Chapter 30

“Finally, finally, I’ve arrived…!”

Ordo!

Tears of joy streamed down Joanie’s face as she gazed at the walls encircling the city.

The people standing in line to enter Ordo pointed fingers at her, whispering as they watched her shout with open arms.

“….”

I pulled my hood down low and positioned myself at a distance.

“Ah, Kana!”

…Of course, her awareness is sharp when it’s least necessary.

She’s terrible at noticing incoming attacks, yet she instantly sensed my distancing and, like a ghost, closed the gap between us.

“Why are you wearing a hood?”

“…Just in case someone recognizes me.”

Not many people know my face, but there’s always the chance, and I want to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Even with my halfhearted answer, Joanie accepted it and nodded.

Seriously though, she was just on the brink of collapse a moment ago, but now she’s walking around fine.

“Turns out you were faking it.”

“Faking it?! I really thought I was going to die!”

Joanie protested passionately in Granik, her fluency suddenly improving.

She thought she was going to die, huh?

“I always saved you right before things got dangerous.”

“That’s not what I mean….”

She started grumbling gloomily in Arkish, clearly dissatisfied. Joanie had expected something entirely different from our journey together.

Instead of the intimate adventure she’d envisioned, strange people kept getting in our way, and rather than helping, I just stood back, sometimes even urging her to fight faster. Sure, she was thankful for being rescued, but wouldn’t it have been better if I’d just stepped in from the start? What happened to the peaceful, romantic date she’d imagined?

Listening to her, it was clear she had lots of complaints. I shook my head with a sigh.

She doesn’t realize these experiences are helping her grow, though.

On the way to Ordo, Joanie had been targeted by Apostles. Some politely requested duels, while others suddenly drew their swords and demanded a fight. There were even ambushes and long-range attacks with magic and arrows, which I personally dealt with. My goal was to help Joanie improve her skills, not to torment her.

Of course, when Apostles formally requested a duel, I let her handle it, regardless of the weapon used.

One strange thing was that after each fight, the Apostles would give me an expectant look, as if waiting for something. I suspect it was because of the rumor spread by the first Apostle who left with some coins I had handed him.

I’m not some golden goblin or anything….

After giving out a few coins, I realized it was getting out of hand, so I closed my purse and substituted it with a handshake.

That wasn’t my idea, though—it was something the Apostles themselves requested.

Why they wanted a handshake, I still have no idea.

“Well, saving money is always good.”

Of course, I didn’t offer it to the Apostles who lost to Joanie.

I only started giving it to the ones Joanie defeated because I felt bad for stopping the fights to save her life. There was no reason to give anything to those she had beaten.

And then, for some reason, the Apostles seemed even more determined to charge at Joanie.

What on earth had Joanie done to make so many people want to take her down?

“…”

Joanie shot me a look like she had a lot on her mind for a second.

Maybe it was just my imagination.

Anyway, something strange was happening in Ordo since I last visited.

—”Next person, step forward!”

Seeing the long line at the entrance made me think something was off, and I soon spotted the guards at the gate, conducting strict inspections on everyone going in and out.

Now and then, a few people were turned away, suggesting this wasn’t just for show.

The checkpoint had always been there, but they hadn’t enforced entry restrictions like this before. Maybe this change was part of their new policies as a free city?

I tugged at Joanie’s sleeve.

“What is it, Canaria?”

“That.”

“The inspection? What’s wrong with it?”

Joanie didn’t seem to find it unusual, which meant it must be a common occurrence.

As I looked up at her, signaling for an explanation, she caught on and said, “They’re verifying identities. Things like mercenary badges or trading permits.”

“Hmm…”

Joanie pulled out her mercenary badge as she spoke.

The golden badge glimmered faintly in the setting sun.

I can’t believe she’s a gold-ranked mercenary with skills like hers. The world must be ending.

But this isn’t the time to dwell on that.

“Identity…”

There was no need to worry about that in the past.

Who would question someone wearing the Crimson Aegis armor? But now, I had nothing to prove my identity.

“Next!”

While I was deep in thought, the line ahead disappeared, and suddenly it was our turn.

The interior of the checkpoint was quite bleak.

A prison cell, desks, chairs, and equipment to prevent riots—it was a place that fit the term “checkpoint” perfectly.

The guard, dressed in meticulously polished armor, spoke in a firm tone as we approached.

—”Could you remove your cape, please?”

“Kana, the cape.”

Without hesitation, I took off my hood.

The guard’s eyes widened in surprise for a moment but quickly returned to their original state.

—”Do you have anything to prove your identity?”

“Here…”

—”Ah, you’re a mercenary from Liberi. Understood.”

The guard checked the mercenary badge Joanie handed over and nodded. Then he turned to me and asked,

—”And this young lady…?”

“Ah, sorry. My sister doesn’t speak Arkish. She’s from a small, remote village, and this is her first time in Ordo. I’ll vouch for her. Could that work?”

—”Hmm… Since you’re a high-ranking mercenary, your word should be enough. But I need to confirm one thing. What’s the name of the village you’re from?”

“Uh, um… What was it again…? I’m not lying; I just forgot…!” Searᴄh the NôᴠeFire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Seeing the guard’s growing suspicion, Joanie flailed her arms, clearly flustered.

From the way things were going, it seemed like my lack of proper identification was causing an issue.

‘Something to prove my identity…’

Ah, I have something.

Suddenly remembering, I rummaged through my pockets. It took me a bit to find it since it was thrown between Imperial coins and a Grasis commemorative coin, but I finally got what I needed and showed it to the guard.

“Will this do?”

—”Hmm? This is…”

The guard narrowed his eyes and scrutinized the item I handed him. He examined it thoroughly, his demeanor serious, which made me think this might resolve things smoothly.

Clank!

“…Huh?”

I was abruptly thrown into a cell on one side of the checkpoint.

***

No way!

Joanie practically fumed with anger. Not literally, of course, but she seemed furious enough to breathe fire.

“You truly, truly—ugh, you awful, awful… argghhh!”

After Canaria was imprisoned, Joanie was kicked out of the checkpoint. Desperate to prove Canaria’s innocence, she passionately defended her, but suddenly paused. The struggles she’d endured until now flashed through her mind.

Caught in a moment of doubt, Joanie gathered herself and raised her voice again.

“She’s not a bad person! It’s just that her village is so remote, I can’t remember the name!”

—”If you continue making a scene, even as a mercenary of Liberi, I can’t guarantee your safety.”

“But…!”

No matter what she said, the guards’ responses remained cold and rigid. Being left without her companion drove Joanie to the brink of madness.

—LOL

—Thanks for using Canaria up until now

—A prison ending? Didn’t see that coming, haha

—What happens if you’re thrown in jail?

—You just wait until they release you. Even if you log out, when you log back in, you’re still stuck in jail.

—But Canaria’s an NPC, so who knows what will happen?

The chat, filled with laughter and jokes, paid no mind to Joanie’s growing frustration. As she glanced at the chat window with a look of helplessness, one of the stern guards spoke up.

—”It’s not because of her status.”

The guard had seen the object Canaria presented. He didn’t know much due to his lowly position, but he understood that it wasn’t something a mere village girl would possess.

From the moment he first laid eyes on her, he had sensed something was off. However, when she revealed the object bearing the crest of the fallen Grasis royal family, it became clear her appearance was the least of his concerns.

Despite the kingdom’s fall, the misuse of a royal emblem was a serious offense. After imprisoning the girl, the guard immediately reported it to his superiors. If she was using the emblem without knowing its significance, she would face a severe punishment, regardless of her age. However, if she was truly connected to the royal family…

“No, that’s impossible,” the guard dismissed the thought.

He didn’t know all the members of the royal family, but he had never heard of a girl like this. Plus, after the invasion of the dimensional creatures, those who hadn’t died had fled to the Empire. Why would they suddenly visit Ordo now?

— “I’d sooner believe that Garid himself had returned.”

The guard thought back to Garid, the one who had deeply loved Grasis. He remembered the scarred face of the man he had once glimpsed from afar, and a sense of bitterness swept over him.

— “Come to think of it, I’ve never heard who replaced Garid as commander.”

The position of commander had become vacant, and surely someone had filled it, but no details had surfaced. Rumors abounded — that the new leader was ruthless, killing enemies and subordinates alike without hesitation, that he was a giant twice the size of normal men, that he had once taken down royalty. But none of these rumors were ever confirmed.

Once, he’d even asked his superior in the Crimson Aegis, but his superior only gave him a terrified look and avoided answering.

Even the supervisor, who always seemed terrifying to him, reacted like that, making it easy to believe the rumors were true.

‘…I’m thinking about pointless things.’

The Kingdom of Grasis was already destroyed, so what was the point of dwelling on the past?

Honestly, he felt that life was better now than before the fall of Grasis, so he didn’t particularly miss the old days.

Shaking off the last of those lingering thoughts, he pushed Joanie away with firm resolve.

— “I’ll investigate, and if there’s no issue, I’ll release them. But please leave now. Normally, I’d have to detain you as well, but since you’re an Apostle of Edel, I’m letting it slide.”

“If you’re going to let it slide, you might as well release Kana too…”

Joanie grumbled, but under the stern gaze of the guard, she backed off and quickly fled.

—How disappointing to abandon your ally and run away…

—Scars on the back are a mark of disgrace for a swordsman;

—Joanie / Controversy / Abandoning comrade

“Shut up! And it wasn’t running away, it was a strategic retreat! Staying wouldn’t have changed anything!”

Earlier, and even now, everything kept unfolding beyond Joanie’s expectations, and she sighed again.

Of course, in all this, she wasn’t worried about Kana’s safety.

If the Kana she knew was in danger, even without a sword, she’d probably destroy half the city to escape.

However, Joanie wasn’t eager to become a fugitive, constantly on the run either.

“What on earth did Kana hand over…?”

Every time she thought she understood Kana a little better, something new popped up. And then, just as she thought she had a grasp, something else would emerge…

She really was like an onion.

With those complaints in mind, Joanie started walking, trying to figure out how to free the little bird caged in the prison.