Part 2 – Episode 20
The airship carrying us did not stop at a station in the Astrosa Kingdom, but instead, it docked somewhere deep within a dark forest.
“Where are we?”
“The location and appearance of the holy site Calepa are kept top secret. All departing airships use this transfer station, if not returning ones.”
“And what’s with that appearance?”
“Cat.”
“I know it’s a cat. Are you planning to travel in that form?”
Meow.
The mysterious blue-furred cat yawned and groomed its mouth.
The cute, warm, and fluffy cat, Rue.
It was the best.
It was definitely the best, but…
“…Why are you suddenly doing something you’ve never done before? It’s not because there’s something wrong with your body, is it?”
Tadak. With an amazing jump, the cat Rue landed on top of my head from the ground and squished its tail beneath it, letting out a mournful cry.
“I hope you haven’t forgotten that I’m your biggest fan, Daisy.”
Hearing those words reminded me of the shrine inside Serenier Castle. Inside the huge annex, the numerous pictures of me… it made my face feel hot.
“To enjoy your journey with a pure heart, this place is just right for me. Should I say it feels like I’m enjoying a long-awaited concert from the front row of a grand theater?”
“Journey? When we were looking for the Hawk Talon family, you traveled just fine in your original form, didn’t you?”
“Because that was a side story.”
I didn’t understand what that meant, but since Rue was just as stubborn as I was, I didn’t prolong the conversation. Just as the sea becomes accustomed to the tides, I’d become used to his eccentricities.
Just as we were about to board the carriage prepared to head for the Astrosa Air station, a sharp cry of a hawk echoed from the sky.
Following that, a large shadow descended, circling with its wings spread wide.
Instinctively reaching out, I stroked my cute little hawk, moved by its heavy weight that was different from before.
“Ash! How did you get here?”
Ash replied, puffing out its chest.
[With my guardian.]
Indeed, conversing with Ash hadn’t been a dream.
‘How on earth… Ah, this necklace. Bernard must’ve fixed Dian Cecht’s necklace.’
I felt a genuine emotion in its sparkling eyes and tapped its yellow beak.
“Will you follow me?”
[Raw chicken.]
“It might all be unfamiliar to you, will you be okay?”
[2-minute rest.]
“Hmm.”
[Dr. Salliberin’s five-circle theory.]
“Yes, you’re right. What could go wrong with me here? Let’s go together.”
“How the hell are you able to communicate?”
Ignoring Gavroche, who had a bewildered expression on his face, I climbed into the carriage.
However, Ash’s size posed a challenge for boarding. I tried to somehow squeeze him through the small carriage entrance, but it didn’t go well.
Should I just break down the door?
“Hey, leave that thing behind and go.”
I turned to Gavroche with anger.
“Who are you to tell me what to do?”
“Act with common sense, you fool. Do you think you can board an airship with a thing of that size?”
That’s… true.
When I looked at Rue with a ‘what should we do?’ expression, the blue cat, as if reciting a spell, groomed its right ear twice and looked at Ash.
Tweet!
Then, as if by magic—no, actually by his magic—Ash shrank to the size of a toy bird.
Rue boarded the carriage with the miniaturized Ash in his mouth. It was a heart-stopping sight.
“So cute.”
[My guts.]
Gavroche, clicking his tongue, pushed me into the carriage and then collapsed into the seat opposite me. He looked a bit tired. He was getting old, too.
I sighed as I looked at Gavroche who was getting uglier as the days went by.
‘It’s better to keep quiet about our parents’ survival for now.’
Rue said I could hear the detailed story from Malcolm. I should confirm it first before telling this guy.
Flight tickets from Astrosa to Penrotta Islands were readily available.
For some reason, the only remaining seats were Diamond VVIP seats, which required a considerable price, but really, a VVIP seat? Compared to the beggar-like airship I came to Astrosa on from four years ago, it was a significant development.
‘I can hear the imperial language here and there.’
Was this the aftermath of trade resuming?
The size of the airfield seemed to have at least doubled, and the number of travelers appeared to have increased by at least sixteen times.
The space that once boasted an old-fashioned elegance had transformed into an airfield. It felt like a time warp into the future overnight.
‘Well, it wouldn’t be wrong to call it that…’
However, there was another strange sight in front of me.
<Gray Spear Guild.
The only hope to save our land from disaster!
Great heroes await you!
Support the Guild of the Gray Spear through subscriptions.
(Affiliated with 3 of the 100 heroes recognized by the Siagot List)
☏ Address of the Astrosa branch listed on the back
☏ Address of the headquarter branch listed on the back>
These guild advertisements were placed all around the airfield.
Were they advertisements for a newly published novel?
When I looked at them with a ‘what does this mean?’ expression, a sales employee in a suit opened his mouth and spoke in somewhat awkward imperial language.
“You seem to be unfamiliar with Gray Spear. We are a guild founded a year ago, centered around one of the 100 heroes, Sir Grayspear. We have our headquarters in Midwinterre and can proudly say that we are a skill-based guild, unlike other guilds that discriminate based on nationality and race! A portion of the sponsorship funds is used to help underprivileged children, and if you subscribe now, you’ll receive Sir Grayspear’s goods as a gift!”
Hmm.
“What am I subscribing to?”
“A magazine, of course! We work with a certain publishing company to publish a monthly magazine that details the heroes’ actions, issues, the whereabouts of the calamity Rein, the policies of the alliance, and more.”
Oh, really.
“How does this subscription work?”
“Ah! Generally, we collect payments quarterly through the mail, but if it’s inconvenient for you, you can pay the subscription fee in advance to me.”
“Hey.”
“What’re the goods you were talking about?”
“Think of the goods as commemorative items! This month, we’re especially offering Grayspear keychains, badges, and lastly, the ‘New Heroes Manual’ that was specially released by <Grayspear Guild> this summer!”
“Oi.”
“Then I’ll just pay for one quarter.”
“Thank you! For the lady, we’ll especially give you two badges so you can use them together with your partner next to you…”
“Do you want to die?”
“Do you want to die?”
“H-Huh?”
How dare he call Andert my partner.
I took the keychain, the manual, and only one badge from the trembling sales employee and headed for the boarding area.
“Welcome, guest. Please do not hesitate to let us know if you find any inconvenience.”
These were indeed the VVIP seats. Not as comfortable as a bed, but sufficiently soft and spacious.
The Black Ragel I had previously boarded was so luxurious that I didn’t feel a great deal of excitement, but this seemed comfortable enough for traveling between Penrotta and Astrosa.
“Let’s have a glass of wine.”
I ordered a glass of wine for Rue, who was rolling around on my lap (Ash had fallen asleep on Rue’s stomach in the meantime), and opened the ‘New Heroes Manual’ that I had received from the salesperson.
And an unlucky face appeared on the first page the moment I opened it.
It was the face of the demigod Rein, who had tried to take my life.
‘I expected it when I saw the advertisement, but…’
It seemed that Rein’s madness had become quite well-known during the past four years, given the majestic writing beneath his eerie smiling face that read, <We are united to punish this disaster!>.
“…Hmm.”
But there was something that kept bothering me.
The headquarters address written here… It seemed a bit familiar. Let’s see, where was it, where was it…
“Huh?”
Isn’t this our house?
Andert telling her to move on while daisy’s talking to the salesman is very younger brother of him
Few things make me feel butterflies like Rue saying ‘I hope you haven’t forgotten I’m your biggest fan, Daisy’ AAAA can he be any more T0T fuck ily get you a man who calls himself your fan and has a shrine dedicated to you and might be a little obsessed but ahem
Thank you for the chapter!
Siblings never change… Weatherwoods are up to something fishy too.
I knew something is up the moment Midwinterre being mention 😳