The Return Coach

“We will take a short break here.”

The driver announced, bringing the carriage to a halt.

The journey back to Tior took approximately half a day. Sitting for that long was a burden on the body, and the horses needed rest as well. Because of this, they stopped at various points for short breaks.

The driver fed and watered the horses while brushing them down. I decided to sit a short distance away with Caro to rest.

“It feels like we’ve only covered about thirty percent of the way, right?”

“That seems about right. If everything goes smoothly, I expect we’ll arrive by evening,” Caro replied to my observation.

Pururururu, Pururururu…

Suddenly, an electronic ringing sound echoed through the air.

“Is that coming from your terminal, Kent-san?” Caro looked at it with a puzzled expression.

Checking the screen, I saw an incoming call from Emily.

“Hello?”

“Ah, Master? I expect you’re on your way home, but is now a good time?”

Emily’s voice came through the terminal.

“Wait… is that Emily-san’s voice? How is this happening?”

Caro stared at the device, her face showing she couldn’t quite wrap her head around it.

“Well, you see, Emily has a similar terminal, and we can talk to each other like this. I haven’t told you yet, but it seems Emily’s abilities have improved, and she’s become able to do things like this.”

“Heh, is that so?”

Caro said, though her expression made it unclear whether she truly understood or was just going along with it.

“Oh, that’s Caro’s voice!”

“Wait, Rachel?”

Suddenly, Rachel’s voice also came through the terminal.

“It feels so strange to be talking like this when we’re supposed to be in completely different places,” Caro remarked.

“I never thought the day would come where we could talk like this in this world. I was shocked when I heard about the terminals from Emily. So, anyway, Big Brother?”

Rachel suddenly directed the conversation to me.

“What is it?”

“I want a few things, so please approve the purchase for me.”

“I’m going to charge you properly for this later, you know?”

“I know, I know. Anyway, it looks like my balance decreases when we talk, so I’m hanging up. See you later!”

The call ended, and the screen switched over.

“This costs money!?”

I was shocked. Then the screen changed again, displaying the purchase approval list.

“Let’s see… a sewing machine, thread, fabric, and scissors… Is she planning to make clothes? For now, Approved.”

I tapped the approval button. The corresponding amount was deducted from my balance. The items should have appeared wherever Emily had designated.

Ping.

An email arrived on the terminal.

“That’s amazing. To think you can do things like that now.”

Caro peered at the terminal screen, looking impressed.

“We’re heading out!”

The driver announced. Caro and I returned to the carriage, and once everyone was back, we departed. The passengers for the return trip consisted of Caro and me, Elnette, and two merchant-looking men. There were five of us in total.

“Kent-san, would you like some of this flatbread?”

“I think I will.”

“Here you go, Kent-san.”

Caro and I ate the flatbread we had bought in town.

“It’s not very good, is it?”

“True… even with flatbread, depending on how you make it, it’s possible to make it delicious.”

“Really? I thought it could only be delicious if you made it fluffy.”

“I’ll show you next time I have a chance.”

“Really? I’ll look forward to it.”

Caro and I shared that conversation while eating the bread.

“Are you knowledgeable about bread-making, Kent-kun?” Elnette asked.

“Well, I work at a bakery, so I’d like to think I have a fair amount of knowledge.”

“Is that so? That’s interesting. Then, do you know of a shop called Marie’s Bakery?”

“Ah, that’s actually where I work.”

Elnette looked surprised.

“What a coincidence. My younger sister is fond of the bread from that shop. As I think I mentioned this morning, I’ve taken a liking to it as well.”

“Thank you very much. I’m sure Marie-san will be happy to hear that.”

“Is the woman named Marie the owner?”

“Yes. Originally, Caro-san worked there as well.”

“I see. So you two became close because you were coworkers… something like that?”

Elnette remarked, seeing how well Caro and I got along.

“It’s not exactly like that, but due to certain circumstances, I was staying at Kent-san’s house. That’s when we became close,” Caro answered Elnette.

“Ho ho, so you were living together under one roof? I’m envious; you’re so young.”

“Work was busy, but living with Kent-san was fun.”

“So you spent fulfilling days together.”

“Yes!”

Caro answered with a carefree smile.

“Whoa!”

“Kya!”

“What happened?”

After traveling for a while, the carriage suddenly jerked to a stop.

“Everyone, I’m sorry. It seems bandits have appeared,” the driver whispered to the passengers. The guards drew their swords and moved to the front of the carriage.

“It’s finally happened… You two should take this time to prepare a ‘decoy’ wallet to hand over. If you give it up quietly, they usually won’t take your life.”

One of the merchant-like men said in a practiced tone.

“Since he’s saying that, Caro-san, let’s prepare one quickly.”

“Right!”

I put most of my cash into a spare pouch and left just enough in my usual bag so as not to look suspicious. Caro did the same.

“Like this?”

“I’m ready.”

Leaving an amount that wouldn’t raise eyebrows, Caro and I prepared the money to hand over to the bandits. However, having a strong sense of justice, I had no intention of handing it over quietly. I decided to check the situation outside.

“Well then, I’m not really in the mood to just say ‘here you go’ and hand over the money…”

“Oh, you’re up for it, Kent-kun? I’m not in the mood to forgive villains either.”

Since it was an emergency, I took out my terminal and began operating it. I prepared several cans of powerful pepper spray, a telescopic baton for self-defense, and a stab-proof vest. (These weren’t items usually kept at a home improvement store, but for some reason, they were on the purchase list.)

“Everyone, please put these on just in case.”

I distributed the stab-proof vests to the passengers and showed them how to put them on.

“Shall we head out then?”

“Let’s go!”

Elnette and I jumped out of the carriage.

“Hey! It’s dangerous, get back inside!” the guards shouted while fighting at the front. However, I noticed the bandits in front were moving as if trying to buy time; I judged they were clearly a decoy.

“Elnette-san, the bandits in front are a distraction. Keep watch near the carriage.”

“Is that so? Understood, I’ll do as you say, Kent-kun.”

I stopped Elnette as she was about to move forward.

“There!”

Sensing someone in the shadows, I mercilessly sprayed the pepper spray (High-Potency Type). The spray had a range of about five meters. Since I could spray it over a wide area from outside the reach of their swords, the bandits couldn’t evade it and were showered in the mist.

“Gyaaah! My eyes! My eyes!”

“Well done, Kent-kun!”

Elnette dove into the opening and swung her baton down.

“Guh!”

“What… this lightness and ease of use!”

The bandit who had been blinded by the spray was taken down by Elnette’s single strike. Though she was holding a baton instead of a sword, her movements were truly those of a graceful swordswoman.

“Over there!”

I found the next target and fired the pepper spray.

“It hurts, it hurts! My eyes!”

“I’ve got you!”

Elnette followed up with an attack, taking down another bandit. After confirming that, I moved my gaze and saw one bandit who had escaped the spray trying to slip into the carriage.

“Oh no!”

By the time I shouted, it was too late; the bandit was already trying to enter. However, pepper spray was fired from inside the carriage, and the bandit rolled away clutching his eyes.

“Hyaa!”

Elnette delivered a finishing blow to the rolling bandit, knocking him unconscious.

“This side too!”

I found another target, swapped to a fresh can of spray, and fired.

“Gyaaah!”

“Nice one, Kent-kun! Hyaa!”

“Guh!”

The bandit collapsed after receiving a strike from Elnette’s baton. Seeing the bandits who had tried to attack the carriage defeated, those fighting the guards lost their morale and fled in a panic. Four bandits were left writhing on the ground around the carriage.

“This stuff is quite powerful, so they won’t be moving for a while.”

“Still, this weapon is light and easy to use. It’s nice that we didn’t have to kill anyone; it doesn’t leave a bad aftertaste,” Elnette said, swinging the baton I had lent her.

“Kent-san, are you alright?”

Caro ran out of the carriage toward me.

“Thanks to you too, Caro-san. I was honestly panicked when they tried to get into the carriage.”

“I just sprayed the mist; I didn’t do much.”

Since she had used sprays for cleaning at Marie’s bakery, she seemed to have understood how to use it without an explanation. She had used the spare I left in the carriage.

“You’re quite something, Kent-kun. I’ve truly gained respect for you.”

Elnette said, looking impressed.

“Customers, we’re grateful for the help this time, but please don’t be so reckless,” the driver cautioned us.

“Um, are any of the guards injured?” I asked.

“We’re fine. Just some scratches, so don’t worry. But we’re sorry for putting the carriage in danger because we moved too far forward. We’re grateful to you for protecting it.” The guards bowed to me.

After tying up the bandits, they were made to walk alongside the carriage under the guard’s watch. They would be handed over to the town guards as soon as we arrived. After that, nothing else happened, and we arrived safely back in the town of Tior.