The Witch and the Maid Arrive in the Imperial Capital

The next morning, in the Imperial Capital. Iolet and I settled into the carriage bound for the academy.

“My Lady, is there anything you’ve forgotten? Did you pack all your undergarments? It’s quite a distance from here to the academy, so you must ensure you have everything you need.”

“Are you my mother? I packed everything!”

Iolet shouted back, turning her head away. Hmm... Well, Iolet is all grown up now, so I’m sure she handled it herself, right? Even if she did forget something, I’ve prepared most essentials separately, so it shouldn’t be a major issue.

However, Iolet looked at me with a questioning expression.

“I’m actually more worried ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠about you. Dia, where is your luggage? You’ve been empty-handed since earlier.”

Come to think of it, I suppose I’ve never properly shown her.

“I have already packed everything. Right here.”

As I said that, I lifted the hem of my maid dress slightly.

Whoosh—

In that instant, a massive amount of food poured out from the empty air beneath my skirt. I could vividly feel Iolet’s shock radiating through the air. Even though I couldn’t see, I could picture exactly how wide her eyes must have gone.

“Y-you... what is that!?”

“Explaining the details of that would be quite uncool, My Lady.”

“What are you even saying...”

Ignoring Iolet as she muttered, ‘She gets weirder by the day,’ I busied myself picking up the scattered food and stowing it away.

In truth, this isn’t some secret space hidden under the skirt that every maid possesses. If I had to compare it to a game, it’s an Inventory, isn’t it?

In the world of Saintly Hero, just like in other RPGs, the player is granted an inventory function. After I realized I had transmigrated into the game, I experimented with it just in case, and it worked.

However, it’s not without its limitations.

The biggest restriction is that I can only carry five ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠types of items. For example, if I register a sword, herbs, food, clothes, and water, I cannot add anything else. But the massive advantage is that I can stack up to 99 of each type. Volume and weight meant nothing before the system.

‘Thankfully, it’s just like the game.’

“Logically speaking, that volume shouldn’t fit inside a skirt. How on earth does all that fit into that narrow dress?”

“Let’s just call it love, dedication, and a bit of irrational compression technology.”

I could feel Iolet’s sense of disbelief at my words. Even if she pressed me, I don’t know the mechanics either. Don’t try to understand it. Just accept it.

Eventually, Iolet seemed to give up on understanding and quietly boarded the carriage. I followed her inside.

Oh, right. There is no coachman. The carriage we boarded is a state-of-the-art Magitech Carriage that drives itself without a driver. It was the most convenient mode of transportation, as there was no need to care for horses or worry about a coachman’s prying eyes.

As the carriage started smoothly, I turned my head toward the window (though I couldn’t see) and opened my mouth.

“Well then, My Lady. We are departing. Please stay alert, as bandits or monsters might attack along the way.”

Iolet scoffed at my words.

“We aren’t traveling on some rural mountain path, so what bandits? This is the Public Road leading to the Imperial Capital. And who would be crazy enough to touch a carriage bearing the crest of the Dranice Duchy?”

Iolet’s voice was filled with well-founded confidence. The prestige of the Duchy was indeed immense, and the road to the capital was a safe route frequently patrolled by the Imperial Army. An ordinary person would have nodded at her words, but...

‘Our Lady still knows far too little about the logic of this world.’

Random encounters during travel are the golden rule of RPGs, after all.

“Is the Imperial security really allowed to be this bad...?”

Iolet could not hide her shock at the reality of the Empire she faced for the first time.

Eight times.

That was the number of times we encountered bandit groups during this short stretch from the Dranice Duchy to the capital. Add in the low-level monsters that popped out whenever we let our guard down, and there wasn’t a single moment to relax.

Honestly, the ones appearing were nothing but pathetic trash that turned to dust with a flick of Iolet’s finger, but still, this was the Empire’s public road. To think that bandits and monsters would roam freely as if collecting a toll on a path managed by the state and patrolled by the Imperial Army.

‘What on earth are the Imperial soldiers doing with their tax money!’

The Empire... is it going to be okay like this? Iolet began to genuinely worry about the future of the Empire without realizing it.

Gladia simply watched her with a look that said, ‘Didn’t I tell you?’ which only served to irritate Iolet’s already short temper.

Regardless, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Gladia, who had finished clearing out another wave of monsters, called out to Iolet.

“My Lady~ It’s all finished~”

As Iolet turned her gaze, she saw Gladia surrounded by the dismembered remains of monsters. Even though the area was covered in blood, Gladia was strangely clean, giving the impression that she existed in a completely different world.

After glancing around for a moment, Gladia sheathed her sword and approached Iolet, tapping her cane against the ground. She seemed entirely at peace, as if such situations were completely natural.

Gladia walked over with a bouncy step and set the carriage in motion. As the carriage, under Gladia’s command, began to rattle forward again, Iolet, who was already seated, looked at her.

When they first met, Gladia was definitely smaller than her, but at some point, she had grown taller. Her long, lustrous white hair. And her beautiful face, which held a mysterious atmosphere even though her eyes were closed. After three years, Gladia no longer looked like a beggar.

She was Iolet’s maid, possessing ghostly swordsmanship despite being ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠blind. From the moment they met three years ago, Gladia had been an incredibly mysterious and unpredictable person.

Come to think of it, Gladia was always strange somewhere.

-Does the bathroom have a bidet...?

Sometimes she seemed not to know basic common sense.

-Look! Look at this! If you press here... Ta-da! It’s a secret passage in the Dranice mansion!

And other times, she seemed to know everything. (For reference, that secret passage had been forgotten for so long that no one in the Dranice family knew about it.) Her past was unclear, and she was suspicious in every way.

‘Still... well.’

But that didn’t mean Iolet distrusted Gladia. She had felt clearly enough over the past three years that Gladia was on her side. It was entirely thanks to Gladia that Iolet, who was originally destined to meet a mysterious death due to the infighting of the heirs, had risen to the position of a leading successor.

Gladia hadn’t just stopped at preventing assassinations; she had meticulously prepared everything, from awakening Iolet’s magic to creating training methods perfectly suited for her.

-Do you know, My Lady? They say lions throw their cubs off cliffs.

...Of course, that method was never gentle. Iolet shuddered for a moment, remembering Gladia’s training. At that, Gladia, who had been sitting quietly with her eyes closed, turned her head toward Iolet.

“Are you cold, My Lady? Let me know if you need a blanket.”

“I-I’m fine!”

Iolet read the concern for her in Gladia’s short words. Iolet’s mother had died as soon as she was born, and her father was indifferent.

Her siblings were always looking for a chance to tear her down, and even the family servants were busy avoiding her. She understood why. They didn’t want to get involved with the youngest noble daughter who couldn’t even awaken her magic and had no backing.

To Iolet, who had lived in total isolation, Gladia was the first subordinate, friend, family, and teacher she had ever had. ...Of course, she had no intention of ever revealing this to Gladia.

I felt the carriage slowly begin to lose speed and drew my sword slightly.

In that moment, my vision, which had been stained by darkness, regained its light. The first thing that came into view was a massive wall stretching from the end of the horizon as if to swallow the earth. And beyond it, the Imperial Capital, Libertis, shining in golden hues as it reflected the sunlight, finally revealed its majestic form.

A strange tremor ran through my chest. To think that I was seeing with my own eyes the very scenery I had only ever viewed as background graphics in my favorite game.

However, it seemed the impressions of our villainess, Iolet, who lacked even a drop of sentimentality, were entirely different.

“Hmph, that wall looks stupid every time I see it.”

“Is that so? I think it looks quite majestic.”

“It’s just ignorantly large and tacky, isn’t it? Honestly, the royals have such stiff heads they don’t know how to decorate anything.”

“You’ll get dragged off if someone hears you say that, My Lady.”

“Ha! Who would dare? Let them hear all they want. They’re just empty shells living off their ancestors, so what? Even if I say this, do you think they’d dare touch the Dranice family?”

Iolet spat out a bombshell statement that would have cost her her head for insulting the Imperial family without a second thought. Is this the grit of the villainess who rightfully takes the place of the strongest hidden boss in Saintly Hero...?

But caution is key. This place is a den of vipers, crawling with all sorts of political rivals and monsters from the original work. I quietly slid my sword back into its scabbard and warned her in a low voice, back in the darkness that had returned.

“Even so, My Lady, this is the Imperial Capital, not the Dranice Duchy. You have to fold your family’s prestige halfway here. They say even a dog gets half the respect in front of its own house.”

“You’re the one who’s worse for comparing the Imperial family to a dog!”

How could she say that? Where else in the continent would you find a maid as polite and cultured as I am?

Iolet, who had been grumbling, clicked her tongue and muttered in a crawling voice.

“...And I know that too. Obviously, I only act like this with you. Do you think I’m an idiot?”

...Oh. I’m glad my eyes were closed; I almost shed tears from being quite moved. It was worth raising her for three years. Just as I was feeling proud of her response, which was filled with trust in me, the carriage jolted heavily and passed right through the thick iron gates of the checkpoint.

For reference, the carriage of the Dranice family, one of the Empire’s three great dukedoms, is a Free Pass that receives no inspections upon entering the capital. The prestige of the family is truly convenient at times like this.

Clunk, whoosh.

Before long, the magitech carriage smoothly reduced its speed and came to a complete stop. I could feel the presence of the massive crowd surrounding us. We were in front of the main gate of Stella Academy.

I stood up first and grabbed the door handle.

“Well then, My Lady, shall we go out?”

Click, whoosh.

The sunny light of the capital poured in through the gap of the smoothly opening carriage door. At the same time, I could feel the gazes of the numerous noble children gathered at the waiting area all turning toward our carriage at once.

Gazes mixed with curiosity, wariness, or arrogance. Facing those gazes head-on, Iolet twisted the corners of her mouth upward. Even though I couldn’t see, I could vividly feel the cold magic power rippling pleasantly from her toes.

“Yes. Let’s go, Dia.”

Under the brilliantly shining sunlight of the capital, the youngest noble daughter of Dranice stepped out without hesitation. Finally, the witch and the maid of Dranice had set foot in the Imperial Capital of Libertis.