Chapter 47
A Stubborn Little Child Looking for Her Dad
“Just what is this little one’s dad really?”
Veil whispered, noticing Tie nodding off.
The child had been chattering for a long time but had now fallen asleep, resting her head on Vasto’s thigh.
“I’m curious too. What exactly is this Great Dahangming Kingdom…? What could it even be?”
Raoul and Enzo, who had by now roughly understood Tie’s situation, shared the same confusion.
Vasto sighed.
“For now, we’re assuming it’s some small duchy or tribal nation we don’t know about.”
Tie had said that the Dahangming Kingdom was a country.
But none of them had ever heard of such a country before.
“Actually, the bag the little lady carries…”
At Enzo’s remark, everyone’s eyes turned toward Tie’s pink bag.
“I was curious from the start. I’ve never seen a bag like that in the Empire, or even anywhere else on the continent, I think.”
“It’s not just the bag. You should have seen the clothes she was wearing at first.”
Veil gestured toward the huge bundle stored in the luggage compartment.
“You can probably find it somewhere. It looks a bit like a dress nobles would wear, but not quite. Anyway, it was an unusual outfit.”
Raoul nodded.
A moment of silence fell inside the carriage.
“…Will we be able to find him?”
Vasto muttered this while looking at the sleeping Tie with a troubled expression.
“She wants to see her dad so badly, I wonder if we won’t be able to find him.”
“Honestly, the memory loss part is a little concerning.”
Veil interjected with a serious tone.
“Someone erased the little one’s dad’s memories of her. If they meet and he doesn’t recognize her…”
The image of Tie being deeply hurt naturally formed in their minds.
Veil, still in thought, added:
“It’s fine. Even if she lost him, we can make him remember.”
“How?”
“If we hit him hard on the head, wouldn’t he remember? It’s irresponsible not to remember your own daughter. But more importantly, there’s something else we need to do.”
Veil quickly looked around and said:
“We need to find the ones who erased the little one’s dad’s memories.”
They were likely also the ones who abandoned Tie in the Briowood Forest.
“For now…”
“Right. I suspect the Luminen family.”
Raoul and Enzo swallowed nervously.
Having once served in the Imperial Knight Corps, they had seen the Luminen family knights from a distance.
Valentis Luminen was a monster.
It was no easy feat to distinguish oneself on every battlefield at such an age.
And what about his four sons?
Though the youngest’s whereabouts were slightly uncertain, the eldest Edmund Luminen, the second Leonardo Luminen, and the third Alexander Luminen were all excellent soldiers.
Any knight would naturally look up to them.
“Do you really think they erased the memories of the little lady’s father?”
Enzo seemed unable to believe it, no matter how much he thought about it.
Veil snorted.
“We need to confirm that precisely. But a few days ago, the little one said something about where she lived. Some saying about a thousand… or a path… Anyway, even if you know the water, you don’t know a person’s heart.”
Everyone’s eyes widened.
Enzo murmured:
“Seems like a saying filled with considerable wisdom.”
“Exactly. You can predict what’s in deep water, but you can’t know what’s in a person’s heart.”
“Yeah, Tie seems to know quite a few proverbs and sayings.”
The three of them looked at Tie with proud, doting eyes.
After traveling some distance…
“Master Nordix, wait a moment.”
Vasto, who had left Tie seated, poked his head out the window.
Nordix, guiding the horses while observing the stars, stopped the carriage.
“There’s a lake to the right. We’ll need to stop by briefly.”
Vasto shook an empty water bottle, and Nordix nodded.
Raoul, who had been sitting quietly the whole time, cautiously got up to follow Vasto when the carriage door opened.
Vasto glanced at Raoul.
“I can fetch the water myself quickly.”
“It’s not that, actually…”
Raoul cleared his throat briefly. He glanced at Veil and hesitated before speaking:
“I… I need to go to the restroom…”
“Oh.”
Vasto nodded as if he understood.
Then Enzo also got up.
“I’ll go with you…”
At that moment, Veil, sitting opposite Tie, stood up as well.
“Then I’ll come too.”
Raoul’s eyes widened at the sight of Veil stretching and putting on his outerwear.
“Where… are you going?”
Veil looked at Raoul as if he were slow-witted.
“Where else? I’m going to the restroom too.”
“Wha—?!”
Raoul’s face turned crimson.
‘Mercenaries… do they go to the bathroom together regardless of gender?’
He had no knowledge of this, since the Knight Corps had been all male.
Mercenaries usually moved in small groups of fifty or fewer, so their system was probably less strict than the Knight Corps’.
But still…
“W-wouldn’t it be uncomfortable for you, Veil, to go together…?”
“What’s uncomfortable about it? Everyone does it—dogs, cows, everyone.”
“W-w-what…?”
“Shut up and move. It’s cramped.”
Veil pushed Raoul, who was blocking the doorway, outside.
Raoul staggered out, still flushed, staring at Veil.
Veil squinted slightly.
“What’s wrong? Are you shy? Uncomfortable living with others?”
“N-no!”
Raoul was, in fact, an exemplary soldier, perfect for communal living. He just had never gone to the restroom with a woman before.
“Y-yes, if we could at least do it in the woods where we can hide our bodies…”
“Why hide? Sooner or later, we’ll see everything anyway.”
“Y-yes, y-yes…?”
Veil smirked and gestured at Vasto.
“Vasto and I have already seen everything. In this line of work, it’s common to jump into stagnant water and wash up. You can’t expect a mansion with hot water flowing everywhere like the Waveville Estate.”
“Y-you… washed together?”
“Why not? Should we wait for each other, ‘you first, no I’ll go first’? Ridiculous.”
Raoul’s head spun.
No matter how much a mercenary moves and camps outdoors, how could men and women go to the bathroom and bathe together?
He could handle it, but Veil was a woman.
The thought that Veil genuinely felt no discomfort in this lifestyle left him flustered.
Struggling to regain his composure, Raoul almost slapped himself to calm down.
“I apologize. I acted like a complete rookie.”
No judgment needed.
Who was he to dictate how mercenaries lived?
Anyway, he was now part of Agavert’s group, and Veil was his senior and mentor.
Though of different genders, Raoul had much to learn from Veil’s swordsmanship.
“Enough. You made us lose sight of them.”
Muttering as if it were no big deal, Veil quickened her pace, passing Raoul.
She was already following Enzo and Vasto, who had gone ahead.
Raoul hurried to catch up.
After keeping a certain distance, Veil stopped among the dense trees.
“V-V-Veil?”
Raoul stepped back in shock.
Veil had placed her hand on his pants without hesitation.
“V-V-Veil, wait…!”
Raoul tried to turn around quickly but froze in place like stone.
Veil’s annoyed voice came immediately.
“Ah… what are you doing? Didn’t they teach you bathroom manners in the knight corps? Did you stare at your superior’s like that too?”
But Raoul, still in shock, couldn’t close his mouth.
He remained rigid in place, even as Veil muttered, “Crazy…,” and returned to the carriage first.
