Chapter 36

Hello from inside the express carriage. I’m Herman. I’ve been on this express carriage for five days now, and it’s been a smooth journey with nothing out of the ordinary. ...Well, there were a few things on the first day. I guess I’ve gotten used to it or maybe I’ve become more philosophical about it. My sister Marie was a bit demanding.

On the first day, we were heading straight to the next town. This express carriage travels about three times faster than a regular carriage. It’s not red, but it’s fast. With that speed, the carriage shakes three times as much, if not more, making your butt hurt and turn red. The clerics and adventurers use the same tent sets, and they have the same thin sleeping bags. They’re basically just cloth bags that don’t absorb any shock. ...That’s when Marie noticed that my sleeping bag was thicker and fluffier. Not only that, but I also had a pillow and a cushion under my butt.

Naturally, she called me out for being unfair, and she did so in a very polite manner. She went on about how much pain she was enduring and so on. It seemed that the church already knew about the pillows, and some of the higher-ranking members were already using them. Of course, Marie was one of them. She then realized that if I had a pillow, I must have a blanket as well, and demanded one to put under her butt.

Naturally, I couldn’t refuse, and the women folded the blanket into quarters and placed it under their butts, much to Marie’s satisfaction. ...However, she then demanded another blanket for the saint and her attendant, insisting that I must have one more. I had no choice but to bring out the blanket. Marie triumphantly declared, "I knew it!" It seems she had noticed that I had warm blankets for myself even when we were in the village. She must have read my character and assumed I would have extra blankets. So, there I was, sitting on a pillow while the saint and her attendant looked both embarrassed and relieved from the pain.

That night, Marie suggested using the blankets inside the carriage. Saint Michael also joined in. It was the first time I heard the saint’s voice. In the end, the saint and the saintess took two blankets and two pillows, and I had to sleep with the attendants in the adventurer’s square. Despite the cold, I insisted on keeping my warm blanket, as it was the only one I had. Marie, being the devil she is, even demanded the warm blanket, saying it was too cold without it. If she can be so bold in her demands, she’ll probably do well in the capital.

Anyway, that’s what happened. I’m still enjoying a comfortable carriage ride. We’ve also been talking about our talents. I know Marie has eight stars as a saintess, but I was curious about her other talents. It turns out she has one star in blacksmithing and one in sewing. Sewing might be useful, but blacksmithing is a dead talent. It’s rare to have no wasted talents. I, for example, have four stars in alchemy, which was more than necessary. I also have three stars in swordsmanship, even though I don’t pray. It’s really varied.

By the way, Saint Michael has seven stars as a saint. I don’t know about the others. I also have seven, but the seven stars I got through intense prayer are different from the seven stars he received. The seven stars I got through prayer were incredibly bright, like finding the Big Dipper. Even if four stars would have been enough, I’m satisfied. On the other hand, Saint Michael seems to be struggling with the sudden talent and status. He’s not as composed as Marie, and he still thinks of himself as a commoner. In the church society, saints and saintesses probably have the same status as nobles. I don’t know if he’ll return to the Celerolus Viscount’s territory after serving in the capital for a few years, but I think they have a status similar to knight or mage nobles. Moreover, they have the potential to rise to the top of the church, not just for a generation but to a position in the capital church. It’s understandable that he’s confused, being given such a position and talent as a commoner. I think his reaction is more honest than Marie’s, who is so composed.

...I don’t mean to say anything about gender, but I think women are generally more composed. Of course, this is just one example.

As for the clerics, Father Roman has two stars in spear skills, and Sister Patricia has one star in swordsmanship. Both have three stars in clerical skills, which is quite a lot. Given the number of stars and their combat skills, I think the attendants have a relatively high status. The difference in status between a noble’s attendant and a commoner is almost non-existent. However, if you’re an attendant to a prince or princess, you’re likely to be recommended by a selected noble family. I think saints and saintesses are in the latter category in the church society. Even as attendants, they seem to be on the fast track to elite status. ...Of course, if they’re not interested in advancing, they might be demoted.

That’s what we’ve been talking about. A carriage ride without conversation is really boring. We often talk about meaningless things. In fact, we talk more about meaningless things than meaningful ones. We talked a lot, especially about food. I was curious about what the church serves. ...It turned out to be nothing special. But Marie was very happy to have eggs. She liked eating boiled eggs with salt. There were also common vegetables and mushrooms, either stir-fried or grilled with salt, or used in soups. I thought there might be expensive spices or fish, but there weren’t. The Celerolus Viscount’s territory has plenty of groundwater, but only one river flows north in the central-eastern part. The upstream is Lala’s marsh, a sacred land, so there are no fish. Lala’s marsh doesn’t have fish.

Beep—beep—beep—

Oh, this is the first attack on our carriage. Who’s the enemy?

"Three kobolds ahead! It’s your turn, boy!"

"Yes! I’m on my way!"

"Good luck, Herman!"

With Marie’s encouragement, I got off the carriage and ran to the front. I’ll take them out quickly. The first one lunges at me, and I dodge to the side, slicing upward with my rapier to decapitate it. One down. I then strike the second one, which is running on all fours, and behead it. Two down. I thrust my rapier into the third one’s temple from below, finishing it off. The battle is over. I pull my rapier out of the kobold, shake off the blood, and store the kobolds in my "Extend Space." I clean up and return to the carriage to maintain my rapier. If I don’t, the blood will dry and dull the blade. Sharpness is crucial for a weapon that relies on cutting, not brute force. I’d like to wash it with water, but this is a carriage, so I’ll have to do without.

"Good job, boy! You could make it in the Iron Welcome School!"

"Thank you! I was blessed with talent!"

I have to speak loudly to be heard by the driver. ...Even inside the carriage, you have to speak loudly to be heard over the noise. All conversations inside a moving carriage are in loud voices.

"Herman, you did it! You took out three in no time! You have three stars in swordsmanship! That’s amazing!"

"Thanks, Marie!"

"You could handle everything on your own!"

"Don’t get too complacent! We need to be prepared!"

At least now we know I can handle kobolds, but I don’t know how I’d fare against orcs. If they come from two directions, I won’t be able to handle it. I’d be short-handed. ...But orcs don’t usually appear, so for now, I’ll just hope they don’t attack from two directions and maintain my rapier.

Whether you found it interesting or not, I’d appreciate your feedback. If you could provide some comments, it would help me improve my writing.

...Probably.