Only a few days remain in February, in the middle of winter.

Around this time, I was flying smoothly westward across my territory.

I had 【Wind’s Garment】 activated, of course, but since I had increased the speed of the 【Floating Orb】, I could still feel a bit of cold.

I’m wearing a jacket over everything, but… well, it is winter.

From time to time, I could spot merchants and adventurers below, all bundled up tightly.

I wasn’t planning on fighting today, and though I was wearing various Blessed Items, including socks and shoes… I’ve been holed up in the mansion for a while now, so my resistance to the cold might have dropped a bit.

With that thought, I zipped along at high speed on a route slightly away from the main road.

People in the territory are probably already used to seeing me fly, so I don’t have to worry too much about being seen, but still… it’s a matter of manners!

Anyway, I passed over several towns and villages and soon found myself beyond the checkpoint in the blink of an eye.

“Hmm? Already inside… Alright.”

I gradually slowed down and came to a stop in midair.

“Nuuu… Is anyone moving on that side…? Doesn’t look like it. Okay then… let’s go full speed ahead. Here we go!”

I re-cast 【Wind’s Garment】, then activated both 【Prayer】 and 【Amber Shield】.

After entrusting the surrounding vigilance to the snakes, I launched the 【Floating Orb】.

◇

The report brought to my office yesterday by a messenger was, as expected, just what I had anticipated.

It seems Alec and the others had safely returned from the battlefield and arrived in the Zelkis territory capital.

Their return route took them from the battlefield to the royal capital, then by sea to Zelkis, and from there they were aiming for Riana by land.

If it were just our troops, they could have taken a ship straight from the battlefield to Riana and arrived at the territory capital in a matter of days. But it wasn’t just our soldiers returning—it included troops from other territories in the eastern region too.

Even though we’re in the same country, having large groups of armed soldiers wandering into other lords’ lands separately isn’t exactly ideal.

To act as one unit, they needed to stay in formation, and that’s apparently how the route was decided.

Besides, if the route isn’t fixed to some extent, it becomes difficult to coordinate responses.

For example, if a large group of troops were to stay in our territory, even for just a few days, it’d cause quite a stir.

That kind of thing is only feasible for large, well-established territories.

Which is why they’re currently staying in the Zelkis territory capital, the leading power in the east, to coordinate their movements.

Apparently, they arrived in the Zelkis territory capital around noon yesterday.

That must’ve been around the same time the messenger reached me.

The one who came to me took a boat upriver directly, so he must’ve gotten a good head start.

…Honestly, I wish our troops had just taken the boat straight back too, but hey, unity is important.

That said, there’s no need for us to wait for every other territory to be ready, so I was assigned, for the first time in a while, the task of acting as the messenger to tell our troops they’re free to depart.

Leaving early in the morning and flying smoothly while taking breaks here and there, it had been several hours.

I did sense magical creatures occasionally, but since it was still daylight, none showed up on the roads—it had been a perfectly peaceful journey.

In the skies over Riana, monsters tend to attack out of nowhere, you know…?

The snake guys will notice them, and even if I do take a hit or two, while I’d be surprised, it’s not like I’d be seriously hurt.

Even so, being able to fly so freely like this isn’t bad at all.

Until now, I’ve always chosen monster-infested areas like magic zones or dungeons to hunt Holy Coins more efficiently…

But come spring, maybe focusing on subjugating monsters on Riana’s western side wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Flying leisurely over the eastern side would still be too dangerous, but the west might be doable.

Working hard is great, but people need a bit more room to breathe in their hearts…

Speaking of spring—though I’ll be heading to the royal capital for a while, so this would be something to think about after I get back—I was just planning out the schedule when I looked ahead and saw a faint white wall come into view.

The walls of Zelkis’ territory capital.

“Oh! I can see it now… Akame and the rest, you can stop scouting. Thanks for your help.”

Unlike in Riana, I can’t exactly enter a city with snakes out in the open here.

I thanked Akame and the others for scouting up to this point, letting them slither back under my clothes, then began lowering the altitude and speed of the 【Floating Orb】.

◇

I passed through the city’s checkpoint without issue, then declined the escort and started heading slowly toward the lord’s mansion.

I hadn’t had a chance to visit the Zelkis territory capital even once last year due to how busy things were, but the city was as bustling and lively as ever.

Maybe even more so, with so many soldiers currently staying here?

Big, burly men stood out everywhere I looked.

And yet, there were no signs of trouble, and the security was clearly being maintained.

The city is thriving.

That said, there haven’t been any major changes since I was last here.

If I had to point out something, maybe it’s that the paving of the lower district seems to have begun?

It’s a place that hardly sees any carriages pass through… They must have room to spare.

But that’s just a minor detail.

This city is already complete as it is.

For something major to change here, there would probably have to be a fundamental technological breakthrough.

Well, whatever.

For now, let’s just get to the mansion.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Sera ・Blessing・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind’s Garment】

Blessed Item・【Floating Orb】+1【Shadow Sword】+1【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Dragon’s Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Serpent’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】【Red Sword】【Monkey’s Arm】・8 cards

Seriana・【Area Identification】・【】・0 cards

Elena・【】・【Green Fang】【Amber Sword】・4 cards

Alec・【Power Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・10 cards