"Ahahahaha!"
"……It isn’t that funny."
"No, sorry. It’s just... to think Mattheus was so wary of you because he thought you walked that particular path."
He was referring to what was known as shudo. To put it plainly: male homosexuality.
"I-I mean, pfft..."
"I-It’s mostly Reinhard’s fault! Staying cooped up in the carriage the whole time, always together..."
Mattheus stammered out his excuses, his face turning a deep shade of crimson. His flustered state only invited more of Reinhard’s muffled laughter.
"E-Enough! I’m going to my room!"
Finally taking genuine offense, Mattheus spun on his heel and stormed out of Reinhard’s room. The door slammed shut behind him with a resounding bang.
"Haha... I wonder what I’m going to say to Jin later," Reinhard murmured, a wry smile lingering on his lips.
＊ ＊ ＊
Jin and Reiko had made their way to the carriage park.
The area was surrounded by tents used by Mattheus’s subordinates as both a staging ground and sleeping quarters. Mattheus and four others were staying at the inn in Ganys along with Reinhard, his butler, and the maids, while the rest of the escort remained here.
It was there that Jin encountered someone unexpected.
"Jin-sama? Is that you?"
"Adberg-san?"
It was Adberg, Elsa’s former butler.
"It has been a long time. Not since the day Lady Elsa went missing."
"It has. You look well."
Jin recalled Reinhard mentioning that they had found Adberg and Hermann and decided to take them back with them.
"That Mine... she truly did a foolish thing. I wonder how the Young Lady is faring now."
Even though he had been dismissed, Adberg had looked after Elsa since she was a child. He still worried deeply for her welfare.
"What are your plans, Adberg-san?"
"I am getting on in years. Once we return home, I have a son and daughter waiting for me. I believe I shall finally retire."
Adberg looked up at the evening sky, a trace of melancholy in his expression.
"By the way, where is Hermann-san?"
"Ah, Hermann? He’s over there."
Adberg pointed toward the former guard.
"Wait... who is that child?"
Standing beside Hermann was a young girl about ten years old, dressed in tattered, filthy clothes. They appeared to be in the middle of a conversation.
"……A beggar, most likely," Adberg said, his voice flat and devoid of emotion. "Hermann has always been soft on children who remind him of his own daughter."
Hermann handed something to the girl. She bowed repeatedly with exaggerated gratitude before scurrying away.
As she left, Jin noticed something odd about her gait. She dragged her right leg as if she were badly injured.
Jin couldn't simply ignore a suffering child. He took a brief leave of Adberg and headed toward his own carriage to fetch some recovery medicine from his supplies.
"Laojun really is thorough," Jin muttered as he stepped inside.
Even though he could return to Hourai Island at any time via a Warp Gate, there were times when he might be observed, or moments when every second was critical. In those cases, having medicine on hand was vital.
The compartment under the seats functioned as a simple Ether Stocker. It had refrigeration capabilities as well, allowing him to store fresh food indefinitely.
"Now, where did that girl go?"
He asked Reiko, who was waiting outside. She pointed the way, and they followed after her.
"Ah, there she is... wait."
Based on her clothes and hair color, it was definitely the same girl. However, the moment she turned the corner of a dilapidated building, her limp vanished. She began walking perfectly normally—no, quite energetically.
"……"
Realizing the truth of the situation, Jin let out a soft sigh.
"The world is a cynical place..."
A child faking an injury just to elicit enough sympathy for a few coins. The thought left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"Is there anything I can actually do for them?"
Jin returned to the carriage, still holding the recovery medicine. Reiko followed him in silence.
"Phew."
He leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes.
"I have money, but just giving it away won't solve the root of the problem..."
It would only be a temporary reprieve. Once the coins were spent, they would be right back where they started.
"I suppose it has to be a 'Ninsoku Yoseba' after all."
"Father, what is a Ninsoku Yoseba?" Reiko asked, having overheard his musing.
"Ah. Well... it’s a place where you house petty criminals or the homeless, teach them vocational skills, and help them reintegrate into society. That’s the idea, anyway."
The protagonist of the period dramas the Orphanage Director loved so much had supposedly established such a place on Ishikawajima. It was a historical fact from Jin’s original world. Even then, it had been a revolutionary system with few parallels.
"I’d like to have Nostalgia lead the way on this."
Having made up his mind, Jin gave Steward strict orders to let no one into the carriage and then warped to Hourai Island with Reiko.
『I see. A "Ninsoku Yoseba." It is a sound strategy to organize and educate orphans and those who wish to work but lack the means,』 Laojun agreed.
Jin left the task of ironing out the details and coordinating with Nostalgia to him.
"Would it not also be beneficial to establish an organization to manage the balance of labor supply and demand?" Anne suggested, appearing seemingly out of nowhere. Essentially, she was proposing a public employment office.
"Good point. For that to work, the exchange of information will be vital. Let’s have Nostalgia handle that as well."
Slowly but surely, Nostalgia was beginning to permeate society as Jin’s subordinate organization, expanding its influence for the sake of social infrastructure.
With the plan in motion, Jin spent the rest of his time soaking in the bath at his home on Hourai Island, finally relaxing.
＊ ＊ ＊
The day before Jin’s reunion with Reinhard.
In Presos, a city within the Klein Kingdom.
This was the seat of power for the notoriously corrupt Earl Walter. Inside the lord’s mansion, a clandestine meeting was underway.
"You mean the ones working the Inado Mine?"
"Exactly. Release them in secret and herd them toward Kaina Village."
"Are you certain, my lord?"
"I don't mind. The script is as follows: 'Criminals escaped from the Inado Mine and attacked Kaina Village. My soldiers rushed to the scene to save the people. Alas, they were one step too late, and the villagers were slaughtered to a man. My soldiers then wiped out the criminals, avenging the innocent.'"
"'Dead men sing no songs,' I take it?"
"You're quick on the uptake. Precisely."
It was five to six days by carriage. Two to three days by horse. And for a messenger pigeon, the distance was covered in less than a day.
That was the distance to the Inado Mine.
Carved into the mountains southeast of Kaina Village, it was one of the Klein Kingdom’s vital sources of mineral resources.
"Are they really letting us go?"
『Yeah. But if you want to stay free, head for the village to the north. There are soldiers to the south.』
"As long as I’m out of this hole, I don't care where I go!"
In the Klein Kingdom, where the population was sparse and labor was in high demand, all but the most heinous criminals were fitted with "criminal identification" collars and sentenced to forced labor. They were placed in the custody of local lords and put to work on grueling tasks like land reclamation or mining.
"Hehehe, I’m gonna have some fun!"
"Yeah, there are women there, right?"
"Real food, a real bed, and women. This is gonna be great."
The criminals, their eyes sunken and glinting with malice, felt their restrained desires begin to boil over.
The proverb "Dead men sing no songs" hung in the air—the local equivalent of "Dead men tell no tales."