Chapter 4

Rei stood by the classroom door, taking a deep breath and firmly gripping the letter containing secrets that his mother had given him.

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Rei, who had doubts about how easily he could mount the horse, was thinking about the current situation. Regardless of his thoughts, the horse continued to walk along the mountain path with him on its back. After about an hour, the view that had been blocked by trees suddenly opened up, and they finally emerged from the deep, dark forest.

Below him, a beautiful landscape spread out that he had never seen before. There were lakes of various sizes between the forests and hills, their surfaces reflecting the green of the forest and shimmering emerald in the sunlight. He couldn't help but stop the horse, captivated by the scenery for a moment.

"How beautiful... I've never seen such a beautiful landscape before..."

He said this aloud without realizing it. The baron, who had stopped the carriage after they emerged from the forest, heard his voice.

"Indeed. The view of my homeland and my territory from here is truly beautiful. I see you understand, Lord Rei. Excellent, excellent."

The baron was pleased that his country was praised and smiled at him.

"Yes, I've never seen such a beautiful landscape. It's really beautiful..."

Rei was entranced by the scenery, almost talking to himself.

(From the setting, it was the country of Lax, known for its lakes and springs. I was writing about the area around the adventurer's town of Periclitur, so I only described it as a beautiful country. But it's even more beautiful than I imagined... However, I can't describe this scenery with my writing.)

Ashley, who had been listening to their conversation, thought to herself,

(We're still in danger... These men seem so relaxed. I have to be the only one on guard. It's not a fair deal...)

"Still, we need to hurry. Lord Rei, don't get so absorbed in the scenery that you forget to be vigilant."

She sighed and urged them to continue.

As they slowly descended the pass, they entered a hilly area after about two hours. The sun was already low, but there were still about two hours until nightfall.

"Once we get here, we should be safe. My lord, let's take a break. Lord Edward, can you stop the carriage at that square?"

Ashley gave instructions to Edward, the butler who was driving the carriage, and led the horses into a grassy area by the side of the road.

(Finally, a break... My body isn't as tired as I thought, but I'm mentally exhausted. What will happen to me next?)

Rei, now in a safe area, realized he hadn't thought about what to do next. He had no money, no food, and no identification, such as a bracelet with personal information written on it.

(If I think about it normally, I'm quite suspicious. I might be taken care of because I helped the baron, but once the immediate danger is gone, they might start to consider if I'm a threat. A man of unknown origin who easily wiped out twenty bandits and uses suspicious magic. A normal lord would hesitate to let me into the city, even if I saved his life...)

He dismounted from the horse and sat on the grass, lost in thought. Then, Ashley sat down next to him and handed him a water flask.

"You haven't had any water, have you? I'm sorry I didn't notice."

"It's okay. You were on guard by yourself. I wish I could have been more helpful..."

When he said this with a self-deprecating tone, she grabbed his shoulder and turned him to face her.

"That's not true! You're my savior. If you hadn't been there, I would have died. And not just that, I would have been raped."

Rei realized for the first time that Ashley, who seemed so composed, had been under a lot of stress.

(She looks like a veteran mercenary, but she's actually quite young. She can't be more than five years older than me, can she?)

"Lord Rei, oh, this is troublesome. Can I call you Rei? I don't mind if you call me Ashley, and you don't need to use formal language. So, what do you plan to do from here?"

"Sure, you can call me Rei. I'm trying to figure out what to do next. I have no memory, no money, and no identification. I don't know what to do..."

"Money can be arranged. There's the bounty on the bandits, and we can get a substantial compensation from the mercenary guild. The men who attacked the baron were registered with the guild."

Rei tried to recall the world's setting.

(I remember that magic crystals are essentially souls. They can prove an adventurer's achievements or a mercenary's loyalty. It's a convenient setting, but magic crystals are also valuable. They can be used to make magical items, and a human magic crystal is worth at least ten krona, or about 10,000 yen. Even if we split it, that's 100,000 yen, which should cover my immediate expenses.)

In the world he had created, the currency was C, with one krona being a small silver coin, equivalent to about 1,000 yen. The currency system was as follows: platinum coin = 1,000 krona, gold coin = 100 krona, silver coin = 10 krona, small silver coin = 1 krona, copper coin = 0.1 krona = 10 ares, and small copper coin = 1 are. There were also large gold coins worth five gold coins and half-silver coins worth half a silver coin.

While talking with Ashley, the butler Edward came to call him.

"Excuse me for interrupting. The lord is calling for you, Lord Rei."

Rei followed him, wondering what was going on.

The baron and his daughter, Oriana, were waiting outside the carriage.

"My daughter wants to thank you, Lord Rei. I'm sorry, but could you hear her out?"

Rei, who had not had a good impression of the baron due to his tasteless clothing and plump appearance, was starting to change his mind because of his concern for his daughter.

(I thought he looked like a corrupt official or a villainous noble, but he might be a good person. He doesn't act superior to me...)

He answered, "Sure," and turned to face the girl standing next to the baron. The girl, still in shock, looked down.

"My name is Oriana Atlee. Thank you so much for saving me. If you hadn't been there... ugh..."

She stopped, remembering the scene where she was dragged out of the carriage, tears welling up in her eyes. The baron put his arm around her, but she was sobbing. Rei wanted to say something but couldn't find the words.

(A witty comment would be nice, but I'm not good with people... If it were Ryuji...)

He thought of Ryuji, his only friend, who was the opposite of him—social and athletic, and a cool guy. Despite this, Ryuji was a rare friend who was willing to be friends with him, a shy person. He imagined how Ryuji would handle this situation.

"Oriana, it's good to see you safe. It's best to forget about what happened..."

He managed to say this, though it sounded a bit weak. Oriana nodded, holding back her tears, and was led back into the carriage by the baron.

(Did I do the right thing? If I'm told I did a bad job, I can't do any better...)

During the half-hour break, they had a simple meal. Rei, who had vomited everything in his stomach, was hungry, but the violent scenes still flashed in his mind, and his appetite hadn't returned. Still, to prevent his strength from waning, he forced himself to eat.

As they continued down the road, the landscape gradually changed to open farmland, and they could see the picturesque rural villages with their European-style houses. The houses were made of white stone and plaster, with simple roofs of dark slate, contrasting beautifully with the green forest. The peasants' clothing, made of dyed wool in yellow and red, was quite colorful.

(The land seems prosperous. There's plenty of water, and the soil looks fertile. There were sheep, cows, and pigs. I don't remember much about this area, but it seems like I can manage to eat.)

Feeling more at ease after learning from Ashley that he could manage financially, Rei walked alongside her, gathering information about this world.

This was the Atlee barony in the Lax Kingdom of the Lax Sartuus United Kingdom, located in the western part of the Tria continent. The major countries were the Lax Sartuus United Kingdom, the Caerlm Empire to the south, and the Caum Kingdom to the east, known as the Three Ancient Kingdoms. Other significant countries included the independent Lucks Holy Kingdom and the Jilsol Kingdom from the Caerlm Empire, the adventurer's country of Periclitur, the mercenary country of Fortis, and the city-states with commercial and academic cities.

Today was April 1, 3025, the vernal equinox, according to the Tria calendar. A year had 360 days, a month 30 days, a day 24 hours, an hour 60 minutes, and a minute 60 seconds. For measurements, 1 meter = 1 meter, 1 centimeter = 1 centimeter, 1 kilometer = 1 kilometer. For weight, 1 gram = 1 gram, 1 kilogram = 1 kilogram, and 1 ton was the same as in the original world.

Regarding the races, the Lax Kingdom was predominantly human, with about 70% of the population being human. The rest were 20% elves and 10% beastmen. The Caum Kingdom had a large population of dwarves, and the Sartuus Kingdom had a large population of elves. Further east of the Caum Kingdom was the Kuwaedam Tenebre, a region dominated by the dark race.

(The information I've heard so far matches the setting of "Trinitas Mundus" that I wrote. The time period seems to be almost the same as in the novel. However, I can't remember the specific story. It's as if my memory is blocked...)

As he talked with Ashley and continued down the road, they saw a large town in the distance about an hour after the break. The town, Moulton, the largest in the Atlee barony, was situated on a small hill, with a large mansion with a triangular spire at the top. Rei guessed that it was the baron's residence. The town was surrounded by a wall about five meters high, and the road led to a large gate. They arrived at the gate about half an hour after the town came into view.

(The names of the countries are in a Latin style, but they are just rough approximations based on the atmosphere.)