Once upon a time, there was a nation called the Duchy of Temcha.
Note the past tense.
It no longer exists.
Today, it is the northern territory of the Kingdom of Gleefia, known as the Temcha Region.
Around one hundred and twenty years ago, a massive war engulfed the Eastern Continent where we live.
Temcha was defeated in the great conflict between Gleefia and Temcha—later dubbed the "Continental Unification War"—and the fighting came to an end with the duchy annexed into the kingdom.
With that war as the turning point, the Kingdom of Gleefia grew into what is known as a continental hegemonic power.
The name of Temcha's last monarch was Anastasia Lutze Dravenia.
She is a historical figure featured in every textbook.
Having run around tirelessly to bring an end to the Unification War, she brokered numerous local ceasefire agreements, ultimately saving millions of lives.
Statistical records indicate that without her, post-war reconstruction for both Gleefia and Temcha would have suffered catastrophic delays. Even the old man once said, "If she hadn't been there, my pop probably would've died."
At the same time, persistent voices claim she was the reason the Duchy of Temcha relinquished its national sovereignty. While hailed as the "Grand Princess of Salvation," those devoted to Temcha reportedly brand her a "traitor."
Temcha is also a medical powerhouse. Its medical technology remains the highest standard on the continent to this day, and its central city is a medical holy land packed with an absurd number of medical universities and healthcare institutions.
And that concludes our history lesson.
The journey from Gleefia's royal capital, Rakan, to the Temcha Region was a long one. After all, it meant sitting continuously for ten hours on a magic train. Departing on the seven o'clock morning line, we crossed valleys, mountains, and wetlands; by the time we arrived, the sun was already setting.
"Ooh, it's huge."
Staring out the window at the gigantic lake, Amae-san voiced her impression with a vacant murmur.
Spreading out before our eyes was Dragon Lake, an enormous body of water classified as Gleefia's largest primary water system. It was so insanely colossal that you couldn't even see the opposite shore.
It had formed one hundred and ten years ago.
The final battle between the Kingdom of Gleefia and the Duchy of Temcha was fought near here, and the terrain apparently warped drastically in the aftermath of the clash to create this lake. Yeah, right. There's no way that's true.
The local culture changed dramatically past this boundary.
Even the cuisine shifted: north was Temcha style, while south was Royal Capital style.
After crossing the lake and traveling a bit further, our long train journey would finally come to an end.
"That was so looong..."
"Good work, Amae-chan."
"Filie-chan, I'm starving..."
"There, there. You did great."
While the two girls chatted pleasantly, I, on the other hand—completely unaccustomed to long trips—had lost all feeling in my rear end. Apparently, my butt had vanished without a trace.
The magic train—this was my first time riding one, but it didn't feel much different from what I remembered from my past life. Well, not that I ever actually rode a train back then, either.
This world has a bizarre number of concepts identical to my original world.
Grains, vegetables, meat, fish, clothing, hours, dates.
The numerals are straight-up Arabic numerals, too. The pronunciations and shapes differ slightly, but other than the presence of magic, it is eerily similar to where I came from.
Well, since they have wheels, I suppose they'd eventually invent railroads. I don't really know. Digging deeper into this feels like it would uncover some truth worthy of a world-shocking television special, but I'm not that interested, so I've never looked into it.
By the way, the predecessor to the railway was developed long ago by a Magias student.
One day, through a ridiculous singularity where a Magias student converted back-and-forth hip motions into rotational motion with practical efficiency, the railway was born into this world. It had been brought into existence. I kind of wish it hadn't.
The difference from Earth is probably that it runs on a supply of mana. If Luluck's steam system were added to this, technology might develop even further.
As I lost myself in thoughts of my past life, the magic train blew a long whistle. A moment later, the mountain scenery shifted. Beyond the window, a massive city bathed in twilight came into view.
Spreading across an open basin of land, a white chalk cityscape expanded in a wide circle. Towering at its center stood an ancient castle that seemed to serve as the axis for it all.
This was the largest city in the Temcha Region.
Philie-san's birthplace and our destination for this trip.
The former ducal capital, the medical city of Dravena.
"It's massive..."
"So this is Filie-chan's hometown... It's incredible. As expected of the Chalk City."
Just as Amae-san said, the entire city clearly shared a unified aesthetic concept. It was a vista impossible to achieve unless the local government strictly regulated building designs to preserve the scenery.
In a certain city from my past life, the entire downtown area was registered as a World Heritage Site, and one could say this rivaled that beauty. To be blunt, though, it's really just white.
"I've already let my facility know we're coming today, so let's rest there. Big sis—I mean, the current director's home cooking is delicious."
"Hahaha, well, I look forward to that."
Perhaps due to the long journey, Amae-san's enthusiasm was veering in a weird direction. Admittedly, I was getting a bit hungry too. I'd cooked Temcha dishes a few times, but I'd never eaten them authentically in their place of origin. Or rather, I've barely ever eaten out at all. I'm excited.
◇
Stepping off the train, the air was noticeably cold.
It made sense given how far north we'd traveled, but being a basin, the temperature was vastly different from the royal capital. Wearing long sleeves had definitely been the right call.
"I'm so glad we arrived safely, Niko-chan!"
"Y-Yeah, Rina-chan. W-W-We can finally m-meet God!"
"Yup, I can't wait for Luluriale-san's performance!"
Like us, plenty of people were buzzing with excitement upon arrival.
...I've seen those two somewhere before.
Upperclassmen from the Imperial Archmage Faculty, maybe?
It seems there really are a lot of travelers from the royal capital of Rakan.
The top-ranked vacation destination during the break was Dravena, with second place going to Mercedes's hometown, the Sword Saint City of Ordain.
By the way, my hometown in the Decol Region was ranked ninety-third. Tremble before it.
And naturally, this being the Temcha Region, people with white hair stood out here and there. I knew that white hair was a common trait among those with roots in the former Duchy of Temcha, but seeing it in person gave a distinct foreign impression.
Taking a closer look, there were two distinct kinds—warm-toned white and cool-toned white—each giving off a different vibe.
Philie-san had a warm-toned white, a pale blonde.
You could describe it as flaxen lightened to the absolute limit.
It was an exquisite gradient, as if blended by a master craftsman, making it hard to put into words. Perhaps humans unconsciously translate things that defy verbal description into the concept of "beauty."
After Philie-san guided us through the white streets for a while, we arrived at our destination.
In a quiet meadow about a thirty-minute walk from Dravena's outermost station, a large, white timber-framed house came into view.
Under the eaves hung a sign reading "Magnolia Orphanage."
So this was the facility founded by the teacher Philie-san had mentioned.
"Welcome home, Filie."
Greeting us was a bespectacled woman with long, fluffy brown hair.
"Let me introduce you two. This is Parfure-san, who grew up in the orphanage with me. She's currently serving as our temporary director."
"I'm Parfure. Thank you for always looking after Filie."
Was she five or six years older than Philie-san?
Her gentle, welcoming smile somehow reminded me of Philie-san.
Parfure-san, huh.
I wonder if I can say it without stumbling over my words.
"I'm Brendan. Nice to meet you, Parfe-nneee-san."
"I'm Amae."
"Yes, nice to meet you both. I've heard all about you from Filie. Your rooms are ready, so please make yourselves at home and get some rest."
I took a step forward to enter the house.
Before I could, children came flooding out from behind Parfure-san. Boys and girls roughly the size of early elementary schoolers rushed over to Philie-san all at once.
"It's Big Sis Filie!!"
"Everyone! Big Sis is here!"
"Welcome back, Big Sis!"
"I'm home, everyone."
In the blink of an eye, Philie-san was swarmed by a circle of children.
She's really popular, huh.
No, thinking about it normally, of course she is.
There's no way Philie-san wouldn't be loved by kids.
"Now then, I'd love to say dinner is ready right away, but a few things came up today. Would you three mind waiting just a little longer?"
As Parfure-san spoke up hesitantly, Philie-san tilted her head while patting a child's head.
"Did something happen, Big Sis?"
"Yes. Sidley's cold suddenly took a turn for the worse. I was nursing them until just a moment ago."
"Oh no. Let me examine them right away."
"I'm sorry, Filie. Honestly, my medical magic couldn't reach the deep-seated inflammation. I'll hurry and prepare dinner in the meantime."
"Understood. Sorry, you two, I'll be right back."
With that, Philie-san hurried up to the second floor.
Is Parfure-san making dinner all by herself?
If there's nobody assigned to cooking, that's quite a heavy workload.
The children are all small, none of them at an age where they could help with chores.
"If you'd like, should I help with dinner prep?"
"Oh? No, I couldn't possibly trouble you. You're our guest."
"Please, let me. I'm used to doing chores."
"...In that case, maybe I will take you up on that. Honestly, having an extra pair of hands to use a kitchen knife is a huge help."
Well, whatever we're making, helping with peeling or prep work won't get in the way. Frankly, I'd just be bored waiting around until mealtime anyway.
"Bren-kun, you can cook?"
"Hyot-hyot-hyot. As a matter of fact, I can."
"Creepy laugh."
Amae-san's reaction aside, I used to handle all the housework back home. Cooking was one of the few entertainments in a countryside with nothing to do, so you could say it's one of the few special skills I have outside of smithing. That and my Beat Takeshi impressions.
"I feel like I'd just get in the way, so maybe I'll hang out with the kids."
"Big Sis, will you play with us?!"
"Big Sis, show us some magic!"
"Sure thing~. What do you want to see?"
After confirming that Amae-san and the kids were heading toward the living room, I followed Parfure-san toward the kitchen.