A Journey for Two
A few days later, in front of the count’s manor.
“We’re off!”
“Travel safely.”
“Have a good trip.”
Milia climbed into the waiting carriage at the entrance, leaned out the window, and waved. Bernus and Melissa answered with faint smiles of their own.
“My Lady, the luggage is all loaded.”
“You didn’t forget anything, did you?”
“No. I checked several times.”
Schwarz, who had finished securing their bags at the rear of the carriage, nodded in reply. He had already double- and triple-checked everything; further confirmation would only waste time.
“Schwarz. Look after Milia for me.”
“Yes, my lord.”
No monster or bandit stood a chance against her, yet a father’s worry for his daughter was a force unto itself. Bernus could not quite hide the unease in his voice as he spoke to Schwarz. Iron Marchgrave, shield of the kingdom—none of those titles mattered when he stood before his child. In that moment he was simply a father.
“Schwarz. Come here a moment.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Melissa beckoned him with a smile that somehow felt ominous. An inexplicable sense of dread prickled at Schwarz as he approached.
“Lend me your ear for a second.”
“…?”
Wondering what she might say, he leaned closer. Melissa whispered against his ear.
“Enjoy the trip all you like—but don’t get too far ahead of yourselves.”
“Ah—understood…”
It was only a short remark, yet Schwarz grasped its meaning at once. His face flushed as he nodded. Melissa let out a low chuckle, clearly amused by his reaction.
“Take good care of Milia while you’re away.”
“Yes…”
Why do I feel a prickling stare on my back…?
He turned his head and found Bernus glaring at him with unmistakable displeasure. The look said, plain as day: Don’t you dare try anything foolish.
Cold sweat slid down the back of Schwarz’s neck. He let out a quiet groan.
“Schwarz! How long are you going to stand there?!”
“Ah! Yes!”
Milia’s voice cut in at the perfect moment. Schwarz bowed quickly to the couple and hurried toward the carriage. The instant he climbed aboard, the coachman cracked his whip. The horses whinnied and began to pull them slowly forward.
“We’ll be back~!!”
Milia leaned out the window once more, waving at the two figures growing smaller in the distance.
This journey held special meaning for them both.
It was the first time either of them had ever left the kingdom—an overseas trip, in other words. And they were going alone, free of every interruption. To claim they were not excited would have been a lie.
“I really can’t wait. Right?”
“Yes. It’s my first time leaving the kingdom as well.”
Milia watched the scenery slip past the window and rested her head against Schwarz’s shoulder. He nodded, then gently stroked her hair. She gave a soft little laugh—“Hehe”—and nuzzled against him. The resemblance to a contented cat was impossible to miss.
“I wonder what the Riel Coalition is like.”
The Riel Coalition. Even in a world of kingdoms and empires, it was a rather unusual nation: a maritime confederation of island city-states, each ruled by its own powerful families, all bound together under the Eight-Man Council. That, at least, was what Schwarz had read in books.
“Hmm… I don’t really know either. Cities built on an archipelago—it’s hard to picture.”
In a fantasy world, imagining something you had never seen with your own eyes was never easy. Even Barenberg had been far grander than anything he could have envisioned before he stood inside its white-stone streets. Whatever you imagined, this world always showed you something greater.
“And the sea… what kind of place is that?”
“Hmm…”
Milia’s eyes sparkled with anticipation. Schwarz answered with a low hum. The Elianos Kingdom was landlocked, and the Valentine Countship lay even farther inland; her ignorance of the ocean was only natural.
“There’s a lot of water. An enormous amount, really.”
“More than Lake Lagdrian?”
“Of course.”
Lake Lagdrian, the vast body of water on the eastern edge of the countship, was already immense by ordinary standards. Yet no lake, however wide, could compare to the sea.
“Hmm… I just can’t imagine it. That much water…”
“You’ll be surprised when you see it for yourself.”
Schwarz smiled faintly at her disbelieving murmur.
“Wait a second. Have you ever seen the sea? You’ve never been there either.”
“…What?”
The question left him momentarily blank. A heartbeat later he realized the slip he had made and sucked in a sharp breath. Every memory he possessed of the ocean belonged to his previous life. In this world he, like Milia, had never once set foot on a shore.
“…”
“…”
Milia narrowed her eyes and fixed him with a suspicious stare. Cold sweat beaded on his brow as he looked away.
How am I supposed to answer this? He scrambled for an explanation.
“W-well… I saw it in a book at the academy library. A huge map. It was drawn in great detail.”
Even to his own ears the excuse sounded pathetic.
“A map? Hmm… is that true?”
“I-it is!!”
He nearly shouted the reply. One wrong step and his greatest secret might come tumbling out; he clung desperately to a façade of calm.
“Hmmm…”
Milia was no fool. She sensed something off and let out a low, thoughtful sound.
Please, God—if You’re listening—just let this pass without incident.
His desperation was so acute that he found himself praying to a deity he did not even believe in.
And then, as if that prayer had truly been answered—
—Hiiiiiiing!!
“Kyaa?!”
The horses outside screamed. The carriage lurched and began to slow rapidly. The sudden jolt nearly threw Milia from her seat, but Schwarz caught her before she could fall.
“Are you all right?”
“Th-thank you…”
She nodded, still a little shaken.
“M-my Lady!!”
The coachman Van’s frantic voice came from outside the now-stopped carriage.
“I’ll go check.”
Schwarz rose and opened the small window that connected to the driver’s seat.
“What’s wrong?”
“Up ahead!! Look up ahead!!”
Van’s face was ashen as he pointed toward the massive shape blocking the road.
[Grrrrrrr…]
“That’s…”
Schwarz’s breath caught. A body like a lion’s, tipped with razor claws. Two broad wings rising from its shoulders. A tail bristling with spines. And a face that was a grotesque half-blend of lion and aged human—features neither of them would ever forget.
[KRAAAAAAAH—!!]
With a roar the manticore unfurled its wings and scraped the earth, ready to charge the carriage at any moment.
Only a short while ago Schwarz would have leapt upon the beast and crushed its skull before Milia could even try to stop him. Yet right now its appearance felt like a gift from heaven.
“What was that noise?”
“A manticore. I’ll handle it, My Lady. Please stay inside. I’ll take care of it.”
As Milia tilted her head at the creature’s cry, Schwarz carefully opened the carriage door and stepped out.
Thank you, God. From now on I’ll even offer a prayer every now and then when I remember.
He steadied his breathing and began to walk slowly toward the manticore.
[Grrrrrrr… rk?]
The beast growled in warning—then fell silent. An immense aura of mana coiled around Schwarz. The manticore could not sense mana itself, yet its animal instincts screamed that something was terribly wrong.
Even so, its fate was already sealed.
“As a final mercy, I’ll make it quick and painless.”
Watching the creature begin to edge backward, Schwarz grinned.
A moment later the quiet forest rang with the manticore’s dying scream.