Lemumni
The next day, in the early hours of morning, the sun gently peeked its head over the horizon.
Jun and Fortuna stood before the village entrance.
Behind them, despite every attempt to stop them, a crowd of people had come out to see them off.
After etching the faces of those people and the village landscape into their eyes one last time, Jun and Fortuna began exchanging final farewells, one by one.
"Donald, stay healthy. Don't break — just like that superpower of yours."
"If you're all droopy the next time we meet, I'm kicking you in the ass."
"Hmph! Spare me the nonsense. That'll never happen, so you two just take care of yourselves. Don't go dying some stupid death out on the road."
Donald was snippy right to the end.
It was so thoroughly him that Jun and Fortuna both snorted with laughter.
"Sister Kate, you said you're returning to the Holy Knight Order, right? Hang in there."
"Yeah! Oh — there's a high chance I'll get posted to the Holy Knight Order in Lemumni, so we definitely have to meet again. Big sis will buy you dinner."
"Haha. I'll be looking forward to it. And just in case — before you join the Order, uh… take care of those. The dirty novels."
"Eh? Ehhhhhh! Fo-Fortuna!"
"Huueng! Sorry!"
Kate stared at the apologizing Fortuna with the hollow-eyed look of a protagonist who'd just been betrayed. Then she registered Jun's gaze and flushed bright red, like a schoolboy caught with porn stashed in a hidden folder.
After begging his understanding, she hurried off toward the church. Was she going to dispose of them already? She could've just enjoyed them freely until her posting came through.
"Boss. Uncle Robin. Hang in there."
"Yeah. You were always going to have to face this someday."
"I know that, but…"
"I can't accept it. I don't want to accept it. Khhh!"
Leonard looked half out of his mind, while Robin glared at someone with bloodshot eyes, jaw clenched tight.
Jun shook his head as if to say there was no helping them, then turned toward the ones responsible for their current state.
Gleaming. Glossy.
Skin that shone like a succubus who'd just drained a man's essence, and smiles of pure, unfiltered satisfaction.
Looking at Linda and Heni — who in a single night had gone from pure maidens to fully mature women — Jun offered a brief word of caution.
"…Linda, Heni. Take it easy from now on. Keep that up and you'll end up with a kid."
"Hohoho. Jun, what on earth are you talking about?"
"Hehehe. Exactly. Why would Unnie and I catch Oppa?"
The two of them put on coquettish little laughs and played dumb.
Hopeless. They clearly had zero intention of taking the advice.
Jun shook his head again and looked, with eyes full of pity, at Leon — firmly caught between the two of them.
Just what the hell had happened last night? In a single evening his face had gone hollowed-out, and his hips were clenched so tight they looked locked.
Jun's own hips tensed up in sympathy. Hmm. Just in case, maybe he should issue Fortuna a no-approaching-the-rear order later?
"…This is what you chose. Grit your teeth and endure it."
"…You're talking about the succession to the throne, right? Right?"
Jun said nothing. He simply patted Leon on the shoulder.
There was nothing more to say to a foolish mortal who'd taken on two lovers at once without a single thought for the consequences.
You should've known your limits before getting greedy.
"Harry, we have to meet again."
"Don't you dare give up just because it's hard, you hear? And make sure you eat properly."
"Haha. Got it. You two take care of yourselves too. I'll be praying hard for both of you."
Harry, as always, wished only for Jun's safety and well-being.
It made Jun feel truly grateful — and a little guilty.
With a light embrace that carried all his thanks, Jun finished his goodbyes.
It was truly time to leave.
"Well then — we'll be back!!!"
"We'll be back!!!"
"Come back safe!!!"
And so the reincarnator and the angel left their beloved hometown behind, setting out toward a new life.
Once the people who'd come to see them off were no longer visible, Jun immediately began casting Spatial Transfer magic in rapid succession.
There were moments when his core overheated and he had to rest, but those pauses were few and far between.
Thanks to that, they never ran into any of the usual clichés — bandit ambushes, damsels in distress, and the like — and reached Lemumni, a journey that would normally take three full days on foot, in half a day.
…You're already there?
"Yes."
Lunch just ended over here.
At that, Jun pulled a pocket watch from his coat and checked the time.
The short hand pointed to two o'clock.
"So it is. We left at six, so it took exactly eight hours."
The casual way he estimated the time drew a deep sigh from Leonard through the communication orb.
It was a familiar reaction, yet somehow it felt oddly warm — maybe because of the distance between them.
Well, that aside — you clearly remember all the advice Kate, Robin, and I gave you, right?
"Of course. I heard it so many times my ears grew calluses."
Good. Knowing you, I won't worry about you forgetting. So just follow the advice. Especially your face. Do not show your face. Understood?
"I said I get it. I will absolutely not take my hood off in front of other people. Happy?"
Even with Jun's promise, Leonard still didn't seem at ease. He called Fortuna over and made her swear to keep a close watch — warning that otherwise wicked women would try to seduce Jun.
Only after Fortuna lit up with determination and vowed she would do exactly that did Leonard finally relax and cut the connection.
"Honestly. He worries way too much."
"Hehe. But you don't mind it, do you?"
"Yeah. It's annoying, but it feels good."
Someone's pure concern was a deeply heartwarming thing.
Jun smiled softly, brushed a hand over the warm spot in his chest, and lifted his gaze to what lay ahead.
A colossal fortress wall that radiated sheer majesty. Countless watchtowers ringing its perimeter.
They had already been marveling from a distance, and still involuntary gasps of awe slipped from Jun and Fortuna's lips.
There was a reason it was called Humanity's Shield.
From afar, they had marveled at the sheer scale and grandeur. Up close, what drew their admiration was the purpose, the practicality — and a certain set of scars.
"So it was true. The stairs for climbing the wall are on the outside, not the inside."
"Because the enemy here doesn't come from outside. They come from within."
Walls were normally built to deal effectively with external threats.
Lemumni's walls were different. They had been constructed to deal effectively with enemies from the inside.
Just as Fortuna said, humanity's enemy — Lemumni's enemy — poured out through the labyrinth situated within the city itself.
"There are a lot of holes punched through it. And yet it doesn't look weak at all. If anything, it's terrifying."
The wall was riddled with holes like a cartoon wedge of Swiss cheese. And yet, to the eye, it felt packed solid without a single gap.
That was because soldiers stood guard with their weapons thrust into those openings from the inside.
Among those weapons were massive ballistae and heavy cannons — enough that looking at the wall from within would send a serious chill down anyone's spine.
"The craftsmen of the continent built it with one heart and one mind. Still… they actually finished it. When construction first started, the attacks were so fierce those stubborn artisans all groaned that it was impossible."
Fortuna gazed at the wall with distant eyes.
Following her line of sight, Jun noticed traces that looked like something had been patched over with a cement-like material.
He wanted to ask why those marks were there, but Fortuna seemed lost in memory, so he let it go.
He simply guessed that the scars were repairs covering sections destroyed by enemy assaults.
"Jun, let's go in now."
"You've seen enough?"
"Yeah. Plenty."
Fortuna began nuzzling her face against his cheek. Through the soul-bond, her melancholy feelings flowed into him.
Without a word, Jun stroked her back and started walking toward the gate.
As the distance closed, sharp gazes pressed in on him.
The soldiers in the watchtowers had begun to take notice.
For reference, the watchtowers ringing the wall had been built to compensate for a fortification whose entire purpose was oriented inward — and to provide elevated sight lines in an emergency.
A short while later, Jun joined the waiting line leading to the gate.
With the sun still high, the line was remarkably short, and he reached the gate in no time.
"Halt. Identify yourself."
A soldier stopped Jun in his tracks.
His gear and presence put the Primuni Village vigilantes to shame.
I heard most of Lemumni's soldiers are former adventurers. Looks like this guy is one of them.
An ability user who had awakened his power was serving as a mere gate guard.
Jun marveled inwardly — truly living up to the reputation — and handed over the identity plaque he'd prepared in advance, offering it with his left hand, the one bearing the Stigma.
"…Pass."
The soldier, having naturally spotted the Stigma, gave the plaque a quick once-over and hurried Jun through.
He didn't even collect the entry fee everyone else paid.
Lemumni was, for all practical purposes, the Church's stronghold, and clergy received all manner of privileges.
Anyone bearing a Stigma was treated as a priest, so Jun enjoyed those benefits as well — even though he didn't actually work as one!
Is this what they mean by pleasure without responsibility?
Juni, that sounds way too dirty.
Jun and Fortuna snickered as they passed the soldier and stepped inside the walls.
And then a whole other world unfolded before their eyes.
Jun's eyes sparkled as he murmured,
"Yeah. This is what you call Welcome to Medieval Land."