Seduction

At the tavern in the square by the harbor, a sign bearing a liquor bottle and a red flower hung above the entrance.

Accompanied by Al, Jini, Paula-san, and Captain Maurice, I opened the tavern door. A sweet fragrance surged toward me and assailed my nostrils. Grimacing at the overpowering scent, I looked around inside and saw four round tables, with several women seated in the chairs around them.

They wore flashy dresses that exposed their shoulders and cleavage, and sat languidly in their chairs. In the stagnant air, the women sprayed themselves with perfume, applied lipstick, and smoked tobacco from pipes they held in one hand.

The provocatively dressed women looked at us as we entered and showed alluring smiles beneath their long lashes. One should not judge people by their clothes, but they were probably women who made their living as prostitutes.

Ignoring them, I looked around for Ray and the others. Then I spotted Rebecca-san standing by the wall in black clothing with a white apron.

Rebecca-san stood perfectly still, her three-white eyes not twitching in the slightest. If I remembered correctly, our earlier discussion had been about gathering women to work at inns and taverns.

Women who worked at inns and taverns sometimes doubled as prostitutes. Rebecca-san seemed to have gathered mostly women from that profession. Apparently, she was not welcoming us, either.

As I looked around the tavern, I spotted Ray sitting at the counter. A blonde woman in a red dress stood at either side of him, while a black-haired woman in a yellow dress stood at his left. The blonde woman was breathing hotly against Ray's face, and the black-haired woman had an arm around his neck and was leaning against him.

"Um, about what we discussed..."

Ray was somehow trying to talk to them. But his face was so red that even his freckles had disappeared, and his voice was no louder than a mosquito's buzz.

"All right, let's talk somewhere private."

The blonde woman extended her long, pale fingers and ran one along Ray's chin.

"Please stop!"

Unable to bear it any longer, Ray brushed her hand away. The woman clutched her hand and frowned.

"That hurt. How cruel."

"Ah, I'm sorry!"

Ray apologized to the woman as she lowered her head. But when she looked up, there were no tears in her eyes—only a mischievous smile.

"What a cute little boy."

"Don't make fun of me!"

Ray squared his shoulders, but the women only laughed.

Ray's lips trembled as he finally noticed our presence.

"Ah, Romelia-sama! It's not what it looks like! This is a misunderstanding!"

Ray stood up from his chair and began to defend himself. But there was no misunderstanding. It was obvious that the women had been making a fool of him.

Al laughed when he saw Ray. Ray glared back at him, but he could hardly blame Al for laughing. Ray was far too innocent around women. Perhaps it would do him good to get a little experience with them here.

"So, how did things go?"

"Well..."

Ray lowered his gaze. Borel and Gatt were near the counter, but they shook their heads as well. Well, that was understandable.

"Huh? Where's Zeze?"

I looked around the tavern, but there was no sign of Zeze.

"Huh? Where could he be?"

"Come to think of it, I haven't seen him."

Borel and Gatt seemed to realize that their companion was missing, and they looked around.

"Um, Romelia-sama. I saw Zeze-san in the square in front of the harbor a little while ago."

Paula-san pointed outside the tavern. I narrowed my eyes.

I had given Zeze an assignment. If he had failed to do what I ordered, that would constitute disobedience. I could overlook a little slacking off, but if he had clearly not done his job, I would have to punish him.

Accompanied by Al and the others, I left the tavern and headed for the square in front of the harbor. A pleasant aroma soon drifted toward us from the square. Following the scent, I found Zeze in front of the stone monument at its center. He had taken a large pot and ingredients from the Lazybones, built a makeshift hearth, and was cooking.

An appetizing aroma rose from the large pot in which the ingredients were simmering.

Children had gathered around Zeze, drawn by the smell. However, perhaps wary of a stranger, they did not approach the pot itself.

Zeze smiled at the children, ladled the food from the pot into deep bowls, placed spoons beside them, and offered them to the children.

"Want some?"

At Zeze's words, the children looked at one another. But perhaps hunger won out, because one child staggered forward.

"Go ahead. You can eat."

Zeze held out the bowl for the child to take. The child swallowed hard, picked up the spoon, and began devouring the food.

Seeing the child eat with single-minded desperation, the others all hurried over to Zeze. When he served them food, the children were too busy gobbling down what was in front of them even to spare a moment to say thank you.

Zeze watched the children eat with a warm smile.

After watching everything Zeze had done, I let out a sigh. Captain Maurice walked over to me.

"Er, young lady. Was that your instruction?"

"No, I did not give any such order. In other words, he disobeyed orders."

My voice came out much sterner than even I had expected.

"Um—Romelia-sama!"

Jini stepped in front of me to stop me. But I silenced him with a single glance. Jini could say nothing more and merely held his breath.

I passed by Jini and headed toward Zeze. When he noticed me, his expression grew serious.

"...Zeze."

Even when I called out to him, Zeze did not offer any excuse. He simply met my gaze with steady eyes.

"You took food from the ship without permission, didn't you?"

I looked at the food the children were eating. The provisions aboard the Lazybones were supplies we had brought with us. In other words, they were food intended for military operations. The army placed great importance on managing its provisions. If soldiers took food whenever they pleased, there would never be enough, no matter how much was available. For that reason, anyone who touched the provisions without permission was subject to severe punishment.

"You understand that you have violated military law, correct?"

"Yes, I understand."

Zeze straightened his posture and extended his neck as if offering it.

"Zeze, you were the deputy commander of the fifty-man unit, weren't you?"

I confirmed Zeze's rank.

I had made Jini the commander of the fifty-man unit and assigned Zeze to assist him. As the number of soldiers grew, Zeze would likely have been promoted further and eventually put in command of a hundred soldiers. However...

"Then I sentence you to demotion to a private."

I heard Al and the others gasp at my sentence. It could certainly be called an excessively severe punishment.

Those who went from being farmers to soldiers did not rise through the ranks easily. Most finished their terms as rank-and-file soldiers. Zeze had become the deputy commander of a fifty-man unit in such a short time because he had won deadly battles, including battles against monsters and the Demon King's army.

Demoting him to a private was tantamount to erasing everything he had achieved.

It was an extremely severe punishment, but this was not something I could compromise on.

To me, Zeze was one of my cherished subordinates.

He was the first soldier to come into my service, and I felt as strongly about him as I would about family. But if I showed leniency because he was close to me, no one would obey my orders. Precisely because he was like family, I had to be strict with him.

"I will impose one more punishment."

I looked at the large cooking pot behind Zeze and the children swarming around the food. Other children were beginning to gather, drawn by the smell.

"You are hereby ordered to perform community service. For the rest of today, prepare and distribute meals here to anyone who wants one. Understood?"

"Huh? But..."

"Repeat it."

"Y-yes, ma'am! I will prepare meals here and serve everyone!"

Though surprised, Zeze saluted as he answered.

"Good. If you run short of ingredients, use the supplies in the ship's storehouse."

When I finished speaking, I returned to where Al and the others were waiting. Then I let out a breath.

Providing food assistance to Merka Island was necessary. Even if Zeze had not done this, I had planned to provide food from the ship tomorrow, and I would have approved it if he had told me beforehand. Then I would not have had to punish him. His rashness frustrated me.

While I was angry at Zeze over something other than his disobedience, Al and Ray lined up in formation before me.

"Um, Captain Romelia."

"Actually, there's something we have to tell you..."

Al and Ray suddenly became very formal.

"What is it?"

"Actually, I got hungry last night and snuck a bite!"

"I snuck into the food stores, too!"

Al and Ray confessed their crimes of their own accord.

"What exactly are you saying?"

I had no idea what they were talking about. Their words were obvious lies. Last night, we had still been aboard the ship. Al had been suffering from seasickness, while Ray had also been unwell because he had run out of mana. Neither of them had been in any condition to sneak food.

"Why would you do that...!"

Before I could finish, I realized the meaning behind their lies. My brows shot up, and my eyes narrowed angrily.

"Then I sentence you two as well. Go perform community service with Zeze!"

When I gave the order, Al and Ray laughed and headed over to Zeze.

"Romelia-sama, I snuck into the food stores too."

"I snuck a bite last night, too."

"Me too."

"Actually, I was hungry last night~"

Jini, Borel, Gatt, and Paula-san also confessed to sneaking food.

"All right, all right, I understand. You four go perform community service too."

When I pointed toward Zeze, the four of them laughed and ran over to him. That left only Captain Maurice, Rebecca-san, and me.