The Reincarnated Lizardman Wants a Hamburger

And so, Kurt and his party finished their shopping at the market without any major incidents and returned to their lodgings.

The border lord, watching their retreating figures, couldn’t stop the cold sweat from pouring down his back.

“This can’t be! Could there really be this many collaborators within my own territory…?!”

Their level of organization far exceeded what the border lord had imagined.

They had visited over five different grocery stores, evenly distributing their purchases.

This meant that within the border lord’s territory, there were disguised grocery stores secretly supporting the rebel forces, spreading like a spider’s web.

‘Could the forces supporting the resistance really be this vast…? I had no idea until now!!’

If the border lord hadn’t overheard the Lizardman master talking about “cooking lunch,” a clear code phrase, he might never have known this shocking truth.

The items they bought seemed like ordinary groceries—meat, vegetables, and such—but it was clearly a disguise. From a distance, the border lord couldn’t even begin to imagine what they had secretly obtained.

‘…But whatever it is, it must be something significant enough to cause great chaos for the Empire.’

After confirming their return to the lodgings, the border lord disguised himself as a regular guest, sneaked in, and pretended to drink beer while quietly observing them.

The Lizardman, who appeared to be the leader, was quietly preparing the items they had bought at the market, while the rest of the party showed no unusual movements.

‘For a master-level figure to be so meticulously preparing something… It’s definitely not ordinary ingredients. Otherwise, a Lizardman wouldn’t be handling them.’

As the Lizardman quietly prepared the ingredients, the rest of the party rested in the lodgings, showing no signs of movement even as lunchtime approached.

‘No. The “lunch” was just a code from the start, so they wouldn’t be bound by actual lunchtime.’

Despite the approaching lunch hour, the border lord felt both relief and anxiety as they still hadn’t executed their plan.

‘If I had known they wouldn’t act immediately, I should have gone back to the mansion and called for reinforcements from the Empire’s knights instead of tailing them…’

But that was just hindsight.

It was only because he had tailed Kurt’s party that he could confirm they were part of the resistance. If he hadn’t followed them and had gone straight to the mansion, he wouldn’t have even thought to call for reinforcements.

Still, it was regrettable that he had wasted time tailing them instead of taking other actions.

Could he have missed a crucial golden opportunity by spending time tailing them here?

‘Should I subdue them now…?’

The border lord, in his anxiety, reached for his weapon but quickly shook his head.

‘No. That would be reckless.’

The border lord didn’t overestimate his own abilities.

A master-level opponent isn’t something one can overcome alone.

Only another master can face a master.

‘Then should I call for soldiers to surround them now?’

That too was impossible.

Even if a siege could work, the moment ordinary soldiers, weaker than himself, surrounded them, they would immediately notice.

And then, countless innocent citizens would be caught in the crossfire in the middle of the city.

‘I can’t let innocent citizens be dragged into this…!’

In the end, the border lord chose a third option.

‘…I have no choice but to reveal myself and negotiate.’

Some might call it foolish for the Empire’s border lord to negotiate with terrorists, or even cowardly. But the border lord believed his duty was not to eliminate enemies but to protect the Empire’s citizens.

Once they carried out their terror, it would be too late.

The bloodshed from the terror would be a problem, but the bigger issue was that there would be no more chance for dialogue afterward.

So, if there was a chance to stop the bloodshed, now was the last opportunity.

‘Even if I have to sacrifice my honor, if it means preserving the Empire’s peace…’

Having made up his mind, the border lord walked toward Kurt’s party with a stern expression.

“…May I have a moment to talk?”

“What business do you have with us?”

An elf-like woman in the party looked up at him with an innocent expression, seemingly unaware of who he was.

“That is…”

How should he start the conversation…?

Standing before Kurt’s party, the border lord found it hard to open his mouth.

“You must have something on your mind, right? You’ve been following us since earlier.”

At that moment, the Lizardman, who had been quietly preparing the items they bought at the market, looked up at the border lord.

“Huh? Really? I didn’t notice at all!”

“Tailing us…?”

“!?”

‘…I’ve been found out. I thought they hadn’t noticed.’

The only silver lining was that, aside from the Lizardman master, no one else had noticed his tailing.

While feeling the gap between himself and the master, the border lord also glimpsed a sliver of hope.

The fact that they had noticed his tailing but let it be meant there was still a chance for dialogue.

If they were aware of his presence, there was no need to hesitate any longer.

“My name is Dane Roman. I am the border lord of the Spine Empire, ruling over this territory. Let me be direct. I know your identities and your purpose.”

“…The border lord!?”

“Dane Roman!!”

“The Iron-Blooded Wolf!”

The border lord revealed his identity to them.

And at the same time, he added a bit of bluff.

Fortunately, the bluff seemed to work, as the party visibly panicked upon hearing his identity.

The border lord smiled inwardly at their reaction.

‘Of course, knowing their identities and purpose is a bluff. I could infer their general identity and purpose from tailing them, but I don’t know the details. But by bluffing, I’ve gained the upper hand in the conversation, and now I need to extract as much information and advantage from them as possible.’

“That’s right. The Empire already knows everything.”

“To think you knew our identities and purpose all along…”

The Sister of the Holy Kingdom was so shocked that she stood up from her seat.

“So, let’s avoid unnecessary conflict and just…”

“To think you figured out that we’re an unofficial envoy secretly dispatched by the Holy Kingdom’s Archbishop to meet the Emperor! We knew the Empire’s intelligence was impressive, but we had no idea it was this good!”

“Indeed, the Empire’s capabilities are far beyond what we had judged! Daria! It seems we need to revise our internal assessment of the Empire within the Holy Kingdom!”

“…Huh?”

The border lord wondered if he had misheard, but upon replaying the conversation in his mind, he was certain of what he had heard.

“What are you…?”

“You knew, didn’t you?”

“O-of course I knew. That’s why I approached you, isn’t it?”

“Certainly.”

The border lord, almost reflexively, brushed off Daria’s question with the grace of a seasoned noble.

But while his mouth answered reflexively, his mind was spinning wildly.

‘The Archbishop? A meeting…? Unofficial envoy…? What is all this? Were they disguised as adventurers not to carry out terror but to secretly deliver the Archbishop’s message? Was the master accompanying them a secret escort from the Holy Kingdom?’

Finally realizing the massive misunderstanding, the border lord used mana to prevent blood from rushing to his face.

‘What a disgrace!! No, thankfully, I narrowly avoided making a fool of myself…!’

“Ahem, ahem!”

“Well, we should have come to you first. We were planning to visit the mansion officially after lunch.”

“No, no. That’s unnecessary. As an unofficial envoy, you don’t need to follow formal procedures. Let’s just talk here. But before that, I have one question.”

“Of course. Ask away. If it’s something we can answer, we’ll do so sincerely.”

Having narrowly avoided the worst situation and regained his composure, the border lord decided to ask the question that had been burning in his mind.

“What exactly does the code ‘lunch’ mean?”

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