← Previous · Series overview · Next →
In the end, they left the following day. They needed time to prepare, and if they were going anyway, they might as well take a job along the way. For adventurers moving from one base to another, it was common to travel while earning money for the journey through escort work and similar requests.
Their destination this time was the Kingdom of Magiard, home to the Magic City. It would be quite a long journey. They would have to leave the Kingdom of Yukt, pass through the Holy State of Saint Faus, and continue even farther beyond that. Travel expenses would not be insignificant.
Once she had calmed down, Levia agreed as well. For all her talk about living off her husband’s money, she did not dislike earning money itself. In fact, she rather enjoyed it. If she didn’t, she would never have become a company president.
“A hundred million, huh. What should I spend it on?”
Even a day later, Levia was still in a good mood. Considering she might soon be getting her hands on a nine-figure sum, that was only natural.
Perhaps she already considered herself rich, because she was dressed in the gaudy style of the nouveau riche, wearing an expensive-looking fur coat and a pearl necklace. Hopefully she wasn’t counting her chickens before they hatched.
“Let’s see. I already bought out an entire toy store once, and I’ve done the same with a candy shop. What should I do next?”
“When did you do that…? You’ll make the children cry. And watch your speech.”
“Oops. My apologies. And what would you do with the money, Ney? Human trafficking again?”
“Don’t make it sound like that! Honestly… If I had that much money, hmm… I suppose I would keep saving for my wedding dress. Hehe.”
“So dead money, then. What about you, Liz?”
“Hmm. Nothing really comes to mind. Maybe I’d replace my staff?”
“With a hundred million, you could own your own farm.”
“Really?! A hundred million is that much money?!”
Liz’s eyes sparkled.
Levia had meant it as a dumb joke about country folk, but Liz had taken it fairly seriously. With a hundred million, one could probably buy an entire village if things went well. The gap in her common sense made Levia’s cheek twitch as she thought, Is she serious?
Liz had been living in the city for a little over two years and was still hopelessly unfamiliar with prices.
After walking for another ten minutes or so while talking about their dreams, they reached a square near the eastern gate. They had accepted a job escorting a traveling merchant headed in the direction of the Magic City, and this was the meeting point.
The square served as a stopping place for traveling merchants, and numerous wagons stood around it. The air was thick with the smell of horses. Leaving Levia to mutter, “God, it stinks,” Ney looked around for their client.
“Lord Land! Is Land Etig here? We are the adventurers who accepted your request!”
At Ney’s call, a man raised a hand. He wore a turban and had an amiable-looking face. That was probably their client.
As they approached, the man looked startled for just a moment. Naturally, his gaze had gone to Levia. A warrior, a mage, and a nouveau riche woman made for an unusual combination. It would have been stranger if he had not reacted.
His expression quickly returned to normal, however, and he addressed them warmly. As expected of a merchant.
“You must be the members of Poppy Anemone. My name is Land Etig, the client for this request. I look forward to traveling with you.”
“A pleasure to meet you. I’m Ney Shariq, the party leader. We will guarantee your safety on the road. We look forward to working with you as well.”
“To think such renowned A-rank adventurers would accept my request. I must be fortunate indeed. I leave myself in your hands.”
The two shook hands. Flattering them from the very first exchange was certainly merchant-like.
A young girl was watching them closely. She had chestnut hair in braids and was peeking at Ney from behind Land with only half her face visible.
“Your daughter?”
“Yes. This is Lulu. Come on, Lulu, say hello.”
The girl called Lulu immediately hid herself. She gripped the hem of Land’s clothes tightly from behind.
Land gave a wry smile at her reaction.
“My apologies. She’s rather shy around strangers.”
“That’s common enough at her age. Please don’t worry about it. Now, just to confirm: the request is to escort you during the journey. Our destination is the border town of Pendran. You will provide the food and other consumable supplies. Is there anything incorrect there?”
“No. That is all correct.”
“Understood. Then we can leave as soon as you are ready.”
Land inspected the wagon and made a final check of the cargo. Apparently everything was in order, because he placed Lulu on the driver’s seat at the front, sat beside her himself, and took the reins.
The wagon slowly began moving, and the others followed.
They passed through the eastern gate and left the royal capital behind.
Grasslands stretched across their view, with a road cutting through them. It was an unpaved road in its natural state, but quite broad. Three or four wagons could probably travel side by side. The high traffic around the capital was likely the reason.
“Daddy, how long until we get home?”
“Let’s see. If the weather stays good, about a week.”
“I wanna see Mommy soon. And Big Sis.”
“Yeah. Daddy wants to see them too.”
As they traveled, the client and his daughter chatted pleasantly. Lulu sounded a little lonely.
“My, is your mother in Pendran?”
Levia, walking alongside the wagon, addressed Lulu. The girl immediately clung to her father again, just as she had before.
“Sorry about that, Miss Levia.”
“Please, don’t worry about it. But why is she traveling with you? She’s still kindergarten—… no, around five or six, isn’t she? Traveling at that age must be difficult.”
“My wife is pregnant at the moment. Our older daughter has been taking care of her, but apparently looking after this one as well is a little too much. So we thought we would try letting her travel with me.”
“I see. You’re working hard, aren’t you, Lulu?”
Levia smiled at her.
Faced with a beauty that could have been mistaken for a goddess, Lulu stared blankly. Land, caught in the crossfire, turned red as well.
“…A princess.”
“Yes. I am a princess. Would you like to be one too, Lulu?”
“…Yeah.”
“Then wait just a moment.”
Levia stepped away from the road and into the grassland. She picked several flowers growing there and returned to the wagon.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
She quickly climbed onto the driver’s seat and placed Lulu on her lap. Then she efficiently fixed the girl’s hair and decorated it with the flowers she had picked. Finally, she produced a mirror from somewhere and showed Lulu her reflection.
“Wow…! A princess! Lulu’s a princess too!”
“Yes, you are. You look lovely, Lulu.”
Her braids had been undone and her hair carefully combed straight. A wreath woven from white flowers rested on her head, and a necklace made from the same flowers hung around her neck. Her lower half was still dressed rather plainly, but from the waist up she looked properly princess-like.
“Look, Daddy! I’m a princess!”
“W-wow, you look adorable. That’s wonderful, Lulu. Miss Levia, thank you.”
“Ohohoho. A reward for such a hardworking child. I’m glad she likes it.”
Levia watched Lulu happily bouncing on her lap with a gentle expression.
There was something almost maternal about her.
Ney, seeing this thoroughly unlike-Levia behavior, was making a remarkable face. It looked as though she had seen something she was not supposed to see.
“W-what is that? Is that really Levia? When did someone switch her out?”
“That’s actually her. I couldn’t believe it the first time either.”
“W-what is she planning? She isn’t winning the child over so she can sell her later, is she…?”
“I want to say no… but then there was what happened the day before yesterday. She doesn’t have a record for this sort of thing, so it’s probably fine…”
The whole incident seemed to have made Lulu completely lose her wariness. She was happily talking to Levia behind her.
Levia, for her part, seemed perfectly comfortable carrying on a conversation with a child that an adult might otherwise find boring. Perhaps the ease with which she handled it only deepened Ney’s suspicions, because she beckoned Levia over with a small gesture.
“Please wait here a moment,” Levia told Lulu before setting her down and walking over to the other two.
“Did you need something?”
“Well… I just wanted to say this, just in case, but… I don’t think she would sell for very much. She’s still far too young.”
“? …Oh, that’s what you mean. I do have standards, you know. That one was rare, and he looked like he had low social standing.”
She did not appear to be plotting anything.
Ney, however, still did not seem reassured. The behavior simply differed too much from the Levia she knew.
“B-but aren’t you strangely practiced at this? Knowing you, I can hardly imagine that you genuinely like children.”
“I wouldn’t say I especially love them.”
“I thought so. Then why are you so used to—”
“Well, I did have one. A daughter.”
“…Huh?”
The two stared at her blankly.
“She was about Lulu’s age. I was reasonably involved in raising her, so I have some experience. Though back then I only knew how to play boys’ games with—… oh?”
Levia finally noticed their expressions.
She tilted her head, then remembered that, from their perspective, none of that made any sense.
“Sorry. I lied. I have a younger sister. That is why dealing with children is easy for me.”
“R-right. Of course. You scared me…”
“I very nearly believed you. Honestly, that was bad for my heart.”
The two looked relieved.
One of them quietly muttered something about having thought Levia had beaten her to it.
Levia could have told them the truth, but explaining everything from the beginning would have been a nuisance. There was also no guarantee they would believe her.
Ideas such as reincarnation and other worlds existed in this world as well, but only in religious texts and entertainment. If Levia claimed that she had actually been reincarnated into another world as the opposite sex, they would probably assume something was wrong with her head.
“Leviaaa, are you done yet?”
“Yes, yes. Are we finished here? I’m being called.”
“Y-yes. Sorry for doubting you.”
“Sorry, Levia.”
Levia returned to the wagon and sat beside Lulu. The two chatted happily, looking almost like sisters.
Like sisters, except…
16 - 6 = 10.
“…No. I’m imagining strange things. I need to concentrate on the escort.”
“I’m starting to think Land might be a lolicon. Let’s keep her from getting too close to him.”