505 - - 15-18 The Town of Loron, Kingdom of France
Just beyond the gate, the border guards of the Kingdom of Franz were waiting for us.
"Stop!"
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The guards stared at the carriage as it came to a stop in front of them.
Jin wanted to get off by himself, but Erza stopped him. Edgar gave him an exit permit from the Klein Kingdom and presented it to the guards.
"I'll check it. Wait a minute."
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A man who appeared to be the chief of the soldiers received the permit and led us to a small building in the back.
The steward drove slowly and parked the carriage in the position indicated.
"What is it? Is this horse a golem?
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"This carriage looks like nothing I've ever seen before.
Soldiers there were rudely touching the body of the carriage with their hands. Reiko's expression was filled with anger, but Jin gently tapped her on the shoulder as if to quiet her down.
"Don't worry about it."
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"...... yes."
Three or four minutes later, an official who seemed to be in charge of the Franz kingdom arrived and checked the carriage and its occupants.
"Well, the Imperial Baron Shoro, Jin Nido, his sister Elsa Nido, his friend Sion, Lucas. And the followers of automata, Reiko and Edgar. And your name is Steward, is that correct?
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"Yes."
At that moment, Elsa handed something to the official.
"Thank you for your service."
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The official looked at the object in his hand as if to check it, but then quickly said,
"Okay, let's go."
He gave his permission.
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The carriage carrying Jin and the others left at a rather high speed for the street, and moved away from the barrier.
"Elsa, what did you do?"
Jin asked Elsa to confirm what she had done.
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"I gave her two gold coins."
In short, it was a bribe. Jin was mildly surprised that Elsa knew such tricks.
"...... I learned it from my brother Rai."
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Last night, she was going to the Kingdom of Franz, and she had asked Reinhardt for some precautions.
"He also told me not to go if possible. That's right. That's not the way to treat a baron. They don't know how to educate you."
"Oh, I knew it. He told me to be careful too.
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Zion overheard their conversation and said with a slightly apologetic look on his face.
"I'm sorry. I made you do something dangerous on purpose.
Jin, however, smiled at him.
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"Don't worry about it. It's true that I've always wanted to come to Franz's kingdom. But if you think so, can you tell me a little more about yourselves?"
"...... about what?"
"Why your sister went to the Franz Kingdom, or why the Hecaton Cale came after you..."
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"Hecatoncale?"
Jin tells us here what the old man had reported to him.
And it seems to have worked quite well.
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"...... Hecatoncale is probably the puppet family that sent us after them."
"I see, so there is a family with that kind of ability."
"...... as you can see. <
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Jin nodded. This was because it matched the hypothesis the old man had made about Archel. Jin took this opportunity to ask what had been bothering him.
"Does this ability work on humans or on you?"
"No, ordinary servitude magic doesn't work on me and Lucas. Most demons are resistant to mental attacks. What about humans ......? I don't know because I don't know of any precedents.
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Hearing this, Jin secretly thought that the reason why <
"I didn't know about you either. Perhaps she was sent separately after our departure.
"Hmmm, if one of them fails, the other one should succeed, right?"
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It is said that they went to negotiate for food aid not only to the Kingdom of Klein but also to the Kingdom of Franz. The topography of the area is not unreasonable.
From the Pazdekst isthmus, the Klein Kingdom is a little closer, but there are steep mountains on the way. On the other hand, the Kingdom of Franz is a little farther away, but the mountains to be crossed on the way are lower.
"I see. Your sister was unlucky. ......"
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"...... yeah."
Zion's face turned down as he remembered his sister.
But Jin thought that one of them had been a decoy against the militant demon tribe. And seeing that the Hecaton Cale had followed them, the decoys must have been Zion and the others.
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This would explain why someone like Lucas, who was not suited for negotiations, had come along as an escort.
Jin thought it was ironic that the decoys succeeded in the negotiations and the main decoys failed, but he did not tell Zion about it.
Proceeding at a slightly faster speed along the road, they arrived at the town of Loróon in the late afternoon.
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Foreigners were not allowed to drive their carriages into the town, so they parked their carriages at the parking lot at the entrance of the town. Of course, we were charged.
"Let's stay here today and gather information," Jin suggested.
Jin suggested. Theon and Lucas had no objection to this.
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"Well... First we need to find a place to stay. ......?"
Jin stepped into the town from the tarmac and gasped at the scenery that bore no resemblance to the towns he had visited.
"This is ......
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"This is ...... terrible."
The scenery was bizarre.
The buildings were stone, similar to those in the Kingdom of Klein. But the inhabitants were very different.
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There are two main types of people. The rich and the poor. It is obvious at a glance. They are dressed differently.
The rich wear fine clothes and walk proudly down the street. Most of them are overweight.
The poor wore dirty clothes, had a pale complexion and a thin body, and walked nervously along the edge of the street.
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"I didn't realize there was this much disparity."
"...... I guess people are discriminated against, too."
Zion nodded.
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"Yes. There are all kinds of people. Good ones, bad ones. The honest, the dishonest. The strong, the weak. ...... unfortunately."
Lukas frowned all the while, as if he had seen that people are not monolithic and had something to say about it.
"...... sir, nobleman sir."
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At that moment, someone approached Jin and the others.
"Are you looking for a place to stay? I know a nice place. If you're a foreigner, you'll love it!"
The man, who probably fell into the category of a poor person, was dressed in a decent-looking outfit, smiled a follow-up smile, and approached Jin and the others.
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He was in his late 20s or early 30s. He had a skinny figure, but he was toned and his eyes showed strength.
Reiko and Edgar immediately got into a fighting stance. Lucas was a step behind.
But the man did not seem to notice their eagerness to kill him and continued to talk gibberish.
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I am Fernand, and I am an informant in this town. If you need any information, besides the inn, I'm at your service.
He must have heard the line
"Well then, let's start with an introduction to an inn.
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Jin answered. Depending on the lodging, I thought I would evaluate the man who called himself Fernand.
"Hehe, follow me then.
Fernand took the lead. Jin and the others followed him. Reiko and Edgar remain vigilant.
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Go straight down the central street and turn right at the intersection of another street. The corner on the north side of the town is lined with luxury houses and has a large park.
Adjacent to the park was a large hotel.
This is it. <
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"Can you wait here for a moment?"
Jin took a silver coin out of his pocket and put it in Fernand's hand. They all went to the hotel.
As it turned out, the hotel was a good choice.
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It cost 10,000 dollars per night with half board and room service. Of course, for four people (the automata was free of charge since it was treated as luggage).
The price of 100,000 yen for four people was acceptable. We were prepared for the high cost of living and the fact that we would have to pay twice that amount to find a decent place to stay.
After checking in and leaving their luggage at the hotel, Jin and his group left the two SPs with him to stay at the hotel, just in case.
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"Hehe, how was it? Is it a nice hotel?"
"Yeah, it's not so bad. So, do you know about the man and woman who were caught in Enak a few days ago?
Jin, wasting no time, tries to be very direct.
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"Heh, is it true that the rumor has already spread? "Yes, it's rumored that they are the spearmen of the demon tribe.
"Yes, that's it. I want to know as much information as possible about these two.
Fernand thought for a moment,
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"I'll accept ...... for 10 gold coins. I'll see you tomorrow at noon here. Oh, and how much in advance?"
Jin said to Reiko and handed five gold coins to Fernand.
"Okay, tomorrow afternoon. I'll be counting on you.
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"Heh heh heh, I'll take care of it."
Fernand received the money and quickly disappeared.