BXBX NOVEL Chapter 58: To the Central Continent
Chapter 58: To the Central Continent
We\'d arrived at the port city West Port.
The townscape was the spitting image of Saint Port. However, the scale of the city was larger.
That\'s natural.
The journey from the capital of the Holy Kingdom Milis to the capital of the Kingdom of Asura was this world\'s Silk Road.
Every town could become a center for commerce.
West Port is one of these. Though the scale isn\'t as great as the Business District in Milishion, many businesses have their headquarters here, and the merchants associated with these businesses are crowded together here.
Even from the outside of the town, you can see large warehouses lined up by the harbour.
In the storehouse area are people who might be slaves or apprentices, busily working.
They\'ve placed large fish on carts and are transporting them.
Robed figures are using water magic to freeze them.
Like that, the fish make their way to the warehouse.
After that, the fish are probably left in ice, or salted.
Perhaps they might even be smoked before being sent to various places.
Part 2
Now then.
This is as far as the horse carriage goes.
The ferries of this world are different to those from my old life, and they can\'t transport carriages.
Thus, we\'ll sell it the same way we sold the lizard, and once we cross the ocean we\'ll buy a new one.
I sell it to a horse merchant.
Unlike the time with the lizard, this isn\'t particularly moving, so I\'ll give it a name.
Goodbye, Haru ○rara.
After that, we headed towards the checking station.
Unlike the one in Saint Port, it\'s a large building.
There are armored guards standing by the entrance.
I\'ve seen a lot of armored Milishion knights all over the city.
Looking at Ruijerd and Eris, I wonder if the armor they\'re wearing is enough to defend them, and I become anxious.
The offensive ability of the creatures in this world is high.
It\'s likely that taking just one hit is enough to destroy your armour and leave you in your underwear.
If you receive an attack, and are sent flying into a hole from the recoil, it\'ll be \'The End\' for you.
Leaving the jokes aside, when we try entering, we find that the people inside are in a commotion.
Those who look like adventurers, those who look like merchants, they\'re all making energetic expressions and briskly interacting with the staff.
It\'s completely different to Wind Port where the station was deserted, and the staff had no enthusiasm at all.
For now, I face one of the counters and talk to one of the attendants.
The receptionist here is also large breasted.
I wonder if there\'s an unwritten law in this world that states that receptionists must be large breasted.
It\'s possible.
Though I had been thinking about this, I hadn\'t let it show.
"Excuse me, I\'d like to apply for a voyage."
"I understand. In that case, please hold onto this and wait for a moment."
With that, she hands me a wooden ticket.
The number 34 is written on it.
This gives off a truly bureaucratic feeling.
I return to the waiting area and take a seat.
Eris had immediately sat down next to me.
Ruijerd is still standing.
When I take a look at our surroundings, I find that a lot of people are waiting like we are.
"It seems like it\'ll take a little while."
"Are we not going to hand over the letter?"
At Ruijerd\'s question, I had shaken my head.
"We\'ll do that after our number is called."
"So that\'s how you do things, huh...?"
Eris is fidgeting for some reason.
Eris isn\'t used to waiting for things.
I guess it can\'t be helped.
"Rudeus. We\'re sort of being watched..."
At her words, I look for what she had been gazing at.
What she had been looking at was a guard.
The guards had been sneaking glances at Eris.
Eris who had been on the receiving end of these gazes was now making an angry expression and returning their gaze with a glare.
"You mustn\'t get into a fight."
"I wasn\'t going to."
I have trouble believing that.
But, let\'s ignore that.
Now then, for what reason are the guards looking at Eris, I wonder.
I really don\'t have a clue.
Could it be that their eyes have been stolen away by her beauty?
Lately, Eris has become quite beautiful.
However, she\'s still classed as a child.
There\'s no way that every single one of these knights is a lolicon.
"Number 34, please come forward."
Because we were called, we head to the counter.
We hand over the letter to the receptionist, and let her know that we\'d like to travel on a voyage.
She had received the letter with a smile, and then the moment she saw the name on the back, she made a puzzled expression.
"Please wait a moment."
After saying that, she had left her seat and disappeared further into the office.
After a while, a loud sound rang out from further inside the office.
At the same time, someone\'s angry voice could be heard.
A guard then ran out from further inside the office, and whispered something to another guard.
With a severe expression, the guard who had been whispered to now ran outside.
For some reason or another the atmosphere had become dangerous.
Though I had handed over the letter that Ruijerd trusted, it might really have been better had I investigated this Gouache Brush person.
The receptionist from a little while ago had returned.
She wasn\'t hiding her nervous expression.
"I\'m sorry for keeping you waiting. It seems that Duke Baqciel wants to meet you."
I had nothing but a bad feeling about this.
Part 3
"Chief of the Milis Continent Customs House, Duke Baqciel von Wieser."
That pig looks just like a pig.
Ah, my mistake.
That man looks just like a pig.
The area around his neck is covered in fat, and his chin is completely buried in it.
Light blonde hair clings to his skin.
There are shadows under his eyes, and he gives off the impression of a tanuki.
He looks both like a pig, and a tanuki, and he isn\'t hiding his displeasure.
In the past, I\'ve seen a man like this somwhere before.
It was in the mirror.
"Hmph. For a filthy demon to bring me such a letter is..."
Baqciel is sitting in an extravagant leather chair.
Without standing, he strikes the sheet of paper in his hand.
While the chair squeaks, he glares over at us.
A tool for opening wax seals can be seen sitting on a high class work desk, amongst a lot of documents.
In other words, the paper is probably the letter we handed over.
"This letter has quite the name. The seal looks quite similar to the real thing as well. However, I won\'t be fooled. This is a forgery."
Baqciel had thrown the letter away. I reflectively catch it.
===============================
Though this person is a Superd, they are someone I owe a great debt to.
Though they are of few words, they possess an admirable spirit.
You shall waive their voyage fee, and courteously send them to the Central Continent.
Galgard Nash Venick
Grand Master, Order of Instruction
=================================
When I saw those words I nearly collapsed of dizziness.
Just where did he get the name Gouache Brush?
GAlgard naSH venick
GASH
Ah, so that\'s how he got Gouache?
If he\'s a good natured person, it\'s possible that he said something like \'Just call me Gash\'.
If so, then Ruijerd might have taken this at face value, and was under the impression that it was his real name.
But then where did he get Brush from?
Moreover, that job position...
Grand Master of the Order of Instruction.
The Grand Master of one of Milis\' three knight orders.
I\'m starting to get a headache.
Why would someone like that be Ruijerd\'s acquaintance?
No, I can imagine how things are.
For instance... right, his position.
Becoming the Grand Master of the Order of Instruction meant that he was someone high up.
If it were made public that he was on good terms with a Superd, things would become bad.
That\'s why he used an alias, for example.
There\'s a simpler explanation as well.
Ruijerd had met him 40 years earlier, and in that time he had changed his name due to marriage or something, for example.
"To start with, that taciturn man would never do something like write a letter. I know that man quite well. It might be because he hates it, but he\'s a man who\'ll never write except for necessary documents and the like. For him to write a letter for a demon like you? Even jokes have their limits."
Speaking of Ruijerd, he\'s making a difficult expression.
The letter he had brought was judged to be a fake.
Considering his perspective, he might be thinking that it\'s because he\'s a Superd.
Actually, according to Paul, this Baqciel man is famous for hating the Demon Race.
That might not be completely wrong.
However, if Baqciel is famous for this, then regardless of if he\'s Gash or Galgard, he should know what kind of man Baqciel is.
In that case, it would be better for the contents of the letter to be a bit more persuasive.
There\'s also the possibility that the letter is a fake though...
No.
I recall Ruijerd\'s words.
Gash lives in a large building.
It\'s a building whose size is in the same league as Kishirisu Castle.
You can say that for a private residence, it\'s quite a large building.
However, if that were actually the headquarters of a knight order or something, then...
The building would be big, and there would probably be a lot of knights inside.
If that were the case, I would agree with Ruijerd\'s "He did have a lot of subordinates" comment.
Be that as it may, even if I did understand the situation, there\'d be no meaning to it.
Baqciel has already concluded that the letter is a fake.
And having come this far, there\'s no way we can just say \'it was a forgery, I\'m sorry and goodbye\'.
I take a step forward.
"In other words, your Excellency is saying that this letter is a forgery?"
"Why are you... Children should stay out of it."
Duke Baqciel had made a suspicious expression.
It feels like it\'s been a while since I\'ve been treated like a child.
It\'s a fresh feeling.
I\'m not treated like a child when I want to be treated like a child, and I\'m treated like a child when I want to be treated as an adult.
It\'s outside of my control.
While thinking about this, for now I raise my right hand to my chest and give a greeting in the manner of a noble.
"Please excuse the lateness of my introduction. I am Rudeus Greyrat."
When I said this, Baqciel\'s eyebrow twitched.
"Greyrat... you say?"
"Yes. Though it is shameful, I am one of the lowest ranking members of the high ranked Asura noble family, Greyrat."
"Hm... But the Greyrats attach the name of an ancient wind god to theirs."
"Truly. I\'m from a branch family, so giving such a name is something that isn\'t permitted."
Branch family.
When Baqciel hears this, he starts to look down on me.
In that instant, I point out Eris with an open hand.
"However, Eris-ojousama is a genuine holder of the Boreas Greyrat name."
Having tapped her on the back, Eris took a step forward.
She\'s looking at me with a surprised expression, but isn\'t perturbed beyond this level.
Her arms are folded, and her legs are shoulder width apart.
However, as if thinking \'No, no, not like this\', she holds her chest out, and moves to perform a curtsy in the manner of a lady, but realising that she isn\'t wearing a skirt, she holds her hand to her chest and greets in the same way as I do.
"I\'m the daughter of Philip Boreas Greyrat, Eris Boreas Greyrat."
On top of being kind of stiff, I get the feeling that what she did was a little wrong.
I try and determine Baqciel\'s expression.
It\'s a little hard to understand.
Well whatever.
I\'ll just rely on the influence of Eris\' family from here.
"Hm, why is the daughter of an Asura noble in such a place?"
It\'s a natural question.
There\'s no need for lies here.
"Is your Excellency aware of the Mana calamity that befell the Fedoa region 2 years ago?"
"I am aware. It seems a large number of people were teleported."
"Yes. We were wrapped up in it as well."
After that, because I needed to protect Eris, we had Ruijerd act as a guard and travel across the Magic Continent.
At the customs house for heading towards the Milis Continent, we managed somehow by selling off our belongings, but we don\'t have enough money for the trip from the Milis Continent to the Central Continent.
In particular, Ruijerd\'s voyage fee is too high.
Thus, as an acquaintance of the Greyrat family, as well as a friend of Ruijerd, we had asked Lord Galgard for help.
Lord Galgard gladly wrote a letter for us.
I spun a story like that.
"Ojou-sama is dressed in the manner of an adventurer, but that is for the purpose of concealing the fact that she is a high class noble, and avoiding the attention of unsavory individuals. Your Excellency must understand this as well."
"I see."
Baqciel still has a sour expression on.
"In other words, you lot are the allies of the slave thief group named 『Fedoa Region Search Group』."
"Y-... You\'re mistaken. What are you saying?"
"I don\'t know the name Eris Boreas Greyrat."
Snorting like a pig, Baqciel continues with a "however".
"I do know the name of a small-time scoundrel called Paul Greyrat. It\'s rumored that he\'s one of the recent slave abductors, you see."
Your bad reputation is merciless, Papa.
"In other words, you\'re saying the following: Galgard-sama\'s letter is a forgery and Eris-sama isn\'t an Asura noble. Furthermore, We are the allies of that undisciplined towards women, smelly footed, alcoholic, hopeless case who not only finds fault about everything his son does, but also puts his daughter through hardships. Correct?"
"Mmn."
What a cruel guy.
Paul has been giving his all in his own way.
He certainly has a lot of bad points, and he may have gone about things wrong.
However, it\'s absolutely unacceptable to call him a hopeless case and give up on him.
"Why do you think the seal on the letter is a forgery?"
Saying this, I point towards the paper on top of the desk.
Baqciel frowns ever so slightly, and then nods.
"There\'s a large supply of forgeries for the seal the Order of Instruction uses."
Is that how it is?
It\'s the first time I\'ve heard this, huh.
"Why do you believe that my employer, Eris-ojousama, is a fake?"
"As if a daughter of Asura nobility could bear with looking like such a bumpkin swordswoman."
When I look at Eris, I find that she\'s folded her arms and is in her usual pose.
Although there are no marks on her chest, she\'s suntanned enough that you can\'t imagine that she\'s a refined lady, and her muscles look even firmer than that of your average young adventurer.
"I see. It seems that your Excellency does not know of Sauros-sama."
I laugh without warning.
Baqciel immediately takes the bait.
"Sauros... was it? The feudal lord of the Fedoa region?"
"As well as Eris-sama\'s grandfather. He had Eris-sama undertake special education for swordsmen."
"Why would he do such a thing...?"
"Though this is a a private matter... It has been decided that Eris will marry into the Notus family. Sauros-sama hates the present head of the Notus family so..."
"I see."
In summary, that Eris was raised to be such a boorish person for the sake of beating the head of the Notus family to death in the bedroom was what I had implied.
Eris is tilting her head in confusion.
If she understood, she would probably cave in my face.
"Thus, it is essential that Ojou-sama returns to Asura. Should you conclude that Ojou-sama is a fake, then we will return to Milishion and appeal this decision at the appropriate place."
I don\'t know where this \'Appropriate\' place is.
I haven\'t looked this up, after all.
"Hmph, if you are the real thing as you say, then show me some proof."
"Galgard-sama\'s letter is better proof than anything."
"Foolishness. This is a pointless argument."
"That\'s fine even so. Could you be looking to start a confrontation with the Greyrats of Asura?"
Crap.
I have no idea what I\'m saying or anything.
However, for now it seems like I\'m getting through to him.
Baqciel is glaring at me.
"Very well. In that case, I shall grant you and that Ojou-sama passage."
"However, our guard-"
"With my name, Duke Baqciel, I\'ll appoint you several knights as guards. Rather than relying on a demon, this way would be safer, correct?"
I see.
In other words, if it\'s about passing a demon through, then he\'ll appoint two available knights instead.
Anyhow, it seems that Baqciel has no intention of allowing Ruijerd passage.
For him to be obstinate to this extent...
Though it\'s the first time seeing it personally, the prejudice towards the Demon Race is stronger than I had thought.
Now then, what do I do about this?
Should we transport just Ruijerd separately?
Would we end up in another fight with smugglers because of that?
It\'s possible.
What to do...?
-knock knock-
At that moment, a knock suddenly resounded through the room.
"What? I\'m in the middle of something, you know?"
Though Baqciel was making a puzzled face but had opened the door without waiting for a reply.
There, dressed in a blue coloured armour, stood a blonde haired woman.
"Excuse me. I had heard that 『Ruijerd of Dead End』 was here, but..."
"...Kaa-sama?"
It was Zenith.
Part 4
Because I had muttered the word \'kaa-sama\', everyone there had turned their gazes towards the woman.
She glared at me indignantly.
"I\'m single. I don\'t have a child as big as you."
Wait, Zenith-san?
Have you lost your memories in the time that I haven\'t seen you?
Or could it be that you\'ve fallen out of love with Paul?
While thinking this, I stare at her.
When I do so, it becomes clear that there are a few places where she looks a little different.
Because we\'ve been apart for a number of years, I don\'t remember Zenith\'s face that well, but the position of her mole is different, and her hair is a little different as well.
It\'s someone else.
"Forgive me. You resemble my missing mother."
"...I see."
She looked at me with pity.
I may have been seen as a child who had been separated from his mother.
Though I haven\'t really been treated as a child recently, my appearance is still that of a child after all.
"Well, well... If it isn\'t Temple Knight-dono, who has recently been demoted. Is there something you need?"
Baqciel snorts, and glares at the knight who resembles Zenith.
"A Superd has appeared inside the borders of Milis. I\'m devoted to my work, so it\'s natural that I\'ve come here, isn\'t it?"
"Your new post begins 10 days from now. Don\'t stick your nose in."
"Don\'t stick my nose in? That\'s a strange thing to say, Duke. Certainly, I have not yet taken up my position officially. However, the one who formerly held the post has already departed, and is no longer in Milishion. When there is a problem at the customs house, it is a Temple Knight who proceeds with the matter. Though this is the case, there is no other Temple Knight to be found here besides myself. Just what is going on?"
The knight who resembles Zenith continued to talk on and on.
Baqciel had uttered "Uh-" and his complexion began to worsen.
"There should be two guards at the customs house. That is something decided by the Milis Religious Organization; an ironclad rule. Surely, Duke Baqciel, you aren\'t planning on rebelling against the Milis Church?"
"How could that be? I have no such intention. It\'s just that you\'ve come to this town in no time at all. How about taking a break first?"
"That won\'t be necessary."
Duke Pig\'s expression was like that of livestock about to be slaughtered.
It seems like I\'ll be having a good time the next time I eat pork.
"So what\'s going on here?"
It seems that somehow or other, this knight is as important as the Duke.
Hearing \'Duke\', you\'d normally think of the highest class of noble, but...
Religion is very strong in Milis, so that might be a reason.
"What\'s happened is..."
With that, Baqciel begins to explain.
Sometimes Baqciel will say something colored in prejudice, and as appropriate, I provide supplementary explanations.
The female knight quietly listens to the end, and looks towards us.
"Hm... He certainly is a demon, huh...?"
She turns a particularly strong look towards Ruijerd.
However, the moment she sees Eris, that gaze relaxes.
Then, finally, our eyes meet, and she suddenly brings her hand to my chin in thought.
"...Earlier you mistook me for your mother, didn\'t you? Would it be fine if you told me her name?"
"It\'s Zenith. Zenith Greyrat."
"And your father\'s name?"
I glance at Baqciel.
Right.
I don\'t really wanna say it...
"It\'s Paul Greyrat."
For the time being, I say it frankly.
Baqciel\'s eyes open.
My father is a different person to that trash we mentioned earlier.
That\'s what I\'ll tell him.
My father is a saintly person.
He\'ll even give you money if you hit him just a little.
"I see."
The female knight had said this, and then crouched down and embraced me tightly.
"...Eh!"
I was shocked.
I suddenly got hugged out of nowhere.
"It must have been hard on you..."
While saying this, she started patting my head.
Because she\'s wearing armor, this doesn\'t feel very good.
However, she gives off the sweet and soft scent of a woman.
Naturally my lower parts... don\'t rise.
That\'s strange.
Why, oh son of mine?
What\'s happened?
It\'s the smell of slightly sweaty women that you love so much.
Just recently, even that time with Eris...
Which reminds me.
I look at Eris, find that her eyes are wide open and she\'s clenching her fists.
Scary.
"Umm... errm?"
After patting my head, the female knight had risen to a stand.
Without looking towards me, she then declared,
"I\'ll be taking custody of them."
"What!? One is a demon, you know!"
Baqciel is confused.
The female knight snatches the letter from my hand, and quickly looks over it.
"There\'s no problem with the letter, either. This is Lord Galgard\'s handwriting."
"It can\'t be. Is a Temple Knight going against Milis\' teachings...?"
At that point, with an "Ah-", Eris raised her voice.
The female knight turns to face Eris and winks.
What?
"I, the Middle Leader of the Order of the Temple\'s 『Shield Group』 have spoken."
"Ku-, even though you had lost your subordinates, and were then demoted..."
"Hmph. I\'ll send those words right back at you. However, between I who had completed my duty, and you who had given up halfway, there\'s quite a difference in our positions."
Baqciel gnashed his teeth at that.
Somehow, it seems that he\'s also been demoted.
Considering this, despite being called \'Duke\', the position seems quite a bit less important.
It\'s strange.
Bacqiel\'s eyes are full of hatred.
"You... No matter how high of birth you may be, if you get too carried away..."
Baqciel never finished his complaint.
The female knight had quickly lowered her head.
"No, I apologize. I\'ve said too much. I have no intention of quarreling further with you. This case is a personal matter. Please forgive me."
I had been thinking that she had great timing.
Saying as much as she wanted, and then immediately apologizing.
With those few words, she had dispelled Baqciel\'s anger as well.
I\'ll try and copy her the next time I anger someone.
"A personal matter, you say?"
"Mmn."
The knight nodded firmly in the face of Baqciel\'s puzzled expression.
Then, with a slap she then places her hand on my shoulder.
"This child is my nephew."
What was that!?
Part 5
Therese Latreia.
She\'s the fourth-born daughter of the Milishion noble family, Latreia, and having become a Middle Leader of the Order of the Temple at a young age, she\'s an up-and-coming knight.
Her family is the Latreia family that holds an Earldom.
Zenith\'s family is the Latreia family that holds an Earldom.
When it was revealed that I was her kin, Baqciel looked like he had given up on something, and after letting out a large sigh, waived the voyage fees for us.
Part 6
Right now I\'m in a West Port Inn, and am currently being hugged.
The ones in the room are Therese, Eris and I.
It might be because Ruijerd had read the mood, but he\'s not here.
"Rudeus-kun. I know about you from Nee-sama\'s letters."
"Is that so? What did mother write?"
"That you were extremely cute. And though I\'d never imagined that I\'d see the real thing, you truly are extremely cute."
While saying this, Therese is burying her face into the nape of my neck.
Thinking about it, in the 12 years I\'ve been alive, though I\'ve been called brazen, suspicious looking, or disgusting, the only one who\'s ever thought of me as cute is Zenith.
However, though I\'m being embraced by a large-breasted beauty, for some reason the railgun between my legs isn\'t firing off any coins with its super electromagnetism.
Speaking of which, my VICTORY never did STAND UP when it was Zenith.
Thinking about it, I never did think to become any closer to Norn than necessary.
...I wonder if it\'s because we\'re related.
"Therese. It\'s about time you let go of Rudeus."
Resting her chin in her hand, Eris taps at Therese.
She\'s in a bad mood.
She might be jealous.
I\'m a sinful man.
"Eris-sama. Though I understand your feelings, I don\'t know when I\'ll be able to see Rudeus-kun again. Moreover, the next time we meet, he\'ll have definitely lost his cuteness. It\'s a fleeting moment. Please pardon this."
Without any shame, Therese continues to stroke my body.
"Therese-san, why are you speaking to Eris so respectfully?"
"I owe her my life, after all."
I decide to investigate further.
Eris had gone out to suppress goblins, and saved Therese when she was driven into a corner by enemy forces.
At the time, Therese had been protecting a certain VIP and had it not been for Eris, that VIP would have lost their life as well.
The story was something like that.
I hadn\'t heard a word of this.
When I had looked towards Eris, I found that she was making an awkward expression.
"Sorry, Rudeus. I had forgotten about it..."
According to Eris, she had seen me all depressed and forgotten all about about the goblin hunting incident.
It\'s my fault, huh?
Guess it couldn\'t be helped.
Therese is (I\'m being hugged from behind so I\'m not sure, but) probably making an expression of ecstasy and groping my body.
I won\'t go so far as to say it feels disgusting, but somehow I feel kind of uncomfortable.
At any rate, even having my body touched, with boobs pressed against my back, I\'m not getting aroused.
It\'s a new sensation.
"Ahh, but Rudeus-kun really is cute. Cute enough that I\'d eat him up."
"Do you mean eating me up in a sexual sense?"
I had tried to drop an appropriate joke in, but my mouth was covered up by her hand.
"...You\'re cuter when you don\'t talk, huh? When you do, I recall that Paul guy\'s face."
It appears that Therese doesn\'t like Paul very much.
"Still, Grand Master Gash is the same as ever, huh?"
While she continued to stroke me, Therese changed the subject.
"You\'d think that it\'d be obvious that that kind of thing would happen if you handed over such a letter to Baqciel."
According to Therese...
Galgard Nash Venick is the Grand Master of the Order of Instruction.
The Order of Instruction is a mercenary group that sends young knights to areas of strife for combat experience, and at the same time is responsible for spreading the teachings of Milis to various places.
Right now they\'re in a recruitment phase that occurs between expeditions, and have returned to Milis for the sake of recruiting new members.
"Gouache" is that Grand Master.
In the past he had returned as a survivor of the Magic Continent expedition, and over the past few decades he\'s been the driving force behind the Order of Instruction being successively known as the the strongest.
An unrefined and taciturn man, he rarely laughs.
It\'s rumored that no matter what kind of villain they are, he\'s able to deal with them impartially.
Participating in one of the Order of Instruction\'s expeditions is a coming of age ceremony for all Milishion knights.
Since the time Gash had become Grand Master, the survival of the Order of Instruction rose past 90%.
As a result, the Order of Instruction is presently well known as the \'strongest\'.
There are a number of people who have had their lives saved by Gash, and currently there is no knight who doesn\'t hold him in respect.
"And he\'s also famous for hating writing and being of few words."
Though he promptly gives out orders on the battlefield, normally he\'s quite unmotivated and for example won\'t return greetings.
He hardly writes any letters, and completes most documents with a stamp.
There are hardly any people who have seen his handwriting.
According to Ruijerd\'s story, he was talkative and passionate.
However, Ruijerd isn\'t very talkative either, after all.
Perhaps our standards are just different.
There\'s also the possibility that he\'s just different with Ruijerd.
"Hey. Just how long are you planning to cling to him like that...?"
Eris was steadily becoming more irritated, and it felt like she was about 5 seconds away from being angry for real, so I separated from Therese.
"Ah... Rudeus-kun\'s warmth is..."
Though Therese is making a regretful expression, I\'m not a hug-pillow. I wasn\'t even enjoying it, after all.
"Rudeus, come here."
Being told that, I sit down next to her.
When I do, my hand is firmly grasped.
"..."
When I look at Eris\' face, I find that her ears are bright red.
Just by gazing at that profile, my mouth becomes a little slack.
Looking at Therese, I find that she had been hitting a pillow.
She could have just hit a wall.
She seems to lack muscle, though.
Therese let out a sigh and made a serious expression.
"That\'s right, Rudeus-kun. Let me give you just one piece of advice. It might not have much meaning since you\'re about to leave Milis but..."
Having introduced the topic, Therese continued.
"It\'d be better not to mention the Superd race while you\'re in the country."
"Why?"
"One of the old teachings of the Milis Church dictates that the Demon Race should be completely expelled."
The Demon Race should be completely driven out of the Milis Continent.
That\'s one of Milis\'s teachings.
Though it\'s hardly practiced anymore, it\'s something that the Order of the Temple obediently adhere to.
It seems that for a Demon Race as famous as the Superd race, even if they were a fake, the knights would still drive them out with all their power.
"Because he had helped Rudeus-kun, even I can\'t help but overlook him. However, normally it absolutely wouldn\'t be overlooked."
"It\'s pointless."
Replying to the serious Therese was Eris with a cold look.
"If it\'s you guys, no matter how many people you bring, you won\'t be able to win against Ruijerd."
"That\'s true. It\'s as Eris-sama says."
Therese had spoken in a tone that implied that was natural, and made a bitter smile.
"However, the Order of the Temple is a gathering of religious zealots, myself included. That\'s why even if we understand that there\'s no chance of winning, we have no choice but to fight."
Among the knights of Milis, there are people like that too.
That\'s why, if we ever came back to the Milis continent, we had to be careful.
This was something that Therese made sure we understood.
This incident made me realize again just how deep-rooted the discrimination against the Demon Race was.
Restoring the honor of the Superd on our travels from now on may be difficult.
Also, it\'s possible that if it comes to light that I worship Roxy as a God, I might be caught by the heresy inquisition and be made to go through some horrible experiences.
That\'s why I decide to keep silent on my religious affiliation.
Part 7
The voyage turned out well.
Therese had taken care of all the necessary arrangements, from the food on route, to medicine for seasickness.
I had thought that the pharmacology in this world wasn\'t very developed, but it seems that this world doesn\'t get by solely on healing magic.
They at least have something of the level of seasickness medicine.
However, I heard that it was quite expensive.
The things called \'Family Connections\' are wonderful.
Therese had made things as comfortable as possible for Eris.
She had looked at Ruijerd with stern eyes but... that can\'t be helped.
Not everything has an easy solution to it.
Thanks to the seasickness medicine, though Eris looked a little uncomfortable, she was well enough that she hadn\'t asked me to use Healing.
Speaking of my true thoughts, I felt it was a shame that I couldn\'t see a meek Eris.
However, thanks to that, my gauge didn\'t fill up, my Buster Wolf didn\'t run wild, and I didn\'t receive Eris\' Sunny Punch.
It was as usual.
However, it might have been because Eris was uneasy about last time, but while we were on the boat, Eris was always attached to me.
She wasn\'t meek.
However, seeing that Eris was able to become excited about seeing the sea, I was satisfied as well.
"Yo, you two. Getting pretty steamy over there! Are you getting married in the Dragon King Kingdom?"
When the two of us were watching the sea, the sailors started whistling and poking fun at us.
"Yeah. It\'s going to be quite a grand one."
Because of that I got carried away and wrapped my arm around Eris\' shoulder, and was hit.
"I-, it\'s still too early for marriage!"
Though Eris was hitting me, at the same time she didn\'t seem annoyed and was a little bashful.
It seems she hates being made fun of.
She\'d prefer to do that kind of thing in a place with just the two of us, and where the mood was right.
Even Eris the sword-wielding Ashura was a maiden when it came to matters of love.
Still, marriage huh?
Philip and the others had tried to pair Eris and I together.
I wonder what\'s happened to them?
Paul had told me not to be optimistic but...
It\'s not just them.
Zenith and Lilia are still missing.
We don\'t even know where Aisha is.
There\'s no news of Sylphy either.
I don\'t know if Ghyslaine is alive, either.
It\'s nothing but worries.
No, it\'d be best to not think in such a bad direction.
There\'s the possibility that unexpectedly, we might find upon returning to the Fedoa region that everyone has returned safely.
It\'s an optimistic thought.
I know that there\'s absolutely no way this is the case.
However, for now at least, I won\'t think about these worries.
That\'s what I\'ve decided.
—
Just like that, we left the Milis Continent.