The Port Town of the Western Continent
The sea voyage that had stretched a day longer than planned thanks to the Serpent Dragon’s appearance—eight days in all—was finally drawing to a close.
It had been short if you measured it in days, and intense if you measured it in thrills. That morning I woke early, sat on a bench on the deck, and yawned… only to discover land on the horizon.
I had grown thoroughly sick of cold metal floors and was starting to miss damp, honest earth. A new continent. A new life.
Apparently I wasn’t the only one thinking that way. The moment land came into view, passengers began drifting up onto the deck one by one to stare out at it. A-class cabins had private terraces, but everyone else had to come topside if they wanted a look.
“We arrived sooner than I expected.”
Erna slipped out from among the other passengers. She was the girl who had tried to buy me ice cream not long ago. Her father had taken a post in Labyrinth City, so she and her mother were relocating.
I had shared a meal with Erna’s mother and chatted about this and that; she was so gentle and kind that she had soothed some of the raw places in my heart. Still, marriage ages in this world really were early. Erna was fifteen this year, her mother only thirty, her father thirty-two. And here I was, twenty. When exactly was I supposed to get married?
Anyway, since we had already decided to travel together to Labyrinth City Labyrinth, our connection wouldn’t end here. It looked like it would stretch on for quite a while. Erna had promised the city was full of delicious food, so I was genuinely looking forward to it.
“Technically we were a day late, though.”
I reached over and ruffled the hair of the girl sitting beside me, swinging her legs and staring blankly into the distance. She really did love having her head patted; every time I did it her cheeks colored a little. Was she embarrassed? Helena used to blush the same way whenever I stroked her hair.
“How long does it take from the port to Labyrinth?”
“Only about three days. The carriage system is excellent.”
“The West Continent has something like that, huh…”
The kingdom didn’t. The best you could do was hire an entire carriage and wind your way around every obstacle between you and your destination. From the royal capital to Free Port City had cost fifteen silver coins—roughly a million and a half won in Earth money.
“The Central Continent is the strange one. They’re too busy fighting among themselves.”
Erna’s explanation was brutally simple. Because they were constantly at each other’s throats, there was no network of roads linking the nations. On the West Continent everyone got along, so a single carriage could take you across the entire landmass. On the Central Continent a kingdom citizen couldn’t even set foot in the empire, and vice versa.
When I thought about it, it was ridiculous. The only place in this world still fighting wars was the Central Continent. What were they even fighting for?
“You know more about this than I do, Erna. Did you study hard?”
“I did.”
Good girl. Studying hard was how you learned about the world. I patted her head again, and a smile finally bloomed on that usually expressionless face. Maybe she took pride in being a good student. Being good at studying was a fine thing. My own grades had never been anything to write home about.
“Where’s Enge?”
“Mother’s in her cabin.”
Erna pointed vaguely in some direction. Whether that was actually where Enge was or not didn’t matter; knowing she was in her room was enough.
“Then how about we go have a cup of tea with her before we disembark? You can have ice cream.”
“I’d like that.”
We would be off the ship in about an hour, so one last cup of tea felt right. For the record, Enge and Erna were also staying in A-class cabins, same as me. Their father had made the reservation. What kind of job did a man have that he could casually book expensive A-class rooms?
At last the ship docked. Cargo had to come off first, so passengers waited, but the disembarkation went more smoothly than I had expected.
“It’s the West Continent~♪”
I finally stepped off the ship, descended the gangway, and set foot on solid ground. The wooden planks were still slightly damp from recent rain. How long had it been since I stood on a floor that didn’t rock? I wasn’t the seasick type, yet the voyage had given me the occasional headache. Knowing those headaches were behind me now brought a smile to my face all by itself.
“You said this is your first time on the West Continent, Lady Esilly?”
“Yes! I was so busy I never had time for anything like travel!”
From the day I joined the knight order I hadn’t had a single day off. Looking back, it hadn’t been overwork—it had been abuse. Sigh… but that wasn’t important right now.
Standing in front of me, wearing a white dress and a hat, smiling into the cool breeze, was Enge. She looked young enough to be Erna’s older sister, yet she was firmly Erna’s mother—and she would be guiding this hopelessly directionally challenged elf all the way to Labyrinth.
“We’ll probably leave for Labyrinth tomorrow. You mentioned you had business in the port town, didn’t you?”
“Ah. I was thinking of selling off some Serpent Dragon meat and hide.”
I wasn’t completely broke, but in this world you never knew when you might suddenly need money. So I planned to liquidate the Serpent Dragon I had hunted and build up a solid war chest. Nothing on a Serpent Dragon went to waste: bones and teeth for weapons and ornaments, hide for clothing, blood for magical catalysts, meat as a luxury ingredient. An adventurer uncle had told me a single fang could be forged into an absurdly powerful sword. Big money! If I’d known that earlier I would have become an adventurer instead of a knight!
“Gahaha!! Then shall we be off, young lady?”
Right on cue, the man known as the Aloin Wolf appeared behind me. That gleaming bald head was unmistakable by now.
“I’ll be going, then.”
Erna had decided to come with me and took my hand. Enge had protested that it would be a nuisance, but personally I was grateful to have a clever child like Erna at my side. In a place whose geography I didn’t know at all, no one was more reassuring. I had secured permission over tea earlier, so she would be accompanying me.
“When you’re finished, just come to the inn I told you about~”
“Yes~♪”
“We’re off.”
Erna’s blunt farewell finished, Enge waved to us. I turned and waved back. I didn’t need to worry about leaving her alone; I had only just learned she was a far more powerful mage than she looked—quite famous on the West Continent, apparently. Of course an outstanding mother would raise an outstanding daughter.
“So where’s this buyer you recommended, Uncle?”
As we left the harbor I suddenly grew curious. What kind of buyer would a veteran adventurer know?
“Hmm. Anyone who lives in this port town would know him. He’ll give you a proper price.”
“Ohh…”
A buyer introduced by a field-hardened veteran. In this world the only way to find a trustworthy buyer was through connections, so I was genuinely grateful. Someone who looked as young as I did walking alone into a private buyer’s shop was practically begging to get fleeced. Before Free Port City I had once tried to exchange a small gem in a village and received less than a thirtieth of its value. Ugh… just remembering it still made my head hurt. Scammers… may heaven strike you down.
“So? Where do we go?”
“How many people in this city do you think can afford Serpent Dragon meat?”
“Now that you mention it…… wait…”
“Obviously the lord.”
Whew—at least it wasn’t the king. He laughed as if the answer should have been obvious and clapped my shoulder twice. Well, when he put it that way it was obvious… but the lord? How famous was this uncle that he could casually call a territorial lord his buyer?
“See that? That’s the lord’s manor in the port town.”
“That’s the lord’s manor? I thought it was some rich noble’s villa.”
“……There are plenty of villas like that in the kingdom…”
The adventurer uncle heaved a long sigh. Maybe he felt the same disillusionment toward the kingdom that I did.
Yes—our destination was the lord’s manor. Lately I seemed to keep getting tangled up with important people. First the mayor of Free Port City, and now the lord of a West Continent port town.
“By the way, there are a lot of hills here.”
“It used to be a mountain. They cut it down to make the harbor. Had no choice, apparently…”
“I heard it was because of the lighthouse.”
“Ah…”
Chatting like that, we reached the manor in no time. After about ten minutes of walking, the great gate leading inside came into view—beautiful enough to be called a work of art. It even reminded me a little of the Free Port City hall doors.
But… why was a gate I had expected to be tightly shut standing wide open? And why were so many people lined up in front of it as if waiting for someone?
We’re not suspicious people. Just a twenty-year-old elf here to sell Serpent Dragon meat.
I told myself that as we drew closer—and the people standing at the gate suddenly burst into applause!
“All the manor staff came out to wait. Well, of course they would—a hero is arriving.”
The bald adventurer uncle laughed heartily. A hero? Me?
“Me? I haven’t done anything on the West Continent yet.”
“You are a hero! You saved people and a ship from a Serpent Dragon.”
“I think Big Sister doesn’t realize how amazing what she did really was.”
“Uh… is that how it works?”
Now that I thought about it, maybe it was. I had only killed the thing because I was broke and wanted to sell it…
“The ship you saved belongs to the lord. This port town has grown through steady trade with Free Port City.”
“Ahh…”
So that was it. In that case the lord’s gratitude was only natural. Since things had turned out this way, I might as well ask him to raise the purchase price a little.
Listening to the applause, I approached the entrance. People draped a welcoming flower lei around my neck. I scratched my head awkwardly and returned the greetings.
“Welcome to the West Continent for the first time, Esilly von Yggdrasil.”
A middle-aged man addressed me. Dressed in something like a neat formal suit, he extended his hand for a handshake. Oh? Was this the lord? I had been wondering about him for a while; it seemed he really was.
“Thank you for the welcome. But how do you know my name…?”
“I’m on friendly terms with the mayor of Free Port City on the Central Continent. We’ve exchanged letters.”
“With the mayor?”
“And also with your superior, Knight Commander Orca.”
“Orca…”
Hmph. I was still sulking at Orca, so I would have preferred not to hear her name. I had no intention of forgiving her until she came and apologized in person. At the very least she should have protected me—no matter how hard or physically exhausting the situation had been.
I puffed out my cheeks and practically steamed with irritation. The adventurer uncle and the lord exchanged glances and scratched their heads. The uncle wore an expression that said he had no idea how to explain the situation.
“I don’t know what happened… but I understand for now. Standing around talking is awkward; let’s go inside the manor.”
“Then I’ll take you up on that.”
“Once again, welcome to the West Continent, little hero.”
“I’m not little! In fact, people say I’m taller than the average elf for my age!”
Being called little made me snap for a second. Looking young even at twenty had caused me so much grief. Bars would kick me out saying little girls shouldn’t be there. Inns would try to refuse me, claiming minors were a problem. So the lie just slipped out. Truth was, I was below average even among elves.
“Ah… I see. I’m sorry. Forgive me.”
The lord, who of course had no way of knowing that, apologized at once.
“That was uncalled for, my lord. To me Lady Esilly looks every bit the proper adult woman her age suggests.”
“Mm… I spoke without thinking.”
Why did every single person who looked at me have to call me little? That was my berserk button.