The training would be very severe

---

“How will it be different compared to Tilura and my training?”
“The main purpose of your training is self-defense. And it is not a punishment. In order to make someone a guard who can protect others, their training must be more severe.”
“…I see.”
“If you are interested, Mr. Takumi… You should ask Philip or Nicholas.”

It was true that protecting someone else was a different matter, and probably required very different training.
Well, not that I would know.
Just then, Sebastian suggested that I speak with Phillip or Nicholas about it.
I suppose it was possible that they had been trained by Mr. Ekenhart…
Indeed, they were capable guards, and Nicholas could use a katana, which was a rare sword.

“Yes, though they may not want to talk about it…”
“How bad was it…Mr. Ekenhart…”
“Haha. They were on the brink of death, that is all.”

The brink of death… Surely that is going too far?
It was a good thing that Tilura and I were only training to defend ourselves…

“Well, we can leave Mark to His Grace’s care. He already decided it, so there is no point in trying to stop him now.”
“You understand me well, Sebastian.”
“Because it’s happened plenty of times already… Regardless, the real problem is Deam.”
“Mmm.”

The sun had mostly set, and it was getting dark now. But Sebastian and Mr. Ekenhart continued to talk.
I suppose they did not want to go to the dining hall, where the others could hear.
I also didn’t want Liza to hear more about it.

“Can’t you just have him arrested, Mr. Ekenhart?”
“Yes, if I made a move, it would be easy enough. But…”
“The effects it would have…”
“Mmm. While not a lot, he does have some influence in the slums. And so it would be best to not make too bold a move.”
“At worst, his arrest could cause uprisings, not only here, but in other towns.”

Apparently, it would be quite difficult to capture this person.

“But there is no doubt that they are up to no good. Even when ignoring the incident with Liza. I had wanted to chip away at his power slowly, but…”
“That’s why the day after Liza was brought back, the guards of Ractos were contacted and made to investigate.”
“…Sebastian, that was supposed to be a secret.”

Mr. Ekenhart said as he looked away, somewhat embarrassed.
Was this related to how he had been speaking to the guards before we left?

“Hoho. It is not as if you were doing something wrong. Besides, surely it is best that Mr. Takumi knows? Otherwise, he and Leo might decide to take things into their own hands and…”
“No, I wouldn’t do that… I think.”
“Well, Mr. Takumi is very fond of her. And so is everyone in the mansion. But Leo were to act, she might destroy the whole town. She almost did it recently.”

Indeed, even if I was angry that this Deam had given the order for people to throw rocks at Liza… I wouldn’t then use Leo to destroy the town.

“Well, in any case… Deam. Even if we wanted to do something, we do not know where he is currently.”
“Really? I thought he was in the Ractos slums.”
“That is true. However, he changes location every day. As people from the slums are among his subordinates, he is able to move while remaining hidden from the guards. Though, if I put all of my people on it at once, they might…”
“But then it will be obvious that you are involved. And that information will spread to the other towns…”
“Hmmm…”

In other words, he needed to do it in a way that didn’t expose his involvement…

Leo and I lived in the mansion, and were seen in town with the duke’s people.
However, I wasn’t an employee…even though there was a contract. I just gave them herbs.
As the herbs were made with Weed Cultivation, not many people knew about them.
So even if people knew that I worked with the duke’s store, they shouldn’t know that I was deeply involved with the house.
Especially not people who lived in the slums.

Well, there were some stores we had visited multiple times. But I doubted that they would be leaking information.
If they did, then Ms. Claire or Mr. Ekenhart may not visit them as customers anymore.
And being connected to the store was a much bigger advantage than being connected to the slums.
Besides, none of the people we had bought from looked like they would become involved in criminal activity…

Next Chapter

My Beloved Dog is the Strongest in Another World