Chapter 40

"Father, what did you just say?"

I glared at my father, who is the chief, without hiding my displeasure.

"Don't make me repeat myself, Lamis. Tomorrow, a distant relative of the queen will be touring the capital. You are to guard her."

I clenched my fists tightly, my body trembling with humiliation.

"I am an intelligence officer! Why must I do such a thing!"

"It's the king's order. A woman has been specifically requested. You are the most suitable for the job."

I met my father's cold eyes, clearly seeing that he had no expectations of me.

"The king has informed me that she is a very important young lady. Treat her with respect."

Father turned his back, signaling the end of the conversation. It was the same as always. No matter what I said, his decision would not change.

Born as the second daughter of the Guardock family, I have always been compared to my capable brother and beautiful, delicate sister. Despite being smarter than my brother, I was never recognized because I was a woman. My parents always told me to learn from my sister, who only flattered men and had no brains, and to strive to marry into a powerful noble family. Rebelling against such parents, I graduated from the academy for noble children with top grades and joined the intelligence department where my father is the chief. I passed the royal city's employment test, which anyone with talent could take. In the progressive Marita Kingdom, it was not uncommon for women to serve in the government. I thought that with this, I would finally be recognized by my parents.

However, I soon became disappointed. My seniors, who were jealous of my talent, ignored me, and my superiors assigned me only menial tasks. Perhaps my father, who wanted to marry me off quickly, was putting pressure on my superiors and colleagues. Even my brother, who also works in the intelligence department, told me that I was not suited for this job.

This assignment is also something that seems impossible to be an intelligence job. I want to do exciting things like infiltrating other countries to gather information or investigating criminal organizations!

I returned to my office and prepared for the task, feeling angry. I have to guard a noble from the countryside starting tomorrow morning. It's ridiculous. Why do I have to do such a thing?

"Lamis-senpai? Is something wrong?"

Perhaps because I was preparing so roughly, my junior, Pete, spoke to me. Pete is a commoner but the only colleague who recognizes my abilities and a cute junior.

He is tall and thin with unruly black hair and thin eyes, and he turns red when he talks to me. Although he has never said it outright, it is clear that he has feelings for me. It makes me feel ticklish, but he is a commoner, and there is a difference in status. I don't feel any attraction to him as a man, so I pretend not to know.

The person suitable for me is someone of high status, beautiful, elegant, and brave, like Prince Zinklett. The only royal who has not yet found a partner, the Ice Prince. It is said that he has high standards for women and won't even speak to ordinary young ladies. But I, although my status is slightly below that of a viscount, have a good appearance and perfect manners. Most importantly, I am excellent. I am more than qualified to be a royal.

If Prince Zinklett only knew me, he would surely be interested. It's just that we haven't had the chance to meet yet.

"There's nothing to be done. The chief told me to accompany a low-ranking noble from the countryside on a tour of the capital. How is this an intelligence job? It's insulting."

I lashed out at Pete in frustration. Pete's thin eyes widened in surprise.

"What! They're making you do such a job, Lamis-senpai? ...They don't understand your abilities at all. Making an excellent senior do such a thing..."

"That's right, Pete. The superiors here are truly incompetent. They don't make the most of my abilities. They must be jealous of my talent."

Pete sighed.

"You're right. Making such a wonderful senior deal with a country bumpkin is unacceptable. I'll do it instead, okay?"

Pete looked at me with hopeful eyes, perhaps thinking he might get a compliment. But I shook my head.

"Unfortunately, a woman was specifically requested. It's impossible for you to take my place."

When I said this, Pete's shoulders visibly drooped.

"I see. It's a shame I can't be of help to you, senpai. I'll help you with anything, so please let me know if you need anything!"

He is such a cute junior. I chuckled.

"I'll ask you if I need anything. Thank you always, Pete."

Just a small smile made Pete blush and look down. So innocent.

Feeling a sense of superiority, I returned to my room earlier than usual to prepare for the unpleasant task tomorrow.

◇◇◇

The next day, I met the queen's distant relative, a girl named Shina. She was introduced to me by a mixed-blood maid with silver hair, but I was not told her family name. Is she from a noble family that is too embarrassed to name themselves?

Shina, who I was told was an adult, looked like a small child, about 12 or 13 years old. She had brown hair and black eyes, and while she was cute, she still had a bit of a country bumpkin air about her. Her attendant maid was silent and gloomy, and she carried a sword, suggesting she also served as a guard. The fact that they couldn't afford separate guards and attendants indicated they were quite poor.

Shina and the maid asked me all sorts of fawning questions, but they were all trivial. I made it clear that I had no intention of entertaining them, and they gradually became quiet, only looking out the carriage window. Finally, the carriage was peaceful. Phew, it was annoying.

Still, this pointless job will continue. I can only sigh, really.

Suddenly, the maid told the driver to change the destination to the Zain Trading Company, the largest in the capital. Well, well, the country noble is trying to show off.

When we arrived at the Zain Trading Company, the clerks bowed politely. I've used their services a few times, but today they are especially attentive. The country noble is looking at them with admiration and envy. Not bad.

Even the president of the company came to greet me and provided a guide for the country noble specifically for me. President Nazir's meaningful gaze. Oh, I have another admirer here. But no matter how wealthy a merchant is, he is still a commoner and not suitable for me.

Thanks to President Nazir, I was freed from this tedious job. I returned to the intelligence department in high spirits, and Pete, who was doing some paperwork, looked surprised.

"Lamis-senpai? Weren't you supposed to be guiding the capital today?"

I explained the situation to Pete with enthusiasm. When I hinted that President Nazir seemed to have a crush on me, Pete made a slightly unpleasant face but quickly smiled.

"That's good, Lamis-senpai. You were freed from a pointless job."

"Yes. So, I'll look for other work. Do you have anything?"

"Ah, I'm currently compiling a report on the Kailart district."

"Oh, that. What a ridiculous story. Multiple S-class and A-class monsters appearing? That's impossible to defeat with just ten squads. It must be an exaggeration."

I sat next to Pete and peeked at the documents. There were piles of other reports on the desk. In just a few hours, so much work had piled up. I felt overwhelmed.

"But... There are multiple testimonies, reports from the knights, and indeed, a large amount of monster materials are circulating in the Kailart district's adventurer guild. It might not be an exaggeration... Perhaps we should send someone to investigate again."

Pete ran his hand through his unruly black hair, looking confused. He was only compiling the reports and hadn't seen the scene himself. As a new recruit, his job was to compile the reports of his seniors.

"Oh, but look at this. There are materials circulating, but no magic stones. And there are no high-level monsters that appeared. It's definitely a rumor."

"Ah... That's true. But the large amount of monster materials and the reports from the knights..."

"The monster attack might have been real. Multiple monsters attacked, but there's no confirmation of high-level monsters. There's no need for another investigation, right?"

I was getting annoyed and said this to Pete. There's no need to think too much about it. Just do it casually. There's a mountain of other work to do.

"...Right! If you say so, senpai! You really are amazing!"

Pete praised me. He is such a sincere and cute junior. I felt good and started on the next document.