Easygoing Territory Defense by the Optimistic Lord

Troublesome as it was, now that I knew the knight order was behind those insolent scoundrels who tried to infiltrate my base, I couldn’t just ignore it and not investigate.

There were various reasons for this—whether it was a noble’s way of showing that they wouldn’t tolerate enemies, or indirectly warning other nobles by demonstrating power.

For the time being, as a noble, if you let someone who intends harm go unchecked, various inconveniences arise beyond just the risk to your life. It’s a hassle, but it can’t be helped.

Sighing, I walked behind an angry Dee. Arb and Row arrived about ten minutes late, and they were quite upset as well. Perhaps influenced by their mood, Kamushin was also walking with his shoulders tense.

By the way, the Seato village knight order guarding the area near my resting base was in the same boat, but the two young men doing night patrols around the base were in a miserable state. Apparently, they had been tricked into taking a meal break by knights from another order. Two middle-aged men wearing splendid knight armor requested to swap shifts for the sake of their duties. Knights of such high rank wouldn’t be doing night shifts without rests, but the two young ones were completely fooled.

Well, with other noble factions and knight orders mixed together during the march, it’s understandable that things could get confusing.

Regarding that, the two on watch were severely scolded by Dee, which was almost pitiful.

There’s a common saying that failing once makes you less likely to make the same mistake again, so since no one was hurt and no damage done, I wasn’t worried. If anything, next time I might willingly set up the same situation as a decoy.

However, right now, we were in the middle of an important march preparing for war with the Yelinetta Kingdom. It was important to show strength as a noble and demonstrate a strong will not to tolerate enemies, but striking the right balance was tricky. Disrupting the march was foolish and could cause resentment not only from His Majesty but also from other nobles.

Still, doing nothing was not an option.

While my mind spun with these troublesome thoughts, I continued the pavement work on the mountain road.

“What should I do…”

“Eh? Did you say something?”

Til responded to my muttering as I worked by the front of the carriage. Taking the opportunity, I accepted the cup she offered and drank the water inside.

“Thanks… So, about the intruders who trespassed last night, I think it was probably the knight orders of Viscount Tron and Baron Nouveau who helped them attempt to assassinate me…”

I trailed off, and Til furrowed her brows.

“Meaning there’s no evidence?”

Til replied angrily. Though quietly upset, her anger wasn’t very intimidating. I smiled wryly and shrugged at her expression.

“No, I think we can find evidence. Arte blew the half-open door clean off, so the enemy was probably injured. Their armor might have big scratches, or there might be marks shaped like the door. But the bigger problem is that Viscount Tron and Baron Nouveau belong to a faction of a certain marquis. In other words, there’s someone with greater power behind them.”

When I said that and looked up, Til’s eyes widened as she looked at me.

“...No way, Marquis Fertio?”

Til quickly guessed my suspicion, and I nodded vaguely with a wry smile. It’s unclear if Jarpa even planned an assassination, but since there was nothing to steal, there’s no other motive for breaking into my base.

At minimum, they probably tried to threaten someone highly regarded by His Majesty like me to make me do something. If Jarpa’s target was me, the best-case scenario would be threats or warnings. The next would be forcing a slave contract. The worst would be assassination.

Even though he’s my father, Jarpa’s behavior was ruthlessly noble. That said, his judgment on timing and methods is impulsive. Even Jarpa, who rose through military power, wouldn’t act so recklessly.

There’s a chance Tron and Nouveau acted independently. In that case, they likely intended to curry favor with Jarpa by enslaving someone useful like me.