A Visitor
It has been nearly a month since I was sent to Curtis Village.
At first, everything here felt unfamiliar, but now I've settled into the routine. Waking up early for farm work has become second nature, and it's actually a good workout. Even though there are no monsters in this village, meaning less need for combat training, tending to the fields has been a great way to maintain my strength—perhaps even more so than before.
"Senior! Granny Maria gave us some potatoes!"
"That’s great. Let’s use them for lunch."
Back in the royal capital, I usually ate out or had my meals at the Knights Order’s mess hall. But here, with no shops or restaurants, cooking for ourselves was the only option.
I had almost no cooking experience before coming here, but over time, I’ve improved—mostly thanks to Elina’s guidance.
That said, the meals she taught me were mostly survival-style dishes, something she learned from her father, Vice-Commander Bellows, when she was a child. The food tasted fine, but… sometimes, I just wanted a more ordinary meal.
So, we started gathering recipes from various households in Curtis Village and taking turns trying them out.
"Do we have any dishes that use potatoes?"
"I don’t think we have any dedicated recipes, but potatoes go well with pretty much anything, right?"
"True. Since we also have some venison that Village Chief Ganun hunted yesterday, how about we make a meat dish and serve mashed potatoes on the side?"
"That sounds perfect!"
With lunch decided, I headed out for a patrol around the village.
But as soon as I stepped outside—
"It’s been a while, Sir Justin."
"Huh? Miss Marietta?"
I ran into Miss Marietta just as she was about to visit the outpost.
But she rarely traveled alone.
Looking around, I quickly spotted a carriage marked with the Tryon family crest. As I turned my gaze toward it, Lord Doyle, who was inside, noticed me and stepped out.
"Ah, good to see you in good spirits."
"Thanks to you, I’ve been doing well and enjoying my time here."
‘Enjoying’ might not have been the most professional way to describe my assignment, but it was the honest truth.
"I’m glad to hear that. Given how busy you were in the capital, I was worried this post might feel a bit dull for you."
"It’s true that there’s little combat here, but I always stay prepared in case of an emergency."
"If anything happens, you can leave it to us!" Elina added proudly.
With just the two of us stationed here, there were some limitations to what we could do. But this region was truly peaceful—no monsters, no bandits, likely because it was off the main trade routes.
That said, we weren’t completely without incidents. A while back, a stray direwolf appeared after being expelled from its pack. If the villagers had tried to handle it alone, there might have been casualties.
—Right, that’s not the point.
"What brings you here today?"
"Well… I actually have a knightly request for you two."
"A knightly request?"
Elina and I exchanged glances.
That wording stood out. Given the conversation so far, it had to involve combat—there wasn’t much else that fit.
But what could require knights in such a peaceful region?
"Are we talking about a large monster hunt? Or clearing out a town overrun by bandits?"
"It’s nothing that drastic. I need you to investigate something."
"Investigate? What exactly?"
"I’ll explain in detail—mind if we talk inside?"
"O-Of course, please come in."
This wasn’t something to discuss while standing outside.
Besides, we had just cleaned up, so it was the perfect time to invite them in for a proper conversation.
What do you think about this chapter?
