Imperial III-2
After some time spent investigating, the legend of the Hero remained full of unanswered questions.
I headed toward the guild, frustrated by my lack of progress.
"Long time no see, Graham."
"Oh, it has been a while. Since the Water Gem, hasn't it? That was quite impressive."
"Hehe, thank you."
A dry voice came out.
Ever since then, whenever I visit the village, I'm treated like a hero. Even received a high-purity magic stone—probably because of that incident.
But now, looking back calmly, I realize that resolution was only possible because we had skilled personnel and all the necessary information in place.
To be honest, we were just lucky. Thinking about it like that, I can't quite feel genuine happiness.
"I have something I'd like to ask of you today."
"I decline!"
There's no guarantee something like that will happen twice. Given the risks, it's better to refuse.
"Are you sure? The legend of the hero might be forgotten."
Hearing those words, I remembered what the guild leader Marie had told me earlier—that the guild also has intelligence operations.
"How did you find out about that?"
"You're too naive. Or rather, when you get absorbed in something, you lose sight of everything else. It's not something you need to worry about—anyone could figure it out."
To be honest, I'm completely speechless.
"The kingdom is said to be a land where heroes once shone brightly. That's why various records have been preserved."
"Guh... Can I just do it depending on the request?"
"Of course. The mission is escort duty to the kingdom. A noble's child is currently in the empire. The noble has been ordered to return their child to their territory. You'll be responsible for escorting the child there in person."
Why would a noble from the kingdom be in the empire?
It's a simple matter, yet it's being held hostage. The very existence or survival of the person in question becomes a political bargaining chip, which is why I'm living in the Empire for Yuwa's sake. The guild's request is to join the escort team and deliver the noble's child unharmed.
If there's a security team, then we're not needed, are we?
"I told you, the child's survival is part of the bargaining. In other words, we can't afford any mishaps—ensuring they reach the kingdom safely is essential. From a third-party standpoint, we're essentially serving as escorts and overseers."
I see. Politics really are a hassle no matter the era.
"I understand. But it's winter now. Crossing mountain passes in winter is tough even for top-tier adventurers—frankly, it's too much to expect of a noble's child, isn't it?"
"We have a secret strategy for that. It's this..."
I had a bad feeling about this.
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"You're the so-called secret strategy, huh?"
I said with a teasing tone.
"No, that's not me. I'm just the escort and a native of the kingdom, so I'm only here to guide you to the kingdom."
The response came utterly serious.
There stood Alek before me. He seemed strangely unenthusiastic.
"You don't seem very eager. What's wrong?"
"Isn't it obvious? The secret strategy Graham prepared is that one. Didn't you hear about it?"
I felt the familiar scent of sea breeze. Having listened to Graham's explanation, I'd already guessed it would be quite an impressive wooden sailing ship.
"If it's that impressive, there shouldn't be any worry, right?"
"Winter seas are extremely treacherous. Out of ten ships that set out on long voyages, only six return."
Hearing Alek's words, I suddenly became worried.
"Isn't it reckless to take on a noble escort mission like this, with such obvious dangers?"
"At least it's better than crossing the winter mountain range. Out of ten groups that set out, only one comes back. Even if we complain, there's no alternative—we have to use ships to transport this many people."
He looks sideways. He came here together with nobles and their attendants, all of whom are protected targets from the empire. Ahead, there were quite a few people, but it was certainly difficult to cross the mountains with this number.
And now, the boy preparing to board the ship is the client for this job.
A bright blonde with a clever look—still too young to have said much, so his character remains unclear. He’s probably around middle school age.
His name is William Loring. He's distantly related to the current king of the kingdom, though the exact details are unclear, but it seems he's been keeping his distance lately. Because of that, he's ended up being held as a hostage—no easy situation, I'd imagine.
"But why return to the kingdom now?"
"That's simple. The war is about to begin."
"Already?!"
"You're quite loud, you know. Tarou's heard it too, right? The Empire and the Kingdom have been engaged in constant minor conflicts for a long time. Recently, these clashes have intensified, affecting the supply of magic stones. Inevitably, armed confrontations—no matter the scale—can't be avoided. Since hostages are a disadvantage to the Kingdom, recalling them now is a logical choice."
You're surprisingly thoughtful. I thought you'd only ever think about muscles.
I'll punch you in the face.
Put some distance between yourself and Alex, who was clenching his fist with all his might.
Stop wasting time with idle talk—we're boarding now. The ship is already leaving.
I see, well, are you looking forward to the boat trip?
There was a time when I thought that way.
How long has it been since I last boarded a ship? In my original world, I’d only ever ridden large connecting ferries—never truly set out to sea.
Let alone experienced rough seas.
After a day out at sea, just as Alek said, the waves became violent, and it felt like riding a slow-moving roller coaster forever.
I’m thoroughly seasick, suffering greatly. So nauseous...
Wasn't motion sickness caused by a mismatch between information from the semicircular canals and what the body actually feels?
I'm too nauseous to concentrate, but I think I remember reading something like that in a book I once looked at out of curiosity... Ugh, feeling so sick...
Water's limited, so I can't afford to keep throwing up. I have to do something about this.
The sea's too rough right now, so ordinary people like us have to stay inside the boat. But the boat sways violently with the waves, shaking our bodies along with it.
If that's the case, why not stop our bodies from swaying? All I need to do is avoid throwing up—maybe I should numb the part of my body that's making me feel sick?
Back then, when my grandmother felt nauseous, she used to eat a pickled plum...
Damn it, I know way too little about medicine.
I don’t know what to do. If only I could numb some sensation, it might be a little easier.
Numb? Stan-gan... right, electricity flows through the body. If I forcibly send electricity from outside, maybe the senses will glitch.
Probably, it’d hurt terribly like that.
I’ve never tried it before, but I’ll try using a healing stone at the same time. Lately, I’ve been able to use two stones simultaneously.
It should alleviate the pain to some extent.
With resolve, I pressed two types of magic stones against my abdomen.
"Ugh!"
Then I quietly collapsed.
As expected, and luckily, the discomfort vanished. My body feels numb all over... but I lay still for a while until my condition stabilized.
I must have fallen asleep without noticing.