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Chapter 292: From Departure To Encounter (1)

An exasperated Lapis swung her whip, and the horse that had been hit let out a low, discontented neigh.

On the driver bench, Loren let out a small sigh. Lapis probably was not taking it out on the horse, but it still looked like a rather strong whip, and he felt some sympathy for the horse.

“Don’t you think that was harsh, Loren? When did I ever do anything that would make her so suspicious of me? Don’t you think that was too much, considering I’ve been conducting myself like a dignified priest all this time?”

Although he did feel a bit bad for Lapis, who was in a huff, Loren found Ivy’s reaction when Lapis made her request valid. Since she knew Lapis’ real identity, there was no way she could take Lapis’ ‘cute request’ at face value.

Of course, Loren believed that if Lapis were to say the same thing to him, he would feel a bit resigned but not be as alarmed as Ivy, but only because he was Loren; to expect the same thing from someone else would be almost too much.

Lapis’ request was for their party to act independently.

The Adventurers’ Guild had originally commissioned this job, so the participants had to work under the Guild’s supervision. This was only natural as the Guild was their employer this time, but Lapis wanted to bend the rules and demanded the right to act on their own.

Loren had estimated that there was a 50-50 chance that Ivy would agree to this, but he was surprised at how readily she accepted Lapis’ request. He didn’t know whether it was because Ivy thought it was not a big deal or because she had some other agenda, but she assured Lapis that as long as they contacted the Adventurers’ Guild representative at the destination, there would be no questions asked about the progress of the trip. She even provided them a carriage according to Lapis’ request as the means of transportation.

“Is there any reason why we’re taking a different route?”

Gula poked her head out of the carriage and asked. Lapis was still muttering complaints in her mouth, after finally realizing that there was no point in continuing, she exhaled lightly, looked over her shoulder at Gula, and answered.

“Of course. Why would I make such a request if there is no meaning to it?”

“Oh, really? But if that’s the case, why did you refuse to use the Guild’s transportation, which seems to be very comfortable, and travel in a cheap carriage like this?”

Ivy, perhaps thinking that she might get complaints later if she didn’t let them know, had shown their party the transportation that was originally prepared by the Adventurers’ Guild for this commission. It was a huge vehicle with a fairly spacious living area, and according to Ivy’s explanation, it was magic power that turned the wheels and propelled the vehicle forward. Existing horse-drawn carriages were incomparable to this vehicle, which had been made by analyzing magical tools excavated from some ruins and reproducing their effects using current technology.

If the vehicle could be mass-produced, it would change the world. But according to Ivy, it would require a tremendous amount of money and a large amount of rare materials just to make one unit, and maintaining it would cost another tremendous amount of money. It was not possible to produce enough of them to be distributed throughout the continent.

“It was rather regrettable, I think.”

Lapis had an extraordinary interest in the vehicle that the Adventurers’ Guild had created with the best of its technology, but for some reason, she did not retract his previous request and left Kapha with Loren and Gula in the carriage that Ivy had prepared for them. Loren found it surprising that Lapis, a priest of the God of Knowledge and a person who seemed to be full of curiosity, did not insist on riding in the vehicle she had never seen before. There must be a reason why she insisted on taking a different route from the other participants.

“To put it more succinctly, it’s to shorten the time it takes to get there.”

“Shorten the time? That car is really fast, isn’t it?”

“Well, they can run as fast as a horse, and for longer than a horse, but…”

Even if the cost to run the vehicle was high, it was a device, not a living thing. It did not require any rest time, which would be necessary if horses were used. Heat and other substances did accumulate in the vehicle when it moved, so it was not possible to keep it running without a break, but even so, it was said to be able to operate for longer than a horse.

Lapis looked frustrated, perhaps still feeling a little regretful about not riding the car, but she did not seem inclined to take back her own argument.

“There is a faster way to get there, so why not use it?”

“What way is that?”

Gula tilted her head, but Loren immediately knew what Lapis was saying.

“There is. Others can only reach the northern countries by taking a large detour through the central part of the continent, but we can get to our destination by the shortest route.”

“Hmm? Ah… We are going to go through the demon territory.”

Just by the word ‘shortest route’, Gula understood what Lapis was thinking.

Normally, no one would think of reaching the northern part of the continent by cutting through the territory of the demons. Demons were not the type to chase after and deal with someone who was moving hesitantly around the edges of their territory, but they were not merciful enough to tolerate someone who tried to invade their territory unprovoked.

However, Lapis was with them.

If Lapis, the daughter of one of the Demon Kings of the demon tribe, accompanied them, they should be able to avoid conflict through discussion or some other means, even if the demons came to interfere or deal with the situation.

“But would the time change that much?”

Gula wondered if there would not be much difference in arrival time even if they had turned down the route the Adventurers’ Guild had prepared for them and taken the shortest one, but Lapis smiled at her and said.

“I chose this because it would be different.”

“Well, I guess you’re right.”

The carriage that Ivy had prepared for them was relatively comfortable to ride in, but even so, it still had the limits of a carriage. If refusing a novel and seemingly comfortable ride resulted in almost the same arrival time, Gula believed Lapis would not make such a choice.

“This time we will continue straight to the mountainous area surrounding the demon territory. There we will change transport, and once we do, it won’t take us long to reach the center of the continent.”

“The center of the continent? Not the north?”

Finding problems with a part of what Lapis had just said, Loren asked her about it, and Lapis ducked her head as if being found out. It seemed like Lapis had not chosen to move separately this time based solely on factors such as riding comfort and time required.

“Lapis, it’s not good to keep secrets.”

“I’m sorry Loren, but I’m not allowed to tell anyone this, even you, so I can’t explain right now.”

Loren’s and Gula’s faces both twitched at Lapis’ apologetic words. As far as the two of them knew, there were not many people who could force Lapis to do anything, and all of those who could were people with whom you would not want to have anything to do with.

“You’ve got to be kidding me, Lapis. Are you selling us out?!”

“No, that’s not it…. What in the world do you think you’re doing?”

“Some unthinkable characters ordered you to bring us somewhere again, right?”

“I have to keep silent! Please let me!”

Loren grabbed Lapis by the shoulders and tried to get her to turn toward him. As she resisted his attempts to turn her around, he put his mouth close to her ear and shouted.

“What ‘cute request’! I knew I was in for a bad deal!”

“For one, it’s a request from a cute girl!”

“‘Cute’ is not a word that goes with ‘request’!”

The reins were being pulled this way and that by Loren and Lapis, who were almost fighting each other on the driver bench, and the carriage, pulled by a horse that was no longer walking straight, became unsteady.

Gula, who was looking out the window of the swaying carriage and watching the two on the driver bench, muttered quietly.

“Can’t deny that it was a cute girl who requested it.”

“Will there be a war if I deny it?”

“Isn’t that an undeniable truth?”

Loren and Lapis, who had spoken two different things at the same time, stopped moving for a moment and fell silent, still in the same posture as if they were in a scuffle.

The horse, no longer being pulled by the reins, corrected its course on its own and began to walk straight again on the path it had been on, but this soon seemed to become impossible as Lapis pulled on the reins again and began to slowly lean into Loren with a smile on her face.

“Oh? Oh?!”

“Are you saying that if it doesn’t result in war, you will deny it? Do I understand correctly that it is Mister Loren’s opinion?”

“No one said that!”

“Then what did you mean when you said so?!”

The scuffle resumed, and the horse shook its head in annoyance as it was pulled by the reins once more.

Normally, the horse’s gait would sway from side to side in response to the movement of the reins, but perhaps having learned to correct its gait from the previous experience, this time its gait had mysteriously remained straight, and the carriage was no longer swaying.

“Hey, Lapis! Stop acting wild! The reins are going this way and that way! You’re driving the carriage off route!”

“This horse is an excellent horse borrowed from the Guild, so it’ll be fine! After all, it is smart enough to return to the Guild’s stables in Kapha on its own once the rider is gone!”

“That would be a creepy sight…”

What Loren referred to was the sight of the horse returning to Kapha on its own once its loads were empty. It might be a very good horse, but the sight of a horse-drawn carriage running with no driver and no passengers on board was nothing short of eerie.

“Anyway, if we can get to the edge of the mountainous area by the end of the day, we’ll let it go and transfer to another transport!”

“It’s a pretty last-minute itinerary, isn’t it? I don’t know if I can get on another transport with no explanation! If it can get back to the city on its own, it…”

“Unfortunately, it won’t return to town unless the carriage is empty.”

Lapis looked triumphant, and Loren gritted his teeth in frustration.

Gula, who was watching the exchange between the two, thought that it would take some more time for the situation to settle down or change, so she retreated back into the carriage through the window she was peeking out of and closed her eyes, thinking about taking a nap in the space she had all to herself.