Chapter 82 – Apostle Part 1

Editor: Thor’s Stone

We were just about to depart once more when Katolle called out to me.

“Alan-sama, if we depart at this time, I think it will already be evening when we finally reach the royal capital. If it’s alright with you, why don’t I go ahead of the rest of the convoy and arrange accommodations for us in advance?”

“Oh, I see. Yeah, that would really help. I was worried about that as well since it would take some time to hand over these many bandits to the authorities. Alright then. Take some of the clan members with you as escorts and go ahead of us to the city.”

“Understood.”

We talked about it to Adjutant Dalshim, and he arranged for Satellite Team 8 and Katolle’s merchant group to ride ahead on horseback. Fortunately, we managed to confiscate quite a few horses from the bandits, so there was no problem regarding the group’s mounts.

Although we did place most of the injured bandits in wagons, we still couldn’t forcibly increase the convoy’s speed, so we would probably reach the royal capital at around 5 o’clock in the afternoon if we continue at our current pace.

“Alan, I can see it already. Is that the royal capital?”

After we crested over a gently sloping hill, Elna, who I was sitting next to on the driver’s seat, pointed her finger forward.

“Oh, yeah, I think that’s it. It does deserve being called the royal capital. It’s pretty big alright.”

After zooming in to check it out, I found that the entire city was surrounded by walls that were probably about ten meters high, and a number of watchtowers taller than the walls.

The tallest building further in should be the royal castle. It was the first decorative building I’ve seen on this planet. It does have quite an atmosphere.

By the time we reached the main gate of the royal capital, the sun was already setting and it was getting dark. The gate was so large that even ten people working together might have trouble opening and closing it, and had six soldiers standing guard in front of it.

As expected of the royal capital’s guards, I guess. They were all unmoved even after seeing our numbers.

“Halt. Who are you all?”

“I am Alan, the leader of the adventurer Clan Shining Star. We are currently acting as escorts to Baron Volker Herring.”

I presented our guild I.D. like usual. One of the guards received it and proceeded to check it out.

“Shining Star huh? A-rank!? ……W-Wait. By Shining Star, do you mean the Clan of the Dragon Slayer!?”

“Uh, well, yes, I suppose.”

“Excuse me! Hey, hurry and call the captain over!”

One of the guards ran and headed for the guard station. It looks like rumors regarding Shining Star have really reached the royal capital huh.

Before long, a well-built man, who was probably the guard captain, appeared before us.

“I’m Shining Star’s Clan leader, Alan. We are currently accompanying Baron Volker Herring as his escorts.”

“I say. I didn’t think the vaunted Dragon Slayer was someone so young. I am Ralph, the captain of the main gate’s garrison. Pleased to meet you, lad.”

“Likewise. Actually, we were attacked by bandits earlier today. We’ve caught most of them and we’re thinking of turning them over to your custody…”

“My word! To think they would actually attack Shining Star. These bandits aren’t the sharpest tools in the shed, are they? Very well. We’ll be glad to take them off your hands.”

At my signal, the bandits who were bound by ropes were pushed forward.

“Um…… Are all of these men bandits?”

“That’s right. There are still some who are injured tied up inside the wagons. Since they currently can’t walk by themselves, we’ll help you carry them over to where you want to hold them.”

“……How many of them are there?”

“Well, there are a hundred and forty-seven bandits in total.”

“A hundred and forty-seven! My word…… I’m sorry, but please wait for a short while. Oi! Hurry and call for urgent reinforcements.”

It looks like this will take some time after all. Uh, by the way, one of the baron’s attendants was standing right next to me with the baron’s coat of arms. Was it really okay to ignore him, guys?

As we waited for the guards to call in additional manpower, Katolle and the others who went ahead of us finally came over. It looks like they successfully managed to secure inns for us.

When I talked to the baron regarding his plans after we enter the city, he said he had a manor inside the royal capital, so he decided to go home first.

The baron will come to the castle tomorrow and report to his superior. He told me that I would probably be summoned the day after tomorrow at the earliest, and depending on how it goes, he’ll send someone to the inn we’ll be staying at to inform me accordingly.

In the end, it took about an hour to finish handing over all of the captured bandits.

The sun had already disappeared beyond the horizon and it was now quite dark.

After discussing the bounty with the garrison captain, we finally passed through the royal capital’s main gate.

As expected of a place designated as the royal capital. The size of the roads and the density of people were incomparable to this country’s average cities. The downtown area we were currently walking around in was rife with the hustle and bustle of people. I’ve only encountered a similar kind of atmosphere in the empire.

Under Katolle’s lead, we walked for about fifteen minutes and finally arrived in front of one of the inns they booked for us. It was a bit further away from the busy downtown area, but not too far away to be inconvenient. And according to Katolle, this area of the city was actually crowded with inns.

“These are the inns we booked for us all. We booked the inn in front of us, the one right beside it, and the one right across the road for Shining Star.”

“Oh, that sounds great. But weren’t there already customers staying at the inns when you booked them?”

“There were, but we had them move to other inns and paid them appropriately for the trouble. Did we do something unnecessary?”

“No, that’s not it. I would probably do the same thing as you anyway. But it’s impressive that you were able to do so much in such a short amount of time.”

“Well, actually, I have an uncle who’s also a merchant based here in the royal capital. I borrowed some of his staff and had them help me out.”

“Hee, I see. I guess I’ll have to pay my respects to your uncle later on then.”

“You don’t have to, Alan-sama! I’ll have my uncle pay you a visit instead.”

“It’s fine. He’s helped us out, so the least I could do is pay my respects to him in return. Let’s visit him tomorrow.”

“……Thank you very much.”

I told them they could book any inn as long as it had a bath facility available, but it looks like they managed to book a fairly luxurious inn, although it doesn’t seem to be the finest in the city.

Because it was the royal capital, the competition here was quite fierce. We managed to book rooms for just 300 Guineas a night, which was cheaper compared to the prices of the rooms we booked in the past. It was perfect for an extended stay.

When I asked Katolle about it, he told me all three inns were recommended by his uncle. As expected, it was best to ask the locals about the ins and outs of the royal capital after all.

I had nothing to criticize regarding the rooms and the bath, and the food gets a passing mark as well. It was a fairly good inn since they were able to swiftly accommodate a good number of people who suddenly arrived without warning.

We just came from a battle today and I was feeling tired from traveling as well, so I decided to rest up early and headed up to my room.

(Iris.)

『Yes, Captain.』

(I would like to get in contact with people who can help us out regarding our plans for influencing religion. Do you have some info regarding that for me?)

『I thought you’d ask, so I already selected a suitable individual you can get in contact with.』

A virtual window went up in front of me and displayed the image of a man who looked like he was in his early forties.

『This is the Atlas Church’s Bishop Gertner.』

(Hou. A bishop is a pretty high position in the church, right?)

『That’s correct. Normally, a man as young as him wouldn’t be able to become a bishop.』

(I’m not that familiar regarding their religion, but does that mean he’s just that virtuous and exemplary?)

『I’m not sure about that, but it’s often rumored that he achieved his current position through bribes.』