As the sun was already sinking to the western horizon and the citadel was enveloped in a hubbub of drunkenness, a man was buried in countless papers under the pale light of a lamp.
　From downstairs, you can hear the voices of the group members celebrating the success of their work and raising their spirits vigorously.
　This is the first big job in a long time that was undertaken in the form of an urgent appointment request from the guild.
　That large centipede was indeed a crunchy monster. It was killed with only a few minor injuries.
　It's no wonder that the members of the group were so excited.
(Looks like they're having a lot of fun.......which is good.)
　Rick listens to the voices of the group members and smiles with a bitter smile mixed with slight envy.
　The group members are currently in the dining room set up in this inn that has been rented out by the [Clouds of the Blue Sky], drinking as if bathed in alcohol and chewing meat with gusto. And when they have filled their bellies to some extent and become tipsy, they will disappear into the city at night. To suppress the elation of having crossed the line of death, men seek the soft, warm breasts and sweet nectar of women.
　Those are the instinctive lusts of human nature.
　When Rick himself was young, every time he finished a job and got some money, he would take his buddies with him to the brothel.
　However, the current position of Rick does not have the freedom to act on instincts like he did when he was a young fledgling.
　It's because, as the leader of the group, he has to take care of the paperwork that he is not good at.
　Rick, who was checking the thick stack of invoices passed around by the merchants, reaches for the last one with a deep sigh.

'Okay, this is the last one...'

　A heavy sense of exhaustion, something he's never experienced even in a fight against monsters, takes over Rick's body.
　Rick's essence is that he is a genuine warrior. He's the type of man who wears heavy armor in battle and fights in the front line. Ugh.
　I sip the blood of my enemies and dance the Waltz, a circular dance with the Grim Reaper on the border between life and death. My ability and a little bit of luck. That's the only thing that keeps him alive in this business.
　This paperwork is the most painful thing for him, such a brave man of the past, to be able to say that it is the most painful.
　It's a job that has been repeated many times since Rick became the head of the clan, but his body will never get used to this feeling of fatigue.
(I never thought it would come to this... I shouldn't have given my dad a cheap shot when he told me he was retiring and wanted me to take over the Clan.)
　He understands that it is inevitable, but Rick thinks about it over and over again with a sigh.
　A poor orphan who was caught up in a war and lost his village with his parents in one night. The man who picked up Rick and took care of him is the former head of the clan, Donovan.
　I honestly don't know what Donovan's intentions were in picking up Rick, to be honest.
　Maybe it was as a convenient workforce, maybe he sensed something shiny in the eyes of a young Rick, or maybe it was just a whim....
　But whatever his intentions in picking up Rick, Donovan raised him to be a warrior, standing alone in a burned out village, stunned. He raised him like his own father, sometimes harshly, sometimes kindly.
　It was five years ago that Donovan decided to retire from the family business of adventuring. It's a good thing that you're able to have a great deal of fun with it.
　I'm sure you'll be able to see that the same thing is true for the other people. It's a good thing that you have the desire to do so, because you can still be active. The fact that you have mastered the martial arts and absorbed a lot of the vitality of the prana makes you age slower than the average person.　He has overwhelming experience and a well-honed body. If Donovan had asked for an officer, he would have gladly prepared a knighthood and a battalion commander's rank in any country.
　What did Donovan think when he decided to retire from the adventurer's business? Rick finally did not hear his true intentions.
　But now that he was the head of the clan, somehow Rick felt that he could understand why.
(Well, no wonder he was so disgusted...)
　It's not just a matter of blindly honing your personal prowess and being strong.
　It takes money to maintain a clan as an adventurer.
　Income and expenses. Profits and expenses.
　If it was a solo adventurer or mercenary, it wouldn't be a problem even if he had to make a rough estimate, but Rick, who had a number of subordinates and had to maintain the clan called 【Soutian Cloud】, couldn't do such a random thing.
　Since fighting is his profession, wear and tear on his armor will naturally occur, and taking care of it after using it is a must. In addition, since they are rootless plants without a specific base, they have no choice but to stay at an inn or camp in the field.
　If a member of the group is injured, the cost of treatment is significant, and if he or she is diagnosed as incapacitated, it is necessary to wrap a reasonable amount of money in consideration of the years of affiliation and achievements.
　Of course, they are not enforced by law. This is because the concept of employment and the term "workmen's compensation" do not exist in this world where the idea of human rights has not even taken shape.
　On the other hand, however, this does not mean that the concept of human rights does not exist, even if it cannot be expressed in words.　
　When it comes to people's lives, the differences in the world do not matter.
　What is necessary is necessary. All there is to do is to recognize that fact and respond to it.
Of course, it's not a legal requirement. So no one is forcing you to respond.
　But I think Donovan, who was the previous chief, fully understood the need to do that. And that he was not suited to those tasks.
(Well, I don't think I'm very good at it either.)
　Glancing at the stack of papers on the desk, Rick smiled bitterly.
　It is quite difficult for an amateur to negotiate with the merchants of the sea and mountains. It's a good thing that you're finally getting suckered in, but even so, there's a way to get suckered in.
　The negotiation to swallow all the opponent's claim and the one to conclude the deal in seventy-three minutes are completely different, even if they are the same.
　The position of Commander who had to make such troublesome negotiations seemed to be just a loss-making role for Rick.
　The only thing that could give him a headache right now was negotiating with those merchants.

　It's not a matter of time before you'll be able to get away from the state and the powers that be, as long as you choose to fight for a living. The higher your guild ranks and the more power you have, the greater or lesser the fences you will have.
　If a horde of monsters attacked a village or town, even mercenaries would be sent to kill the monsters, just like adventurers, and if the town they are based in was caught in the middle of a war, it would be difficult for even adventurers to remain unaffected. It's even more so when it's an influential person you are familiar with.
　That's why adventurers and mercenaries are so eager to gather information. They understand that whether or not they know the information determines whether or not they can survive.

　Rick had only been to King's Landing once, and that was when he was able to see Lupis' face. The face of Lupis, whom he was able to see by chance at that time, comes to mind, and he smiles bitterly.
　He loves his people and has a character that values justice. Lupis Roselianus was well-liked by everyone and loved by the people.
　Many people applauded her reign as she ousted the Duke of Gerhardt and took the political stage.
　The aristocrats' tyranny has been repeated for a long time since the founding of the Roserian Kingdom.
　It's a good thing that you have a privileged class of aristocrats in every country, so it's inevitable to a certain extent, but the first few years after Duke Gerhardt took over the power of this country were especially harsh.
　The change of government that occurred in such a situation.
(Well, that's to be expected.)
　To a people who had lived a life of oppression, Lupis' presence must have been a beacon of hope. They just rejoiced and hoped for it. Not knowing that it was a great illusion.
　As an adventurer, Rick has no way to analyze what was wrong with Lupis, nor does he have the will to do so. The only thing he knows is that the current Roselia Kingdom is in even more danger than the previous civil war period.
　The guilds have been inundated with requests for bandit slaying and guards, and many villages have begun to build up their vigilante groups.
　Everyone is beginning to smell the storm and prepare for it.
　And now, there is someone in the clan who is also a concern.
　The man is a rookie, but he is skilled and brave enough to be a rookie.
　His ability as an adventurer is low, but when it comes to simple combat skills alone, he's probably on par with the mid-tier of the clan, and he has guts.
　As the guild official said, he was indeed a promising young man.
　But.........
(A skilled newcomer joins us at this time. Simply put, it's a joyous occasion. The question is whether it's coincidence or inevitability...)
　If the man simply wants to hone his skills as a mercenary or adventurer, or if he wants to belong to a group called the Clan as a way of life, there's nothing wrong with that.
　What matters is if he joins the Clan for other reasons.
(Maybe it's time to talk to Anastasia.)
　Rick never considers himself to be a smart person.
　Although his experience as a clan chief has broadened his horizons to a certain extent, his essence is that he is a warrior, and his true value is only apparent when he stands on the front lines. Reading contracts and negotiating with clients is not his true nature. For him, the existence of Anastasia, the deputy commander, is the brains behind it.
　Anastasia, born as the bastard child of a nobleman, is much more thoughtful than Rick and the other members of the group, who are commoners.

''Hey, Lloyd, can I have a word?''

　As soon as Rick's voice echoed in the room, the door opened and a middle-aged man peeked out.

You wanted to see me, Commander. Are you finally finished with your work?

　Eyes that shone with anticipation. The look on his face as he can't wait to hear certain words from Rick's mouth. His whole body is fidgeting like a child waiting to go on a field trip.

Fool, not even close.

　While noticing Lloyd's thoughts, Rick mercilessly crushed his hopes.

''Soooooooo........''　　

　A sinking look that was a change from earlier.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find out what's going on.
　It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for.
　It's a good idea to have a good time with your friends.

'Lloyd, I can't drink today anyway. Give up and go get Anastasia. She's probably in her room.

I've given up drinking and women, so please buy me a good meal when the leader is done.

All right, all right. You can have a drink and I'll give you one. Now go get Anastasia.

　After chasing away Lloyd, who still has a frustrated expression on his face, Rick looks into the air as he leans his weight on the backrest.
(Well, it's not like he doesn't know how that guy feels.)
　It's not something that Rick himself wanted, but it's a system that was strongly suggested by Anastasia, the deputy leader of the clan, who started it, and it has saved my life several times thanks to it, so I can't stop it now.
　In fact, it is because when you are the leader of a powerful clan, you can't help but be uninvolved in politics.
　The celebration of the successful completion of the request. Even as Rick, he could understand Lloyd's thoughts painfully. If it wasn't for the position of Commander, he himself would have thrown out such a trivial job and gone out into the night.

''It's a causal business.''

　Rick took one out of the cigar case on the desk and pulled out a small knife to make a suction cup and sighed softly.


'It's so late. What the hell is that Anastasia guy doing here?

　Rick tilted his head, letting the purple smoke rise.
　According to Lloyd's report, the timing was apparently bad.
　He knocked on the door of Anastasia's room and got a reply that he'd be right there, but...　
　Anastasia's character can be described as meticulous. It's not often that she makes Rick wait so long.
　When Rick was about to call out to Anastasia, thinking about sending her out to call her again, the door was knocked on three times quietly.

'Commander, here you are. May I have your permission?

　From what little I've heard, it's the same bewitching voice as usual.
　However, Rick instinctively senses that there is just a hint of tension mixed in with Anastasia's voice.
　It could be said to be an uncomfortable feeling that could be felt only because they are friends who have crossed the line of death together.
(Is someone threatening you?　No, it doesn't sound like that. (If anything, it sounds like he's keeping his emotions in check.

Oh, Anastasia. Come in.

Tilting his head in his mind, Rick allows Anastasia to enter the room.

'Now if you'll excuse me,'

　The door opened slowly.

'I see ... so that's what you mean.'

　Another word escaped Rick's lips as he was about to say that it was too late.
　Look at the face of the man standing behind Anastasia.

　On this day, the discussion had lasted well into the night. Only they, the three of them, the people involved, knew what they had talked about.
　However, after this day, Clan [Clouds of the Blue Sky] would actively take on work within Roselia.


　Then, one day after several months had passed. The gears of history begin to turn again, creaking. Feeding on the blood and tears of many humans.