About half a day after we set out.
Our journey had been quite peaceful.
Thanks to the addition of a second carriage, we could divide up the luggage, and that meant the people could ride with more room as well.
Compared to the days when we had been hunched over and crammed inside a cramped carriage, this was practically a luxury.
Perhaps because of that, Baldik had stretched out his small body spread-eagled and was lying on the carriage floor, sleeping the entire day away.
‘…He’s a patient, so I suppose I should be understanding.’
There was nothing urgent at the moment, so there was no reason to wake him.
I was staring blankly at Baldik like that when—
For some reason, as if he had sensed my gaze, he slowly opened his eyes.
Feeling awkward, I struck up a conversation.
“If we go a little farther down from here, we’ll reach the area near the border, right?”
Baldik rubbed his eyes as if wiping away sleep and mumbled.
“Ugh… Yeah. It’s been a while for me too, so my memory’s a bit hazy.”
At Baldik’s words, I recalled the geography of this world that I had heard from Ranson.
The Kingdom of Luendel, where I was, was a country located on the southwestern side of the central continent, on the outskirts bordering the sea.
Thanks to its peninsula terrain, surrounded by the sea on three sides, it had an advantage in defense, but it also gave off a strong impression of being an isolated kingdom.
In reality, it had little exchange with other countries, and its people were generally conservative by nature.
Outsiders from other regions were often met with suspicion, and beings like mages went without saying.
To the northeast of Luendel, past gentle hills, there was a land route that followed a relatively flat road and connected to the central continent.
If one followed that road, they would eventually enter the sphere of influence of the Barsa Empire.
The Barsa Empire sat squarely at the center of the map, truly an existence that could be called the heart of the continent.
A superpower lacking nothing in politics, military power, culture, or economy.
Most of the central continent fell within its sphere of influence, and it was no exaggeration to say that disputes and wars between nations were effectively decided according to how this empire viewed them.
And the Kingdom of Gradran, where we were headed, was located in the south of the map, on a peninsula stretching toward the southern sea like the roots of the continent.
The problem was that there was no direct land route connecting Luendel and Gradran.
One had to travel northeast along the central continent, then either pass through the southern coast of the Barsa Empire or go through a port and cross the sea.
“Why does a war have to break out in a place like that…”
A sigh escaped me on its own.
Perhaps because Gradran was in an awkward location attached to the southern end of the central continent, there had apparently been frequent border disputes with the Barsa Empire even in the past.
And according to Ranson, there were clashes happening near the border region even now…
In other words, we couldn’t go by land.
In the end, there was only one option: the sea route.
But even that was not a simple matter.
The place we had to go was called a border city, but in reality, it was a rather special location that did not even suit the word “city.”
Because it was an island.
An isolated island between Luendel and Gradran, “Kron.”
On the map, it was little more than a single small dot, but it was both an outpost and a border passage where both countries conducted entry inspections and military checks.
What made this island unique was that its territory was divided exactly in half.
The western half belonged to Luendel, and the eastern half to Gradran.
And between them stood a joint gateway zone shaped like a coastal fortress.
Thanks to that, I was going to have a sea voyage I had never asked for.
Seriously, this world never gives me an easy path even once.
After staring for a long while at the sea route marked in red on one corner of the map, I quietly folded it away.
‘Still, what can I do? I have to go in the end.’
But in this barbaric world that felt like the Middle Ages, how could such accurate geographical information spread?
Curious all of a sudden, I carefully asked Sailon, who was sitting on the saddle.
The answer that came back was surprisingly simple.
“There was an adventurer long ago. A rather unusual person who wandered even into dangerous places without hesitation. Most of the geography we know now is thanks to him.”
‘…Hm? I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere.’
A sense of déjà vu passed through me. I definitely remembered hearing it before.
When was it… Ah, right.
“You mean Kaltzheim?”
At my words, Sailon nodded.
Kaltzheim, the god of adventure and exploration.
When I entered the Black Forest, I had heard a story from a priest of the Kaltzheim Order.
They said he was a human who had engaged in adventures almost bordering on eccentricity and, after death, came to be treated as a god.
Since the priest had told me the story directly, it had left quite a strong impression on me.
‘Even if he’s only half a god, a god is still a god, I suppose. His influence is something else.’
But Sailon’s attitude was less like he was speaking of a god,
and more like he was talking about some famous adventurer.
“Is that person really treated as a god?”
Sailon nodded as if it were nothing special.
“There aren’t as many people as you’d think who acknowledge him as a ‘god.’”
“Why?”
“Well, he was originally human.”
“…That is what I heard.”
“It’s true that he was an incredible person, but that’s why formal churches like the Church of Sereon barely acknowledge him. There are actually priests, and they do carry out church activities, but… most people just see them as devout adventurers.”
In the end, the Kaltzheim Order was a non-mainstream group that was not recognized among the other churches.
‘Even gods are territorial, huh.’
That was about all I thought of it.
***
Less than a day after we began our journey, we were able to meet some welcome guests for the first time in a while.
And very familiar faces at that.
“I think goblins are following us.”
“…Goblins?”
At Chad’s calm words, Baldik, who had been dozing, rubbed his eyes and asked back.
If Korean roads had water deer, then this harsh otherworld had goblins and bandits.
That was how often they were encountered, and in their own way, they were threats.
“Are they just following us?”
“Yeah. For now, it feels like they’re sizing us up.”
I couldn’t see anything, but I was familiar with the way those things moved in groups and hid themselves.
They were definitely somewhere nearby.
Still, if there was one fortunate thing, it was that this time our party consisted of six armed adult men.
In the past, we would already have been attacked by now, but it seemed even the goblins couldn’t recklessly rush at us this time.
“How many are there?”
“How would I know that?”
Chad shrugged and answered calmly.
At those words, I drew mana up to my eyes.
Leaving Chad’s small exclamation of admiration behind, I converted the gathered mana into magic.
[Blue Eye]
Beyond my vision dyed like dark blue mist, small figures were clustered together, following the rear of the carriage.
Roughly six of them.
No wonder they hadn’t attacked. There weren’t many.
The goblins caught within my detection range were all of them.
After quickly finishing my search, I turned to my companions and spoke.
“Six goblins. Fortunately, it doesn’t look like there are any more around.”
“What should we do? Leave them alone?”
Sailon said, placing his hand over the reins.
It probably meant he was ready to stop and fight at any time.
“Let’s keep watching. Tell Ranson’s group behind us too.”
I stroked my staff and steadied my tension inwardly.
We all knew there was no way they would just let us pass easily.
***
Until evening approached that day, the goblins merely continued to tail us.
They didn’t attack or approach, only followed at a fixed distance.
It got to the point where we were the ones feeling frustrated.
Wondering whether they were planning some kind of drive hunt, there had even been opinions that we should attack first along the way.
“Let’s just strike first and break through. It’s bothering me that they keep following us like that.”
Sailon said so while stroking the hilt of his sword.
Ranson, apparently uneasy as well, nodded beside him and agreed with Sailon.
“But even if we attack head-on, we don’t know what’s behind them.”
Baldik cleared his throat once, then put his hands on his waist and said,
“Better to wait until it gets dark. Whether they’re goblins or whatever else, nighttime is when they’ll move anyway.”
Even as this conversation continued, Chad was merely leaning against the carriage and sleeping.
That guy was the one who noticed them, yet he sleeps just fine even in this situation.
“But if it really is a drive hunt, wouldn’t that be bad? What if we’re walking into a trap… We should at least consider that side too—”
“That’s why we need to be even more careful.”
I continued.
“If we move clumsily and end up getting lured into the forest instead, things will get troublesome. Let’s keep going to the campsite like this and only track their movements.”
Sailon bit his lip slightly and nodded.
“…Yes.”
And so, without doing anything, we continued being tailed until the sun set.
The sun went down, and we quietly set up camp.
As the campfire crackled, the gazes of the group naturally gathered on me.
No one asked, but everyone was thinking the same thing.
I let out a sigh and once again drew up my mana.
[Blue Eye]
My dark blue vision opened as if unfurling through the darkness.
The goblins I had seen earlier were still hiding behind the bushes, secretly observing us.
Their movements were cautious, and they were keeping their distance.
It clearly gave the feeling that they were “tailing” us.
Rustle, rustle.
Other than that, only a few small animals resembling mountain rabbits were burrowing into the grass.
There were no new movements or reinforcements.
“They really do seem to be just tailing us. I don’t see any additional ones.”
At my words, Baldik grumbled from across the campfire.
“Yeah? Were they just stupid goblins, then?”
…That might be the case.
Honestly, maybe I had been expecting too intelligent a movement from goblins to begin with.
But as someone who had once seen a goblin king, I couldn’t help but vaguely expect that they might have some plausible strategy.
“Shall we take care of them before going to sleep?”
“Yeah. Let’s deal with them quickly.”
Sailon must have found the goblins extremely irritating, because his eyes were practically blazing.
Normally, he would have already taken a step back, but for some reason, this time he looked ready to step forward on his own.
‘That guy really is a classic bully to the weak and coward before the strong.’
When facing an opponent even slightly stronger, he shut his mouth and thought about running first, but at times like this, he was overflowing with enthusiasm.
In a way, he was a very typical mercenary.
After roughly finishing dinner, we maintained our weapons and began a meeting on how to crush those things.
…No, calling it a meeting was a bit much.
Most of the opinions were mine, Sailon merely nodded, Baldik silently drank, and Chad kept chewing on bread the whole time.
At least Ranson and the servant listened diligently.
“Didn’t you say that earlier?”
“The situation is different from earlier.”
“Still, say it again. I was swallowing soup and didn’t hear you.”
…This was less a meeting and almost closer to a monologue.
After roughly finishing that not-quite-a-meeting, just as we were about to get up and give those things a lesson—
Kieek!
A sharp cry burst out from beyond the bushes.
The group’s attention snapped toward it.
“What was that?”
I thought it might be the goblins trying to ambush us, but it wasn’t.
Surprisingly, there was something else that had ambushed the goblins first.
“…That’s.”
Before the words even ended, the scene unfolding before my eyes seized my attention.
A single green vine stretched long beneath a tree.
At first, I thought it was just an ordinary tree vine.
But there was a problem.
It was too thick.
Thicker than an adult’s forearm, and its surface was slick with moisture.
Slowly, slowly, the vine wrapped around a goblin that was terrified stiff.
Kieeeek!
Whoosh. It pulled the goblin in just like that, swallowing it into the darkness behind the tree.
“…Did you just see that?”
When I asked, Sailon gave a short nod.
Chad was still chewing on something, and Baldik set down his cup and stood up.
“That thing just now wasn’t a vine, was it?”
“…”
‘There’s too much in this world that I don’t know.’
Thinking that inwardly, I drew mana to my fingertips.
This opponent might be more troublesome than goblins.
Tense, I was about to approach the bushes when Chad opened his mouth.
“It’s a vine snake.”
“A vine snake?”
When Chad, who had been eating, muttered that, everyone turned their heads.
“Is it a monster you know?”
Sailon asked, and I naturally looked at Chad.
But Chad shook his head.
“It’s not a monster either. Just a snake. It just ate those goblins, so it won’t even look our way for a while.”
“Ooh…”
Everyone seemed slightly impressed.
I hadn’t expected Chad to put on such a knowing air about anything.
Without realizing it, I looked at him again with new eyes.
‘But… that’s less like a knight and more like something an adventurer or mercenary would know, isn’t it?’
“Then is it all right to leave it alone?”
“Yeah. Those things don’t usually go after ordinary humans. Most people won’t even fit in their mouths to begin with, and catching them is a bother.”
As Chad said that, he subtly turned his head toward Baldik and added one more thing.
“…Ah, but they do go after children pretty often. I guess we just need to keep an eye on this little friend here?”
“What!?”
Baldik nearly sprang to his feet, then seemed to remember that Chad was a knight and quickly forced himself to calm down.
Instead, he downed his drink with enough force to chew through the cup.
Chad watched him and laughed for quite a while.
…That man’s personality isn’t exactly ordinary either.
Only then did I relax and return to my seat.
And as if to prove his words, no further sounds came from beyond the bushes.
“How do you know so much about that?”
For a knight, the man was strangely well-informed about monsters.
I had heard that he had worked as a mercenary before, but I had never heard the details.
“I told you I used to do mercenary work. I call it mercenary work, but… most of it was hunting things like that.”
Ah, I remembered what he’d said when we first met.
He had definitely said he was a “specialist in hunting monsters.”
“But why did you only do that kind of work? You were a knight, weren’t you?”
At Sairun’s question, Chad answered calmly.
“I was a knight. Still am.”
“Then…?”
“To be precise, I only worked under a domain twice. I did join a few places in between, but I never lasted long.”
Chad lifted the visor of his helmet and tapped at its edge with his fingernail.
“…Most of the time, I got kicked out.”
“Why?
Judging by how you dealt with that monster back then, you seem more than skilled enough.”
Sairun tilted his head in earnest.
None of us had seen him fight directly, but just looking at the corpse that had fallen alongside the tentacled monster back then was enough to tell that he was no ordinary person.
“Back then, there were… some bad rumors going around about me. Of course, that wasn’t the only reason.”
“Bad rumors…”
Was he talking about the cannibal knight story?
If it was something like that, then being kicked out made sense.
But with a rumor like that, they wouldn’t have hired him in the first place.
“Then what was the real reason?”
Without even turning his head, Chad spat out the answer.
“…Food expenses.”
“Pardon?”
At those words, all of us felt as if question marks had popped up over our heads.
“Hah. Because of the restrictions on my damned relic, my food expenses were enormous. They couldn’t handle it and threw me out.”
“Ah…”
Everyone let out a sighing groan.
In the end, it meant he had been kicked out for eating too much.
Only Ranson’s eyes sparkled at the mention of a relic as he stared at the helmet.
“Then the reason you went around hunting monsters was…”
Sairun asked in a hollow voice.
“Because… I could take care of the job and the meal at the same time.”
Chad, spoon in hand, scratched under his chin.
“Then… how did you end up working again? Did you find a wealthy family?”
“Mm…”
Chad fell silent for a moment, as if thinking.
Come to think of it, he had said he had worked for the family Aileen had been with until recently.
Then… was that household quite rich?
“No, I settled it on the condition that they feed me instead of paying wages.”
“Excuse me?”
Sairun’s voice jumped slightly.
“The family Aileen was with owned the largest wheat-producing land in that region.”
Ahh. So it was a domain with food to spare but money to save.
It was the perfect structure for employing someone like Chad.
Even as he said this, as if to prove it, he had been steadily shoveling soup into his mouth for a while now.
It hadn’t even been a full day since we set out, yet he had already consumed two days’ worth of rations.
Seeing that, Baldik set down the bottle he had been drinking from and began stealthily hiding whatever he could in his pockets.
“How long did you work there?”
“Let’s see… probably about five years as of this year? I joined them right after finishing the mercenary work I mentioned before.”
Five years.
They kept someone like that fed for five years?
If they had that much food, then they must have been a far more impressive family than I’d thought.
But wait, five years?
Aileen had said she’d known Sir Chad since she was little, hadn’t she?
She said she was nineteen… so five years ago, she would have been fourteen.
That was still young, sure, but calling it “since she was little” felt a bit off.
Something felt strange, so I asked casually.
“Chad, do you happen to know how old Aileen is?”
“Aileen? Hmm…”
Chad seemed to fall into thought for a moment, folding and unfolding his fingers before finally speaking.
“She was ten when I first saw her, I think? Should be.”
“……?”
For a moment, my mind stopped.
If they first met when she was ten, and five years had passed…
…fifteen?
‘Aileen… you deceived me…!’
I had been fooled by the growth rate of Westerners, too.
I didn’t know why she had told such a lie, but… I now needed to put a little distance between myself and Aileen.