Linus leaves, and there is a brief silence.
Gilbert seems from the Balshine Kingdom and conspires with Linus to do something. As an outsider, I wanted to pretend I had never heard anything and leave, but Linus wanted to involve me.
He advised Gilbert to tell me the whole plan. “Why me?” is a question that Linus silenced with nonchalance.
I couldn’t bear the questioning look and break the silence.
“Gilbert-san, you were from Balshine.”
“Where do you come from that you say that? You knew Linus so you are from Remrest? But…”
Now that I know we are from the same place, telling him who I am isn’t a good idea. My notoriety has spread not only in my kingdom but also in the surrounding areas.
Although I don’t think people treat me like a namahage, sometimes they think I’m someone who uses dark magic without a care in the world.
I will conceal my identity from this point onward to avoid unnecessary chaos.
“Don’t worry about me. Think of me as a kind of fairy who isn’t bound by national boundaries.”
“How troublesome.”
“Huh?”
What does he mean?
I feel like I’ve had this kind of interaction before. When I looked at Gilbert to find out what this deja vu was about, I could see Patrick’s image in him.
Maybe I’m starting to get Patrick deficiency to the point where seeing someone with grey hair reminds me of him.
“As Linus so eloquently put it, I should tell you about the plan.”
“You don’t have to share anything.”
“But I don’t trust you.”
“I don’t want to hear it.”
The only thing I need to do now is get rid of the army heading for Ashbaton territory. I want to rush to the frontier county as soon as possible.
It would be better if we split up and go our separate ways without another word. He continued talking without listening to my words.
“I’ll tell you along the way as a compromise.”
“Huh, we are leaving?”
“I’m going to Ashbuton tomorrow. We will talk about the plan on our way as Linus said. Should you think of doing something against our will, you won’t be able to do anything irregular with the plan.”
Linus’s words and the lack of trust. It was a nice mixture of both.
Since we are going to the same place, I would be willing to travel together. I was worried about getting to Ashbaton without getting lost since I only knew the approximate direction.
Moving a large group of people takes longer, as evidenced by the students’ excursion trip. Even if we leave tomorrow, we should be able to get to the border before the army arrives.
I’ve heard that Gilbert also plans to proceed with the Remrest army. It seems like it would be a good idea to travel with him.
“Alright, when are we going to leave tomorrow?”
“We leave as soon as the sun rises. I suggest going to bed early today.”
After saying these words, Gilbert went upstairs.
Ultimately, I let things take their course and went home earlier than planned. It was already dark outside, and I was thinking about what to do after returning home.
Will I have to hold a wedding party? I dislike the wedding celebration, but I also hate the fact that Patrick’s brother won’t be there. We’ve never met before, so I have to meet him somehow.
This can’t be done by chance. No miracle will happen that we met before, and the wrong image of me will be dispelled before I know it.
I would be open to a wedding if we reduced the number of guests…, but this isn’t the right place to discuss this.
Lying on the bed, I can’t seem to fall asleep as I meditate. I think about many things when I open my eyes and look at the ceiling.
Why does Patrick’s brother hate me? I have some guesses, but… ah, I shouldn’t. Didn’t I just think it isn’t a good idea to think about here?
Let’s put Patrick’s brother aside and think about something else, like Gilbert.
With Linus’ arrival, I now know where he belongs, but there are still a few things I’m not sure about—something about the ‘plan’ he will tell me about on the road tomorrow.
Ah, I don’t want to hear about it and pretend to be uninterested on the surface, but I do want to know. I don’t want to get caught up in the planning process by knowing, but I’m interested if I can spectate in the open air.
The tricky part about this is the First Prince faction is raising an army. The First Faction’s Linus is passing that information on to… hmm? Is it the other way around? Is it Gilbert and not Linus who is double-crossing?
◆ ◆ ◆
I wake up in the dim light before the sun rises—my fears about whether I would wake up adequately proved unfounded.
Stretching out, I raise myself from the unfamiliar bed.
I will never come back here again. After tidying up the sheets, I look around the room to ensure I haven’t forgotten anything.
Downstairs, I find that Gilbert is already awake. He is munching on the preserved food he ate yesterday as well.
“Good morning.”
“You’re up. I was about to go wake you up.”
He waters down what is in his mouth and quickly stands up.
Then he picked up the cloak hanging on the chair next to him. He thrust one of the two brown cloaks out to me.
“We will leave soon. We’re on a strict schedule.”
Before I can put the cloak on, he starts to move.
This cloak designed for long journeys is long and would probably drag if worn normally. For now, I put on a hat to cover my hair. The cloak was rolled up and held under my arm, and I followed him.
Gilbert’s steps don’t stop when we get outside, so I give up on the cloak and walk beside him.
“I’ll get you breakfast at one of those food stalls.”
“Thank you. Where are we going now?”
The direction we’re going is not the right way. We are heading toward the town center when we should be heading out.
The conversation continued as he turned his crumpled cloak upside down until it was no longer clear which side was which.
“There is a merchant company that Linus contacted. I’ll borrow horses there… have you ever ridden a horse before?”
“I never ride horses. But I always ride anything but a horse.”
“Horses and donkeys are different, but they will run along the road if you remember to tell them to go forward and stop.”
Except it’s not a donkey but a dragon. I guess they are similar in that they are cute and charming animals.
Right, riding a horse…. There were several opportunities to ride horses, but it never happened due to the horse’s poor condition and other factors.
Let’s stop pretending. The truth is, I have no riding experience because I’m afraid of horses. The horse would have gone wild as soon as I approached, and I would have been unable to ride it. You can bet on it.
“What will you do if I can’t ride the horse?”
“It can’t be helped, you’ll have to ride behind me. We won’t make it in time by carriage and there are too many inconveniences.”
Riding together might be tempting. But what I asked wasn’t if I couldn’t ride the horse, but what if the horse rejected me?
The horse would probably go crazy. No matter how great the horse is, they would fear me.
The result is obvious. Any horse, even an exotic one, will—
“My apologies. This guy is usually really chill….”
The stable was built next to the merchant company. The horses were neighing, and the stablesman apologizing could be heard.
When I arrived, the horses were a little restless. They told me I could choose any horse I liked, and this was the moment I started looking at the adorable horses as if I were going to ride them.
Usually, I thought something was okay when it was a bad idea. On the contrary, I thought it was a bad idea this time, but it was. It seemed to be a pointless attempt to try.
The fine horses were making a commotion as if to say, “No, no, I’m afraid to let Yumiela ride,” and were lashing out with such force that they were tearing their leashes off.
Their caretaker, who underwood them better than anyone else, looked stunned.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you guys?! Sorry, I think they’re spooked about something….”
Then he looks around the stable for an anomaly. The anomaly is me. The animals are scared of me. It’s so bad that I don’t see a single insect around me.
While apologizing in my mind, Gilbert stood dumbfounded next to me when I checked.
“What’s going on?”
“Let’s just run already. If we can make it on horseback, we can make it running.”
I have seen horses on the street. They were not running at full speed like horses at a racetrack because they constantly moved throughout the day. The horses were faster than people walking, but they galloped at a light pace.
Someone with a certain experience level would have no difficulty gaining the same distance as the horse. Level 20 or 30 should be fine.
“I’ll be able to make it on my own feet, but you’re… level 13. I have some concerns…”
“I’ll be fine, I have the strength to do it.”
“There’s nothing we can do. If it comes to it, I’ll carry you.”
It can’t be helped, he sighed.