The next day, April 6th.
In the morning, Jin and Reinhard visited the room Elsa had occupied.
"……"
"……"
"……"
No one spoke. They simply stood in silence, looking at the items Elsa had left behind—or rather, had been forced to leave behind.
Among them was Non, the doll Jin had given her.
It was faintly stained, but not with the grime of neglect; it was the wear of being stroked and held time and time again.
(So you were left behind too?)
Jin kept the thought to himself, gently touching Non’s head.
The short sword remained as well. Seeing it left Jin with a sense of regret.
However, his worry outweighed his surprise when he saw the Protect Ring sitting there. Jin’s heart ached, wondering why Elsa, who surely understood its value, would leave it. He wished she had at least kept that with her. He picked up the ring and tucked it into his pocket.
Suddenly, the door was thrown open, and Elsa’s brother, Fritz, marched in with his subordinates.
"What, Reinhard? You’re still here?"
That was the first thing he said upon seeing them.
"We were just about to leave."
"Hmph, I see."
Fritz looked around the room and barked orders at the butler and the guard.
"Dispose of all this junk. You two will be under my command for the time being. I'll decide later whether to send you back to our home country or not."
As he spoke, Fritz swiped at Non on the nightstand, knocking the doll aside.
"Whoops."
Jin caught it before it could strike the floor. Fritz glanced at him from the corner of his eye.
"Hmph," he sneered, turning his back to Reinhard. "Reinhard, get going already. I’m sure you understand, but don’t go saying anything unnecessary."
"I know," Reinhard replied curtly. He tapped Jin on the shoulder, and they left the room.
Jin followed Reinhard out, clutching Non and never looking back.
Adberg the butler and Hermann the guard watched the two of them depart with melancholy expressions.
＊ ＊ ＊
At 10:00 AM that same day, Jin and Reinhard were being jolted by their carriage as they crossed into the Celuroa Kingdom.
Since Reinhard had already completed the necessary paperwork, they passed through the border checkpoint without incident.
Both were quiet. The shock of Elsa’s disappearance still weighed heavily on them.
At 2:00 PM, they arrived in Telurus, a regional city where they would stay for the night.
The great Torres River flowed behind Telurus; on the opposite bank lay the royal capital, Esaia.
The Torres River was over 200 meters wide and lacked bridges. Ferries were the only means of transportation. Consequently, the ferries operated on a reservation system, as there were few large vessels capable of transporting carriages.
"Lord Reinhard, I’m told reservations are fully booked for the next three days," the butler, Claude, said apologetically.
"I see. Well, it can't be helped. Did you manage to secure a room?"
Because of the many travelers waiting for ferries, there was a surplus of inns.
"Yes, a decent hotel happened to be available."
The group headed to the hotel. It was a ten-story building—quite a high-rise for this world. Jin and the others were assigned rooms on the sixth floor.
(Climbing to the sixth floor by stairs sounds exhausting,) Jin thought, only to be told that golems would carry them up.
"The Celuroa Kingdom is large but has a small population. That's why golems are used in so many places," Reinhard explained.
Being carried up the stairs in a golem's arms was a new experience for Jin. He naturally didn't notice that Reiko, following them while invisible, looked slightly piqued.
"Ah, I can see the river."
From the sixth floor, they could see the Torres River in the distance over the rooftops. Dozens of ferries were shuttling back and forth, though all of them were small boats.
"Why don't they build bigger ships?" Jin wondered aloud.
Reinhard overheard him. "That's kingdom policy. The Torres River is a natural moat. The royal capital, Esaia, is right on the other side. Because of that, private citizens aren't allowed to own ships that carry more than ten people. Large ships for carriages are all under national management."
Hearing that, Jin thought it sounded like the Oi River during the Edo period. He recalled a scene from a period drama where boats were banned entirely and porters carried travelers across.
"Well, we have no choice but to take it easy for the next three days."
The suite they had secured consisted of four connected rooms. Room one was for Reinhard, and room two was for Jin. The third was assigned to Claude and the male servants, while the fourth was for the female servants.
Each room was connected by internal doors, allowing them to move between rooms without using the hallway.
Currently, Jin and Reinhard were chatting in Reinhard’s room.
"Reinhard, did you stop here on your way out as well?"
"Yeah. There's no other way through."
According to Reinhard, the Celuroa Kingdom’s policy dictated that this was the only highway leading to the Kingdom of Egerea.
There was one other narrow mountain path, but it was plagued by wild beasts and bandits, so it was only used occasionally by the military. There were no settlements along it to restock supplies.
"This city is fine, but on the other side of the river, there are five city walls. Unless you have permission, you can't go past the first one. Ordinary travelers walk the highway between the first and second walls."
Based on Reinhard’s explanation, Jin thought it sounded like a complicated country.
The walls were apparently stone structures that stretched on forever, much like the Great Wall of China. And there were five layers of them. To Jin, it felt like a massive waste of labor.
"I’m a diplomat, and I stopped by Esaia on the way out, so I can pass through up to the fourth wall without any problems. What do you want to do?"
"Ah, well, I don't really need to go that deep inside."
Jin told Reinhard that he wanted to avoid trouble. Reinhard seemed to agree.
"In that case, let's just use the highway inside the second wall," they decided.
"The actual Esaia is inside the fifth wall."
Since they had time before dinner, Jin listened to Reinhard’s detailed explanation regarding the walls of Esaia.
"The space between the fifth and fourth walls is wide and contains a town. That’s where the wealthy commoners live. For anyone who isn't a noble, you could say that's Esaia in a sense."
"So you can enter up to that point without issue?"
"That's right. And the space between the fourth and third walls is even wider. However, that area exists to hold back enemies in an emergency, so there are training grounds and such. It’s not a very pleasant place."
Jin nodded, understanding. "Ah, so that's why we'll use the highway between the third and second walls?"
"Exactly. I've heard that while anyone can pass between the second and first walls, the public order there isn't very good. I haven't seen it with my own eyes, though."
Dinner that night felt lonelier than usual. Jin was struck by how much the atmosphere changed just because Elsa wasn't there.
"I wonder how Elsa is doing right now..." Jin sighed.
"Yeah. I wonder what would truly make Elsa happy," Reinhard replied, clearly sharing his sentiment.
Jin had something he wanted to ask Reinhard, so as they drank their after-dinner Te-e, he spoke up.
"Reinhard, can I ask you something?"
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Elsa's brother—Fritz, was it?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Was he really the type to play with Elsa and dote on her in the past?"
The man he had seen was too far removed from the image of the brother Elsa had spoken of during that night in Delid Town—the one she said used to play with her when they were children.
Reinhard nodded gravely. "Ah, I see what you're getting at." He then began to explain.
"Fritz changed four years ago. It was during the period when the previous King of Celuroa had passed away and the current King hadn't yet solidified his political base."
Reinhard explained that while it didn't escalate to a full-scale war, a conflict occurred that was more than a skirmish but less than a war.
"At the time, he was a second lieutenant, and he was taken prisoner by the enemy... the Celuroa Kingdom National Defense Force. He was eventually released in a prisoner exchange, but he's been a different person ever since."
He had become someone who prioritized power above all else—a believer in 'might is right,' Reinhard said sadly.
"Before that, he was a good older brother who doted on Elsa."
"I see. That must have been hard for Elsa then."
A kind older brother suddenly transforming into a muscle-brained extremist. It must have truly been a bolt from the blue for her.
Once again, Jin found himself pondering what would truly bring Elsa happiness.