Chapter 268. Sound Operations

Well then, I’m Deputy Zilbagias, listening to the reports of the three race officials at Evaroti Royal Castle.

“—And so, the construction of the beast-repelling forward base is complete. They intend to expand the living facilities and ultimately utilize it as a village.”

Porkun said while flipping through the report.

“Hm. It seems to be progressing quite smoothly.”

I replied, nodding while leaning back in a grand manner. Still, Porkun, after several months of acquaintance, I’ve yet to see him act tyrannically. Is he still biding his time…?

“Regarding this ‘village’, they would like to consult with Your Highness for a name.”

Tavo picks up Porkun’s words.

Naming…? Ah, right, since I’m technically the lord, even if it’s an autonomous district, I should probably check if it’s okay to name it without permission.

“Hmph, I have no interest in the name of a village where the riffraff live. I’m not so free as to name it every time more pop up. Just tell them to do as they please.”

“Understood.”

Tavo bows politely in response to my extremely arrogant attitude. Good, good.

“Still, humans really do work well! This Nichar here is quite impressed!”

Then, that Night Elf guy starts to chuckle and say something.

“Under the cursed summer sun, even the beastmen show their lazy tendencies and barely work.”

At Nichar’s words, a scruffy cat beastman soldier squints his eyes. It’s not laziness; they just can’t move in this heat, I want to shout.

By the way, speaking of laziness, aren’t you Night Elves the peak of laziness under the sunlight…?

“…In that regard, once humans get moving, they steadily finish their work and complete tasks on schedule, making them quite manageable! I can’t help but admire Your Highness’s keen insight in recognizing their workforce.”

Ah, humans might be a race born to serve us, Nichar laughs.

Hahaha, what a guy.

“However, that’s precisely why one must remain vigilant. In the blink of an eye, you never know what schemes they might be up to.”

Tavo said with an exasperated look, poking fun at Nichar.

“Hah! Schemes, how wonderful! Rebellion is also welcomed by Your Highness, and with vigilant eyes watching, it shouldn’t escalate into a big deal.”

Nichar looks over to me as if to say, “Isn’t that right, Your Highness?” It’s true, but I really don’t want to nod just because he said so…

“However, fortunate or unfortunate, the recent humans have been obedient. In fact, reports suggest that the beastmen in the soldiers’ ranks are more invested in training.”

Nichar shifts his expression. The beastmen are usually prone to fatigue in this summer heat, but perhaps to counter that, it seems they’ve been dedicating time to training from evening to night.

On the other hand, the humans seem to be more or less maintaining their usual routine, though they might be slightly less active.

Hmmm.

I glance behind the officials to the vampire lady Yavka.

“What about the vampires? Do you have any opinions on that?”

“Among us, there are no significant movements to report.”

Unlike the chaos when she drinks my blood, Yavka responds with a dignified attitude.

“I have been monitoring the residential areas at night, but there don’t seem to be any clandestine meetings; they appear to be living quite healthily.”

That being said, there have been zero deaths due to bloodsucking up to now. It seems my blood as a reward is truly effective.

“What about during the day?”

I follow up. Even if they can’t move in sunlight, vampires are good at lurking in attics or under floors.

However, Yavka quietly shakes her head.

“No, even during the day. …There may be places with holy attributes that were formerly related to the Holy Church, so I’ve kept my distance from those, but still, there are no signs of large gatherings. Just—”

Just…?

“—During the day, the upper management involved in the autonomous district’s operations has been frequently seen socializing outdoors in well-lit areas. Unfortunately, I couldn’t hear their conversation as there were no suitable places to hide nearby…”

So that’s solid countermeasures against the dark folks.

“Hm. Well, that’s good. As long as I can catch wind of any major rebellion, they can do as they please. Let’s see their skills and resolve against the odds…”

I said that and nodded with satisfaction.

Now then, maybe it’s time to wrap up this visit. I should check on Claire for a bit of mana replenishment and see how the humans are doing before heading back.