“…How rude! What do you mean by that?”
“You’ll probably understand as soon as you see it….”
Elia awkwardly smiled and let out a light laugh.
“Honestly, it doesn’t feel great to speak ill of someone.”
But it’s true….
Muttering to herself, Elia nodded as if she’d made up her mind and turned to me.
…Suddenly leaning in close made me flinch.
“W-What is it?”
“I’m going to explain actual events.”
“Hmm, yeah, that sounds better.”
Definitely, deducing from real events is more accurate than hearing it abstractly from others.
As I nodded, Elia frowned and began to chatter away.
Hearing her words, my eyes widened, and my mouth dropped open, unable to contain various reactions.
The things Iron Blood has done are simply beyond my understanding as an ordinary person.
…
“…So everything you’ve said is true?”
Elia mentioned several incidents involving Iron Blood, helping me grasp what kind of person he is.
“Yes… I swear on the name of the Saint, all of it is what I witnessed.”
“Whoa….”
I shut my eyes tight and rubbed my forehead.
Based on what I heard from Elia, I tried to build an image of Iron Blood, but….
“Hmm.”
I still can’t get a sense of what Iron Blood is like.
Well, it makes sense.
If you only listen to Elia, it sounds like she’s describing an absolute lunatic—what can I even guess?
For now, all I have is the impression of a ‘crazy woman.’
…But.
I slyly turned my head to glance at Nameless, who was looking my way.
“Wow… why is Nameless acting like that?”
“…I don’t know either.”
Elia’s words made me feel embarrassed, and I quickly averted my gaze.
…Anyway, let’s get back to thinking.
If I were to go by what Nameless said, Iron Blood sounds like a saint.
He took on the crisis facing the empire at a young age, selflessly chose to become the empire’s shield while rejecting his own happiness, meaning marriage.
My head started throbbing.
What Elia said doesn’t seem to match up with Nameless’s perspective.
“Hmm….”
He also has impressive power and many accomplishments, so as a duke, his rank is high.
Sigh, maybe it’s natural his personality is a mess…?
Tilting my head back and forth, trying to piece together the image of Iron Blood, Nameless approached and gently tapped my shoulder.
“Master, I think we can go inside now.”
“Hmm, right.”
When I snapped out of my thoughts and looked straight ahead,
Lucius and Elia were watching me.
Hmm, this is a bit much.
It seems I was deep in thought while they finished preparing long ago.
“…Let’s hurry up and go.”
“Yes, Master.”
Grabbing Nameless’s hand, we headed toward the castle walls.
…
“Hmm, it’s huge.”
From afar, the castle walls looked low, but as I got closer, they towering before me were overwhelmingly gigantic.
The castle behind must be quite tall, making the walls appear relatively smaller.
As I admired the walls, a massive rumbling sound started rising, and the gates began to open.
“Oooh….”
Elia glanced at me, covered her mouth, and whispered something to Lucius.
“Harang, your reactions are very lively….”
“Saint, you don’t have to explain everything to me.”
Lost in the overwhelming excitement, I barely noticed him.
With a bright face, I waved to Nameless.
“Nameless! It’s so big!”
“Yes, it truly is.”
Nameless maintained a small smile, even as he swayed from my enthusiasm.
His reaction made me even more excited, feeling a connection, I pulled his arm to rush toward the gates.
“Whoa!”
Nameless suddenly released my hand and lifted me under his armpit.
I appeared like a flopped cat.
“Eep! Why are you doing this again?!”
As I struggled, flailing my arms, Nameless dodged and spoke.
“I want to depart right away too, but there are procedures, aren’t there?”
“…Procedures?”
I stopped flailing my arms and turned slightly only to see Lucius and Elia talking to a differently dressed knight than the one guarding the castle walls.
As our eyes met, Elia offered an awkward smile and waved.
“Um, could you please come over here for a moment?”
“…”
What do they think of me…?
No need to think deeply.
I probably look like a foolish child playing around.
How embarrassing!
At my age, I’m just excited by a big wall!
But still, I have a lot to say.
You know, I’d been living cut off from the outside in a cabin for a long time, right…?
Moreover, until I came to this world, I was a typical “fan” who read fantasy novels.
Given that, how can I not be excited seeing such a grand scene?
I could guarantee I’d jump around like an excited child if a deity showed up.
Right, that’s it.
I’m not wrong.
I sneaked a peek around, but they were still looking at me with awkward smiles.
Don’t look at me like that!
In an attempt to hide my blushing face, I brushed my cheeks and silently patted Nameless’s shoulder.
It seemed like Nameless felt what I wanted with just that, as he carefully set me down on the ground.
As my feet touched the ground, I brushed my face once more and,
“Hmph, big.”
I casually stretched my neck and started walking slowly towards Lucius like nothing happened.
“Master, it’s fine. Who would dare criticize your actions?”
“Shut your mouth!”
I kicked Nameless’s shin playfully.
…
The lightly armored knight looked at Nameless and me before returning his gaze to Lucius.
“Hero, are these also the Duke’s guests?”
“Yes.”
The knight squinted at me, then nodded.
“…Understood.”
Is something off?
Elia, noticing the knight’s reaction, approached me with a knowing smile.
“Hmm?”
“Maybe… it’s because of Harang’s outfit…?”
At Elia’s comment, I looked down at my attire.
Hmm, I can’t quite grasp what the problem is.
Elia sighed lightly, as if expecting my confusion, and continued speaking.
“In Elren, people walking around in such thin clothes are either impoverished or, well, a bit provocative…? Ah, those who work at pleasure houses are the only ones seen like that….”
“What?”
“Besides, Lucius and I carry titles, so someone dressed as you would seem odd.”
So Nameless wasn’t mistaken?
I figured he was just trying to get me to wear clothes for no good reason….
I subtly turned to Nameless, who was glaring at the knight with furrowed brows.
Hmm, should I put on some clothes now?
Honestly, I wouldn’t care much about such gazes, but thinking from Nameless’s perspective, seeing his master getting those looks…
He wouldn’t just stand there in that situation.
Sighing softly, I tugged at Nameless’s sleeve.
“Clothes.”
“Yes, Master.”
Nameless smiled brightly, as if he had been waiting, and took off his upper garment to drape over me.
Why is he taking it off for me? As I stared at him in confusion, even after giving me his upper garment, he was still dressed nicely.
“…?”
Nameless proudly flicked his upper garment.
“I foresaw this, so I wore two layers.”
“…Good job.”
As Nameless and I stood there, Lucius nodded and spoke.
“It seems everything’s ready, so let’s depart.”
“I’ll guide you.”
The knight stepped forward.
…
After passing the castle walls and walking for quite a while, we finally arrived at the grand castle.
We were guided to the reception room by an elderly white-haired butler waiting at the entrance.
And there, Iron Blood, who was waiting for us, had a physique that starkly contrasted the image I had in mind.
He seemed slightly below me in height, likely not even reaching 150 cm, and coupled with that short stature, his build appeared quite juvenile.
Next, the striking hair color was a silvery base with bluish highlights, and his piercing navy eyes looked more annoying than fierce, unlike Nameless.
Iron Blood flashed a sharp-toothed grin reminiscent of a shark.
“Well, what’s this? The losers finally decided to show up? You’re so late.”
