Toward the Holy Kingdom
Aaron said in a flustered tone, “...Why are you asking me that?”
“Huh? Don’t know?”
“I’m the Education Director of Liberi, not a peddler.”
Flap.
Thud.
He set down the papers he’d been reading.
“If you’re looking for a caravan headed to the Holy Kingdom, you should be asking a caravan.”
“I thought you’d know, Aaron.”
He’d always been the one handling this kind of thing for me.
Of course, I knew he’d been put in a position far removed from that sort of work these days, but I figured I might as well ask just in case.
“There are always caravans heading for the Holy Kingdom, but whether there’ll be an open spot is another matter. The timing’s unfortunate.”
“The timing?”
I tilted my head.
“Why does that matter?”
“Why, you ask? The Advent Festival is coming soon.”
“Ah.”
So it was already that time of year.
The Advent Festival.
One of the Holy Kingdom of Sedes’s signature celebrations, held to commemorate the day Edel descended upon the mortal world.
It was huge in scale, and Edel’s standing in the world of Silia was so immense that it was practically a global festival.
Other countries and cities even held small celebrations of their own to mark the descent, so that said enough.
Back in Grasis, the royal family would always start acting like idiots around this time of year too.
“...Acting like idiots?”
“That’s exactly what they’re doing.”
“Fair enough.”
When they were basking in luxury and indulgence under the pretense of honoring Edel’s descent, there was no other way to put it.
“But if the Advent Festival is coming up soon, wouldn’t that actually be a good thing?”
Festivals drew crowds.
And if it was the Advent Festival in the Holy Kingdom of Sedes, then far more people would come than for an ordinary event.
And where there were people, there would be merchants looking to get their hands in those pockets.
“During this season, the caravans departing for the Advent Festival often travel together with other caravans. Not always, but usually. If they do, the group naturally grows larger, doesn’t it? And if the group gets larger, more people are needed to protect it. Which is better: hiring that many mercenaries one by one, or hiring an already proven mercenary company?”
“So that’s what you meant by there not being room.”
There were plenty of openings, then, just not for me.
“If you look hard enough, you might find a caravan that hires mercenaries privately. But you’re not a mercenary, are you? Even a caravan like that wouldn’t want to take in someone whose identity can’t be verified during a season like this. It’s the time of year when wolves out looking for an opening go wild too.”
“Aaron.”
“...What is it?”
“Fix it.”
“Fix what?”
“The identity issue.”
Fix it, would you.
Smack!
“Ow.”
“And how exactly do you expect me to do that?”
At some point, Aaron had come up beside me and flicked my forehead with his finger.
There was no need to hit me if it wasn’t possible, was there?
I glared at him sullenly, and he clicked his tongue and widened his eyes at me.
“You’re not even hurt. What’s with the drama?”
“My body doesn’t hurt, but my heart does.”
“Well, I’m glad that at least hurts.”
“...”
...Unbelievable.
Before I could even find the words for it, Aaron sat back down.
“The only thing I could do would be to register you as a mercenary of Liberi.”
“I don’t want that.”
“I figured as much, so I didn’t bother saying it outright. Besides, why insist on tagging along with a caravan in the first place? Moving with one at this time of year would be a pain, and it wouldn’t suit your personality either.”
“Hmm... yeah, I guess not.”
“If you really want to go with a caravan, how about waiting a little longer? Give it about a month at most.”
“A month...”
“Kana.”
Joni yanked at the hem of my cape.
She’d been listening quietly all this time, so why was she suddenly doing that?
I turned to look at her with the question in my eyes, and immediately understood what she meant.
“I guess that’s not happening.”
“It would seem not.”
Aaron agreed with me as well.
After all, one look at those sparkling eyes told me everything I needed to know.
How could a sparrow pass a mill without peeking in?
Joni, having heard our conversation, had developed a strong interest in the Advent Festival.
“A festival...! Doesn’t that sound like it’d be so much fun?”
“Not really.”
Personally, I wasn’t fond of crowded places, so I couldn’t agree with her.
Whenever people gathered in one place, something always happened.
After enough experiences like that, I’d grown thoroughly sick of places like that.
“So what are you going to do?”
“Let me think. Maybe we should get a carriage.”
“Ugh, a carriage...”
Apparently her experience riding in one on the way to Liberi had left a strong impression, because Joni grimaced immediately.
Even people who were used to carriages complained when they jolted along rough roads, tossed about by every bump, so someone like Joni, who’d barely ridden in one at all, would have it even worse.
But if we didn’t take a carriage, there weren’t many options left.
Like I’d said before, teleport gates were out of the question...
That left running, or riding a horse. One of those two.
“Can you run there?”
“...How far?”
Why was she asking something so obvious?
“To the Holy Kingdom of Sedes.”
“You want me to run all the way to the end of the continent?! Impossible. Absolutely impossible!”
“Hmm.”
I tilted my head slightly.
“It might be easier than you think once you try. How about giving it a shot?”
“There’s no way that would happen, okay?!”
...Well, if she said so, then running was out too.
Which meant the only choice left was a horse.
Could Joni even ride one?
When I asked with that question in mind, she hesitated before answering.
“I’ve ridden a few times. I’m not good at it, but I think I could manage a little... maybe?”
“Why are you asking me that?”
“The feeling you’re having right now is exactly how I felt when you asked me that earlier.”
“...”
“Pfft...! ...Ah, sorry.”
When I glared at her, Joni hurriedly raised a hand to cover her mouth.
Not that it mattered, since I’d heard everything already, and the corners of her eyes were so deeply crinkled she might as well have been laughing openly.
Just you wait.
I’d pay this humiliation back someday.
* * *
The short rest in Liberi came to an end.
After the first day’s little commotion, Joni spent the second and third days pestering me to go out and look around the streets with her.
‘Kana, let’s go out and have some fun. If you stay in your room, mold will start growing on you.’
‘I’ll even buy you chocolate that tastes better than what we had yesterday. Okay?’
She tried to coax me with every possible line while standing in front of my firmly locked door, but...
‘Kaaanaaa~’
Bang.
‘...Be quiet and stop that.’
‘Oh, Kana! You finally came out?’
‘If you want to go out that badly, then follow me with a sword.’
‘...Why a sword?’
‘If you beat me in a fight, I’ll go with you.’
‘...’
‘I don’t listen to people weaker than me.’
‘Good night, Kana.’
After that, she kindly shoved me back inside, telling me to go to bed if I was going to be like that.
On the fourth day, after enough rest, we finished breakfast earlier than usual and stood before the gate in the city wall leading out of Liberi.
I looked up at the wall for a moment, then turned around.
Even though I’d told him there was no need to, Aaron had come all the way out here to see us off, and now he was looking at me.
“I’ve really imposed on you.”
“Imposed? I never thought of it that way.”
Aaron jerked his head away.
After a moment, he said in a slightly embarrassed voice, “If things get hard, come back anytime. You’ll always be welcome.”
“...Yeah. I will.”
If it was Aaron, not Eric, then he was someone I could trust.
With my hood pulled low, I poked Joni’s side, where she was smiling warmly beside me.
“What? Embarrassed?”
What was she on about?
“Let’s get going already.”
“If you’re sad to leave, we can stay a little longer~”
“I’m not sad.”
“I’m sad, though, and you’re not? That’s a little hurtful.”
“...”
Now Aaron had joined in too, determined to tease me.
I ignored both of them and took up the reins.
There was no reason to get dragged around just because I knew they were teasing me.
“...”
Still, I supposed I could say one thing.
“...I’m a little sad too.”
Not much. Just a little.
After saying that, I wasted no more time and headed out of Liberi.
“Kana!”
“...!”
“Take care!”
Aaron shouted and waved.
“Yeah, I will.”
I waved back, then turned away for good and stepped outside Liberi.
Parting with someone close was always hard, but if you knew you would meet again, the sorrow of leaving was a little easier to bear.
Aaron wasn’t some fragile soul who’d be taken down easily, and he wasn’t suffering from any illness either, so I’d definitely see him again.
“All right, let’s go make the most of it!”
Joni cried out brightly, lifting the slightly subdued mood.
Having a cheerful travel companion really did make things better in that regard.
Once we’d gotten some distance from Liberi, we finally decided to ride the horses after leading them along for a while.
Joni, who had one foot in the stirrup and was just about to swing herself up, suddenly glanced at me and smirked.
“Kana, can you get on? Should big sis help lift you up?”
“...”
I ignored her and leapt lightly into the air.
For a brief moment there was that buoyant feeling of weightlessness, and then my body settled neatly into the saddle.
Frrr.
The horse I’d mounted gave a soft snort.
“Hmph.”
I snorted at Joni, who was staring at me with her mouth hanging open.
I’d climbed higher places than this before, so this was nothing.
Joni, who’d been staring blankly at me, grit her teeth and struggled to climb onto her horse.
Seeing how hard she was having it, the horse she was holding onto let out an uneasy huff.
“...I did it!”
At last, Joni succeeded in getting into the saddle and shouted in triumph.
You’d think she’d just conquered the summit of some savage dwarf mountain.
Judging by how much trouble she was having just getting on, her riding skills were obvious enough without even seeing them.
Go ahead and suffer a little.
I wondered how long she’d last. An hour? Two?
Imagining Joni screaming her lungs out, I urged my horse forward in high spirits.