Arrival in De Marinda
The coachmen, seemingly immune to morning drowsiness, rose early to tend to the horses, while the mercenaries and adventurers stirred gradually, save for those on night watch. Though Bagan preferred the warmth of his blankets, he was not one to linger in sleep. He rose first, stretching and yawning in succession to shake off the remnants of drowsiness. His gaze then fell upon Sally and Arien, still fast asleep. Because Sally was rather tall, the sight of the 160-centimeter Arien nestled snugly in her arms was striking.
“Um, excuse me, Lord Bagan. Who might those two be?”
The coachman, apparently ready to depart, asked while eyeing the still-sleeping pair. Bagan dismissed the question as unnecessary meddling and raised his guard.
“That’s none of your concern.”
“R-right, of course. Understood. We should be heading out soon, so please board the carriage.”
Intimidated by Bagan’s wariness, the coachman fidgeted yet could not tear his eyes away from the two women. It became clear why—he was, after all, only a man. The beauty Sally and Arien radiated was something no man could resist.
Bagan briefly considered beating the coachman to death for his impure thoughts, but instead carefully lifted the two into the carriage. Once everything was ready, the procession formed, and the lead carriage shouted.
“Move out!!!”
Since Bagan rode in the second carriage from the front, the cry rang out clearly.
“Mmm… Ah, Lord Bagan. Did you sleep well?”
Arien woke before Sally and greeted him. Bagan wanted to tell her to sleep more, but judging by the swaying carriage and its rattling, he decided against it. At the sound of Arien stirring in his arms, Sally slowly opened her eyes as well.
“Oh, we’ve already departed. I must have slept quite long—I’ve never gone this long without reading at dawn before.”
They say beautiful women sleep a lot. Yet whenever Bagan slept, Sally would either read or visit Harmonia instead of resting. Perhaps that was why she now stretched and yawned repeatedly after such a long sleep. Even so, not a single strand of her hair was out of place, and Bagan found the sight almost mystical.
“Did you two sleep well?”
Bagan finally asked after giving them time. Both nodded almost simultaneously and lifted the purple canopy to meet the sunlight.
“Where are we now?”
“We haven’t been traveling long. We should still be near Hilan Forest.”
Sally nodded at that and glanced at Arien. Arien, basking in the sun, suddenly realized she was inside a carriage and widened her eyes.
“Oh! Sister, is this the cargo section of the carriage? This is my first time.”
Even while calling Sally “sister,” Arien maintained her polite speech. Having learned about the world through books, her curiosity was boundless. She peeked under the cargo, crawled on her knees, and explored the carriage’s interior to her heart’s content.
“Don’t get too rowdy. Those are goods handled by the trading company. It’ll be troublesome if anything gets damaged.”
Bagan warned Arien to exercise some restraint, yet she continued darting about like an excited child, arms spread wide. She even used her slime nature to shrink her 160-centimeter frame and bounce around. The sight was so endearing that it breathed life into the otherwise dull carriage ride.
Even Arien eventually settled on Sally’s lap at her urging, her silver hair being gently tended to, while she watched Bagan leaning against the cargo with his eyes closed.
“By the way, Sister, what kind of person is Lord Bagan?”
At the question, Bagan cracked his eyes open slightly to listen. Sally, who had maintained her physical form the longest among them, answered.
“He’s a peculiar man. Arien, remember that book Bagan gave you—Rupie Martu?”
“Yes, Rupie Martu. It was a novel about an impossible love between a spirit and a human. Though the author is unknown and the ending was one no one wished for, the detailed portrayal of the spirit realm left a deep impression.”
Bagan had read Rupie Martu as well. During those three months, all he had done was read under the blankets or ponder the future. As Arien noted, the novel referred to the spirit realm as “Harmonia” and described it in such intricate detail that it seemed written by an actual spirit mage.
“He’s someone living a tragic life, much like the ill-fated protagonist in that story.”
“Th-that can’t be. I had no idea. And to think he’s so quiet!”
Sally chuckled and cast a glance at Bagan while feeding Arien more strange remarks. Bagan paid it no mind and closed his eyes again. The matter occupying his thoughts was far more pressing—the structure of the underworld in De Marinda.
The underworld, huh…
Bagan’s reason for heading to cities beyond De Meca was to uproot the underworld’s influence and lay the groundwork for liberating slaves. He would have preferred to simply capture and punish the leaders as he had in De Meca, but De Marinda’s underworld made that impossible.
The reason Caliban was so obsessed with expeditions to De Marinda while running Dractus.
Caliban was the second-in-command of De Meca’s underworld. The only reason he frequently traveled to De Marinda while operating his own party was to maintain contact with its underworld. Since Drake was busy managing De Meca, Caliban, as second-in-command, had to move. Naturally, he knew De Marinda’s underworld well, and according to the information he had shared, their operations were located in an unexpected place.
And quite openly, at that. I’ll need to discuss this with the lord.
De Marinda’s underworld openly threatened the city. If De Meca’s underworld was like a shadow quietly extending its reach through the night streets, De Marinda’s was like a sudden tidal wave striking without warning.
“Bagan!”
While organizing his thoughts, he heard Sally’s voice. Turning toward her, he saw her peering outside through the lifted canopy.
“Mmm! This is the scent of the sea! I couldn’t smell it while we were in the forest, but it’s been this close all along.”
Arien was equally excited by the distant scent of the sea and the powerful sound of waves.
“That means we’ve arrived.”
Bagan also looked outside. Carriages raced along the edge of a massive coastal cliff that stretched from Zairan Forest. The view was dizzying, but the cliff had been properly finished into a road, so there was no need for concern. Seagulls cried overhead, and the sight of them gliding over the sea was magnificent. Farther out, ships could be seen sailing toward their respective destinations, quickly vanishing beyond the horizon. Yet the feeling of having reached the sea was unmistakable.
“Lord Bagan! I want to try drinking seawater right away!”
Despite her human appearance, what she said was hardly something a person would utter. Even a small child knew seawater was salty.
“It’s described as extremely salty. What exactly does ‘salty’ feel like?”
Arien still couldn’t fully distinguish between her senses. Understanding the five senses seemed to require further analysis.
“We can check later. For now, let’s wait until the carriage arrives.”
After calming the excited Arien, Bagan watched the sea until the carriage finally stopped.
“Hiiing!”
The carriage halted on a slope overlooking the base of the cliff.
“L-Lord Bagan! There’s an inspection. If we wait a moment, we’ll be allowed into De Marinda.”
The coachman timely explained the situation. De Meca also had checkpoints, and since it was a city with heavy traffic, inspections were mandatory.
Clatter! Clatter!
The carriage moved again, and from the cargo section, an arch-shaped checkpoint blending white and blue came into view.
“De Marinda, all right.”
As befitting a maritime trading city, De Marinda had many buildings mixing white and blue. These colors harmonized with the sea, evoking a refreshing and beautiful atmosphere. Though primarily a commercial hub, it was also an excellent tourist destination.
“Wow! It feels like a dream.”
Arien spoke dreamily while Sally watched her with affection. A few minutes later, the carriage stopped once more, and the coachman spoke.
“L-Lord Bagan! We’ve arrived. This is the Adventurer Guild of De Marinda.”
Only then did Bagan realize the carriage had not been following the rest of the procession. At some point, the carriages behind them had disappeared.
Bagan immediately stepped out of the canopy. He did not forget to assist Sally as she disembarked—since she had taken physical form, she could no longer float like a ghost. Arien was helped down by Sally.
“Why did we come here?”
“Ah, Levito said to drop you off here and then rejoin the others.”
Levito was Arcray’s subordinate who had led the procession to De Marinda in place of the busy Arcray.
“I see. Then go on.”
Understanding the situation, Bagan sent the uneasy coachman on his way. The man took up the reins again and headed toward the warehouse where the trading company’s goods would be stored, while Sally and Arien waved after the departing carriage.
“That’s enough. Come along, Sally.”
“Okay!”
Sally took Arien’s hand to help her keep up and followed Bagan. Like the guild in De Meca, De Marinda’s guild also had high stairs—perhaps even higher.
“There aren’t many people here, are there?”
Sally found it odd and asked Bagan for an explanation.
“De Meca struggles with monster waves from Zairan Forest, but this is a commercial city. There are far more well-fed merchants than adventurers.”
“I see. I haven’t visited other cities yet, but each one really has its own character.”
With that observation, Sally began climbing the stairs.
“Sister, hold my hand tight.”
“Yes.”
Sally’s black-and-white hair fluttered in the wind, while Arien’s silver locks swayed as they ascended. Though following Bagan, they both turned to gaze at the sea spread out beneath the blazing sun before stepping into the Adventurer Guild.
“Welcome! This is the De Marinda Adventurer Guild!”
Upon entering, they found the interior was not particularly crowded either—at least compared to De Meca. The one greeting them cheerfully was the receptionist in charge of guild guidance and quest information, much like Rina in De Meca.
“Good day.”
Bagan nearly frowned at the sight of Arien greeting with her right hand holding Sally’s left while placing her left hand on her stomach.
“Haha, what a polite child! Are you her guardian? Welcome.”
The receptionist smiled at Arien’s greeting and welcomed Bagan and Sally as well. Yet Bagan’s mind was uneasy.
“How may I assist you today?”
Bagan glanced at the nameplate on her chest, a common feature even in De Meca, so he did not find it unpleasant.
“We’ve completed a request from the Arcray Trading Company.”
Her name was Anis. The Adventurer Guild seemed to favor employing attractive individuals as receptionists.
“Understood. I’ll check right away.”
Anis processed the matter with swift efficiency.
“Confirmation complete. The Arcray Trading Company has safely arrived in De Marinda. Here is your completion payment.”
The reward was not particularly large. It was generous for a four-day journey by ordinary adventurer standards, but for a Titanium-ranked adventurer like Bagan, the same time could easily yield ten times that amount.
Clink!
Bagan picked up the pouch containing the payment and left the guild without another word—there was nothing more to do here.
“Please come again!”
With Anis’s farewell, they stepped outside.
“Then let’s find a place to stay for a while. Tomorrow, we can go see the sea as well.”
“Yes!”
Thus, the party spent their first day exploring every corner of the beautiful port city of De Marinda.