The Journey (7)
After finishing breakfast and returning to my room, I got straight to preparing for our outing.
Not that "preparing" meant anything particularly elaborate… It was cold out, so I just dressed warmly, that was all.
My skirt was long and thick, and underneath it I wore pumpkin pants that came down to my shins.
"This should keep me warm enough, right?"
"If you get cold, don't just endure it. Use magic or Holy Magic."
Sister Mary said it kindly as she fastened my collar for me.
"I will. What about you, Mary?"
"I plan to look around the area with Daniel."
Oh…?
Don't tell me — Priest Daniel and Sister Mary? I grinned slyly and gave Sister Mary a few playful nudges with my elbow.
"When did the two of you get so close?"
"It is nothing of the sort."
Sister Mary's expression went rigid, her face turning stern. She looked so terrifying that I immediately abandoned the teasing. If I'd kept it up, she almost certainly would have started lecturing me.
Once she got going, the scolding lasted ten minutes or more, so avoiding it whenever possible was the wise move.
"What about you, Unnie?"
"Walk around. Then the hot springs."
"Yeah?"
My older sister looked faintly sulky.
"Yuli always hangs out with guys."
Uh… well…
"S-sorry…"
"I'm kidding."
With a completely blank face, she drew a V-sign with her fingers.
"Have fun."
"Okay. Want some money at least?"
"I've got plenty."
She patted my shoulder, telling me not to worry about it.
"I'll be back."
I left the two of them behind and headed out of the inn first.
"Shall we go, then?"
The young lord had come out of the room next door and was waiting quietly beside me. He held out his hand in a splendidly elegant gesture.
Did nobles and knights always have to do that? It looked dashing, sure, but…
I raised my hand to match his offer.
I'd been through this enough times by now that I could respond naturally, I supposed.
"Let's go."
We left the inn early in the morning. Whether it was because the weather was fine or because I'd bundled up so thoroughly, I didn't feel cold even once we were outside.
"The weather is truly lovely."
"It is. Perfect day for going out."
We started looking around the area right away. True to a tourist town, shops selling souvenirs were scattered here and there.
"Do you have any particular plans?"
"Not especially. Ah — there is one thing. There's a play at the theater this afternoon."
A play at the theater…
Not a public open-air stage, but a proper indoor theater production. I did want to see one at least once.
"It isn't particularly long, but if you wish to attend, we'll need to arrive on time."
"Let's wander around a bit first and decide."
For now, the souvenirs displayed in front of the shops had caught my interest.
"Hmm-hmm-hmm."
I hummed under my breath as I browsed the merchandise. There were strange wooden carvings, dolls, and things that looked like ornaments on display…
"They even have weapons."
Quite a few short daggers were on offer. What set them apart from ordinary daggers was the ornate patterns engraved on the scabbards and hilts, or the crystals set into them, giving everything a flashy look.
"Useless decoration."
I couldn't check the blades, but they were probably dull, too…
"Is that so?"
"Yes. As ornaments to set on a stand, they wouldn't be half bad."
Display pieces would definitely be more useful. With handles like that, the grip would be terrible, and the blades were far too short to be any good as weapons.
Maybe as a paper knife?
"You could use them as paper knives, at least."
Set one on a desk as decoration, then pull it out only when you needed to open a letter. Ornament and tool in one.
"That wouldn't be a bad use for them, either."
We wandered through the nearby shopping district, browsing the goods. Whenever something appeared that a country girl might not recognize, the young lord stepped forward first to explain it.
They were the kinds of things an ordinary village girl wouldn't know, true enough.
It was just that I happened to have the cheat-like knowledge of my previous life's memories.
"This looks like a weapon, but it's actually used for opening wine bottles."
A wine opener — a corkscrew, in other words. A long spiral of metal was attached to the center of a hand grip. I roughly knew how to use it, too. You set it in the middle of the cork, twisted it down into the cork, then gripped the handle and pulled the cork free.
Even though I already knew all of that, I played along with his explanation.
"Is that right? You could just grab it and use it as a weapon, though, couldn't you?"
When I said it playfully, the young lord laughed too.
"I suppose you could, at that."
Nothing really worth buying, so we passed everything by. I was starting to wish something interesting would turn up…
"Are you cold at all?"
"I'm fine."
The weather was good, and I'd dressed warmly, so I was perfectly comfortable.
"I wonder what that is."
I was busy scanning everything around us. There was also the hope that I might find some good alchemy materials here.
Expensive glass bottles were set out on a stall. Right — no matter how widely glass had been distributed, it was still a costly item! And yet there it was, on open display. How curious.
I scurried over, and the young lord followed.
"What's this?"
I asked the merchant without preamble.
"This is called Spark Water. Drink it and your mind snaps wide awake — that's how it got the name."
Snaps wide awake? What a suspicious name…
"If you return the bottle, it's only twenty silver apiece."
In other words, drink it right here and hand the bottle back?
The young lord eyed the glass bottles with open skepticism.
"One bottle, please."
I couldn't hold back my curiosity and ordered one. When I reached for my purse, the young lord was already handing over the money.
"Just open the lid and drink it straight."
The top of the glass bottle was sealed with beeswax. Beeswax… beeswax, huh.
Interesting. I peeled off the wax that had been serving as a lid, then carefully cleaned away the residue around the rim.
"Go on and drink it right away. It'll snap your mind right awake."
The merchant was watching me with a thoroughly amused expression. I wondered what kind of reactions people had when they drank this water, for him to look so expectant.
I squeezed my eyes shut and drank. The moment the water hit my mouth, it felt like lightning crackling across my tongue. That sharp, tingling sensation of bursting air bubbles — a shocking feeling I was experiencing for the first time in this life.
"Mph."
Fortunately, I hadn't poured too much, so I managed not to spit it out.
"This is…"
A first for this life. But I had a memory of drinking something similar in my previous one.
A drink called carbonation.
The fizz that went into beverages called cola or cider — that was what I was tasting. Of course, it was just carbonation in plain water with no flavor at all, so it wasn't exactly delicious…
"Snaps your mind awake, doesn't it?"
Looking at the merchant's mischievous grin, I found myself nodding.
"Want to try some?"
I held out the remaining water to the young lord. He took the glass bottle and stood there looking completely at a loss.
"Hurry up and drink."
"If you don't drink it quickly, the effect fades."
With both the merchant and me urging him on, the young lord closed his eyes and brought the bottle to his lips. And why was his face turning red? If he hadn't been so handsome that even a man would fall for him, I might have found it off-putting…
But with a face like that, even this made a pretty picture…
"Khh — kugh!"
Gulping the water down in big swallows, the young lord took a full assault from the carbonation and sprayed it right back out.
The merchant watching found it so hilarious he burst out laughing. Honestly, I let out a little laugh myself.
The young lord was coughing with a pained expression, shooting resentful looks in my direction.
"I-it wasn't that bad for me."
Well, I already knew about carbonation, so I'd been careful. But he had no idea you were supposed to take small sips, and he'd downed it all at once…
"I-it really does snap your mind awake."
"Ahaha… pretty amazing, right?"
"Yes, it is rather remarkable."
As I looked at the Spark Water, a sudden flash of inspiration struck me. Couldn't this be used as a combination material?
The problem was where I could get more of this water.
"Maybe I should buy some for now…?"
"Pardon? You're going to buy this?"
I understood his reaction. It was weird, tasteless water, after all.
The carbonation was so strong it was more painful than refreshing, so his response made sense. If the fizz were a bit milder, you might actually feel that cool, crisp sensation…
"Yes."
I stepped closer and whispered quietly.
"I want to try using it in a combination."
He looked at me with doubtful eyes.
"Mister, how late are you open?"
"Until the sun goes down."
"Then I'll come back a little later."
Buying it right away would make storing the glass bottles a hassle, so I said I'd return later.
The young lord… was quiet.
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing."
"Come on, is it because of the water earlier?"
He looked sulky. So it was that after all?
"It was my first time trying it, too."
"I know."
Then why was he reacting like this?
"Does it not bother you?"
"Bother me? What does?"
He looked faintly disappointed, then turned his head away.
"Never mind. It seems I was overthinking things."
What on earth was that about? And why was he touching his lips? Ah, whatever.
"Come on, let's go already."
I grabbed the dithering young lord's hand and pulled him along. Where to next? There were still plenty of places to see, so anywhere would do!
And what caught my eye next was cooking done with hot spring water. Was that even sanitary?
"Are they selling eggs?"
Eggs were being slowly cooked in the steaming hot spring water. It seemed popular enough that there was a bit of a line.
"Are you interested?"
"W-well, the taste probably isn't anything special, but I'm curious why people line up for it."
"You'll know once you try it."
The young lord and I joined the queue and received our food soon enough. They handed us a soft-cooked egg on a small plate, and looking around, people were simply slurping the eggs straight into their mouths.
I followed suit and tried mine.
"Hmm…"
Soft. Both the white and the yolk were perfectly soft-boiled, very tender, with a mild flavor and the rich taste of the yolk coming through.
"Hmm, it's just an egg."
Nothing special about the taste. Just the fact that it had been cooked in hot spring water, maybe?
"Yes, just an ordinary flavor."
We returned the plates and left the crowded spot.
"Still, this is a tourist town. Eating things like this is part of the fun, isn't it?"
"Indeed. What does the taste matter? What matters is whom you share it with."
The young lord answered with a bright smile.
Well, he had a point. So what if it cost a bit of money, or the flavor was ordinary? As long as you enjoyed yourself, that was enough.
"Let's look around some more."
And so we set off to wander the area once again.