episode_0133

The day after the evaluation duel of Ethan’s swordsmanship had ended.

Isabel, along with the three of us, were riding a carriage on a long journey towards the Blackwood Estate.

Harold, now serving as a temporary professor at the academy, was expected to return home with us. However, unexpectedly, news came back that there were still tasks to be completed as a temporary professor at the academy, so it was decided that the three of us would return to the Blackwood Estate first.

If we delayed our schedule for no reason, there was a possibility that we might have to return to the academy shortly after returning to the Blackwood Estate, as this time was when other academy students were also returning to their hometowns for vacation. Therefore, it was decided that at least the three of us who had completed all our tasks at the academy would return to the estate first.

The problem was that this time was when other academy students were also returning to their hometowns for vacation, making it quite difficult to find a carriage driver who could drive a four-seater carriage. As a result, the three of us had no choice but to depart from the Luminoir Academy to the Blackwood Estate without finding a coachman by the day of departure.

If we couldn’t find a coachman, then who would drive the carriage?

Of course, it was naturally decided that I would drive it. There was no other way.

“Are you okay, Relis?”

“Are you worried, Lord Ethan?”

“Of course, I’m worried. Carriage driving is dangerous.”

“I will drive carefully so that not a single scratch will appear on Lord’s body, so please do not worry.”

“It’s not me who’s worried, it’s on Relis’ side…”

Well, it might be unsettling for Ethan to have me drive the carriage for the first time, but delaying the schedule any further would be inefficient. I had learned carriage driving from Dietmayer in preparation for this moment.

In fact, with Relis included in the ‘Demon Subjugation Force,’ most of the carriage driving was operated alternately by Relis and the protagonist. So, there was no chance that I, in this body, had no talent for driving a carriage.

It might not be impossible for someone other than Relis to drive the carriage, but at least if I had been reincarnated as Relis, I should be able to drive the carriage easily.

“Relis, it seems like all the luggage won’t fit in the luggage compartment. Can we put some inside the inner seat?”

“Yes. Since I will be in the coachman’s seat anyway, it doesn’t matter if my seat is filled with luggage.”

“… ”

As we exchanged such conversations and prepared to depart for the Blackwood Estate early in the morning, the moment I got on the coachman’s seat, Ethan suddenly began to take a seat next to me.

“Eh.”

“…Lord Ethan?”

“Why is that, Relis?”

“The guest room is empty. Please don’t sit in an uncomfortable seat and take the seat instead.”

“…Sorry, Relis. I just feel like getting some fresh air right now.”

“To reach the Blackwood Estate, we will have to ride for almost a whole day. Sitting in the coachman’s seat may not be a pleasant experience.”

“It’s okay, you can start the carriage. Isabel, don’t wait for me and take the seat.”

“Understood. I will go up to the guest room as per Lord Ethan’s orders.”

“…Isabel?”

Isabel, without any reaction to Ethan’s bold move of leaving a perfectly fine seat and squeezing into the seat next to the driver’s seat, climbed up to the guest room alone. Feeling helpless in the face of their shameless actions, I had no choice but to start the carriage and set off.

The carriage, filled with the three of us and luggage, began to move towards the Blackwood Estate in the northeast.

* * *

Since we started driving the carriage from the Island of Knowledge to the Blackwood Estate, half a day had passed.

Despite setting off early in the morning, the road the carriage was traveling on had become quite dark.

Feeling that it might be a bit difficult to continue advancing in this darkness, I cautiously suggested to Edan.

“Lord Edan.”

“Yeah, Lillis.”

“…I apologize, but I think we should camp here for the night.”

“Yeah, I was starting to think we should do that too.”

With Edan’s approval, and seeing a suitable clearing ahead for camping, I stopped the carriage and got off, stretching my stiff body after sitting on the carriage seat for a long time.

“Ugh~!!”

“Are you tired from driving the carriage? Isabelle and I will take care of setting up the camp, so you can rest a bit, Lillis.”

“…Yes.”

It felt like I was moving much faster when driving the carriage in the game, but in reality, time seemed to pass much differently.

It was a moment when I truly realized the skill of the Blackwood family’s carriage drivers. I had already traveled back and forth between Blackwood Manor and the Isle of Knowledge several times, but how could I cover this distance in just one day each time?

Nevertheless, we had covered about 60-70% of the journey, so if we set off in the morning, we should arrive at Blackwood Manor by lunchtime the next day.

“Shall we set up the tent first, my lord Edan?”

“Yes. I’ll tie up this side of the tent, and you take the other side and tie it to that tree over there.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Feeling strangely sorry for Isabelle and Edan setting up the tent while I was in the room, I quietly apologized to Edan as I approached him.

“I’m sorry, Lord Edan.”

“Lillis? I told you to rest.”

“If I had understood a little better, we might have been able to reach the estate by today. I feel bad for making you prepare for camping like this.”

“What are you talking about, Lillis? If it weren’t for you, we might not have even been able to leave the academy by tomorrow.”

“Still, the other carriage drivers of Blackwood can cover the distance in just a day…”

“Don’t compare yourself to the carriage drivers who have been driving for over ten years. You learned how to drive a carriage in case there were no drivers available. That was enough.”

“….”

“My lord~! Please help set up this side of the tent~!”

“Alright, I’m coming! …You must be tired, Lillis, so rest in the carriage for now.”

“…Yes, Lord Edan.”

After watching Edan and Isabelle set up the second tent, I followed his instructions and went into the carriage to rest for a while.

I woke up from my nap two hours later, drawn by the smell of stew.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

“Ah, ugh….”

“Eat slowly, Lillis. The stew isn’t going anywhere.”

“Yes, Lord Edan.”

“Lillis, have you rested enough? You’re not a carriage driver, so don’t push yourself too hard.”

“Yes. I slept well, so don’t worry about me.”

I truly felt like I had slept deeply. My last memory was sitting briefly on the carriage seat, but when I came to, I was lying on the seat, drooling in my sleep.

It seemed that the fatigue of driving the carriage for nearly nine hours had accumulated significantly.

Moreover, driving the carriage and sitting on the carriage seat were not the same, so the fatigue was naturally much more intense, multiplied several times over.

Facing the headwind and eye strain, the slightly creaky wooden bench in the carriage, and the mental fatigue from focusing on the speed of the horses and fatigue, were probably the reasons for the tiredness of the body.

Still, Isabel’s chicken and vegetable stew and freshly baked bread somehow managed to shake off the fatigue.

Among the simple belongings, Isabel’s skill in creating such a meal with gathered ingredients was truly appreciated at times like this.

“I’m grateful that Isabel is here at times like this. I have no talent in cooking.”

“Since you are the son of the Blackwood family’s master, it’s natural to think that you have no talent!”

“But I can’t ask the tired Relis to cook just because of carriage driving. Besides, Relis’s cooking is more like… ah.”

“…How was my cooking, Lord Ethan?”

“…Oh, it was nothing, Relis.”

Why start speaking and then stop? If you have something to say, say it all the way.

Ethan ended the conversation in a subtly dismissive manner, as if he intentionally avoided further questions and focused more on the meal.

I, too, focused on the food in front of me without further probing for the sake of recovering my strength.

Tomorrow, I will have to drive the carriage for several hours as soon as I wake up in the morning and head towards the Blackwood territory, so replenishing my energy was essential.

“If you gather all the lies in one place, I will clean them up in one go later.”

“Yes! I’ll leave it to you, Relis.”

“After finishing the meal, we should set up security measures around and take turns sleeping. Do both of you know how to keep watch?”

“Oh, no… I have no experience…”

“I do, Lord Ethan. I have actual experience.”

“You do?”

…Oh no, here comes another excuse.

“I’m talking about taking turns keeping watch against monsters in my hometown when I was young. Slime monsters often came down to the village during the rainy season.”

“Oh, I see.”

“I thought only Relis had experience, so I thought I had missed something in my maid duties…”

Fortunately, both of them were naive and didn’t delve deeper into questioning, which was a relief.

I’ve been trying not to make mistakes recently, but today, I’m a little tired, so my vigilance has loosened a bit.

“I’ll take the first watch since I just had some rest.”

“I’ll take the middle watch, and Isabel can take the morning watch and prepare breakfast around dawn.”

“Yes, my lord!”

“Today, we should be prepared just in case, but there probably won’t be any trouble. It’s unlikely that thieves will suddenly appear in such an open place.”

…Oh.

This feels like a flag for something.