A few days have passed since the first news of the dispatch of the delegation hoping to meet the Demon King's army - the first news of the mission came in.

　All of the knightly orders stationed in Green Hollow Town are very busy in dealing with the delegation that will arrive soon.

　The Silver Winged Knights are in charge of guarding and escorting important people on the ground.

　The Golden Fang Knights are responsible for keeping an eye on the Demon King's army and fighting on the front lines when the war resumes.

　The White Wolf Knights are responsible for overseeing the adventurers' search for the dungeons and acting as an intermediary between the Royal Palace and other knights.

　In particular, the White Wolf Knights (me and my team), since one of their roles is to investigate the mystery of the Ark of the Elements, they couldn't just pass off the delegation's dispatch as someone else's affair.

　The heads of each of the three knightly orders discussed day and night, and continued to formulate various plans on where on earth they would receive the delegation, what kind of escort team would be used to deliver them to the fourth level, and how to ensure their safety before and after the meeting.

　Eventually, their efforts were rewarded with a plan, and all that remained was to wait for the arrival of the delegation...










　-- One afternoon, I was working at the White Wolf Store after a long time, when Felix, the Silver Wing Knights' deputy chief, visited me.

''We just received word from Hayama. The mission has arrived at the foot of the mountain and will be able to reach Green Hollow by the end of the day.
Finally. All right, I guess we better get ready to accept it.
Please. The delegation will visit the town hall first.

　He replied to Felix and got up from his chair behind the counter and turned to Erica, who was working on the bill.

'You heard me. Sorry, but I'm going to take Garnett for a minute. Can I leave the shop to you until we close?
'Of course!　We'll take care of it!

　Erika nodded confidently.

　When she first started working at our house, she was always unsure of her worth, and even the branch manager said she couldn't do it because she was still too young, but now she's become a completely dependable person.

　Inwardly happy with Erica's growth, I called Garnett, who was working in the back, and ran to the city of Green Hollow.

　First, we visit the Spring Wakaba Tei and report on the delegation's planned arrival.

　Sylvia, who greeted us instead of the landlady, had already had a meeting with us beforehand, and so she proudly accepted us with open arms.

''We've been properly talked through at the trade association. We've already arranged for the nobility to stay at the high-class lodgings, while the knights and soldiers will be divided among several lodgings, including ours, to receive them.
It helps. It's nice to have a friend to lean on.
It's the same for me, Luke, you're always there for me. The best sign in town would be crying if it wasn't useful at times like this.

　As for where the mission members would be received on the ground, it was almost entirely left up to the Spring Wakabatei.

　It was because they thought that an amateur shouldn't interfere with such and such, but Sylvia and the landlady proceeded with the preparations with such finesse that I couldn't help but take my hat off to them.

　Next, we went to the town hall to see how well the preparations for the paperwork that would be done upon our arrival were progressing.

　Sophia was very good in this area.

　Sophia, who is from the Blue Peacock Knights, the knightly order that oversees the Knights, is more deft and shrewd than anyone I know when it comes to paperwork.

　Thanks to Sophia, who had come to the town hall a step ahead of us, the work had been completed to the point that there was nothing more to be done by the time we arrived.

''Commander-dono, this will be the report. All we have to do now is wait for the delegation to arrive.
...... Really, you're relying on me for everything.
It's rather an honor. You have relied on the blue peacock (us), which is often neglected, so far. If we fail to live up to your expectations, the name of the blue peacock will fall into disuse.

　Both Sylvia and Sophia take pride in their work and do their best to do their part.

　Now it's my turn to do what I have to do.

　I make sure that all the preparations are done without delay and continue to wait in the town hall for the delegation to arrive.

　Then, as the sun began to set deep into the forest, a group of people, larger than a large party of adventurers, came through the gates of the town of Green Hollow and up the main street.

　The captain of the leading cavalry dismounted in front of the town hall and took off his helmet in front of us, who were waiting for the delegation in the eaves.

　A mature man with black hair and red eyes - both have the same physical characteristics as our Leila.

''You must be Luke White Wolf-sama. The Royal Delegation has just arrived. My name is Clyde, captain of the guard.
We've been expecting you, sir. Okay, first of all, the command staff will go into the town hall here. Your attendants will be escorted to their lodgings.
That's very kind of you, sir. It hurts.

　He wanted to have a meeting with the person in charge right away, but he couldn't leave so many people standing in the central square at any cost.

　They would be fatigued from the long journey, and more than anything else, they would genuinely be in the way of the traffic.

　Therefore, I split up between the faces of the White Wolf Knights and the supporting personnel from the Silver Wing Knights and divide up the knights and soldiers into the lodges I've secured.

　In the meantime, I decided to have the central members of the delegation enter the town hall in parallel.

''I'm not sure about the knights and nobles, but there are some big names I can recognize from the ...... adventurer's guild executives.
Seriously? The guild is getting serious about this, huh?
'Maybe they called me because I'm an expert in dungeons and demons. The executives were all well-known adventurers.

　Garnet and I secretly whispered to each other in a whisper as we looked at the successive faces coming in.

''......, but how many executives of that class are going to sit up?　Normally, I'd expect that apprentice class to be sent to you: ......

　Feeling an inexplicable incongruity in the members of the delegation, he moved over to the person who claimed to be the representative.

　However, the moment I saw that person's face, my surprise at the appearance of the guild leaders was instantly blown away and vanished.

''It's been a long time, Sir Luke. Didn't we both dream that we would ever see each other outside of King's Landing?
"......!　You are ...... the Duke of Kingswell!