Chapter 58
「Hahahah, hey, Katie? You know you can’t do that, right?」
「Nyaa!」
Riding the water train in the car for n.o.bles, they were now on the direct trip from the White Rose to the Magic City of Ist.
They departed after receiving a lot of information as well as the letter of introduction and the necessary magic tools from Majolice.
They received the magic tools for three people and set out for the magic city with a party of three as planned.
…Yes, it was supposed to be only a party of three.
「I-Isn’t it fine nya…! I’m already inside the train after all! And stop treating me like a cat nya!」
But it has turned into an unexpected situation. …That is because one spoiled cat wanted to come along to the magic city too.
This has caused a great deal of commotion over the past few days, and since no magic tools have been prepared for her, it is going to be difficult to hide her ident.i.ty. But then Ainz comes up with a slightly cruel solution.
「Don’t make fun of me nya! …Ah, that’s good nya. Rub a little harder nya」
He suggested that they treat her as a big cat instead of a Cat Sith.
To avoid her from being recognized as Kadyma, they brought her to the car for n.o.bles as a big cat pet.
Ainz even stroked Kadyma’s neck. The way she is happy with that is just like a cat.
「If I do this, you’ll look just like a cat, you like it?」
「…Huh!? Of course not nya!」
「B-both of you, be quiet please…」
Chris, who was sitting nearby, complained. Dill, who was also sitting nearby, could only smile at the sight of Ainz grooming Kadyma and Kadyma being groomed.
「But you ate the fish snack we got from the n.o.bles car service like it was really delicious, aren’t you?」
「Nya? It’s okay because it’s just a snack nya」
「I see, you’re really unfazed by that, huh…?」
By the way, Katie is just her pseudonym. It’s just a simple name without the “ma” from Kadyma, but it’s better than nothing.
And so, they became a party of four. As a researcher herself, she couldn’t ignore this great opportunity.
「Anyway, this magic tool is very convenient, isn’t it?」
「Ainz-sama. There are not many craftsmen as skilled as Majolice-san, you know? He’s one of the most skilled persons in Ishtalica after all…」
「Even though his appearance was like that…?」
「Yes, even though his appearance was like that」
She sighed lightly in affirmation. Even Chris couldn’t understand that fashion sense. Kadyma, who had been listening to their conversation, started to join in the conversation.
「How this thing works nya? I haven’t heard any detail of it nya」
「Umm, Chris-san?」
「Yes. From what I’ve heard, this is something that will “lightly” fool other people’s consciousness. But this thing won’t work on monster or those who are skilled in magic」
「Nya? But aren’t we going to the magic city, there should be a lot of people who is skilled in magic, right nya?」
Kadyma had a valid point, they were going to the magic city, and if they could be easily recognized, there was no point in having the magic tool.
「Majolice-san has a good reputation as a skilled craftsman, so it probably won’t be a problem. He’s someone who makes a living out of this, you know?」
「…Now that you mentioned it, certainly. That makes sense nya」
Even for Kadyma, Majolice is highly regarded by her. Many of the magic tools made by Majolice are used in the castle, and many are even placed in Kadyma’s laboratory. Realizing that, she can’t imagine him as someone who would do a half-hearted job.
「Ainz-sama, was Kadyma-sama really allowed to go with us…? I heard from my father that it should be difficult」
Dill was still worried about Kadyma even after all this. He wondered “Could it be that she was coming in secret…?”. As someone who had accompanied Ainz in his “reckless” act during the sea dragon incident, Dill calmly thought about it.
「Don’t worry about that, Dill. Kadyma-san decided to trade the reward she was supposed to get with coming with us」
「A R-reward…?」
「He’s right nya. I was supposed to get a reward from Father for the book about the Demon King that I made while Ainz was in bed nya. But I used that reward for me to be allowed to go to the magic city nya! And I somehow managed to make him approve it nya. I made the right decision by withholding my reward nya!」
“I see” Dill muttered while nodding his head.
Kadyma was supposed to get a reward from Sylvird for the contribution she had made for that book, and at first, Kadyma was planning to use that reward for her to get a new magic tool for research.
But suddenly, the matter of going to the magic city came up.
Because of her position, Kadyma can’t leave the royal capital so easily. The only place she could easily go was the port city of Magna. …In fact, this would only be her second visit to the magic city.
All the more reason for her to jump straight to her desire.
Kadyma von Ishtalica is a well-known researcher. She is more than qualified to partic.i.p.ate in a national scale project, like the maintenance of the White King for example, and even serving as a research leader.
That’s why she wanted to visit the Magic City of Ist, the place where new technology is gathered in one place, at all costs.
Back to the topic at hand, Kadyma’s achievement was no small feat.
The result of her six months of tireless research, using all the resources and knowledge at her disposal was so great.
After such a great achievement, Sylvird had no choice but to allow her to come along with them to the magic city.
「It gonna be fun nya~」
With Kadyma dressed in a different fashion than usual, Ainz and his group continued on their way to the magic city. There was still a long way to go, and it’ll take them at least half a day.
Since they left Ishtalica in the evening, they would arrive at the magic city of Ist at around seven in the morning. Of course, they would have to sleep in the car, the n.o.ble car they’re in has six rooms in it. The number of rooms includes the lounge and other areas where they were currently sitting, but they could rest in their individual rooms.
***
Although they were in the middle of a trip on an important mission, the atmosphere in Ainz and his group car was rather relaxed.
It seems that Kadyma’s presence made everyone feel rather relaxed and he himself was grateful for her being here for helping him from feeling overwhelmed.
In the middle of the night, Ainz suddenly woke up, he felt thirsty and had a hard time sleeping.
He glanced at the clock next to his bed and saw that it was just after 2 am. That meant that a little over three hours had pa.s.sed since he had gotten into bed.
「Fuaah… Maybe I should go to the lounge」
Ainz pulled himself up and headed for a drink in the lounge. The n.o.ble cars had a lot of drinks and snacks as a service. It was a very expensive ride, but the services were excellent.
He opened the door and walked out into the aisle of the car. The entrances and exits of the n.o.ble cars are located at the sides of each carriage, and it is not possible for anyone to move between cars. Looking out the window, he could see the lights flickering in the dark.
The place they were running at the moment seemed to be an agricultural area, and the lights were probably because the farmers were getting up. Looking at the crops spread over the vast area, he could witness a part of the national power of Ishtalica.
After enjoying the scenery for a while, Ainz remembered that he was thirsty and headed for the lounge.
「…Huh? Ainz-sama, do you need anything?」
Unlike her usual on-duty self, Ainz was greeted by a soft smile that took away his stiffness. Without turning on any bright lights, Chris was illuminated by the light that leaked from outside and the small indirect lights, which, combined with her beautiful appearance, made her look somewhat mysterious.
「I’m just a little thirsty, how about you, Chris-san?」
Chris was sitting in a small bar s.p.a.ce.
Instead of wearing her armor as usual, Chris was wearing a sleeveless sweater and tight pants. Her good features brought out the best of her fashion, and her beautiful blonde hair accented the look.
Ainz kept looking at Chris for several breaths longer than usual, as he rarely sees her in her casual clothes very often.
「Me too, I’d be happy if you’d like to join me then」
Chris in her casual clothes was different from usual. Even when she smiled, she was filled with a different kind of charm, and when he looked at the gla.s.s in her hand, he felt something s.e.xy in the way she moved her fingers. Even her long, thin legs, which were crossed under the table, brought out her current charm even more.
It’s not that Chris as a knight is not attractive. But this current Chris might be her true charm. It wouldn’t be strange for anyone to think so.
「I’ll sit next to you then」
「Yeah, sure. I’ll get you a drink」
When Ainz sat down next to Chris, Chris stood up and went to get Ainz’s drink.
Incidentally, what Chris was drinking was a hot wine and a warm wine. “Did she have trouble sleeping, too?” He couldn’t help but think about that.
「What would Ainz-sama like to drink?」
「Hmm. I’d like some tea. I think they have cold tea, don’t they?」
「Yes. Please wait a moment」
In a slightly fancy bar like this one, and a beautiful blonde woman sitting next to him, but all the man ordered was just tea. Thinking about it in his mind, He thought that it was not very cool. But there was nothing he could do about it, he wasn’t old enough to drink yet, and he had to be patient for now.
He decided to just be quiet and enjoy the atmosphere with a little chat with Chris.
「Thank you for waiting, here you go」
「Ah yes, thanks」
She came from the side and placed the drink in front of Ainz. Her sweet scent, which seemed to come from around Chris’s neck, made him shudder a little.
But Chris, who doesn’t know anything about Ainz’s thoughts, quietly sits beside Ainz.
「…I think this is the first time I’ve had the chance to talk with you in a casual way」
Chris picked up a gla.s.s of hot wine and talked to Ainz while looking at it. Looking at her face from the side, he felt that her cheeks were a little redder than usual, probably because of the alcohol in the hot wine. She looks like she’s wearing cheek rouge, which isn’t bad at all.
「Speaking of which, you’re right. We’ve had a lot of opportunities to be together, but I think this is the first time we could do something like this…」
The lights from the magic tools enveloped the s.p.a.ce where Ainz and Chris were. Although the lights were not made with real flames, the flickering flames that had been deliberately reproduced helped to create a calm s.p.a.ce.
「It’s been a year since the first time I went to pick up Ainz-sama and Olivia-sama, hasn’t it…?」
「It really brings back memories, doesn’t it…? I was a bit wary of Chris-san when I first saw her」
「Fufu… You’re right. But actually, the story of Ainz-sama standing to protect Olivia-sama at that time was popular among the Kings Guard」
「W-what was that…」
When Chris boarded Princess Olivia to the port town of Roundheart, she arrived there with several Kings Guard in tow. Even though the air they were emitting was by no means of the kind that one child would be able to withstand, Ainz stood in front of her as if protecting Olivia without fear.
「To be honest, the knight of the Kings Guard had no idea what kind of child Ainz was. Even though Olivia-sama occasionally sent status reports to Ishtalica, we still had to meet him in person to understand」
「Well, you’re right… B-but then?」
「From the first day you arrived in Ishtalica, your deeds had spread throughout the Kings guard, and you had become well known」
「That’s a little embarra.s.sing…」
Chris chuckled when she saw Ainz looking embarra.s.sed. Ainz and Chris were still immersed in their old memories.
――As they talked, their drinks were slowly running out. And finally, he could see the bottom of their drinks, and he sensed that this conversation was coming to an end.
「…Hey, Ainz-sama」
「Hmm? What is it?」
Chris continued to speak, looking a little uncomfortable. The mood seemed to indicate that this would be the last topic of their conversation.
「W-will you marry C-Claune-sama in the future…?」
「…Eh!?」
Ainz looked surprised at Chris’s words, which he hadn’t expected. Why did Claune’s name come up? And why did he ask about his future? He doesn’t understand what Chris is thinking.
「I-I’m sorry, I just…」
Chris blushed and tried to cover it up, then waved her hands in the air and appealed 『T-this is not like what you think!』.
「I’m sorry, please forget it… Oh, it’s already this late! Ainz-sama, you should go back to your bed as soon as possible! W-well then, I’ll take my leave…!」
「W-wait a minute, Chris-san!」
「Good night, Ainz-sama! I’ll meet you again in the morning!」
Chris, who looked fl.u.s.tered, left the place quickly without waiting for Ainz’s words. As she was leaving, she put back the gla.s.s she had used, which showed how diligent she was.
「…What was that, for her to suddenly asking something like that…」
Ainz, who was left behind, just stared in the direction Chris had left. After a few dozen seconds, he drank his remaining tea, put the cup back, and went back to his room.
When Chris returned to her room, she hoped that Ainz wouldn’t come and open the door to her room by mistake. She leaned her back against the door and tried to catch her breath, which had become a little restless.
「Haah… Haah… Jeez, why did I ask something like that…!?」
She herself didn’t know why.
It’s just that the thought suddenly came to her. She wondered if they could be together just like before if Ainz was going to be together with Claune. And the thought of it for some reason… made her feel somewhat lonely.
***
When it was getting brighter outside, Chris came to pick Ainz up as if nothing had happened.
Seeing Chris in her knight’s uniform and acting as usual, Ainz was somewhat reluctant to ask her about last night.
And nothing much happened after that, the four of them gathered in the lounge for breakfast, and the water train had arrived safely to the magic city of Ist.
What surprised them when they got outside was the facilities at the station. Ainz and his group had tickets to use the n.o.ble cars, and the station in the royal capital had a magic device to pa.s.s them through.
Ainz thought that they would pa.s.s through the same magic device that looked like a ticket gate to go out of the station, but that thought was dashed in an instant.
「…I never thought they used such a thing」
「This is a magic device that will soon be implemented in the White Rose nya. Isn’t it convenient nya?」
「I just realized how amazing the Magic City is」
There was no ticket gate in sight. There was just an area with a thick black line drawn on the ground, and when they pa.s.sed through it, their ticket would be marked as used.
Thus, they only need to just walk out.
Once outside, they were even more surprised than before. Ainz was genuinely taken aback by the cityscape, which was different from the royal capital.
He could see a streamlined object moving all over the place. And in the middle of the city, a large clock tower was set up. If he were to describe the city with color, he would say that it just looked like the blue sky. The colors of the cityscape are mostly in between blue and purple. And is as bustling as the royal capital.
Streamlined, non-square trains are running everywhere. They are probably Magic City’s version of water trains. The mechanism itself is probably not the same as the water train in the royal capital.
「Well then, Ainz-sama. You may have many things you’re interested in in Ist, but remember that we’re staying here for many days. Shall we start by arranging our lodging then?」
「Yes, you’re right. We still have to look for a place to stay」
Ainz and his group are planning to stay here in the magic city of Ist for about two weeks. They’ll be working together during that time, but first of all, they need to find a place to stay. If they don’t, they’ll be forced to stay out in the open, which is not something a crown prince is supposed to do, so this will be their first objective.
Ainz agrees with what Chris says, so they’ll start by looking for a place to stay.
「Ainz-sama. I’ve been here four times with my father in the past. So, I know of an inn that has rooms available for n.o.bles, and I can show you the way if you’d like…」
「Ainz! Let’s just follow Dill nya! I can’t wait to explore the city nya!」
「Yes yes… Well, Dill, do you mind if I ask you to show us the way?」
「Understood. Please follow me then」
Dill seemed to be familiar with the city, so they decided to leave it to Dill to show them the way to the inn.
Chris had also been in the magic city of Ist before, but she wasn’t very familiar with it, so it was good for them that Dill knew the inn.
The three of them then followed Dill towards the inn.
***
Thanks to Dill, they were able to easily arrange an inn. Ainz’s group then began to make plans for the rest of the day ahead of schedule.
Their next place to go was to a certain laboratory that was mentioned in Majolice’s letter of introduction. He was told that it was affiliated with an academy, and the entrance was through that academy. And the name of that academy was 『Ist Grand Magic-Research Affiliated Academy』 and the name of the inst.i.tute was 『Ist Grand Academy of Magic』. It seems that the academy was created as an affiliate of the inst.i.tute.
When they told Kadyma they were going to that kind of place, Kadyma showed her greatest excitement of the day. Apparently, this inst.i.tute is one of the most prestigious places in Ist.
「Excuse me, we wanted to go to the academy’s laboratory…」
Chris spoke to the guard and asked for directions.
「Hmm…? You are an adventurer? How unusual. Do you have a letter of introduction?」
「Yes, we got it. Is this enough?」
「Go in and follow the road straight ahead. You’ll see a large building there, that’s the laboratory. There’s another gatekeeper near the entrance, you can hand him that letter of introduction」
「Understood, much obliged」
The talk went smoothly and Ainz and his group were able to enter the academy grounds. As the guard said, after a short walk, they saw a large building. The building, which stood surrounded by the academy, was so beautifully built that it looked like a small castle.
Sensing the four people getting closer to the building, two gatekeepers approached them.
「…Do you need something, Adventurers?」
Neither Chris nor Dill was wearing the armor used by the Knights of Ishtalica. They were wearing their own equipment, and their appearance looked like that of adventurers. The magic tools made by Majolice seemed to be quite effective, and they didn’t seem to know that the crown prince was here.
「We have a letter of introduction. I was told to hand this over to you」
Chris then handed over the letter of introduction that Majolice had made for them.
He wondered if the guards were wary of adventurers. He could feel that their att.i.tude was not so friendly.
「…I’ll have to examine the contents. I’m sorry, but adventurers often bring fakes with them. So, I hope you won’t be offended」
Adventurers with bad intentions are everywhere. This seems to have happened here in Ist on more than one occasion, and there have been many cases of people trying to get into the academy with a forged letter of introduction. After all, a laboratory with a lot of valuables is worth a lot of money.
「Oi, hurry and call the Director」
「Eh…? T-the Director?」
「Don’t mind the detail, just hurry up and call him!」
One of the gatekeepers must be his junior or a newcomer. The gatekeeper who had spoken to Chris gave him instructions and sent him to call the Director.
「(The Director must be a pretty important person here, but why would they need to call someone like him just for something like this…?)」
It’s no wonder Ainz is wondering. The inst.i.tute was so prestigious that someone like Kadyma even talked a lot about it. He never thought that they would even meet the Director.
「Pardon me, but I’m afraid you’ll have to wait a little longer…」
「Yes, it’s fine」
Ainz replies to the gatekeeper, who has a completely different att.i.tude than before, that he doesn’t mind.
After a short wait, the gatekeeper and an elderly man came running from inside the building.
He looked so fl.u.s.tered that even from a distance, they could tell he was in a big hurry to get to them.
「Huft… huft… huft… M-my apologies! Sorry to keep you waiting. Umm… You people are…?」
「I apologize for the suddenness. We just wanted to find out some information」
Ainz replied to the man who appeared to be the Director.
「You don’t have to apologize… You are our most important guests after all…!」
When Ainz heard those words, all he could think about was why they were an important guest? That was all that came to his mind. But the answer would come soon enough, the words he said were so shocking that could even join in one of the top five shocking things in what Ainz ever heard in his life so far.
「…Uwaah, I never thought it was a letter of introduction from 『Emeritus Professor, Majolice』. If there’s anything we can do to help, we’d love to help」
――Emeritus Professor, he said…!? That pervert is an Emeritus Professor of the best research inst.i.tute that even Kadyma-san herself recognizes…!?