Ossan Saikyō Chapter 12 Part 05
The journey to the Royal Capital proceeded as planned without incident through the 4th day, which was unusual for〈Saul's Guidance〉.
To be honest, it was an extremely boring journey, simply walking along the highway. Even though the number of people on the road increased as we drew closer to the Royal Capital, there was still nothing particularly interesting about it.
Well, for an ordinary person, it would certainly not be an easy journey. There were dangers along the way, and it would be physically demanding as well.
Since〈Saul's Guidance〉was an Adventurer party and we could make things considerably easier for ourselves by doing things like camping, I suppose we were in a position to call it boring.
Actually, on a whim, I made a simple deck of playing cards before we set out, and we sometimes played with them inside the tent at night.
There were games in this world that used pieces of wood and such, but many of them were heavily centered around betting, so they did not seem to be particularly interesting as games.
There was a material called《Giant Centipede Shell》that could be heated and stretched into thin sheets. I thought it would be perfect for making cards, so I gave it a try, and just as I expected, everyone liked them.
I had Sphenia help me burn patterns onto the surfaces, making them quite a labor of love, but apparently the effort had been worth it.
The only thing that concerned me was, a certain Wolf Beastkin girl had gotten a little too fired up and become completely addicted to the game. If I played against her from time to time, she would probably be satisfied… Probably.
On the morning of the 5th day, we passed through the checkpoint between Count Lautrec’s territory and the Royal Family’s directly administered territory. From there, we were already under the Royal Family’s jurisdiction.
The highway also became wider, and the smoothness of the stone pavement seemed to have improved another level. Everything gave us a much stronger sense that the Royal Capital was drawing near.
After traveling along the highway for a while, we saw an adventurer party coming toward us with a carriage. I recognized all four of them.
They were〈Fortuner〉, Euron’s C-Rank party. They had been escorting the adventurer, Shizuna of the Land of Ozu to the Royal Capital, and I had thought that we might happen to cross paths somewhere along the way.
“Well, look who it is! Soushi, what a coincidence.”
The leader, Zeal, noticed me and called out.
“It’s been a while. Have you finally been relieved of your duty?”
“Yeah. The request ended a little while ago, but since we were there anyway, we took some time to relax in the Royal Capital. The Viscount also asked us to do some shopping for him.”
Looking at the carriage, it appeared to be packed with things that had not been there when they went to the Royal Capital. Well, I suppose they would not have sent them all the way to the Royal Capital only to have them return empty-handed.
“That sounds like hard work. Was Shizuna-san doing well?”
“Haha, she got bored along the way and wanted to enter a dungeon. Turns out she was quite the mischievous young lady. By the way, are you guys heading to the royal capital too?”
“Yes. We received a summons from the Royal Family.”
When I said that, Zeal furrowed his brows.
“Did you do something again?”
“Actually, I became B-Rank after defeating a Twilight Kin the other day. Apparently that’s why we were summoned.”
At my words, not only Zeal but the other members of〈Fortuner〉also stared at me in astonishment.
“A Twilight Kin!? I did hear rumors that a Twilight Kin had appeared in the count’s territory and had been defeated, but you’re saying it was you? And B-Rank... When we met last time, you were still D-Rank, weren’t you?”
“Yes. We ended up fighting it due to the circumstances. Becoming B-Rank also seems to have been a rather exceptional decision by the Guild.”
“Well, I suppose B-Rank is only natural if you defeated a Twilight Kin... But I knew you were strong, somehow, but I never imagined you were that strong. Come to think of it, the one behind you is Mariane-san from the Guild, right? Is she your dedicated officer?”
“Yes, she is.”
“Haah... So I really did happen to meet a ridiculous guy. And as usual, your party is full of cute girls. To be perfectly honest, you’re going to stand out quite a lot even in the Royal Capital.”
Zeal gave me a slightly mischievous look at the end. I had been hoping that there would be even stronger, more famous adventurer parties in the Royal Capital, but apparently the members of〈Saul's Guidance〉really were quite formidable.
“Actually, we were harassed a little in Barbadoza. We’ll be careful in the Royal Capital as well.”
“You’d better. Anyway, enjoy the Royal Capital. It’s an interesting place.”
“Yes, see you later...”
As we were about to part ways, I suddenly remembered something.
“Oh, Zeal. Actually, I expect a young party I know, coming to Euron. If you don’t mind, could you look after them a little?”
“Oh? What’s the name of the party?”
“They’re called〈Silver Ring〉. I think they have pretty good potential, so I’d appreciate it. It seems I won’t be able to return to Euron for a while.”
“Well, if I talk to them and they seem decent, I’ll look after them a little. They’re motivated, right?”
“Yes. They’re supposed to be coming to Euron because they want to become stronger.”
“Nice. I don’t dislike people like that. All right, I’ll keep an eye on them.”
“Thank you.”
This was purely a hunch, but I felt that Zeal of〈Fortuner〉and Kaim of〈Silver Ring〉would get along well. Zeal might also learn about the skill training method I had taught Kaim, and I was sure it would be beneficial for both sides.
After exchanging a few more words, we parted ways with the members of〈Fortuner〉. Ever since coming to this world, I had been gaining more and more acquaintances, and I suppose that was not a bad thing.
Come to think of it, Mr. Toronto was also in the Royal Capital. I was somewhat curious to see what kind of relationship I would end up developing with him as well.
On the morning of the 7th day after leaving Barbadoza, we set out once again. If nothing happened, we should reach the Royal Capital sometime after noon today.
It had been a miraculous(?) journey without a single incident, but I thought it would be better not to let our guard down until the very end... Perhaps thinking that was what caused trouble, because I spotted a stranded carriage up ahead.
The situation reminded me of Gashi, the Beastkin I had encountered before, but the carriage that had stopped at a slight angle on the side of the highway was not a wagon.
It was an extraordinarily luxurious four-wheeled coach with a pure white body and gold decorations, the kind that made it obvious to anyone that an upper-ranking noble was riding inside.
Naturally, around it stood about 20 soldiers wearing high-quality uniforms. Around 4 of them appeared to be Awakened, and judging from the equipment those four carried, the quality of the escort seemed exceptionally high.
“Soushi-sama, that carriage belongs to the Royal Family. Its crest has been concealed, so they are technically traveling incognito, but I think it would be better for us to pass by at some distance.”
Freynil quietly whispered that to me. Now that she mentioned it, there was indeed some cloth covering part of the carriage in an unnatural manner.
Honestly, with such a magnificent carriage and escort, it was painfully obvious that they were Royalty, but perhaps this was the sort of situation where, “For appearances’ sake, they are traveling incognito, so commoners are expected to pretend they did not notice”.
Looking around, I saw the other travelers also keeping their distance as they passed by. Besides, if the carriage broke down, the Royal Family would surely have help arrive immediately, so there was no reason for us to offer assistance.
Following Freynil’s advice, we moved to the opposite side of the highway and passed by.
The Awakened members of the escort... probably former high-ranking adventurers... looked at us and became more wary.
We were clearly a group of adventurers ourselves, so it was only natural that they would be somewhat suspicious of us. Or perhaps it was because of the mace I was carrying.
In any case, I had just begun to feel relieved that we would probably pass by without incident when I heard the carriage door open behind us. At the same time, a voice that sounded like a young girl’s reached us.
“Freynil! Is that Freynil walking over there? Wait, please! Won’t you come over here and let me see your face?”
“That voice... Could it be you, Dearest Big Sister Margalotte?”
(E/N: Margalotte-onee-sama, is what is her designation by Freynil-chan)
When Freynil turned around and answered, a girl emerged, pushing her way through the escorting soldiers.
She had golden hair and green eyes, and was dressed in a pure white simple dress with a golden tiara. She was dressed exactly like what anyone would imagine a Princess to look like.
“Ah, it really is Freynil! I was worried when I heard that you had become an adventurer. Thank goodness you’re safe...”
When Freynil approached her, the girl called Margalotte embraced Freynil and began shedding tears.
Freynil also had tears in her eyes as she hugged her back, making it look like a deeply moving reunion. However, judging from the atmosphere, that girl was unmistakably a Princess of this Kingdom.
Since Freynil had been summoned by the Royal Family, the two of them were bound to meet again somewhere, but I never expected it to happen in front of a crowd of onlookers.
For the first time in a while, I felt like I had caught a glimpse of just how malicious a skill Mr.【Bad Luck】could be.
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E/N:
Anyone who guesses Princess' attitude towards Ossan in next chapter, gets a virtual ice cream!
Stay tuned!
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