"Hey, you—do you know what happened in the royal capital?"

"Huh?"

We were in a post town south of the royal capital. After secretly slipping out of the capital, we flew south for a day, stopping here. Since then, we’ve been in great form, and with practice, our speed has multiplied several times compared to when we first left the Forest of Demons.

Still, the wind resistance was brutal. I couldn’t push for top speed, which made me wonder if wind magic could help. But that’s for later.

The question came as we stood in line at the city gate, waiting to enter. It was from an adventurer, seemingly a guard for a merchant’s wagon in front of us.

Exchanging glances with Rio, I felt at a loss for how to answer. Too many possible connections came to mind.

"I left the capital early yesterday morning and made my way here, but there was this crazy bright light from the direction of the royal capital. It was blinding! I’ve been wondering what happened."

"Ah, I see..."

So that’s what it was. I’d thought word had spread quickly, but it seems he’d caught a glimpse of Thunderbolt. I hadn’t realized it was visible from that far away. Maybe it was a bit too flashy.

"I don’t remember passing you on the road, so you must have come from the capital after us, right?"

"Ahaha..."

Rio gave a nervous laugh, and I felt a jolt of panic. True, we’d been flying over a straight road across the grasslands. Didn’t he consider we might’ve taken a detour?

"Something like that happen? We were wandering around the grasslands and didn’t notice. Was it really that bright?"

"Well, yeah! I think it was lightning, but I’ve never seen anything that intense before."

After talking animatedly for a while, the adventurer bid us farewell and entered the town with the merchant. We showed our identification to the gatekeepers and were allowed in without trouble. It was almost anticlimactic, but I wasn’t looking for trouble anyway.

"It’s a small town, but it’s bustling enough."

"Yeah, being a waypoint, pretty much everyone passes through here."

True to its nature as a post town, there were plenty of high-end inns. We picked a moderately priced one with a bath and called it a day.

"Ah, there’s nothing like a comfortable bed in a high-end inn."

"Well, that’s obvious, isn’t it?"

"I want a fluffy bed even when camping out."

"What!?"

Rio gave me a look that screamed, What nonsense are you talking about? But surely she’d prefer sleeping comfortably all the time, too.

"Well... yeah, I guess."

"If we can fit giant monsters in the dimensional storage, we can bring a bed, too!"

"If we can find one for sale, sure."

With that momentary dream, her words brought me back to reality. Right, we’d have to buy one, and this town didn’t seem like the place to find such an item—even though every inn here had one.

"Well, we’re headed to a Mercantile Nation. They might sell something good there."

"True. We can go shopping once we arrive."

"That means we’ll need to make some money."

"Ahaha."

Fortunately, our dimensional storage was packed with things to sell. We’d sell a bit in each town we passed through.

After two weeks of flying over highways and stopping in several large towns, we finally reached the border.

"Time to walk from here."

"Yeah."

With wind barriers for faster and quieter flight, we’d been able to converse while soaring through the air. Along the way, we’d sold enough goods to amass a decent amount of money—though I stopped counting once it became too much effort.

"Mercantile Nations are supposed to be all about trade, right?"

"Probably, though I’m not sure exactly what that means."

"If they had something like giant shopping malls, it’d be obvious."

"Doesn’t seem likely, though."

We landed in a discreet spot off the highway and walked back to merge with the main road. The closer we got to the border, the busier it became. The grassy plain gave way to a rugged landscape as we approached.

Separating the Arclight Kingdom and the Mercantile Nation of Aresgute was a massive rift in the earth. On average, it spanned about 500 meters across. However, the highway ran through a narrower part, with a giant bridge stretching 50 meters to connect the two sides.

"Wow, that’s incredible..."

As the full view came into sight, Rio let out an awed gasp. The rift extended to the horizon along the border.

At both ends of the bridge were checkpoints for the respective countries, and there were observation points for viewing the rift. We joined the crowd to peer into its depths, but it was too deep to see clearly. The observation area on the Aresgute side looked more luxurious—very fitting for a Mercantile Nation.

"Why don’t we check it out from over there?"

"Good idea. Let’s leave this kingdom already."

Leaving the observation area, we headed for the checkpoint. The broad checkpoint had minimal lines, and we passed through quickly after paying an exit tax.

As expected of this world, the bridge itself was a marvel.

"No guardrails, huh?"

While there were curbs to keep wagons from slipping off, there were no fences to prevent people from falling.

"Bahaha! First time crossing this bridge? Be careful not to fall—it’s a long way down, and no one’s gonna help ya!"

An adventurer walking beside us offered this cheerful warning.

"Of course, I’ll be careful. I don’t feel like dying today."

I could fly if I fell, but no need to mention that.

"That’s not the point. This place is a hotspot for suicides. Even if you’re about to fall, don’t expect anyone to lend a hand."

"What the hell..."

"Take care!"

Before we could respond, the adventurer strode ahead.

"A suicide hotspot, huh?"

Looking around, I didn’t see anyone acting suspicious near the edge.

"Looks fine today."

"Yeah."

"Let’s get across quickly."

Nodding to each other, we picked up the pace toward the other side.

"Welcome to the Mercantile Nation of Aresgute. There’s no entry tax on this side, so feel free to proceed."

And with that, we stepped into the neighboring country.