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Chapter 371 – Smooth Sailing Air Travel
“Kosuke, this is free time.”
“Don’t say it is free.”
It had been about an hour―two hours actually―since we had left Merinesburg. Isla immediately began to babble.
“There are no wyverns or anything.”
“If something like that was flying along the road, it would be a big deal…”
The personnel on the aft tower deck, or rather the bridge, all nodded in agreement with my words.
We were flying west from Merinnesburg, keeping the highway in sight and heading west along it. Of course, there are villages and towns scattered along the road, as well as peddlers and travelers. We have no way of knowing how surprised they were, as we were flying at least 1,000 meters above the ground, but they must have been in for a big surprise.
And there is no way that powerful aerial monsters like wyverns, gryphons, and hippogriffs would be flying around in such a place. If there were such a thing, the Royal Army of Merinard or adventurers from the Adventurers’ Guild would have been notified immediately and sent to the right place to destroy it.
“No one would go near this thing unless they had the numbers to do so.”
“Is that so?”
“That is how it is. The magic emitted by this flying ship is comparable to that of a dragon. Most monsters will retreat to their nests even if their territory is invaded.”
“The wyverns and the like attacked us in the Sorel Mountains because they thought we were invading their territory and that they could handle us because there were so many of them?”
“That’s what I think. The other reason is that even if it is their territory, it is close enough to their sleeping area. They would have been desperate if they thought their home would be taken away from them.”
“I see.”
Isla nodded with interest at Grande, who had brought a large number of pillows to the bridge and was relaxing as she explained the theory of monster behavior. Then, perhaps feeling something about the interesting information, Isla fell silent as if in deep thought. Meanwhile, she seems to be doing her job by looking at the crystal ball in her hand, so that’s good.
“This is the surveillance. Regular report. No problems.”
“Copy that. Anything unusual?”
“A lot of people on the ground pointing at us and making a lot of noise. Also, a young harpy took off and tried to chase us but couldn’t follow us and fell out.”
“I see. Is the harpy who tried to follow us safe?”
“Probably. If she fell and died, that’s all there is to it.”
“I-I see. Thank you for your report.”
The one who answers is probably Rey, the black-winged harpy. They are surprisingly cool or dry with their own people. Not so much with their relatives. I feel that the way they deal with people outside the pack and inside the pack is really different.
I looked around the deck, but there didn’t seem to be any problems. I have a platoon standing guard just in case, but with this, half a platoon―25 men―might be enough. I’ll talk to Ted and Darko later.
“This is the kitchen. Lunch is ready.”
“Thank you. Then please notify those who are free to take their meals first.”
“Understood, sir. We will bring it to you as soon as possible.”
“Thank you. Be careful not to cause any accidents due to the turbulence of the ship.”
I told Byaku through the magical transmission tube while I operated my inventory, took out a wooden table, and set it up in the middle of the bridge. I used my ability to set it up so that it would never move from its place, no matter how shaky or tilted it might be.
“You eat in order.”
“What about you, Kosuke?”
“I’ll eat last.”
“No. The captain eats first.”
“Is that the way it should be?”
“That’s the way it is.”
Apparently, that’s the way it is. Since it can’t be helped if she assures me like that, I decide to eat the food brought by the beastmen maids as soon as possible.
“Oh? What’s this? It looks very delicious.”
The beastmen maids brought a taco-like dish wrapped in thin dough. The aroma was quite spicy, but what was inside?
“A mixture of ground meat and onion, slowly simmered with tomel, beans, and spices, wrapped in dough with shredded raw vegetables. Please enjoy.”
Byaku, who had brought a tray with a pile of taco-like food, offered me three tacos on a wooden plate.
“It must have been a lot of work to make so many.”
Three tacos is a pretty hefty portion. I mean, can I eat three tacos? They are all very hearty. Each one is pretty big.
“No, it’s easy to make a lot of meat-tomel at once. We just serve them wrapped in thin slices of bread.”
“Do you serve anything else to the soldiers?”
“Yes. If you can sit down to eat, it is easier to serve it in a bowl. If you are eating here, I thought it would be more convenient if you could eat with one hand, so we made it that way.”
“I see.”
But it must have been a lot of work to serve a total of 150 people. Since Byaku was staring at me, I picked up one of the tacos and brought it to my mouth as if pressed by her gaze.
The soft dough was filled with meat tomel, and I could taste the moderate acidity of the tomel and the delicious flavor of the meat and beans. At the same time, there is a spicy aroma and taste. This may be due to the use of spicy condiments such as tabasco. The crunchiness of the cabbage-like vegetables adds a nice accent to the spiciness.
“Yeah, it’s delicious. This should keep everyone’s morale up.”
“Thank you very much.”
Byaku smiled very happily. It’s not too spicy, and I doubt many people would find it too spicy to eat. Although some people might get sick of spicy food every time they eat it, once every day or two is no problem.
☆★☆
And so the flight continued for about six hours. We arrived at Windes, the westernmost city of the Merinard Kingdom. I heard that the main industries in this area are cattle, sheep, and other livestock, as well as barley and other grains.
“There are a lot of pastures and barley fields here.”
“Hmm. And there are gentle hills, so there is no place to park the ship.”
The magic airship has the ability to land on uneven terrain, but with so many gentle hills, it is not possible. But we had already made arrangements for that in advance.
“Kosuke, over there.”
“Oh, is that it? That’s the flag of the Delisans, isn’t it?”
I also used the binoculars to check where Isla was pointing. With her eyesight, she would be able to see the pattern of the flag clearly with the naked eye, but it was impossible for me.
“Then let’s go. Driada-san, can you go?”
“Yes. And as I said yesterday, you can call me Driada, or you can call me Dri, as a sign of affection.”
“Yes, Dri-aneesama.”
“Anee-sama is too much.”
While soothing Driada-san, who was puffing up her cheeks with such words, I took a small flying boat―an airboat―from my inventory on the deck and got on board. I could have asked Grande and the harpies to carry me down, or I could have used the parasail-like escape device (temporary), but I decided to use the airboat because I thought it would look better.
“Please fasten your seat belt. Also, are you wearing your fall control bracelet?”
“Don’t worry. I’m wearing it. And your tone.”
Saying this, Driada-san shows me a bracelet that is more elaborately decorated than the ones distributed to other people. Yes, it looks good. As for the tone, I want you to wait a little while until I get used to it. Somehow, our hearts are still far apart, aren’t they?
“I will try my best. I’ll bring it out then and make sure you stay still so you don’t fall off.”
“Yes.”
I started the airboat with Driada-san, who replied with a smiling face. Although the airboat had crashed many times, it was now reliable, and I was used to piloting it. Now, let’s quickly greet the lord who rules this land and secure a landing spot.