Chapter 34
The Duchy of Travoia, the southwesternmost country in the Minor Nations, is a city-state consisting of the city of Jampemon and the villages around it.
The countries of the Minor Nations—not just the Duchy of Travoia—have mild climates and fertile soil. They draw their water from a great river and its tributaries, so they have little trouble with water and produce a great deal of food.
In short, it was a land blessed by fortune.
Conversely, one might say that it was precisely because the land was so blessed that there was room for all these small countries to spring up.
I reached the town of Jampemon just as the sky was beginning to turn crimson.
Around the town of Jampemon, wheat fields, the area's main crop, stretched farther than the eye could see in every direction, as though they had no end.
The wheat shone golden in the light of the setting sun, and... it was as though the town of Jampemon were a stone boat floating on a golden sea.
Would that sound poetic?
Actually, the expression was plagiarized... I mean, quoted from a poem about the town of Jampemon written by a poet who had once been active in this area.
A traveling merchant I'd shared a table with at a tavern in the previous town had told me about it to make conversation.
Though all I could see was wheat fields and a stone-built town, knowing one or two turns of phrase like that gave me the illusion that my heart had grown a little richer.
Well, there was no point putting on airs when no one was around, so I decided to enter the town of Jampemon before the sun went down.
By now, I had left the deep forest, traveled beyond the Kingdom of Rudoria, and crossed several countries, so I was quite used to the procedures for entering a town.
The Minor Nations were highly wary of people coming in from other regions, so this time, knowing it would attract attention, I decided to use my master blacksmith's license as identification.
I hadn't had any opportunities to work in a smithy since leaving the Kingdom of Rudoria, so my skills as a blacksmith had probably gotten a little rusty.
That was why I had no intention of staying in Jampemon very long, but I still wanted to take on one or two smithing jobs.
Besides, having a record of working in a town in the Minor Nations would probably make the guards a little more accommodating toward me than they would be toward a traveler who simply passed through without doing any work.
Once I entered the town of Jampemon, the first thing I did was look for an inn, as usual.
The sun had already set, and my stomach was starting to growl loudly, as if insisting it was reaching its limit.
Unable to resist the smell of dinner wafting through the air, I practically threw myself into a nearby inn whose first floor was a dining hall.
I would probably stay in this town for a week or two to do smithing work, perhaps a little longer, but it wasn't as if I had to stick with the first inn I chose.
For now, I could stay one night, extend my stay if I liked the place, or choose another inn near the smithy I would rent if I didn't.
Hello! Just one guest, right? Good evening! Are you here for dinner, or are you staying the night?
A girl around ten years old who was serving there asked me that.
She was far too young to be a hired employee, yet she handled her work with practiced ease.
So she must have been born and raised at the inn.
I'm staying the night, but I'm hungry too. Could I have both?
When I said that, the girl smiled happily.
From a child's perspective, one more customer should have meant nothing but more work she had to help with, yet her smile looked genuinely delighted.
Even though the dining hall was fairly crowded and she was surely busy, she seemed like a very good girl.
Mom! We have a guest staying the night! Oh, um, a single room is fifty copper coins. Dinner is twelve copper coins, and breakfast is eight. If you don't mind, please write your name in the ledger.
Just watching her work so earnestly was heartwarming.
The lodging fee was a little below average, but the meal prices were about standard.
In other words, this was probably the sort of inn that made its profits from the dining hall.
I booked one night and dinner, then wrote my name in the ledger.
Eiser-san. So you're Eiser-san, right? Then I'll show you to your room. Put your luggage down, then come back downstairs for your meal. Oh, hot water and laundry are five copper coins each.
I nodded at the girl as she hurriedly added that last part.
I'd ask for hot water after dinner, and if I stayed at this inn, I'd probably have them do my laundry as well.
It wasn't an upscale inn, but the atmosphere was pleasant enough.
The girl led me up the stairs to the second floor.
Then she began turning around from time to time to sneak a glance at me.
When I met her gaze, she waved her hands, looking startled and flustered,
Um, Eiser-san, you're an elf, right?
Then, in a timid voice, she asked.
She probably knew that prying into a guest's affairs was rude.
Her face had gone pale as though she had just realized she'd made a mistake.
But I wasn't bothered, so I said,
That's right, I'm an elf. Is this your first time seeing one?
I placed a hand on her head and patted it reassuringly.
Even in the capital of a large country like the Kingdom of Rudoria, I'd met only a handful of elves active outside the forest, so I imagined that small countries and city-states never saw them at all.
Ah, um, just once, from far away. But you're the first elf to visit us as a guest. Oh, this is your room. Please don't lose the key.
The girl said that shyly, with a bashful smile.
Once I unlocked the door and entered the room, she returned downstairs to her work.
The room wasn't quite old enough to call it antiquated, but it had certainly seen its share of years.
The quality of the bed was about what I expected for the price.
But it had been cleaned thoroughly, and a vase holding a single flower sat atop the chest by the window, giving me a sense of the inn's thoughtfulness.
The lock was sturdy, too, so I might stay here for a while.
...Though I supposed that would depend on how dinner tasted.
If the meal was the inn's selling point, it would be too soon to make a decision.
After giving the room a quick check, I set down my luggage, locked the door, and went downstairs to the dining hall.