smile.

(Was it just my imagination?)

There was no reason for her to do so, so it might have been just my imagination. Nodding to himself, he switched gears and followed the Margrave.

***

In the next game, the women’s team won again. However, unlike the previous game, the match was longer.

「We were so close to winning」

「Yes, it was so close」

The Margrave’s second in command shook his head in frustration. After bowing politely to her employer, the braided blonde hair onee-sama holds one of the maids in her hands.

「It seems that you can’t move, so let me take care of you」

Apparently, the damage caused by the vibration had accumulated since she got shot early in the game.

No one think much about it at that time, but the problem became apparent the next day in the evening.

「That maid, she’s not back yet?」

After being consulted by a worried maid in his room, Handlebar mustache stopped his work and went to the place where the Yellow Lily Squad resided.

Before he knocked, he noticed something unusual.

(What is this voice?)

The painful yet filled with sweet juices moans continue unabated.

The yellow lily squad hadn’t returned yet, so there must only be the off-duty captain inside.

(Don’t tell me!?)

When he looked at the maid next to him, her expression was pale. When he asked her what she was thinking, she said that the voice was definitely from her roommate.

(She brought the maid with her!?)

She might have been in this state for a long time after she brought her into the room.

When he knocked on the door, the voices stopped, and a little while later he heard a voice from inside saying, “Who is it?”.

「I heard that the maid from yesterday hasn’t returned to her room yet but… do you know about it?」

After a moment of silence, the braided blond hair onee-sama replied. She said she was still resting in this room and would be back before the sun went down.

By the way, the door is still closed.

(Pursuing her more than this is dangerous)

Handlebar mustache instinctively felt this way and urged the maid to leave the place.

「Most likely, it is a friendly fire」

He returned to the office and reported to the Margrave who was struggling with the documents.

「There is no one who shot that maid. Perhaps the captain of the yellow lily squad disguised herself as the enemy and shot her」

The bald middle-aged man removes his hand from the document and listens carefully. Then Handlebeard continues with his words.

「My guess is that she had her eyes on her from the beginning. It’s possible that she pulled a few strings to make the game last longer」

The Margrave looks convinced and let out a sigh.

「So you’re saying that she deliberately took her time so that she could get to her prey, is that it? If that’s true, then we’ve been dancing in the palm of her hand」

The two men shuddered and shrank back.

「Probably it would be for the best to not invite her next time」

The second-in-command with a handlebar mustache nodded strongly at his wise superior’s decision.

***

It was the time when the white light from the toy wand was flying around in the mansion of the Lord of Landbarn.

In the meeting room of the mansion built into the trunk of the world tree, the high elves were facing each other with a bitter face.

『We will destroy the northern city of the Empire and turn it to a place where we dump our garbage』

『And then take control of the northern city to secure trade routes to the Kingdom and the northern countries』

They launched a night raid in order to achieve these two goals, but it was an unexpected failure.

Several valuable B-class Knights were destroyed along with their pilots, and even the A-class Knight driven by the Knight Commander was badly injured.

「…Impossible. Something like this… there’s no way this is true」

The words of the high elf with the thick eyebrows must have represented the thought of the high elves present here.

There were some who were hesitant to start a war because they were wary that it would turn into an all-out war with the humans. However, once the war started, it would be easy to capture a city of the human race.

That’s what they thought.

「Those bastards got some dirty tricks up their sleeves」

The high elf with hunchback gritted his teeth and squeezed his voice out. His opinion was not based on fact.

He came up with this thought because the elf Knight, that was supposed to be undefeated by the Knight of the human race, lost.

『Attack them at night without warning and set fire to cities inhabited by non-combatants』

They on the other hand, are not concerned about their own actions. Because they look down on the human race, they have a low sense of sensibility in this area.

However, on the opposite, if the humans were the one who did this to them, they would condemn them like crazy.

「Have you seen the knight commander’s Knight?」

Almost everyone nodded in response to the question from one of the high elves.

The sword that had been cut up from between his legs was deeply embedded and could not be easily pulled out. It took the strength of two B-class Knights to pull it out.

「Even after seeing it with my own eyes, I still can’t believe it」

The high-elf with thick eyebrows replied.

An old man, as thin as a dead tree, who is the most skilled in piloting the Knight among them. It can even be said that he is the strongest of the high elves.

That’s why he had been appointed as the Knight Commander of the Elven knight order.

「I don’t understand. Just what went wrong?」

Something like being defeated by humans, no matter how many times he thinks about it, is impossible.

But there was no one who could answer that question. The other pilots were so busy with their own fights that they did not see the commander’s battle.

「How’s the knight commander’s condition?」

The Chancellor shook his head from side to side with a pained expression on his face as he was asked by the high elf with hunchback.

「He’s still unconscious」

The unconscious high elf who was as thin as a dead tree, carried back by a B-class Knight from the battlefield. He was still unconscious even now.

「I guess that’s to be expected with a wound like that」

With a deep sigh, the hunchback high elf shakes his head.

The more skillful someone is at magic manipulation, the more responsive and accurate their piloting skill becomes. However, it also makes the synchronization with the Knight stronger.

At the level of the commander, it would probably be as if the Knight’s body was his own.

「I didn’t see that woman too, where is she anyway?」

A fat high elf asks with his arms crossed.

The one he refers to was the old pharmacist woman. She is believed to be the lover of the thin old man.

She was nowhere to be seen since the last meeting.

「She has been holed herself up in her workshop, working on her magic」

To the chancellor’s reply, the fat high elf spoke with a sullen expression.

「We should’ve summoned her. Her skill would’ve been useful in healing the knight commander」

The old woman is the most skilled pharmacist in the elven village.

If she could prescribe a high-grade healing potion, the thin high elf might regain consciousness.

However, the chancellor shook his head.

「Don’t. She is currently in the process of setting up a technique to connect her consciousness with Zaratan. If she stops in the middle, all the preparation for the magic she’s done so far will be wasted」

The fat high elf closed his eyes and sighed.