Another World Reincarnation Chronicle

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Braving the cold wind, I walked for quite some time.

I was able to arrive at a nearby village that wasn’t too far away.

It was a village that you could just walk to along the well-maintained path, so there was no chance of getting lost.

“Oh…”

Standing at the entrance of the village, I looked around blankly.

A short stone wall and a single guard standing in front of it.

Inside the village, children around my age were working alongside their parents.

“What do you want? Where are you from?”

At that moment, it seemed like the guard had noticed me standing outside and called out.

I approached him and opened my mouth.

“I came from the neighboring village over there.”

“Neighboring? Oh, you mean Hans Village Chief’s Place? Are you here on an errand?”

“Yes.”

The guard’s wariness was nearly nonexistent.

He didn’t seem to mind that I was carrying a sword slung behind my back.

I bowed my head to the guard and entered the village.

It seemed to be lunchtime, as the smell of food wafted through the air.

Having skipped breakfast and walked for a while, I was feeling quite hungry.

I put a piece of hard jerky into my mouth and asked the guard.

“Excuse me.”

“What is it?”

“I heard there’s a coachman here with a carriage. Where can I find him?”

“For a carriage? Go over there towards the corner by the stable.”

The guard kindly pointed out the location.

He indicated a large building situated at the edge of the village.

After thanking him again, I hurriedly ran in that direction.

Finding the carriage was easy.

It was parked next to the building that looked like a stable, and in front of it, a large amount of cargo was piled up.

Even now, three or so men were moving the cargo.

I had heard from the adults that the person with the carriage in this village charges money to take goods and people to the Capital City.

I was worried about being late, but it seemed I had timed my arrival well.

I approached the men who were moving the large cargo.

“Excuse me.”

“Huh?”

Contrary to their intimidating appearance, the men’s personalities weren’t that bad.

One man, after dropping the heavy load, turned his gaze towards me.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked.

“What’s up?”

“Are you going to the Capital City?”

“Umm…?”

The man tilted his head at my question.

He looked around, as if searching for my parents, who probably hadn’t realized I left home yet.

“I came by myself. It’s an errand.”

“An errand…? You don’t look like a villager…”

“I came from Hans Village Chief’s Place.”

“Oh, that guy?”

“Yes.”

“So, what do you need? Do you have the money?”

I rummaged through my pocket and pulled out a silver coin to show him.

The man shook his head. It seemed like the money was insufficient.

I quickly pulled out another silver coin.

“Is this enough?”

The man hesitated as he looked at the two silver coins, but eventually nodded.

The deal was made.

“Give me the money when we leave. We’ll be departing as soon as lunch is over, so it’s best to wait nearby.”

I nodded and went to sit on a small wooden chair next to the stable.

The chair was frozen from the cold weather, making my backside chilly.

The wait turned out to be longer than I expected, but I couldn’t express my dissatisfaction given my circumstances.

After finishing up their work and having a meal, the men returned with unfamiliar faces.

There was a woman carrying a large bag and a man with a long scar on his face.

They seemed to be the traveling companions joining the coach.

Afterward, there was little conversation.

Since I hadn’t mentioned my destination to the Capital City, it seemed my question was just a formality.

When I was about to pay for my ride, the man spoke up.

“What’s your name?”

Are we introducing ourselves now?

It’s definitely better than not knowing each other’s names.

“Emily. What about you?”

“Ned.”

Ned took the money and began to bring out two large horses from the stable to harness them to the carriage.

After that, it didn’t take long for the carriage to be ready to leave.

Confirming that the horses were securely attached, Ned shouted to the companions waiting behind.

“Get in!”

Once he saw that everyone was on board, Ned sat in the driver’s seat and started the carriage.

In this cold weather, I wondered if he wouldn’t get chilly sitting up there.

I slightly leaned out to look outside the carriage when Ned yelled.

“Get your head in! You’ll fall off!”

Startled by his warning, I quickly pulled my head back inside.

Was my startled expression funny? The woman sharing the carriage with me was covering her mouth, trying to suppress laughter.

Sitting back in my place and staring at her, she turned her head and cleared her throat.

With an awkward smile, she began to speak to me.

“Hello! What’s your name?”

“I’m Emily. What about you?”

“My name is Sinel. Feel free to call me Sister Sinel.”

“Okay.”

Though I said I’d call her that, I probably wouldn’t be addressing her as Sister Sinel anytime soon.

I turned to look at the man sitting in the corner.

It was a brief time together, so I thought I might as well learn his name.

Sinel seemed to have the same thought as she gazed at the man in the corner.

“Philip.”

After a moment of staring, the name came out.

Philip closed his eyes, as if refusing any further conversation.

After that, I started talking with Sinel.

The conversation didn’t have much substance, but I learned quite a lot about her.

She was a scholar doing research in the countryside, and her reason for heading to the Capital City was to purchase expensive materials.

I had to maintain a neutral expression while chatting with Sinel.

The ride was extremely bumpy.

I nearly bit my tongue when my backside kept bouncing around.

Did Philip and Sinel not find this ride uncomfortable?

I sighed heavily and sunk into my corner seat.

The large cargo was soft enough that I thought about leaning against it and taking a nap.

The carriage stopped at midnight, when the sun had set.

The sound of fierce wind could be heard all around, with occasional flurries of snow falling.

Philip and Ned skillfully prepared a campfire.

They took firewood from inside the carriage, wrapped oil-soaked paper around it, and struck flint to light it.

I squatted a little distance away, watching all of it.

“What are you staring at?”

“Just curious.”

“Curious about what? Lighting a fire?”

“Yes.”

I knew about it theoretically, but seeing it in person was quite fascinating.

The identity of a modern-day adult man is simply astonished by everything in this world.

Even the two large horses attached to the carriage were fascinating.

“Did you bring any food?”

“I have jerky in my bag.”

Ned let out a sigh at my answer.

He pulled out a large pot from the carriage, added dried vegetables and water, and sprinkled in some yellow powder.

Before long, the water began to boil, and a savory aroma wafted out.

“Come over and sit.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

Following Ned’s words, I hurriedly dashed over and sat next to him.

He took a small bowl and served me my portion.

I didn’t know what kind of food it was, but it looked like a thick soup.

There was nothing like a spoon to eat the soup with.

Ned and Philip didn’t have one either.

Both men used large ladles to scoop soup into their bowls and drank it down.

“Ah… Ah…”

I followed their lead and drank the soup.

It was salty but didn’t really have much flavor.

Though the taste was disappointing, I couldn’t complain.

While gulping down the soup, I felt a peculiar gaze and looked up.

The owner of the gaze was Philip, who was staring at the sword on my back.

“Have you learned swordsmanship?”

Philip suddenly asked that question.

I nodded and replied.

“Just a little for self-defense.”

“Self-defense?”

“Yeah, there was a retired knight in the village.”

Philip seemed interested in my answer.

He stood up and spoke to Ned.

“Ned, do we have any wooden swords left?”

“Well… I have one I used, but what for?”

Philip nodded at that answer and headed into the carriage.

I tilted my head and asked Ned.

“Are they friends?”

“Something like that.”

I tilted my head again at his response.

If they’re friends, then what does “something like that” even mean?

“It seems like he wants to see some knight’s swordsmanship.”

“A knight’s swordsmanship?”

“Yeah, you said you learned swordsmanship from a knight, right? He always dreamed of becoming a knight.”

“Oh…”

I dumbly nodded at Ned’s words.

Philip emerged from the carriage with two wooden swords.

He naturally handed one over to me.

“Take it.”

Receiving the wooden sword, I glanced at Ned.

He sighed and gave a small nod.

I hesitated for a moment. While it was true I learned swordsmanship from a self-proclaimed retired knight, I wasn’t a knight.

That meant I might not meet Philip’s expectations.

But he probably wouldn’t be oblivious to that.

What was it that he wanted to see?

“I won’t attack you. Just show me.”

As I hesitated for a long time, Philip hurriedly spoke up.

I sighed and nodded.

Having already eaten their dinner, I could easily oblige such a small request.

With the sword aimed at me, Philip stared intently.

He was ready.

I took off my iron sword and thick leather clothes, settling into position.

My feet were shoulder-width apart, and the sword was pointing slightly toward the side.

With shallow breaths flowing out, my posture lowered slightly.

At that moment, everything was ready.

I kicked off the ground and began my attack.

The swordsmanship the guard had first taught me was an overhead slash he used when chopping firewood.

As I swung the sword, recalling the moonlight falling from the heavens.

Bang-! The sword met its match with a loud sound.

It was a duel between an adult and a child. I had expected that reaction, so I wasn’t surprised.

Keeping the two swords locked, I twisted my wrist, immediately forcing his sword away.

It was natural that I would lose in a clash of strength.

Clenching my teeth, I charged into Philip’s space.

Using my smaller stature to my advantage, Philip began to react.

The route of his protective sword started to change as he began to preemptively block where my attack would land.

I knew that attacking like this would only lead to it being blocked. But I couldn’t stop now. I had neither the strength to change the trajectory of my sword nor the speed to throw off Philip’s gaze.

Using the power in my legs, I added rotation to my waist.

Thwack-!

The sword that shot out powerfully was easily blocked by Philip’s weapon.

Breathing heavily, I stepped back.

“Do you want to do more?”

“Umm…”

Philip let out a subtle groan at my answer.

Was he satisfied?

He shook his head and extended his hand to me.

“Thank you.”

Was he asking for a handshake?

But I didn’t want to shake hands with such big and strong hands.

I quickly dodged Philip’s large hand and hid both my hands behind my back.