“Ah, aaah, I can see it! Isn’t that it!?”
Two days later, at noon, Telaberan’s outer wall came into view.
Spotting it with her eagle eyes, Aira happily stood up on the raft.
“Don’t stand up, you’ll shake the raft.”
Though I chided her, I sighed with relief now that the end of our journey was finally in sight.
Truly all sorts of things. I bet there was no one else in the world who’d been through as much in less than a month.
I looked at my hands, then pinched the front of my sack-dress and peered inside.
Not yet. It didn’t seem like it would be over with just this much, so I had no intention of throwing in the towel either.1
After this.
–
–
Telaberan was a city of considerable size. Almost entirely enclosed by high walls, it was a fortress city, so to speak.
But when the population grew to the tens of thousands, the nation, per standard operating procedure, sent one of those so-called territorial lords to govern the city. Then, construction on the walls began.
Long story short, you might call it a question of appearances.
Before we approached the city, we got off the raft and covered the remaining distance on foot.
There were several different ways of getting inside. For instance, given that it was a port city, one side would naturally face the sea, and it wasn’t like the walls would block off that section. So using the raft to sneak in at night was also a viable option.
Generally speaking, any ordinary city would require an explanation of someone’s identity and business before allowing them in. In other words, inspection.
And currently, we were runaway slaves. Since slavery was pretty much against the law, we might be able to explain ourselves honestly and gain entry without too much trouble.
…Actually, I had the feeling that we’d even be welcomed in and offered shelter.
In that case, wouldn’t that do the trick? Sure, but I’d have to decline.
And I had a somewhat unpleasant premonition.
That being about the current lord of the city, a middle-aged man named Guibenague.
But there was nothing particularly rare about his kind of case.
So even his breed of, well, failure will show up from time to time.
For the citizens in question, it’s an unparalleled pain in the ass, but without any other options, all they can do is give up.
Even if they were to demonstrate some token resistance, they’d just end up imprisoned or banished from the city for life.
Anyway, the city was home to that kind of friendly lordship.
The truth is, slavery is illegal in name only in the upper ranks of society. It’s not uncommon for this lord or that to own slaves.
Rumors that he had many, many slaves.
My gaze flicked over to Aira and Palmira.
If the three of us were brought before the city lord, it wasn’t that hard to imagine all that stuff from before.
Yeah, even for a lifetime.
Of course, maybe I was just overthinking things.
In other words, my aim was to slip through the inspection unnoticed and enter the city.
–
–
Which was more or less what I told the other two.
“…I see.”
Unlike Aira, who was trembling and unable to speak, Palmira nodded.
“That’s so… we’ve come all this way, and we can’t go in…”
Dejected, Aira looked bitterly at the gate.
Sure, I felt exactly the same as Aira. We’d suffered so many brushes with death to make it here, but at the very end, we still had to wait. How frustrating.
As long as we could get into the city, we’d be able to make it somehow.
When I escaped from the slavers’ carriage, I waited too. And I’d just do it again this time.
–
–
“Hey, Chris. What’s that?”
After a while, the sun began to set. I was keeping an eye on the gate when Palmira tugged on my clothes the way she always did.
Wordlessly, I followed Palmira’s pointing finger.
When I looked, it was still too far away for me to recognize it. But within moments, I could clearly make out what was coming down the road.
Soldiers.
Cavalry, infantry, transport wagons.
By my estimate2, there were roughly a hundred of them. Kicking up their legs, they came closer.
They would reach us within moments.
— Use them as cover?
After a moment’s thought, I shook my head.
Still, this was a change. That troop was going to enter the city, no doubt about it, so the moment they were through, maybe we could be able to slip in while the gatekeepers were occupied.
“…For now, let’s wait for them to pass by.”
“…Okay.”
“Got it.”
Each of them nodded in response to my words. It wasn’t satisfying, but that couldn’t be helped.
The soldiers drew closer and closer, passing by our hiding place in the thicket. Their equipment and skill were top-notch. From the crest on their shoulders, they seemed to be part of the Second Imperial Army Corps.
There was no end to my questions. Though they were just one part, they were still regular army. Under ordinary circumstances, they wouldn’t have left the imperial capital that easily.
Anyway, get going, quickly. All I could do was hope that they would.
As the end of the marching ranks approached, the transport wagons followed, bringing up the rear of the procession. They were being escorted by a horseman that was clearly different from the others.
…That’s the commanding officer, right?
Without a helmet, the man’s rich blonde hair was exposed to his surroundings.
So much that I honestly admired it.
Charisma, aura, something like that? 3
— No, that wasn’t all.
There was some sort of uneasiness inside me.
When I looked at him, for some reason, my mind fell into turmoil. For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what it was.
What the hell is it? This sense of discomfort —
I dug around for the reason, my stare fixed on him as if I were possessed. Suddenly, as if he noticed my gaze, the man looked back at me.
“!”
Beside me, Palmira inhaled sharply. It seemed that she’d seen the same thing.
Sure enough, the troops’ apparent commander turned his horse around and approached us.
We’ve been found out? We’ve been found out, right?
Maybe it was a mistake. But he was heading straight for us.
— What do I do? What should I do?
My heart hammered away as sweat trickled down my forehead. All sorts of thoughts flicker through my mind, but in my panic, I couldn’t think straight.
He’s definitely coming here. I’m sure of it.
“…–!”
Next to me in my panic, Palmira let out a small groan.
When I looked at her, she took the knife from my hand and pressed it to her ankle. Her expression was a bit pained. Blood trickled out from between her fingers.
What in the world did she do?
In front of me, as I struggled with my confusion, Palmira threw away the knife and quickly whispered something into Aira’s ear.
My mind couldn’t keep up. In that time, the man had already reached us.
Our eyes met. This time there was no mistaking it, we had obviously been discovered. After an expression of slight surprise, the man approached us.
“What’s wrong, miss?”
A voice addressed us from overhead, as we stayed crouched. A beautiful, gentle voice, completely in line with his appearance. It resonated in my ears. Like so, the man calmly watched us.
What’s with this bastard? He’s too perfect. Even though I cursed him in my heart, what came out of my mouth, contrary to my wishes, was a sigh of relief.
“M–My little sister, she — hurt her leg…”
While I stared blankly at him, fascinated, Aira’s unexpected words reached my ears.
Just like she said, no matter how I looked at it, Aira was the spitting image of a big sister worrying over her injured little sister.
By Palmira’s quick thinking, yes, but also Aira’s instant improvisation.
“…I see. The wound seems shallow, but it certainly is some cause for concern. Would you please wait for a moment?”
Crouching down beside Palmira, the man took a quick look at her injury and rose to his feet. He made each and every movement look good. His figure, his bearing, I couldn’t tear my eyes away.
“Leopard! Leopard! Could you get over here!”
He directed his voice toward the soldiers.
A tough career military man. That was the impression I got.
“What is it, young master?”
‘Young master’?!
He certainly wasn’t your run-of-the-mill gentleman; it showed in his actions. Maybe that came with being a man of high rank.
With his presence, it wouldn’t be the least bit strange.
Glancing at me as I unintentionally stared at him, he smiled gently.
“Ah, this young lady seems to be injured. I was thinking of having her ride in the coach.”
What a good guy. The fact that I’d just inadvertently thought such a thing, terrified me.
I had to wonder if it was some kind of magic. His charm was that strong.
“I see. Of course, if we were to leave a beautiful injured young lady in need, it would be a stain on the honor of our company. Are you going to call the coach?”
“No,”
the man said decisively. He took Palmira, supine, in his arms. The so-called princess carry. Even Palmira was surprised, her eyes widening.
“Leopard, I’ll leave my horse to you. You two, please come with me.”
“Y–Yes.”
With things progressing too quickly, even Aira, who’d been acting her part, trailed after the man with confusion stamped on her face.
A man who mysteriously compels others to trust him: isn’t that dangerous?
Maybe it was perverse of me, but the remaining part of my heart, which had otherwise been won over, grew all the warier.
“Come now, you as well.”
“O–O…kay.”
I remembered Aira and Palmira’s cover story, and despite my uneasiness, I agreed to his urging with an awkward response.
Nonetheless, I no longer had any control over the situation, and so I followed after the man who was briskly walking off with Palmira in his arms.
Plus, as long as we could secure a spot in the coach, we’d be able to enter the city normally. In terms of results, you could say that everything was working out perfectly.
There wasn’t a single reason to refuse.
“By the way, how were you injured?”
“Actually, when we went out to find medicinal herbs, we were chased by a wild boar… We ran away, but my little sister got hurt, and we lost everything we were carrying…”
Aira smoothly fed the man lie after lie in response to his question. She’d been of no help whatsoever until now, and her transformation kind of drew me in.
Still, women are tough, aren’t they?
Footnotes
2. What’s this first half, exactly? 少なく見ても、１００人ほどは居る ↵
3. No idea, please help: もしそうした不確実な物を説明するとしたら、あれがそうだと言えば足る程度に、その男だけが周囲からやけに浮いて見える ↵