Kays Translations

Chapter 48: To the Kaupels Estate

This time, we were traveling on horseback with three horses in total. Vessel’s mount was a sleek black warhorse of the Ritza breed, his beloved companion and battle partner. Stefana and Rugena rode chestnut horses of the Tokes breed, known for their gentle temperaments. These horses had been purchased specifically for travel at the cost of eight gold coins each.

Our formation during the journey was straightforward: Vessel took the lead, followed by Stefana and myself, while Rugena brought up the rear, keeping watch for any potential danger.

“All right, everyone ready?”

“Yes, no problems here,” came Stefana’s calm reply.

“All good on my end too,” Rugena added.

We carried only the bare essentials, planning to buy whatever else we needed along the way. In case we had to camp outdoors, we wore our cloaks, doubling as blankets.

“Please take care of Tine-sama,” Stefana said, her voice tinged with concern.

“I’ll do everything I can, though I can’t guarantee the outcome,” Vessel replied with his usual matter-of-fact tone.

“You see, it’s replies like that that make you unpopular with women,” Stefana teased, but Vessel merely shot back, “Mind your own business!” His tone was gruff, yet there was not a hint of discomfort in his posture or expression.

“Al, take care of yourself too,” Stefana said gently.

“Yes,” I replied, my hands tightening slightly on the reins.

Up until now, our travels had been by carriage, so the journey hadn’t been particularly taxing. Riding horses, however, was new to me, and I couldn’t predict exactly how I’d handle it. I had, just in case, attached core-padded protective armor to my pants, designed to cushion my seat and inner thighs. It was typically intended for children riding along; anyone else found it cumbersome while controlling their horse, so they didn’t wear it.

“All right, let’s go.”

At Vessel’s signal, we set off from Meluestat, the town slowly receding behind us as our horses trotted forward. The streets gradually gave way to the outskirts, and soon we passed a glass shop. Before opening, the workers were delivering freshly made glass from the workshop and stocking the store. I recalled Tobias mentioning that glass sales were doing well, but production couldn’t keep up with demand, so purchase limits were in place. I also learned they were considering converting the neighboring blacksmith’s workshop into a glass workshop to increase output.

Lost in these thoughts, we exited the city gates and took the road northeast. Our usual pace was a steady walk, occasionally mixing in a trot to cover more ground. Cantering and galloping were reserved for emergencies, with regular breaks to avoid overworking the horses.

After about three hours on the road, we stopped for our first break. The core-padded armor did a good job of absorbing shocks, but the constant motion was still exhausting. Clinging tightly to Stefana to avoid being jostled off, I felt completely drained. As I loosened my grip and stretched my stiff muscles, I noticed Vessel feeding something resembling grass dumplings to his horse. Curiosity got the better of me.

“What is that you’re feeding it?” I asked.

“Oh, this? It’s a potion for horses,” he replied casually.

“A potion?!”

He explained that it was a feed-based alchemical concoction designed to reduce fatigue and improve vitality. The effect wasn’t dramatic, but it eased the horse’s burden. Because it was an alchemical product, it was expensive and mostly limited to military use.

“I’ve been feeding it to them every day lately, since we’ve been traveling so much,” he added.

Every day. Hearing that, I remembered our previous conversations during the journey, when Vessel had casually recounted the distances he had traveled over the past two months. My chest tightened at the thought.

First, he had received a letter from my mother in Vanikatil, the fortified capital. Then, it took twenty days to persuade the Vanni border lord and reach the royal capital, another ten days to acquire the medal, and twenty-five days to arrive in Meluestat. Now, we were headed to Kaupstat. Feeding horses a potion costing one silver coin each day for fifty-five days meant spending over five gold coins, and there were undoubtedly additional expenses. Perhaps they had spent more than a platinum coin by now.

I resolved to make it up to my mother in some way, separately from this journey.

“All right, break’s over. Let’s move,” Vessel said.

“Yes,” Stefana and Rugena responded in unison.

Thus, though our progress was steady rather than hurried, several days passed in this leisurely rhythm.

On the fifth day, as we approached the mountains on the border of the Kaupels territory, Vessel halted his horse and spoke to Stefana.

“There’s a fight ahead. I can hear the clash of swords—likely bandits.”

“What should we do?” Stefana asked, concern in her voice.

“You two wait here. I’ll handle it alone; it’ll be faster.”

“Understood. We’ll stay here.”

“Oh, and take care of this one as well,” he added, nodding at his horse.

“Yes. Be careful,” Stefana replied.

Vessel spurred his horse and dashed down the road. While Stefana and Rugena could probably handle bandits themselves, Vessel was far faster and more effective in combat. Sure enough, he returned in about twenty minutes, though his expression was grim.

“What happened?” I asked.

“It got a bit messy,” he admitted.

Three merchant carriages had been attacked. The lead carriage’s horse was killed, and the wagon destroyed, spilling goods and debris across the road, leaving the last carriage unable to move or retreat while fending off the bandits. Vessel intervened, quickly dispatching the attackers, but half the escorting adventurers were lost, and one carriage was ruined. He had been asked to escort the remaining merchants to the next town.

“The journey to the next town will take a full day by carriage, so we won’t arrive until tomorrow afternoon at the earliest.”

According to Vessel, two carriages remained, along with five merchants and four surviving escorts. Even though the distance was only a day’s travel, any further trouble could overwhelm the four remaining guards. Yet refusing the escort would leave the merchants stranded, potentially unable to return home. Vessel’s uneasy expression reflected the impossibility of a clean choice.

“We have no choice. We should still have a day to spare,” he decided.

We had no option but to accept the task.

When we arrived, the merchants had just finished separating the deceased into victims and attackers. The overpowering stench of blood made me nauseous, and I vomited.

“It’s all right now,” Stefana said, guiding me to a cleaner spot.

Though dismembering a spider had been grotesque, the smell of blood was far worse. I could do nothing to help and waited until the cleanup was finished.

Three hours later, we resumed our journey. The carriages, overloaded to the limit, moved slowly, forcing us to camp before leaving the mountain road. The following day, progress remained sluggish, and we reached only seventy percent of the planned distance.

Finally, we arrived at the town in the late morning, separating from the merchants after purchasing only the necessities. The merchants had invited us to rest and dine, but we politely declined, given we were already a day and a half behind schedule.

After passing through two villages, we reached Kaupstat, the capital of Kaupels territory. Despite our efforts, we couldn’t make up for lost time, arriving a day after my mother’s expected arrival.

“So… do we just ride straight in?”

“Ah… I hadn’t thought about that,” I admitted.

It was still morning. Though I wanted to go immediately, I was not a member of the Kaupels family—my sudden appearance might earn nothing but rejection. On the other hand, Ditnell seemed to have intended for us to come, so perhaps he would be relieved rather than annoyed.

“Let’s get ourselves ready first,” I decided.

Arriving exhausted and dirty, we took time to clean ourselves, resting briefly for two hours to recover. After a proper lunch, we would make our way to the Kaupels residence. Sending a herald might delay us if a response didn’t come promptly, so we chose a slightly audacious approach this time.

“All right… let’s go. To the Kaupels house.”

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