Chapter 77

Autumn. The season of appetite, sports, and reading.

Indeed, Leord is welcoming his first autumn in Zeato. However, there’s nothing particularly special about it.

There are no special events, and Leord continues to deal with documents as usual.

(Damn. I’m going to die. I never thought I’d end up living a life that could lead to overwork death.)

Since becoming the acting lord, Leord has been busy every day. Some days, he has been so busy that he hasn’t had a moment to rest, being chased by paperwork.

He feels like he’s reaching his physical and mental limits. Leord realizes he needs to find a civil servant urgently.

However, he has no leads. Leord doesn’t have any connections. Well, to be precise, he does. He could ask Beluga, but he has already been turned down.

And there is one more person. If he asks her, he doesn’t know what might happen. But as the head of a duchy, Beluga probably has more connections than anyone. After all, she is the Fourth Princess, Sylvia.

“No, no. It’s impossible.”

He thinks about it but concludes it’s impossible. He doesn’t know what demands she might make, so he quickly dismisses the idea. Leord decides to go down to the town for a change of pace and calls Gilbert and Isabelle.

With the two of them as his guards, Leord heads down to the town of Zeato. It’s already known that Leord is the acting lord.

At first, the residents were afraid and skeptical of the rumors, but seeing the many knights who admire him, they no longer fear him.

Thanks to this, when Leord goes out into the town, the residents don’t cower in fear.

“Hmm. Can’t find a civil servant candidate, can I?”

“It’s not as big as the capital, so there’s no one with exceptional talent lying around in the town.”

“Damn. At this rate, I’m going to die from overwork.”

“Master, perhaps you should ask the princess?”

“Gil. If I ask the princess, she will certainly send an excellent civil servant. But the price will be terrifying. I don’t know what she might demand.”

“I would advise you to refrain from making such disrespectful remarks about my master.”

“I know you’re reporting to the princess! Don’t think I don’t know!”

“But if this continues, Master will reach his limit. We need to do something.”

“I know, but...”

“Lord Leord doesn’t have any connections, does he?”

“Shut up!”

He has been gradually gaining popularity, but his connections are limited to his father and Sylvia. In fact, having a connection with someone in Sylvia’s position is impressive. But it’s difficult to use. Although it’s impolite to say, Sylvia is someone he doesn’t want to involve.

“Should I cultivate one...?”

“We don’t have time.”

“Are you thinking of kidnapping someone?”

“Isabelle! What do you think I am?”

“A beloved master.”

“Don’t lie!”

“Huh?”

“Your cute tilt of the head won’t fool me!”

“I didn’t mean to, but I’m flattered.”

Isabelle blushes and covers her face, and Leord is momentarily captivated, but he decides it’s an act and calls her out on it.

“I envy your mental state!”

Gilbert is used to this scene and finds it amusing. He can’t intervene between the two, but he’s happy to see Leord enjoying himself.

At first, Gilbert tried to correct Isabelle’s attitude towards Leord, but since Leord himself didn’t mind, Gilbert said nothing. Besides, Gilbert couldn’t criticize others. He had been too lenient with his granddaughter, leading to unacceptable rudeness towards his master, Leord. Therefore, Gilbert never says anything to Isabelle when Leord doesn’t.

“Master, Isabelle, this is a public place.”

“Mm... Let’s go.”

“We could have played a bit more, but I’ll follow Lord Gilbert.”

Leord leads the way, moving forward. However, the town isn’t very large, and there’s not much to see. If anything, the fort might be worth a look, but it’s not worth visiting right now.

Leord looks around, searching for someone who might be suitable as a civil servant, but no one stands out. He starts to wonder if he should swallow his pride and ask Sylvia for help when they reach the barracks of the knights.

(Hmm... Come to think of it, there are civil servants among the knights, right? Maybe I could headhunt from there... No, civil servants are valuable to the knights, so I’ll leave it alone.)

Without an appointment, Leord heads to the barracks. As he enters, he hears loud shouts from the training ground.

They are probably training. Leord thinks that some physical activity might be a good change of pace, so he goes to the training ground. When the knights notice him, they stop training and greet him. Leord waves them off, telling them to continue.

After watching the knights train for a while, Barbarot approaches Leord and his group.

“What brings you here today?”

“Ah, I’m actually looking for a civil servant candidate, but I can’t seem to find one. I was wandering around town and ended up here, so I thought I’d come and take a look.”

“Are you trying to find one among the knights?”

“Well, I’m not denying it.”

“Hmm...”

Barbarot seems to be thinking, perhaps he has someone in mind. Leord watches him expectantly and notices a knight doing odd jobs at the edge of his vision.

“Hey, Barbarot. Do you have knights who do odd jobs?”

“Yes, well, it’s a bit difficult to call them ‘odd job knights,’ but they are the ones who lack talent with the sword. So, they are assigned tasks like cleaning and laundry.”

“Is it possible to recruit them?”

“It’s possible, but I can’t say if they would be suitable as civil servants. However, to be honest, the odd job knights are necessary for us. Most knights are good at fighting, but many are not good at such tasks. In that sense, the odd job knights are valuable.”

“I see... Hmm?

The odd jobs are done by knights who are not good at fighting, right?”

“Yes. Is there something wrong?”

“Ah, I’ve just thought of a solution.”

Leord’s confident smile gives Gilbert and Barbarot hope, and Isabelle becomes curious about what solution he has in mind.