A few days have passed since Mikoshiba Ryoma defeated Count Salzberg and conquered the citadel city of Ipylos.
　This is Tristron, a border city located southwest of Ipylos, the royal capital of the Roserian Kingdom.
　Originally, this city, which has prospered as one of the trading bases with the Kingdom of Zaruda, was extremely rich and famous for being second only to the royal capital in terms of security.
Well, I can only say that was a long time ago now.
　Chris frowns at Elena's words.
　It is certainly understandable that Elena wants to blabber, and that analysis is probably correct.
　But the reason why this Tristron is now able to maintain its status quo, albeit in a deceitful way, is because of Elena's power and reputation.
　It's impossible to predict what will happen with one careless comment from Elena.
　Chris is the only person in this room right now.
　So that unintentional word will never come out, but there is no way to be certain about anything.
　The safest thing to do is not to say anything.　
I understand how you feel. But this is not the place...
　Figuring out the meaning of the muddled words, Elena sighs again and thrusts her hand out to Chris, asking him to give her the next document.
　The reports that come up under her, one after the other, start with a petition to improve security that came up from the residents of Tristron, and a request for more men from the garrison that patrols the city. And then there's a petition from the Chamber of Commerce that controls the economy of Tristron.
You can't help but feel frustrated by the pile of documents that are sent to you without a hitch, one after another.
　Of course, it's not that she doesn't have the confidence to handle them.
　In fact, Elena has experience governing the land she occupied in war.
　For Elena, who has successfully controlled even the people who were enemies, there's no reason why she can't deal with her own people.
　But aside from the ability, it is an undeniable fact that the current situation is a burden to Elena, and at the same time, an act of great transgression of authority.
　Of course, the situation is so circumstantial that they won't be accused of a crime, but even so, they don't want to take unnecessary risks.
(That said, I can see the administration of Tristron being paralyzed if you don't do anything about it. If that happens, there will be no way to move even if Zaruda calls for reinforcements.......)
　Elena's role is to go into battle as an immediate response force when the Zaruda Kingdom asks for another reinforcement.
　It is clear that although the Oltmere Empire has temporarily withdrawn its troops, it will invade again in the near future.
　Originally, this Tristron has no lords. In other words, it's one of the territories under the direct control of the royal family, and the administration of the city is run by deputies dispatched from the royal capital in place of the lord.
　Then, why do such administrative documents come under Elena Steiner, who is not a deputy, is simply a matter of competence.
(Well, it's not surprising that no one would think of issuing a petition to that thing now.......)
　Elena sighed again at the man's face as it flashed in her brain.
　Originally, this city of Tristron was famous for not being very tricky.
　Even if it was a few decades ago when there was frequent warfare with the Kingdom of Zaruda, it was only once or twice a year in recent years that a garrison was moved outside of daily patrols.
　It was also unlikely that they would be able to mobilize the entire garrison of two hundred men.
　Commerce was well developed, and it was at a reasonable distance from the royal capital.
　It's not so much the countryside as the backcountry, and it's a delicate distance if you ask me whether the royal family's eyes are open to it.
　You could say that this is indeed a tasty land for a lonely, low-ranking nobleman to go to as a deputy.
　Even if they don't say anything, the merchant association that uses Tristron as a base for its operations will make a pile of gold coins for you.
　However, things have changed dramatically here.
　It's true that the scars from the previous civil war were quite large.
　The aftermath of the battle that divided the ruling class of the Roselia Kingdom into two halves could not be small.
　After all, both sides had adjusted beyond the limits of the troops they could mobilize. It was only natural that domestic production and security would be affected.
　However, it would not be surprising if those wounds had already been healed.
　Although some casualties were suffered in the offensive and defensive battles in Iraklion, for a battle in which tens of thousands of soldiers clashed with each other, there were surprisingly few human casualties.
(Yes ... the damage in that battle was surprisingly low...)
　The siege of Iraklion was spared the horror that was originally thought to be caused by former Duke Gerhard's reverence for Queen Lupis before the war began.
　It is likely that some blood was spilled to eliminate the remnants of the knightly faction loyal to General Arleberg from occupying parts of Iraklion.
　However, the cloud began to lift around the reinforcements to the Kingdom of Zaruda that occurred afterwards.
　Many peasants abandoned their fields and the number of exiles increased throughout the Roselia Kingdom.
　As a result of the influx of exiles from both urban and rural areas, security deteriorated drastically.
　As a result, the number of exiles increased and the number of bandits in the kingdom increased dramatically.
　And unfortunately, Tristron's deputy, Baron Joseph Stein, did not have the ability to overcome this difficulty.
　To be more precise, this is not about competence.
　After all, he and his entourage are holed up in a government mansion, claiming to be suddenly ill.
　If that's the case, there's only one option for Elena to take.
　The result of that is the current tragedy.

　A secret conversation with Count Zeref, who recently visited Elena's bottom.
　The conversation we had at that time is not something that would be allowed as a vassal, but there is no other choice but to rebuild the current Roserian kingdom.
　That is something that Elena herself understands to the point where she hates it.
　With that thought in her mind, Elena continued to run her pen over the documents.

　That night, just as they were about to enter the gates of the castle, a breathless messenger arrived with the news of the fall of Ipylos.
　And the stage was once again set for the royal capital, Piraeus.
　Yes, countless speculations were flying wildly around the city, cutting through the fray.