At the caravan leader’s call that echoed through the waystation, the entire compound stirred to life.
Everyone was making their final preparations.
“Hulim.”
Her father Rezelian stepped forward at that moment.
“Let me introduce you to some people.”
He gestured to several well-armed figures behind him.
“These are the C-Rank Adventurer Party guarding this trip—Huntfang.”
Hulim Heyerar looked past Rezelian to the five-person team. From their gear and attire, they were a mailed vanguard, a swordsman, a scout, an archer, and a mage, each in their role.
“Greetings!”
Hulim Heyerar bowed politely.
“Hello there, young lady!”
The swordsman, clearly the party’s leader, smiled in reply.
“Gentlemen, this is my daughter, on her first long journey. If she encounters any trouble along the way, I ask that you keep an eye on her.”
“Mr. Heyerar, you’re too kind—it’s a pleasure to help!”
The swordsman answered with a grin.
He then turned to Hulim Heyerar. “Young lady, is all your luggage ready? Where’s your carriage? We should be off.”
“My things are already loaded. My carriage is over there, sir……”
“Just call me Alec.”
The swordsman said with a smile.
“Very well, Mr. Alec.”
“Those not yet ready—hurry up——!”
The caravan’s urgent shout rang out again.
Alec paused, then turned to Rezelian. “Mr. Rezelian, we must depart. Is there anything else we can do for you?”
Rezelian shook his head. “This is more than enough.”
“Very well. We promise to deliver your daughter safely to the capital of Leicester County!”
There were no caravans or adventurer parties traveling directly from Mentor Town to the Royal Capital.
So Hulim Heyerar would first head to Leicester County, then join another caravan there bound for Langard.
……
Jingle-jingle——!
Clear bell chimes rang out across the waystation.
“Moo——!”
A massive Great Packbeast, hulking like a small hill, rose to its feet. Its back was piled high with cargo, and it even bore a simple wooden shelter—two figures stood atop it, guiding the beast forward.
As the imposing Great Packbeast began to move, the entire combined group of several caravans and countless travelers stirred into action.
Nearly twenty Shield-Horned Beasts pulling carriages formed a long line, and trundled slowly out of the waystation.
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Hulim Heyerar climbed into her assigned beast-drawn carriage, leaned her head out the window, and waved her right hand at her parents, Fran, Colette, Ander, and Kuno behind her.
“Goodbye, Father! Goodbye, Mother! Goodbye, everyone!”
“Farewell, Hulim!”
“Goodbye, Hulim!”
“Safe travels, Hulim!”
“Goodbye……”
The calls of farewell from her family and friends faded into the distance behind her,
until they could not be heard at all.
And as the caravan picked up speed, Mentor Town—the home she had known for eleven years—slowly vanished from her sight.
Ahead of the caravan, brand-new vistas unfolded one after another before Hulim Heyerar.
Staring at these utterly unfamiliar scenes, she suddenly realized.
So this is it…… my journey has begun.
……
……
“Moo——!”
Thud! Thud! Thud……
Amid the mountains and forests, the low, drawn-out bray of the Great Packbeast and its heavy footfalls echoed in all directions.
Anyone with experience would know at once that a large merchant caravan was passing through.
Though it was not a single large private caravan, this combined group of several caravans rivaled any large convoy in scale.
Besides the Great Packbeast walking in the center, roughly ten Shield-Horned Beast carriages flanked the caravan front and rear, each carrying either passengers or stacked high with cargo.
And around the entire caravan, four guards mounted on Swiftstriders patrolled back and forth.
In one of the carriages at the front of the line, Hulim Heyerar sat quietly on the bench, appearing to be resting—yet her eyes were constantly scanning her surroundings. Though she was no stranger to forested lands, a normal forest like this, with no monsters lurking about and a well-trodden path cutting through it, was rather novel to her.
Of course, she was not merely admiring the scenery; she was also silently observing her fellow passengers.
Perhaps to avoid the awkwardness of mixed company, all the passengers in this carriage were women.
An elderly woman with white hair and a kind face, a plain middle-aged woman, and a flamboyantly dressed young woman—along with Hulim Heyerar, the four represented every age group.
At the start of the journey, the four barely spoke a word. The young woman showed no obvious emotion on her face, but a faint air of disdain and annoyance toward the middle-aged and elderly women lingered between her brows.
The middle-aged woman seemed timid, daring not meet anyone’s gaze, and only stared silently out the window.
As for the elderly woman—whether she simply could not read the room, or was just overly warm-hearted—she grew restless soon after the carriage set off and took the initiative to strike up a conversation.
Hulim Heyerar and the young woman were clearly not the most approachable, so the elderly woman naturally turned her attention to the middle-aged woman.
The middle-aged woman had no desire to talk either, but she could not resist the elderly woman’s persistent chatter—and with her soft-spoken nature, she could not bring herself to refuse. In no time at all, she had blurted out her life story.
She introduced herself as a simple farmer’s wife; her younger sister, who lived in the city, had found great success in business, and had invited her to move to the city, invest in, and help run a branch shop—this was the reason for her journey.
The elderly woman held nothing back either, and revealed her own story just as quickly. It turned out her son had left for the city to make his fortune in his youth, and had the good fortune to become a soldier in the service of Earl Leicester. He had recently gotten a promotion, purchased a house in the county capital, and sent a letter not long ago asking his mother to come live with him.
The elderly woman was overjoyed at her son’s good fortune, and had been in high spirits ever since she set out.
Perhaps because their circumstances were somewhat similar, the elderly woman and the middle-aged woman soon fell into an animated conversation.
The elderly woman unslung her satchel, pulled out a box of fruit biscuits, and said:
“These are a local specialty from my hometown. My son loves them, so I brought him a box. Would you like to try one?”
“I couldn’t possibly impose!”
The middle-aged woman protested.
“Oh, nonsense~! Don’t be so polite! I have plenty more in my trunk. These are just for the road anyway—come on, have a bite~!”
Unable to say no to her, the middle-aged woman picked up a fruit biscuit and took a bite.
“Why~, this is absolutely delicious!”
“I know, right! Have a few more~!”
The elderly woman chuckled joyfully.
She then stood up, took a few more biscuits, and held them out to Hulim Heyerar and the young woman.
“Here you go, young ladies—you try some too~!”
The young woman glanced at the elderly woman’s bare hand holding the biscuits, and a flicker of disgust crossed her face. Yet she could not very well show her displeasure to someone who was being so warm and kind.
So she declined politely: “Thank you, but I ate my fill before boarding. I couldn’t possibly eat anything now.”
“Oh, is that so…… Well then, young lady, you try some! They’re absolutely lovely!”
