Toasteful: Chapter 89, Part 3

　[Part 3/4]

　"...Wait a minute. Why is the servant interrupting? You should know your place!!?"

　The governor, at a loss for words, tried to change the subject. Unfortunately, I won't fall for that trick.

　"Governor, before we move on, can you please give me a clear answer to my previous question? Right now, is it possible to prepare the necessary supplies for evacuation under your order?"

　"Ggghh..."

　I asked again, looking for the reaction of the hidden group members beside me, along with the other people in the room. Of course, the governor didn't give a straightforward answer. There is no way he can answer. He just heard the question and there was no way he had prepared the supplies specifically for it.

　"...Well, if you don't have enough supplies ready to respond to this order quickly, then Governor, you should start requisitioning them now." I said, sounding urgent and impatient, my eyes narrowed as I stressed the importance of the situation.

　"That's true, but..." The governor trailed off, his voice hesitant and unsure. He seemed to be contemplating my proposal.

　However, I cannot back down either. Not to mention the original work, it is difficult to supervise and control the evacuation of a minimum of a 1,000 villagers even with the personnel dispatched this time.

　"Servants, please don't be too intrusive. You're being disrespectful to the governor."

　"...Sorry"

　Murasaki admonished me for my behaviour, and I respectfully apologized inwardly while inwardly clucking my tongue. Although the Governor looked relieved at my apology, it was not over yet.

　"But, you made a valid point. Could you please show us the warehouse? We need to confirm if the necessary supplies are available..."

　At Murasaki's casual words, the Governor's face was twisted...

* * *

　One of the initial quests of "Firefly of the Dark Night (Yamiyo no Hotaru)" is the "Namahage surveillance mission." Despite its low difficulty level, the mission experienced multiple instances of negligence and blunders, and resulted in a tragic ending that no one could have foreseen.

　The mission, which involved monitoring and evacuating Namahage, who regularly patrolled almost the same route for the past 200 years without any significant damage, had made everyone involved in the mission careless.

　The unmotivated county governor had no idea about the existence of Namahage until the very end, and even the evacuation plan for the villagers was still a work in progress. The food that should have been stored for famine or evacuation was not available in the county storehouse.

　What's even worse is that most of it has nothing to do with the current governor. Rather, it was the county governor's predecessors, the deputies who collected tribute, the laborers in charge of transportation, the army soldiers stationed in the city, and many others who were resold other supplies besides food.

　Furthermore, the corruption was not limited to the imperial court officials. The exorcists of other families who were monitoring Namahage were also completely unaware of its mysterious movements because of their poor monitoring. It's also the result of the villagers who have been doing their routine work for 200 years without any serious problems. Why is that?

　Moreover, depending on the choice, even the protagonist could accidentally become involved and cause many villagers to be killed. Even without this, many villagers could still become victims. How wonderful.

　(In any case, in the original story, it was a prelude to the fall of Darth Tamaki, suspected by the exorcists and the imperial court in the original story. If it can be avoided, it must be avoided.)

　I remembered meeting the county governor during the day and was relieved for the time being. Whereas in the original scenario, the lack of supplies was discovered at the last minute and there was a fuss, this time it was discovered early.

　In the face of the empty storehouse, there was no excuse for the lack of supplies. So, the Governor hurriedly promised to mobilize the army corps and prepare supplies. He had no choice but to make the promise. Now, let's hope that at least the minimal necessary supplies will be ready by the deadline...

　"Okay, it's time to go to sleep. We'll take turns keeping watch during the night. ...After all, Do we really trust the security here?"

　I order my men who are peeking into the tenement to stay the night, as I look up at the heavens in deep thought and notice that the moon is already high in the sky. I knew not to expect too much enthusiasm from this small group of soldiers in the countryside. At least be on the lookout for thieves.

　After a meeting with the governor, we were told to stay at this county capital and were lodged in a tenement provided to the servants of guests visiting the capital. It was shoddy, with thin walls and terrible living conditions.

　By the way, the protagonists are being served and entertained by the county governor and others. Iruka and the hidden group member are escorting them.

　"Anyway, I'll go on patrol."

　Since a spear would be too cumbersome, I carried a dagger at my waist and a teguruma under my robes while I walked around the tenement area and the government office. Hahaha, the guards are slacking off again.

　The quality of the army, who are the three pillars of the Fusō-kuni's armed forces along with the warrior group and exorcists, as well as the mainstay of the national army in terms of numbers, varies widely.

　Primarily composed of drafted civilians, their organization is subtly affected by the times. At present, it is a standing army mainly composed of the second and third sons of poor farmers who cannot inherit their lands.

　Their training and equipment, which are collected at the national level, vary depending on the area. The soldiers deployed to wealthy provinces, cities and important strongholds like Shiro'oku have higher discipline and morale, and their equipment includes firearms and armor. In contrast, soldiers of poor areas like this county have lower levels of training and morale. They often have fewer soldiers than they're supposed to, and it is common to see supply usurpation or a ghost soldier who exists only on paper. This is why some people leave their posts without permission.

　By the way, there are routes in which the protagonist and some of the heroines are screwed by these foolish soldiers, and in some doujinshi, this was especially prevalent in the genre of r*pe and humilitation that these soldiers played an important role as a rod. ...Still, why does it have to "prevalent"?

　"Seriously, can't you do your job more carefully?"

　Just as I was starting to mutter, I heard a whisper-like voice.

　"Let go of me!"

　Immediately after, I heard a familiar voice yelling out those words of refusal. With an uneasy feeling, I rushed over to the scene.

　I got there right away. At a small crowd in the back of the government office stables, the crowd was mainly made up of soldiers army surrounding the people who was trapped. And while I gazed upon the center of that gathering, my blood boiled. My eyes widen. I was stunned.

　And when the soldier grabbed her wrist, I instinctively released my spiritual power and sprinted toward the scene...

* * *

　Long story short, she misjudged the situation.

　Even though she followed her friend and lord of her own accord, Suzune was still naive.

　In a way, it couldn't be avoided. The pioneer village where she grew up was so small that everyone knew each other, and the estate where she worked could be considered the Tamaki boundary, where the inhabitants were all good people based on this world's standards. Even the rough men hired as guards were also righteous through and through, and were by no means bad people.

　That is probably why. The soldiers, who had been idling and drinking for quite some time, started messing with her when she happened to pass by because Suzune spoke to them in a strong tone of voice, which was a common occurrence in the village.

　However, they were far more despicable than the drunken countryside locals.

　"Don't get carried away just because you can. You're just a little girl after all!"

　It happened because they had already had too much to drink, because the opponent was just a mere maid, and because they outnumbered her. However, when Suzune felt threatened, she responded firmly and accused them even more strongly, which only made the situation worse.

　"You haughty serving maid!"

　"Get her!!"

　"Huh!? W-wait... don't..."

　The soldiers shout in unison towards the irascible maid. Then they try to grab the hands and feet of those fragile girls who are becoming more and more panicked. But…

　"Everyone, please stop fooling around," a voice echoing through the stables.

　"Ah...? Ooh, sorry...?" The soldier stammered at the voice. He, who strongly grabbed Suzune's white and fragile wrist is surprised when his shoulder is grabbed and he turns around reflexively. Then, he is involuntarily shaken.

　With only moonlight and a bonfire as the only light source, the black-robed figure that emerged out of the dark night, right under his nose and directly in front of him, with his Hannya mask on, was more than enough to startle the soldier.

　"Who the hell are you!!?"

　The soldier who had his shoulder grabbed shouts unintentionally, and his comrades around him also tense up. Suzune, who is also upset, becomes slightly calmer than the soldiers when she realizes who the intruder is.

　"Huh...?"

　Then she notices. She realizes that he is looking at her through the mask in his face. That he is gazing gently at her. In his eyes, the girl feels a sense of déjà vu... However, before Suzune can speak, the man's speech continues.

　"With respect, this girl is the attendant on this mission given to us by the Imperial Court. More mischief shall not be permitted. Please withdraw."

　In a mechanical, emotionless tone, the servant warns the soldiers. He asks the soldiers not to make matters worse. But if they had been so thoughtful, they would not have caused such a commotion in the first place.

　"Who the hell are you!?" the soldier demanded.

　"I am Tomobe," the servant stated calmly, "a Yun-shoku of the servant of the Onitsuki family in attendance."

　"Servant!?" the soldier scoffed, looking down on Tomobe with disdain.

　As the servant explained to the panicked soldiers, he couldn't help but feel their eyes on him, judging him with every word he spoke.

　Those with halfway decent spiritual power only attract youkai and are a nuisance. In the countryside, it's not uncommon for them to be culled as soon as they're discovered. And in many cases, such troublesome people are trafficked as a resource of servants. For army soldiers, who have many farmers in their ranks, servants were a lowly existence to be shunned.

　"Is there a problem?" the servant asked, noticing the soldier wince and cry out in pain.

　"Big problem!!" the soldier exclaimed, clutching his shoulder where Tomobe had grabbed him. "A filthy servant touched me with his filthy hands... Ow!!?"

　Just as he is about to utter a taunting curse, the army soldier realizes that the grip on his shoulder has tightened, and he screams at the same time. The pain is so intense that he involuntarily releases his grip on Suzune's wrist and crouches down on the spot.

　"Bastard! What are you...Guh!?"

　Another soldier standing beside him tries to strike him, but is struck in the jaw and falls unconscious. In response, the soldier who had fallen to attack from behind was tripped and fell over.

　"Don't get carried away...! Agh!?"

　The soldier who had initially crouched down stood up, drew his sword at his waist, and swung it. Several soldiers rush to stop him, but it is too late. The sword, which is about to smash into the black-clad man's face, was bent.

　"Huh!?"

　The army soldiers were stunned by the sight of his inhuman action. They saw he had used a roundhouse kick with his steel shin guards, and calculated the angle on which he had strengthened his body with spiritual power to bend the sword like candy. The army soldiers were frightened by the sight of such inhuman behavior.

　For exorcists, servants were just lowly underlings who were worth a few pennies of grunt work, and nothing more than small fry to deal with the youkai. However, they were still spiritual power holders. The power of a well-trained and well-equipped servant was more than enough to face several soldiers at once. Moreover, the soldiers of the army were surprised to learn that although they knew of the existence of servants, they did not understand their true value.

　"This will turn into an act of violence," said the servant, his voice low and menacing. "How about not drawing weapons?"

　Shocked, the army soldiers stared at him with open mouths. The servant narrowed his eyes in disgust at this attitude. At least, that seemed to be Suzune and the other.

　"If you back down here, let's consider it as just being drunk and overlook it. If you continue, we will have to take appropriate measures. What do you say?"

　Hearing the words of the servant, the soldiers army turn pale and look at each other. They seemed to have realized the significance of what they had done in the past in light of the events before them.

　"How?"

　It was a strong question that was the deciding factor. But then, the soldiers left the scene in a hurry. Their actions looked rather comical. After a glance at their backs, the servant turns his head in the direction of Suzune and the other.

　"Uh, ah—"

　"—Tomobe-san!!"

　Before Suzune can open her mouth, a small white figure beside her passed by while crying. And then, the man in black clothes caught the figure as it jumped towards him.

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