Volume 12 - Prologue

Vol 12 

Prologue

A road that ran through the forest.

As the spring sunlight shone, a carriage advanced.

Moving in front of it were Kevin’s two exclusive guards. Clad in reddish brown mantle, each of them were riding a horse. It seems they were responsible for guarding ahead.

behind the covered wagon that was pulled by two horses was Premie city guild master Salomon riding on a horse. Salomon’s role was being Riese’s escort. For that sake, he would be in charge of the place closest to the exit which is at the back of the wagon bed.

Inside the covered wagon, Yuuji, Alice, Riese and Yurshelle were sitting on a wooden crate. No, it seems they had put a cushion on the wooden crate and was sitting on that. It was a cushion with a hole like a donut that Yuuji prepared by ordering them at Yurshelle.

Kotarou was blocking the rearmost end of the wagon bed. I suppose I will go outside, was what she was thinking.

“Yuuji-nii, the carriage is fast, isn’t it!? It doesn’t really shake, right!?”

“Yes it is, Alice! It’s true that it doesn’t shake as much as I thought”

In order to meet with the elven adventurer, Yuuji and company headed to the royal capital while bringing along Riese.

Currently it was the first day of the trip, and nearly one hour had passed since leaving Premie city.

The carriage advanced smoothly.

“Mr Yuuji, have you seen the wheels before departure?”

Did he hear Yuuji and Alice’s conversation? Kevin began to talk to him while on the coachman’s seat.

What Kevin prepared was a simple covered wagon

Who were on the wagon’s coachman’s seat was Kevin and Enzo. Kevin sat and moved the carriage, and Enzo stood next to him, on guard with the surroundings. Being able to keep balance in a shaking carriage and confined space, as expected of a former third rank adventurer scout.

“Yes. Some sort of grey something is wrapped around them, isn’t it?”

“That’s right. That’s the meat and pelt of a monster that is raised near the royal capital”

“Eh?”

“It’s a herbivorous monster, but edged tools don’t go through and it’s strong against impact. They’re nuisances that devastate farmlands, but… the father of the first generation monarch who established this country succeeded in livestock farming them, or so they said”

“Really… could it be something like a pig? Are they big?”

“Let’s see. They’re slightly bigger in height than me, and their length… should be about this covered wagon if you include the tip of their tail”

“Eh? They, they’re pretty huge, aren’t they…”

It seemed to be larger than Yuuji expected. I wonder if it’s like a hippo, no, something like a triceratops? He muttered.

“By rolling up its skin and meat around the wheels, it’ll absorb the shock. And then, the father of the first generation king succeeded in breeding frog type monsters”

“Re- really… and are those used in the carriage too?”

“Yes. Their leg tendons and muscles absorbs high and low shocks”

“Woow! It’s amazing, isn’t it, Yuuji-nii!”

“Mo- monster legs are… they look like it would become useless as soon as they dry though”

“Yes, usually that would be the case. A special process is needed it seems, but… they haven’t disclosed it to this day. It has become this country’s local special product”

“I see… By the way, what if you investigate it?”

“It’s not a great amount of money, but it is one of the country’s source of funds. Sufficient to hang you”

Yuuji could not hide his shock towards the hard facts of the hardly shaking carriage.

On the other hand, Alice giggled and made merry. Rather than Yuuji, who did not forget to translate even while shaking, Riese was more surprised. Yuuji seemed to have gotten the habit to translate everything.

“The current king is the eighth so we only know it in the records, those days when it was unveiled it was something groundbreaking, you know. Anyways, it’s said that he amassed a fortune with that, and his sons built up this country. The first king was the son, but who made the country is the first king’s father, is what some scholars are saying”

“Really… There have been amazing people there, isn’t it”

“Mr Yuuji, by the way. A portrait of the first king’s father is left behind, you see”

“That’s right, isn’t it? He is a splendid person, isn’t it”

“He is drawn with black hair, black eyes and slightly strange facial features. As if similar to you, Mr Yuuji”

With eyes wide open, Yuuji stared at the coachman’s seat where Kevin was sitting.

Kotarou, who was supposed to be behind him, rushed over to Yuuji and barked once. As if to say explain in more details.

Fifth spring since Yuuji came to the other world.

It seems that Yuuji had gotten another reason to go to the royal capital.

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“ ‘Kay! For the time being, the sides of both of them are complete -su!”

“Alright!”

Receiving the woodworker Thomas’ declaration, loud cheers resounded in the Yuuji-absent pioneer land. 

What was built in Houjou village settlement were two houses.

Up until now, the pioneer land had nothing but tents with layers of cloth and two residential complexes.

With Thomas’s master and his apprentices there, construction speed increased and finally houses intended for families had been complete. But then again, they postponed the interior in order to build several of them.

“It’s quick when dividing in two groups ain’t it -su? Rather than proceeding in order, it’s better to work on two houses at once -su”

Thomas muttered, but the settlers ignored him. Ignore monologues, seems to be this settlement’s unwritten law. Without a doubt it’s because of Yuuji.

“Don’t mind the details, Thomas! Alright, the residents of the first houses have already been decided!”

The deputy village head who had been entrusted with the settlement during Yuuji’s absence, the former third rank adventurers party “Dark Green Wind” leader Blaise looked around. Eventually he must have found the intended person.

“Ooh, there you are! Marcel! Starting today this house is your house!”

“ …Eh? Mr Blaise, I am a slave, you know?”

“It’s fine! You’ll be able to buy yourself back soon, right? If we exclude Mr Yuuji and the two, you’ll be the oldest member and in the first place, nobody would understand farmwork if you’re not there”

“But…”

“Well, giving the first house to Marcel is Mr Yuuji’s proposal though! Is it okay not to listen to what the pioneer leader is saying in the pioneer land? He’s your master, right?”

“ …Thank you very much!”

Perhaps he understood it with those words, Marcel finally lowered his head. It seems to have been decided that Yuuji’s slave and dogkin Marcel, and his family finally moved from the provisional tent.

“Even so… in order to let Marcel be in this settlement even when he buys himself and is no longer a slave… No, I must be overthinking things. I doubt Mr Yuuji have thought that far”

Blaise muttered, and shook in denial.

It was natural for Blaise to doubt that Yuuji may have calculated it.

Marcel could also distance himself from the settlement once he is no longer a slave after buying himself back by saving the money. However, here he has a house sufficient for living with his family, and he has work. He must have thought about it from the start, but Marcel’s thoughts of staying in the settlement must have gotten stronger.

“Alright then, now about the second house! What should I do. For now those with families get priority though…”

Though he was excited, Blaise was evasive.

Aside from the couple that was himself and his archer wife, there was the couple of the defender Dominique and the former slave and the seamster couple. There were three married couples in the pioneer land.

Although it was determined to construct two houses continuing this, it seemed to be difficult to say that the “second one is ours”. In spite of having lived as a hoodlum of an adventurer in a world with laws of the jungle. By some possibility did Yuuji’s naivety might have been infecting him little by little.

In any case.

The settlement, which had ushered in the second group of settlers and where Yuuji and company had gone on a trip.

Its fourteen settlers and the group of craftsmen who had come on a trip seemed to be carrying forward the development favorably.