A Famous Traitor and Treacherous Genius

156 – Assassin in the Dark (2)

Everyone knows, but there is death that we are not wary of.

Safety.

Although it is important to prepare for and prevent accidents, humans tend to neglect safety and end up in accidents that lead to death.

For example, a rider on a horse falls off his horse and falls headfirst.

If you wear a helmet on your head, the blow will be less, but most jockeys do not wear a helmet.

Why?

-Not cool!

Because of superficiality.

It may seem absurd, but considering the special nature of Nostrum, it is somewhat understandable.

Words are expensive.

Horses are living creatures that are familiar with humans.

Most people who ride horses are nobles.

And above all, horseback riding requires a high level of training and skill, so people who are not somewhat skilled must wear protective gear when riding a horse.

In other words, even if you are a nostrum person, when you first learn horseback riding, you learn it while wearing protective gear.

Me?

I wore it several times before returning.

Even after returning, the first time I got on a horse I had to wear protective gear.

After that, I didn’t really wear any protective gear.

Because there was better protective gear than the leather protective gear that crushed the hair and made it stick.

‘If you have mana, it’s safe to fall headfirst.’

A low-level knight who has awakened mana will not be seriously injured even if he falls from a horse.

This is because mana instinctively protects the head, and the mana shield that is instinctively extended boasts stronger safety than a leather helmet or steel helmet.

Of course, when a war breaks out, a helmet is bound to be worn, but wearing a helmet only happens when you are wearing full armor underneath.

That’s why Nostrum people don’t wear helmets when riding horses.

In the first place, only safe people ride horses without wearing helmets, and only those who are not on horses before or are followed by highly trained knights.

Sometimes, among the ladies, there is a person who wears a dress and rides a horse, and every time there is such a person, the knights say, ‘Are you crazy?’

In other words, it is crazy for someone who cannot protect their head to ride a horse carelessly.

A flying dragon is perfect.

Therefore, for safety’s sake, you should get used to wearing a helmet.

-All students must wear head protection when riding vehicles. Here, a vehicle means a horse-like 1-2 person rider.

-Head protection means…

Anyway, you must wear a safety hat when riding something.

In accordance with Orosol Academy’s student council rules, it is scheduled to be officially enacted as school rules soon.

“Then why aren’t you wearing a helmet?”

Flap.

“Isn’t this child a vehicle?”

While I was flying, holding onto the ankles of the flying Nid Hogg, Astasia, who was in my arms her, put her foot on the footrest hanging below her ankles and asked with a sullen face.

“Is there any point in wearing a hard hat when flying 200 meters above the ground?”

“Was wearing a hard hat limited to horseback riding on the ground? I understand that flying dragons are also included in horseback riding that will be included in the school rules?”

“Such a rule has been established, but unfortunately, it is not Orosol Academy now.”

The road from Orosol Academy to somewhere else.

It’s not even in the direction of the Gibraltar Gorge.

The direction is southwest.

The coast you can see if you go all the way south from the Rift Territory is the County of Sirene.

“There are no such rules even at the destination. There are no such rules in national law.”

“Is it okay to fly without a hard hat if it’s not in the national law?”

“Isn’t there still a law in imperial law against flying without a hard hat?”

“Ugh…! I can’t deny it…!”

We are now secretly heading to the County of Sirene.

Just me and Astasia.

“Anyway, what is the point of what I want to say? It means that if bikes are brought in from the Empire, there is a high possibility that many safety accidents will occur.”

“Because there is a high possibility that they will not be wearing protective gear?”

“Horses are expensive so ordinary people cannot ride them, but bikes are still relatively cheap.”

Is it cheap?

It is cheaper than horses.

At least buying a horse would cost someone’s 10 years of salary, but you can buy a bike if you save up your entire year’s salary.

Above all, it is easier to manage than horses.

“Isn’t the reason why ox carriages disappeared from the Empire and the Mado Bikes and Mado Trains were introduced not because they were much cheaper and easier to maintain than existing carriages?”

Most people in the kingdom are still unaware of its existence, but a train runs in the capital of the empire.

“Once built, the magic train can be used for 10 years. In comparison, horses need to be constantly fed, put to sleep, and taken care of.”

“It’s the same as the subway.”

The train that runs regularly along the railway in the center of the city is small and has the limit of carrying dozens of people per car, but it is a great help to the people of the empire in that it can move regularly on a designated path through the mana energy extracted from the magic stone. Is giving.

“Astasia. If a machine breaks, you just replace the parts, but if a living thing breaks, it dies.”

“Instead, there is a drake in the kingdom.”

“That is where we have a relative advantage, but even that will end sooner or later, right? The era of the drake will end.”

Flap.

Nidhogg flapped his wings louder, as if he didn’t think so.

“No longer as a vehicle, but as a living creature freely flying in the sky.”

In the future, when technology develops and people become able to fly in the sky with magic machines, I plan to return Nidhogg to the wild so that he can roam completely freely.

It’s already half wild.

“We’re slowly getting closer to our destination, so I guess I’ll have to put on a light disguise.”

Before we knew it, we started to feel the salty smell of the wind blowing towards us.

County of Seirene.

The destination is the Count of Sirene.

“Princess. It’s a bike. Just because it’s dangerous, shouldn’t I ride it?”

“No. It’s dangerous, but accidents happen in about 1 in 100 people.”

“Yes.”

It is true that it is very dangerous and there is a lot of risk of death, but if you ride safely and wear proper protective gear, there is a chance that you will not die even if you get hurt.

“So let’s take care of our bikes ourselves.”

“Oh my, our bike?”

“Even if it’s a bike that comes to me as a gift, it’s not for me to ride it, it’s for the princess to ride it.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

Nidhogg began to slowly glide downward.

“I’m thinking of sitting close to the back seat of Lord Gray’s bike?”

“…”

“Are you going to let me, a weak person, drive a bike? To use a nostrum analogy, it’s like a lady holding the reins behind a man on a horse?”

“I understand, I understand.”

Coincidentally.

Astasia was too weak to drive a bike with two people.

When you’re alone?

…

Astasia will also need time to be alone.

Sometimes.

* * *

After exchanges with the empire began in earnest, the county of Sirene was the place that changed the most quickly after Gibraltar.

Orosol, which was created as an educational town with imperial capital, was excluded from the beginning.

First of all, we exclude Gibraltar, which started late but adopted imperial culture suspiciously quickly.

If we were to choose the place that was most ‘imperialized’ in the end, we could use the County of Seirene as an example.

This is true even if you are just running through the center of the road in the County of Seirene.

Booo ooo much

“Ladies, and gentlemen! Welcome to Sirene!”

The trumpet sound made by the boat horn resonates loudly on the road.

“This is the magic automatic ship! It is a product of magic technology that can travel from the entrance of the territory to the center of the territory, the Sirene Island, in just 30 minutes!”

A ship runs in the center of the road with its wheels rolling along a wooden rail cut into the ground.

“I am Kite, the guide and knight who will be responsible for your safety! As a knight of Sirene, I will do my best to ensure that you enjoy a comfortable tour on the magic automatic ship safely!”

On deck.

In front of the knight Sir Kite, numerous men and women clapped their hands and cheered towards Sir Kite.

“Do you see it? The magic automatic ships waiting at the simple station over there are scheduled to leave for the royal capital soon! This is the magic automatic ship that you will all take when you return to the capital!”

There were several seats installed on the deck so that people could sit and look around, and in fact, people who could be assumed to be nobles based on their clothes were continuously exclaiming exclamations as the knight guided them.

“The Magic Autonomous Ship is a ship that was remodeled from a decommissioned sailing ship after the disbandment of the First Fleet of the Empire in the past so that she can move on land! Sometimes, there are jokes that say it would be better to ride this than advance to the royal capital, but that’s true. Nonsense! She said, “It is a symbol of peace, a symbol of speed that connects the Kingdom, the Sirenes, and the Empire!”

The magic automatic train slowly gained speed and ran through the center of the road.

The speed was much faster than a person running, and it did not tire like a horse.

“Hey, Sir Kite?”

“Yes!”

The white-haired woman with her hair dyed white raised her hand.

Next to her, a young man with gray hair with a hint of blue was guarding the woman’s side, dressed like a knight guard.

“Standing in front over there?”

“Oh…?”

Standing?

Knight Kite immediately turned her head.

“Gasp.”

It’s really stopped.

About every 30 minutes, the ‘leading vehicle’ that should have already arrived at the castle stops in the very center of the road.

“What are you doing? Why are you blocking the road!”

“I’m just a little tired!”

“What?! Damn it! Aside from the soldiers! They tell you to move your legs quickly! What are you going to do now while you’re getting paid to do so?!”

The knights on the deck of the two magic automatic ships moving along the rails became irritated and started scolding each other.

“Are you going to make me use magic stones?! Huh?!”

“Damn…! Hey! Tell them to move their legs right now! Come on!”

The captain of the magic automatic ship on the deck, a knight of the Sirene territory, shouts below the deck.

“Hey, car, hey, car!”

At the same time, people’s voices were heard below the deck, in the rowing area.

Originally, they would have been rowing, but instead of using oars, they were moving other devices with their whole bodies.

Click, click, click.

As soon as the device installed inside was moved by manpower, the wooden wheel began rolling again.

If it is driven by power using a magic engine, there will be no need for a single person, but currently, among the magic automatic ships belonging to the Sirene territory, magic stones are rarely consumed.

Sometimes, manpower is used more cheaply than magic stones.

“Haha, everyone! Sorry!”

As the magic autonomous ship in front began to move along the rails again, the engineer in charge of the magic automatic ship standing behind smiled brightly while sweating.

“Welcome to Sirene of Magic Engineering, the most open city in the kingdom!”

Before we knew it, the magic automatic ship had passed through the highway and arrived in front of the castle gate.

Because the width of the castle gate was narrow, the magic ship could not enter the gate that was open on the left and right, but if you walked from the end of the territory to the castle, it would have taken about 3 to 4 hours .

“Today, here…!”

Knight Kite paused and shouted.

“Erwin Iperia, the head of the Empire’s Ipheria Industries, is planning to visit!”

* * *

Crackling, crackling.

“Ah. What is it?”

[100 bikes for my son-in-law, are they all safe?]

“…Did you call to ask that? Aren’t you busy?”

[That is more important than suppressing rebels]

Click.

“I will love my own children as much as I love my son-in-law. Crazy guy.”