I traveled north and west, following the roads, occasionally dipping into the forests, crossing over rivers, and then joining back up with the roads. It was the first time in a while I had traveled over land. I kept myself fed from edible plants I happened across, the occasional bit of nectar from flowers I saw, fruit I plucked off wild trees...and of course, game I hunted myself. I sometimes spent days cooling the meat I hunted by the small rivers I encountered. I wasn’t in a hurry in the least.
This joy of absolute freedom was something I could never experience while traveling on a ship. The sea had its own sort of freedom to it, but in the end I was just being carried from one place to another. When walking on my own two feet, I could choose to move forward or stop. I could choose how fast to walk or run, which made it more fun for some reason. When I happened across small villages in my travels, I’d trade some of the meat I had hunted for salt and continue on my way, keeping a relaxed pace.
The journey from Neldania, the largest port in Dolbogarde, to the city of Janpemon in Travoya took about a month and a half on foot. Since I was really taking it slow, it was more like two months for me. Eventually, I came across fields of wheat. This wasn’t quite the best season to be seeing ripe grain, but the scenery still inspired something of a nostalgia in me.
However...on the edge of the scene stood a structure I didn’t remember. West of Janpemon, just beyond the wheat fields, an imposing fortress stood in land that should have been empty. Ah, I supposed Kirkoim lay in that direction. The northern half of Kirkoim had been conquered by Zieden, while the southern half had submitted to the rule of Vilestorika.
If you headed west from Janpemon, you would probably land right on the border of that conflict. That put Janpemon, a city abundant with valuable food, very close to the front lines. The chances that one or both of the warring states would set their eyes on the resources here was...not small, to say the least. Even if they never attacked, it was almost certain that bands of robbers and bandits would start forming from deserters and mercenaries too scared to remain in the conflict. A fortress or two was absolutely necessary. Even I could understand that.
But it didn’t make the shadow those fortresses would cast over the wonderful sight of Janpemon during the harvest season any less unfortunate.
For the first time in quite a while, I was able to use my master blacksmith license as identification to enter the city. The guards were a bit shocked to see the date it was issued, though, as I had received it over sixty years ago. Counting from the day I left the forest behind, it had been over seventy years. Though perhaps it would be better to say “only seventy years,” considering everything I had experienced in my adventures. It was kind of a strange feeling.
The gate guards were surprised by how old my license was, but upon seeing I was an elf, they didn’t cause any fuss. In fact, they treated me suspiciously well, letting me into the city with no issue. Considering the huge fortress, I had expected entering would be a hassle, so this was almost a disappointment. In the end, it was still convenient for me, so I wasted no time getting into the city and following the old streets in my memories.
Janpemon had always been an old city, so while the streets had undergone some repairs in my absence, not a lot had changed. Many houses were just as I had remembered them, while others had been torn down and rebuilt, leaving the cityscape before me slightly different from the one in my memories. I noticed the biggest change when I arrived at the inn that had been run by Nonna’s family.
Of course, Nonna wouldn’t still be here, nor would her parents who had run the place. But even aside from that, the inn itself had undergone a dramatic change in appearance. Nonna’s inn had been moderately priced, with great food and cozy rooms, but the place in front of me now was a high-class hotel, easily twice...no, three times its previous size. At first I hesitated, not sure if I should even visit...but if I didn’t, there wouldn’t have been much point in coming to Janpemon at all.
Even if Nonna wasn’t here anymore, my memories of this city were still of the comfort of this inn, the great food we had eaten here, and the warm kindness Nonna and the other people here had shown us. If the inn had undergone such a drastic change, I wanted to know more about why, and whether I should be celebrating or lamenting it.
Steeling myself, I stepped inside, to be immediately struck by a loud shout.
“Welcome! Ah, it’s an elf! Moooom! There’s an elf here! We have an elf visiting!”
The loud, innocent voice of a young girl shouting didn’t feel like it suited such a high-class establishment, but that honestly made me feel relieved. The girl, smiling brightly as she called for her mother, couldn’t have been much more than eight years old. She was a bit smaller than Nonna when I had first met her, but looked so much like her that I couldn’t help but feel like I had stepped back in time. There was no doubt in my mind this girl was a direct relative of hers. Considering the life expectancy of humans, I supposed she would be her great-granddaughter? That would make her mother Nonna’s granddaughter.
“Aina, you’re being rude to the guest! I’m sorry, welcome to...umm, my apologies, but you wouldn’t happen to be Mr. Acer, would you?” Answering her daughter’s call, the woman who seemed to own the inn came to the front and immediately stared at me in wide-eyed shock. Confused by the question, I nevertheless nodded, earning a huge smile from her. “My apologies. You looked so much like the man in the stories my grandmother told me, so I thought... Welcome, Mr. Acer. We have long been awaiting your visit.”