Chapter 18

Henry Birkett, an official of the Sutrena Frontier, listened to his subordinate’s report with a deep scowl. He ran a hand through his bluish-black hair, adjusted his glasses, and skimmed the documents.

Three years had passed since he was dispatched from the Royal Capital, but the number of magical beasts showed no sign of decreasing.

With his pale complexion, Henry was often told he looked “unhealthy” or “overworked,” but his appearance was simply something he was born with. He was a perfectly healthy man in his thirties, and life at the frontier didn’t bother him. If anything, he felt it suited him better than the capital.

However, the work here was so relentless he barely had time to sleep. There simply wasn’t anyone else capable of sharing his responsibilities.

Still, a glimmer of hope had finally appeared.

The request he had been making for ages—for an additional official of equal rank—had finally been granted.

…Or so he thought. Upon hearing his subordinate’s report, that hope vanished.

“So, Lord Henry. I told the Capital we were short-staffed and needed help, and they went and sent us a criminal Duke’s son and some ‘Potato Lady’ as a married couple. Those people in the Capital are the worst; what kind of sick joke is this?”

The one complaining was his subordinate, Tony Fawne.

Tony was a spirited seventeen-year-old with sun-kissed, freckled skin whose parents had worked at the former lord’s manor.

For the record, the former lord’s entire family had been wiped out by magical beasts.

“Tony, just stick to the facts in your report.”

“Aww… but come on. Isn’t this too much? This place isn’t a dump for criminals.”

“We have to take whoever comes. We don’t have the authority to send them back.”

In the frontier, news from the Royal Capital arrived with a bit of a delay.

From what they’d heard, this Duke’s son had his misdeeds exposed at the Princess’s engagement party and had his engagement annulled.

Then, as a punishment, he was saddled with the ‘Potato Lady’—a girl notorious in high society for her bizarre and supposedly hideous appearance.

“Man, if someone had to come, I wish it’d been a beauty. I heard that Potato Lady looks pretty terrifying.”

“Hey, Tony. Don’t speak about a lady your age like that.”

“But the rumors say she has a stark white face, bright blue eyelids, and blood-red cheeks and lips! Forget being a ‘lady,’ she sounds scary for a human. As if we don’t have enough magical beasts around here, now we’re adding a Potato Beast to the mix… The girl-to-guy ratio here is already low enough; this is pure despair.”

“She is the former Lady Agnes Eventail, and she is a married woman. Don’t look at her like that.”

“Lord Henry, you’re such a stiff~”

Tony could be a handful, but his skill at exterminating magical beasts was undeniable, making him invaluable to Henry. Since his magic was well-suited for combat, he was a reliable asset in Sutrena.

“At any rate, we must prepare to welcome those dispatched from the Capital.”

“The Potato Lady probably won’t be of any use, so it’s really just one extra person. What if the Duke’s son is some uncontrollable villain… like that guy?”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, we need to head to the city of Roca to meet them. You can’t travel by carriage from that point on.”

“Fine, fine.”

“What’s with the ‘not my problem’ attitude? You’re the one going to pick them up, Tony.”

“Wait… what?! Me?!”

“Exactly. You’re the fastest one for the job. They’re scheduled to arrive in Roca in ten days. Get your gear ready and be on standby.”

Tony made an intensely disgusted face, but he left the room quietly without defying Henry’s orders.

“Phew, I wonder how this is going to turn out.”

Letting out a heavy sigh, Henry finished reviewing his reports and left the office.

Seeing him, the subordinates passing by in the hallway immediately started a commotion. “Lord Henry looks unwell again!” “Someone, force Lord Henry to take a break!”

“The second son of the House of Florescrus, Nazelbert… I hope he’s at least harmless.”

His subordinates watched him anxiously as their boss muttered something under his breath while rubbing his temples.

After finishing his talk with Henry, Tony headed to the Sutrena Territory’s magical beast ranch.

Tony’s magic was “Fleetfoot,” which allowed him to move much faster than a normal human.

However, the magic only worked on himself; he couldn’t speed up anyone else. On top of that, since Tony didn’t have a huge amount of mana, the duration of his speed was limited. It was a restricted ability, but it was perfect for acting as a messenger or exterminating magical beasts.

At the ranch, several types of riding beasts that didn’t harm humans were being raised.

By law, riding beasts weren’t permitted near the Royal Capital, but in the frontier where most roads were unpaved, they were essential transportation.

Just as there are tame animals and predatory ones, magical beasts vary greatly in temperament depending on the individual. Of course, those fools in the Capital tended to lump all magical beasts together and fear them indiscriminately… which Tony found idiotic. It was like saying a rabbit and a bear were the same thing.

At any rate, Tony didn’t like people from the Capital. He had even been wary of Henry at first. Naturally, he didn’t have a high opinion of the criminals being sent his way this time.

“Seriously, what a pain. At least I hope they’re the type to do nothing. It’d be unbearable if some guy showing up with a misplaced sense of ‘mission’ starts doing whatever he wants without caring about how we do things here. Who does he think has to clean up his mess?”

There had been other nobles dispatched from the Capital before Henry arrived, and they were all disasters.

One guy, driven by self-satisfaction, implemented unnecessary policies one after another, dragged Tony and the other frontier folk around, and then went back to the Capital because he hated frontier life.

Another tried to line his own pockets by taxing everything like an idiot, trying to squeeze money out of residents who weren’t wealthy to begin with.

And then there was the one who, once he realized Sutrena had no resources to steal, turned to straight-up banditry.

Every single one of them was the worst.

“God, give me a break.”

Still, if Tony acted out of line, it would only cause trouble for Henry. The best move was to follow orders quietly. But he was still frustrated…

He started to lead out some calm-tempered beasts from the sturdy wooden stables, but then a streak of mischief flared up inside him.

“If he’s a noble guy, surely he can handle these. Alright, let’s change it up.”

The beast Tony prepared was a Wyvern—a creature known as one of the most difficult riding beasts to master.