episode_0052

Unexpected meeting (1)

“From now on, we will cross the bridge over the Fairy River, so it will shake a little~ Please be careful~”

Yuno, who became curious after hearing about crossing the river, got out of the carriage and went to the coachman’s seat.

“It’s dangerous. Go in and hold on to the handle”

To ensure security in case of an unexpected situation, Yuno and his party asked Count Grime to call for an ordinary carriage that ordinary merchants would ride.

Additionally, the clothes they were wearing were changed to clothes that would be worn by wealthy commoners or lower-class nobles, and the armament of the guards, including Cordelia, was kept hidden as much as possible.

Therefore, the drivers pulling the carriage had no idea of the identity of Yuno’s group, but it was clear to them that Yuno’s group were precious people just by looking at their appearance, so he was extremely polite to Yuno, who looked much younger.

“Hahaha, don’t worry. Elderly. By the way, if this is the Fairy River, if you cross here, you will be in the Viscounty of Nikana”

“Yes, that’s right. Viscount Nikana was a very nice person… and he went to the capital not long ago. Since there is no child to inherit the estate, I want to spend the rest of my life comfortably… Ugh~ I wonder who the next person will be…”

“I heard that the Nikana Domain and the Tesida Domain are being merged. Haven’t you heard that?”

“Ah, I think I heard something like that. But what does that have to do with people like us who live day by day?”

The coachman smiled forlornly and then cautiously opened his mouth to Yuno, as if he had remembered something.

“Oh my! Viscount Nikana was a good person, but the behavior of the newly appointed guard general named Gerard is truly outrageous. Every time you pass through the gate, they charge a separate toll tax and extort store owners under the pretense of extorting credit, so you need to be careful”

“Huh~ Did something like that happen? It would be completely illegal to collect taxes other than those specified.”

“Do we know what laws are? When they tell you to pay, you pay. Besides, if I don’t pay the money right away, I’ll have to pay a lot of money, but there’s nothing I can do about it”

“Why don’t you at least say something to the lord? Viscount Nikana would have listened carefully to the complaints of the residents of the territory”

“Ha and don’t even talk. If you want to see the lord, you have to go through the magistrate, and he’s in the same company as the guard captain. So we have no place to complain. Moreover, the original tax is 30 percent, so why are they charging so much special tax…”

This was Yuno’s first time hearing that there was a special tax levied outside of wartime, so he stuck his tongue out at the coachman’s words.

“No, isn’t your lord coming out of Minsaeng Temple? Why didn’t you report it then”

“They came out to inspect the lives of the people sometimes, but Gerard was so strict that they only let him meet Young Ji-min who kissed them, so there was nothing he could do about it”

“Oh my~ Thank you for providing such valuable information. I really need to be careful”

“Yeah, it’s no big deal. Still, the customers seem to be precious just by looking at them, so I won’t do anything big. Next time, if the guards start acting up, I’ll notice, so please give them a few silver coins”

“Yes. I will take note. By the way, the scenery here is really nice”

“Oh, that’s right. The Fairy Lake, located a little further south, is the greatest pride of our hometown. Your destination, Chiese Castle, is not far away, so it would be perfect if you come for a vacation later”

“But isn’t there an area below the Fairy Lake where the Beketh clan of elves lives? Haven’t those guys been causing any trouble lately?”

Nikana territory has always been in conflict with the Bekes clan over the ownership of the lake, so this place was one of Yuno’s interests.

Of course, it was possible to subdue them by mobilizing the imperial army, but since they hunted all the monsters that flowed from the mountain ranges into their territory and did not pose a particular threat to the people of the empire, they left them alone for the time being, and Yuno I had no intention of interfering as long as there was no accident.

“Are you writing? I haven’t even seen the shadows of the elves in about 10 years. Come to think of it, in the past we always fought with hunters who entered the forest, but I’ve never heard of such a thing these days. Thanks to this, the price of meat became slightly cheaper”

“Hmm~ Really? Thank you for letting me know”

After obtaining general information about the territory from the coachman, Yuno climbed onto the roof of the carriage, admired the lake in the distance, and organized the information he had heard in his head.

‘Once I arrive at Chiese Castle, as I heard from the coachman, I will have to investigate the guard captain and administrator. You won’t be able to understand clearly by listening to only one side, so I need to hear more than one side of the story. I will also have to investigate the Bekes family to see if there are any problems.’

While Yuno was thinking about the territory, his eyes were soon drawn to the beautiful scenery.

‘Hiya~ It would be really awesome if we set up a boat here and bring Mom, Eliza, and Catherine and have sex on board.’

Eliza seemed to have sensed Yuno’s feelings and climbed onto the roof of the carriage, leaning against Yuno and enjoying the scenery together.

“Hiya~ Yuno, this place is really pretty~ Let’s come here for a date later! Huh?”

“Hahaha, as much as Eliza asks!”

The coachman said it was dangerous and told her to come down, but since they were masters, there was no way the shaking of the carriage would disturb them, and there was no need to worry about getting hurt if she fell, so Yuno put his hand under Eliza’s top and massaged her breast, enjoying the view and her lover’s body. enjoyed together.

Eliza also seemed to enjoy Yuno’s touch, so Yuno enjoyed a secret date with Eliza on the carriage ceiling until the lake view disappeared.

Even though we left Greime at dawn, the distance to Chiese Castle was quite long, and it wasn’t until the sun went down that the carriage carrying Yuno and his party arrived at Chiese Castle.

“Uuuuu~ Stiff~ It’s finally arrived. I think I’ve driven almost 100km, but it’s still a long way to finally arrive”

However, contrary to Yuno’s expectations of wanting to rest quickly, the door to Chiese Castle was tightly closed.

“Stop for a moment! When the sun goes down, the castle gate can never be opened. Come back tomorrow when the sun rises!”

As armed guards blocked the gates, the coachmen ran and began to beg.

“Oh my gosh, guys~ The sun hasn’t completely set yet~ And if you don’t open the gate, you have to sleep out in the forest, but don’t you know that dangerous animals may come out~ Please look at the situation just once”

“Oh hey~ Leroy, Jenkins, these people! Why do people who know everything do this? So you should have come before the sun sets!”

In response to the stubborn attitude of the guards, the coachman pulling Yuno’s carriage gave Yuno, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, a wink.

Yuno, who had been explained in advance what the glance meant, sighed and stood up.

‘This is the first time I have heard of the castle gate not being opened, not even to the imperial palace gate, but even to a person who has been identified as the sun has fallen. It’s not even an exhibition…’

“Ahem…. Those guys~”

“Who are you!!”

“I am a person named Noyu. Originally, I lived in Adria, but now my wife’s health has deteriorated, so I came to Nicana to recuperate in a place with good air”

“Hmm~ Please present your ID!”

Yuno placed a few silver coins under the group’s camouflage ID cards and handed them over, and their expressions softened very gently.

“Hmm… I’m sure the identity is clear. Well… Nikanaryeong here is famous for its good air, so my wife will recover quickly. Don’t forget to show your respect to the administrator tomorrow when you report to the administrator as a new resident!”

“He said he came from the capital and he is a very polite person. If you do this, you will be able to stay very comfortably here”

The guards motioned to their colleagues guarding the gate, and the gate opened.

‘Hmm~ The security posture is okay… but I guess I’m quite used to receiving bribes…’

As the coachman’s words turned out to be true, Yuno also wanted to reveal the truth of the other information he had given.

“I arrived at the castle, where should I drop you off?”

Originally, they were supposed to go straight to the lord’s official residence, but Yuno changed the plan slightly.

“Please go to the best inn here in Chiese Castle. I’ll have to stay there for a while until I find a place to live”

“Yay~ I understand. I’m not sure if it will suit the tastes of people from the capital because it’s so rural, but there are still some pretty good inns”

The inn he guided us to could not be said to be luxurious, but it was a very clean inn, and because it was reasonably priced, there were no guests staying there, so Yuno felt relieved and let his group get off.

When the group got off, Yuno paid the balance to the driver and sent them away.

“Wow~~ I’m tired. I’m tired even though I just sit and doze off. What kind of carriage are you riding for 12 hours? This is really the countryside”

“Hmm? But why did you come here instead of going to the lord’s residence? Didn’t it arrive?”

“It may be a bit uncomfortable, but please stay here just for today. That’s because I have something to do here today”

“Aha~ I wonder if my brother came to the inn with Mari and said there was something to do… and he was going to do something like that with Mari!!”

Marie was talking nonsense and had to be hit on the back by Yuria.

Juno, who was watching Isabella and Eliza laughing, instructed Cordelia to take them to the inn and guard them.

“Yes, I understand. Your Majesty”

“Please refrain from using titles such as “deliver” until I give another order. Just call me Yuno”

“Yes, I understand. Yuno”

Yuno demanded that the Nim ruler be removed as well, but the stubborn Cordelia refused.

After arguing for a while, Yuno eventually gave up and headed to the market, leaving the group to stay at the inn.

‘Let’s see~ The shopping malls haven’t closed yet, so it’s probably worth getting some information.’

Yuno, who was wondering where to start looking, opened the door of a blacksmith shop and entered. As soon as he entered, he was startled by a voice recognizing him and had to open his eyes wide.

“Your Highness the Third Prince?”

“Huh? So…are you the commander of the Mayer Corps?”

“Ah! Why am I a corps commander!! I did it as a proxy once!! My colleagues are still making fun of me!!”

The person who recognized Yuno was Mayer, who had commanded the corps on Yuno’s behalf during the last Streve expedition, and Yuno, looking so happy, grabbed his shoulder and shook him.

*Location of Yuno’s territory