Chapter 194 - 188: The First Day of the Journey
Chapter 194: Chapter 188: The First Day of the Journey
Lis felt somewhat helpless.
Yes, Lis now felt quite regretful.
If he could make the choice again, he certainly wouldn’t choose to travel with the Feis Guild.
Previously, when Mora was making arrangements for him, Lis thought it was just a matter of simply following behind a merchant caravan, staying inconspicuous.
Could it be that the Feis Guild was taking this new Marquis Kane too seriously?
Without mentioning anything else, the luxurious carriage Lis was currently riding in was an absolutely preposterous matter.
...
After all, merchant caravans on long journeys were not ordinary outings, and typical noble carriages weren’t really suitable, most often used within the city.
Carriages used for long-distance travel tended to be topless carts, prioritizing sturdiness, durability, and convenience.
However, the carriage Lis was using now had been specially made to order by skilled artisans hired by the Feis Guild at great expense. Ensuring comfort and solidity, it even had the “Light Spirit” Advanced Magic Patterns enchanted onto it, greatly reducing the carriage’s weight and also lessening the bumps, making for a more comfortable ride.
The interior furnishings need not even be mentioned; unlike the typical noble carriage’s seating with opposing sofas, this carriage considered travel comfort by combining them into a soft sofa bed, with a small table and armchair beside it, making utmost use of the space.
“Truly damnable hedonism!”
Lis lay on the soft sofa bed, condemning it with some “dissatisfaction.”
“But this bed is quite comfortable.”
Just now, the manager and Guard Captain had come to greet him specially, and he had quickly sent them away.
Lis understood very well that these two did not hope for him to exert any effort; their greatest wish was for him to safely stay put without causing any trouble.
Lis was also happy to relax, leaving professional tasks to the professionals; he was not someone who liked to show off.
Before long, Lis felt a slight jolt beneath him as the merchant caravan officially set off.
Lifting the curtain for a look, he found his carriage right at the center of the convoy, the safest place.
Shaking his head, Lis let the curtain fall.
Since things had already reached this point, Lis didn’t feel the need to switch to an ordinary carriage.
As long as he could safely reach the Northern Territory, the current situation was fine; the carriage was well soundproofed, and Lis could study arcane inside, making good use of the time.
…
The entire merchant caravan was slowly proceeding northward.
The guards of the Feis caravan were mainly following in the middle of the caravan, responsible for maintaining order and scouting.
The hired mercenaries were mainly entrusted with scouting the road ahead, assessing dangers, and tasks at the rear of the caravan.
The White Wolf Mercenary Group, having taken on the escort mission, naturally excelled at this.
Magat had arranged for all the mercenaries in his small team to go and scout around, leaving only one person to drive the carriage and follow the convoy.
As for Fink, Magat kept him close for convenience’s sake, ready to mentor him at any time.
Although Fink was somewhat boisterous, his talent was indeed not bad, standing out in the White Wolf Mercenary Group, which was why the leader had Magat take him under his wing and impart some experience.
Having promised, Magat took it to heart.
Now was a good time to keep him at his side, to familiarize him with the details of an escort mission.
Fink, who had already been on a few missions with the team, was quite familiar with Magat; both were warriors, and their current position was a short distance ahead of the caravan.
They occupied this position for a reason, so they could quickly support the Hunters and Thieves who were scouting the road ahead.
Their pace was not fast, in fact, they seemed quite relaxed.
After all, the caravans were loaded with goods, so naturally, they couldn’t go very fast.
Fink looked around curiously and asked Magat:
“Uncle, do you say the person on that carriage is a noble?”
Magat didn’t mind Fink’s distraction since the caravan was in the heartland of the Feis Kingdom, near the capital, Bright City, where danger was hardly an issue. Being constantly tense would only be an unnecessary drain on energy.
“Should be, if you observe closely you can see there’s a bloody longsword crest on the carriage.”
“Ah?”
Magat gave Fink a helpless glance and added:
“That’s the special emblem of the Feis Guild, not something just anyone can use.”
“Even only the Great Nobles, the Feis Guild would arrange for carriages with such a crest.”
“Is that so?”
Fink scratched his head with a sudden look of realization.
Guessing Fink didn’t quite understand, Magat patiently cautioned him:
“Who knows which Great Noble is following the convoy this time, we haven’t even seen their noble guards, which is odd.”
“Even so, you should still be careful, you got that, Fink!”
“Got it, got it, I’ll stay far away from that carriage, alright then.”
Magat was a bit resigned; the boy would learn the hard way sooner or later.
…
Today they had set off rather late, didn’t stop much along the way, and only made camp at a site pre-selected by the mercenaries when evening approached.
Traveling was always quite tough, even right after leaving Bright City.
The guards and workers of the caravan hurried to make a fire, heat up water, and cook the evening’s food.
The daily routine of the caravan was like this, except in special cases, they would only stop to make fire and cook, eating a hot meal in the morning and evening. If hungry during the day, they would just grab some dry food to hold them over. Although they would occasionally stop to rest the animals and restore their strength, actually making a fire was too much of a hassle.
Knock, knock!
The sound of knocking roused Lis from his arcane research.
Upon opening the door, he saw Roque, the caravan’s manager.
“Lord Lis, we plan to rest here tonight, do you need anything else?”
“No need, thank you for your effort.”
Lis nodded, then added:
“You don’t have to ask me about everything, I don’t concern myself with such matters. If I need anything, I’ll have Anders contact you.”
Anders was Lis’s current coachman, specially arranged along with the carriage by the Feis Guild.
“Alright, Lord Lis, just command if you need anything.”
Roque nodded; it had naturally been drilled into him by the higher-ups to take good care of this ‘gent’ before they set out.
Otherwise, on the busiest day of their departure, with many things needing his attention, he’d have barely any time to make social calls.
However, it seemed the Marquis was not difficult to deal with, and since he had said as much, Roque went off to tend to other matters.
Lis stretched lazily, his bones crackling.
Stepping down from the carriage, as Lis was idly watching the merchants and guards tidy up the campsite, he happened to see Fink and Magat returning to the camp.