A swordsman, a priest, and two knights.

Count Galaton’s party seemed to have been waiting for us for a while. The first to spot me was the swordsman who looked so frivolous, and he immediately let out a whistle. Catherine promptly threw a dagger at him. It almost hit.

“What a shame, Ward. Thank the Light—we almost did the people a favor.”

“Catherine, what’s gotten into you today? Did you wake up ready to pick a fight?”

Ignoring the swordsman’s jab, Catherine turned to Galaton. The bearded man’s gaze was fixed on me, so all I could do was try to bluff my way through with a smile.

“Catherine,” Count Galaton asked, “what happened? Why are you with Miss Lancelot?”

“Lancelot? Oh, you mean Elsa?” Catherine patted my head. “Galaton, I was just about to tell you. Elsa and the little hunter behind us were hunting boars in the forest when two ghouls attacked them. They managed to kill the ghouls, but the hunter injured her arm. If they hadn’t run into us on the way back, she would’ve lost it.”

“Ghouls?” Galaton frowned, and the air around the count shifted. “Rayne,” he ordered, “examine that girl.”

“Yes, my lord.”

The robed priest immediately headed toward the back of the group. I heard him speaking to Luka. A short while later, he returned.

“My lord,” he said, bowing to Galaton, “the hunter named Luka was indeed attacked by ghouls. But thanks to the proper treatment she received right away, as well as Lady Catherine’s holy light, she’s fully recovered. There’s no risk of her being ‘turned.’”

“Ward,” Galaton said, turning to the Sea-King swordsman, “go speak with the hunter named Luka and confirm all the details.”

“Yes, General. I love girls, after all.”

The swordsman glanced at me and whistled as he headed toward the back of the group. Was he deliberately trying to provoke me?

“Captain Catherine,” Galaton said, “I’ve prepared lodgings for you. Please, follow me.”

“Thank you for your hospitality, my lord.”

After the two sides exchanged the usual formal pleasantries, I was brought along to the square in front of the town hall. But the square had been cleared out, and a camp had sprung up, taking up the whole place. To make up for the shortage of houses in Nagu Town, Count Galaton had set up a military camp here in advance!

“Um, Big Sis Catherine,” I said, laying on the cute act as hard as I could, “my house is right nearby. You can just drop me off here.”

Catherine looked like she really didn’t want to, but in the end, she let me go.

“Elsa, would you be interested in becoming a holy knight?”

Holy knights are vampires’ mortal enemies. Please let me refuse.

“Please let me think about it.”

“All right. If you decide to, you can come find Big Sis at the Grand Cathedral in the royal capital anytime.”

With that, she kissed me on the cheek.

After saying goodbye to Catherine, I ran all the way home under Count Galaton’s watchful gaze. Once I’d locked the door, I finally had a little time to catch my breath.

Phew, what an exhausting day! But I got my clay, so now I can start making porcelain. At least all that effort wasn’t for nothing. I went into the alchemy lab and stood in front of the alchemy table. When I opened the item list in my inventory, I was surprised to find two boars right at the top.

Luka, you forgot your boars!

I changed out of my filthy coat and into my usual clothes: a slightly worn-looking dress and a pair of straw sandals. Since autumn had already arrived, I added a shawl to keep warm. Under cover of night, I took the side roads around the central square and ran to Luka’s house as fast as I could.

“Luka,” I knocked on the door. “Are you back yet?”

The door opened, but Ward was standing there! The frivolous swordsman immediately flashed me a smile.

“Elsa, come on in. We’re having tea.”

“Um…” I smiled. “Maybe I’ll come back tomorrow?”

The moment I turned to leave, a sword was laid against Ward’s neck. I glanced at him from the corner of my eye. He was smiling, but there was no smile in his eyes. He was serious. If I tried to run, he’d take my head off.

“Well… if you insist.”

“Wonderful, little Luka! Elsa’s come to visit you. Hurry and get another cup.”

I turned around and saw that Ward’s sword was already back in its sheath. That was way too fast! He drew as quick as lightning, and sheathed it just as fast. He really was a master swordsman.

When I went inside Luka’s house, I saw her mother standing by the fireplace, looking completely at a loss. A retainer of the lord had suddenly shown up at her home. No wonder Auntie was so frightened. As for Luka’s father, he was buried on a sunny hillside outside town, beneath an ancient gravestone covered in moss.

Three cups of tea were set on the simple wooden table. Luka, Ward, and I sat around it, but the atmosphere was strangely tense.

“Mm,” Ward said, taking a casual sip of tea. “This tea tastes good. Really.”

At that, Luka’s mother finally relaxed.

“Little Elsa,” Ward said, turning to me, “I heard you really showed off today. You took down two ghouls in a few quick swishes. I didn’t know you were such a skilled swordswoman.”

My Swordsmanship is only at the beginner level. How could I possibly be a skilled swordswoman?

“Ahaha, those were just a few flashy tricks. Nothing impressive.”

“Flashy tricks? No, no.” Ward shook his head. “Elsa, your sword protected your companion. You should be proud of that. The general asked me to sound you out, but as you can see, I’m… kind of lazy. So I was thinking I’d go back and fob the old man off. What do you say?”

This guy… He was clearly strong, so why was he so unreliable?

“I’d rather pay the price than owe you a favor.” I let my smile fade. “Mr. Ward, what kind of price do you have in mind?”

“How about a match?” Ward pointed to the wooden swords by the door. “Don’t worry. I’ll go easy on you.”

I glanced at Luka, but she guiltily looked away. Her expression reminded me of a new recruit I once had under my command. Some old-timer had talked him into stealing antifreeze for the mechs, and I’d caught him red-handed. How many times had I told them? Dilute the antifreeze with water and it still wouldn’t turn into vodka. Why couldn’t they ever understand?

“Um, well…” I put on my most pitiful expression. “Mr. Ward, I’m afraid of getting hurt…”

“All right, all right. How about you hit me, and I won’t hit back?”

“It’s a deal.”

By putting my cute, pitiful-girl looks to work, I’d managed to secure the biggest advantage for myself. Cute girls really are great—in every sense of the word.