—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Just as I had predicted, the journey to the Raednin Resort was uneventful.
The road was well-maintained, and beastmen soldiers patrolled it frequently.
With their superior sense of smell and keen awareness, the beastmen soldiers made it difficult for monsters, thieves, or bandits to approach.
Furthermore, the campsites along the road were also guarded by soldiers, so there were no particular problems.
“Ugh… my ears…”
One of the Lily Knights groaned, rubbing her ears.
With those two in the party, this level of damage was to be expected.
The knight, who had been constantly bombarded by Wilkers’ chatter and Lark’s bizarre humming, sighed and pulled out some dry rations. It seemed she was preparing for dinner.
“I’ll take care of that.”
“You, Mr. Sage? But.”
“It’s fine. You’ve all had a rough time, haven’t you?”
Of course, the hardship wasn’t from the escort duty itself.
Lucille and I had simply meditated in the carriage, and Veronica had prayed, so we had been spared the noise. The same couldn’t be said for the Lily Knights.
A few of them were already glaring daggers at the still-chattering Wilkers and Lark.
“Please, just shut up…”
“Ah, speaking of shutting up, that reminds me of something that happened when I was a shaman in Rokeidon! At that time…”
If a simple “shut up” was enough to silence him, Wilkers wouldn’t be one of the top-tier trolls I acknowledged. I called over to the Lily Knights, who were trapped within earshot due to their escort duties.
“You should all rest while we’re at the campsite.”
“Yes?”
“I said, get some rest!”
“Ah, yes. Th- Thank you.”
Even the captain of the escort seemed to have reached her limit. Though she couldn’t say it, her stress level must have been through the roof.
As she led the exhausted-looking knights to a spot further away, I looked at Wilkers.
“Hey, could you quiet down a bit?”
“Hehe, but it’s boring when it’s too quiet. Besides, my words are a form of word-magic, so they have the effect of reducing monster appearances, warding off danger, and increasing luck. You know that, Mr. Sage. And you can use it too. So how about we talk some more? Huh? Is that a Roten Carrot? Seeing you with ingredients, it seems you’re preparing dinner tonight, Mr. Sage. Wow! Is it stew? I love stew. Oh, speaking of stew, that reminds me of something that happened when I was in Roen…”
What an A-rank troll! He just wouldn’t listen! I sighed, watching the chattering Wilkers.
I’d almost prefer it if something did happen.
At least Lark had quieted down, saying he had a new musical idea, but Wilkers just kept on talking.
I let his words go in one ear and out the other as I lit the campfire. As I was pouring water into a pot and chopping ingredients, Veronica, having finished her prayers, emerged from the carriage.
“Are you making dinner?”
“Yes.”
“Need any help?”
“No, you should rest too. Or go and pray some more.”
“I’ve prayed enough.”
Veronica sat down near me with a slight smirk. She turned her head, looking at Wilkers with admiration.
“But Wilkers, you really can talk. Doesn’t your throat hurt?”
“Well, there’s a method to this word-magic. It’s a traditional method passed down in my village. Since wolf beastmen have a howling trait, if you combine it…”
As he spewed unsolicited information, Veronica smiled faintly. Just then, Lucille, having finished her meditation, came out. I called out to Wilkers.
“Hey, Wilkers.”
“Yes?”
“How about a duel with Lucille? You’re participating in the tournament, right? You should practice.”
“Oh! That’s a great idea! Your Highness, would you care for a duel?”
“Ugh. O- Okay! I won’t lose!”
“Heheh! You’re no match for me!”
As expected of a card game addict, he immediately stopped talking at the mention of a duel.
A moment later, they started shuffling their cards, and the volume of Wilkers’ chatter decreased. But he hadn’t stopped talking completely, so Lucille was smiling awkwardly, a bead of sweat on her forehead.
If she weren’t a princess, she probably would have cursed him out.
Using mental attacks during a duel was a dirty trick.
He should just play fair.
But even if he did play fair, I wasn’t sure if Lucille could win…
“What a way to start a vacation.”
“Hahaha, well, you win some, you lose some, right?”
“Hmph. Are you going to chop that?”
“I told you I can handle it. You should rest too.”
Veronica, who had been hovering nearby, ready to snatch the knife from my hand, pouted. But it was no use.
With things finally quiet, I continued to cook the stew. The Lily Knights returned, having finished preparing for the night and fetching water. After a while, dinner was ready.
“I made plenty, so come and eat. Don’t just stand there drooling.”
“Huh? Thank you!”
Beastmen have a keen sense of smell. The soldiers guarding the campsite had been glancing at my stew for a while now.
It must have been torture for them to eat dry rations while smelling something so delicious.
Sharing was a virtue on a journey like this. And it wasn’t like we were short on food.
So, I called them over. The dog-like beastmen approached, smiling sheepishly.
“Well then, we’ll gladly accept.”
“It smelled amazing. Ah, um… miss, thank you for the meal.”
“You should thank my Tutor, not me.”
“Aren’t you the highest-ranking person here, miss?”
“No, that would be my Tutor.”
Lucille smiled brightly and pointed at me. The soldiers tilted their heads.
“Don’t high-ranking humans usually not lift a finger?”
“That’s right. The human lord who came by a few days ago didn’t do anything. We even had to feed him.”
That was generally true, but I was different. As I shrugged, a soldier took a spoonful of stew and shuddered.
“Mmm~ this is amazing. Ah, are you perhaps a chef invited by Raednin?”
“Not really. Invited?”
“They were recruiting chefs in Raednin a while ago. Apparently, some troublesome guests are coming.”
“Do you know who?”
I asked casually as I handed him a piece of bread, but the soldiers didn’t answer. As soldiers of Raednin, information about the guests was confidential.
“Still, to have to recruit chefs, they must be quite high-ranking.”
High-ranking or not, they were probably someone I knew. I had met most of the high-ranking officials during the main storyline.
I looked at Lucille. She, who had been blowing on her stew, blinked, then smiled brightly.
“It’s delicious!”
“Is it? I’m glad.”
“You’re good at everything, Tutor, even cooking. There’s so much I need to learn from you.”
“You don’t need to learn everything I know. Just what you need.”
“But… I want to become a Sage too.”
“Haha, that’s impossible.”
“Aww. But why were you looking at me?”
“No reason.”
I was just wondering who among the human nobles could be considered a person of power.
Besides the kingdom, there were a few other countries on the continent. The most powerful among them was the kingdom, and the second most powerful was the duchy.
Perhaps the guests were from there.
Well, that wasn’t my problem.
“It’s not the Church. As far as I know, anyone with the rank of cardinal or higher has to remain at the Church for the time being, due to the Elven Forest incident.”
Is that so? I nodded and focused on my meal.
Let’s just enjoy a normal vacation this time.
As the cheerful atmosphere continued, Lark, having finished his stew, stood up with his lute.
“Alright! Now that I’ve had a delicious dinner, tonight I will perform a spectacular piece based on a musical idea I had earlier…”
Don’t you dare.
You can just have a duel with me later.
Normally, we would have all had to camp outside, but perhaps because I had treated them to dinner, the soldiers were very hospitable. They even offered to let Lucille and Veronica sleep in their barracks.
Thanks to that, we had a comfortable night’s sleep and were able to set off the next day without any penalties. By the evening, we had arrived at Raednin Mountain.
“Wooooow…”
In the past, there was a powerful divine bird called Raednin, who was covered in snow and ice.
A cold but warm bird that brought winter, a time of rest for the coming spring. He had left his shed skin here, calming an erupting volcano, then disappeared to the other side of the world.
His long, beautiful neck and head became a mountain peak that pierced the clouds, and his wide wings, which had covered the sky, became a cold, snowy mist that trapped the heat of the region.
His massive body had shattered, covering the mountain, which had been stained with fire and violence, and allowing life to take root.
This was the legend of Raednin, the creator of the avia-folk, their great father.
“Wow… so that’s the story.”
“You didn’t know?”
“How would I know the legends of the avia-folk?”
It seemed Veronica wasn’t the only one. Lucille, the Lily Knights, Wilkers, and Lark didn’t know either.
Hmm, it was something you learned while completing achievements, so I had assumed everyone knew. Well, if they didn’t know, they didn’t know.
“So that’s why it’s so beautiful.”
“That’s right.”
Raednin was a mountain where summer and winter coexisted. As you climbed, you could enjoy the pure white snow and ice, and as you descended, you could enjoy the warmth of the resort.
The massive mansion on the mountainside was a renowned resort, situated in the middle of it all.
With seafood from the emerald sea behind the mountain, resources from Raednin Mountain, and excellent ingredients from all over the continent, the Raednin Resort was also famous for being a place where you could taste all the best food the continent had to offer.
I explained what I knew to everyone. Wilkers’ eyes sparkled with admiration.
“Hehe, another story to tell.”
…A moment of silence for those who would have to listen to his stories in the future.
“As expected of the Sage.”
Just then, a low, pleasant voice came from above. Everyone looked up. A massive eagle beastman, with impressive, deep blue feathers, was descending.
“To think you know all that.”
“Bermund.”
The blue-winged eagle beastman landed gracefully, moved his beak slightly, and held out a wing.
Lucille tilted her head, puzzled. I took his wing.
“It’s been a while.”
“It has. I asked you to visit so many times, but you always ignored me. And now you’re here? Seriously.”
He grumbled, then looked at Lucille and Veronica, puzzled. Veronica made the sign of the cross and said,
“Cardinal Veronica of the Church. The Sage’s best friend.”
“A pleasure to meet you. I am Bermund Raednin, leader of the avia-folk and owner of Raednin. A friend of the Sage is a friend of mine, so please, speak comfortably.”
“I- I’m Lucille, my Tutor’s one and only student!”
“A student of the Sage is a student of mine as well.”
Then you should teach her for me, you bastard. Don’t try to get a free ride…
Wilkers raised his hand at his sly grin.
“I’m Wilkers, an adventurer and a companion of the Sage, though not the closest!”
“I’m Lark, and we’ll be performing together soon.”
“Hmm… I see.”
Bermund touched his face with a wing, then tilted his head.
“But where’s the Hero… and Evangeline?”
Why was he asking about them?
“Wait a minute. You mentioned Lady Claire and Lady Evangeline… but why didn’t you ask about Lady Leventia?”
At Lucille’s question, Bermund replied nonchalantly.
“Because Leventia arrived in Raednin yesterday.”
I fell silent. Bermund continued.
“With her cousin, the Princess-Monarch Cecil Claudia.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
