Two days later, Anlin Plain, Knights’ Garrison.
After several days of work, Lia’s results were not exactly abundant, but at least better than nothing.
The towering pile of documents on her desk hadn’t diminished; if anything, it had grown larger—literally forming a mountain.
And—
“Lady Lia, this letter just arrived from the Holy Capital regarding disputes over the administration of the Hero Party’s assigned territory. Some issues need your attention.”
“Lady Lia, the Sentinel Squad reports signs of small demon forces activity to the east. These may be remnants of the fleeing troops. How do you wish to handle this?”
“Lady Lia, our supplies are running low—rations, medicinal herbs, and so forth will be depleted in a few days. Should we limit distribution?”
As knights and soldiers came and went, the mountain of paperwork visibly expanded.
Lia, meanwhile, had become a shadow of herself.
Heavy dark circles were etched deeply onto her pale skin, impossible to miss.
Her once vibrant golden hair had dulled into a grayish haze from neglect, curling messily at the ends.
Her lips were dry and pale, on the verge of cracking.
For these past few days, she had barely slept or eaten properly.
Let alone practicing swordsmanship, drafting strategies, or performing her daily prayers to the Goddess.
After such a tremendous personal sacrifice, the work not only showed no sign of ending but kept increasing.
Finally, she snapped.
The anger long suppressed suddenly erupted as she slammed the table before her.
“Enough!!! I’m the Hero! The Hero’s duty is to fight, to eradicate the Goddess’s enemies. Why the hell am I wasting my time on all this nonsense aaaaaaah!?”
With a loud crash, countless sheets of paper flew into the air, then fluttered down like snowflakes, quickly blanketing the entire floor of the tent.
Watching this scene, a young woman standing nearby revealed an unmasked look of disdain.
She was of medium height, just over twenty years old.
Her features were striking and handsome, leaning towards a masculine beauty; if dressed as a man, she might be mistaken for a beautiful young knight rather than a woman.
Her long blue hair was tied back in a ponytail.
She wore the standard silver armor of the Holy War Knights, complemented by a white cloak and scarf, exuding a strangely stern aura.
Christina Karsaid—commonly called Chris—was the commander of the Knights involved in this operation.
Alongside Konstantin, she was considered Eze’s right-hand and one of his most trusted officers.
In the previous battle, she had led the charge with her spear, breaking through multiple lines of the Witch Army’s defenses.
Exhausted, she was ambushed by a demon automaton and lay unconscious until just last night.
As soon as she woke, the first thing she heard was that Eze had been driven away by Lia.
Other commanders were too afraid of Lia to speak up, but Chris wasn’t intimidated; she was here exactly to pick a fight.
Clearing her throat, she said:
“If Lord Eze were here, all these matters would have been settled long ago.”
Still fuming, Lia turned her face toward Chris, eyes blazing like she might devour her.
“Christina Karsaid, what did you just say!?”
“I said, if Lord Eze were here, all these matters would have been settled long ago.”
Chris’s tone was dripping with sarcasm.
“Didn’t hear me clearly? I’ll say it again—if Lord Eze were here…”
“Shut up!!!”
Lia, already on edge, was pushed into a rage by this provocation.
She grabbed a stack of documents and flung them at Chris’s face before lunging forward to seize her collar.
“What do you mean by that!?”
Chris met the Hero’s fury without a hint of fear:
“I mean nothing more than stating a fact. Or perhaps, Lady Lia, you’ve worked yourself to the point of losing your mind, unable to distinguish truth from falsehood?”
Having said that, Chris was thrown aside, crashing into the scattered pile of papers.
Lia’s eyes were red with fury.
“Know your place! Who do you think you are, to talk to the Chosen Hero like that!?”
Chris stood and dusted herself off slowly.
“Lord Eze once said those who lack something are the ones who shout about it the most. And yet, Lady Lia, you even drag the title ‘Chosen Hero’ into your mistreatment of subordinates—aren’t you afraid of embarrassing the Goddess?”
“You… tsk—”
Lia wanted to lash out but found herself at a loss for words.
On top of her exhaustion, the constant jolts made her dizzy, nearly losing her footing.
She covered her face, thought for a moment, then started walking out.
But Chris wasn’t finished:
“Lady Lia, where are you going? You don’t plan on giving up on these tasks that Lord Eze would’ve handled easily, do you?”
“Shut up…”
Fatigue and a sudden spike in blood pressure sapped the strength from Lia’s voice.
“What do you understand? Didn’t you hear the report? Supplies are low, Heidi is still not back—I’m going to lead a team to Tafia myself!”
After a pause, she added:
“Leave these trivial matters for after I return!”
With that, she left without looking back, leaving Chris standing there with a face full of disdain.
“A useless, blundering mess. How did someone like her become my master’s captain!?”
In public, Chris addressed Eze respectfully as ‘Lord Eze,’ but privately, she always called him ‘Master’—the only one in the entire Knights who did so.
As she complained, Konstantin entered and sighed when he saw the chaotic tent.
“You really went and provoked her?”
Chris sneered.
“Everyone else is afraid of that madwoman, but not me. No one speaks up, so who else will stand up for Master!?”
“She’s already gone. What good does venting do now? Besides, the boss always has his own plans. If we act recklessly, we’ll only ruin them.”
Hearing this, Chris’s emotions boiled over.
“What can I do? I told Master long ago, if he ever left, I wanted to go with him. But I was unconscious when he left. If I don’t vent now, who will handle this?!”
Watching Chris throw her little tantrum, Konstantin rubbed his forehead helplessly.
“You’re a noble’s daughter. If you clash with the Hero and the Church, it’ll cause trouble. The boss only left you behind because he cares about you.”
“Who cares about that rotten family? Why does Master always keep his distance…”
Suddenly, Chris seemed to realize something. Her eyes lit up as she clapped her hands.
“I get it now! I understand!”
“…Understand what?”
“Master must have deliberately left me behind to be useful someday!”
“Useful how?”
“How should we know Master’s thoughts? We’ll find out when the time comes~”
Chris’s confident declaration left Konstantin speechless.
All the Knights, Konstantin included, respected Eze to some degree.
But Chris went beyond respect to outright worship—bordering on fanaticism.
She had a habit of overinterpreting everything Eze said or did.
Eze had tried many times to correct her but to no avail, and Konstantin, aware of this, never dared touch the subject.
He could only soothe her like a child:
“Right, right, you’re correct. So for the boss’s plans, you need to stay calm and avoid trouble, okay?”
“Mm-hmm, of course!”
Watching her like this, Konstantin sighed and left the tent, only to be stopped by another Knight commander who called out:
“Hey, Konstantin, that madwoman said she wants to take some officers to Tafia. You’re closer to Lord Eze—are you going…?”
“Shh!!!”
Rarely nervous, Konstantin quickly covered the other’s mouth.
If Chris overheard that—
She’d surely throw a fit, insisting on coming along and never returning.
That would just give Eze another headache.
Lowering his voice, Konstantin said:
“Got it, I’m going. Just don’t let that one inside find out!”