'...... Sir Knight Commander Luke. I apologize for the disturbance.

　Mark immediately put away his excitement and switched to acting like a thorough stranger.

　It's just that he doesn't treat me as a family member.

　It's not hard to say that it makes sense, but I still can't help but feel a touch of loneliness.

"Well, ...... is there any trouble with the purple rainbow knights?

　I tried to be clerical for now and asked him what was going on.

　The middle-aged man, who I believe to be the Knight Commander Justin, looked alternately at me and Mark with a puzzled look on his face before coming forward.

''Well, well, well. I am in charge of the Purple Joint Knights, my name is Justin Easton.

　If he wasn't dressed in plainclothes and had a knightly appearance, you wouldn't be able to recognize him as a Knight Commander at all.

　Of course, I don't mean that in a bad way, I mean that he has an atmosphere that is not frivolous and down-to-earth.

''I was thinking of sending personnel from us to the newly established White Wolf Knights, but we're having difficulty convincing the personnel we've mended to join .......
Shouldn't you ask for the Commander's permission to give his resignation?

　It was not me who said that, but Garnett, who was beside me.

　I'm still not so used to behaving as a knight that words like that come out smoothly.

It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them. I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most out of it, as long as it's not part of your official duties.

　Sir Justin smiled with a troubled face.

　After receiving the answer, Garnett glanced up at me with a sidelong glance and then gave a small cowering shoulder.

　I felt that I had a glimpse of the atmosphere of the Purple Jerseys organization - not trying to wield strong authority unless it is necessary for official business, and even the young man who just became a knight is allowed to refuse with personal feelings - somehow, I felt that I got a glimpse of the atmosphere of the Purple Jerseys organization.

　I'm sure the goodness of that policy will vary depending on who is judging it, but I personally feel it's preferable.

　--When I suddenly looked away from Sir Justin, I saw Mark peel his eyes away as if he had seen something unbelievable and looked at Garnett in stunned disbelief.

　Noticing Mark's gaze, Garnett raised one eyebrow meaningfully and then grinned.

'Sorry. I heard your sister interrupted you earlier, didn't she?''
"My sister ...... will be so ......?

　A terrible confusion must be swirling around in Mark's mind as the figure of Alma, whom he had met not long ago, and the figure of Garnet in front of him overlapped.

　Sir Justin put aside Mark's inability to wipe away his confusion and quickly returned the conversation to the main point.

''Sir Mark undoubtedly has skills that will be useful for your role in the White Wolf Order. However, he has a strong desire to gain the study skills related to his original duties and has not been able to obtain consent to be sent.
Besides, I suppose the main reason is that you don't want to work for me.
...... Excuse me, but you are your brother, right?
'Yes. He's an unfit brother who deserves to be dismissed.

　When I told him the frank words, Sir Justin looked troubled and at a loss for words.

　He didn't expect his brother to support his brother's stance, either.

'Anyway,'

　Mark interjected as he returned to his train of thought.

'I'm not interested in adventurer's work or anything like that. Neither are dungeons. If you have that kind of time, you can use your knowledge and experience to prepare for the day when you will eventually go to the Eastern Continent. ......
"I'm sorry, Master Luke. We seem to have crossed paths.

　A girl's voice interrupted Mark's statement.
　The owner of the voice was, unexpectedly, Sakura.

'Sakura!　What's the matter, I thought you were out with Sylvia.
''I just returned to the inn a while ago after finishing my errands. Then I heard that you and Luke-dono were mistaken for each other, so I immediately made use of [Shrinkage] to chase after you. So, what was your business?

　Perhaps because she was at Chairman Dorothea's place just a few moments ago, Sakura was not wearing her armor unlike usual, but her sword was the only thing she kept equipped as usual.

　Glancing at Sir Justin, he indicated with a hand gesture to proceed with his business there, so he decided to finish responding to Sakura first.

'...... We've talked about the Duke of Kingswell before, haven't we?　I'm going to take over some of the material on the 'Thousand Year Corridor of the Abyss' from that minister, and I found this stuff in it.

　He took out the old journal as an example and handed it to Sakura.

'It seems that one of the adventurers who challenged the 'Thousand Year Corridor of the Abyss' in the past was an Eastern man who left a memoir.
I see. ...... On a cursive glance, I'm pretty sure it's my country's language. Cursive ...... is a little too badly written for what we call cursive writing here, though.
'You weren't expecting anyone but yourself to read it, were you? Can you decipher it?
'I think I'll have more trouble translating the text into Western languages than deciphering it. I'm reasonably confident that I can speak it, but I'll have to try it to see if I can translate it with an accuracy that will be useful for research material.

　That's a reliable response.
　I suppose he thinks he can't do it cheaply because it's not his native language, but that's enough for me to be grateful.

　Besides, it was a boon for me to be able to confirm that the text in the handbook is in the imperial language.

　In between the exchange with Sakura, I move my gaze to look at the two members of the Purple Jade Order to see what's going on.

　...... Something seems wrong with Mark.

　It's like he's trying to chew out his astonishment and excitement, and is trying to cover his mouth with his hand to cover up the fact that he couldn't push it down in the end.

'My brother ...... Le, Lord Commander Luke. I hadn't heard of any Eastern clerk or member of the group, but ...... and the memoirs are called .......
'Sakura is a familiar adventurer. You're in a relationship where you get help when you need it, so it wasn't in the Knights' file. The memoirs are just as I explained to Sakura earlier.

　It was doubtful that Mark was even in my sight any longer.

　The only person who didn't understand what had happened to Mark was Sakura, and me, Garnett, and Sir Justin, the Knight Commander, seemed to have roughly figured out the situation.

''Shall I excuse you, may I ask your name ......?''
''I'm Shiranui Sakura, but ...... um, why do you look so impressed ......?''

　Sakura's confusion deepens.
　Mark continues to scratch his feet in a vain attempt to remain calm.

　Even if it had been Nagi, the man, and not Sakura, the girl, here, Mark would surely have had the same reaction.

　As I was thinking about whether it was time to break in, a smiling Sir Justin sneaked up on me from behind.

'Sir Luke. Can we talk in the tavern (bar) of the inn now? I'm not always comfortable speaking in front of you.