The Princess's Carriage (1)
I only learned why the two of them were here after I asked. It seemed Aria had heard me and called the village knights. Since she was from a count’s family, the knight order had probably helped enthusiastically. The knights who found me unconscious alongside the griffon had apparently handed me over to the knights and coachman from our duchy who had been searching for me while transporting me to Taipan.
After the story ended, I sent Sarah out of the room with a tearful face and Pablo with his usual unreadable, expressionless look. Immediately afterward, I began meditating on the bed. Now that my danjeon had been partially rebuilt, meditation was possible again. I could absorb and harmonize mana into my body, accelerating my recovery even further.
If I steadily consumed spirit pills and kept up consistent meditation from now on, I would be able to fully restore my rebuilt danjeon to its original state. And so, until the day the academy opened, I focused solely on meditation, light cardio, and recovery. I needed to heal quickly so I could resume strength training and sword practice.
I spent day after day cooped up in my room like that. In the blink of an eye, it was the day before the start of term.
Early in the morning, a carriage carrying me and Sarah departed from the Brace ducal estate. We were heading to the dormitory first to drop off our luggage. Ten escort knights accompanied us—all of them Sword Expert rank.
Clatter. Clatter—!
Sarah, who was riding in the same carriage as me, glared as she spoke. She had lost an unbelievable amount of weight over the past month. By my estimate she was around 80 kilograms now… still a bit chubby for her height, but no longer at the point where you could see the broth in her. It was probably just typical sibling trash-talking. I definitely wasn’t hurt… really…
I rested my chin on my hand and answered as casually as I could before turning to look out the window. The Brace ducal lands were gradually growing distant. Soon the scenery changed from villages to dry earth and vast empty plains. We raced endlessly toward our destination—the prestigious Ariel Academy.
Clatter, clatter!
‘Anyway, the road from the Brace duchy to Ariel Academy has good security. No need to worry.’
The route connecting this area ran close to the imperial capital. The imperial family thoroughly exterminated any low-ranking magical beasts that could pose even the slightest threat, so there was no need to worry about monsters. Even if a low-grade beast did appear, all ten of our escort knights were Sword Experts or higher. It would be safe enough for me to jump in and help subdue one if I felt like observing.
I judged that my level had reached around 3-star during the fight with the griffon. I still wasn’t completely sure of my exact stage, but being able to wield auror meant it wouldn’t be an obstacle.
“Zzz…”
While I was thinking, Sarah had already fallen fast asleep, leaning against the carriage wall. She must have been exhausted. Well, we had left very early in the morning the day before the academy opening. It was perfectly reasonable to be tired. Honestly, I was tired too…
‘…Maybe I’ll nap for a bit.’
Just as I was about to close my eyes—
Plop, plop-plop. Shaaaaaaa—!
Raindrops began to fall, and suddenly it was as if a hole had opened in the sky. A downpour started without warning. The weather had been clear just moments ago, but thick black clouds swallowed the heavens in an instant, changing everything like a lie.
‘This feels ominous… but whatever. It doesn’t matter.’
Like I said earlier, we had ten Sword Expert-level escort knights and we were on a safe road. Nothing would happen. With that thought, I closed my eyes without another worry.
When I woke up, the rain was still pouring down like a waterfall without end. The carriage was moving through a violent storm. Looking around, the terrain had become a series of rugged hills, and our speed had noticeably slowed.
Thud! Clatter!
The carriage shook violently. Continuing like this seemed dangerous…
Just as I thought. A man who appeared to be the captain of the escort knights ordered the carriage to stop. It seemed he had judged that proceeding would be too risky.
About ten minutes passed. After what looked like a quick meeting among themselves, the knights and coachman reformed their formation and the carriage began moving again. We turned left.
‘Are they planning to detour through the Hill Where the Wind Rests…?’
The irregular slopes of the hills ahead made it difficult to pass directly through the royal road, so they were probably taking a detour. The detour route was a habitat where goblins frequently appeared. Ordinary goblins would be no match for our escort knights. Even if we were unlucky enough to encounter a higher variant like a goblin shaman, it shouldn’t be a problem.
But why did I keep getting this bad feeling?
Four hours after the detour began, the road flattened out. Weeds and similar plants grew here and there across a sandy plain.
Sarah, who had woken up at some point, rubbed one eye and muttered. She must have slept for a full six hours. Still half out of it, she looked around at the scenery outside the carriage with a dazed expression.
“……”
Her personality was still as foul as ever. Even if the original Cian had been a scoundrel, wasn’t this a bit much? I wasn’t Cian anymore—I was Jian, who had possessed Cian’s body…
Thirty minutes later, the carriage came to a stop. The sky had grown dark, and it looked like they were preparing to camp in the nearby forest. We were now in a dense area thick with trees and undergrowth. We pitched our tents beneath a large tree that offered at least some shelter from the rain and settled in for the night.
Crackle. Crackle-crackle.
The sound of burning firewood reached my ears. Mixed with the falling rain, the crackling flames somehow created a strangely sentimental atmosphere.
The escort knights gathered in small groups, sharing soup boiled in a bucket. If it weren’t for the fact that they were guarding a high-ranking young master, they probably would have broken out the alcohol. The mood was practically a company dinner.
I didn’t dislike that kind of atmosphere. In my life before possession, I had attended plenty of company dinners. People always complained about them, but free food was free food. I never turned down an invitation. …I might have been what people called an ace employee. I handled my work flawlessly and never missed a single dinner.
“Zzz… zzz…”
“Mmmnya…”
After the meal, the accumulated fatigue hit the knights. They set two men per group on watch and went to sleep. Sarah was sleeping in a different tent from mine.
‘I’m not tired since I slept in the carriage… Maybe I should go train a bit.’
If I broke a sweat, I might get at least a little tired. I took out my longsword from the tent, slipped away from the campsite, and headed deep into the forest while avoiding the sentries.
I got a bit wet from the rain, but it was falling much lighter than during the day, so it was bearable. The Hill Where the Wind Rests… It really lived up to its name. The forest was constantly swept by strong winds. As evening fell, a cold valley breeze rose from below.
I looked up at the sky. A full moon floated there, veiled behind black rain clouds.
‘Perfect brightness for training.’
I stopped at a suitable spot, gripped my sword firmly, and took a stance.
“Hoo…”
Cold breath escaped my mouth because of the surrounding climate. I swallowed it down and raised my sword above my head.
“Hup—!”
The moment I swung downward to practice a vertical slash—
‘……!’
What was that? A spine-chilling sensation spread across my entire body. It was the first time I had felt anything like it since rebuilding my danjeon.
‘A trace of mana…? A monster? Goblin? No, this level… a shaman? But that doesn’t feel right either…’
Something was off. This was the first time I had directly sensed something like this since arriving in this world, so I couldn’t judge it properly. It was clearly not human… The feeling was alien and murky.
‘I knew things were going too smoothly… Tsk.’
As expected, Ariel was not a game that allowed peace. In a world teeming with monsters, there was no way things would stay calm. I decided to go scout. If things got dangerous, I could call the escort knights. I’d basically be doing their job for them. When they woke up, they’d have to thank me.
. . .
‘…A carriage?’
Following the trace of mana up to the ridge, I spotted something at the end of a path lined with dense trees. Looking down, I saw a carriage and the silhouettes of people.
‘Was there another carriage that took this detour route besides ours?’
At a glance, it was an extremely luxurious carriage that looked like it belonged to someone important. It was even more ornate than the one from the Brace ducal house, adorned with all kinds of dangling jewels. About twenty escort guards surrounded it, all wearing steel armor. On the shoulder plates of their armor was an emblem I recognized.
‘…The Violet imperial family crest.’
The crest of the Violet imperial family that ruled the Lianna Empire. The only member of the imperial family who would be taking this detour route at this hour was…
‘The Fourth Princess?’
In the story, Rosaria di Violet was the youngest daughter among the imperial children. She was also a student at Ariel Academy, just like me. Had she left for the academy for the opening and ended up here because of the sudden downpour?
That thought lasted only a moment.
A voice that was definitely not human rang out from the opposite ridge. Startled, I looked over and saw a single red goblin staring down at the imperial carriage, just like I was.
‘A goblin shaman?!’
I was sure the presence had disappeared here—how had it hidden its trace? The red goblin shaman pointed a worn-out staff toward the imperial carriage.
It began chanting in an unknown goblin language. A red fire-attribute magic circle started forming at the tip of the staff aimed at the carriage.
I sprinted with all my strength toward the opposite ridge about twenty meters away. It was a jump I could never have made before rebuilding my danjeon. My mana-enhanced body soared lightly through the air and landed right in front of the goblin shaman’s nose.
The goblin shaman couldn’t even stop its spellcasting as it stared at me in shock.
Slash.
I severed the goblin shaman’s neck just before it could finish the spell. If my body had still been as fat as before, I wouldn’t have been able to stop the magic in time. The shaman’s head rolled near my feet. Its eyes held no normal focus, as if it were entranced by something.
‘What the hell is going on…?’
That was when it happened.
A sudden uproar. Shocked, I looked down toward the imperial carriage. What had been a peaceful rest area moments ago had turned into complete chaos. Goblins were swarming the soldiers who were trying to fight back. An ogre—one of the higher species that should never have been here—was slaughtering the soldiers with a frenzied expression.