Chapter 62 – Scars.

Lantua is an affluent country that is said to be one of the few paradises in the world. Rumors about Lantua were so famous that they even spread to distant lands beyond the cloud regions and wilderness. I’ve heard rumors like that.

“I never thought it would be like this.”

The coachmen and Donnar saw. The vast green plain seen when driving the wagon through the first castle wall. It was surprising to learn that most, if not all, of the plains were grains such as wheat used for food. Lantua was doing mass production of food that other countries could not even dream of because of its topography and various problems. The first time I saw the walls of Lantua. Walls that long are difficult to build and difficult to maintain, so why was it built? I had a question.

In fact, many parts of the outer wall, except for the entrance, were damaged as if it had not been maintained for a long time. Looking down from such a height, you can see an irregular shape like the cross section of a broken eggshell. But besides that, things that were visible together were telling us that the wall wasn’t just being neglected. It was because there were large and small villages with small walls built on the basis of the outermost wall, and there was a second wall separating the outer and inner walls.

When Donar led the procession and reached the second wall, he could see that it was well maintained unlike the first. And he remembered the gatekeeper’s words he had heard before passing through. It was said to be careful because the paddles for the upper tier that they were holding could not pass freely without the permission of the lord who governed each city. Lantua is a place called paradise, but I expected that there would be unavoidable parts as it is a place where people live after all, but isn’t it different from a completely different country except that it is inside the same barrier as the Allied Country?

Even the difference between being able to cross the second wall is the difference between money and status. Perhaps the villages closest to the outermost wall are the poor, and even though they are on the outskirts, the ones closest to the second wall are like peasants who still need protection. Donnar muttered with a bitter laugh. It seems to be true that it is an affluent country.

“Isn’t it like a paradise?”
“What?”

Then he felt someone hugging his head, along with an affectionate voice behind him. Needless to say, he knew who she was. Having taken off her helmet, he could feel the softness of her breasts on the back of her head, and he felt her face heat up and called for her.

“Sif.”
“What were you doing in a place like this?”
“What you’re doing is watching the scenery. It’s a pretty cool sight.”

Putting aside the complexity, it was undeniable that the scene here was beautiful. After listening to him, Sif wondered if this sight had caught his eye. The village built on a slope looks like a giant staircase with small, square buildings gathered. And the sunset seen from such a huge staircase and the village bathed in the sunset were quite beautiful.

“Shall we make our house here?”
“I like it.”

Sif immediately responded to the impulsive words, and he burst into laughter. Then, when I passed through the cloud region, I remembered the wine Git had given me.

“But the wine. Where did you get it?”

Wine is an expensive commodity. It is difficult to take a sip of well-aged wine made from precious fruits. Anything like that would have put it on the sales list at the top, but as Donard remembered, he had never seen anything like wine, let alone wine. It’s something I got from Sif, but I held it for a while thinking that I couldn’t drink this precious thing recklessly.

“Yes? Wine?”
“That’s what you gave me.”

Thinking she was good at not drinking for now, she held out her bottle, which she had tied around her waist and hung from her waist.

“Is this what you gave me?”
“Yes that’s right.”
“Did you have wine?”
“Wine?”

Let’s open it and let her smell her scent even though it is something she would have asked for.

“It smells sweet. Is this wine?”

Come to think of it, wine was not something that was easily accessible. It’s no wonder she doesn’t know, she said, thinking.

“Yes, that’s too expensive.”

Donard could tell that these wines were of really good quality, as she had been fortunate enough to have tasted the lesser ones. The low-grade products had a lighter scent than this, so they were not smelled properly, and they were even really bitter. What she gave was probably a quality product that only nobles could drink. She wondered where she got these things, so her Sif hesitantly opened her mouth.

“Is this what he gave you?”
“Perhaps.”

According to Sif, before sending her off on top of her carriage, she came and handed her a box and said, “Don’t open it until she’s married. When she’s married, give it to her husband.” It is said that he said When Sif remembered his words this time and opened it, the thing that came out was this bottle.

“Wait a minute, so you’re saying this is a coma item?”
“Coma goods?”
“It’s usually sent to a married woman’s family when they get married.”

There would be no way to use something like wine as a gift for a wedding gift, but considering what he said, this wine was definitely a substitute for a gift for a wedding ceremony. Did Sif realize that too? He looked at each other’s faces and found their faces so red that even the sunset light couldn’t hide them. Sif fanned his hot face to cool it, and Donnar touched his forehead.

“Keuheum, so what are you going to do? You can just drink it or sell it.”
“I-wouldn’t it be better to keep it for now? After selling all the stuff, we decided to share enough for each person to buy, but just in case.”

Donard decided to keep the wine separate, as Schiff said. He would have liked to have a drink with him, but he could have needed money in case of an emergency. Silver rings glistening in the sunset light on their hands and necks as they returned to the voices of those at the top looking for them.

“Then shall we go wake the sleepyheads?”

He went back to the carriage with Sif to wake the children who were still asleep from motion sickness.

“Hmm. My body is sore.”

Usher stretched out and relaxed his sulky body. He thought that once he passed through the city walls he would get straight to Lantua. The wagon ran longer than expected. Because of this, he could not stand motion sickness and fell asleep. He was able to wake up only after hearing the voices of the coachmen announcing that he had arrived. Even so, if you are still drunk and dreamless.

“Guys! We’ve arrived!”

Just then Donar opened the carriage door and shouted. Thanks to that, I was surprised and ran away. Through the door he opened, the voices of the coachmen announcing their arrival could be heard louder, and the excited voices of the people flowed in. Then the girl who had been looking out the window came up to him and held out her hand.

“Usher, let’s go.”
“Huh.”

He reached out and took her hand. The warm and soft touch lightened his steps toward an unfamiliar place. When they left the wagon, what greeted them was a huddle of small and large houses made of yellow bricks. It wasn’t just the house. From the street to the stairs, each one is made of bricks of similar tones, although the color is slightly different. All buildings are of different sizes. There were buildings larger than the slaughterhouse, which was the largest building in the countryside, and buildings much smaller than a small wagon.

Usher and Belka could have entered without any problems, but it was not difficult to see that the small houses, which would be difficult for adults to enter, were for dwarves. It may be a house for the dwarves, but the appearance of the houses where everything is smaller than Usher knew is like a big toy town, and it feels strange. What I realized while looking around the village was the existence of the dwarves. Are you afraid of strangers? Through the windows as small as a small house, the figures of people who looked like dwarfs poked their heads out and looked this way, appearing and disappearing repeatedly.

When I looked closely, I could see eyes that mixed curiosity and fear flying here and there. Then Usher met his gaze with a small child who was hiding and looking this way. As soon as the child met her gaze, she hid herself as if she was surprised. Usher was not particularly tall, but the child’s height and build were too short for him. He was distracted because he thought he could lift it with one hand if he did well, but his curiosity about this place called Lantua grew rapidly.

As if the village was built on a sloping mountain, the appearance of the buildings stacked up one after another like stairs was colored by the sunset. The numerous buildings gave an idea of ​​how many people and dwarfs lived here.

“Looks like a lot of people really live here.”

It was a very different place from the countryside Usher lived in. The house is made of bricks, not wood, and unlike trees blocking the view, if you go beyond it, all the places you can see are filled with buildings where people live. The village where he lived had a dreary atmosphere when there were no people at sunset, but here, the yellow bricks reflected the sunset light, giving it a rather bright feeling. From the wonders of dwarfs to the splendid buildings, Usher’s heart was already pounding with anticipation for this town.

“Belka, let’s go see each other later!”
“Good.”

The girl’s hair glistened in the glow of the sunset, and she looked at him with warmth as her gold tickled her heart. The world was dyed in her colors.

As the sun had completely set, the only thing that illuminated the village at night was a large moon and scattered star fragments in the night sky. Usher thought that since this is the upper level, he would sell the goods as soon as he arrived in Lantua, but it seems that business is not that simple.

“Aren’t you staying here?”

Usher was disappointed to hear that the Merchant would not stay here. He liked the look of this huge stair-like town he saw when he first arrived. So he promised to explore the village with Belka. When he couldn’t hide his regret, Donar, who was eating dinner next to him, started talking to him.

“If you’re really sorry about that, will you live with us?”
“What do you mean?”

Usher looked up at him and he smiled.

“No, we like this place too. We decided to live with Sif after we sold everything.”
“With Sister Sif?”

Are you thinking it’s weird? After looking at him with a strange expression, he looked at Sif.

“So, how about living with us?”

Usher couldn’t figure out why the story was the way it was. They want to live together

“I’m Belka and…”
“Is there something the two of you need to do?”
“That’s it, yes.”

This journey he started with a girl was not simply about finding a place to live. Because he had a dream of being an adventurer. It wasn’t just a dream, though.

“Then, how about living with us until you leave this place? You guys are still young.

Usher couldn’t argue with Sif’s words. He thinks he can live with Belka, but apart from that, he lacks the strength to protect himself from ill-wishers. Even Usher knew that there would be many people who would be more inclined to harbor such feelings, especially since Belka was beautiful.

“But that’s a nuisance to Uncle Donard and Sister Sif.”

He didn’t know why they were making this offer to them. As they say, they are still young and there is not much they can do. Usher remembered the stories the adults had told her about Marie and herself, who had no parents in the town they had already left. The words that the whole village told me to take care of properly because it was too cumbersome and hard for one person to take care of. So, Usher lived as a good child unconditionally, not wanting to be hated by her adults until her mother died.

If he didn’t become a good kid, there were many cases where the adults who looked after him wouldn’t light the fire or feed him that day. It was the same even after Marie died and met Belka. Except for a few things, I avoided things that would be hated by adults, even when the kids insisted on doing them together. Otherwise, it was a nuisance to the adults, and on the day it caused a nuisance, they couldn’t even get food to eat. Usher was afraid that Donnar and Sif would hate him as much as they did. In the end, Usher had no choice but to delay his answer.

“Belka.”
“Huh.”

He asked, relieved by her answer, which, as always, came right back when he called her name.

“What should I do?”

She’s Belka because she always had something helpful to say to him. She believed that this time too, she had no doubts. But she also knew she wouldn’t give an easy answer.

“What do you think Usher should do?”

Belka was often like this, because she often answered his questions with questions.

“I do not know.”

Even though you know that this is the only answer he can give back. When Usher became depressed at the thought that he could only say this, the girl held his head in her arms and patted him as if consoling him that it was okay.

“It’s not impossible for us to stay here by ourselves.”
“Then.”
“But Usher knows. It’s going to be a very hard job.”

He shut up at the girl’s words. It was as Belka said. Usher already knew that the world wasn’t as simple and beautiful as he thought. But does that mean he can be a nuisance to Donar and Sif? I knew they weren’t bad people, but that made me more afraid of being hated.

“It’s good to think well, Usher, because time is always finite and there’s plenty to do.”

It will be safer and save time if possible with them. If you still don’t want to be a nuisance, why not share the burden by helping them with their work?

“…I want to think about it a little more.”

It was around the time Usher’s troubles deepened. He could see something else being added to the brazier burning in front of him. It was a sparse mesh-like grid made of twisted thin but strong wires. The ones who put it on the brazier were Donnar and Sif, who had been called by someone to leave. The appearance of it, which was newly served in the car after dinner was almost finished, is somewhat foreign. Doesn’t it look like you’re preparing something more? Doubtful, what Donar took out of the sack he brought with him was a strange-looking stone.

“Are you going to eat stones by roasting them now?”

Didn’t you have anything to eat? No, was it possible to eat stones in the first place? Donar scratched his head as his expression grew more and more strange.

“I’m not sure, but they say it’s one of the local specialties.”

As he said that, he placed several uneven stones on the fire.

“Is this stone a special product?”
“I don’t think it’s a stone. You say you can eat what’s inside?”
“So you went to get this?”
“Yes, it seems that the conversation with the villagers went well, and the elder shared them to eat together.”

After hearing his words, I looked around and could see that there were definitely more people and dwarves gathered than when I was only at the top. As if holding a festival, it seems that the joyous commotion that started somewhere spreads out more and more.

“Oh, it’s different from the first dwarf I’ve ever seen.”

The dwarves who were screening Lantua for entry were strict and had a sharp edge somewhere, so I thought all dwarves were like that. Most of them are muscular, wearing hard helmets, holding pickaxes or shovels, and humming songs. Seeing this, he seemed rather special to the dwarf he had just met.

“There’s nothing special about being a dwarf and a human being. Their work and personalities are all very different.”

Donard’s voice is also excited, as if he’s been in a mood.

“Before that, you hadn’t been able to see it at all.”

At first, the people at the top thought that the residents here were wary of strangers. To be honest, the carriages and Hildisbini they rode on were so big that they looked menacing to people, and there were even people wearing armor. How would it look to dwarves? But now that I look at it, it doesn’t seem like that, so I doubted it.

“I heard that. He just got back from work.”

After talking with the old man, Donard, it seems that the whole village is a place where miners make a living. It seems that they had no choice but to work because most of them were women and children who remained in the village because they worked late. So the returning workers were now able to run into them and talk to them. At first, he was wary, but when he learned that they were selling goods and looking for a place to settle down, he said that he had been a guest for the first time in a long time and proposed to have a party. He said that the distribution was made of stones and alcohol.

“Hey, beer! It’s been a while!”

He excitedly opened the iron bottle. Sif scolded him for saying that he could eat this every day.

“No more than three bottles.”
“Kek, at least do it with four bottles.”
“No.”
“Okay.”

Donard, visibly regretful at her words, gulped down his beer. Then a loud laugh was heard.

Haha! A good knight like Hou is living in the grip of a young lady!”

Usher covered his ears at the deafening voice and turned around to see a dwarf with a shaggy brown beard and an impressive body. His clothes and face were all covered with soot, and he was holding a small knife in one hand and a gloved iron cup in the other.

“Who are you?”

When Usher stepped back in surprise at the sight of him holding a small knife, he approached the brazier, gulping down his drink.

“I’m called pyalyar! It’s an unfamiliar food to outsiders, so I’m here to tell you how to eat it!”

He then tapped the stone on the fire with the side of a small knife. Upon closer inspection, the knife he was holding seemed to be blunt and unable to cut anything properly. It was when he was wondering what he was carrying a knife like that for. Puck! And there was a loud sound like something exploding. When I looked for where the sound came from, it was the sound of a stone that had been placed on the fire. When they looked surprised, he laughed and pulled out a boulder with his glove on.

“Now, like this!”

Then he inserted a blunt knife into the gap and turned it around, and part of the stone fell off, revealing what was inside. The inside of the pitch-black stone was surprisingly white, and something oval was sizzling in the center. Then he slurped what was inside, using the stone that was still there as a bowl.

“I’ll just have to skip it!”
“Oh.”

Seeing this, Donnar immediately took up a stone and pulled a sharp dagger from his waist as if to imitate him.

“That’s not ripe…!”

The dwarf Faryaar looked at the stone he was holding and tried to say something, but before he could say anything, he pierced the stone with his dagger and lightly tore it off.

“Hmm? What did you say?”

Donar looked at Farjar as if he didn’t know what was wrong, and he was dumbfounded.

“…I was trying to say it wasn’t ripe.”
“Oh, was it not ripe?”
“Donard, did I tell you to listen to people?”

After hearing his words, Donar awkwardly looked at the stone he had already picked up, and Sif sighed and said, Then Farjar waved his hand as if he was okay. And then puck again! Hearing the sound of a broken stone, he looked up.

“It’s okay to eat raw, so there’s no problem. Just because it doesn’t open like this when it’s not ripe, I was going to say I don’t care about it, but my skill with a sword isn’t normal.”

He suggested eating it once he had picked it. Donar, who slurped the contents of the stone he had already picked up just as Farjar had done, drank beer in admiration.

“Kyaa! Are you killing this?”
“The knight knows something!”

Looking at him so deliciously, Usher wondered what it tasted like. Faryar, who noticed that, kindly picked up the stone he was holding and held it out to him.

“Thank you.”

It was strange to Usher that something like this could be contained inside something that looked like a stone. He suddenly felt goosebumps as he looked at the stone-like yet living creature. Come to think of it, he had seen something like this before. The strange fish he saw in the cave he went into to be tested by the wolf in the forest. Usher’s hands trembled with just that, but the problem was the shapes that followed. The abyss he saw in the damp, eerie cave and the many white hands trying to drag him down.

At the same time, Usher couldn’t bear to put it into his mouth as he felt a multitude of bugs crawling all over his body.