Once we reached the Teleportation Gate, we will soon be in Hydra Kingdom. Since today wasn’t a season brimming with events, the gate wasn’t so crowded, and we were able to teleport without much waiting time.
As soon as we arrived at Hydra Kingdom, I could smell the unique seaside scent and feel the hustle and bustle of the place.
[No matter how many times I visit this place, Hydra Kingdom really is always bustling.]
[It’s probably more accurate to call this place a huge port city. In fact, the markets near the sea are always quite lively. Hydra Kingdom has various innovative systems in place, particularly with their lower tax rate compared to others. The conditions are conducive for individuals to easily open shops, making it much easier for one to start a business. However, due to this nature of the Kingdom, there tends to be a large number of small to medium-sized shops and not many large commercial establishments.]
[I see, it certainly has that kind of atmosphere.]Hydra Kingdom is a place where the authority held by the citizens is strong, while the nobles are almost all in name only and their authority isn’t much greater than the others. I even heard some saying that nobility in itself may eventually disappear in the country. I guess that country really seemed to be the most ahead of its time in the Human Realm.
As someone from a different world, I find this characteristic of Hydra Kingdom’s culture relatively easier to get used to compared to the other countries.
As we were walking down the street while I had such a thought in mind, a familiar old man walked up to me from the other side. It was Laguna-san, wearing the disguise she had when we first met.
[Fors-san, it looks like she’s come to pick you up.]
[Yeah, that indeed seems to be the case. She sure is as unskillful at Transformation Magic as usual…… Those well-versed in magic would notice the discrepancies fairly quickly. Well, she’s a staunch front-line type, so I suppose it’s inevitable……]
[Neun-san also mentioned how she’s not very good at Recognition Inhibition Magic either.]
[Well, magic is something that some are good while others aren’t. I might be referred to as a Sage, but it doesn’t mean I can use all sorts of magic. One could say I’m more specialized in Nature Magic and Earth Magic. On the other hand, I’m not very skilled in Fire and other such magic.]Fors-san also seemed to notice Laguna-san immediately as she wryly smiled. Thereupon, Laguna-san seemed to know that we had noticed her, as she lightly signaled to us with a finger.
She was probably signaling us to go to an unpopulated area in the direction her finger was pointing to. Laguna-san is a King with a tremendous approval rating and is quite popular within Hydra Kingdom.
In fact, when I first met her, she was also using Transformation Magic, so I imagine it would be difficult for her to walk around in the street without a disguise.
We followed the disguised Laguna-san through several alleys until we came to an unpopulated seaside area, where Laguna-san took off her disguise.
[Fuuu…… Kaito, sorry for troubling you…… Fors!!! I told you not to go out, didn’t I!!!?]
[C- Calm down, Laguna…… F- For the time being, put down that fist you’re raising. Listen here, it’s the behavior of savage beasts to immediately resort to violence. We are rational creatures…… We must not let our anger get the better of us.]
[Even though I’ve kept on warning you about this repeatedly beforehand, for you to still get lost like that, I’d obviously get mad. In the first place…… Unnn? Hou…… fumu……]
[What is it? Laguna, that’s an unpleasant look you have there…… Those eyes, don’t you have those when you’re teasing me? I’m now inclined to ask for an explanation for why those eyes are directed towards me at a time like this…… but unfortunately, I do have a slight inkling as to why, so I also feel like not wanting to delve into it too much. If you’re gonna touch upon this matter, I’d appreciate holding onto some resolve to a certain extent.]
They had some sort of exchange that I didn’t quite understand, and Laguna-san, who should have been angry just now, is now grinning like a cheshire cat.
Then, as if to mock Fors-san’s attempt to somehow get the topic back to before, Laguna-san spoke.
[……Fors, aren’t you being unusually shy over there? Oh my, is that a faint blush on your cheeks I see? Hohou, who would have thought I’d get to see you looking like that…… The cause must be Kaito huh. Hahaha, I must say, as to be expected of him! For that Fors to be making such a face———– Whoa!? Hey, wait!?]
[I did warn you……]
Laguna-san was happily teasing Fors-san, but the ground beneath her feet suddenly turned into something like a swamp and her body sank, and even though she tried to resist, she was dragged into the ground.
Then, Fors-san, who was holding a wooden staff before I knew it, imbued it with magic power and tapped its base on the ground.
[……Earth Shaker.]
Thereupon, a big tremor…… an earthquake occurred, and considering we were on the seaside, I looked around in panic, but then I noticed that the sea wasn’t rippling at all…… It seemed that it was only the location we were in that were shaking.
It’s quite a mysterious situation, but most likely, to prevent any damage to the vicinity, a counteracting magic is being employed to induce an ultra-localized earthquake.
And then, a little later, when the shaking stopped…… the ground on which Laguna-san had sunk became as hard as steel.
[……Well then, since we’ve come all the way to Hydra Kingdom, let’s have a light lunch before we head to the royal castle. As thanks for this matter, allow me to treat you.]
[……Ah, no, what about Laguna-san?]
[……If she were to die from something like this, she would have died on that journey a thousand years ago. I’ve seriously solidified and reinforced that ground, but I’m sure she’ll be out in a few minutes. Well, just leave her be. Let’s go.]
[Ah, yes.]
<Afterword>
Serious-senpai : [This is unusual. I mean, I would like it if you would stop raising flags that make me feel uneasy…… You know, mainly the sugary flags.]
