Paul and Ben walked into the mansion while Jonathan and Zion were left to protect their carriages.
Under the guidance of Henderson, they met the butler of the mansion, who guided them directly to the guest room, who wanted to wait for their lord.
"What do you think, Ben?" Paul asked after making sure they were alone.
"It's not good. The mansion is guarded tightly but the people are suffering. It's as if he fears the people will get crazy and start a rebellion because of the government's own fault. And the fact that he is here without getting prepared to meet us means the lord is someone who isn't standing by… I mean, the time right now is like an hour before our lunchtime, so usually, the lord is working right now.
"The fact that they're making us wait this long during this day means the lord is doing something else… It doesn't seem to be sleeping due to overworking either." Ben explained while looking around the room. "As expected, we should finish this job as soon as possible. And I don't think it's a good option to live somewhere in this city…"
"So, we'll immediately head out and exterminate the demons. Well, scouting first, so I guess we'll camp outside."
"Yeah. That's probably the best option right now. Five days… No, four days should be enough."
"Sure. I'll also put some work into this mission. I don't want to put my people in this kind of situation as well." Paul nodded.
It took the lord twenty minutes before he entered the room with the butler.
"I apologize for making you wait too long." He said. The lord was a twenty years old young man who had spiky, short red hair. He dressed neatly like that a noble, but Paul and Ben noticed the faint odor of alcohol that the body was releasing. There was even a sweet perfume mixed into it.
They never thought that when the fort was facing its difficult time, the lord still had the time to get some women, ignoring the suffering of his people. It was no wonder why the fort had this terrible atmosphere.
Still, Paul and Ben couldn't show their dissatisfaction right now. Although the Demon Banner Army wasn't afraid of nobles, they didn't want to provoke them either. Unless the noble showed the sign of aggression, it was better not to show any dissatisfaction.
With a smile on his face, Paul extended his hand, shaking the guy's hand. "Thank you for welcoming us. I am Paul, the Vice Captain of Demon Relief Squad. We'll be helping you remove the demons. This way, the merchants can return here to help you restore the fort."
"Merchants?" He had a confused expression at first before he brushed it off as if he had just remembered. "Ah, right. Yes. I'll take care of my fort. You must be tired, I'll prepare rooms for your squad."
"That's not necessary, my lord. Our Demon Relief Squad's main mission is to restore the city, so we would like to eliminate the demons as soon as possible for the sake of this fort. We won't give you more problems since you must have a lot on your hands already." Paul politely refused. This was how he usually rejected a noble, and the latter usually was thankful because of his consideration.
However, this twenty years old lord had a sign of dissatisfaction on his face as if it was hurting his pride. This was when the butler stepped in and said, "We're thankful for your consideration, Sir Paul. But we don't like to mistreat you, who has gone all the way here to help us, either."
"There's no need to think about it. We exist for the sake of people, so as long as the people can smile, that's enough for us." Paul rejected him again.
But to his surprise, they seemed to be insisting that they stayed. The Lord asked, "I guess my humble mansion is nothing more than a shack to the people of the Demon Banner Army."
"…" Paul frowned. If he rejected it again, there would be a clash between the two fractions. He glanced at Ben, who was contemplating the pros and cons of staying in the mansion and somehow gave the nod.
It seemed that staying in this mansion gave less trouble compared to clash with the Lawrences.
In the end, Paul said, "Since the Lord has given us the place to stay for the night, we shouldn't reject it."
"Good." The man made a smug smile while walking away. "Prepare the guest rooms."
"Understood." The butler nodded his head.
Paul and Ben furrowed their eyebrows while walking back to the entrance to talk with the rest of the group.
Since they were already near the mansion, there weren't many people around anymore, so Stella and Rose left the carriages while taking off their hoods.
"How is it?" Stella asked.
"It's not that good. We have to stay in this mansion tonight to avoid trouble. However, we're going to report to Captain Clara to file a formal complaint to the Demon Banner Army so that the commander can send it directly to the Lawrence Family. If Earl Lawrence doesn't have any intention to fix this problem, the Lawrence Fort is going to fall." Paul shook his head "For now, we've got to put up with it."
"I see. It seems the problems come from both external and internal." Stella nodded in understanding. "Well, tell us about the situation about the lord later."
"Alright." Paul nodded. "I'm truly sorry for making this decision."
"No, it's fine. We trust your ability and it seems Ben has agreed to it as well, so it's better to do it like this to not create more problems." Rose nodded.
"Thanks." Paul smiled as he prepared to lead the group inside.
Rose maintained her poker face, but as someone with the most sensitive senses in the group, she felt an unpleasant gaze coming from the window on the second floor.
She used her illusion a bit to make her head keep looking forward while the real her glanced at the window, finding the lord licking his lips vulgarly.
"Tsk."
