Gerhard Hilde von Rubies Shawlo is the Shawlo Imperial Woman Emperor.

She is 52 years old. She is 154 centimeters tall and weighs 45 kilograms. Dark hair, light brown eyes.

She is the interim emperor until her nephew Ernst comes of age, but she is also a great ruler who will remain in the history of the Shawlo Empire.

"I'm going on an inspection tour.

She suddenly mentioned that she was going on a secret inspection tour.

Since the royal excursions to the provinces are usually made twice a year, the schedule is always reserved.

However, it was unusual for the Prime Minister, Jung von K?bsler, and the Chief of Staff, Flora Heckerath von Merante, to be so abruptly announced.

This time they headed for Schwere.

It is a town at the end of the road that connects the Kingdom of Cerroa and the Shoro Kingdom, known as the Trockenbahn.

Most of the towns along the road are under the direct control of the imperial family, and this town was no exception.

It is about 70 km from the capital, Leusert, and can be reached in less than half a day by a fast horse-drawn carriage.

Of course, hot-air balloons and golem carriages could reach the town even faster, but since these would have made the trip pointless, a common carriage was used.

The two direct companions were Flora, the head of the court, and Juna Brantes, a female knight of the Kingsguard. In addition, there were ten other knights who escorted them in the shadows.

Juna, you look good in that outfit.

"Thank you, sir."

Juna Brantes has been a knight for three years and a Kingsguard for one year. This year she is 19 years old.

The emperor had the look of a lady of the town, Flora had the look of a merchant's secretary, and Juna had the look of a town girl.

Of the three, Juna, with her reddish brown hair in a ponytail, comes from a commoner's family and knows the town better than the others.

We left Leusert at 9:00 am.

The road is well paved and the average speed is about 25 km/h.

The carriage arrived at Schwere in about three hours, with a stop along the way.

* * * * * * * * * *

"Your Majesty, ......, miss, come on, let's go."

Juna, with her dark brown eyes and slanted gaze, says kindly, "Let's go. As it appears, the emperor is the manager of a large merchant family, Flora is the head of the household, and Juna is an employee.

"Right, let's go to a shopping street a little farther from the central street this time.

We decided to visit an area slightly off the central avenue because the central avenue would be well monitored.

Schwebel is a big place, and their time is limited.

"Okay. Let's go this way first.

Juna headed down the alleyway, talking like a girl.

(The trash is fine.)

(The trash is fine.) The emperor thought it was acceptable, with only a few small pieces of trash.

She continued down the alley to a street one block away.

"It's quite lively here too, isn't it?

The emperor murmured,

"Yes, ma'am. This street is used more by the common people than the central street.

Juna replies.

It is true that there are more kinds of stores than those on Chuo-dori. Chuo-dori is lined with large stores, while small stores compete with each other here.

"It's so vibrant."

The emperor is in a good mood, sensing evidence of a healthy economy.

But .......

"Shut up!"

A vulgar slur rings out and the Empress turns around.

I want you to pay for the cleaning!

Three ill-looking men were making a racket in one of the stores. They were pulling a cart with several garbage cans.

"What is it?　What is that?"

the female emperor asks Juna, raising her eyebrows.

"They are people who take unjustified profits from us under the guise of cleaning fees, aren't they?

Juna, a commoner, knew exactly what he was talking about.

"They call themselves usurers. Their ostensible sign is that they unite the local gangsters and give them welfare activities. ......"

"But in reality, they're just bandits, right?"

"Yes. ...... this time, it seems to be a ploy to get money for cleaning up the town."

Of course, cleaning is just a formality, and the amount of money they demand is exorbitant.

The emperor looked at her for a moment,

"If you don't pay me, I'll leave a mess all around this place. I'll clean it up myself!"

"No, don't ......"

Joona, can you stop them?

The emperor, unable to stand by and watch, asked Juna, a knight of the Kingsguard, "Can you stop them, Juna?

"Yes. Three men of that caliber without hands is not a problem.

Then I'll leave it to you. Go stop them.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After exchanging a few words in a whisper that no one else could hear, Juna ran out almost without a footstep.

"Stop! You're making me uncomfortable."

Juna grabbed the wrist of the man who was just about to lift the trash can.

"Hey, ......, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey!

What are you?

I'm just a passing town girl. I'm just a passing town girl. I've been watching you for a while now and I think you're making unreasonable demands. I'll call the guards.

But the man who had his wrist slapped smirked.

"Well, if you're going to call them, call them!

"What the hell, ......?"

"I've given you plenty of snuff, you're the one who's going to get caught.　You're the one who's going to get caught for interrupting the cleaning."

Juna frowned.

"Are they that rotten?　How long has it been rotting?

"Well, I'm afraid we've been cleaning up this town for two years now.

"A purification team? That's a very big name, isn't it? And it doesn't match what we do.

"Mind your own business!"

While I was saying this, two security guards came running in. In their hands they held wooden sticks about a meter long.

"Hey, hey, what are you doing?

"Oh, mister, you're in the right place. They're blocking us from cleaning..."

What do you mean? You've been trying to get unjust money from us for cleaning!

"Well, a cleaning fee is a fair remuneration.　You're the one who tried to interfere with the public's work!

The guard held Juna's shoulders as he cupped her wrists.

"Get your hands off me. You're a ...... traveler, aren't you?　Let's have you come to the guard station for a minute."

"......It sounds like it's true that you've been snorting nose drops."

What?

You're the public servant in charge of the town's security... and you're bribing your way in... You should be ashamed of yourself!

This guy!　Let him speak!"

One of the guards raised his stick.