Iseboshi 33

Chapter 33 Departure to the Royal Capital

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Edited by: Kanaa-senpai

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 (Rena’s POV)

 I woke up from the sound of Kazumi moving, probably going to the bathroom in the middle of the night. It’s been a while since then, but… Kazumi still hasn’t come back to the room.

 (Has she finally mustered the courage to go to Hiroya?)

 I quietly cast a ‘soundproof’ magic on Hiroya’s room next door.

* * *

 Before, I had a girls’ talk with Kazumi, Liz, Roana, Miyori (Guild’s Receptionist), and Martina.

 Well, mostly Miyori was talking…

 She was complaining about how “Garm keeps bothering me” and “Ms. Liz, please do something about him asking me out on dates.”

 But it was funny when Liz said, “Don’t worry, I’ll be going to the adventurer’s guild in the fortress city of Mundo soon and won’t be back for a while.”

 I made a mental note to keep an eye on Miyori and Garm!

 During that conversation, Kazumi was asking about “first experiences with boys” and “around what age does a girl get her first period.”

 Unfortunately, neither Liz, Miyori, nor I (and of course, Martina, who doesn’t remember anything) had any experience with boys, so we couldn’t answer.

 But we did hear some pretty candid stories about first experiences from Roana. It was enough to make us all blush. Roana may seem quiet, but she’s quite bold.

 Roana had her first period at 8 years old, and Liz and Miyori were 10. “I wonder when it’ll come for my body, even though I’m a goddess.” I spoke in a soft voice, sharing my thoughts with Kazumi.

 Kazumi seemed relieved after hearing about Roana’s experience, especially the part about feeling aroused and getting wet before her first period. It made sense to Kazumi that she had similar experiences when thinking about Hiroya.

 ”I think Kazumi’s heart is mature, so her first period and getting wet might come earlier too.”

 I whispered these words of reassurance to Kazumi.

* * *

 (Still, I wonder if they’re kissing right now…)

 As an otaku of romantic stories, these thoughts excited me, but there was also a slight pain in my chest.

* * *

 (Hiroya’s POV)

 The next morning, as usual, the girls woke me up. Liz climbing on top of me was quite effective, but I must clarify that it wasn’t because she was heavy; it was because she didn’t hold back at all!

 After a quick breakfast, I stepped outside, where two horse-drawn carriages were already waiting at the manor. They were quite large, four-horse carriages. One was a passenger carriage, and the other seemed to be for cargo.

 ”We made a stop before heading to the central square’s bus stop.”

 I couldn’t help but think that this was my dad’s way of making amends for his recent carelessness.

 We left our larger belongings in the cargo carriage and boarded the passenger carriage. The seats were like those in a traditional train, with long benches on either side. At the back, there was a door, and beyond that, we had a box seat, which provided some privacy, which was much appreciated.

 Kazumi, Rena, and I took our places on the long bench at the back of the carriage.

 Martina and Liz sat across from us, separated by the door, on two single seats.

 ”Now that I think about it, it’s a trip just for girls and kids. We need to be careful on the way…”

 ”Huh? Isn’t Hiroya supposed to protect us?”

 ”It’s tough to protect everyone by myself. Everyone needs to be careful too.”

 While we were having that conversation, the carriage started moving. Since we were still in the village, maybe the suspension is doing a good job because it’s surprisingly smooth and comfortable.

 ”The ride isn’t bad at all.”

 Kazumi, who is probably on her first carriage ride like me, looks relieved.

 ”This is a nice carriage. If it were a cheap regular service, it would be really bumpy. Plus, these box seats are the best!”

 Liz is also smiling widely at how comfortable the carriage is.

* * *

 We pick up other passengers at the central square and meet up with the adventurers who are our guards. There are 3 middle-aged men besides us. They all seem to be merchants. They probably sell the village’s special products and monster materials or ores they got from the guild in the royal capital.

 While the cargo is being loaded onto the carriage, I climb the ladder inside the carriage to get up on the roof.

 There are 4 adventurers guarding us. They must be taking a break at the hot springs here and are working on their way back to the royal capital. It looks like all 4 of them are riding horses to follow us.

 ”Four guards. Is that normal?”

 When I ask Liz after returning to the box seat, she says usually there are 2 guards for each carriage.

 ”Well, for cheaper carriages, there might be one guard or none at all. On cheap routes from this village or to the royal capital and Mundo, there’s usually an adventurer on board, and they act as the guard. In exchange, they lower the fare a bit…”

 ”Hey, hey! I brought this, so let’s have a toast!”

 Martina, who had stepped away for a bit, comes back with 5 bottles of ‘honey lemon.’

 ”Good job! Let’s toast to our safe journey!”

 Liz quickly receives it.

 Everyone takes theirs, and just as they pull out the cork, Liz leads the toast.

 ”Well then, let’s pray for a safe journey…”

 ”””””Cheers!”””””

 As I feel a bit sad about saying goodbye to this taste for a while, next to me,

 ”…We could sell this as a trade item, right?”

 Kazumi mutters with a serious look.

* * *

 On the way, we take several bathroom breaks (of course, there are no toilets, so we go in the woods), and we’ll switch drivers and let the horses rest while we travel through the night. We plan to arrive at the first lodging town, Borg, the day after tomorrow in the evening.

 The adventurers guarding us will also take turns sleeping at night. They say there’s space for them to sleep in the cargo wagon. Meanwhile, the horses without riders will still follow along. Smart, huh?

 ”I’ve gotten so used to soaking in hot springs that just the ‘clean’ magic doesn’t feel relaxing anymore.”

 Liz murmurs while covering herself with a blanket in her seat.

 ”I want to take a bath somewhere by tomorrow night.”

 ”Then, I’ll ask the driver in the morning. Alright everyone, it’s going to be bumpy, but try to sleep. Good night.”

 ”I’ll sleep after getting some night air. Good night.”

 I climbed up the ladder inside the wagon to the roof.

 (The swaying isn’t too bad, so I think I can sleep well.)

 The wagon is moving along a road that winds around the forest.

 The season is about to change to autumn. The night breeze is cool and pleasant. Lying on the roof of the wagon, the starry sky is incredibly beautiful. It’s a night sky I never got to see in my past life.

 ”…Hiroya… aren’t you going to sleep?”

 Kazumi pops her head out from the opening in the wagon roof.

 ”Well, it’s not that, but… the stars are so beautiful.”

 I got up and moved closer, taking Kazumi’s hand to help her up.

 ”Mm… nice breeze…”

 Kazumi smoothed her light green ribbon-tied hair with her hand. The way she moved felt a bit flirty, maybe because of what we did together last night.

 Thinking about it made me suddenly feel shy, so I looked back at the starry sky.

 ”I couldn’t see a sky like this in the city. One of the good things about coming here.”

 Saying that, Kazumi looked up at the stars too. The way she tucked her loose hair behind her ear with her fingers was also cute.

 ”Y-yeah, we should get down and sleep soon.”

 Realizing I had been staring at Kazumi without meaning to, I lowered my blushing face and moved to the opening of the carriage.

 ”Hiroya…”

 ”Mm?”

 When I turned around, Kazumi had her eyes closed and her lips puckered.

 ”Come on. Goodnight kiss…”

 ”…Okay.”

 I gave her a light peck.

 ”That’s not it.”

 Kazumi pouted.

 ”Alright…”

 Next was a sweet, adult kiss. We tangled our tongues together.

 ”Chu… muah… mm…♡.”

 Then we pulled apart.

 ”Mm… thank you~♡.”

 Kazumi smiled and gave me another light kiss before she got down first. I followed her.

 ”Make sure to cover yourself with the blanket. Goodnight, Kazumi.”

 As I sat down and covered myself with the blanket, Kazumi leaned against me and closed her eyes.

 ”I think I can sleep well… Goodnight, Hiroya…”

 I was trying to close my eyes and fall asleep, but for some reason, Rena, who had been leaning against the wall of the carriage, also snuggled up to me, so I adjusted the blanket to cover her shoulders.

 ”Thank you, Hiroya…”

 ”…You were awake?”

 ”…I just woke up a little… Rena… is going to sleep now…”

 I fell asleep while holding a beautiful girl sleeping next to me.

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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.