"...So, what's your objective?" (Reiko)
"The enemy super huge battleship!" (Kaoru)
"..."
"......" (Both)
Oh no, that was a flop...
"To the East. Most of the people who have met me in person are probably not still alive, but the countries around here have a lot of old ties, and I thought that if we were to leave the old things alone and build a new life together with Reiko, it would be better to go somewhere far away, not on this peninsula… In that case, it would be completely new ground for us, so we could start from scratch, and I wouldn't have to worry about anyone finding out about me, since hardly anyone knew about my past, or even if they did, it would have been changed so much that it was unrecognizable, like a lie. When you find a suitable place, settle down and live there for a while. If you don't like it, you can always go back on the road. Well, there's plenty of time, right?" (Kaoru)
"That's true. Kyoko didn't seem like she'd be there very long either..." (Reiko)
Eh?
"Kyoko is..." (Reiko)
"Ah, I think the last time we met was about two years ago. After that, neither of us were in a condition to go out anymore… I was connected to an IV drip and oxygen tubes at the hospital, and although Kyoko didn't have those things attached, she didn't seem to be in a condition to go out on her own..." (Reiko)
"How long have you lived?" (Kaoru)
Damn, they've really lived to the fullest...
In the carriage, or rather, in Panzer, we had a meeting to discuss future plans. So, we decided to leave the peninsula, cut through the mainland, and headed to the sea on the other side. After all, Japanese people needed to be by the sea— No, in Japan, no matter where you are, you're relatively close to the sea and you can get as much fresh seafood as you want, so it's not a problem, but here, if you go a little inland, you can only get dried seafood. That's a bit difficult for Japanese people. So, if I were to live somewhere, I'd want to live by the sea. Because we can enjoy things like fishing, clam digging, and swimming in the sea. In the first place, people are free to live wherever they want, so there's no reason to have to live far from the sea.
So, first we left the Kingdom of Brancott and headed to Driszart. Last time, I made a mistake as soon as I entered Driszart and had to quickly move to another country, so I changed course south, closer to the border, and headed for the Kingdom of Eusral, but this time there's no need to do that, so I planned to just head east. Aside from the kidnapping incident, I had only been in Driszart for a short time, so I doubt anyone in the Brancott Kingdom would have noticed me. In fact, after I was rescued from the item box, I was completely off the radar when I headed to the Balmore Kingdom...
Even if religious records of names and appearances remained, memories and information faded over time, there were no photographs, and they were not models for artists to paint portraits of. A drawing based on memory of glimpses from a distance a few times didn't look very similar. So, without worrying about anything, we just headed east.
Still, just to be on the safe side, we decided not to do anything unnecessary until we had left the Kingdoms of Balmore and Brancott, and to sat side by side in the driver's seat when driving. After leaving both countries, I'll just put up signs saying things like "Autonomous driving test in progress" or "This vehicle is currently operating on nuclear power"...
However, when I thought this, incidents began to occur frequently where travelers would see a carriage moving forward with the driver's seat empty, thinking that "The driver had a seizure and fell off the carriage, and the carriage is now moving forward without a driver" or "The carriage was parked and started moving away on its own while the driver was away", and they would flock to the carriage to seize it and make it their own. This was no good—But, it was a hassle to sit in the driver's seat all the time, and having two children sitting in it was also an attractive place to lure bad guys—After racking our brains together, the two of us plus two horses came up with this...
"Yup, it's well done!"
"No matter how you look at it, they're just a regular coachman and guard, right?"
Yes, we decided to have a doll sit on the driver's seat! There was someone who looked like a coachman and next to him someone who looked like a bodyguard. This would make people think that there were other guards on board the vehicle.
Hmm, perfect!
We left the Brancott Kingdom without incident, and the unmanned carriage problem was resolved by placing two dummy dolls (named "Shunsuke" and "Oscar") in the driver's seat, then headed straight east. We wouldn't be going near the sea for a while, but I had plenty of seafood in my item box, so it wouldn't be a problem—It's 73 years old, but well, it's not aged or spoiled— But there's something psychologically wrong with it, so I'd donate it to an orphanage or somewhere and replace it with a new one. Once we reached the shore, the seafood lost its flavor, so we had to release it little by little as we go, adjusting it so that it's all gone by the time we reach the shore.
So, after quickly leaving the Kingdoms of Balmore and Brancott on a hasty journey without making any detours, I continued my journey along the main roads at a leisurely pace, with a ratio of about 3 inns to 1 campsite. I didn't particularly like camping, and there was nothing to do there and I got bored. Camping wasn't that safe, and I wanted to eat a proper meal and take a bath. Yes, aside from the occasional occasion when the next town happens to be far away, there was no reason to always have to camp. Besides, it would be boring to just go straight ahead without making any detours. There was no point in traveling if you didn't stop off for a few days every now and then. Luckily, it looked like we both have plenty of time. That's why—
"Okay, let's go to the next town and stay for a few days!" (Kaoru)
"Agreed!" (Reiko)
Reiko also agreed, so it was decided. Now that there was no longer any need to rush, it was time to take it easy and enjoy the journey. While we were in town, we left our carriage, Hang, and Bad at the stables. The stables at the inn were small, and although they did take care of the horses, it was only "so-so." It seemed that the best place for horses to live was with a professional stable. That's what Ed said before.
Well, the stableman at the inn only gave them food and water. On the other hand, professional horse breeders would wash and wipe the horse's body, brush it, and check the horse's physical condition and legs for any abnormalities. They would also replace the bedding with new straw. If we were leaving a long period of time, they would confirm the owner's plan on using the carriage, and on days when the horses were free, they would let the horses exercise at a ranch on the outskirts. Of course, there would be a separate fee for that.
This time we were only planning on staying for a few days, and we didn't have any plans to use the carriage during my stay, so we didn't plan on using it while it's there, and I'd leave them to the stables to take care of it until the day we left. As a secret trick, there was a way to put both the carriage and the horse in the item box, but I felt that would be a bit unfair to Hang and Bad, so I'd scrap it. Putting only the carriage in the item box would be unnatural for the two of us to be traveling on bare horses without saddles, and it's not like it would cost a lot to leave the carriage there. ...I'm quite rich, am I?
Then, when there were no one around, we changed carriages from Panzer to Penelope, stored the two dummy dolls in the item box, and the two of us went to the driver's seat. The setting was perfect: two daughters of a wealthy merchant family going on a leisurely sightseeing trip. We had entered the town like these many times before. The only thing different from before was that instead of heading straight to the inn, wee went to the stables first to leave the carriage and Hang and Bad there. Afterwards, we would stay at a slightly more luxurious inn with a bath. Since we were just two girls, safety came first.
Well, this is my first rest since escaping the item box, so let's take it easy!