On May 13th, the same day Jin arrived in Loizart, the capital of the Shouro Empire, Lishia and Pascoe reached the Town of Charles.
"Kaina Village is only a little further. If we stay in Toka Village tonight and leave before dawn, pushing the horses should get us there before nightfall."
"You’ve been to Kaina Village once before, haven't you, Lishia?"
"Yes, last autumn, as a tax collector."
The tax system of the Klein Kingdom was somewhat unique.
Essentially, the citizens paid taxes directly to the state. These payments were made in the form of wheat, ore, or coin. The state then used these taxes to pay stipends to the nobility. This arrangement existed to accommodate the new nobility, the ritters, and those nobles who held no land of their own.
Nobles who did hold territory received a stipend proportional to the size of their domain. This was why Earl Walter’s income had decreased after Kaina Village was confiscated.
Looking at it from another perspective, this meant that nothing beyond the state-mandated taxes left a territory. Most of the harvest from newly reclaimed land or the income from mines belonged to the lord. The state would then buy up that ore. Consequently, Earl Walter’s pockets had been quite deep—until the salt incident.
The Inado Mine had been a prime example of this, which was why the matter of the forced labor criminals had managed to stay hidden from the central government for so long.
"Back then, we had a terrible time when we were attacked by a Unifilar golem," Lishia said, her hand instinctively resting on the sword at her waist.
"So I heard. But you were the one who repelled it, right?"
Because Jin had requested she keep his involvement a secret, Pascoe Rush believed that version of events.
"No, actually, it was Jin-san who defeated it."
There was no longer any need to hide the truth; the kingdom's leaders had known for some time.
"R-Really?! A magi craftman? How?"
For Pascoe, this was difficult to believe.
"At the time, he used water magic to slice the golem apart."
"How in the world..."
It became increasingly incomprehensible. Pascoe could use magic himself; he was a wind-type user who specialized in Wind Cutter. Yet, even with wind magic, he had never heard of anyone slicing through a metal golem.
"Jin-san called it 'Water Jet,' if I recall correctly."
"Water Jet? I've never heard of such a thing..."
Pascoe was beginning to vaguely sense that Jin was no ordinary magi craftman.
Since there was still some time before sunset, Lishia went to look around the town alone. She soon found a crowd gathered in front of a shop. When she leaned in to listen, she discovered they were arguing over the price of salt, which had become outrageously expensive.
"...That's strange. I heard the salt reserves were sufficient."
As a member of the Relief Ritter Corps, Lishia sometimes oversaw the health of the soldiers. Since salt deficiency was a grave medical concern, she often handled inventory management and verification. This year, the Klein Kingdom was supposed to have more than enough salt in its warehouses, releasing it as needed.
"Is someone unfairly hoarding it?"
No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't find a reason for anyone to hoard salt in this region. Salt usually circulated normally, and even if someone bought it all up, they couldn't expect a significant profit. If anything, it would only cause the residents to suffer and increase resentment toward the lords and the state.
"Could that be the goal?"
Lishia considered the possibility, but she dismissed the thought as being too nonsensical and headed back to the inn.
The next day, the 14th, the two made an early start. They pushed their horses and managed to arrive at Toka Village just before sunset. There were soldiers' barracks there, where Lishia and Pascoe stayed for the night.
Before dark, Lishia gave food and water to her messenger pigeons.
"Oh, how cute."
Lishia cooed at them. The two pigeons looked round and fluffy that day.
"I wonder if they're cold."
When birds are cold, they puff out their feathers to trap air and create insulation. The two pigeons were doing exactly that.
"Maybe I'll give them a little extra food."
Muttering to herself, Lishia gave them a more generous serving.
After washing her hands, she sat down for her own meal. It was simple soldier's fare—to be honest, it wasn't very good, but Lishia and Pascoe had both seen the battlefield and didn't mind.
While eating, they heard troubling news from the local soldiers. Apparently, salt was in short supply in this village as well. A mysterious man and several soldiers were reportedly buying it all up.
"Come to think of it, I heard people complaining about the same thing in Doppa and Rakuno," Pascoe noted.
Lishia hadn't heard those complaints herself, but she intuitively knew Pascoe wasn't lying.
"That is strange. We should fly the pigeons as soon as we reach Kaina Village."
Lishia promised the soldiers she would look into it. If she contacted the capital, the kingdom's leaders would surely be able to take some kind of countermeasure.
"Still, that narrow rocky area between Doppa and Rakuno was impressive, wasn't it?"
Seeing the mood turn somber, Pascoe changed the subject. He was referring to the area where the Hourai Island golems had repaired the rockslide.
"Yes. When I passed through before, the path was much rougher, but it was pristine today. 'Nostalgia,' was it? They really do excellent work."
The group had cleared away every loose rock, reinforced the path with stones, and even applied Hardening magic to the structure.
"Nostalgia, huh? I wonder if they're connected to that mysterious Deus Ex Machina."
While listening to Pascoe's idle speculation, Lishia wondered if there was also a connection to Jin.
In the early hours of the 15th, Lishia and Pascoe departed Toka Village. Their goal was to reach Kaina Village by the end of the day. Their mounts were high-quality horses, and even the packhorse was still full of energy.
Stars still hung in the sky when they started. As they rode, the starlight faded, the eastern sky grew bright, and the sun began its ascent.
"The weather looks like it will hold today as well."
By the time the sun had fully risen, they were passing through the rocky terrain where they had once been attacked by the golem.
"Once we cross that bridge, it becomes a mountain path," Lishia explained.
"Then let's let the horses drink from the river first."
"Good idea."
It had been about two hours since they left Toka Village, making it a perfect time for a break. They led the horses to the water and let them drink their fill.
The two riders ate their portable rations: hard tack and dried meat. It was difficult to swallow without water, but they had brought plenty of supplies.
They set off again after fifteen minutes.
The sun rose higher, and the air grew warm. Lishia happened to glance at the birdcage attached to the back of her saddle; the two pigeons were still puffing their feathers slightly.
"It'll be warm soon," she said softly as she urged her horse forward.
She wanted to cover as much ground as possible before reaching the uphill sections, where their pace would naturally slow. Pascoe followed suit, leading the packhorse.
"Lishia is quite the rider..."
Pascoe would have preferred to ride alongside her, but the narrowness of the road made it impossible.
Along the way, they passed a peddler traveling in the opposite direction. Since he had a wagon, the passing was tight. Pascoe was glad he hadn't tried to ride abreast. The peddler looked as though he wanted to say something to Lishia, but she was looking down at the time, and they passed each other in silence.
The mountain path turned into a series of steep switchbacks. By the time the horses were lathered in sweat, the slope finally leveled out at a rest station. It was exactly noon.
"We made it on schedule. Let's rest here."
Lishia’s face was flushed and hot, and her breathing was heavy.
"Lishia? Are you feeling alright?"
Pascoe asked, his voice filled with concern. Lishia shook her head.
"No, I’m fine. I’m just a little tired."
She went to the watering hole to wash her face and hands. Pascoe followed, and finally, they watered the horses.
They sat down for lunch—hard tack and dried meat again. Pascoe, who was starving, devoured his in an instant, but Lishia seemed to have no appetite, chewing her food listlessly.
"Lishia, are you sure you're okay?"
Lishia snapped her head up. "I-I'm fine. I just don't have much of an appetite."
"In that case, you shouldn't force yourself to eat," Pascoe suggested.
Lishia nodded and forced the meat in her mouth down with a gulp of water before putting the rest back into its bag.
"Just a little further and we'll be in Kaina Village. I can rest properly there."
"Let's do that."
Pascoe was worried that Lishia was pushing herself too hard, but he knew they couldn't do anything until they reached their destination, so he held his tongue.
The horses grazed on the surrounding grass and their sweat dried, so they decided to pick up the pace. The path no longer had any steep inclines; once they reached Togo Pass, it would be downhill the rest of the way. At their current speed, they would reach the village by 4:30.
Following behind her, Pascoe could see that Lishia was in significant distress. Her back, usually straight and proud, was slumped, and she looked visibly unwell.
He knew she was a practitioner of healing magic, but there was a vast difference between closing a wound and curing a sickness. Healing magic was akin to surgery; Lishia was an expert at mending injuries, but she was poor at treating internal illnesses.
"Lishia, it's just a little further. Please, hang in there."
Pascoe could do nothing but offer words of encouragement. Lishia seemed to be growing progressively worse, but they finally managed to crest Togo Pass. They were thirty minutes behind their original schedule, but they still had plenty of time before dark.
Now, it was only downhill.
Before them, the Erme River sparkled in the distance.