Published: January 4, 2026
As the carriage jolted along, I was poring over documents and papers when I felt the speed slowly decrease.
The halt barely caused any inertia for me inside, and the horses barely neighed.
As always, I thought the coachman was very skilled.
“We’ve arrived… Is that the city of Agoris?”
“Yes, I stopped just within visual distance as you ordered.”
“Thank you for your efforts.”
From outside the carriage, I overheard a quiet exchange between Cindy and the coachman.
Just like before, we had instructions to disembark a little outside the city limits and enter on foot, and Cindy and the coachman followed that order.
Expecting Cindy to come and call me now that we’d arrived, I took the jacket I’d set aside and put it on, waiting—
But—
“…”
“…”
Cindy, who I thought would come, didn’t show up.
I wasn’t the only one wondering what was going on.
“Lady Cindy? Shouldn’t we call out to her?”
“That person was working through the night giving instructions. Let’s allow her to rest a bit longer.”
“Understood.”
I sensed movement beyond the carriage.
Listening carefully, it seemed the coachman was doing something to the horses.
Curious, I stepped out of the carriage.
Seeing the coachman, I understood.
“I see, you’ve quieted the horses so they wouldn’t make noise.”
“Ah!?”
“I’m sorry for alarming you.”
Cindy and the coachman both panicked the moment I stepped out.
“Don’t be afraid, I woke up on my own.”
“Y-yes… but you should rest a bit more.”
“I’ve taken a brief nap. Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
I took Cindy with me, leaving the carriage and coachman behind as we set off on foot.
The silhouette of the city faintly appeared across the road.
“This is amazing.”
“Hm? What is?”
“Despite hardly resting these past few days, you don’t show any sign of fatigue at all.”
“That’s how it is in emergencies. Apophis has been helping as well.”
“I’ve heard about that a few times… but what exactly is this ‘help’ from Apophis?”
“It’s like when you drink strong coffee to stay awake, right?”
“Yes.”
“Imagine drinking coffee twice as strong as that.”
“T-That can’t be good for your health, can it?”
“It’s an emergency.”
That was all I said.
It was clear to me that some degree of strain was unavoidable.
I thought to myself: Don’t overdo it. But I’d dismiss any such warnings with a simple “it’s an emergency.”
With that, I took Cindy and entered Agoris.
Now inside Enlil Province and getting closer to the epicenter, the cityscape showed more and more collapsed buildings.
“This place too… looks like there was a fire.”
“Seems so.”
“Maybe the water supply is…”
“…”
I didn’t answer.
I suspected the same but hoped it wasn’t true.
Either way, I needed to confirm it with my own eyes.
With that thought, we entered the city.
Once inside, I noticed an unusual amount of commotion.
“Something’s off.”
“Yes.”
“Stay close to me.”
“Y-yes!”
I kept Cindy near to protect her no matter what happened.
While shielding her, I planned to catch someone and gather information—but before I could act,
Someone approached us.
A middle-aged man carrying a wooden beam about as thick as an adult’s thigh ran toward us.
At first, he was looking somewhere else, but once our eyes met, he changed direction and came straight at us.
He stopped right in front of us.
“You folks travelers?”
“Yeah. Did something happen?”
“No time to explain. I’m not saying this to be mean, but you should leave the city for now and come back around tomorrow.”
“...I see. Thanks for the warning.”
“Alright then.”
Having said his piece, the wood-carrying man looked satisfied and hurried off.
I turned to Cindy.
“I’m following him.”
“Huh?”
Cindy looked surprised.
“B-but it’s dangerous now.”
“No problem. Stay close to me.”
“…Alright!”
I took Cindy and started following the man at a short distance.
Trying not to get noticed—though it wouldn’t be a big deal if we were—so as to avoid questions, we quietly trailed him.