Tilea's Worries

Villainous noblewoman, you will not be forgiven!

Timu and I are facing the biggest crisis since the demon tribe's attack on the royal capital.

The first crisis occurred at Elizabeth's mansion.

Had things gone slightly differently, Timu and I might have been tortured and killed by the heinous noblewoman Elizabeth. It was a miracle we narrowly escaped.

A few days ago, I was invited to a noble's party. The details aren't important. While enjoying the food, I somehow ended up in a cooking competition with a corrupt chef.  

Fine, I thought. As a chef, I'm always ready for battle. I'll accept any culinary challenge, anytime, anywhere.

Then, as the cooking showdown with the corrupt chef was heating up, an uninvited guest appeared: Elizabeth, the chef's employer.  

Elizabeth abruptly interrupted the competition, dismissed the party guests, and threatened, "I'll flay you alive and salt your skin!"  

At first, I thought it was a grim joke. Maybe she was trying to distract from her chef's inevitable defeat.  

But no—it was real. Her eyes were wild.  

She declared that if I resisted, she would split me in half, top to bottom.

The heat of the cooking contest vanished from my mind in an instant. I froze.  

It’s one thing to fillet fish. To think of being filleted myself was beyond horrifying.  

Elizabeth even threatened Timu, saying she had sent assassins to capture her and planned to subject both of us to unspeakable torment.  

Sheer madness.

Elizabeth and I have had our differences, sure. And she probably had her fair share of arguments with Timu at school. But inviting me to a party, making me believe we could bury the hatchet, only to set a trap? Unforgivable.

Her invitation was a ruse to capture me. There's no excusing that.  

Elizabeth swore to annihilate not just me, but my entire family—an absolute extermination.  

Grinning, she ordered her servants to seize me.  

Luckily, I had Edim with me as a bodyguard, along with her subordinates. They’d come along to bring the ingredients for the cooking competition.  

With Edim’s strength, we fended off Elizabeth's attack. I quickly headed to Timu, leaving the subordinates to handle the chaos.  

Back at the shop, I was relieved to find Timu safe. When I asked if any assassins had come, she said a certain "weirdo on patrol" had taken care of them instantly.  

I wanted to retort, but I was too exhausted to bother. From the looks of things, Mew must have been the one who handled them.  

What a day—like something out of a B-movie.

At least Timu and the subordinates were safe. However, surviving this first crisis was just the beginning.  

The second crisis came swiftly, brought by Mires, who returned with a pale face and urgent news.  

Elizabeth’s strongest unit, the Baccio Special Forces, was coming to attack us.

Hearing this, I was genuinely terrified. These weren’t ordinary enemies. Baccio is a berserker hailed as the strongest in the land.  

I’d heard plenty about him from Mire, the gossip.  

- They say he can strangle a tiger with his bare hands.  

- They say he can fire massive arrows from horseback using both arms.  

- They say his thick muscles and fighting spirit make him immune to blades.  

His feats are legendary, and he’s one of the twin pillars of the royal capital's power, alongside Remilia, the head of the city guard and a descendant of heroes.  

But honestly, Baccio’s combat prowess surpasses even Remilia's. While she is famed for her charisma and leadership, Baccio’s name is built solely on his raw physical might.  

And it’s not just Baccio himself. His team is terrifying as well.  

- There’s Kae the Archer, capable of shooting a fly from eight towns away with precision, and using a bow strong enough to pierce a troll’s skull.  

- Then there’s Heihachi the Spearman, an Eastern samurai with a flawless record, said to have broken through enemy lines alone, surrounded by thousands.  

- Others include Hyuma the Whistler and Shimo the Bombardier, adventurers and mercenaries infamous for their brutality.

This all-star squad is coming after us.  

What kind of nightmare is this?  

And Elizabeth, using such elite warriors for petty personal revenge? Utterly disgraceful.  

Does she have no shame?  

Why does she hate us sisters so much? Is she so jealous of Timu’s talent that she’s gone this far?  

It’s pathetic. Everything stems from Elizabeth’s insecurity and envy.

---

And then there’s Mires.  

She had been imprisoned by Elizabeth, all because she was Timu’s friend. Though she resisted with all her might and barely escaped, she made it back to warn us about the coming attack.  

Mires… thank you. Your courage means so much to us.  

Now, she’s resting in a room in the Underground Empire after collapsing from exhaustion. Timu said she used too much dark magic and needs sleep to recover—not even potions or healing spells can help.  

But something still worries me.  

She occasionally mutters and trembles in her sleep.  

What exactly did Elizabeth’s men do to her?  

When I asked, Mires only smiled faintly, as if to say, "Don’t worry. It was worse than you can imagine, but I won’t burden you with it."  

Her smile was haunting.

Mires… what did they do to you?  

Looking at her peacefully sleeping face, I gently wiped the sweat from her forehead with a towel.  

Ah! She’s muttering again.  

Her expression twists in pain, her brows furrowing deeply.

Something traumatic definitely happened to Mires.  

Was she whipped?  

No, I didn’t see any whip marks on her body. In fact, her skin was perfectly flawless, free of even a single scratch. I made sure to check while wiping her sweat—it’s important to treat any injuries immediately, after all. Of course, I had the male attendants step aside and had only female members care for her.  

Still, she keeps muttering in distress.  

When I leaned closer, I caught her whispering, “The switch… push it, or don’t… what should I do?”  

She’s been saying the same thing repeatedly.  

Even her earlier sleep-talking was about a switch.  

No doubt about it—Elizabeth must have subjected her to some kind of torture involving a switch.  

Poor Mires…  

But what kind of torture involves a switch?  

Maybe she was forced to repeatedly turn it on and off? Tedious, repetitive tasks can be a form of psychological torment.  

...No, that’s too absurd. I’ve never heard of such surreal torture.  

Whatever it was, it’s something far deeper, something capable of leaving her this distressed.  

Wait—Mires is a beautiful young girl. Could it have been something like…?

---

*“Heh heh, quite the sight you are.”*  

*“Y-you pervert! What are you putting in there? Take it off!”*  

*“No way. You don’t really want me to take it off, do you?”*  

*“Of course I do! H-hurry up and remove it, or I’ll go crazy!”*  

*“Heh heh heh, the fun’s just beginning. Now, do you know what this is?”*  

*“Th-that’s a switch? Is it connected to… that thing?”*  

*“Correct! When I press it, a powerful vibration will begin. What do you think will happen then? Hmm? Want to find out?”*  

*“N-nooo! Y-you pervert! I won’t let you press it!”*  

*“Too late! I’m pressing it!”*  

*Click!*  

*BZZZZZZZZZ!!!*  

*“N-nooo, I can’t—stop—ahhh!”*  

---

This has to be it.  

No wonder Mires doesn’t want to talk about it.  

Damn you, Elizabeth! How could you stoop so low? Don’t you have any sense of dignity as a fellow woman?  

I’ll make sure to take good care of Mires’ emotional well-being. For now, she just needs to rest.  

Leaving her bedroom behind, I let out a sigh. Judging by her condition, she still won’t be recovering anytime soon.  

Honestly, there’s so much I want to ask her. She’s the only one around here who isn’t a hopeless case of delusion.  

Everyone else—Timu, the subordinates, even the “weirdo” in the group—are complete lunatics when it comes to their middle-school-level fantasies.  

Technically, there is one other sane person I could consult: Dryas, our tactician. But he’s away on guild business.  

And while Dryas is reliable when it comes to matters like shop management or finances, his military strategies are… reckless. He has no qualms about sending Timu, myself, or even the weirdo charging straight into enemy lines.  

The rest of the subordinates? They’re hopelessly caught up in their delusion of what they call the “Strongest Evil God Army I Could Imagine.” Talking to them is pointless.  

For example, when they heard about the Baccio Special Forces' impending attack, their reaction was...  

---

*"Each person can claim up to five enemy heads!"*  

---

They were treating it like a casual rabbit hunt!  

No matter how much I tried to emphasize the gravity of Baccio’s legendary strength, it was no use. The word “defeat” simply doesn’t exist in their vocabulary. Their only focus is on how they’ll win.  

To some extent, I blame myself for this. During training, I always emphasized the importance of visualization.  

“Never forget! Always imagine yourself as the strongest version of yourself,” I’d tell them.  

I only wanted them to stay motivated during practice.  

But in hindsight…  

---

*No, no, no, no—how did it come to this?*  

---

Their “strongest version” imagines surpassing even Remilia’s combat prowess. They see themselves effortlessly defeating Baccio with a single punch.  

It’s as if they think they’re some kind of warrior race.  

*Sigh… this is exhausting.*  

It wouldn’t be so bad if only one or two of them were like this. But no—it’s every single one of them. Without exception.  

Normally, people would be on edge in the face of such a crisis. But no, these idiots are as carefree as ever. Only Mires and I grasp the severity of the situation.  

*Mires, help me!*  

But no, I can’t ask anything more of her. She’s already sacrificed so much for Timu and me.  

While I was mulling things over, the weirdo appeared in front of me.  

“Ah, Tirea-sama,” he greeted.  

“Ah, Nielsen. Things are getting serious.”  

“Heh, my skills are itching for action.”  

“...Do you even understand the term ‘Guardian of the Capital’?”  

“Of course! It refers to crushing the foolish enemies who dare defy our Evil God Army. I shall obliterate even their name!”  

The weirdo smirked confidently, exuding unfounded self-assurance.  

“...Sure, go ahead.”  

“Understood. When we deal with Heihachi, I’ll make sure he doesn’t die instantly. I’ll ensure he feels every injury before we end him.”  

“…Right. Good luck.”  

With that, Nielsen strode off to presumably relay his absurd plan to the others.  

---

I didn’t bother stopping him. I have no time to indulge in their games.  

*Sigh.* My irritation was reaching its limit when another familiar voice called out.  

“Tirea-sama! Tirea-sama!”  

It was Oru, the perennial troublemaker.  

“Yes, Oru? What is it this time?”  

“Tirea-sama, that accursed tactician! He’s being completely unreasonable! This is beyond unfair!”  

Another argument? Really?  

I wanted to ignore it, but Oru’s half-tearful pleading made it hard to brush him off.  

“What happened now? If it’s truly unfair, I’ll talk to Dryas for you.”  

“Oh, Tirea-sama, your kindness knows no bounds. I—I’m so moved!”  

“Okay, okay. Just tell me quickly.”  

“The tactician decreed that while others can claim up to five enemy heads, our Second Division is limited to only two! It’s outrageous!”  

Great. I actually wasted time listening to this nonsense.  

But clearly, it was a big deal to Oru, who clung to me, desperate and snot-faced.  

“Fine. Here’s a special permit. Your division is now unrestricted. Take as many heads as you like.”  

“Really?! Tirea-sama, I will never forget your generosity. I’ll head out at once—”  

“Ah-ah! Wait. You’re not allowed to go out on your own. Absolutely no leaving until ordered, understood?”  

“But—”  

“If you can’t follow orders, I’ll revoke the permit.”  

“N-no! I understand. We’ll wait for your command.”  

Oru walked off with a beaming smile.  

---

*Sigh.* What am I going to do?  

Between the weirdo and Oru, these fools are eager to charge straight into the jaws of death.  

Maybe I should just lock them all up until this crisis passes.