The carriage with Liltana on board arrived at the guard station.
　A nobleman's carriage with an escort suddenly appeared at the filling station, and the guards were tense.
　And when Nigito, the gosha, opened the door of the carriage, Riltana got off the carriage with an angry expression on her face.

'What is this ...... stuffing station for ......?'

　Riltana opens her mouth as she glares at the guards who asked the question.

'It was a kidnapping in the noble city!

　Lilitana's words made the guards nervous. From the point of view of those guarding the noble town, if something like a kidnapping happened in the noble town, it would be nothing more than a security mistake, a mere blunder.

''? ...... So, will you tell us inside? I'll get the man in charge right away.

　Under the lead of the guards, we were led into a simple reception room. Unlike a nobleman's reception room, there were no furnishings, and the room was simply for meetings.
　Riltana, who looked unhappy, sat in the middle of the sofa she was led to, with Nigito standing behind her as an antechamber. The guard left the room with a good "I'll go get my boss right away," he said, and left the room.
　Shortly after, a guard who appeared to be a well-dressed superior who was a bit more gorgeous dressed than the other guards entered and sat down in front of Riltana, with another guard sitting next to him to scribe.

'This is Princess Riltana, Your Highness, I am afraid that you have taken the trouble to come to this place. My name is Bharatta, and I am in charge of this filling station. Henceforth, please be informed.

　Bharatta, the captain of the guard, had already checked the carriage before the reception room came. To be a captain of the guard, one had to know which noble family he belonged to just by looking at the insignia on the carriage.
　In some cases, this may be disrespectful, and he has to memorize it thoroughly.
　The carriage of Lilitana is not of any nobleman in this country. It bears the national coat of arms or the coat of arms of the Byzantine Empire. As a student from another country, Bharatta paid particular attention to it.
　Then Bharatta continued to speak.

''So, Your Highness, if you could tell me ...... the situation, it would be very helpful.

All right. Nigito, you first. Just tell me what you told me and I'll say it.

Yes, Lady Riluthanna. As a matter of fact, I was just telling you...

　The situation is explained to me by Nigito. As the story goes on, Baratta's brow gradually creases as the story progresses.

''Three pitch black carriages ....... Hey, have them checked immediately to see if anyone saw such a carriage enter the nobleman's district.''

　The guard who had been waiting at the edge of the room nodded and then left the room.

''Thank you for the valuable information. We will now go to each of the noblemen's residences to check in with them, as well as report back to the royal castle. We'll take care of business from here.''

　Baratta put his hand on the table and bowed deeply.
　Satisfied with Bharatta's civility and responsiveness as a captain, Riltana left the filling station early.
　When you get on the carriage, Nigito gets on the gyoza-dai and moves the carriage.

''Then I will return to the mansion.

　With a slightly troubled look on her face, Riltana opens her mouth.

''--Wait a minute ....... Keep going to Cain's place.

"Wait a minute, that's not ...... and I haven't promised anything, and ...... if Lady Riluthanna comes unexpectedly, Earl Silford will have to prepare for... ...

　Nigito looks puzzled at Liltana's instructions, but Liltana's intentions are firm.

'You know Cain's mansion, don't you?　Just go ahead.

I understand.

　Nigito sighed and changed the direction of the carriage with Riltana in it, heading for Cain's mansion.

　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.

　After confirming that Rilutana and the others had left the filling station, Bharatta sent for the off-duty guards to be called in as well, and set up an emergency system.
　There were about sixty people working in this filling station, and although the work regime was arranged in shifts, in case of an emergency, they were to be called in immediately.
　That's how important it was to be entrusted with the defense of the noble district of the royal capital.
　In less than an hour, all the guards would assemble. Then the captain, Bharatta, let out a single voice.

''This is the first major incident since I became the captain of the guard station!　We received a report of a kidnapping in the nobleman's quarter today. Three black carriages are believed to be the culprits. I'm going to need three men each to search for them. When you find them, leave two of them there and one of them to come to the filling station to report. Then all of you go!

「「「「「 yes!!!!! 」」」」」

　Each of them formed a trio, prepared their equipment and left the filling station.
　The team that will search for the girl and the team that will head to the nobleman's mansion where the daughter is located will be split up to conduct the search.
　Of course, there was also a team that was going to examine the records to enter the nobleman's town.

　Bharatta stopped his second-in-command, Delga, and told her that he was going to report to the royal castle and leave the filling station.
　At the filling station, the second-in-command, Delga, took charge in Baratta's absence.

　Everyone is left alone in the search, and Delga opens his mouth in the empty room.

'Hey, you've erased the evidence, haven't you ......?'

　As if in response to his words, the door opened and three guards entered the room.

''...... It's of course. I've destroyed the record of your entry into the nobleman's district. But I didn't erase that girl's, did I?　The captain would be less motivated if he knew they were commoners.　But still, I didn't expect to be seen in the Imperial Lady's carriage: ....... Those guys are a hell of a screw-up too.

　One of the guards sits in a chair and swears as he puts his feet up on the table.

'Well, don't say that. You could squeeze another generous amount of money out of that, couldn't you?　If Bharatta is going to be responsible for this, I'll be the captain. The top brass will know that this is what happens when you let a commoner be the captain.

　The equally vicious Delga was the son of a nobleman named "Delga von Gingritte", the third son of a baronial family, who had no inheritance and was unhappy with his future as a commoner. He was the third son of a baronial family with no inheritance, and he was not happy about living as a commoner from now on, so he brought in others in a similar situation and made money by accommodating the merchants' associations and others behind the scenes.
　The captain, Bharatta, was a commoner, but he was an honest character, and he had been selected for the captain's post because of his ability and his good points.
　This had caused Delga to be even more jealous.
　The four of them sat around the table and had a little discussion before returning to their respective tasks.


''You're making such a big deal out of one commoner kid or so ....... Well, it's never going to come out again. ......

　Alone, Delga muttered with a black smile as she looked out the window at the view outside.