Ch.124Return to the Holy Nation #4

“You came to buy a carriage?”

“Yes. I thought a carriage would be good for traveling to the Holy Nation. But I won’t need it otherwise…”

“Ah. So you want to rent it with the option to purchase it outright.”

After arriving at the Empire’s port and finding lodging, I was alone at the market looking to buy a cargo carriage.

Of course, the moment I said I’d go alone, the three women tried desperately to stop me, as if they’d been waiting for this.

That’s why I had to make them listen with a brief application of my fire staff.

The reason I felt slightly dizzy despite it being a bright afternoon was precisely because of that.

Helena, Ellen, and Eve.

They were women who naturally drew attention when walking down the street, so I thought it best not to bring them along at times like this.

Especially if I wanted to complete the transaction quietly.

“Hmm… I don’t doubt you, especially since you’re from a reputable merchant company. However, if you proceed this way, when you resell it…”

I exchanged words with the merchant about costs, trying to find a compromise.

After all, I would only use it when traveling between the Holy Nation and this city, and there was no reason to drag it all the way to the duchy.

It would only be cumbersome.

So I bought the carriage outright at a slight loss to reassure the merchant.

When traveling long distances, anything could happen, and I might lose the carriage in the process.

The merchant seemed to understand this well; his eyes sparkled as soon as the conversation shifted from rental to purchase.

“Very well. When you return here, the price will vary depending on the carriage’s condition… but let’s agree on a complete purchase.”

“Good thinking.”

After reaching an agreement with the merchant, I pulled the cargo carriage around the market.

Since the roads were wide in this area, one or two carriages passing by didn’t seem to bother anyone.

Neither me pulling the carriage, nor the people walking to avoid it.

There was no special reason for wandering around the market.

To get from here to the Holy Nation, I could use the land route, which takes about two days.

If I drove the carriage urgently, it would be much faster, but that didn’t seem necessary.

It’s not like I would die if I didn’t receive the blessing immediately.

“I’ll take this. And next…”

While pulling the carriage, I purchased equipment needed for camping, tent accessories, and mainly dried food.

For vegetables, it seemed sufficient to buy just enough to eat when departing tomorrow.

“Phew.”

I should be getting used to it by now, but I still felt on edge every time I used that overly formal way of speaking.

The thought that I might never get used to it even after a lifetime made me sigh involuntarily.

I couldn’t decide whether it was a good thing or a bad thing.

Since I was already out and had gathered everything I needed, should I go back to the lodging and sleep? Or do something else?

I carefully drove the carriage while contemplating which of the floating thoughts in my head to follow.

Fortunately, the horses were gentle creatures and moved forward without any trouble.

“You’re quite diligent.”

While I was tying up the horses after placing the carriage in the stable behind the lodging, I heard an unfamiliar voice.

When I turned around, I saw a man in truly ordinary attire standing there with a broad smile on his face.

Though he appeared to be a commoner on the surface, his gaze and manner of speaking were far from common.

He had the look of someone who worked under a proper household, for example, someone serving under a competent nobleman.

“Who are you?”

I asked, trying my best to make my still-unfamiliar formal speech sound natural.

At a glance, he looked like someone deliberately disguised as a commoner, so I couldn’t let my guard down.

“…Pardon my rudeness. I am Bentley, working under Viscount Closs.”

The bearded man who introduced himself as Bentley bowed very politely.

His proper posture and the experience evident in his voice were quite remarkable.

It felt like seeing Andy who worked at the Krauser mansion.

“Under the Viscount? What business does such a person have with me?”

I straightened my back and asked Bentley as he cast his gaze toward me.

It was hard to understand why someone working for a nobleman whose face I’d never seen, let alone whose name I didn’t know, would come looking for me.

However, since he mentioned a nobleman had called, I pretended to be intimidated.

After all, I was disguised as a merchant.

But Bentley opened his mouth with a relaxed smile, as if he already saw through everything.

“There’s no need to pretend to be intimidated upon hearing the Viscount’s status. Rather, as a Grand Duke of a country and territory, you shouldn’t act that way.”

“What do you mean…”

“Hehe. You have quite a playful side, Grand Duke Jion Krauser.”

For a moment, I almost choked on air in surprise, but I forced myself to appear calm and kept my mouth shut.

I didn’t know when I had been found out, but given that he specifically mentioned my name, there was no point in denying it.

Moreover, while it was best to keep it hidden, it wasn’t something that absolutely had to be concealed, so I relaxed my shoulders and spoke.

“Since when did you know?”

“I knew from the moment the Grand Duke disembarked from the ship. The figure who ignites the hearts of ladies he encounters, and the women accompanying him were quite noticeable.”

“My goodness. If I had known, I would have been more careful.”

Perhaps I should have disguised myself after all.

I swallowed my belated regret and let out a light sigh.

I also thought that if we had disembarked separately with some time in between, we might have avoided suspicious glances.

Regardless of the truth behind the comment about ladies.

“But if you conceal your appearance too much, you’ll stand out in the opposite way.”

“That’s true as well. Anyway, what business does someone working under the Viscount have with me?”

“Since a Grand Duke of a country has come here, he wishes to offer some modest hospitality, if the Grand Duke permits.”

I don’t know whether the incident with that merchant hadn’t spread, or if it had spread but was considered inconsequential.

They could dismiss it as a mere merchant’s affair and draw a line.

However, judging by Bentley’s friendly attitude, it didn’t seem like the invitation was made with ill intentions.

If they had felt any discomfort, they wouldn’t have sent someone to extend an invitation in the first place.

I nodded in agreement, both to discover the other party’s intentions and to familiarize myself with the Viscount’s face.

.

“Viscount Anderson Closs. I wonder what he’s thinking?”

In the early evening as the sun began to set.

I walked alongside Helena toward the Viscount’s inner castle, quietly listening to her words.

While nobles in the Kingdom build mansions in the central area, nobles in this Empire build small inner castles instead of mansions.

It was a cultural difference.

Normally, it’s rare for a noble invited by another noble to walk to their destination, but I chose to walk to avoid drawing too much attention.

As a result, Bentley had been sweating nervously and appeared quite flustered.

Therefore, I left Ellen and Eve at the lodging as well.

Thanks to the promise that I would embrace them first tonight.

“Who knows? Usually, Imperial nobles and Kingdom nobles don’t often meet. Maybe he just wants to see what we look like?”

“Could it be… that this Viscount fellow is homosexual?”

“I doubt it. With two wives and five children, it would be impossible if he were homosexual.”

Homosexual, or gay. I answered Helena’s outlandish deduction with a smile.

If he were truly gay, he might have relations out of duty a few times, but there would be no reason to have two wives or to have five children.

At most, he would be satisfied with one child per wife, totaling two. Or perhaps three children between two wives for succession stability.

However, if the Viscount were bisexual… that would be something to consider.

I’m not gay, after all.

“We’re here. Maybe because it’s close to our lodging.”

“If it weren’t, we wouldn’t have considered walking. We would have had to ride horses on the road.”

As we exchanged such casual conversation, we found ourselves in front of the Viscount’s fence.

The iron gate looked like something you’d see at any noble’s mansion, but the tower-like inner castle beyond it seemed quite alien.

Creeak. Just then, a servant who had been patrolling the yard saw us, hurriedly ran over, and opened the gate without checking our identities.

It seemed Bentley had thoroughly spread detailed information about us to everyone here.

“W-welcome, please come in.”

The servant was visibly tense but managed to guide us without fumbling.

Perhaps because he worked under the Viscount, the proper way to handle guests seemed naturally ingrained in him.

I held Helena’s hand firmly as we finally entered the inner castle.

The internal structure was both similar to and different from a noble’s mansion, with the most peculiar feature being the small holes pierced throughout the castle walls.

“They seem to be for sniping at enemies during a siege. The positions are exquisite.”

“Yes. With sufficient supplies, they could hold out for quite a while.”

As we conversed in low voices, a subtle tension weighed heavily on my shoulders.

If other Imperial nobles also lived in such inner castles, it would clearly be quite troublesome to conquer them.

It was a moment when I realized how formidable the woman by my side truly was.

If I hadn’t been there, she would have demolished several such inner castles by now and still had energy to spare.

“I apologize. I should have escorted you personally…”

As we were guided to the middle level, Bentley, who had been directing various servants, rushed over with hurried steps and bowed his head.

Judging by his current attire and behavior, he was clearly the butler, yet he hadn’t been able to attend to the guests personally.

Perhaps he felt apologetic about such a situation.

“It’s fine. Please don’t worry about it. We were so engrossed in exploring this unfamiliar inner castle that we lost track of time.”

“Ah, um. Thank you for saying so. Oh, you may go now. I will attend to the guests myself.”

Bentley skillfully sent the servant who had been guiding us back to his post, then led the way up to the upper floor.

The cylindrical castle was quite tall and spacious, making the endless climb slightly uncomfortable, though it seemed good for health.

Perhaps the Imperial nobles designed their castles this way for that health benefit? Since climbing stairs is said to be good for health, it’s not entirely impossible.

Knock knock.

“Master. I have brought the guests.”

“Hmm. Show them in.”

Upon reaching a room on a high floor where there was little sign of activity, Bentley knocked on the door.

Someone inside responded with a rather dignified voice.

It seemed they had been waiting for us.

Bentley grabbed the door handle as soon as permission was granted and carefully opened the door for us to pass through.

“Please enter. I will have tea served shortly.”

He bowed his head lightly in greeting, then left with very smooth movements.

Seeing him head toward the corner of the corridor, it seemed the kitchen was likely in that direction.

In such a large and tall castle, there must be more than one kitchen.

“Welcome. I am Anderson Closs. I sincerely welcome the Duke and Grand Duchess of Krauser from the Kingdom of Sotern.”

At a large dining table where several people might gather for a meal.

The man sitting at the head of the table rose and bowed in greeting.

His impression and demeanor matched his voice, quite dignified.

“Thank you for the invitation. I am Helena Krauser. You must already know my husband… so there’s no need for me to introduce him.”

As Helena nodded lightly to acknowledge the greeting, Anderson, who had risen, offered us seats.

I naturally thought it would be the seats closest to the head of the table, but he offered the head seat itself.

It was quite a sweat-inducing situation by my standards.

“The head seat should be occupied by the master of the house, the Viscount.”

“If you were a noble of equal or lower rank, I would do so… but I cannot sit at the head while in the presence of a Duke of such high standing.”

“You’re making me uncomfortable. Please keep your seat.”

Helena seemed to share my thoughts, as she was visibly flustered to the point of exasperation.

As a result, a subtle verbal exchange that neither had anticipated took place between them, but it ended with Helena’s victory.

The Viscount quietly sitting at the head seat was proof of that.

“Indeed. The host has their place, and guests should keep theirs for things to feel natural. What do you think, Jion?”

“You’re right.”

I expressed agreement with Helena’s sentiment and took a seat beside the Viscount. It was an arrangement with the Viscount at the head and Helena and I facing each other.

Hmm.

The Viscount looked us over as we sat down, met our eyes, and slowly began to speak.

“I would like to have tea, share a meal, engage in light conversation, and then discuss the main topic. You must have many questions, but I decided it would be quite rude to bring up the matter without offering proper hospitality first. If you find this uncomfortable…”

“No, it’s fine. I appreciate your consideration.”

No reason to refuse when food is being offered.

I smiled lightly as I responded to the Viscount who was trailing off.

Even if poison had been added, I was wearing the magic item Eve had given me around my neck.

Therefore, neither Helena nor I would be in danger from poison.

So for now, it was best to go along with the conversation and observe the situation.