Chapter 293: The Witch and The Ash-Covered Bride (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 293: The Witch and The Ash-Covered Bride (3)
Even territories existing in the same era, on the same continent, are bound to have different levels of development.
However, most people living on the continent were unaware of these differences.
To compare anything, one must first know both sides, but many people of this era lived their entire lives without ever venturing beyond their birth territory or its immediate neighbors.
In a world teeming with magic beasts and their humanoid counterparts, bandits, long-distance travel was something one could hardly dream of without putting their life on the line or possessing sufficient military strength.
In that sense, the Tin Knight’s party belonged to a very rare breed.
After all, they had traveled through and experienced the Kingdom, the Empire, the Federation, and the Magic State.
If you included their indirect experience via the Chalice of Tuberose, the Doria City-State Alliance was on that list as well.
If they managed to visit the underground and the heavenly realm, they would complete the whole rainbow.
And because they were such a party, they could offer an objective assessment of the territory before them.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ rates this place a 70 out of 100, with the Imperial and Magic State capitals as the baseline!]
“For the Magic State, you should specify the area near the Tower of Protection, not the capital. But well, the score itself seems about right.”
Dorothea agreed with the Tin Knight’s words, though not without a bit of chiding.
A score of 70 might sound incredibly harsh, but considering the Kingdom was treated as a backwater of the continent and the points of comparison were the most important cities of the era’s strongest nations, it could actually be seen as a generous score.
It was also a testament to the competence of the Count who ruled the domain and the inherent strength of the land itself.
“It’s known for its fertile soil, which is good for farming; its development as a commercial hub at a transportation crossroads; its proximity to the sea, which is advantageous for securing salt; and its wealth from selling high-quality textiles as a specialty product.”
“Wow. It has almost every element that would help a territory prosper.”
Adelaide spoke with admiration and a hint of envy at Sophia’s explanation.
Dorothea tilted her head.
“With all that, isn't its location practically on par with a nation's capital? Ah, now that I think about it, you did say it used to be an independent kingdom.”
“However, it seems to have almost no geographical features advantageous for defense. It’s a stark contrast to the Kingdom’s capital, which is surrounded by rivers and mountains, making it incredibly defensible.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ says he can understand why they maintained neutrality among all those political schemers!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ adds that neutrality is difficult to maintain without power!]
“Mmm, that's right. Usually, being neutral doesn't mean both sides leave you alone; it means both sides scream at you and hit you.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ expresses his admiration that his pupil is now making political comments!]
“Ehehe. I've been learning from Miss Sophia now and then. I figured I should know a thing or two for the future.”
The Tin Knight’s admiration could have been taken as offensive depending on the listener, but Adelaide was simply pleased.
Glancing at the scene, Dorothea shook her head and said, “Well, it shouldn't be hard to find lodging. In a city this big, there must be inns better than the carriage.”
The carriage Dorothea had splurged on did offer more comfortable living conditions than most inns, but its spatial limitations made it feel somewhat lacking compared to the high-end accommodations in a city of this size.
Dorothea, who would normally just throw on a cloak and camp without a second thought, wasn't obsessed with her sleeping arrangements, but it wouldn't hurt to treat herself once in a while.
The party wandered the city to find a new place to stay, and about an hour later, Dorothea shouted in frustration.
“Why is there nothing available?!”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ replies, asking if it isn’t because Dorothea jinxed it!]
“Is my mouth cursed or something? Does everything I say have to turn out in the most negative way possible?!”
Listening from the side, Adelaide thought to herself, ‘It’s not entirely baseless,’ but chose to gaze at the clouds in the sky rather than shorten her lifespan by saying it out loud.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't that there were no inns for the party to stay in.
The territory itself was large, divided into several districts, and it had a fair number of inns exclusive to nobles and the wealthy—the kind of places you might find one or two of in a typical domain.
The problem was that every single one of them was already occupied.
“It seems a great number of noble ladies of marriageable age have gathered to attend that ball you mentioned.”
“What? Isn't that ball still more than a week away? They're already here waiting for it?”
“Well, travel schedules are often unpredictable, so it's standard practice to plan with some leeway. From what I hear, there's even one young lady who's been waiting here for over half a year.”
The party, who traveled around abusing the cheat codes known as golem horses and a magic carriage, didn't quite appreciate it, but traveling from one territory to another was originally a very time-consuming affair.
A noble lady, of course, wouldn't travel on her own two feet and would naturally take a carriage, but even the speed of her carriage could hardly be called fast.
Add to that the possibility of a perfectly good road becoming unusable due to storms, forcing a detour; one's condition worsening during the journey, requiring an unplanned rest stop; or a road that existed on the map having vanished, leading one astray—considering all sorts of bizarre incidents, it was only natural to build extra time into the schedule.
Since things had come to this, sleeping in the carriage as usual was an option, but when they tried to take out the carriage stored in the armor, they found that all the decent parking spots were already taken by other nobles' carriages, making even that difficult.
“There's still time before nightfall. Should we look a little more?”
“Forget it. It'll be faster to just leave the city and find an empty space.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ says she’s giving up too quickly!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ suggests using Soul Navigation, just like they did in that place with all the dolls!]
“Sophia, translate.”
“He's saying you should ask the spirits if there are any suitable places, like you did in Tik-Tok.”
“Hmph.”
Dorothea crossed her arms and pondered for a moment before raising her left hand and rotating it counter-clockwise three times, materializing the birdcage.
It was quite a conspicuous action, but thanks to the perception-hindering magic she had cast beforehand, passersby didn't seem to pay them much mind.
“…Huh?”
In the middle of sifting through the spirits, Dorothea’s body suddenly flinched.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks what’s wrong!]
“No, it's... it's nothing.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ says that in his experience, when someone says ‘it’s nothing’ at a time like this, it’s never nothing, so she should just spit it out!]
“This damn thing.”
Dorothea made a sullen face for a moment, but soon let out a short sigh and answered.
“It's the presence of necromancy. But... well, it feels incredibly similar to my master's mana.”
Adelaide blinked.
“Does that mean the Witch of the East is here?”
“No, that's not it. If she were here, this place would have been turned upside down long ago. There's no way it would be this peaceful.”
Her words were filled with a strange level of conviction, as if she didn't doubt for a second that her master's mere presence would stir up trouble.
It was something they had felt before, but the other three once again found themselves wondering just what kind of person Dorothea's master was.
In any case, since Dorothea seemed quite unsettled, the party abandoned their original plan of finding an inn and moved in the direction of the presence she had sensed.
“It's a mansion. Though it looks a bit old.”
Compared to the many luxurious, grand mansions the party had seen, stayed in, or destroyed, this one had a somewhat shabby exterior.
However, the wall that blocked outside intruders, the tall chimney, and the glass windows proved that this building had once been the property of a rather influential family.
It was a place where a noble, or a merchant of equivalent status, might live—though the title would likely be preceded by the word ‘frugal’ or ‘fallen’.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks if they should break down the door and charge in!]
“Break what? Don't be ridiculous, you tin can.”
Dorothea pulled a long rope hanging in front of the wall, and the bell connected to it rang out loudly.
A moment later, a clattering sound came from inside the building, and the mansion's main gate was thrown open with a bang!
“Y-Yes! Who is it?!”
Seeing the girl who had appeared in such a hurry, the party thought:
‘How grimy.’
‘She’s quite grimy.’
‘I wonder if she was in the middle of cleaning a fireplace?’
[The ‘Tin Knight’ comments that if you saw her in the middle of the night, you probably wouldn't see anything but her face!]
The girl's appearance was, in many ways, pitiful.
The kerchief on her head and her clothes were covered in ash and soot, and her exposed skin was in much the same state.
Her face, at least, seemed to have been hastily wiped with water and a towel, but with everything else being black and gray, the whiteness of her face was almost bizarre.
Unaware that the party was having rather rude thoughts about her, the girl cautiously examined them, a cluster of question marks soon appearing over her head.
A silver-gray knight in the middle of the city, clad head-to-toe in full armor and a helmet, even though it wasn't wartime.
A black-haired woman with a stunningly beautiful face, holding a large staff and dressed in a fashion that made one wonder where on earth she found such clothes.
A golden-haired, violet-eyed girl with a youthful face, carrying a greatsword nearly as large as herself.
A green-haired woman who, while the most modestly dressed of the group, had a figure so striking it couldn't be hidden by her simple attire.
After a strange standoff, Dorothea cleared her throat upon seeing the girl furtively glancing their way.
“Ahem. I am a traveling mage. I sensed a strange magical presence somewhere in this mansion and came to investigate. Would it be all right if I came inside for a moment?”
The Tin Knight’s blue, will-o'-the-wisp-like eyes widened.
He grabbed Adelaide’s arm, shook it, and spoke urgently.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ expresses his shock, saying something seems wrong with Dorothea!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ insists there’s no way Dorothea would speak to someone else so politely and sensibly!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ says Dorothea seems to be suffering from some kind of mind-altering status effect and requires immediate attention!]
“Oh, what should we do? Would a light tap on the head make her better? Ah, but if I do it, it won't be a tap, it'll be a crush...!”
“It's all right, Lady Adel. As long as it's not instant death, I'll fix her.”
A cross-shaped vein pulsed on Dorothea’s forehead.
Seeing the chilling smile that spread across her face, the ash-covered girl froze and answered in a trembling voice.
“P-Please, come in.”