Chapter 16

Two days after offering to accompany Iseteria, early in the morning.

In the room brightly lit by a portable oil lantern, Ichiryo was rechecking the contents of the sack he had packed with items he would need for the journey.

The sack was borrowed from Barretta yesterday and was made of sturdy plant fibers.

The items in the sack included food, Lipod, bandages, antiseptics, and other first aid supplies, all of which he had bought from an outdoor shop in Japan the day before.

The sky visible from the room's window was dim, and the sun was still hidden behind the mountains.

Usually, this would be the time to be sleeping, but Ichiryo had been woken up by Barretta a while ago and informed that they would be leaving soon, so he was doing the final check of his belongings.

He had already changed into the clothes borrowed from the village chief two days ago, and from the outside, he looked almost no different from the village residents.

After finishing the final check of all his belongings, Ichiryo put on the sack and left the room.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. I'm sorry for being late."

When Ichiryo went to the living room, Barretta, who had already prepared, was sitting in front of the hearth with a fire lit, reading a book while waiting.

Barretta, wearing a fur mantle over her usual clothes, looked like a traveler.

"No, it's fine. The others haven't arrived yet."

Barretta put away the book she was reading into her bag, stood up, and offered the mantle beside her to Ichiryo.

"It's my father's, but please use this mantle, Kazura-san. Even though it's summer, it gets cold at night."

"Wow, I've never worn a mantle before. It looks pretty cool."

Ichiryo took the mantle and, with Barretta's guidance, put it on immediately.

The mantle, lined with fur and fabric, was quite warm.

If he wrapped himself in this mantle while sleeping outside, he wouldn't catch a cold.

"This is warm... Hey, Barretta, what's that thing you have on your waist?"

When Ichiryo suddenly looked at Barretta, he noticed a flat, board-like object tied horizontally to her waist, visible through the gap in the mantle.

"Oh, this? It's a short sword."

Barretta said this, brushed aside her mantle, and skillfully drew a bronze short sword from the sheath on her waist, holding it up to show it.

The short sword, about 40 cm in length and 6 cm wide, had a well-sharpened blade that reflected the dull light of the hearth, giving it a formidable presence.

To Ichiryo, it seemed quite out of place for a slender girl like Barretta to be holding it.

"Um, can you use a sword, Barretta?"

"Yes, I learned from my father. I can also use a spear, but I'm not very good at either... I get scolded by my father a lot during practice."

Barretta smiled wryly, smoothly switched the short sword in her right hand to a reverse grip, and returned it to the sheath.

As Ichiryo struggled to think of a comment, Barretta put on her mantle again, picked up her bag from the floor,

"Since everyone should be gathering soon, let's go outside and wait, shall we?"

and headed for the entrance of the house.

"Hey, really, I'll carry it..."

"No, no, let me do this. I'm the one who insisted on coming to town with you."

While Barretta was still hesitant, Ichiryo, with a wry smile, readjusted the wooden backpack with firewood tied to it and left the house with Barretta.

The firewood Ichiryo was carrying was prepared by Barretta in advance and placed in the entrance of the house to be sold in town, but he felt it would be unfair to let a girl carry the heavy firewood while he carried the bag, so he decided to carry the firewood.

The firewood, despite being dry, was heavy and of good quality.

When the two of them stepped outside the house, three male villagers were chatting and waiting for Barretta and Ichiryo in front of the house.

All the villagers were wearing mantles, and two of them had wooden backpacks with firewood tied to them, similar to the one Ichiryo was carrying.

The third person, who seemed to be in charge of the luggage, had a large sack, presumably containing luggage for four people, at his feet.

When the three villagers noticed Ichiryo and Barretta coming out of the house, they bowed.

"Good morning, Kazura-sama, Barretta-san."

"Good morning. Have Rozuru and the others arrived yet?"

"Not yet. They should be here soon, though."

"Understood. I'll go get the weapons, so please wait a moment."

Saying this, Barretta put her sack on the ground and went back into the house.

"Thank you, Kazura-sama, for accompanying us to town. Rozuru was so happy that he decided to bring his wife and daughter Mura, saying it was a good opportunity."

"No, no, I'll probably be a burden, but thank you... By the way, Mura is Rozuru's daughter?"

"Oh, you didn't know? Well, Mura only looks like Rozuru in her teeth. Everything else is just like her mother, Turner, so it's understandable if you didn't notice."

While chatting with the villagers about the Rozuru family, Ichiryo saw Rozuru arrive with his wife, Turner, and daughter, Mura.

Rozuru, like the others, was wearing a mantle and carrying a wooden backpack with firewood tied to it, and the sack containing the luggage for the three of them was on Turner's shoulder.

"Good morning, Kazura-sama. I'm sorry for being late. Mura, say hello."

"Good morning. I'm sorry for being late."

Prompted by Rozuru, Mura bowed and greeted Ichiryo.

Mura was a girl with chestnut hair that reached her back, and according to the villagers, she was six years old.

She was a hardworking girl who had helped with tasks like delivering meals and water to the other village girls when they were making water channels and spreading fertilizer in the fields.

Mura, like the other adults, was wearing a mantle that fit her height, and she looked very cute looking up at Ichiryo.

"Good morning. I just came out, so it's fine... Indeed, she looks just like her mother."

Comparing Mura and Turner, Ichiryo sighed.

From her straight chestnut hair to her bright eyes and straight nose, she had inherited all the good features.

The similar hairstyles made them look even more alike.

"Right? Mura, it's good that you look like your beautiful mother and not your father."

"Yup!"

Mura's enthusiastic response to the villager's comment caused a burst of laughter.

"Again with that... Mura, don't be so happy about it. I'm starting to feel sad. You should say something instead of just laughing."

"Hehe, Mura, thank your father for your beautiful teeth."

"Yup, thank you, Dad, for my beautiful teeth!"

"Hey, hey..."

While everyone was laughing and having such a heartwarming conversation, Barretta returned from the house with four spears with cloth-wrapped tips, a short bow, and a leather quiver.

The spears were about 140 cm long, similar to short spears.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. Good morning, Rozuru-san."

"Good morning. My daughter will be accompanying us today, so please take care of her."

Rozuru bowed and took the short spear, short bow, and quiver from Barretta, handing them to Turner.

After receiving them, Turner removed the cloth from the tip of the spear to check the blade, then wrapped it back and held it vertically.

The other villager who was carrying the luggage also took two short spears, checked the blades, and returned them to their original position.

"Let's get going. If we start now, we should arrive in Iseteria before sunset tomorrow."

"Right, let's go."

In response to Barretta's words, everyone picked up their bags from the ground and started walking out of the village.

The group, now outside the village, walked along the dry, exposed path leading to Iseteria under the dim sky.

The path was about three meters wide, with trees planted at regular intervals on the sides to prevent people from getting lost.

With Mura in the group, the walking speed was not very fast, and they chatted as they walked.

Mura's pace was a bit quick, but they would take short breaks whenever she got tired, and a small amount of Lipod would quickly restore her energy.

"Hey, Barretta, I have a question."

"Yes, what is it?"

Ichiryo, walking alongside Barretta at the front of the group, had been chatting about herbal tea, but when the conversation paused, he decided to ask about something that had been on his mind.

"You were giving everyone spears earlier. Is the journey that dangerous?"

"It's not that dangerous, but when we go to Iseteria or other towns, we usually arm ourselves as a precaution. Sometimes wild animals appear, and although it's rare around here, if bandits or night thieves appear, we need to be able to defend ourselves."

"Bandits and night thieves... That sounds scary."

Having grown up in Japan, which has good security, Ichiryo didn't really understand the concept of bandits, but the thought of being attacked by people with spears like the ones he had seen earlier made him shiver.

He wondered if he should have brought a katana from Japan, but seeing Ichiryo's troubled expression, Barretta smiled.

"Don't worry. This area is occasionally patrolled by Nelson's private army, so it's rare for such people to appear. Also, everyone in this group, except for me and Mura, has combat experience, so if we are attacked, we can repel a few people."

"Combat experience... From the war that ended four years ago?"

"Yes, everyone here has survived for years, so they are quite skilled with spears and can be relied upon in emergencies. Rozuru goes hunting in the mountains in the fall, so he is also very skilled with a bow."

Hearing Barretta's words, Ichiryo looked back at the five people walking behind him.

They didn't look particularly strong, but upon closer inspection, they were sturdy and alert, scanning their surroundings.

With five combat veterans and the patrols by Nelson's private army, the journey didn't seem as dangerous as he had feared.

"I see, that does sound reassuring."

Seeing Ichiryo's obvious relief, Barretta chuckled.

"But if a wild animal appears, I'll count on you, Kazura-san."

"Huh, a wild animal? ...I might be able to handle a piglet or something."

Taking Barretta's words as a joke, Ichiryo said this, and Barretta looked at him with admiration.

"Really? Then if a wild boar appears, I'll count on you!"

"Sure, if it's just a piglet, I can handle it with just a stick."

Thinking to himself,

"(If the word 'piglet' is used, there must be wild boars here, right?)"

Ichiryo enjoyed the slightly brightening scenery of the other world as he walked to Iseteria.