The Guardians of Brunhild

I am a tiger. My name is Kohaku. That name means "noble protector." It didn't

always mean that, but it means that now. That's what I decided it means. I'm

not just any tiger, either. I have command over mammals and earth-dwelling

beasts. For I am the White Monarch, a Heavenly Beast.

My master is Mochizuki Touya, grand duke of the Duchy of Brunhild. He's

quite an incredible man.

This country was made from the ground-up by him... It's no exaggeration to

say that I am one of the guardian beasts of Brunhild itself.

There are four others like me, as well. Together, it is our duty to keep peace in

this nation. Even today, I have just knocked out two attempted food thieves.

"Amazing work, Kohaku... You really helped us out. We'll handle it from here."

"Of course. Do your best."

I was speaking with a knight of Brunhild as he arrested the perpetrators. He

and his cohorts served my master as well, so in a sense, I could consider them

kin. Though... their connection wasn't quite as a deep. I was directly bound to

him, after all.

The residents of the town were often fearful of my true form, so, for the time

being, I maintained the adorable form of a tiger cub. If anything, it was useful.

The women and children of the town felt safe, and any criminals knew that if

they caused trouble, they might end up facing the wrath of my hidden might.

There were a few people staring at my exchange with the guards, they must

have been foreigners. Everyone in town had already gotten used to the fact that

I could talk. Before he ascended to royalty, my liege asked that I not speak very

often. But according to him, it was fine to talk now.

"Oh, it's Lanz and Kohaku! Are you working hard?"

"Hm? Ah, hello there, Micah."

"A-Ah, h-hello there! Y-Yes, we're just clearing up a crime scene! Kohaku here

took down a pair of dine-and-dashers!"

Standing before myself and the stammering knight was a young woman clad

in an apron. He red hair looked rather pleasant. Her name was Micah, she

managed the Silver Moon Inn. She was someone my lord had met quite early on

in his journey. I was also respectful toward her due to her kindness toward him.

She was also quite the cook. I always knew that when I visited the Silver Moon,

there was a good chance I'd eat well.

"Oh my, you're working hard... Please come to see me later on, okay? I'll cook

you my finest meal."

"Th-Thank you! I-I'll be sure to, of course!"

I didn't understand what was wrong with the young guard next to me. His

breathing had grown uneven, and his face was getting redder. I wondered if he

was perhaps afraid of me, but that couldn't be it... He'd been talking to me

normally not long ago. I was a bit confused.

"A-Alright, I'll be on my way then! Time to take the perpetrators t-to the

prison, and such!" The young man and his fellow guards walked off with the

criminals. Thieves were nothing but a blight on Brunhild, if you asked me.

Personally, I'd have been happy ripping them to shreds, but my lord wouldn't

want it that way. That was why I followed as I was ordered.

"Oh! It's Kohakuuu!"

"Really? Where is she?"

"Ack... This isn't good... It's the children... Micah, I'll be on my way. You take

care."

"Not easy being popular, eh? Eheh... See you soon, Kohaku."

I said my goodbyes to Micah and dashed into a nearby back alley.

As soon as I turned the corner, I jumped from wall to wall and clambered up

to the roof. I looked down and saw the children looking here and there. They'd

lost me.

They were good kids, but I didn't have time for them. I was very busy, after

all.

I waited a while, and they finally gave up their frantic search. I quietly asked

for their forgiveness.

Mm... The weather is quite nice today... And the breeze is good up here.

Maybe I should take a little catnap...

"Kohaku."

"Gwah?!"

Suddenly hearing my name was so surprising that I almost fell off the roof.

Fortunately, I managed to hold on and stop just at the last second. That was

seriously dangerous... I looked up to the source of the voice, and my eyes met

with a flaming bird staring down at me.

"Kougyoku! Don't startle me like that!"

"Don't be so rude. I saw you... Fleeing from children so you could take a little

nap, hm?" Crap... She saw that?

Kougyoku... She was another Heavenly Beast. Much like me, she was

summoned by Mochizuki Touya, so we shared him as our lord and master.

She was the Flame Monarch that ruled over airborne creatures. The birds

were useful to our lord due to their recon abilities.

It was regretful to admit, but she and her kin were far more useful in that

regard than me and my own. I could summon mice to investigate houses more

closely, but her birds-eye view would always have the upper hand. Not to

mention the fact that birds could easily travel across borders unnoticed.

Kougyoku's dependents could easily look for issues in the town, but their eyes

and ears expanded across the entire nation.

The birds kept an eye on the surrounding countryside and mountains. We

didn't exactly want highwaymen or bandits holing up anywhere near our

territory, after all.

"And what if I was? Did you drop by just to comment?"

"No, not exactly. I just saw something that made me anxious. A carriage came

rolling through town a bit earlier. The man who came out claimed to be a

traveling merchant, but he looks... Extremely uncouth. The men he claims to be

his escort also look troublesome, as well. I don't know if I should judge them

solely on their appearance, but it still seemed odd."

"Hmm... Maybe they're thugs in disguise?"

"It is a possibility, or I could just be judging without reason."

There had been an incident in the past where some criminals had disguised

themselves and made their way to Olba Strand's store. They attempted to rob

it.

The products in this town weren't found very often in other parts of the

world, so it wasn't unusual to have different merchants come through.

The interesting items were all invented by our master, and there were also

other valuables like weapons and armors crafted from materials found on the

Dungeon Island we had access to.

Apparently, the crooks had heard about these goods and came in late at night

to steal them away.

We'd been made aware of this immediately, and we had the knights charge

straight in and take the men into custody. Fortunately, no harm actually came

to Mr. Strand's storefront.

It was unfortunate, but this kind of thing was happening more often as of late.

Our lord was very young for a world leader, and he'd had his start as an

adventurer. A lot of criminals around the world wrongfully assumed that he was

a foolish and incredibly lucky child who had gotten this territory by chance. By

extension, they believed that would make his country an easy target for

plunder.

For the most part, they came and were promptly dealt with, all for the sake of

a few trinkets.

Our dear master was certainly troubled by the influx of these fools.

"Alright, then... We should keep an eye on these guys."

"I'll be counting on you, then. Farewell," Kougyoku said as she flapped her

wings and took off. I'd be fine to follow up on these strangers... Right after my

nap.

That was what I wanted, at least... But I knew I had work to do. I leaped from

the rooftop and headed toward the school. Usually, I'd have avoided that place,

but today there were no classes, so I knew I wouldn't be assaulted by the

hordes of little kids.

When I arrived on the school grounds, I saw Fiana pegging up some laundry.

Hmm... I don't see the little creature anywhere...

Fiana was the mother of Sakura, and Sakura was one of my lord's betrothed.

That meant her status exceeded mine. I was careful not to be rude, as a result.

"Oh my, Kohaku. Good day to you. Can I help you?"

"Good day, Miss Fiana. I am sorry for the sudden intrusion, but could you tell

me where I might find Mr. Mittens?"

Mr. Mittens was an obnoxious little creature that Sakura had summoned, and

he spent his days helping out Fiana. That meant he could typically be found by

her side. Because Mr. Mittens wasn't one of my lord's direct summons, I

couldn't telepathically communicate with him. That was most inconvenient.

"D'Artagnan? He's over there." I looked over to where Fiana pointed and saw

him curled up and napping on a two-person swing that had clearly been

constructed for the children.

"Zzz... Meow..."

Why you little... Sleeping on the job, eh? That's no fair... When I wanted to

take a catnap I was woken by Kougyoku... As I grumbled quietly, Mr. Mittens

opened up his eyes and slowly looked around. He might've sensed my

frustration.

"...Meow...? Wh-What?! L-L-Lady Kohaku?!" Mr. Mittens found his hair

standing on end. In a matter of seconds, he swung back and forth and propelled

himself into the air, landing perfectly on the ground.

"...You have plenty of free time, I see."

"N-Nonono! Y-You're just mistaken, I promise! There's no claws for concern!

It was just a slow day, and I happened to be taking a brief break! That's all there

is to it!" Mr. Mittens began to frantically spew excuses. To be honest, that just

made him look way more suspicious, but there was no point in calling him out. I

decided to leave it be.

I relayed to him what Kougyoku had told me, and told him to look into it.

"Very well! Athos is on his way here, so I'll go out and look into it after he

agrees to escort Lady Fiana in my stead. I'll lend you my aid as soon as I am

able."

"Mm. Fine, then."

I said goodbye to Fiana and continued on my way. Even though he was

Sakura's summon, I did like that Mr. Mittens worked closely with me.

Now... I have time for a little nap while he gathers information.

"Ooh, it'sss Kohaku. Hello there, darling~!"

"Good day, Kohaku."

"Tsk..."

"No need to tsssk at usss!"

Sadly, my nap was over again. Another annoyance, or rather... a pair of

annoyances, had gotten in my way.

It was a turtle and a black snake, swimming through the air toward me.

Collectively they were the Black Monarch, and they were other Heavenly Beasts

that my master had summoned. Sango and Kokuyou.

"What do you want?"

"How very rude... We found sssomething interesssting, ssso we thought it

appropriate to report."

"Hrmph..."

Kokuyou's words annoyed me a little. This guy wasn't exactly as gentle and

womanly as Kokuyou was, so I sometimes felt a little tense around him.

"Our kin found this object along the side of the road."

Sango dropped something near me. Hm...?

It just looked like a tree branch. But then I noticed the scent wafting from it.

"...Beastwood."

"Exactly. A wicked piece of material that can drive magical beasts insane."

Beastwood was formed when trees or other plants sprouted from the corpses

of dead magical beasts.

The scent of the wood would waft out and cause wild creatures that smelled

it to fall into a trance, they'd approach the tree and be consumed by it. It even

sucked the nutrients out of people.

Branches from these trees could be treated in a chemical solution to preserve

them.

Then they could be burned like incense, and they'd give off a unique aroma.

Unfortunately, this aroma would cause any nearby monsters with a large

amount of magic in their bodies to go berserk.

Anything under its influence would become insanely violent. They'd lose all

sense of pain and fight until they died.

It was a very dangerous piece of equipment to use and was often employed

by experienced monster hunters. They'd burn a piece and toss it into the lairs of

powerful creatures, causing them to fight each other until they died.

But it was still risky. If used in a crowded area it could cause creatures to

charge and rampage together in a group.

In the worst case scenario, it could trigger a stampede... It was the kind of

thing that could be used to level an entire town.

"Do you think this is suspicious?"

"I certainly think it'sss rare for goodsss sssuch asss thisss to appear on the

highway."

"Beastwood causes hysteria in whoever it affects, so it could've just been

dropped by an airborne creature..."

It just looked like deadwood at a glance. Most people would have just walked

on past it. It was highly likely that it had just made its way near Brunhild by

chance over time.

However, one did have to take into account the possibility that someone was

aiming to damage Brunhild by actively employing it.

"I don't think we need to worry. Our lord made a protective barrier that keeps

monsters out of the town anyway."

"Ssstill... We can't dissscount the fact that thisss may be an act of

terrorisssm."

Kokuyou sounded angry. I was angry as well, to be truthful. Even if it was in

vain, it was possible someone had tried to harm our lord's nation. It was also

irritating that the perpetrator must have assumed our lord was careless enough

not to erect countermeasures for attacks like that. Though, to be fair, even if

there were no barrier I was confident that I and the other Monarchs could have

taken care of runaway monsters.

I asked Sango and Kokuyou to check on the integrity of the barrier, just in

case. One couldn't afford to neglect these things, after all.

"Should we inform our master of this?"

"I'm not so sure just yet. I think we should just check for ourselves right now.

If we bothered to include him in something like this, it'd just be the same as

admitting our own ineptitude."

Plus, I had a feeling this could be connected to the strange merchants

Kokuyou mentioned. I decided to wait on Mr. Mittens and see if he had

anything to report later on.

If I found out they were planning something strange, I'd simply annihilate

them.

I couldn't forgive anyone who would seek to harm Brunhild. They'd have a

firm reminder of just who it was they were messing with!

◇ ◇ ◇

After parting ways with Kokuyou and Sango, I made my way back to the

castle. I was getting a bit hungry, after all. I poked my head into the kitchen to

see if there was anything for me to nibble on.

"Yellowfish simmered and prepared successfully!"

"Good work! Get around to setting the plate!"

The kitchen was filled with cooks, it was as fearsome as a battlefield in there. I

saw Crea, the head cook, and Lu, scrambling around the kitchen like true

professionals. Lu seemed like she was struggling to keep up.

It was busier than usual today, for some reason. I quickly realized it was

because the other world leaders had gathered together in the castle.

I wasn't allowed to walk into the kitchen itself, so I could only peek inside.

Nobody wanted fur in their food, so it was understandable.

"Oh, Kohaku? Are you here for lunch? Please wait a moment."

"Of course."

As I stood by the kitchen entrance, Renne, a young maid in training, spoke to

me.

After a short while, Renne came out with my meal on a tray. She was carrying

it with both hands. On one side of the tray was omelet rice and sashimi,

prepared by Lu. On the other side were several slices of meat and cheese.

"Are you eating on the balcony?"

"Yes. I appreciate your help."

Renne walked along with me and took my meal out on to the balcony outside

the dining room. When the weather was nice, I liked to eat in the courtyard, or

on the balcony. Today I happened to feel like eating on the balcony, though. I

thought it was the best place to soak in the sunlight.

"...Hmph."

"...Hrmph."

There was another person out at the balcony table. The sight of her caused

my bright day to turn a little darker.

"Eating out here, Kohaku?"

"I could ask the same of you, Luli." I narrowed my eyes at the Dragon sitting

opposite to me. She looked like a baby, but much like me, she was a Heavenly

Beast summoned by my master.

I hated her guts, to be frank. I didn't like talking to her, and she always gave

me a headache. I was hungry, but the sight of her made me want to leave my

lunch behind.

I silently stared at my meal, ignoring the dragon as best I could. I took a bite. It

was wonderful. I was happy that the quality of meals had risen considerably in

recent months. The food alone was enough for me to be thankful that my

master had called me to this world.

"Kougyoku visited me not long ago..."

"Hm?" I raised my head and turned to the Dragon as she spoke. I wondered

what Kougyoku wanted with Luli.

That irritating Dragon was in charge of looking after the castle, and her

dependents would occasionally watch the skies around the immediate area.

"She said that there are suspicious people in town. Isn't that supposed to be

your job? Have you been lazing around?"

"Oh, that's no big deal. I currently have a very talented individual scouting out

information."

"Oh, is that right? Are you sure you're on top of it? If you're shirking your

responsibilities our lord wouldn't like that very much, would he? Are you sure

you're not just napping and eating instead of taking care of this country?"

"Silence! I'm trying to enjoy my meal and you're ruining it with your prattle!"

"Ha! That's all you care about, isn't it? Sometimes I wonder if you even...

Bwah!"

"Hold your tongue, you little... Gwah!"

Renne walked toward us both and grabbed us by our heads. H-Hey, knock it

off!

"C'mon you lot... If ya keep on like this then Touya's gonna get proper mad at

you, right? Enjoy your lunch instead."

"Gh... But..."

"Gah... M-Miss Renne, please don't tell him!"

This was bad. Our master had prohibited fighting between Luli and I. Even if

we were just verbally bickering, I didn't exactly want to get punished because of

her taunting.

After all... The punishment I'd incur was... so terrible...

From the looks of Luli, she remembered the punishment too. She was visibly

trembling.

I decided to just silently curse her instead. Eventually, we were freed from

Renne's grasp, and Luli finished up her meal.

"Either way, call on me if you need me to take care of it. I'm not against

assisting in national affairs."

"Very well. I don't think I'll need you, but I'll keep it in mind."

Luli flapped her wings and took off from the balcony. I'd only call on her if the

situation became really dire.

For the most part, I just needed to be sure that our master wasn't

inconvenienced.

I finished up my meal, had Renne wipe off my mouth with a napkin, and then

headed back into town after a brief rest.

I hoped Mr. Mittens was seeing good results from his investigation.

◇ ◇ ◇

When I returned to the town, a couple of cats caught my attention.

Apparently, Mr. Mittens had discovered something.

The cats guided me around the back of the bar next to the guild. There I found

Mr. Mittens and the three cat musketeers. If I recalled correctly they were

named Aramis, Athos, and Porthos. When I appeared before them, they all

crouched down on one knee as if bowing.

"No need to bow. What did you uncover?"

"Ah. We discovered that the suspicious merchants did not stay in the Silver

Moon Inn, which would be the usual stopping point for men of their profession.

Instead, they're staying on the outskirts of town, at the Forest's Harmonium

Inn." Athos, one of the three knights, spoke up.

Hmm... This is interesting, but not exactly conclusive. The Forest's Harmonium

isn't exactly a bad place, but every merchant tends to stay in the Silver Moon

because it's in the middle of town, and an ideal hub for trade operations...

Plus, there were a lot of knights in the area due to the locale. It was the safest

inn you could imagine. It didn't make sense that they'd stay at the Forest's

Harmonium, since that place was an adventurer's inn. That made me think

maybe they had a problem with the knights in town.

"We've been keeping watch, but neither the merchants nor their escorts have

left their room in a while. They may still be sleeping."

"Are they traveling with adventurers? You'd think they'd have stopped by the

guild..."

"Also, here's the damning evidence. I inspected their cargo, and it's several

bundles of beastwood under a protective sheet. It's highly likely that the

beastwood found by the Black Monarchs fell from their wagon. The amount we

found would be sufficient enough to cause a massive stampede if it was

strategically placed throughout town. Even with our protective barrier in place,

it would majorly disrupt our economy and I'm sure any magical beasts outside

the town would come in as close as they could. The roads would end up being

shut down, and the citizens would effectively be locked in."

Hrmm... That'd be really bad. All trade activity would end up ceasing, and

we'd be unable to get fresh supplies... The only positive out of this would be the

adventurers would be able to make a ton of money by killing the monsters...

"I'm pawsitive that they plan on burning all the wood around town at night!

They'll set the beastwood down and then get the heck meowtta here!"

I agreed with Mr. Mittens. If they did it in broad daylight, they'd be found out

in a flash. Plus, beastwood had a very strong scent that could easily be sniffed

out. There weren't as many people out at night... Especially not in the shopping

district.

"So did you manage to identify them, as well?"

"We did. According to the information network we employed, these men hail

from Sandora. They were once slavers. Perhaps they seek to destroy this

country as an act of retribution..."

Sandora... Ah, that's the slave country my master destroyed. Given how close

that country was to the Sea of Trees. It makes sense they'd have access to

beastwood.

They'd probably lost their slaves, and their livelihood with it, so they'd come

here in an act of defiant revenge.

They likely figured that since this was such a small country, the destruction of

its castle town would be easy. How naive.

"Keep watching them for now. If they take action, inform me right away."

"Very well!"

With any luck, they'd leave without doing anything shady, and we could just

confiscate the beastwood. But if they decided to act against the nation, we'd

just take them out.

I hoped they'd see the error of their ways and leave.

Night eventually fell. And some time after midnight, a cat came over to get

me.

"...So they've done it, then."

They were idiots, clearly. Seemed like I had to teach them a personal lesson.

◇ ◇ ◇

Shadowy figures moved under the cover of night. They moved through the

quietest streets and alleys, away from anyone else who may be awake at such a

late hour. In their hands were dried out pieces of wood.

One of the men stood in a back alley behind a store and crushed up some of

the wood with a small hammer.

According to their boss, it would be better to ignite small pieces. They'd call

less attention that way.

One was on guard while the other set to work. But suddenly, they heard a

noise, which made them stand to attention.

"Meooow..." A black cat innocently walked out from a nearby bush.

"...Just a cat..."

"Cats freak me out... Hurry up with the fire."

"...Got it."

The second man rushed to start lighting up the small pieces. But again he

stopped after hearing a sound.

"Meooow!"

"Guh... Another cat? Why does this town have so many?"

"H-Hey... Isn't this a little weird...?"

The fire-starting man stood up and looked around uneasily. Something felt

wrong. Even though there was nobody around, he could feel eyes on him.

"Meow..."

"Meooow..."

"Mew... Meeew..."

"Hiss..."

Several eyes gleamed in the pitch black of night. From beneath porches, from

the tops of nearby trees, from the heights of the nearby rooftops, and from

nearby bushes.

White. Black. Tabby. Calico. Toygers. All manner of cats emerged and began

staring at the men.

"H-Hey... What the hell is going on?"

"I don't like this...!"

"Are you scared, wastrels?"

A voice rang out from the black, causing the men to unsheathe their blades.

They looked around, but they couldn't identify the source. They didn't know

who the voice belonged to, or where it was even coming from.

"Do you men know what those hunks of wood are for?"

"Wh-Who are you?! Come out!"

Beneath the pale moonlight, the gathered cats parted left and right. From the

middle of the crowd walked a little white cat. It looked almost like a baby tiger.

Even though it looked juvenile and unimposing, the men felt an immense

surge of dread. They might as well have been facing down a dragon.

"...No answer, hm? That's fine. You'll have plenty of time to answer in

prison."

"A talking cat?!"

"Bold of you to assume I'm a cat, profligate!"

A white puff of smoke ejected itself into the air, and from within the misty

manifestation emerged an enormous, snarling white tiger. The two men tried to

scream, only to find their voices caught in their throats.

"Listen well, mortals. My name is Kohaku! I am a Heavenly Beast, direct

servant to the most esteemed Mochizuki Touya, grand duke of Brunhild! I am

one of the guardians of this nation, do you hear me?!"

"Wh-Wh-What...?!"

"Deal with them, kitties."

A cacophony of hisses and howls rang out into the night. The men could do

nothing as they were swarmed by over a hundred feral cats. They were so

immobilized with fear that they couldn't even draw their swords. They fell to

the ground and were bitten, scratched, and aggressively nuzzled.

As if on cue, a cat knight jumped from the rooftop, his rapier flashing in the

moonlight as he descended.

"It's curtains for you, fellas! Time to hit paws on your entire operation!"

"Gwah?!"

"Hngh?!"

The two men stopped moving entirely once they were struck by his blade. It

had been enchanted with [Paralyze].

The crowd of cats stopped attacking the men and dispersed into the dark.

Countless little kitty footsteps could be heard marching into the distance.

Only the white tiger and the cat knight remained.

"Kohaku! Sir Mittens!"

"...My name is D'Artagnan!"

Mr. Mittens put his hands on his hips and glared at Lanz, the knight who had

called out to him and the tiger next to him. He grumbled a little toward Kohaku,

but calmed down after a while.

"Kohaku... What is going on here?"

"Ah, well. These men were attempting to ignite this beastwood, it would have

caused all nearby magical beasts to rampage and surround the town. There are

likely others doing the same elsewhere in town, but the other cat knights have

been sent to take care of them. I'm going to take out their leader, a merchant.

Would you like to come with me?"

"Alright! You three, take these two men into custody. You two, head to the

other locations! The rest of us will head with Kohaku and Sir Mittens to capture

the ringleader!"

The two men were dragged off. Kohaku returned to her kitten-like state and

called out to the remaining knights.

"Hear me now! We are the Guardians of Brunhild! We cannot forgive those

who would seek to harm our home! We will capture them, and force them to

repent!"

The men all cheered in response, following the white tiger into the night.

Some time later, the Sandoran merchant and all of his cohorts were arrested.

The night became peaceful once more.

◇ ◇ ◇

I am a tiger. My name is Kohaku. That name means "noble protector." It didn't

always mean that, but it means that now. That's what I decided it means.

Hmm... And today I overslept. The incident last night took a lot out of me, after

all... But this is still an unseemly thing to do.

I dipped my face into the cool water fountain in the courtyard. I rubbed one

of my front paws against my eyes. It would be most uncouth if I appeared

before my lord with a sleepy face.

There, that should do it. I'm quite awake now.

I went to the dining room and found something rare. My master and all of his

fiancées were together at the same time. It was unusual for them all to be there

at once.

"Good morning, my liege. Good morning, ladies."

"Morning, Kohaku!"

Once my master said hello, all the girls followed suit. Hm... They all looked

well, I was happy.

Renne brought over my meal, and I sat at a smaller table by the side of their

main table. Ooh... It's roast beef today, is it? I'm certainly fond of dishes like

this...

Well, then... Time to dig in!

"Oh right, Kohaku. I heard you helped out a lot yesterday."

Just as I was about to tuck into my delicious roast beef, my master called to

me.

"Hm? A-Ah, yes! There were people trying to do something bad in town, so I

handled it. I had everyone arrested, they're in the jail right now."

"That's great, thanks Kohaku... I'm really proud of you, I'm sure you'll keep it

up."

He came over and gently patted my head. His brides-to-be followed suit,

showering me in praise.

I wasn't exactly fond of being petted too much, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't

enjoy the positive attention from people who meant so much to me.

Still, all I had done was fulfill the task I was assigned with... But if they wanted

to praise me for that, I was hardly going to complain.

I did owe my victory yesterday to the efforts of Mr. Mittens and his

musketeer cohorts, so I decided that I'd treat them to some good food. The

knight order as well, and I couldn't forget about the strays who helped subdue

the two men. I was sure they'd be happy to receive recognition for their

actions.

As I planned out my day ahead, I tucked into that delicious bowl of roast beef.

It was just as yummy as I'd hoped.