The Supervisor Who Resembles a Rat
The supervisor was a middle-aged man of average build. He looked exactly like the typical supervisor. In terms of natural creatures, one might say he resembled a rat.
However, no one would underestimate someone who resembled a rat just because he did. After all, who would mock a man armed with an axe on his shoulder?
Moreover, the atmosphere among the tavern patrons was quite tense.
Aha, is that so? Were they all in the same boat?
Seeing the supervisor step in, it seemed they had decided to resolve the matter within the village itself.
Men at various other tables rose in unison. Some grabbed their cudgels, while others picked up cups if they had nothing else.
Even the cups were nothing like the glass ones I remembered from Korea. These wooden ones were absurdly thick, lacking nothing in their ability to cause a concussion.
Boysel was lounging lazily in the corner where money and mana stones were piled high, smiling broadly.
Despite the entire village's men appearing mobilized, he wore an openly mocking smile.
“A commoner like you shouldn’t even be stirring trouble in this village.”
The supervisor imitated a solemn tone, tsk-tsking rather than clucking. Ah, but he only looked like a third-rate villain.
“It’s no different from a plague. Naturally, it should be eradicated. As supervisor, I approve.”
Eradication isn’t murder, is it?
The supervisor sneered, lifting only one corner of his lip.
Boysel’s gaze flicked briefly toward me. As a knight, he was trying to use me as a tool, as expected.
Who was protecting whom? Hah. The uncle would play with the young lady, for sure.
I stood up and pulled back the hood I had been wearing.
“Who exactly dares claim to be eradicating whom?”
What I needed right now was the arrogance of a noble lady.
Though it didn’t suit someone born in the East, I had no choice.
I lifted my chin and slowly scanned the men in the tavern before finally glaring at the bossy supervisor.
As I said, there are no human rights in this era.
Lady first? That’s something rich and free men boast about when they say, “I can do this too.”
The men muttered nonsense and gripped their cudgels, baring their teeth at me.
Without the knights accompanying me, they might have twisted my neck right then.
In fact, they seemed to not mind the presence of the knights either. Their numbers were different. But still.
Clink―.
What if the sword was drawn?
My knights all drew their swords at once, and the men flinched.
Ah, right. Swords tell a different story, don’t they?
A man carrying a sword isn’t just “a regular person.” A sword is incredibly expensive. It’s not something a serf could afford.
In other words, it proves a different status.
And an elderly woman? No, a young woman leading men who carry swords?
That’s not just a different status. It’s a completely different world. And right now, I am showing that world’s class.
“Speak up. Which family’s offspring are you, claiming to eradicate a member of the Danier family?”
Who has families these days?
He’s a commoner. So no surname. His given name is the end of it.
He probably doesn’t even know “Danier” is attached to anything.
But he knows what it means to have a family. Noble or nearby.
That means touching us is out of the question.
At this point, if anyone has a survival instinct, they would think things through.
Retreat, or kill everyone to make it “and no one was left.”
Before the dilemma, which way would he choose?
The supervisor’s eyes gleamed viciously, and the men around him exchanged sinister glances, suggesting he was leaning toward the latter.
But that couldn’t be. Why? Because.
I grabbed the necklace I had been wearing and held it up so everyone could see.
“This is a gift from Count Hamilcar. I ask again. You are the offspring of which family that dares to claim to eradicate a member of the Danier family?”
At that moment, the entire tavern froze. It was as if all the air had vanished.
Someone let out a faint groan. Even though it was very small, it sounded like thunder.
In the East, one might say they wanted to “kill the root and eradicate the weeds,” but I could do that. However, as the daughter of the Count of Hamilcar, connected to the count, I couldn’t.
I wanted to confirm it was truly a gift from Count Hamilcar, but I couldn’t.
Moreover, this was genuine. He gave it to me on my third birthday. (Of course, it was roughly thrown like any necklace.)
I had been keeping it for occasions like this.
The phrase “the necklace given by Count Hamilcar” sounded quite meaningful. Especially since no one knew it was given to a three-year-old.
Considering this village allows child marriages, even a twelve-year-old couldn’t be underestimated.
Who did you think I was to the unmarried count?
To the people of this territory, the count was more terrifying than gods or demons.
Who gave the supervisor the title in the first place? Count Hamilcar.
The count had the right to punish him if he didn’t supervise properly. Punishment starts with at least a flogging.
“Lady and I are acquaintances?”
“This is a completely different matter!”
Clever ones began to sneak away in the back.
As I signaled, the servant at the door opened it. Some began to flee.
A large number turned their backs and bolted out like a flood bursting a dam.
The supervisor tried to run too, but it was difficult. A knight beside me gently grabbed him.
“You haven’t answered yet what the young lady wants to ask. Since the matter isn’t finished, you can’t leave.”
Yes, yes.
My business started now.
The supervisor’s face twisted when he saw my smile. He nervously gripped his axe, bit his lip, and finally lowered his head.
It seemed he had come to his senses.
The supervisor sat politely in the seat opposite me.
“The daughter of the Danier family wouldn’t ruin the pockets of poor serfs, so what business does this lowly person have with you?”
Not anyone can become a supervisor. The supervisor was a serf because his parents were serfs, not because he was stupid.
In fact, becoming supervisor had made his living quite comfortable.
But saying “daughter of the Danier family” and pretending to know our family was bluff. If he really knew who my father was, he should have dropped the axe right away.
But I highly valued this bluff. In front of knights with swords, while servants watched from afar, doing it alone was not something anyone could do.
I had seen many people like this while living in this world.
“What is your name?”
The supervisor widened his eyes a little at my question.
He hesitated briefly before answering cautiously, “Paul.”
I pulled out a small decorative piece at the edge of my robe, a geometric pattern continuing along it.
“Good. Paul. I am Arian Danier. I was on my way to the temple on the orders of my father, Count Raymond Danier.”
At the mention of “Count,” Paul choked and coughed. I gestured toward him, and Boysel brought him a glass of ale.
After half a glass, he wiped his lips with the back of his hand and stared at me in bewilderment. It was like an unspoken protest: why are you here when our worlds are different?
Now he was just trembling, not even asking what business I had.
If I beat up one or two serfs here, it wouldn’t be a problem.
Of course, Count Hamilcar might make an issue of it, but it wasn’t because he valued human life; it was because his property would be damaged.
Especially since a new supervisor would be tiring to recruit.
However, my father would gladly give up two or three competent serfs for me, and in the end, it would cause no problem.
In my social class, serfs were property, not people. Paul had wanted to kill such a person.
“As you know, there has been a conflict between us that shouldn’t exist.”
When saying such things, it must always be vague.
“But conflicts can be resolved to make the relationship even better, right?”
He wasn’t stupid enough not to understand. Paul knelt on one knee in front of me.
“What can this humble servant do for you?”
“First, let’s look at your sincerity.”
I narrowed my eyes slyly and smiled mockingly.
“I must go to the Grand Cathedral tomorrow. If there’s anything you need for me, prepare it all. By that, let’s test whether our conflict can be resolved.”
After Paul staggered out of the tavern, Boysel clicked his tongue.
“The man who tried to harass the young lady. Are you really going to let him go like that?”
“What if I don’t? Kill him?”
“Of course, you must.”
The knights all agreed in unison.
This is absurd. That’s why they are called knights in front of people but rascals behind their backs.
“Then how do we go to the temple? Didn’t you see the snow piled up on top? No guides, no equipment. How do we climb there?”
Do I really need to explain this long? We lured the supervisor out by wasting two days?
It was obvious that searching for the supervisor and talking would lead to him eating us alive to the bone. That’s why we deliberately made this place and prepared a smokescreen defense.
But now, if I kill the supervisor out of bad mood, won’t I have to do the same thing again to lure another?
When I asked, Boysel fell silent. I smirked and turned my back.
“Boysel, gather the money.”
The sound of Boysel sweeping up money filled the air. He gathered it without me even noticing and went up to the room on the second floor of the tavern.
A moment later, Boysel entered with a knock and handed me a leather pouch. Since last night until now, it contained the money he had earned.
“This is the money I earned.”
Boysel grumbled even while offering the money, as if he was stingy with it.
“Then why didn’t you put it into the envelope?”
“I don’t have any money?”
“Exactly.”
I accepted the leather pouch.
“So you’re saying this money is mine?” Boysel pouted.
“But the fee is….”
“You didn’t take it?”
Boysel blinked like a goldfish and muttered, “Ugh, I was tricked by a ghost,” before leaving the room.
He had already taken the fee but seemed to expect me to take more.
In fact, I had planned to do the same, but I found it distasteful and decided to skip it this time.