Chapter 73
"Roa, stay behind. There's something I want to show you. The rest of you can go on ahead."
After hearing an explanation of the pressure-ignition device's dangers, Rays-sama told me that.
What made it dangerous was that, while it was normally very useful, we were at war. It could be used to set fires.
Fire was extremely effective for throwing forts and cities into confusion. But anyone trying to set a fire would have no choice but to use flint. Flint naturally made a noise and drew attention, making such attempts easier to prevent in advance.
The pressure-ignition device, on the other hand, made no loud noise and was small enough to slip into a pocket.
With the pressure-ignition device not yet widely known, it would be an exceedingly dangerous tool if given to a spy.
Rays-sama said that one alone wouldn't be a problem, since no one else would know how to use it, so I was allowed to keep the prototype. Still, he seemed to believe that any new ones should be placed under strict control.
As I nodded at Rays-sama's words and glanced to my side, Nerphia and Sazaby—who had probably thought of that use from the beginning—looked like they wanted one very badly.
In any case, everyone else headed back first, leaving Drew and me behind... Why was Drew still here?
Drew, whom Rays-sama glared at, was completely unfazed. "We're going to that warehouse, right? I'd like to see it again, too. It's been a while."
Rays-sama knitted his brows slightly before replying carelessly, "Suit yourself."
When Glantz-sama, apparently deciding our exchange was over, said, "Then I'll go bring the horses," Rays-sama turned on his heel. "No, I'll come too. It'll be faster than having you bring them here."
In the end, Rays-sama, Glantz-sama, Rapiria-sama, Drew, and I headed to the stables together. As we walked, I brought up a question that had suddenly occurred to me.
"Drew, can you ride a horse?"
"I can't ride, though. I'll ride with Roa." He answered as though it were obvious. Well, I suppose that was fine. Besides, where were we going on horseback in the first place?
As soon as we reached the stables, the stable hand spotted Rays-sama and hurried over. Our respective horses were prepared in no time, and, led by Glantz-sama, we left the city of Ludecktrad.
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After leaving the capital and riding north for a while, a large mansion came into view atop a low hill. A wall encircled the grounds, making it look almost like a small fort.
"Could this be...?"
"This is Rays-sama's territory, and that's Rays-sama's residence!" Rapiria-sama said, for some reason sounding proud.
"I rarely come back, what with how busy I am," Rays-sama said with a wry smile. Still, it seemed a shame not to return to such an impressive house.
As I continued thinking about that, we drew closer, and the gate opened—perhaps they had noticed us approaching—and some servants came out.
"Hello, Kindall. Hard at work again today."
"Welcome home, Rays-sama. It's been three days since your last visit. Have you been eating properly? Have you been getting enough rest?"
"Don't worry. I have."
"Welcome, Glantz-sama and Rapiria-sama. And you're Drew-sama, if I recall correctly? And then..."
"This is Roa. It's his first time visiting our home."
"I see. Pleased to meet you. I am Kindall, the butler. Welcome."
With a fluid gesture, Kindall-san bowed to me.
"Ah, yes. It's a pleasure." I hurriedly returned his bow.
"Are you dining here today? I can have something prepared right away, so please wait while enjoying some tea..."
"No, we're going to the laboratory."
"...Very well. Then I'll take your horses. I'll bring tea later as well."
"Yes, please do."
At Kindall-san's signal, several servants came over and took charge of our horses.
"This way. Follow me."
Following him, I found a row of warehouses beside the large mansion, each nearly as large as the mansion itself.
"Whoa!"
The warehouse was filled with all sorts of weapons and tools. With one of my questions answered, I couldn't help murmuring, "So that's where it was..."
"That's an interesting way to put it." Rays-sama immediately picked up on my words. He was the sort of person who never missed things like that.
"When I saw the Tenth Knight Order's armory, I wondered about that. According to the records, the Tenth Knight Order was supposed to have used all sorts of tools to create favorable battlefields, but the armory only contained ordinary weapons."
"Come to think of it, you did say something when I first showed it to you," Glantz-sama said, trying to remember.
"Yes. For example, this is a disassembled catapult, isn't it? One used in the Third Imperial Defense War. Amazing. I thought you must have hidden it somewhere, but here it is."
"It wasn't exactly hidden. It simply took up too much space, and we had nowhere to put it. There are a few other reasons, too," Rays-sama replied.
As I looked around at the various tools in the warehouse, Rays-sama brought over a sheet of parchment.
"This parchment lists everything in this warehouse. Aside from weapons, I've moved here anything Drew made that seemed as though it might be useful. If you find something that could come in handy, tell me." In other words, that meant I could use anything I found?
"Is that all right?"
"Yes. But in return, consult me first about anything you come up with. That pressure-ignition device, was it? We can't have things like that being created so casually."
At that, everyone else laughed.
I chuckled wryly as well, though for some reason, I couldn't quite accept that Drew was laughing the hardest of all.