Toscosia was a town located near the Shouro Empire; within the Celuroa Kingdom, it was known simply as the Border Town.
This was because, despite the extensive border between the Shouro Empire and the Celuroa Kingdom, only a single highway connected them. As the town served as the primary gateway, the nickname was understood by everyone.
To the north of Toscosia, a mountain range divided the two nations, while a great river separated them to the south.
Furthermore, both nations shared the common circumstance of having vast territories but sparse populations. Influenced by their distinct cultural differences, neither country had ever been particularly enthusiastic about international diplomacy.
"Well, the Predecessor Emperor declared that things couldn't remain that way, so there have been some changes recently," Reinhard explained to Jin as their carriage rolled toward the town. "As a diplomat, it's a pity I can't speak too freely about the specific internal affairs of my country."
"Hey, you two! Toscosia is in sight!" Mattheus’s voice called out from outside the carriage.
"Oh, is it? It’s your first time, isn’t it, Jin? Take a look."
Prompted by Reinhard, Jin peered out the front window.
"Wow, that’s impressive."
Since Toscosia was a border town, a defensive fort sat adjacent to it. However, the town itself looked more like a fortress than the actual fort did.
At the point where the northern mountains tapered off toward the south, a small rocky mountain jutted out from the landscape. Toscosia had been created by carving and hollowing out that very mass of rock.
The fort about a kilometer away was a standard square structure built from stacked stone—the kind of commonplace fortification found anywhere.
But Toscosia was unique. It looked like a scaled-down version of Australia’s Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, with its center hollowed out while leaving the surrounding walls intact.
"I see, I can see why it’s famous." Jin was genuinely impressed.
Eventually, the party slowed down and parked the carriage in the designated lot. Stepping out onto the ground, the majesty of Toscosia was even more apparent.
Jin reached down to pick up a fragment of rock and confirmed it was the same material as the mountain itself.
"Sandstone, huh? This place must have been at the bottom of the sea an eternity ago."
Reinhard happened to catch the murmur.
"What? Jin, what did you just say?"
"Eh? Just that this place was the bottom of the ocean a long time ago."
"How can you tell something like that just by looking at a rock?" Reinhard asked, sounding quite excited.
"Because this is sandstone. It's rock formed by sand accumulating in thick layers on the seafloor. I was just impressed to find it on land like this." Jin pointed toward the town of Toscosia. "Look at those horizontal stripes. That’s the best evidence there is."
Jin gave them a simplified explanation of geology.
He described how sand is transported by rivers. During that process, the way gravel, sand, and mud accumulate changes based on their weight; gravel deposits closer to the shore and at the bottom, while layers of sand and then mud form sequentially over time.
He also mentioned that land is not eternal, explaining how it can rise through uplift or sink through subsidence.
Of course, this was high school-level knowledge from Earth, so he wasn't entirely certain if it applied perfectly to this world, but it was his best guess.
"I see. Is that also part of this 'science'?"
"Yeah. In science, that specific field is called 'geology.'"
At that moment, Mattheus, who had been listening to Jin’s explanation in silence, finally spoke up.
"Jin-dono!"
His voice was so booming that both Jin and Reinhard jumped.
"Marvelous! Jin-dono’s explanation has provided the answer to a question I’ve had for years! 'Science,' you say? What a magnificent field of study!"
"...Mattheus?"
It was the first time Reinhard had ever seen Mattheus this worked up.
"...No, my apologies. Reinhard, forgive me for losing my composure," Mattheus said, regaining his calm. "But you probably didn't know this—when I was a boy, I wanted to be a scholar. You remember, don't you? By the shores of Lake Tosmo, I once found a shell that had turned into stone. Ever since then, I’ve been dying to know how such a thing happened, or why it was even there. But no one could tell me."
Lake Tosmo was a massive lake near the family estates of both Reinhard and Mattheus.
"Some said it was a shell turned to stone by magic, while others claimed it was just a stone that happened to look like a shell. But neither explanation felt right to me."
"Was it a fossil, perhaps?" Jin interjected.
"A fossil?...Meaning 'turned to stone'? Then was it actually a shell petrified by magic?"
"No, that's not it. If it were magic, wouldn't the soft body of the creature inside be turned to stone as well? Was there anything inside the stone shell you found?"
"N-now that you mention it... no. From what I could see, the interior was also just stone."
Jin nodded, his suspicions confirmed. "The soft body likely decayed, and over a vast period of time, it was replaced by minerals."
"A long period of time... like a thousand years?"
"No, tens of millions—or perhaps even hundreds of millions of years."
When Jin said this, both Mattheus and Reinhard were stunned.
"T-that long?!"
Mattheus suddenly caught himself. Remembering his position, he straightened his back and cleared his throat.
"Ahem. I would like to hear more, but first, let us head to the inn. My subordinates should have already processed the application, so we should be able to enter the town immediately."
With that, he took the lead and headed toward the town entrance. Jin and Reinhard—along with Reiko, Reinhard’s butler, and the maids—followed behind him.
It was then that a voice called out.
"Noble sir! I have a request!"
A figure suddenly performed a dogeza before them.
So dogeza really does exist here too, Jin thought, his mind wandering to an entirely irrelevant observation. Reinhard, however—the "noble sir" being addressed—was caught completely off guard.
"Are you residents of the Shouro Empire?"
The custom of dogeza did not exist in the Allied Kingdoms, such as the Celuroa Kingdom, the Kingdom of Egerea, the Klein Kingdom, the Kingdom of Franz, or the Kingdom of Elias. It was a formal etiquette unique to the Shouro Empire.
"Y-yes! I am Barrow, and this is Belle."
The speaker, Barrow, appeared to be a boy of about fourteen or fifteen. Beside him, Belle remained bowed low, seemingly around the same age.
"Belle and I were serving a noble in Bororon, but that noble was recently purged, and we lost our positions."
Jin winced. It was likely one of the reforms implemented by the Celuroa Kingdom's leadership regarding those involved with the Unifilar.
However, the reality was that people had lost their livelihoods because of it. Jin realized he would need to have Laojun look into this and ensure Nostalgia handled such cases properly.
But for now, he focused on the two in front of him.
"I was an apprentice butler, and Belle was an apprentice maid. We can do almost any task! Please, take us with you back to our motherland!"
"Hmm..." Reinhard looked troubled. "You two... do you have passage permits for the checkpoint? You don't, do you?"
It was more of a confirmation than a question.
"...No..." Barrow, who had been looking up, hung his head in shame.
"I thought as much. That’s why you thought to pass through the checkpoint as a noble's attendants."
"B-but! Belle and I are truly from the Shouro Empire! We have homes there!" Barrow pleaded, his face a mask of desperation.
Reinhard remained calm. "Where is your family home?"
"It's in Magiroots."
"Hmm, the town next to Krimhilde?"
"N-no! That's not it! It's the town north of Mont!"
Reinhard smirked. The previous question had been a trick. He continued, testing Barrow further.
"I see. After all, as they say, 'home is home'."
Jin didn't understand the significance for a moment, but upon hearing Barrow’s response, he guessed it was a phrase known to any citizen of the Shouro Empire.
"Yes, there is no place like home."
"Hmph. It seems there's no mistake that you are from the Empire. However, we are in a hurry to return." Reinhard explained that they couldn't afford to be delayed while trying to obtain transit permits for the pair.
"N-no! Please, we'll do anything! So please!"
The moment Barrow cried out, Belle, who had remained silently bowed beside him, collapsed without a sound.