Chapter 403

The journey to the Holy Kingdom was peaceful and pleasant.

The diplomatic relations between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom had recently gone to hell, but just a few months ago, they had been on good terms, so the roads between the two countries were perfectly maintained.

The well-paved roads stretched out on both sides, with wide plains, and along the way, there were inns and small shops for travelers, almost like highway rest stops.

Since we didn’t pass through mountains or forests, even the usual mountain bandits rarely appeared.

Instead, other thieves showed up.

—-

“Eeeriririri!”

A bizarre battle cry echoed from afar.

Leonor, who was riding in the same carriage as me, sighed heavily, clearly annoyed.

“Just hearing that sound, I can tell. Bandits again.”

Just as there are mountain bandits in the mountains and pirates on the sea, there are always bandits on the plains.

These grasshopper-like thieves ride in on horses, rob travelers, and then flee. Since they’re on horseback, it’s tricky for soldiers to chase and subdue them.

“Why do they always shout such weird battle cries?”

Eeeririri, Keeeek, and so on. Listening to them, I can’t tell if I’m dealing with humans or monsters.

“Well, you’d know better than me. Ka`har makes similar noises when charging. Isn’t it some tradition for mounted bandits?”

Leonor shrugged.

“Mounted bandits? That’s racist.”

Honestly, she’s not wrong.

They’re no different from bandits, just on a national scale.

While Leonor and I joked while looking out the window, the bandits were getting closer.

Dozens of horses kicked up dust as they galloped toward us.

“Three carriages without any guards? Today’s our lucky day!”

The bandits, sitting on their horses, laughed with dirty faces and drew their weapons.

Lucky day? More like your last day, idiots. There are six master-level fighters here.

Though five of them are probably just watching.

Milvia will handle it anyway.

Sure enough, the window of the carriage Damien and Milvia were in opened, and an arrowhead peeked out.

With a loud twang, the arrow tore through the lead bandit.

Three arrows were enough to turn the dozen bandits into mincemeat.

—-

We traveled like that for several days.

Turning bandit attacks into fertilizer, staying at inns when the sun set, and occasionally sparring lightly to stay in shape.

With Lacey and Rana around, we didn’t have to worry about injuries.

Milvia always chose the farthest room from Lacey whenever we stayed at an inn.

It was obvious what she was doing, but I couldn’t say anything about it.

“Sir Damien and Lady Milvia, are you married?”

Lacey tilted her head as Milvia naturally led Damien away.

Come to think of it, she probably didn’t know how far their relationship had gone. We never told her.

“Not yet… but someday, I guess.”

They planned to hold the wedding once things were more stable.

Damien had gained a northern title, become a knight of a marquis’s house, and even had a proper mansion, so it seemed like they were well-established.

“Unmarried couples sleeping together… hmm… it’s not exactly a desirable example.”

“If they’re both fine with it, what’s the problem? They’ll live like that forever, so it’s practically the same as being married, just without the ceremony.”

You could call it a de facto marriage.

“Is that so…?”

Lacey, being a priest, showed a somewhat conservative view of relationships, but she didn’t interfere with theirs.

She had no grounds to interfere anyway. It’s not uncommon for unmarried couples to have deep relationships.

Though she would’ve given a long sermon if they were doing it in the carriage.

—-

The inns along the road were packed with travelers, but we never had trouble finding a room.

Being on the route to the Holy Kingdom, they had special rooms prepared for high-ranking clergy and nobles.

The only downside was that I, Lacey, and Leonor had to keep our faces covered.

It was unavoidable.

All three of us had distinctive appearances, and our fame was so high that revealing ourselves could cause a commotion.

According to Lacey, if word got out that she was here, people from nearby villages would swarm like clouds, seeking healing and blessings.

“Normally, I’d gladly help, but… it would delay our schedule too much. It’s unfortunate, but there’s nothing we can do.”

Indeed, if we helped everyone who came, it could take over a month just to reach the Holy Kingdom.

But we couldn’t just turn away people who begged for help if our identities were revealed.

So Lacey and I quietly stayed in our rooms, discussing the Holy Kingdom.

Leonor played with Rana beside me.

Meanwhile, Lillith gathered information from travelers heading in the opposite direction, while Nigel and Bels restocked supplies at a general store.

Damien and Milvia just enjoyed their trip, sightseeing here and there.

With so many beauties in our group, there were occasional idiots who tried to hit on them or pick fights, but those reckless fools ended up beaten and tied to crosses.

Not nailed, just tied up and left for a couple of days before being released.

—-

Lillith, being a member of the Special Operations Unit, was quite skilled at gathering information.

A beautiful priestess with a friendly tone, flattering her targets while asking questions—few men would refuse to answer.

Unless they were criminals or extreme misogynistic homosexuals.

“The border areas are quite chaotic.”

According to Lillith, merchants and adventurers sensitive to danger had already fled en masse.

The border with the Holy Kingdom was less affected, but the border with Himmell had almost no adventurers left.

Even adventurers who made a living by the sword didn’t want to work in a cursed land where pillars of fire erupted several times a day beyond the horizon.

“Except for peasants whose only assets are their land and serfs who can’t leave, there’s almost no one left.”

It was a vicious cycle.

With adventurers gone, public safety deteriorated, and with merchants gone, logistics broke down.

With safety and logistics in shambles, even those who remained left.

The border lords tried to maintain order with their private soldiers, but they couldn’t stop the movement of free people, so there was no solution.

There was also some information about the Holy Kingdom.

Factional fights within the Church had become visible, and many priests, disillusioned, had left the Holy Kingdom for other countries.

The Elpinel Church Order, once the strongest, had weakened due to various setbacks, and other Church Orders had allied to fight for power.

“Armed conflict hasn’t broken out yet… but that means they’re using every means except force. The situation might be more serious than we thought.”

…Indeed.

As Lillith said, the Holy Kingdom seemed to be in deep trouble.

—-

After passing through several territories, small cities, and roadside inns, we finally reached the border of the Holy Kingdom.

Autumn had reached its peak, and winter was just around the corner.

“Welcome to Elpireme, Sir Median.”

The high-ranking paladin guarding the border checked our identities and immediately opened the gate.

He placed a hand on his chest and saluted respectfully, but his greeting carried a lot of meaning.

By calling me Sir Median instead of Count Median, he was signaling that the Holy Kingdom didn’t care about my imperial title.

With diplomatic relations between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom at an all-time low, they weren’t going to treat me as a count.

If I weren’t descended from the Twelve Knights, they might have refused me entry altogether.

Moreover, the fact that he saluted me instead of Lacey, even though she had returned, hinted that her standing in the Holy Kingdom had greatly diminished.

Even though he was a paladin of the Astraea Church Order, not Elpinel… still, as a candidate for sainthood, she should have been recognized at least at the level of an archbishop by other Church Orders.

What a mess.

A country founded to distance itself from secular power was now embroiled in power struggles worse than the Empire’s.

Lacey, who had expected this treatment, let out a faint sigh with a slightly darkened expression.