Chapter 22 : Three methods

“Just as I thought.”

I expected it, but it still makes me sigh.

I pulled a chair closer, rested my chin on my hand, and tapped the table with my fingers.

A forbidden zone, just as the name suggests, is a place where entry is prohibited for ordinary people in principle.

If you happen to get lost or encounter a monster, death is almost certain, so passage is restricted from the start, and entry permits are only

given to a select few.

Of course, except for the Magic Realm, the other forbidden zones aren’t managed that strictly.

Because unless someone wants to die, no one enters in the first place.

‘This is bad news for us.’

Therefore, there are no carriages that go directly there.

It’s not that specialized carriages for such dangerous areas don’t exist at all, but they are extremely difficult to rent without a prior

reservation.

The cost is also quite high.

‘Should I just buy a carriage outright?’

It wasn’t a bad idea, but rejected.

During field training, we must live using only the provided funds without any external help.

The funds we were given were by no means small, but they weren’t enough to buy a carriage.

It’s truly a sh*tty rule.

Naturally, no one would lend a carriage to someone going to the Black Forest. It’s obvious it would get broken or ruined.

“Your food is here.”

The food Amiter ordered arrived.

While she chewed her meat, I closed my eyes and thought.

“There are three ways. Listen up.”

Four eyes fixed on me.

I held up three fingers and started talking.

The voice coming from my mouth was gentle, like telling a fairy tale to a child.

“First, take a carriage that goes as close as possible. We’d have to walk back, but it’s actually the safest and simplest method.”

I folded down one finger.

Teferi tilted her head and asked.

[Isn’t that usually mentioned last?]

“If it were the best option, maybe. But this method will cause significant delays. You can assume we definitely won’t be back within two

weeks. And we’d have to walk a tremendous amount.”

If we fail to return within the given two-week period, points will be deducted daily, and after three weeks pass, we won’t even receive the base

score.

Even though it’s dangerous, it’s ultimately practical training to earn points.

Choosing this method means we won’t get a very good score.

Not only that, but if someone sustains a serious injury, it could become problematic.

“What’s the second one?”

Amiter asked, gulping down the meat she was chewing.

She had a habit of tearing the meat in her mouth rather than chewing it.

I picked up a piece of bread I was eating and mumbled.

“Taking a boat.”

Unlike carriages, boats sometimes sail around the Black Forest.

There are shady pirate ships involved in black market dealings, and also merchant ships that occasionally use the sea route when mountain

paths are blocked.

“The problem is, not only does the Black Forest lack a proper harbor, but finding a boat itself might be…”

“What’s next?”

Amiter quickly cut me off and tried to move on.

She might ignore me, but she wasn’t the type of bich to ignore what I said.

“What’s wrong? Actually, this isn’t bad either. Honestly, I think this is the best method.”

She sighed briefly, then hesitated and said.

“…I.”

“What?”

“I get terribly seasick.”

Have you ever seen such a sheltered young lady?

Someone like her who can move at super speed gets seasick?

“…You’re kidding, right?”

That damn bich averted her gaze and pretended not to notice.

Our grand plan is about to get screwed up because of seasickness.

It’s so absurd I let out a hollow laugh.

I gave Teferi a look that asked if she got seasick too.

The answer I received was both expected and unexpected.

She said she’d only lived in the boonies and had never been on a boat.

A very Teferi-like answer indeed.

“…Alright, then the last one.”

So, the third method is the true solution, is it?

I spread the map on the table and pointed to a spot with my finger.

“The method of going straight through Liinz.”

Normally, there would be many ways to go, like riding the flying island Noble or using rental golems, but with the limited time and budget,

these three were the only options.

The two were horrified when they heard my last suggestion.

[If it’s Liinz, you mean that place, right? Maybe just walking would be better…]

“We don’t have that kind of time.”

I understand why they’re horrified.

Liinz.

It was famous as an area with remnants of an ancient city, but it became a lawless zone because too many criminals gathered there.

Und once tried to clean up the area themselves, but failed and are now struggling with it.

Even the black market we saw before is cute compared to this place.

Liinz, filled with all sorts of crime and unsavory people, borders the Black Forest directly.

Actually, it’s a place where you can get anything if you have power and money.

Weren’t there grand casinos in developing countries in the original world too?

The worse the security, the greater the gap between rich and poor.

Unlike other routes that require going around over mountain paths, here, if we just get a carriage, we can go straight to the Black Forest.

“I’ll try to endure the seasickness. It should be fine if I just pass out during the trip.”

For that Amiter to say something like that just shows how incredibly bad the security is there.

Honestly, besides being the fastest route, it doesn’t have much merit.

Teferi nodded as if agreeing with her words.

[Okay, let’s look for a boat first.]

“Let’s do that, then.”

We got up from our seats and left the restaurant.

This is just my personal opinion, but usually, the plan that ends up happening in these situations is the third one.

“So there are no boats.”

As I expected, there were no boats going to the Black Forest.

It’s actually obvious.

It’s not a smuggling route, and no sane person would have a reason to loiter around there in a boat.

It’s not between countries, and being located at the southernmost tip, there’s no reason to go there.

In the end, we had no choice but to head to Liinz, reluctantly.

Perhaps because we started early in the morning, the sun was still high overhead even though quite some time had passed.

In the town square, a fountain was spraying water.

Groups of children were picking up coins from within it.

[Mom used to say that if I didn’t listen, people from Liinz would come and take me away.]

Teferi muttered with a sullen face.

Ordinary people fear Liinz, the den of criminals, more than the distant Magic Realm.

Like being more afraid of the Bogeyman or the Red Mask than war?

That analogy is too old.

It’s said to have decreased recently, but just a few decades ago, crimes of kidnapping children and selling them to Liinz occurred frequently.

Someone like me who lived inside a castle might not know, but for people living in ordinary households, it’s a story worth being wary of.

“We’re just passing through anyway, what’s there to worry about so much?”

The time we’ll spend in Liinz is only about two days.

Most of that inside the carriage.

No matter how crazy they are, I don’t think they’d go as far as attacking a passing carriage.

And actually, even if we are attacked, it doesn’t matter.

Considering who’s inside.

“Welcome.”

The carriage rental shop smelled like a stable.

It was the kind of place that made you frown automatically.

“It smells.”

‘Smelling like a stable’ here was a nice way of saying it smelled of horse dung and animal funk.

I felt sorry for the owner who had to spend every day here.

“We’d like to rent a carriage. No driver needed.”

“Yes, yes.”

The owner wrote down some details and prepared the contract.

It included clauses about insurance and compensation for damages.

“Where is your destination?”

“Liinz.”

Hearing the word ‘Liinz’, the owner’s expression soured.

Well, hardly any carriages return intact from there, so it’s understandable.

Even if they aren’t lost, they come back broken somewhere or with chipped paint.

“…Duration?”

“Estimated time is ten days. Two weeks at most.”

The price was double what other carriages cost.

After receiving the money, the owner went inside and brought out a carriage.

It was a four-person carriage pulled by two black horses.

“Please, come back without any damage.”

He must be saying that to the carriage and horses, not to our party.

Ignoring him, I entered the carriage; the inside was quite clean.

“Looks like it’ll be the two of us riding together?”

Come to think of it, only Teferi and I will be riding inside.

Teferi was blushing, perhaps unhappy about riding with me.

I guess she still finds me awkward.

I feel a bit awkward too, kid.

Amiter said she even gets motion sick in carriages.

Though not as bad as on a boat.

I don’t think I could ever raise a dog.

Too many things to worry about.

Fortunately, she said it’s a bit better if she’s outside, so she volunteered to be the driver.

I looked at Amiter through the window and said.

“Why are you here? You should go over there.”

Before she could say anything back, I giggled and quickly shut the window.

I heard some shouting from outside the window but ignored it.

“Let’s depart.”

I opened the window just a crack, enough so my face couldn’t be seen, and said.

The stationary carriage soon began to move slowly.

Towards Liinz, the crime city where ancient ruins lay.