At this moment… it was just as expected.
Both of the newly recruited maids appeared in the accompanying party.
The expressionless personal maid, Reliel, once a mercenary and now her bargain-bin little sister.
And Holly, the Holy Sword-bearer, looking a bit nervous and shy, blushing slightly from wearing a maid outfit for the first time.
Ileya looked at the two new maids before her with satisfaction.
Looks like things went pretty smoothly, right?
“Um…”
Right at this moment, Holly—her cheeks tinged pink from the maid uniform—slowly lifted her head and looked at the young lady in front of her.
“Has the test… already started?”
“Hm? Ah… it’s already over~” Ileya smiled as she stepped forward, gently patting the girl’s head.
“Eh…?” Holly stared blankly at the young lady before her, feeling the warmth from that pale palm.
“It’s fine to tell you now~ If your family doesn’t approve… I’ll just say you failed the test~
The young lady gave a playful smile, her hand moving down to pinch Holly’s cheek.
“That way, even if you can’t go, you won’t feel too disappointed~”
Mm…
What… what a gentle person…
Although she’s a bit arrogant, at this moment, Holly really could feel her kindness.
Of course~ as for why Ileya said this…
It was really just to craft an image of herself in front of them.
She truly does care about her subordinates and is very protective… as long as she trusts them completely.
Holly… and even Reliel, naturally, didn’t have that trust yet.
“Alright, then… let’s be off~”
Ileya clapped her hands and was the first to board the carriage.
Of course, with two more people this time, Ileya had acquired another carriage.
She, Veil, and Reliel would ride in one, with Amisa driving.
The others would take the second carriage, driven by Arthur.
Well~
Actually, Holly was in the carriage with two zombies.
The mischievous young lady really did want to… torment the Holy Sword-bearer just a bit~
After all, she came with the intention of revenge, and for someone like that… Ileya certainly wouldn’t repay malice with kindness~
“Lily… Lily!!”
Just as everyone was about to board the carriages…
Holly’s elder sister, Ailu, and her grandparents came running from the town, backs weighed down with bags.
“Lily, as you head out this time… you must take care of yourself… Here, these are all your favorite foods. Don’t you love Grandma’s pickled vegetables? I packed extra jars for you, they’re at the very bottom—don’t let them break…”
The old lady fussed over Holly’s collar as she rambled on endlessly.
The old man just stood nearby, wanting to say something but not knowing how, so all he could do was chew his tobacco leaves vigorously.
Ileya stood to the side, watching the scene quietly, not rushing anyone.
When Grandma finally finished her nagging, Ailu, who’d been standing in the back, slowly stepped forward.
Actually, Ailu still had a ton of things she wanted to say—there were so many things she wanted to remind her little sister about, and she also wanted to persuade her to stay in the town.
As for the coming war… they could always escape to the Crystal Capital…
But in the end, she said none of those things.
She only helped her sister smooth the stray hair on her forehead.
“Take care on your journey~”
Holly pressed her lips together, trying her hardest… not to cry as she nodded.
“Hmm…” Ileya, curious, looked at Reliel, who stood at her side with an expressionless face.
“Your father and sister… didn’t come to see you off?”
“They already did.” Reliel answered flatly.
Her father was never one for words; after telling her to be careful last night… he’d simply gone back to his post.
And as for Bena… she wanted a duel before saying goodbye, then dragged her out for drinks that night.
By now… she was probably still suffering a hangover in the inn.
At that thought, Reliel looked down at her waist… at the brand new rapier.
It was what Bena had tossed her during their duel last night, saying she’d just found it on the roadside…
Heh… A faint smile unwittingly crept onto the girl’s lips as she lightly stroked the scabbard.
Clip-clop, clip-clop…
As the horses’ hooves and the carriage wheels pressed on the ground, the outline of the small town gradually faded from view…
Aside from Holly, who felt a mix of excitement inside, everyone else… was rather calm.
The carriage rolled slowly along the narrow road pressed flat by merchant convoys, a bit bumpy, but tolerable.
With the carriage swaying, Lady Goddess clearly couldn’t resist the drowsiness, and unconsciously leaned against the young lady beside her, falling asleep…
This action clearly annoyed Reliel, sitting across from them.
But… she didn’t really know what she was annoyed about.
This sort of thing had nothing to do with her—it was just girls leaning on each other’s shoulders, after all.
She’d even fallen asleep on Bena’s shoulder before.
But… for some reason, seeing Veil lean on Ileya’s shoulder—especially when the young lady herself showed no dissatisfaction—
Reliel felt a bit upset… an unspeakable… irritation!
Of course, Ileya hadn’t noticed her little sister’s mood, as she was lost in thought at that moment.
She was pondering the matter of the “Land of the Dead.”
For the past three days, she’d been thinking of entering to have a look at what was inside…
But… perhaps because the previous two attempts had left too deep a shadow, she kept feeling… a little hesitant about the place.
After all, for a rational person to do something with absolutely no safety guarantee… it takes some mental preparation.
But now, with Veil resting beside her and no need to worry about prying eyes…
As for the soul core inside… Ileya felt she was mentally prepared.
So… it was time…
At that thought, Ileya slowly closed her eyes and touched the mark on her wrist…
There was no need to say anything, nor to fall asleep…
With just a single thought, Ileya felt her consciousness sink.
The next moment, before her eyes stretched a boundless, pitch-black land.
“Hmm?”
Upon entering, the first sensation Ileya felt was… comfort!
Extremely comfortable! Like sitting in an air-conditioned room on a hot summer day, sipping an ice-cold fruit drink.
Her form now seemed to be that of a soul, able to fly freely in this place.
Moreover…
“Is this… the aura of death?”
Indeed, she hadn’t noticed it the last two times, but now Ileya could feel it—the presence of death here. It was faint, but definitely there!
However… as she looked around, she didn’t see the soul cores that had once littered the ground.
Only in the distance… did she spot a strange figure.
Drawing closer, Ileya realized—the figure was actually the old pharmacist!
Or rather… the old pharmacist’s corpse, now turned zombie…
At that moment, the cut cross-section of his body was still grotesquely exposed to the air… and his upper body, somehow… was stuck to the area around his navel, fused together with his body.
It made the zombie resemble some kind of beast, crawling endlessly along the ground…
Only… when he saw Ileya approaching, he appeared extremely frightened.
Like a rabbit spotting a wolf, he kept running off into the distance…
He’d probably run for about a hundred meters before finally stopping, and then would start wandering aimlessly once more.
Ileya also specifically looked for the soul of that long-faced woman—her condition was about the same as the zombie pharmacist, aimlessly wandering the space, and she too would instinctively… avoid Ileya.