Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 484 – Nostalgic Hometown
After the former Viscount Saishi, who was believed to be the mastermind behind numerous incidents, turned himself in and was arrested by the knights—only to later commit suicide—the case was officially closed. The House of Saishi was stripped of its title, and its lands were placed under direct royal custody, where it’s still being kept now.
The former Viscount Saishi domain had a mine within its territory that produced the precious mithril ore, and because of that, it became the center of fierce disputes among noble factions vying for control.
Since the late Viscount Saishi had been part of the Marquis Haragura faction, they argued that his son should inherit the title and the land. Naturally, the opposing factions were firmly against that.
This was because it was one of the most important sources of funding for the Marquis Haragura faction.
However, the royal family had no intention of allowing the Saishi family—tainted by the late viscount’s many crimes—to inherit the land.
As a result, the territory remained under the care of the royal family, but the Marquis Haragura family took advantage of their neighboring location and has been lobbying the royal family to divide the former Viscount Saishi territory among the surrounding nobles.
Leading that effort was none other than the Crown Prince himself.
He had been trying to convince his father, the king, and the court that it would be fair to divide the land based on the contributions of the surrounding nobles.
Of course, his real goal was to ensure that the invaluable mithril mine would end up under the control of the Haragura family.
And so, in every sense, the former Saishi territory had become the center of attention of the nobles in many ways.
“…That’s the gist of it,”
As they rocked along in the carriage, Tauro gave Aeris and the others a brief explanation of the current situation in his hometown, the former Viscount Saishi Territory.
“Your hometown’s in a real mess, huh…” Ankh muttered, clearly exasperated.
“What a shame, especially when you’re finally back after being away for so long.”
Aeris sighed, sounding genuinely disappointed.
“Well, the lord did try to assassinate me, so it can’t be helped. It’s unfortunate for the people who live there, but… now that it’s under the care of the royal family, maybe it’s better off than before.”
“Even if the ruler changes, the people you knew there probably haven’t, right? We’ll be arriving at the town of Saishi soon. Is there anyone you want to see?”
Ragune asked, sensing Tauro’s feelings as he returned to his hometown for the first time in three years.
“Plenty of people, yeah. Most of them are from the Adventurer’s Guild, so I’d love to stop by.”
Tauro answered with a nostalgic expression.
“I’m so excited to see the town where you grew up, Tauro!”
Zion was practically bursting with excitement.
“Me too! And now that the viscount who drove you out is gone, maybe you can finally relax a little.”
Aeris agreed, though they both knew that, since they were traveling with the Saint and her party this time, they wouldn’t be able to stay long.
So, in reality, Tauro wouldn’t have much of a chance to enjoy his return home.
When the Saint’s entourage arrived in the town of Saishi, they were greeted at the town’s gate by the royal-appointed magistrate now in charge of the area. He escorted them to the former Viscount Saishi estate, now repurposed.
Tauro and his party followed along.
In truth, I wanted to get off the carriage in front of the adventurer’s guild along the way, but that wasn’t going to be possible now.
As they passed by, Tauro, gazing out from inside the carriage, thought he recognized some familiar townsfolk and adventurers waving at the Saint’s group, but he couldn’t be sure.
“I wonder if everyone is doing well…”
He was surprised by how much the town had changed over the last three years.
Most of the buildings had been rebuilt or renovated.
It was likely due to the prosperity brought by the mithril mine—many people had probably benefited either directly or indirectly.
Still, there was one building that hadn’t changed.
It was the curry shop Tauro had opened as its owner.
Three years ago, Tauro had invested his own money to renovate the remains of an old tavern and launched his first curry shop—and it was still standing there, unchanged.
Unfortunately, the Adventurer’s Guild and the tavern-restaurant adjacent it “The Resting Pavillion” had both been replaced with new buildings.
Thankfully, the building signs were the same, so it seems they hadn’t moved—just upgraded the buildings.
“Hard to believe so much can change in just three years…”
Tauro muttered as he leaned from one window to the other, peering out and letting out a long, conflicted sigh.
“It’s changed that much, huh? Must’ve been the mithril boom—probably the perfect time for people to rebuild. But I bet the people haven’t changed.”
Aeris noticed his mood and gently tried to reassure him.
“Yeah… You’re right. Still, looks like we won’t have time to visit the adventurer’s guild, so I’ll just have to hold it off.”
And so, Tauro’s long-awaited return home would amount to nothing more than passing through.
The former Viscount Saishi estate was no longer the building Tauro remembered.
It had been completely rebuilt. Now it was as grand as those of a great noble.
That’s just how profitable the mithril mine must have been.
Inside the mansion, the leaders of all the local guilds, merchants, and other prominent figures of the former Viscount Saishi domain had gathered.
The carriage carrying the saint and her companions stopped in front of the castle one after another and the members began entering.
Since Tauro and his group were near the front of the group, they arrived early and joined the royal guards in welcoming the saint and her companions..
This was also part of the job.
Just to be safe, I used 『Presence Detection』 to be on guard around the area.
Suddenly, I saw someone pushing their way through the crowd behind me and coming towards me.
Tauro turned around.
The Royal Guards noticed too, quickly moving to block the approaching figure.
“Wait a second! I’m the branch chief of this town’s Adventurer’s Guild! I just need to speak to that boy—please, calm down!”
Easily dodging the Royal Guard knights who were trying to subdue him, the man with the orange lion-like hairstyle, eyepatch, and commanding presence, called himself the branch chief of the Adventurer’s Guild and pointed at Tauro.
“Ah!”
Tauro let out a small gasp, stunned by the all-too-familiar face.
There stood Leo, the man who had taken him in when he was a homeless vagabond, given him a place to stay, hired him into the guild, and helped him become the adventurer he was today.