Chapter 52

"Is Sir Ike going to the south?"

That was the first thing Lilith said when I explained the situation to her. Then, she started to prepare for the journey, saying, "I will accompany you," but I stopped her.

"No, Lilith, you will stay behind this time."

Naturally, a voice of protest rose.

"How can it be that this Lilith does not accompany Sir Ike? My skills, wisdom, and loyalty are beyond doubt, and I can handle everything, even the night duties."

"… Regardless of the last part, I do recognize your abilities. That's why I'm leaving you behind."

If it were a rough job like the attack on the White Rose Knights' leader Alistair or the rescue of the dwarf king Gunther, it would be fine to take this girl along, but this time it won't be like that.

"Recently, rumors of Ivalice's prosperity have spread, and vagrants and refugees are gathering. It's good that the population is increasing, but that also means more conflicts. I want you to maintain the order in the city of Ivalice."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It means that when you find someone causing trouble, beat them up and arrest them."

"Got it. Can I punch them so hard that brain fluid comes out of their left ear?"

"No, that's not allowed."

"Then the right ear?"

"Neither is allowed. Just punch them enough to cause a minor injury and put them in jail. Jiron will take care of the rest."

With that, I turned to Jiron.

"As I said, I'm leaving the city's governance to you. Just do what you usually do."

"Yes..."

Jiron replied half-heartedly.

"What's wrong?"

I asked.

"… Well, I'm worried if I can manage without you, sir."

I see, that's the issue. Come to think of it, this might be the first time I'm leaving everything to him. To reassure Jiron, I spoke in a gentle tone.

"I've left a textbook for you. Read it if you get stuck."

"Ah, no, can't I ask a mage to use the 'Telepathy' spell to consult with you?"

"No."

I cut him off in one word.

As Sefiro said, the Undead Legion tends to rely too much on me.

This could be a good opportunity to encourage their independence, so it might not be bad to leave everything to them.

With that in mind, I repeated myself.

"Indeed, it's possible to give instructions via the 'Telepathy' spell every time something happens. It might even be more efficient."

"Then do that. I'm still uneasy without you, sir."

Lilith chimed in.

"By the way, can't we use the 'Teleport' spell to quickly move to Zenobia? That way, it would only take a few days, right?"

"The 'Teleport' spell can only be used for authorized teleportation chambers or short distances. I don't have permission to use the teleportation chamber in Zenobia, so that's not possible."

"Ah, so it will take at least half a month, then."

Lilith sighed.

"That's right." I said definitively and then asked them to take care of things while I'm gone.

With that, I started preparing for the journey. However, Lilith still had complaints.

"Sir Ike, I understand why I can't accompany you, and I accept it. But why is that little girl going with you?"

Lilith pointed at the maid, Sati. Since Sati looked confused, I explained the situation.

"I explained that I'm going to Zenobia to sign a trade treaty with the chairman of the Council of the Commercial Alliance, the leader of the Commercial Alliance of Zenobia, right?"

"Yes," Lilith nodded.

"Signing a trade treaty between the Demon King's army and humans is unprecedented in history. I thought a living example would be helpful."

"What do you mean?"

"I thought it would be easier to reach an agreement if there was an example of humans and demons getting along well."

"… Ugh."

Lilith groaned, seemingly convinced.

She glared at Sati as if she were an enemy, but didn't say anything more.

Sati hid behind me to avoid her gaze.

Not wanting to see Sati in such a predicament,

"Anyway, I'm leaving it to you. From now on, you are in charge of this city."

I forcefully concluded the conversation and ordered them to focus on their duties.

"… Yes."

"Understood."

Lilith and the orc both acknowledged and left the office. After seeing them off, I started preparing for the journey.

But all the preparations were handled by the maid, Sati, so I had nothing to do.

The only thing I needed to think about was how to negotiate with the leader of the Commercial Alliance of Zenobia.

"A trade treaty between humans and demons for the first time…"

It's quite a challenging task.

The Demon King must have a lot of faith in me, but it's also a heavy responsibility to live up to that expectation.

Well, this will be my debut in diplomacy. Whether it will go well or not, we'll see.

I watched Sati, who was busily preparing for the journey, and pondered various negotiation strategies.