The Empire, believing that the culprits who had been producing counterfeit gold coins and distributing them throughout the Empire were the Allied Forces, strengthened its inspections and banned the entry of all foreigners who did not have special reasons, such as merchants or diplomatic missions.
Because of this, Perdes and Byblos were stranded on the border.
He heard that Adele's security was strengthened, but he didn't think it would be this bad.
“This is a big problem.”
Perdes groaned and rubbed his forehead.
Byblos, sitting across from him, asked while drinking the beer the restaurant staff brought him.
“What are we going to do now? It looks like you’ll never be able to cross the border with that identity. Why don’t you just reveal your identity?”
“That can’t be.”
If he reveals his identity now, it will be revealed that he has been to another country, contrary to what was known. So Perdes had to hide it at all costs.
“Then how are you going to get through the border checkpoint?”
“Well, I guess I’ll have to think of a way to do it now.”
“The guy who said he had to go see his fiancée right away is trying to go back by taking the fastest route.”
Byblos shook his head as if he couldn't understand.
“Then let’s first find a hotel. If we keep doing this, we’ll end up homeless.”
The border area is currently teeming with people like Perdes who are stuck at the checkpoint, unable to pass through.
This restaurant, where they stopped by to quench their thirst, was also full and they had to wait for about 30 minutes.
“We absolutely have to pass the checkpoint today, so we won’t be taking care of a hotel.”
If he doesn't get through the checkpoint today, there's no reason to rush and cut down on his sleep.
“Even if we say it’s today, there are only 12 hours left. Do you think it’s possible? We haven’t even come up with a good solution.”
“That’s why I’m asking.”
Perdes leaned toward Byblos and asked in a voice so small that only he could hear.
“Can’t we use teleportation magic to get to the capital in one breath?”
“Ha. I was wondering what on earth you believed in, and that’s what you believed in.”
“Isn’t that possible?”
“It’s not that it can’t be used, it’s that it can’t be used. To use teleportation magic, you have to have been to that place at least once.”
Byblos continued, setting down his half-empty mug of beer on the table.
“But I’ve never been to the capital of the Empire since I was born. Well, I’ve been to the border towns and the surrounding areas, so I can help you get there.”
“That won’t work. Not only the border checkpoints, but other places as well will have increased security.”
He doesn't know how many more checkpoints he'll be subjected to in the future, and he can't avoid them by using teleportation magic, and it's also a nuisance to Byblos.
So when Byblos told him about the teleportation spell, I tried not to ask for it, but given the circumstances, I had no choice but to ask.
Even though that method is now unusable.
“If you can’t get to the capital straight away, you’ll have to find another way to get past the checkpoint.”
“Then does that mean I am a Great Sage?"
Because of this, Perdes and Byblos were stranded on the border.
He heard that Adele's security was strengthened, but he didn't think it would be this bad.
“This is a big problem.”
Perdes groaned and rubbed his forehead.
Byblos, sitting across from him, asked while drinking the beer the restaurant staff brought him.
“What are we going to do now? It looks like you’ll never be able to cross the border with that identity. Why don’t you just reveal your identity?”
“That can’t be.”
If he reveals his identity now, it will be revealed that he has been to another country, contrary to what was known. So Perdes had to hide it at all costs.
“Then how are you going to get through the border checkpoint?”
“Well, I guess I’ll have to think of a way to do it now.”
“The guy who said he had to go see his fiancée right away is trying to go back by taking the fastest route.”
Byblos shook his head as if he couldn't understand.
“Then let’s first find a hotel. If we keep doing this, we’ll end up homeless.”
The border area is currently teeming with people like Perdes who are stuck at the checkpoint, unable to pass through.
This restaurant, where they stopped by to quench their thirst, was also full and they had to wait for about 30 minutes.
“We absolutely have to pass the checkpoint today, so we won’t be taking care of a hotel.”
If he doesn't get through the checkpoint today, there's no reason to rush and cut down on his sleep.
“Even if we say it’s today, there are only 12 hours left. Do you think it’s possible? We haven’t even come up with a good solution.”
“That’s why I’m asking.”
Perdes leaned toward Byblos and asked in a voice so small that only he could hear.
“Can’t we use teleportation magic to get to the capital in one breath?”
“Ha. I was wondering what on earth you believed in, and that’s what you believed in.”
“Isn’t that possible?”
“It’s not that it can’t be used, it’s that it can’t be used. To use teleportation magic, you have to have been to that place at least once.”
Byblos continued, setting down his half-empty mug of beer on the table.
“But I’ve never been to the capital of the Empire since I was born. Well, I’ve been to the border towns and the surrounding areas, so I can help you get there.”
“That won’t work. Not only the border checkpoints, but other places as well will have increased security.”
He doesn't know how many more checkpoints he'll be subjected to in the future, and he can't avoid them by using teleportation magic, and it's also a nuisance to Byblos.
So when Byblos told him about the teleportation spell, I tried not to ask for it, but given the circumstances, I had no choice but to ask.
Even though that method is now unusable.
“If you can’t get to the capital straight away, you’ll have to find another way to get past the checkpoint.”
“Then does that mean I am a Great Sage?"
“If we reveal it here, we can go straight to the capital. To the Imperial Palace, at that. And the newspapers will widely report that Lord Bys has come to the Empire.”
Like Perdes, Byblos also decided it would be better to keep his identity a secret, and agreed to call him Lord Bys outside.
“That too, with me, the 4th Prince.”
“...Just say no, you’re complaining too much.”
Byblos waved his hand in disgust.
“It’s unnecessarily complicated. Was it this complicated when you came to the Kingdom of Artina?”
“No. Back then, the security checks weren’t this strict, so I got through easily.”
“In short, you picked the wrong day.”
Byblos clicked his tongue as if he was extremely annoyed, then drank all the remaining beer.
As if he had finished his share and it wasn't enough, he looked at Perdes' glass, which still had the foam on it.
“If you’re not going to drink, can I drink?”
“Just order something new. And while you’re at it, order something to eat too.”
“Oh, yeah. It’s past lunchtime.”
Byblos quickly called the staff over and ordered some food, then left, saying he was going to use the bathroom.
Even dragons go to the bathroom.
Well, of course, he'll go since he's a living being too.
A group of people sat behind Perdes, who was drinking beer and laughing alone at the fact that he had just realized.
“Oh my, just thinking about how embarrassed I was because of that kid...!”
“What I’m saying is! Those kids should be killed immediately to feel better!”
Judging from the way he dressed and the way he spoke, he seemed to be a mercenary.
That's quite a noisy mercenary, too.
Perdes sighed and put down his beer mug. He personally disliked mercenaries, most of whom were as foul-mouthed and noisy as the rest of them.
“Oh, that woman who lives on the red roof. I put her to bed yesterday...”
And it really annoyed me that he was talking dirty right behind my back.
It also felt like my ears were getting dirty.
He would have liked to move, but unfortunately, there were no vacant seats.
“What? Why are you looking like that?”
“No. Let’s eat quickly and get up, Lord Bys.”
Then, there was no choice but to eat quickly and get up.
Perdes tried to concentrate on eating as much as possible and not listen to the mercenaries' dirty talk.
Listening to what those guys say is of no help at all.
“So you decided to escort the top?”
I thought there wouldn't be any.
“That’s right. They said you can’t just get through the checkpoint because of the damned security reinforcements, but you can if you have an escort.”
There was something helpful in the mercenaries' rambling that even dog poop has a place to be.
If you have an upper escort.
Perdes repeated the sentence over and over again like a cow chewing its cud, then suddenly stood up.
“Let’s go to the mercenary guild right now, Lord Bys.”
***
The Mercenary Guild was in charge of the mental work that mercenaries generally disliked, such as registering mercenaries, issuing mercenary certificates, arranging jobs, reviewing contracts, and resolving various disputes.
Since he had to become a mercenary first to be able to get a job, Perdes showed off his long-honed swordsmanship skills and received his mercenary license.
“Is it a D-class?”
He knew he had no talent for swordsmanship, but he thought he would get a C-rank after taking swordsmanship lessons for over two years.
Disappointment was as high as expected. When Perdes sighed, Byblos patted his back and consoled him.
“Most of the magicians are idiots who don’t even know how to hold a sword, but this is great, so there’s no need to sigh.”
“...Even though I took swordsmanship lessons for two years?”
The hand that was patting his back stopped.
“I also received that directly from the Vice-Captain of the Knights Leopold.”
At the following words, Byblos smiled awkwardly and lowered his hands.
“Ahem, well. Human life is short, so you can’t be talented at everything.”
*...”
“Oh, are you going to go get a job offer now? I heard they do that over there.”
Byblos, who had become embarrassed, seemed to want to change the mood and headed to the job placement counter.
Perdes sighed deeply and followed Byblos.
When he showed his mercenary ID to the staff, they handed him a list.
“You can choose the commission you like after looking at it. Of course, just choosing one doesn’t mean you’ll get it. You have to go through an interview and get selected.”
"All right."
What quests could you give me that would get me through the checkpoints safely until I reach the imperial capital?
Perdes' gaze, which was carefully checking the list of requests, stopped at a certain point.
[Cosmos Top]
Are my eyes deceiving me?
He sees a top name that shouldn't be here.
Perdes rubbed his eyes and checked again, but the letters had not changed.
“What does this look like?”
Still, he couldn't believe it, so he asked Byblos.
Then Byblos replied as if he found it ridiculous.
“It says ‘Top of Cosmos’.”
“...Are you sure?”
“Yes. It definitely says top of Cosmos.”
Top of Cosmos.
It was a phantom group with no substance that Adele had created to secretly steal Pura.
Since the top names cannot be duplicated, it was certain that Adele's top was there.
But it was confusing that the top name was on the request list, and what was even more confusing was the requested content.
[Convoying supplies to the imperial capital.]
What on earth are you trying to escort when you're just a ghost ship with nothing on it?
And who on earth is in charge of leading this top now?
The questions continued on and on.
He'll have to check it out himself to see what's going on.
“I will do this request.”
With that determination, Perdes took the letter of introduction from the mercenary guild and headed straight to the inn where the head of the Cosmos Group was.
Byblos wanted to leave him alone, but he insisted on following him to the end, so he had no choice but to come with him.
Before entering the inn, Perdes gave a word to Byblos.
“No matter what happens, you must never step forward.”
“I told you, I got it.”
I'm sure you understood what I said.
Perdes was worried, but it was already too late.
Perdes couldn't turn back after coming this far, so he swallowed his worries and was about to enter the inn when someone opened the door and came out.
“I will check.”
A familiar, yet unfortunate voice.
"Uh...?"
A face that is equally familiar and annoying.
“Why are you here?”
It was Leo.
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