The Day Of Departure

Several weeks passed after we made the plan for Ann’s escape, and finally the day before the wedding procession’s departure arrived. Rebecca and I had promised to enter the palace the day before, so we headed there after lunch.

“It finally starts tomorrow.”

“I’m nervous…”

“Yeah. But if we start getting nervous now, we won’t last. The real moment is a week from now.”

She was right. The real challenge would begin after entering the Empire. I wondered what the imperial knights were like… If they matched the rumors we had heard about the Empire, it was hard to imagine them being pleasant.

“While we’re still in the kingdom, let’s make sure no one notices our connection with Ann. We’ll act like ordinary adventurers.”

“Yeah. Let’s avoid getting close to Ann as much as possible.”

Rebecca and I exchanged glances and nodded before continuing toward the royal palace.

After completing the formalities and entering the palace, we were guided to the meeting room where Sir Lancian was waiting. It was larger than the previous one, and it looked like other knights had gathered there as well.

“Sir Lancian, everyone, thank you for waiting.”

Since most knights were nobles, I greeted them politely. Sir Lancian responded with a gentle smile and invited us to sit.

“Mr. Luca, you are a first-class adventurer, so there is no need to be so humble toward us. There are only six first-class adventurers in the entire world, including you. The position is said to be equivalent to that of a count. If anything, we should be the ones bowing our heads.”

—Now that I thought about it, that was true.

A first-class adventurer really did hold that kind of status.

But it still didn’t feel real. Being compared to a count didn’t quite sink in.

“So does that status apply in other countries as well?”

“Yes. As long as the country has an Adventurers’ Guild, the system is recognized everywhere. However… the Empire may be an exception. As you both know, the Empire has been heading in a rather unstable direction recently. The Adventurers’ Guild still exists there, but it seems that all personnel dispatched from the central governing body—the World Council—have already left the country. It’s unclear whether the guild is even functioning anymore.”

Seriously…?

If no staff from the governing body remained, that practically meant the guild wasn’t functioning at all.

Infiltrating without drawing attention as a first-class adventurer might actually be easier—but the security situation sounded terrible.

No, if even guild staff had fled the country, then the security situation must be the worst possible.

—But thinking about it carefully, there might be an advantage too.

The biggest drawback of our plan was that our commissioned request would technically fail.

Since it was a joint mission with knights, I assumed our share of the responsibility would be relatively small. And honestly, I had already accepted that failing the mission was worth it if it meant helping Ann.

But if we could reduce that disadvantage, that would be even better.

If the mission was considered a failure due to being sent into what was essentially a lawless region where the Adventurers’ Guild didn’t function, then maybe we wouldn’t be held responsible.

“I’ll keep in mind that status won’t mean much in the Empire.”

“Yes. With your abilities, I’m sure you’ll be fine, but please remain cautious. Now then, let’s move on to discussing the schedule starting tomorrow.”

After that, we went through the final confirmations: the escort formation, the number of carriages, the position of the carriage Ann would ride in, and the areas where we would be stationed for protection.

Finally, Sir Lancian introduced the other knights, and the meeting concluded.

“We will depart early tomorrow morning due to lodging arrangements, so please rest well tonight. Your rooms are the same as before.”

“Thank you. We look forward to working with you over the next week.”

Rebecca and I parted ways with the knights and were guided to the guest rooms by the same attendant and maid as before.

After resting for the night, the next morning arrived.

We stood near the palace’s main gate. The wedding procession would depart from here, pass through the capital’s main avenue, leave the city, and head toward the Empire.

In truth, most of the citizens had not been informed about Ann’s marriage.

The official reason was that announcing it in advance would increase the risk of an attack.

But the real reason was obvious—the destination was the Empire.

Apparently, there were many people strongly opposed to forming ties with the Empire.

And yet the king had decided on this marriage on his own, tempted by short-term benefits…

Honestly, it sounded like he should quietly retire.

I felt terrible for Ann, being dragged around like this.

If we could defeat the Empire, replace the Albanell Kingdom’s king with someone worthy of respect, and allow Ann to return to this country freely one day…

“Mr. Luca, Miss Rebecca, it’s almost time to depart.”

“Understood.”

Called by Sir Lancian, Rebecca and I moved to our assigned positions.

Our station was at the very back of the procession. We would ride on a wagon loaded with food supplies and deal with any monster attacks coming from behind.

“Rebecca, keep watch on the right side. I’ll watch the left.”

“Got it. Basically, we’ll take down monsters with ranged attacks from the wagon, right?”

“Yeah. If that’s not enough to drive them off, we’ll inform the knights, then get down and deal with them directly.”

While we were discussing the plan, we heard a heavy metallic creaking sound.

Giiiiiii…

The massive gates slowly began to open.

The journey had finally begun.