episode_0069

“I’m glad you seem to be getting along well with the priests.”

Sister Melody said as if she was puzzled by what I said.

“Am I talking?”

“Yes.”

“There was nothing particularly like that.”

“Chatting with priests and sharing delicious food. That’s all I did.”

“… … .”

You’ll know that I’m looking at you with pleasure.

So, I just focused on eating without saying much.

Some time passed after the prince and I had completely turned away.

Princess Rasiel pretended not to be happy when she heard that the prince had finally given up on her, but she couldn’t hide her affection for him.

He seemed to be focusing on preparing for the punitive expedition as if he was at ease, and he arranged for a meeting to introduce the new members.

‘Is Your Highness starting to care about teamwork now?’

During the first labyrinth raid, we never got together to greet each other, but it seemed like they were planning to have us greet each other during the second raid.

I was curious to see how the team would be formed, and I was also curious to see how the party members who had been through thick and thin together in the labyrinth were doing during their break.

“I don’t know if you remember, but today is the day I promised the princess. So I have to go out. What are you going to do?”

“I will follow.”

It was a good thing, since Sister Melody was also the one who had to enter the labyrinth anyway.

This is a good opportunity to introduce you to other team members.

After finishing work, I went to the meeting place with my sister.

“Isn’t everyone here yet?”

Arrived at the store a little earlier than the appointed time.

When we went inside, there was no one to welcome us.

“Please sit down and wait, as there are no guests yet.”

“Oh, yeah! I guess we came a little early.”

“Yes, I think so.”

I sat down in a suitable seat, following the shop owner’s instructions.

“How many times have you met Princess Rasiel?”

“Yes.”

“Can I introduce myself as a knight to my teammates today? The princess probably knows, but the other teammates don’t know yet, so it’s okay.”

“Usually, I don’t reveal my real identity when I’m active.”

“I see. Then I guess I should introduce you as a knight.”

The status of an inquisitor is not something you can go around bragging about.

Because there were so many people, there were some parts that were hesitant to reveal their true identities.

Don’t you know?

The information will be passed on to Prince Loras.

Of course, Princess Rasiel would have carefully recruited her team members, so the information wouldn’t easily leak out.

‘Still, it’s better to be careful.’

If I had honestly said that I was an inquisitor, the other person might have developed preconceived notions.

I also felt bad if someone on my team treated her with prejudice.

“There he is.”

The group arrived just in time for the appointment.

But there are fewer people than I thought.

“You’re early.”

Princess Rasiel looked at me and pretended to know me.

“I came a little while ago.”

“Okay, everyone take your seats. Let’s get started.”

“There are still many people who haven’t arrived yet?”

“That’s all the people right now.”

Huh?

“Only the people here are going into the labyrinth?”

Where did you sell your original colleagues to and enter the labyrinth with only this many people?

Of course, there is no clear system as to how large the labyrinth subjugation force should be.

‘Some places can accommodate up to 5 people.’

However, the difference in size between the first and second punitive expeditions was so great that I couldn’t help but feel confused.

At that time, there were close to 50 people, but this was less than half.

“Yes, it was a situation where I had to choose between increasing the number of people and reducing the number of people. If I had to choose between the two, I thought it would be better to reduce the number of people, so that’s how it turned out.”

“Reducing personnel has its advantages, but it also has its disadvantages.”

If I had to explain the advantages first, it would be safety.

“Yeah, I know. But the more people we have, the less safe we become.”

The probability that the prince will put a spy inside will increase accordingly.

I nodded in agreement with the princess’s explanation.

“That’s why I couldn’t choose to increase the size. What’s more, it’s annoying, but the prince isn’t the type of person to just let the size of the punitive force grow. If he had, he would have tried to get them to join his punitive force.”

If you were to mobilize the surrounding nobles while asking if there was a need for two members of the royal family to form a separate punitive force, the situation would have developed unfavorably for Princess Rasiel.

But if you’re running a small punitive force, the prince will think it’s better to ignore them.

Just as Princess Rasiel hates the prince, the prince would not want to have the princess, whom he detests, in his punitive force.

‘Furthermore, if the two of you join the same punitive force, you’ll have to share the credit, so I don’t think that’s a good idea either.’

From the beginning, this was a choice with a predetermined answer.

It’s about compromising with reality.

“So in the end, I changed the team composition drastically. There was no other answer.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

There must have been a lot of thought put into making this decision.

Moreover, looking at the way the team was put together, it seemed like a lot of thought had been put into it.

It seemed that personal feelings were completely excluded.

Even among her childhood friends she often hung out with, there were some who were not visible.

Instead, those who were considered more capable among the commoners were taking their places.

‘Those people are absolutely necessary. They’re all familiar to me.’

If you have good skills, it will be noticeable.

Because people who are not capable depend on those who are capable.

In that respect, it is certain that Princess Rasiel did her best to select personnel solely for her purpose, excluding personal feelings.

‘It wasn’t like I was doing nothing.’

Honestly, I thought the leader just left the management of the team members to the team leader and didn’t care.

But the fact that she organized the personnel in this way means that she was keeping a close eye on the team members during the first expedition.

“We have fewer people, but I don’t think we’ve become weaker.”

Even though I only saw the faces of the people who attended the dinner, the second labyrinth conquest felt good.

The princess’s words were not a lie, as she had weeded out all the unnecessary people and selected only the ones who were truly necessary.

“The next expedition will last a total of 3 weeks.”

Since not many people have fallen into the trap yet, it won’t stop spitting people out when the terrain changes. That’s why we planned to use it during this expedition to explore the deepest part of the labyrinth for three weeks.

“The three-week expedition focuses on getting along with each other. We still don’t know more about each other than we do. We don’t have enough camaraderie to fight back to back with our comrades. Time will tell, but I want to pull that time out. That will be good for the future of our team.”

As mentioned earlier, the team members are a mix of commoners and nobles.

Even if that commoner is capable, wouldn’t a nobleman not want to hang out with him?

Even the common people hated nobles who acted like they were better than others.

That’s why I couldn’t help but be surprised by Princess Rasiel’s words.

‘I thought the princess was reading the strange atmosphere between them. I thought of the princess as too young.’

I think I need to sincerely reflect on this.

Although she doesn’t show it, there must be many people around her who are looking at her with suspicion.

Even I put my hand on my heart and thought about it, but it wasn’t without a hint of doubt.

However, I do have some excuses.

The point is that Princess Canabi said that she would take good care of Princess Rasiel.

In addition, I saw Prince Loras having a seizure(?).

So I was nervous, but she was growing up so well on her own that I didn’t have to worry about it.

‘At this level, I would be qualified to lead a small expedition force.’

Even adults have things to learn from children, and if you know that your child has grown and improved, you should know how to coolly acknowledge it.

“I went to each and every one of you in advance to get your consent, so I won’t say anything else now, but I’ll make it clear once again. I will not tolerate any actions that threaten the team’s unity in the future!”

Princess Rasiel looked over her childhood friends.

“Just because you are noble, you cannot ignore your fellow team members. The moment you enter the labyrinth, you must think of each other as comrades of equal status. The same goes for commoners. No one here can refuse an extended hand. Does everyone agree?”

I had never heard of it before, when I heard that they had gone there in advance to get consent.

As I was looking at the princess with a questioning look in my eyes, my eyes met hers.

“You didn’t come to me because there was no need to talk. Who would preach to whom?”

I nodded in agreement with the princess’s words.

It was something that didn’t require my consent.

First of all, I don’t discriminate against anyone because of their status.

“I won’t tell you to respect them as much as you respect priests. That’s impossible to do in the first place. But I hope you show me that you’re trying to emulate them.”

“Of course, Your Majesty.”

“willingly.”

The nobles agreed with the princess’s words with a beautiful voice, and the commoners, who would be grateful if the nobles didn’t tease them, nodded enthusiastically in response.

“Enough with the heavy talk, it’s time to enjoy this place. Bring in the food!”

At the princess’s command, the store employees who had been waiting appeared in droves carrying food.

“Oh!”

“Wow! It’s alcohol!”

The princess said to her loved ones with a pleased smile.

“Eat, drink, have fun, and play! Anything is allowed except fighting each other.”

“Thank you!!”

“Let’s drink!!”

“Yes~!”