Since It's My First Time Being a Lady, I'll Cause Some Trouble - Chapter 37

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Lady for the First Time, I’ll Cause a Bit of Trouble — Episode 37
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“This tunnel’s quite long.”
It felt like ten minutes had passed, yet we were still walking through the Tunnel.
At first I’d worried about running into bandits, but all I saw were stone walls and the occasional torch hung at intervals.
Still, we couldn’t afford to be careless.
After walking a bit further, the air suddenly shifted, and a broad chamber opened before us.
It held pickaxes that appeared to be used for digging, crude workstations, crates full of stone, and several iron cages.
All of them packed with people.
Their dark expressions and grimy appearance made it clear they were residents of Ochel who’d been dragged here by the bandits.
In that instant, Misty grabbed my arm tightly and shook her head. She clearly thought I was about to go to them.
“Why would I go?”
“Pardon? But the villagers—”
“What could I do if I went? And if we show ourselves, do you really think the people will stay calm?”
The villagers were pitiful, but that was separate from whether I trusted them not to panic. So Misty had stopped me for good reason.
Even if we freed them from the cages, we’d have nowhere to escape to.
If we retraced our path, all these people moving at once would inevitably make noise, and the bandits could capture us in the chaos.
‘Fighting the bandits while herding all of them would be foolish.’
Even setting aside Misty and myself, how could ordinary villagers ever defeat bandits in combat?
If they could have, they wouldn’t have been captured in the first place.
We slipped between crates and shadows, moving stealthily toward the far side of the cages.
There was no way they’d brought this many people over the mountain secretly, so there had to be a separate exit connected to this place.
Misty looked startled watching how I moved.
I didn’t look like an ordinary lady anymore—I looked like an Infiltration specialist.
‘Well, that’s what I am, after all.’
But Misty quickly hid her surprise and moved with me. True to form for a veteran guild member.
As expected, a passage appeared where the cages ended. We passed through a winding short corridor and found a wooden door.
“Miss, be cautious.”
Misty whispered softly.
In her hand gleamed a Dagger, its edge keen and bright. She’d drawn it in advance, unsure what lay behind the door.
“Understood.”
I whispered back and drew my gun.
I opened the door carefully and found another passage. This one had an unusual layout—small rooms without doors at intervals, like an anthill.
From the farthest room, away from where the villagers of Ochel were caged, came the sound of bandits chattering.
We checked silently whether anyone occupied the other rooms. Fortunately, they were all empty.
There was a small kitchen and a room that seemed to serve as a storage area. Neither looked ideal for hiding for a long time.
Still, we decided the storage was better than the kitchen, so we crouched beside a drawer in the corner.
“Based on the direction the passage extends, it seems the Tunnel connects directly to Ochel, where the Gold Mine is.”
Misty murmured, having verified the tunnel’s orientation.
“Still, there could be other passages branching off in the middle. For people like these, making emergency exits is common sense.”
“Whether it’s common sense or not, the odds of us finding them are slim. They’d hide them so only they know.”
“Typical bandits, so petty.”
“It might be better for us to stay hidden here until the Military Police arrive. If word gets out that a mere bandit dug a tunnel targeting Nobility, the Imperial Palace won’t sit idle.”
I was irritated.
“So they ignore it when commoners are attacked, but spring into action when the Nobility are threatened? If they’d sent more soldiers from the start, none of this would have happened.”
Misty sighed in agreement.
‘But why didn’t the master send us to the county at Batori?’
Just before arriving in Netzer County, I’d asked the count about this.
If his county seat was too dangerous to leave us there, couldn’t I and the countess go to Batori County instead?
Couldn’t they take the other Bodyguards away and deploy them to clear out bandits, leaving only the minimum number of Escorts to accompany us to Batori?
‘Dividing personnel to guard two estates would sacrifice both stability and efficiency, which is why they’re bringing us along.’
So wouldn’t it be better for just the two of us to go to Batori County, where there were private soldiers? But the count’s response at that time had been peculiar.
‘My wife is not particularly close to her mother. Remember that.’
I didn’t know the full story, but it seemed strange to avoid even considering Batori as a refuge when lives were at stake, simply because the relationship between mother and daughter was strained.
‘If they really didn’t get along, I doubt the count would have lent soldiers.’
Truly, the affairs of Nobility were filled with things commoners couldn’t understand.
‘But right now, escape is what matters.’
Then two men’s voices echoed from the corridor. By the distance, they seemed to be the ones leaving the far room.
I aimed my gun at the doorway, and Misty gripped her Dagger, ready to ambush.
Unlike us, tense and alert, they were utterly at ease, unaware we were hidden here.
“Just a little longer, and Netzer County will be mine.”
A man spoke with a sneer.
“Taking the Gold Mine is one thing, but we can’t keep running forever.”
“But what about the bodyguards and security? The Seybo Guild, no less.”
When a deeper-voiced man voiced his doubt, the sneering man let out a scoff.
“You have to use your head. Your head. You know the Imperial Palace recently banned nobles from hiring mercenaries, right? The Chief says he’ll use that to expel the guild members. He’s already made his move.”
‘These lunatics!’
It made sense that only the mentally unfit would resort to banditry, but I never expected them to twist an imperial decree to seize control over men’s lives.
Misty’s eyes burned with fury as well. She was ready to strike the moment they crossed the threshold.
“But they’re bodyguards, not mercenaries.”
“How annoying! Call them mercenaries and they become mercenaries. They both know how to use weapons and travel in groups — what’s the difference? According to the Chief, the Count will receive orders to dismiss his guards today.”
“But why would the Count agree to that? His life is on the line.”
“The Count will do as he’s told, regardless. Unless he wants to be dragged away for treason. In exchange, we’ll secure a promise to station more Military Police here.”
“Military Police. How reassuring.”
The two men chuckled as they passed through the warehouse and headed toward where the others were gathered.
The door opened and closed.
Just as I was about to release a breath of relief, a drawer beside me suddenly swung open like a door, and a man leaped out.
‘Damn! That scared me!’
What the—why was someone hiding in there?
It was fortunate the drawer concealed him; otherwise, we would have been thrown behind iron bars like the townspeople.
In any case, having stumbled upon an escape route by sheer luck, we didn’t hesitate for a second and hurried after the man into where he’d emerged from.
As we fled, an excited voice echoed behind us.
“It’s serious! The Military Police have just discovered the passage behind Netzer County’s estate!”
Then chaos erupted in the far room. From what I could gather, they were demanding to know how anyone had found out.
“Blow up the room with the hostages right now!”
What?
At the savage man’s command, I stopped in my tracks just as we were about to escape the tunnel.
The bandits, still unaware of our presence, continued their exchange.
“But sir, there are still hostages in there. Should we really detonate it?”
A man presumed to be his subordinate spoke. His voice held no mercy—only the regret of discarding something still serviceable.
The man who’d given the order responded in a gravelly voice.
“Taking them along will only weigh us down. The Chief will understand.”
I had not abandoned the townspeople because I was coldhearted.
It was simply safer to let the Military Police rescue them than to stake our lives on a desperate, hopeless gamble.
But now everything had changed.
“I can’t do that.”
She turned to look at me with stern eyes, her voice unwavering.
“People will die…….”
I held her gaze while backing away slowly, then suddenly spun around and dove back into the tunnel swarming with bandits.
“Miss! Ulfina! Miss! Hey!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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