Kays Translations

Chapter 66: Departure

On the 19th of the 8th month, the morning of the day they depart for Count Kalenberg's territory.

As usual, Isamu, gently awakened by Orihime, opened the window to let in some fresh air.

While taking a deep breath of the still cool air, he heard numerous voices coming from the direction of the knight order's quarters, despite it being early morning.

Listening closely, it seemed they were involved in some kind of competition.

"Darn it! Just two more..."

"Alright! I made it just in time!"

Results of some kind were announced, and chaos ensued with a mixture of joy and disappointment.

Curious about what they were doing on the day of departure, Isamu decided to go to the quarters to check.

Peeking into the training ground where the voices were coming from, he saw knights drenched in sweat scattered everywhere.

Not only that, but there were those doing victory poses while lying down, as well as those making real-life 'orz' poses, creating a chaotic scene.

"Eh!? Hey, everyone, are you alright?!"

"Ah, Isamu-dono. Good morning. We're fine, we just ran seriously in a race..."

Isamu hastily called out, and Liddell, who was watching while leaning against the wall, replied.

Seeing his composed expression, it seemed Liddell hadn't participated in the race.

"A race, you say...? It's part of your training, right?"

Isamu tilted his head and inquired. While he knew they did daily running exercises, he had never seen them run to the point of collapsing.

"No, it's because we couldn't decide who would be assigned on escort duty to the Count’s territory until today... I, along with Isamu-dono and the other ten who returned from the capital, are confirmed since we are acquaintances. The vice-captain is in command again, so that's confirmed. Miseroi is his assistant, so that's confirmed too. And three members skilled in magic were nominated by the captain, so up to fifteen members are confirmed. Then, the captain threw the rest to the other guys, saying, 'Decide among yourselves.'"

Liddell paused for a moment and let out a small sigh.

"At first, everyone was relatively calm in the discussion, but when someone said, 'It's a rare chance to be with Orihime-sensei,' it turned into chaos... In the end, the decision wasn't reached until last night's discussion, so we decided to keep it simple and make the top 15 in the morning training run the escorts. And here we are."

"...I see. So, some are happy to become members, and others are feeling down.” 

You guys are exhausted, but are you okay? We'll be leaving soon...

Since the reason for this turned out to be more trivial than expected, Isamu simply confirmed that it wouldn't affect the journey.

"Yes, no problem! We haven't trained so weakly that this would cause any issues!"

"I see... Well then, please take care from today onwards."

It wasn't about whether they were weak or not, but with that thought, Isamu concluded the conversation and went to have breakfast, considering he also needed to prepare.

Although Isamu felt strangely tired in the morning, there were no particular issues afterward, and by the time the temperature began to rise, they successfully set off.

On the first day, they traveled to the town of Terney, located at the farthest end of Klaufeldt territory.

Since the town had been attacked by monsters in the recent incident, they also used this opportunity to check on the progress of reconstruction.

"It seems there's a forest on the northwest side of the capital."

"Yes, that's right. A deeper forest stretches from the southeast side."

Looking out of the carriage window with interest, Isamu chatted with Annemarie.

Although he occasionally walked around the city for Orihime's change of pace, this was his first time on an official trip.

Apart from the south side of the capital where they returned from, he had never traveled on other roads, so every sight, even if it was a similar forest, was fresh and new.

The carriage was organized into five units. The lord and lady rode with their own servants, and Isamu was with Annemarie, Rudolf, and Karina.

In addition, there was another carriage carrying Silvio from the Zambrotta Trading Company, along with Eto and Willem from the work shop. There were also carriages for the knight order's breaks, luggage transport, and one with a bath.

Orihime was basically with Isamu, but she sometimes whimsically moved between carriages, occasionally riding on the shoulders of the escort knight to delight the knights.

Around midday, the group took a break, and by early evening, they safely reached the border town of Terney.

Entering the town while gazing at the still fresh main gate, which had been destroyed by monsters and repaired, they received a warm welcome from the residents.

It wasn't unreasonable considering that just two weeks ago, they were attacked by monsters and saved by the knight order led by Selfers. Moreover, Isamu and Orihime had heightened the excitement.

The rumors of Isamu, the wanderer, and Orihime, who had received the protection of the gods, quickly spread throughout Terney.

Furthermore, since they had actively contributed to the defense of the capital, it was not unreasonable for the residents to gather to catch a glimpse of the man and the beast.

At the inn, a welcoming and gratitude banquet was held, and the group enjoyed delicious food. However, there were too many residents who rushed to catch a glimpse of them at the inn, and despite the effort put into bringing a bath, they couldn't use it. The mother and daughter were quite disappointed.

The next morning, the group left Terney in the cool morning hours, leaving Viscount Klaufeldt’s territory and entering the neighboring territory of Viscount Jansen.

As they advanced along the road through the increasingly dense forest, Orihime, who had been dozing on Isamu’s lap, suddenly raised her back and tail fur, growling lowly while intimidating the area outside the right side window.

"Hoooh!"

With a forward-leaning posture, she menaced the right side of the direction they were heading.

"Hime!? What's wrong? Is there something out there?"

In a hurry, Isamu looked outside, and Orihime jumped out of the window.

"Wha—! Orihime-sensei, what happened!?"

The knight guarding the right side of the carriage was startled by Orihime's sudden appearance.

"Sorry! I think there's something in the forest on the right side! Oh, coachman, please stop the carriage!"

With the sudden incident, the procession stopped, entering a state of vigilance. Orihime continued to intimidate, still focused on the forest.

It was when Selfers, who had come down from the leading carriage, arrived.

From the depths of the forest, a silver light darted toward Isamu at an incredible speed.

"Nya!"

At the last moment before reaching Isamu who was unable to react, Orihime swiftly jumped.

*Clang!*

The silver light, repelled by Orihime with a high-pitched sound, crashed straight into a nearby tree.

"!!! Thank you, Hime!"

Realizing he had been saved, Isamu expressed his gratitude while looking at the tree where something had pierced.

The knight order activated the Felis Type 1 and entered a combat stance.

"Hoooo!"

Orihime continued to intimidate.

"What!? That's a Metal Leech!! Why is it here!?"

Seeing where Orihime was looking, Vice-Captain Felix, realizing its identity, involuntarily exclaimed.

"Metal Leech!? Is that a monster?"

Of course, hearing the name for the first time, Isamu asked.

"Yes. It's a rare, phantom monster that you rarely encounter... I'm seeing the real thing for the first time too! Oh no! Orihime-sensei has bad compatibility with it!"

Felix raised his voice again, and this time, the Metal Leech that had been stuck in the tree flew towards Orihime.

"Nya!"

*Clang!*

Swiftly reacting, Orihime intercepted with her claws, but once again, it just rebounded with a high-pitched sound.

"It seems to have an unusually strong resistance against slashing attacks. It's nearly impossible to harm it with bladed weapons. You have to crush it with a hammer-like weapon or melt it with high-powered fire magic..."

"What! Hime, it's no good, the opponent is tough! Nicolette-san, Liddell-san, can you handle it with your magic? I remember you were good at fire magic, right?"

Expressing concern for Orihime, Isamu inquired.

"Yes, I think we can defeat it if we hit it... but using firepower magic to defeat it in a forest like this, I wonder what would happen..."

Nicolette answers while biting her lip.

"Wha—!? Y-yes, that's true..."

Isamu couldn't come up with a better response to Nicolette's logical explanation.

While this was happening, the Metal Leech entered an attack stance for the third time. It seemed to have eyes only for Orihime. It contracted its metallic body and lunged towards Orihime.

In that moment,

"Eh, what?"

Surprised by the sudden turn of events, Isamu exclaimed.

"Nyan-nyan-nyan-nyafu!"

With each murmur from Orihime, Isamu clearly saw golden magic swirling around her front paws.

And then...

With a force that tore into the ground, the Metal Leech leaped towards Orihime.

Orihime's front paw, adorned with golden magic, intercepted it as if crossing paths.

*Giiiiin!*

A jarring sound echoed, but this time, the Metal Leech did not bounce off and instead slipped through Orihime.

"Hime!!! Wait, huh!?"

Isamu, who had once worried and raised his voice, was left speechless as he watched the Metal Leech fly towards the rear.

"Did, did she cut it, Hime!?"

There, a Metal Leech, cleanly sliced into four pieces and lifeless, rolled on the ground.

Orihime walked over, picked up one piece, trotted back to Isamu, and dropped it in front of him.

"Nyafu."

Then, looking up at Isamu, she let out a proud meow.

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