CH 232.2

On the other hand, in the office after the Lily Knights have left the room.

「When I mentioned Lord Reaper’s name, the people behind her whispered 『Onee-sama』 but… are they all sisters?」

Remembering that the Margrave didn’t know much about Knights and pilots, Count Rosehip replied with a smile on his face.

「No, in Lily Knights, there is a custom to call the senior members as 『Onee-sama』. I guess they are creating a pseudo-sisterhood within the knight order to enhance their unity」

The Margrave’s eyes sparkled, as if he was interested. However, he quickly calmed down with the next words of Count Rosehip.

「Our Rose Knight also has a similar system. The term 『Aniki』 is one of them. Calling me 『Oyaji』 may also be a form of it」

The captain with blond hair curled into a braid and the girl with her hair cut short at the shoulders looks at each other while holding hands. That image in Margrave’s mind had been replaced by that of Count Rosehip and his men.

「….Their bond seems to be quite solid」

The Margrave nodded as his expression faded, and the Count Rosehip agreed with him.

With the expert’s agreeing with him, the Margrave let out a sigh of relief.

***

The stages move greatly from Landbarn to the north-northwest.

This is a rural city located just south of the spirit forest. It’s a border town located at the northernmost point of the road connecting the elven villages and the imperial capital.

In the office of the lord’s mansion, a mature woman with thick makeup is reading a document with her legs crossed.

「Come in」

There was a knock at the door, and the lord, the mature viscountess, allowed them to enter. The figure who entered the room was a thin man that looked older than he is.

Because she was wearing a tight skirt, it could not hide the red triangle of the mature woman. After taking a glance at it and swallowing his saliva, his deputy, an old-looking and skinny man, opened his mouth.

「The Lily Knights have arrived!」

The mature viscountess raises her eyes from the documents and looks out the window. Beyond the city walls surrounding the northern city, he could see the heads of several Knights.

The fact that she didn’t notice the shaking caused by the Knights’ footsteps must have been due to the pilot’s consideration.

「Put her through to the reception room. I’ll be right there」

After she answered as such, she put the documents on the desk and stood up.

Lily Knights is a mercenary knight order. It does not belong to any particular country, and the members of the group come from various places.

She had called them as reinforcements to the northern border, where tensions with the elves were rising.

(I told them to send as many people as they could, but I wonder how many of them showed up)

With high hopes, the mature viscountess left the room.

「Hee, to think that the knight commander herself would come here, I’m truly grateful」

Upon entering the reception room, the mature viscountess was surprised to see the woman relaxing on the sofa.

She was probably about the same age as the mature viscountess. She is a beautiful woman with long eyelashes and slit eyes, although her hips and breasts are not as big as the viscountess.

Regrettably, she has a long, big scar under her right eye.

「I just came to see your face. I’ll leave these girls here and be on my way」

The mature viscountess and the knight commander of Lily Knights were old acquaintances. That’s why there are no unnecessary decorations in the words they exchange.

The commander, who had been sitting on her own accord, turned to the back of the room and cocked her chin.

「The Lily Knights, the White Lily unit, consisted of three B-class Knights, and four C-class Knights cavalry, have arrived at your request」

A pale woman with short cut hair clicks her heels and salutes. A dignified voice comes out of her slender body.

The six people saluting with her were all dressed in pilot uniforms. All of them are women, and young in their own right.

As soon as the viscountess replied, she immediately turned her face to the commander.

「You only sent one unit? I thought I wrote “as many as you can bring” in the letter I sent you」

The expression on her face was one of disappointment. The knight commander does not seem to be bothered by this, and brushes her long straight chestnut hair with one hand.

「I’ve got orders from your people. This is all I can spare for now」

When she asked what the knight commander meant, she was told that the Yellow Lily unit was on their way to the Magrave of Landbarn.

A rival who had a huge advantage over her. She frowned at the fact that they were sent there, but something came to her mind.

(I heard that the Rose Knights were coming here to support us, so they hired mercenaries in replacement, huh)

「What about the Red Lily unit?」

The Lily Knights consist of four units. At least she wanted to ask for one more unit.

Incidentally, the one Tauro encountered was the White Lily unit. They are the ones in this room right now.

「They can’t move because they are stuck in the conflict in the eastern country」

The commander immediately replied. The mature viscountess seemed like she was about to say something else, but the reply came out of the commander’s mouth first.

「The Blue Lily unit is on guard duty over there in the eastern country. I can’t move them until we have a full complement of their national Knights」

Her expression frowned, and she sat down in front of the commander with great vigor. She then told the members of the White Lily unit to sit down as well.

The captain of the White Lily unit turns to the commander and asks her a question.

「Onee-sama, may I sit down?」

Seeing the commander nodding approvingly, the pilots of the White Lily unit also sat down on the sofa. Looking at that figure, the mature viscountess made a slightly exasperated expression.

「I see you’re still following the tradition to call your seniors 『Onee-sama』. Isn’t it good enough to call you Commander?」

The Commander sipped the tea that had been brought to her, seemed unconcerned and did not show any intention to reply.

In the Lily Knights, they don’t use the terms Commander, Vice-Commander, or Captain, but all superiors and seniors are referred to as 『Onee-sama』.

The commander looked around and asked the mature viscountess instead.

「By the way, what happened to that elven gentleman? I thought he was your favorite」

At these words, the mature viscountess’ expression turned bitter.

When she was in the imperial capital, she always had him with her, but when she was transferred to a rural town in the northeast, he left her.

This is what is commonly known as being dumped.

「….The heat’s gone out of him」

However she doesn’t want to tell her the truth. The Commander is a friend of the mature viscountess, but she has『evil』on her head.

(In fact I thought there was something wrong with me at that time)

She had been so devoted to him, but after half a month of separation, she began to calm down.

As for her body, she still remembered the taste of the elves to an extent. However, that too, had faded since she lost in the preliminaries of the Divine Tournament.

(I wonder if he has overwritten it, that fierce lord of the mountain)

She had met the man who had defeated her in a preliminary match as an enemy when she invaded the northern countries.

He had beaten her again with his powerful and sharp sniping skill.

(Kuh!)

Remembering the wickedness of the defeated that followed her defeat, her body shuddered unconsciously. For some reason, she had suddenly become sensitive after having her crotch tweaked by the fierce lord of the mountain.

After that, she was continuously forced to play with the local pilots without being allowed to sleep.

「Hee~」

The commander of the Lily Knights laughs with her mouth slanted.

Her eyes clearly say, 『It’s not that you lost your interest, it’s that your partner lost theirs』.

Not wanting to touch the subject, the mature viscount changed the subject and started to fight back. Fortunately, there was just the right thing she wanted to talk about.

「Isn’t it about time you change to an A-class Knight? It’s not cool for the commander of the Lily Knights to stay riding a B-class Knight, right?」

For the first time, the commander, who had not let her expression crumble up to this point, raised her eyebrows in displeasure.

The Knight the commander was riding was a B-class. This was something she was very mindful about.

「Something like that, said it to the previous commander」

There used to be an A-class Knight in Lily Knights. Of course, it was the commander’s Knight, and she, who was a vice commander at the time, was supposed to inherit it when she was succeeded.

「Ah, sorry, it got destroyed, didn’t it?」

The mature viscountess apologizes in a deliberate manner.

The previous commander was defeated in a battle. She was captured with only minor injuries, and suffered the wickedness of the defeated.

「It’s good you know, A-class Knights. B-class feels like toys compared to them」

Your Knight is as good as a toy. The commander’s eyebrows shot up at the words that could be taken that way.

At the same time, confusion and a feeling of suspicion that she doesn’t want to believe appeared on her face.

「Are you saying that you rode an A-class Knight?」

Here, the mature viscountess flashed a nasty smile. It was the smile of a victor.

「His Majesty gave it to me as a present」

The commander was shocked and placed the cup of tea in his hand on the plate with a clatter.

It is not impossible to buy a B-class Knight if you pay for it, but A-class Knight is different. The A-class, which could be said to be a symbol of a country, would never be sold outside the country.

That’s why the only way for a mercenary group like Lily Knights to obtain one is to plunder it.

「Should we go and see it now? It has a bright red color and it just so cool」

The commander clenched her fists and trembled in vexation. The members of the White Lily unit on both sides looked at her with worry.

(That’s not something you get because of your skill! That’s just a present the Empire gave you!)

I’m more skilled than you. Whether it’s true or not, she is confident of that.

Her opponent who was inferior to her, was given anA-class Knight, while she was left with a B-class. This unreasonableness makes her heart boil.

But she is also a Knight pilot, and she can’t resist the opportunity to see an A-class Knight up close.

「…..Show it」

She nodded, biting her lip.

(This feels so good. Thank you, Your Majesty)

It’s been a while since she had a victory over her old friend. The mature viscountess smiles as she reaches for the butter cookies on the table while being drunk in this feeling.