/
I was in such a tense state that I could feel the pulse on the base of my neck beating loudly, and I almost staggered my steps.
But, trying to calm my mind, I cautiously stepped out. He was surprisingly easy to let go of me, but Theodore’s gaze was still fixed on me. If he were to see anything suspicious, he would catch me right away.
“Next!”
When Charlotte, who was right behind me, passed safely, I finally felt relieved… But I wasn’t completely at ease.
And I would continue to feel this way until we’d board a ship heading to the eastern continent from the port city of Dornach.
Until I left this continent where the Kingdom of Francis was located, I would not be able to relax for a single moment.
* * *
Two days later.
The ship cruising the Hermann Canal finally arrived at the port city of Dornach.
The name of this port city was Palos. Merchants from the eastern continent who frequented the place called it by a different name, but it seemed to mean “blue city” in their language.
“It seems like the ship headed to the eastern continent will be leaving in two days. We only have to board three hours before departure, so we have plenty of time.”
“I see…”
I replied as if I agreed with Charlotte’s words, but I didn’t really feel comfortable.
Even if it was just one moment earlier, I wanted to leave as soon as possible rather than stay in this country.
“Come to think of it, did Harriet say to be careful? This city… What is it, ah, the Shadow Guild’s base of activity.”
“…….”
I nodded without speaking.
The Shadow Guild, as their name suggested, was a group that mainly carried out illegal activities in the dark.
I suddenly recalled the conversation I had with Harriet.
‘My guild, Forest Wind, also works as errand runners, but we don’t hurt or kill people. But the Shadow Guild bastards are different. Most of them are criminals, and their alleged specialty is human trafficking, kidnapping, and assassination.’
‘…Is this where those dangerous people are active?’
‘It’s one of their bases. As you know, Dornach is the richest region in the kingdom. The stronger the light, the darker the shadow, and there are many shadows for criminals to hide in. In particular, this city is active when it comes to trading, so many people come and go and the market is large. I guess they have a lot of good prey there.’
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Up to that point, I only had the impression that ‘There are guilds like that in the world’. But the story that came afterwards really surprised me.
‘But with that Shadow Guild… There are rumors that House Alvinith is colluding with them.’
‘……?’
The moment House Alvinith was mentioned out of nowhere, I was taken aback. If he had mentioned Everett, I would have immediately believed it. In reality, the Everetts were secretly using criminals to carry out their heinous acts behind the scenes.
But House Alvinith? Why would a family of close-knit mages join hands with a group of criminals? I suspected that it might just be a rumor.
‘I don’t know the details, but… Anyway, you’d better be careful. There’s some particularly vicious gossip about Lady Alvinith.’
‘Lady Alvinith’ would mean Adeline. I’ve always thought of Adeline as a different person on the inside, but she didn’t look like someone who’d get involved with criminal activity…
‘…But I don’t know what people would actually do. Harriet is right. It would be better to be careful in many ways while traveling the city in two days.’
But first of all, there were still three more days in the duration of the transformation magic, so there was no need for me to worry about too much when walking around the city. No one would recognize me.
“Right, Miss! Let’s go to the sea! You said it was the first time seeing it, too, right? Let’s go and dip our toes in the sea water, and pick up pretty shells! I’m sure it’ll be fun!”
Charlotte said with zeal as her round eyes twinkled brightly. I smiled and nodded my head obediently.
“Okay, let’s go see it.”
Charlotte cheered at my consent. Charlotte, who was always dignified, looked as cute as a child… I felt a little bit sad. After all, if I had been out with Charlotte often, she would have been able to see things more often.
‘From now on, let’s go out often. So that you don’t regret later…’
Charlotte and I walked side by side holding hands until we reached the beach. We stood for a while and admired it in silence. The scenery unfolded before my eyes was like a different world.
Golden sandy beach and sparkling blue waters. Eliciting such breathtaking vitality, it was so much more awe-inspiring compared to what I had seen in paintings.