Chapter 26: To the north.

“What’s taking so long?”

Yukomis, who had entered the store, glared at me.

“I’m sorry. It’s all adult stuff, so it took a while to find something.”

“…Is that so?”

Yukomis, who surprisingly accepted it without much comment, gave my name to the clerk again.

“Her name is Signa. Signa ‘protected by the Solenas family’. Just know that much.”

“…I understand.”

“If you’re going to mention a patron family to anyone, just say she’s related to the Solenas family. That will be enough to get recognition.”

With those words, Yukomis approached the table and examined the sword I had chosen.

“It’s terrible.”

The first thing that came out was the same impression.

She turned to look at my face for a moment, then pulled the scabbard halfway off.

And she frowned slightly, then closed it again.

“But you’re very good at grasping the subject.”

“Is that a good evaluation?”

She ignored my words and approached the clerk.

“Did you make this?”

“Yes, I did.”

“You still have the blueprints, right?”

“Of course.”

“Look at the blueprints and make a handle and scabbard that match this piece again.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“I’ll leave the form entirely to you and Kotel. It doesn’t need to be ornately decorated, but the workmanship must be perfect, and it must fit the child’s hand size.”

“Of course.”

Yukomis took out a rather large pouch all at once from her arms.

Just by looking at it, there was a considerable amount of money inside.

“There are 30 gold coins. This should be enough for a down payment. I’ll pay the rest when it’s completed.”

“Lady, this is my first work. I can’t receive money…”

“Strictly speaking, the only part of your work she bought was the blade. The rest is just junk that was thrown in, so it can’t be called a ‘work’.”

The clerk bowed his head without being able to refute those words.

“Be sure to tell Kotel that the item you made was delivered to the ducal family. Kotel knows very well what kind of items I prefer.”

“Why is it your taste when I bought it…”

I interjected, but Yukomis suppressed me with a single word.

“I’m paying for it. Can’t you see?”

That was completely right. I had to do what the sponsor wanted.

And when you think about it, Yukomis and I have a strangely similar taste, preferring practical workmanship to ostentatious decorations.

I could just leave it to her.

Leaving behind him kneeling and bowing repeatedly, Yukomis and I left the store.

While returning from the store to the carriage, I asked what I had been worried about.

“But why ‘Signa’? Why did you hide the surname?”

“Because there are a lot of upper-class people coming and going there.”

I could understand the intention just by hearing those words.

“Ah… I see what you mean.”

Kotel was quite a heavy-mouthed person, but there was no guarantee that the young artisan was too.

If he happened to blurt out what had just happened in front of someone who was well-versed in the genealogy of rural families, it could be a problem.

‘Irendel? There’s no young girl in that family?’ Such a reaction could come out.

“Did you understand?”

“Yes. It’s known that the Irendel baronetcy only has Minon and his younger brother. If I, in this form, gave my name as ‘Signo Irendel’, I could be misunderstood as impersonating a noble.”

“That’s right. You’re smart after all.”

Yukomis nodded.

“And if you’re a girl, Signa is a little more natural than Signo.”

“Is that what you really think?”

“Shut up. From now on, when you give your name in front of others, call yourself Signa. Never forget.”

There was no guarantee that I wouldn’t get confused… but oh well.

The pronunciation was similar anyway. I could just insist that they misheard.

“By the way, did you choose that sword?”

Yukomis pointed to the ugly short sword that I was still holding in one hand.

Fortunately, it seemed that she hadn’t seen the scene where I was excitedly raising the temperature inside the store.

“Yes. There was no other choice. That’s the only light one.”

In a way, it was a lie, but it wasn’t a lie either.

I had looked into this and that, but even if I hadn’t, that was the only short sword I could get.

“Come to think of it, Kotel seems to have only been making long swords recently, but the result isn’t that bad.”

“Then do you count the test as passing?”

“I don’t know if it can be said that you got a multiple-choice question with only one choice right… well, I’ll give you about half the points.”

Yukomis looked at my item with a complicated expression.

“I’m the successor of the ducal family. Since you have to travel with me, I’d like you to maintain at least a minimum of dignity. That looks like it was picked up from a back alley.”

“Ah. I didn’t think about that.”

Thinking about it, that was right. There was a big difference between frugality and frivolity.

That staff that Yukomis was carrying… she was mainly using it to hit me now.

For her, that level was probably the bottom line for maintaining dignity. Brass was a moderately expensive metal.

In my past life, I didn’t have to worry about it because I was always given the best items, so I didn’t live with that in mind.

“But since we’re going north now… it’s okay to travel like that for a while from a foreign land. We can hide it in the cloak.”

“Right? They say you should look a little poor when you go on a trip.”

“That’s a story that only applies to rural nobles like you.”

Thwack.

“Ouch…”

“Let’s start now.”

“Start? Aren’t we going back?”

“I said we were going to find Manya.”

…What?

“Did going north mean leaving today?”

“Yeah. I said that.”

“No, the destination is almost on the opposite side of the world, so who would take ‘something came up where we have to go’ as meaning right now?”

I was dumbfounded.

“What about other travel items?”

“I’ve already prepared everything. From your travel clothes to the Wyvern.”

“Yes?”

Was I the only one who didn’t know this?

Did Karat, Aisha, Parnen, and everyone else know?

“When did you do all that…?”

“While you were holed up in the annex.”

“I thought you were going to bother me with all sorts of excuses, like needing a shirt, needing a coat, and having to measure my size again when you brought me into the downtown area… Ouch!”

Thwack.

It hurt.

She wasn’t really giving me the staff.

“Shut up. I already know your size perfectly…”

Yukomis stopped talking.

“The last thing that came to mind was a self-defense sword. Now that I’ve bought your sword, we’re going to the runway right now. The rest of the group is already waiting there.”

“Wh, what?”

She didn’t even care about me, who was gaping.

“Wait a minute. It’s too sudden! Please explain the reason for rushing like this!”

“It’s cold.”

“Hold on a little.”

I deliberately uttered the fact that I knew, Yukomis knew, and Karat also knew.

I was wearing travel clothes made of thick leather over a fur lining, and a robe over that,

but still, chilly cold air was seeping in through the clothes.

Solenas was a region located on the southern coast of the Empire,

and the place we arrived at was the Earldom of Isht.

According to Yukomis, there was also someone ‘to find here’.

Isht wasn’t the northernmost territory, but it was close to the latitude limit where the Wyvern could operate.

From here, we had to travel by land to go further north.

Even though they were magical creatures, the Wyverns that humans had tamed were basically reptiles, so flying north of this territory was not recommended.

The dragons that lived north of this area were only ancient dragons whose size was on a different level from the Wyverns.

‘It’s much colder than I remember… is it because my skin is thin?’

I wish I had a long down jacket.

I had a silly imagination, but there was no way there would be such a thing here.

The three largest Wyverns owned by Solenas had been flying rapidly for several days in formation.

When night fell, we camped out with the equipment loaded on the Wyverns, and the knights riding on the other Wyverns took care of all the necessary chores for the camping.

‘Until recently, you were complaining about hating to sleep with bugs…’

Even though I was wearing a thick windproof robe for flying, the temperature noticeably became colder day by day, and the inside of my ears and nose felt numb.

It was a familiar feeling, but it was also an unfamiliar stimulus to this body.

This was possible because it was a large Wyvern that could fly such a long distance, but it would have been impossible for a small combat Wyvern.

Because the size was small, the rider had to endure the Wyvern’s wings and neck muscles crazily surging up and down as they were.

Including Karat and Yukomis, there were nine people who traveled to Isht.

It was three people per Wyvern.

It was needless to say that a knight was a high-level human resource, but a knight who could drive a Wyvern was a talent that was especially difficult to nurture.

Talent was secondary, but it was not easy to get an education opportunity in the first place because the Wyvern was a very precious livestock.

Being able to mobilize Wyverns and such talents for such private matters was…

It was proving how much status Yukomis and the Solenas family had.

…If I had lived until the end of the war, would I have been able to enjoy the authority of my family a little?’

After arriving in Isht, Yukomis sent two Wyverns and the knights back.

Even if it was one, continuing to use three large Wyverns was quite a burden on the territory.

In the end, the group became just Karat, Yukomis, and me, as before.

While moving by carriage to greet Lord Isht,

I asked Yukomis the question I had wanted to ask all along while riding the Wyvern.

“Come to think of it, where is the Wyvern that Lady Yukomis rode during the war now?”

Only one person could ride it, and it was a combat Wyvern that was much smaller and sleeker than a long-distance flight Wyvern.

I, of course, and Yukomis also had a separate Wyvern that we rode during our days in the Knights.

“Zoo…”

She closed her mouth for a moment and then opened it again.

“In the capital’s Wyvern shelter.”

“Were you going to call it a zoo just now?”

I was dumbfounded.

“……Shut up. You don’t know, but it’s almost a zoo now. Because of His Majesty’s hobby, it has become a place where all kinds of flora and fauna are collected and exhibited after the war.”

I didn’t know that. To think that that old woman had such a hobby.

“But… why is Lady Yukomis’s Wyvern in the Wyvern shelter, not in Solenas?”

When I asked that question, Karat suddenly began to look at Yukomis’s face.

Yukomis also wondered whether she should say this or not, then sighed as if she had given up.

“My sister’s Wyvern is there.”

“Oh, I see… huh???”

“Why are you so surprised?”

“Ah, no. Yes. Ah, I see…”

“The reason is that the Monad is being cared for in the Imperial Palace. But… Sena was quite close to the Monad, so I just left it there and came.”

Monad was the name of my Wyvern, and Sena was the name of Yukomis’s Wyvern.

‘I see… it was the final battle, so I was going to release it, so I took off all the equipment and saddle and went to fight. It didn’t fly into the forest…’

“Sena is my Wyvern, and Monad is my sister’s Wyvern’s name.”

“I see.”

Yukomis added an explanation to the facts she already knew, but I just nodded.

The thought that I might see it again someday made me feel a little choked up inside.

It was a very smart guy.

So much that I sometimes wondered if it understood human words.

It was usually docile, but it never panicked in the midst of anti-aircraft fire.

To be honest, I missed it so much. It wouldn’t recognize me now, but…

‘No. If I keep maintaining this body… in a few years, I’ll be Thermis again, so would it recognize me? Or does it recognize me by smell even now? What’s going on?’

‘I want to see it welcoming me again…’

I was thinking about the Monad for a moment, then I realized that I had a chilling thought and shook my head.

‘No. Absolutely not. I can’t delay returning to my original body because of the Monad.’

‘Since they’re taking care of it at the Imperial Palace, it’ll live well there too. I only made it suffer, so it doesn’t need to see someone like me anymore.’

To find the first reason to live in this body from a Wyvern, of all things.

It was not to be said.

Amidst the unexpected news, the carriage quickly arrived at the castle.

Originally, the Wyvern runway was a very important economic and military facility, so it was an unwritten rule to build it close to the lord’s residence as long as the terrain allowed.

And in the Northern region, the lord resided in a fortified castle that also served a military purpose.

At the entrance to Isht Castle, Yukomis did something similar to what she did in Kifoll.

“The Great Magician! What brings you to this distant place…”

“Open the door.”

Was she unable to open her mouth to subordinates unless it was through that method?

Wouldn’t it be better to just let Karat, who was standing next to her, say the business first?

“Yes! May I ask what your business is?”

“I want to greet Lord Isht Odresa. There’s also something I want to ask for.”

“Who are the two people behind you…?”

“They’re my party. Do you need any more explanation?”

“Yes! I’ll open it right now!”

Karat was one thing, but I, who was still wearing my hood, must have looked quite suspicious.

The soldier couldn’t even think of asking anything more.

A huge drawbridge was lowered over the frozen moat,

and a young knight wearing heavy armor and a fur coat appeared from among the soldiers and bowed politely.

“Yukomis Pranon Solenas, the successor of Solenas and the Great Magician. Welcome to Isht.”

“Who are you?”

“I am Isht Galar, the fourth son of Lord Isht Odresa. I will guide you to my mother… the lord.”

He was a much more polite and courteous man than the soldiers in Kifoll.

An atmosphere that showed the classical chivalry unique to the Northerners.

Red hair, which could occasionally be found in people of the Northern lineage, could be seen through the helmet.

I also remembered the Count of Isht.

‘He was specialized in fire magic, and he also had burning red hair.’

“I will guide you to the drawing room, but it may be a little late because the Count is currently in the dungeon.”

He said cheerfully as he led the way.

“Dungeon?”

Karat, who had been silent until now, reacted to those words.

“Yes. There’s a rather difficult problem with what you might call interrogation or questioning.”

“Is it someone like a bandit leader?”

“It’s a much more complex problem than that. I was going to bring Lady Yukomis for this problem, but the reply from the capital was that the Great Magician Yukomis was taking a long-term convalescence, so it was really difficult.”

“You needed me?”

This time it was Yukomis’s turn to react.

“Yes! That’s right. I even thought about asking the Princess for help directly. I can’t tell you how fortunate it is that you came directly.”

He looked back at us with a very happy expression.

“There is currently a rampant heretical religion in and around Isht.”

“Heresy?”

“Yes. The Empire’s official national religion is to worship the ‘Providence of Magic’, right? So the Great Magician is also treated as a semi-sacred office.”

“Yeah.”

It was a story that was too familiar to Yukomis and me.

“But… it’s something different… it’s hard to say.”

“I haven’t heard that there are heretics in Isht.”

“It’s really recent that it’s been rampant on such a large scale. We are still grasping the actual situation.”

“What does that religion worship?”

Yukomis had encountered an incident related to her job in a place she had never expected.

Moreover, judging by her reaction, it seemed that she had never even heard a similar story.

“That is really the most troublesome part of the many problems.”

Galar hesitated for a long time.

His initial cheerful and fluent appearance was nowhere to be seen.

“The Count will give you a detailed explanation again, but… the subject that these heretics worship is… please don’t be surprised.”

“Just say it.”

“It’s Thermis Solenas.”