Chapter 542

New Bodyguards’ Interviews
Once our discussion was settled, I sent a messenger to Rumaja to inform her that we would be selecting new bodyguards.
The interviews were set for the afternoon three days later, at my mansion.
According to Rumaja, she was bringing four parties this time.
Hmm, four gold-rank adventurer parties… that’s quite an effort.

“That just shows they’re serious. Lady Lily, your bodyguards are effectively made up entirely of people from the Darshe Principality. If we don’t select some from this continent as well, it won’t look good to have a platinum-ranked merchant from this continent with only foreign guards.”

“Rumaja sure has a troublesome job.”

“That’s what it means to be the Adventurers’ Guild Grand Master.”

Yeah, it does sound like a hassle.
As far as I’m concerned, as long as they’re trustworthy, there’s no problem.
Talat, Kiblinki Saltas, and the others can handle most of the actual guarding.
When walking around town, not only Plum but all the servants carry swords, so that’s already an intimidating display.
It really is more like a show of force.
The rest is just for saving face.

“So, Lily, how many parties will you hire?”

“One should be enough, right? It’s not like I plan on walking around with a big entourage.”

“Indeed. If you have to protect them as well in an emergency, that number is better.”

“Oh, so the new guards are also people we’ll have to protect?”

“As long as they’re not enemies.”

That shouldn’t be a problem.
Rumaja would’ve chosen these adventurers with her own reputation on the line.
They shouldn’t be the type to oppose me.
At least, I’d like to believe so.

“Well then, shall we plan our strategy for the interviews?”

“Strategy?”

“Just doing a normal interview would be boring, wouldn’t it? Listen closely…”

Hmm, I see.
Sounds fun.
Alizée and everyone from Wildcat Claws, who were listening on the side, looked a bit taken aback, but that’s something they should know in advance anyway.
Alright, we’ll go with that plan on the day.

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“Thank you for waiting. Next, please.”

“Yes, pleased to meet you.”

This was the third party today.
So far, not one of them had noticed the trick we set up.
Not that it matters if they don’t!

“Thank you for coming. I’m Lily.”

It was “Plum” sitting at the table with Alizée who introduced herself that way.
Our trick was that Plum would pretend to be me and conduct the interview.
Of course, they probably had some idea what I looked like, so Plum was in light disguise—wearing a blonde wig, using special magic tools to make her ears look elvish, and, most importantly, without Talat by her side.
I think Talat is my most recognizable feature, so he was watching from hiding this time.
By the way, the one next to Plum disguised as Talat was Kiblinki Saltas.
He only changed his body color, so I thought his size would give him away, but apparently, it’s not that easy to notice.

“… I understand. We’ll inform you of the results later. Thank you for your time today.”

While I’d been lost in my own thoughts, Plum had finished the interview.
Well, I wasn’t listening, but that’s fine, right?

“Plum, what did you think of that party?”

“What is there to think? The moment they failed to question whether I was really Lily, they were out. My eyes and hair may match, but I’m tall. That’s obvious even sitting down. Lily’s short stature might be less memorable, but the fact they didn’t have that information at gold rank is a failure.”

Plum’s evaluation was harsh.
I was thinking something similar, so she’s not wrong, but still—harsh.
Even when I asked Alizée and the Wildcat Claws, the answer was the same.
There are plenty of bronze-ranked merchants, but a young merchant who’s risen to silver rank and keeps a permanent base is rare.
And one who personally stands at the counter to do business, too.
In other words, if they’d wanted to, they could’ve easily found out my build, and not questioning it was a failure.
Some say maybe they suspected something but didn’t ask because they thought I might be using a magic tool to disguise myself, but even then, it’s still bad not to confirm.

“Well, now that we’ve heard everyone’s evaluations, shall we go bring in the last party?”

“Yes. Hopefully the last ones meet our expectations.”

Yeah, hopefully.
Maybe my expectations were a bit too high.
Or maybe it’s our fault for setting up something so troublesome in the first place.
I mean, what kind of person who’s about to be their employer walks around without bodyguards?

What do you think about this chapter?