BXBX NOVEL 33 - Chapter Xiii -- What Is It?
We slowly descended the cliffs of the mountain. With Ilimo\'s wings, we would never fall. We drop down smoothly and land on a gently sloping hill. The gates to the town of Kushana are closed. There is no gatekeeper. Perhaps they close the whole town at midnight. So we decided to wait for the morning.
We found a big tree, so we put up a ward under it and rested.
There is a reason why I came to the Heedata Empire and not to the Juka Kingdom. There are many political enemies of the Barsaam family in the Kingdom of Juka. Most of the territories around the capital are anti-Baatham. The territory of the Barsaam is located 2 days by horse from the capital. Between the capital and the bartham territory is the territory of the Duke of Healer, who was in love with Eryl. It seemed to me that going through there might get us into trouble, if not killed. On the other hand, it seems that the Heedata Empire was on good terms with a percentage of the Barthams. I have heard from Lady Elsa that the Prime Minister of the Empire and the Marquis of Berthaam get along surprisingly well. That\'s why I chose the path to the Empire.
In fact, at first, Ilimo did not like this route to the Heedata Empire. After all, they have horns and wings. That\'s just plain conspicuous. Up to this point, he had been relatively free to move about, partly because he was out of sight, but from this point on, he would be exposed to the eyes of others, even if he did not want to be. Originally born and raised in Heedata, Ilimo has been mistreated and has no good memories of this country. He had no desire to return to the imperial palace like that.
That\'s where my warding comes in. Warding LV5 is more functional. You can change the shape and form of the person in the ward. What looks like a unicorn pegasus to me, looks like a horse to others. You can\'t change the size of the person, but if you hide the wings and horns, he is just a small horse. After making this condition, they finally agreed to it.
Incidentally, this warding magic is also applied to the Bertham family\'s house. It looks like a big tree. It is a tree with a thick trunk that seems to be thousands of years old. No one would be stupid enough to cut it down. Probably.
The glare of the sun awakens me. I wish I could sleep a little longer, but it is difficult in this situation. I get up and deactivate the warding. Naturally, the wards on us are still in place. Both Gon and I are wearing hard wards that are impervious to attack.
The gatekeeper comes out. He is standing there with sleepy eyes. I approach the gate with Ilimo at my heels. The soldiers are startled for a moment when they see us.
"Hey, where did you guys come from? You didn\'t come over the mountains, did you? Did you come from Juka?"
Yes, we have crossed the Juka Mountains. It was hard work.
"What? You came over the mountain? Hey, wait a minute!
Soldiers are rushing back inside the gate at once. Hurry up! We\'re busy!
After a while, an old man comes out with a cool-looking guy who looks like he\'s in his 50s. He takes one look at me.
"You\'re still a kid, aren\'t you? How old are you, 14? What\'s your name, anyway?"
"My name is Linos, Acting Steward of the Marquise de Berthaume in the Kingdom of Juka."
"Juh, Juka Kingdom? Bertham? You\'re not lying, are you?
No, I\'m not lying. I am the Marquise de Berthaume and I serve the Lady Elsa. After the fall of the Kingdom of Juka, I have come here from the forests of Lunois, across the Juka Mountains, and have risked my life. If you do not allow me to enter this city, I will go another way. Please do not hesitate to tell me.
"No way, no way, this kid... No, excuse me. What\'s going on here? Let\'s talk inside.
That\'s how I got into the town of Kushana.
I was taken to the soldiers\' quarter. The commander\'s office. It seems that this man is the commander of the city\'s defense force.
"Did the kingdom of Juka really collapse? I\'m trying to find out everything I can, but the information is all mixed up. Please tell us what you know."
"Perhaps it\'s not so different from what you\'ve got, is it?
"So you are sure that the Great Demon King descended and used a giant dragon to attack King\'s Landing, and then the Demon King himself collapsed the palace, wiping out the king and all the people?
Oh, and it wasn\'t me who conjured the sheikh\'s dragon. Well, I think we\'re on the same page, aren\'t we?
"I don\'t know if he is the Great Demon King or not, but it is true that Marshal Kargi, a general in the royal army, rebelled and took over the royal palace. It is also true that a chief dragon appeared and destroyed the city. I escaped from the royal city and met adventurers when I entered the forest, and I escaped through the forest of Lunois with them. I got lost and wandered through the forest and found myself in the mountains. That\'s when I lost the adventurers and managed to get here.
"Hmm. There are many high-ranked adventurers in the Kingdom of Juka. You are lucky to have met them. And you got lost in the Juka Mountains. That\'s the lair of the dragon. How did you make it across the mountain without a single injury?
"When the adventurers were confronting the dragon, they let me escape on horseback. I was so engrossed in the ride that I don\'t remember where I went or how I got there."
"Well, I guess so. Perhaps those adventurers have been preyed upon by the dragon. I see. I\'ll have to report you to the castle. I\'m sorry, but you\'ll have to stay in town until further notice from the castle.
"Yes, that\'s right. Well then, that\'s no problem. But I have a horse with me, so it must be in a place where it can rest..."
"Then you can use the stable in the barracks. There\'s food there too, so you can feed them freely. You can use the spare room here in the headquarters. It\'s an officer\'s room, so it\'s better than most of the inns.
The room we were shown was small, but it had a proper bed, a desk, a toilet, and a sink. It was certainly a better room than the one at the inn.
You are free to walk around the premises of this building, but please do not leave the premises. You will be fed properly and if you need anything, please ask the soldiers outside. You may be our guest, but you are from a truce country and a vassal of a nobleman of great renown. Do you understand what I mean?
"Of course. I am grateful for your hospitality.
"Generous... Well, take your time. I\'m sure you\'ll hear back from the castle in three days.
I ask permission from the commander to take Ilimo into the stables, then go into the room I have been given and collapse on the bed. I am relieved that no one questions my excuses. Gon looks tired, too.
Now, what will happen in this empire? I\'d be lying if I said I wasn\'t anxious. I just want to live in peace and tranquility. Hopefully, I want to have a house in a city somewhere and live quietly with Gon and Ilimo. With these thoughts, I fall into a slumber, partly due to lack of sleep.