The carriage traveled for an entire day before finally descending from the mountain road.
Our short journey down the mountain had been almost uninterrupted, apart from a single rest stop.
The arduous trip along narrow mountain paths, barely wide enough for two carriages to pass each other, finally came to an end when a village appeared in the distance.
This carriage journey had given me a firsthand appreciation of just how deep in the mountains the Frah Territory, where I had been born, was situated.
At the same time, I had gained an indirect understanding of just how powerful the temptation of owning one's own land could be, considering how many people were willing to travel all the way there despite the difficulties.
“Ugh! We've finally reached somewhere spacious! Carriages are certainly convenient, but sitting in one for hours on end really makes your whole body stiff.”
“Thank you for all your hard work, Mr. Coachman.”
“Not at all, Young Master. As a servant who earns his living in the service of your family, how could I possibly consider this a hardship?”
When we reached the village entrance, I thanked the coachman and attempted to offer him a gratuity, but he firmly refused with a wave of his hand.
Instead, he promptly turned the carriage around, lifted his hat, and bid us farewell.
“Listening to the conversations between you two has been quite an education for these old ears of mine. Thanks to you, I reached our destination without a moment of boredom. I have you both to thank for that.”
“What?! You've been secretly eavesdropping on us the whole time?!”
“Haha! Please forgive an old man for indulging in one of the few small pleasures available to him while driving a carriage. Well then, I shall pray from afar that both the esteemed Mage and the Young Master enjoy a smooth journey ahead.”
“Tch! Shouldn't I be the one receiving money? Do you have any idea how valuable my knowledge is?!”
“Thank you again for your hard work.”
The coachman glanced at the grumbling mage and at me as I bowed beside her. Then he drove away, disappearing down the road with his carriage.
RATTLE, RATTLE, RATTLE.
Once the carriage had traveled far enough that we could no longer hear its wheels rumbling against the dirt road, we turned toward each other.
“Shall we head into the village and get some rest first? This village serves as a gateway to our territory, so there should be an inn.”
“Shall we? After sitting on a hard seat all day, I wouldn't mind lying down on a soft bed. Besides, it's almost dark. Let's set out early tomorrow morning.”
“All right.”
Having settled our plans, we walked toward the guards stationed at the village entrance.
There were five or six people waiting in line, but the moment they saw the clothes I was wearing, they simply bowed and stepped aside to let us pass.
Not a single person objected when we moved ahead without waiting our turn.
“Those expensive clothes of yours certainly do an excellent job of proving your status, don't they? You'd never see something like this in the Imperial Capital.”
“That's because the only people around here who can afford clothes as luxurious as mine are nobles. My clothing serves as a kind of identification… And so does my pale skin, since I don't have to work outdoors.”
“Oh-ho.”
Bell Daisy gave me an intrigued look, studying me from head to toe.
Coming from the Imperial Capital, she apparently found it fascinating that someone could announce his noble status to everyone around him without saying a single word, simply through his appearance.
“I suppose you're not accustomed to seeing things like this?”
“In the Imperial Capital, commoners and nobles alike dress well and live comfortably. It's difficult to distinguish them by appearance alone. There are quite a few commoners who eat better and live more comfortably than the nobility.”
“I see.”
Something like the gentry class, perhaps?
People who ranked below the nobility but had nevertheless achieved considerable social success.
Judging by what she had told me, the Imperial Capital seemed to be at least a century ahead of this region in terms of culture and society, just as I had read in the newspapers.
While the territory where I had been born resembled the Middle Ages, the Imperial Capital she described sounded like somewhere that had already reached the Industrial Revolution.
Was it because this was a fantasy world that such extreme differences existed between regions?
“Please halt. This is Grand House, a settlement belonging to Baron Burkin. State your identities.”
“Hello. I'm Bell Daisy, dispatched from the Imperial Capital.”
The mage greeted the guards blocking our path and produced a small identification plaque from inside her clothing.
The plaque was made of luxurious-looking black wood, with an intricate name and inscription engraved in gold.
-Bell Daisy, Certified Mage of Academia.
Beneath her name was an imposing image of a great tree with nine branches, apparently some kind of emblem.
The guard looked startled at the sight of an identification plaque he rarely had occasion to see.
He glanced back and forth between the mage and me.
“Y-you've come from the Imperial Capital? May I ask what brings you here…?”
Feeling a little sorry for the visibly intimidated guard, I spoke up while Bell Daisy remained silent beside me.
“It's getting late, so would it be possible for us to rest here? We'll be departing around dawn tomorrow, which means we probably won't have an opportunity to pay our respects to Baron Burkin, the lord of this territory.”
“Ah! Understood. Please make yourselves comfortable and enjoy your stay.”
The guard's face brightened at my words, and he politely stepped aside to clear the entrance.
Thus, under the curious gazes of the people around us, we quietly entered the village.
“…What sort of magic did you just use? Normally, the guards get all flustered and tell me to wait while they summon someone of higher rank. I was expecting the same thing to happen here.”
“Baron Burkin, the lord of this place, probably isn't here at the moment. That's why the guard looked so troubled. So I simply explained our purpose and told him exactly when we intended to leave. In other words, we have no intention of meeting Baron Burkin, and since we'll be leaving at dawn anyway, we won't be able to meet him even if he rushes back now. Once the guard knows all that, he has no reason to fear being reprimanded, and we don't have to waste our time. It's beneficial for both sides, isn't it? Just a simple matter of phrasing things properly.”
“Ooh! Is that because you're a noble? You managed to untangle such a complicated situation with just a few words!”
The mage examined me with renewed interest, as though seeing me in a different light.
I could only offer an embarrassed, wry smile in response.
We continued along the broad main road running through the village until we reached its central square.
Near the square, we spotted an inn with a steady stream of people coming and going.
“…I suppose this is the place. The inn's called the Cheese Hole? What kind of name is that?”
“There should be a large farm nearby where cattle are raised on open pastures. They deliver dairy products to our territory every month, too. Perhaps they named the inn after the village's local specialty?”
“Good grief. The countryside. No sense of style whatsoever.”
“Haha.”
I led the grumbling mage into the inn, which had a sign bearing the words Cheese Hole.
JINGLE!
Perhaps because this was a fairly large village, even the inn had a little bell attached to its door to alert the owner whenever a customer entered.
Bells and similar items were rather expensive, so the fact that they could afford to install one was an indirect indication of just how prosperous this establishment was.
“Welcome! Thank you for visiting the Cheese Hole Inn.”
As we entered, a young girl standing behind the counter greeted us.
Surely they wouldn't employ a girl that young as a regular worker, so perhaps she was the innkeeper's daughter?
“Will it be just the two of you?”
“Ah, yes. Do you happen to have any rooms available?”
“Oh! You're an honored guest! Welcome to our humble inn.”
Had someone tipped her off about us?
As soon as she heard my answer, the girl bowed deeply, displaying the utmost courtesy.
It was the most respectful form of greeting commoners offered to nobles.
I quickly waved my hands and urged her to straighten up.
As someone who still possessed the mindset of a modern person, I found it terribly uncomfortable whenever people treated me this way simply because I had been born a noble.
It almost made me feel as though I were someone important when I hadn't done anything to deserve it.
After all, I hadn't become a noble through any achievement of my own.
“Please stand up. You don't have to observe such formalities with us. Just act naturally.”
“…Really? But my father told me that I must always greet nobles this way…”
“You don't have to do that with us. We'd much rather get into a room where we can rest and recover from our journey than concern ourselves with empty formalities.”
“Oh! Understood.”
Had my words gotten through to her?
The girl nodded and straightened her back.
“So, do you have any rooms left?”
“Let's see. Right now, we have one sixteen-person room and two eight-person rooms. All the four-person and single rooms are taken… And we only have one double room left. What would you like to do?”
“Hmm. So all the single rooms are occupied.”
“Yes. A lot of important guests and their attendants came here because of the hunting tournament being hosted by Baron Burkin, the lord of our territory. That's why we don't have many rooms left.”
After listening to the girl's explanation, I turned toward Bell Daisy, who had been staring intently at me.
“What should we do? Shall we try somewhere else?”
“Just so you know, the other inns are probably in a similar situation. And that last double room only became available a little while ago, so if you leave now, someone else will probably—”
“That's enough. We'll take the double room, young lady.”
“What?”
I couldn't help blurting out the question as I turned to stare at her.
Seeing my expression, she gave me a playful smile.
“Why? Were you hoping to fulfill your noble duties with me?”
“No, that's not what I meant, but still—”
“Then there's no problem. I'll pay for the room, so surely we can share a double room for one night, can't we? Or is there a young lady you've already set your heart on?”
“…No.”
“Then there's nothing to worry about.”
With a faint, amused smile, she walked past me while I stood there dumbfounded, handed the girl the money, and collected the room key.
JINGLE!
For some reason, the sound of the key jingling in her hand seemed unusually loud.