“I know I made a big stink before about not wanting to get involved, but actually, I’ve decided I wouldn’t mind. I’ve realized I’d rather live an eventful life—even if that means being a villain—than just waste all my days away being a nobody.”
“I agree with Ralph. I want to find out what heights I can reach with my magic, and I’d kind of like to see if it’ll be enough to hold my own against a hero’s party. I’d never get the opportunity to risk my life fighting a hero if I just lived a normal life. And you only live once, right? I may not do it in the same way as Ralph, but...I want to make the most of it!”
As Ralph’s smile twitched ever so slightly, Hester let out a genuine, mirthful laugh.
Ralph hadn’t changed a bit since the day I’d met him, but Hester had gotten a lot gutsier since learning magic and growing stronger.
Hearing them talk like this, I could really sense their inner strength. For the first time, I felt like I’d made the right call forming a party with them.
Once we saved up enough funds for our trip to the capital, we planned to head off the next day to finally get Ralph’s surgery. I did a little light shopping, and then came home to get a good rest and prepare for the following morning.
There’d been some concern about how Ralph’s leg would fare on the journey, but since he and Hester had already walked to the capital once, we ultimately decided that the three of us would all walk there again this time.
Personally, though, I would have preferred to take a carriage. There were plenty that departed every day from Realzahd to the capital, so it felt like it would have been easy enough to get one.
“We can still change our minds and take a carriage, you know,” I said.
“I told you, it’s a perfectly walkable distance. What, you don’t wanna walk it?” Ralph replied.
“It’s not that I’m against walking. It just seems like a waste of time, don’t you think? If we’ve got the money, I just think we’re better off taking a carriage.”
“Well, I did a little research last time we went to the capital, and a carriage for three people costs about one gold coin,” Hester said, weighing in.
“See? That’s not so bad. Why don’t we—”
“But with three people on board, we won’t get there very fast. It sounds like it would probably be slower than if we walked—even at Ralph’s pace,” she interrupted to add.
“Wait, really?”
“Yes. If we’re determined to travel by carriage, then we could probably get there quickly if we each took one...but one carriage per person costs six silvers per day. And if we factor in the time that we’ll be staying in Realzahd, it would add up to quite a lot. On top of that, we’d have horse feed expenses to cover.”
“Right... Guess I wasn’t well-informed about the costs.”
I’d had no idea it would add up that much.
I’d just assumed that it would be faster than walking, but even if we had two horses pulling the carriage, it still weighed a ton. Add onto that the weight of three passengers and our luggage, and it was no wonder that the horses would be a bit slow.
An alternative option would be to just rent some horses—sans the carriage—but that would cost a fortune. Walking to the capital was starting to sound like the clear best option.
Besides, it wasn’t like we were traveling any great distance; we were only walking to a neighboring city. Maybe I can just consider it a good opportunity for us to chat while we walk, I thought.
“Sounds like walking it is, then, right, guys?! Last time we went to the capital, we left in the morning and made it there by evening, but since we’re more familiar with the journey now, I think we can make it by late afternoon this time,” Ralph said.
“Sure. Now that I know a carriage won’t be a viable option, I don’t have any more objections.”
“All right! Shall we head off, then? This is kind of exciting, actually, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. We’ve been sharing a room together all this time, but we don’t really hang out that much with all three of us, huh? And the only times we’ve really gone out anywhere together were that goblin-hunting test and when we fought the fragor frogs.”
Ralph was right. It still didn’t really feel like we were a proper party yet.
Aside from helping Hester read her grimoire and coaching Ralph on his swordsmanship, I mostly stuck to myself and left the two of them to do quests without me.
When I thought about it that way, this was kind of an exciting opportunity to spend some time together. Plus, this would be my first time visiting the capital.
“Let’s get going. Got everything you need?” I asked.
“Yep! We’ve packed up all our stuff, and I made sure to pay the front desk plenty, so we won’t lose our room or anything while we’re away.”
“Okay! Time to go, guys!” Ralph commanded, just as his excitement seemed to be peaking.
And with that, the three of us began our journey from Realzahd to the capital.
“If we just keep following this road straight, it’ll take us right there,” Hester said.
“Huh. It’s actually closer than I thought, then. I thought we had a long ways to go...”
“Well, we do, actually. Like Hester said, it’s a straight shot, but we’ve gotta walk for several hours to get there!”
“Right... Guess it’s pretty far, then, huh? We’re gonna have a lot of time to kill on the road. I didn’t bring any of my plant samples ’cause I thought I ought to be cautious, but now I’m really wishing I had.”
It was a perfectly sunny day, without a single cloud in the sky. The temperature was pleasantly warm, and a gentle breeze was blowing.
“Hey... Here’s an idea: If we wanna kill time, maybe we can all talk about our pasts?” Ralph suggested after a moment’s hesitation.
Our pasts? I’m pretty sure I’ve already told them all about my past, I thought.