Ron was handling domestic affairs in his study, while Piccolo went to see Head Steward Nika.
The lord's orders have been given; the remaining details will have to be handled by the head steward, Nika.
The functions of the half-elves should be adjusted, and corresponding magic crystal salaries should be prepared. The approximate number of personnel to be allocated should also be considered.
Among these inquiries, Piccolo questioned the handling of illegal acts committed by the internal affairs officers.
Nika blinked and replied, "Bring the culprit you mentioned. I'll handle it, Chief Steward."
"Yes, Lady Nika."
Having received the specific departmental reform plan, Piccolo took his orders and left.
Bringing people here naturally requires a token from the lord's manor. It's not a big deal, but Piccolo still intends to go in person, mainly because of his experience in adventures. He can't afford to offend these stewards in the territory. In these matters, Piccolo doesn't trust the other half-elves.
After some time, Piccolo produced an arrest warrant, a magical item imbued with Nika's life force.
This order must have been personally issued by the head steward.
Leo, unsuspecting, followed Piccolo out of the manor not far from the Magic Plant Garden.
"Half-elf Inspector, may I ask what brings the Grand Steward to this meeting?" Leo, who appeared rather plump, had a shifty look in his eyes, a sliver of hope in his heart, hoping... that it wasn't true!
Pickol was not arrogant at all, and replied politely, "Manager of the Magic Plant Garden, you will know when you get to Lady Nika's place. Actually, the matter is not too big, so you can rest assured."
Pico adopted a humble stance, and sure enough, Leo skillfully produced several medium-sized magic crystals.
"I'm sorry to trouble you, sir. I hope you can try to help me out then."
Finally, just in case, Leo made the first move…
Piccolo knew that in this situation, it would actually be better to accept the offer, but then he recalled his earlier meeting with the lord…
“Steward Leo, you are very kind, but I, Picol, cannot accept it. However, please rest assured, I will try to persuade the head steward.”
Still thinking it wasn't enough, Leo took out some more magic crystals: "You have to reveal some of it!"
After some thought, Piccolo, though refusing to accept the magic crystals, still offered some advice: "Your matter only occurred three days ago. As for what offense you committed, I'd like Lord Leo to determine that for himself. Piccolo suggests that you be more courteous later..."
Leo understood, but his last bit of hope vanished. Luckily, he had been warned beforehand; if he denied it again in front of the head steward, the situation would only get worse.
Especially now that things are looking so good in Sandi, it's really not worth losing my position as manager!
Thinking this way, Leo looked at Piccolo with gratitude, but since it was very likely Piccolo who had exposed him, this gratitude quickly vanished...
After a long while, the group arrived at the council hall, where Nika usually met with the various managers.
Now it remains to be seen how the fox spirit Nika will handle this.
At this moment, the head steward, Nika, had not yet arrived, and Leo was waiting anxiously.
As time went on, the anxiety intensified, and fine beads of sweat began to appear on his forehead.
Just then, Nika appeared with her assistant, Trish the Fox Girl.
The two foxes, with their tails standing out, sat solemnly at the head of the table, looking at Leo, the steward of the occasion.
"The lord entrusted the Demon Plant Garden to your care, and how have you managed it? Confess your guilt, or else..."
"To answer the head steward, could it be because Leo used a high-grade magical plant, Sunflower, three days ago?"
Nika remained calm: "Anything else?"
"what else……"
Leo's forehead was covered in even more sweat, and his face turned pale.
Nika wasn't in a hurry. With her considerable elemental strength, she was able to observe Leo's performance with her mental power. Unfortunately, Leo's elemental strength was lacking, which was why she was more concerned about raising offspring!
Leo wasn't quite sure about the strength of elementalists, especially those like mages; otherwise, he would have definitely tried to hide all his unusual emotions.
But, there are no ifs. Without realizing it, Leo, in his desperation, looked at Piccolo beside him.
Although reluctant, Piccolo was still a half-elf who had taken risks before, and he knew how to deal with everything in the world... So when things suddenly became strange, he stepped forward.
"Reporting to Lady Nika, according to the investigation, Lord Leo should not have committed any other offenses."
Nika naturally didn't believe it; Leo's behavior was far too obvious.
The half-elves only recently arrived! What about before the half-elves came?
Damn it, the situation at the Demon Plant Garden is dire.
Should we...?
Let's see. Maybe we won't need to change players.
“Manager Leo, do you know that the Archmage has a spell that is enough to investigate all your information? In the past, there were few mages in Sandy Territory, let alone Archmage. But now, don’t forget, Sandy Territory has two legends in charge.”
"Have you forgotten the magical legend of Chris? Do you dare?"
"..."
The atmosphere became even more tense. In the eyes of Nika and the other powerful soul cultivators, Leo's performance was really poor. Even Piccolo didn't dare to say anything more, otherwise he might offend Lady Nika. Compared to that, he chose the lesser of two evils.
Piccolo withdrew and said no more.
In fact, Nika wouldn't be able to find out everything in a short time, and it would be even more difficult to persuade Chris Legend to help.
But so what? We'll use some half-real, half-fake magic to trick him...
"No, Lady Nika, I, Leo, admit it. It happened six months ago..."
"..."
Honestly, Leo has been living a really comfortable life all these years!
Nika and her fox-woman assistant listened quietly, while the fox-woman assistant, Trish, recorded Leo's crimes.
After a long while, the dust settled.
Nika finally revealed a sly smile, but then suddenly appeared very agreeable.
She can be both strict and sweet; these are the basic skills of a fox spirit.
Nika knew these weren't enough to warrant a serious charge, so she naturally had to consider the future.
It's just a few magic crystals; hopefully Leo will be more careful in the future.
All of Leo's misappropriation was for his daughter's sake; otherwise, he would have misappropriated even more.
"Get up! Remember what happened today. Luckily you admitted it, so I can put in a good word for you with the lord. But don't do it again. I'll be fining you six months' salary for the rest of the year!"
Although Leo was unwilling, he had no choice but to accept it. In any case, as long as he kept his position, he would always have a chance to get magic crystals, such as using personal connections to exchange for job changes of his subordinates.
Visitors to Sandy's Magic Plant Garden can always come up with some ideas to do small business, but they must never misappropriate public property again.
Nika, the head steward, warned that with a legend in charge, they still dared to cause trouble; they really had a death wish...
The epic tales of the mainland, with their powerful legends so deeply ingrained in people's minds, make legends seem no different from gods in the eyes of ordinary people.
Legendary swordsmen can fly and dive, but master swordsmen can only fly for short periods of time, and there are far fewer wind-type archmages among them.
Nika, seeing that the local clerk was intimidated, ordered him to leave.
As Pico left, he glanced at Nika one last time. It seemed he would have to be more careful in his actions from now on, and also be bolder.
With these thoughts in mind, the half-elf Piccolo left with a rare smile.
Just as Leo was about to leave, Trish the fox spirit approached.
"Wait, sir."
Leo shuddered: "Is there anything else?"
"You may take these, sir. I believe they will be of some help to your daughter... Remember, this is an instruction personally given by the lord."
"My lord, you are truly foolish. Have you forgotten what the lord said to the stewards a few days ago? If there are any difficulties, you can raise them. You have wasted half a year's worth of stewards' salaries."
Leo was a little confused: "It really is what the lord instructed me to do."
"Of course, do you think a mere fox-woman assistant like me would dare to impersonate the lord's orders?"
Leo slapped his forehead: "Look at my brain! I'm so sorry to have troubled you, Miss. It must have been hard work delivering these. Please take these."
The fox-woman Trish immediately refused, saying, "I dare not accept this."
And while saying no, she couldn't help but mutter to herself, "I'm not as confused as the adults. The clan leader is very kind."
Due to Nika's current status, the chieftain of this branch of the fox clan has long since become Nika.
These were all instructions given by Chief Nika. As for whether it was the Lord's order, Trish wasn't sure. She, Trish, wouldn't dare to claim it was the Lord's order, but she might not have done so if it were the Chief.
Ah, the human steward actually called her "Miss"! It's such a wonderful day that someone would address her as "Miss".
Before long, Leo emerged from the territory's office area. He had entered with trepidation and left with mixed feelings. Could it be that he had truly been confused all those years?
In the end, he just grinned foolishly at the extra magic potion in his hand. His daughter was on the verge of making further progress, and the result was good. That was enough.
When we get back, let's first show these medicines to our daughter to see how effective they are!
The likely culprit is Nika, so the lord should appear last, and the head steward's authority cannot be compromised. Okay, it seems this incident is over, and Nika immediately gets busy with the next matter...
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