“Well then everyone, please take care.”

“Yes, we shall be off.”

“We’ll be fine, since we’re with them.”

And so, the day to depart for the royal capital had finally arrived.

Mr. Patrice and Mr. Rizac from the Adventurer’s Guild had come all the way to the entrance of Al-Flare to see us off.

“Well, with Berna and Ferry around, there’s nothing to worry about. And there are others too. If anything, I feel bad for anyone foolish enough to try attacking this carriage.”

Just like Mr. Rizac said, we were traveling with a powerful lineup—A-rank adventurers Berna and Ferry, B-rank adventurers Lange and Lilia, and even Dolph. From a combat standpoint, there was absolutely nothing to worry about.

“I’m counting on you all for this! ...Oh, and also, if you could, give my regards to Ruhail.”

“Of course. I’ll tell her that Mr. Rizac said it’s been a while and he’d like to see her again.”

“H-hey, idiot! You don’t need to tell her that! That woman’s always been the type to overwork herself. Just tell her to take it easy and not push herself too hard—that’s all I want.”

“Understood, I’ll make sure to pass that along.”

Ms. Ruhail, the Guild Master in the royal capital, used to be in the same party as Mr. Rizac. Now that they’re both Guild Masters in different towns, it’s not so easy for them to meet up.

It seemed like they hadn’t seen each other in quite some time. Since Mr. Rizac clearly wanted to see her again, I’d make sure to pass on that sentiment as well.

“Alright, we’re off.”

“Yeah, travel safe!”

“Take care!”

With Mr. Rizac and Mr. Patrice seeing us off, our carriage began moving along the road to the royal capital, pulled by Sleip, the eight-legged, white-maned Sleipnir summoned by Ferry.

“It’s been a while since we’ve gone to the capital.”

“That time was really fun, wasn’t it, Brother?”

“This time the schedule’s a lot more relaxed, so Dolph and Angel will be able to take it easy compared to last time.”

Last time, we had rushed to the capital and returned in a hurry after keeping the shop closed for about a week. But this time, since Mr. Gregor was building a new shop for us from scratch, the whole trip was planned more leisurely.

...Well, here’s hoping that if the meeting with the royal family fails, it doesn’t result in us never being able to return to Al-Flare again.

“Sleip is as fast as ever.”

“Bluoooh!”

When Lilia praised him, Sleip neighed as if to say “Leave it to me.”

Sleip could run more than twice as fast as a normal carriage horse. A trip that would normally take seven to eight days with stopovers in towns could be completed in just three days. That meant the ride was very bumpy, so like last time, we laid down outdoor mats to soften the vibrations.

“It’s so fast!”

“Ahhh, it feels amazing!”

Fia and Lange seemed to be enjoying the scenery flowing past the window.

Just like before, A-rank adventurers Berna and Ferry rode in the driver’s seat, while in the rear carriage were myself, Lilia, Fia, Lange, Dolph, and Angel—eight people in total headed toward the capital.

Unfortunately, once again, Rea, Fia’s mother, couldn’t come due to work. I guess it’s hard to take several weeks off when you work at a regular shop. Fortunately, since we had two A-rank adventurers with us, Fia was able to join.

“Everyone, please take it easy and relax.”

“Even if monsters appear, we’ll take care of it.”

As expected of A-rank adventurers. Incredibly reliable.

“Tetsuya, we’ve arrived at the river we planned to stop at.”

“Got it.”

After a long time being jostled around in the carriage, we finally arrived safely at today’s destination—a riverside spot. Thankfully, we hadn’t encountered any monsters or trouble along the way.

“Thanks, Sleip. I’ll call you again when it’s time to eat.”

“Bluoooh.”

Sleip had pulled the carriage the entire way, taking only a short break for lunch. A normal horse could never pull a carriage with eight people this fast.

Apparently, summoning Sleip required Ferry’s magical power, but since she was a top-class magic user, she could keep Sleip summoned for long periods.

...Still, I wonder what summoned beasts do when they’re not summoned. Maybe like a certain pocket-ball, they rest in a surprisingly comfortable space?

“Ugh, sitting in the carriage for so long has made my body stiff.”

“Yeah. No matter how many times we do this, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it.”

Just like Lilia said, even with the outdoor mats, sitting through all that shaking made our bodies ache.

“Alright then, let’s start by setting up the tent. After that, we’ll get dinner ready.”

We were camping by the river tonight, just like last time, so it was time to pitch our tents.

But this time, the tents were a bit different! Thanks to the increased level of the Outdoor Shop skill, we could now purchase large tents!