Chapter 56

Inside a guest room near the great hall, I sat in a chair alongside Lord Nazel and Tony. Lord Nazel was listening to Tony’s explanation regarding the captured magical beast.

The beast that had rampaged last night appeared in the manor garden specifically targeting Lord Nazel. It turns out the creature harbors a deep hatred for the Lord of Sutrena—hardly surprising, considering it was captured by the Lord from two generations ago and then abused by the one before Nazel. I’ve heard bad rumors about the previous Lord everywhere, so he must have been a truly terrible person.

“I am deeply sorry for keeping such important matters from you, Lord Nazel. If there is to be punishment, please, let it fall on me alone. Sir Henry is uninvolved; he only helped because I begged him to.”

Tony was huddled inward, looking so small it was impossible to reconcile with his usual self.

Lord Nazel nodded magnanimously. After a moment of thought, he spoke to Tony.

“As for the magical beast, since I cannot yet call it safe, I cannot release it from the enclosure for the time being. We will observe its condition in the garden and make a judgment later.”

“Y-Yes…”

“Tony, you are free to come and visit the beast whenever you like. Furthermore, regarding the death of the previous Lord…”

Tony swallowed hard, holding his breath. I watched the two of them in silence.

“I believe we can continue to treat that matter as an accident. If it were treated as a criminal case, it would require a massive investigation, and neither you nor your family would escape unscathed. Besides, it would be a disaster if I lost Henry’s help right now.”

Lord Nazel let out a small sigh.

“In the first place, the incident with the beast was brought about by the Lord’s own negligence. While this sort of handling wouldn’t be praised in the Royal Capital, this is the frontier. Fortunately, there are no witnesses, so there is no need to make a scene.”

“Lord Nazelbert! Thank you so much!”

With a face that looked ready to burst into tears, Tony bowed his head deeply right then and there.

And so, it was decided that the horse-like magical beast would be kept in the manor garden for the time being. Apparently, this specific creature of the “Grani” species didn’t have an individual name.

“Lord Nazel, shall we give him a name?”

“Why don’t we ask Tony to do it?”

“M-Me?”

Tony looked bewildered, but he didn’t seem to mind the suggestion.

“Then… Dunk.”

The name came out so smoothly that he must have had it in mind for a long time.

“Hey, Tony. Is Dunk a boy or a girl?”

“She’s a female.”

“I see… a girl! That has such a brave ring to it!”

The night of the new moon had passed, so I decided I’d go visit her later.

Just as we finished talking, Henry—who had finally learned what happened—rushed into the manor. He let out a long sigh of relief upon hearing how the situation would be handled.

“I am terribly sorry, Lord Nazelbert.”

“It’s fine. I would have made the same decision in your position. More importantly, do we have a grasp on the damage to the town?”

“We haven’t fully assessed everything yet, but this area seems to be the worst hit. For those who were burned out of their homes, we’ll need to provide compensation…”

“Of course.”

Listening to their conversation, I realized something. Lord Nazel definitely only got a tiny bit of sleep! No, wait—he might not have slept at all since yesterday. And the same went for Sir Henry.

Even if it was an emergency, shouldn’t they take a nap…?

However, after finishing his sentence, Lord Nazel turned to me and spoke.

“Agnes, as promised, once the shelter is tidied up, I’d like some of your time.”

“Ah, yes. But, while I’m handling the shelter business, you and Sir Henry need to get some sleep, even if it’s just a little!”

“Eh?”

Both of them let out surprised yelps at the same time, but if they didn’t sleep now, when would they?

“There’s a sofa in the room right next door, so Sir Henry, go lie down there. And Lord Nazel, you’re going back to your room!”

“Agnes?”

“No arguments! I’ll keep track of any incoming messages for you.”

I locked Sir Henry in the room next door and forcibly ushered Lord Nazel toward the bedroom.

Rolling up my sleeves, I busied myself and headed back toward the shelter.