Chapter 165 The Beginning Of Infiltration
Flying through the sky, I wouldn't really get a feel for it, but traveling by land from Ensgard to Wareels takes quite some time, even by carriage. It's like taking a big detour around Lake Edna, veering right, and finally reaching your destination.
Since they were originally part of the same country, the roads are pretty well maintained, though not exactly paved. The horse stench has been dealt with, thanks to Berberiguru-san's methods. Apparently, they've managed to mask the smell of the Cat-people men, the Tigerman.
So, on the Wareels side, the only scent should be ours. Of course, our scent, as well as Mother (Privia)'s, has been erased once over. Beastmen have a keen sense of smell, you know, so it's necessary to go that extra mile.
"Hey, Beberi-san, you around?"
"Yep, right here!"
Wow. Before I knew it, he was peeking his face out from the top of the carriage. I didn't even notice him there.
"Sorry, I just called you for nothing."
"Aw, our little Maya-chan feels bad about it."
"No worries. This time, Jamlabel-sama has ordered me to treat you two just like boss, to be your shadow and serve."
He's got a huge grin. He's one of those Cat-people guys, for sure. There are quite a few Cat-people in Ensgard. Like Maya-chan's Diemirena-san. I haven't walked around town much, but I bet there are loads of Cat-people out there.
"If it's Berberi-san, it's like, 'Sometimes a butler, other times a shadow,' huh? That's so cool, maybe I should ask Jam-san for one too!"
"What are you saying, you little rascal..."
Maya-chan's over here, ready to jump in without a second thought. Even Alesion's like, "Hey, why not give it a shot?" to Mother, begging for some favor.
Anyway, we're cruising down this road, and to the left, there's this Lake Edna, while on the right, there's a little forest. Beyond that? Well, it's just mountains upon mountains, rumor has it, way up north, there's this Dragonkin kingdom in the highlands. I'm talking far, like, you could do a round trip to Swiglefen a few times over, that's how distant we're talking.
And check on the time, it's already six in the evening according to the 'Display Self-Status Mystery System'. Sure, it might seem early when you glance at your phone, but in Wareels, you can't just whip it out like that, right? Maya-chan and I had a pow-wow about that. We're rolling as siblings, playing the trader card.
This time, we're taking it slow on purpose, partly to lure in Berberiguru-san and crew as decoys. Plus, I heard immigration's open until seven, and we're itching to hook up with Geneus-san as soon as possible.
"Hey, big brother, check it out."
"Oh, yeah. That's what it is."
We're getting close to the lake's edge, and it looks like a sandy beach or something. It kinda reminds me of the coastline, maybe? So, this is what they mean by shallows. Looks like we could just walk down there. This is tricky.
The lake seems to curve to the left, but it's actually the road bending. There's this low wall thing that looks like a castle, and it's like the end of the line. It splits into two directions, and on the left is where people go for Wareels' immigration check. I wonder where the right side leads? I'll check it out sometime, but I'm not really interested right now.
There doesn't seem like there's a line for immigration checks. The people lining up at the entrance all seem like dog-human people or something. Probably just coming and going, I guess.
There are two entrances, with a sign in the middle. The left side is for the locals, and the right side says "Immigration Check."
"I'm getting better at reading! That's great!"
"Hmm, these characters have some serious quirks, don't they? But you're managing somehow, huh?"
"Maya can handle it even if Maya can't read because of that thing."
"Cheater."
"Hehehe, Maya is 'special.'"
She's like the hero being summoned. In the story, she's probably in a Holy Lady position or something. Maybe there are perks like that when officially crossing worlds. I got dragged into this as a bonus. But since I crossed worlds, I think I'm totally broken with this Healing Attribute specialization.
But, I really wanted Appraisal...
"Oh, big brother."
"Yeah, little sister."
On the left, there's the regular line. I recognize some faces among those getting checked. Of course, I know the people on the right side going through immigration too.
Welcome to Wareels! What brings you here today?
"Here for trading."
"What are you trading?"
"Just some luxury goods."
"First time in Wareels?"
"Yep."
"Alright, can I hold onto 'ten copper coins' as a deposit?"
"Sure, go ahead."
The ten copper coins are a deposit, same currency as in Watterhill. In exchange, I got a permit to stay and a simple map.
"I hope you have good trades."
"Thank you very much."
Well, the receptionist only recognizes familiar faces, talk about a shady place.
"It's pretty shady, huh?"
"Yeah, especially since it's only been a day."
That's how it is. Night shifts and overtime, then back to regular work right away.
"Maya-chan, turn right at the next one."
"Got it, big brother."
The streets and buildings are similar to Ensgard, guess they were the same country once.
Looking around, it's dogs, dogs, dogs, maybe a wolf-person, and more dogs. No humans in sight. But it's not causing a stir, probably because occasionally someone like us shows up, just like I heard.
"Hey brother!"
"What's up?"
"This is bad. It's like, seriously advanced for its age."
"No way!"
I bet Maya was appraising up the Oso from someone we just passed. If they're getting water from the same lake as Ensgard, it means they're just as far gone.
"Take the next right."
"Gotcha."
"Just a bit further and we'll hit the residential area. There's this huge two-story house at the very end of the block."
"That one over there?"
"Yeah, I guess we gotta ask around, huh?"
"Well, it says right here. 'The result of the appraisal.'"
"For real? That's like cheating..."
It says it's Geneus-san's place. Talk about an overpowered cheat.
When we stop the carriage in front of the closed gate at the back of the mansion, a lady who looks like a dog-human servant comes up to us.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)