July 12, 2022 – 3 minutes read – 428 words

The next morning, I load Pi-chan into a large carriage for a free-range meal.

“Hey, go on.” Pat

I gestured to Pi-chan that she was good to leave before climbing a nearby tree for a vantage point.

After about two hours, Pi-chan returned after her all-you-can-eat buffet. She’s twice as thick as normal this time.

“I’ll have to look into getting you a larger carriage, you’ll barely fit into your current one on the way back.” Pat

After a bit of shoving, Pi-chan is crammed into the carriage and we head back to the mansion. When we get there, I find my butler Astrea sitting on the front steps with his head in his hands.

“I can’t stop remembering it! Grab someone else next time! Please! Please! I’ll do anything else! Yesterday, I couldn’t sleep, that voice kept ringing in my head! I can still hear it now!” Butler

He seems on the verge of tears. I can guess what he’s imagining right now.

“It can’t be helped, I’ll find someone else for that task. Can someone bring Ein here?” Pat

Ein is one of the captured spies that accepted my most generous offer of employment. He’s only twenty years old, but he was the toughest of the 29 new hires. How did I determine he was the toughest? He made it through two laps of interrogation, truly a man worthy of respect.

“Master, did you call for me?” Ein

Ein is a red-haired slender man, about the same height as me, short. His piercing blue eyes are his distinctive feature.

“Oh, Ein, glad you’re here. I need someone to take point on interrogations, especially when I’m not around. I think you’re the best man for the job, you’ve got some experience on the receiving end, and that’s how I learned it. Astrea just gripes about the job, so you get it. I’m raising your salary by a gold coin for the increased duties!” Pat

Ein looks a bit confused, he’s scratching his head.

“Master, I’ll follow your orders, but can I get an assistant?” Ein

Seems he thinks it’s too big of a job for him alone, I guess.

“That’s fine, I’ll let you choose your assistant.” Pat

“Thank you very much, I’ll take my leave.” Ein

“Oh, I’ll need to assign some work to your infiltrator group, how soon can they assemble?” Pat

“It’s going to take a few days, will that be fine?” Ein

“Can you get them in five days?” Pat

“I’ll see what I can do.” Ein

“Sounds good, hop to it.” Pat