Volume 14 Chapter 8 Visitor
The distance from the village entrance to the square wasn't very far.
They saw someone getting off the carriage. There were 2 women with a feminine silhouette.
Then, 2 men who looked like guards also got down from the driver's seat.
"Lady Nora, please wait! Lady Nora!"
Lord Radyard seemed to be trying hard to stop them, but the 4 of them kept getting closer.
The one in front had long, slightly reddish-gold hair and beautiful features, with large, dark brown eyes that had a graceful shape.
She looked a bit older than Al and Naresh.
She seemed to be around 20 years old. Her height was about 170 centimeters (5'7").
She wore pants like a man, but her way of walking was elegant and not rough at all. Her outfit, with black fabric and gold embroidery, gave off a very luxurious impression.
She had a cape draped over her back, which also had black fabric with gold embroidery on the outside and a maroon color on the inside.
The woman walking behind her wore a similar black pants outfit, but her embroidery was more modest, and her brown hair was tied back.
The woman in front was probably Nora, the younger sister of Sir Jillian from the Marquis Taggart family.
"Finally, we meet, Sir Naresh."
The woman in front, Nora, received a polite bow from Naresh.
Nearby, Lord Sanford, Lord Zora, and of course Al also bowed deeply in response.
"Lady Nora, thank you for coming all the way here. I apologize for not being able to make time sooner."
At Naresh's words, Nora lightly smiled and shook her head.
"I know that I am asking for too much. And I apologize for barging in like this today and causing a fuss."
As Naresh shook his head with a slight smile, saying it was nothing, Nora continued speaking.
"I heard that Sir Naresh will be inheriting the Sennett family, and I thought it was important to meet you in person to offer my congratulations, not just with a gift. The Senett family has a long history, just like my Tagard family, dating back to before the founding of the Tempest Kingdom. It is not a family that should easily fade away. I truly wish to join hands and stand against the Marquis Prentis family."
Naresh nodded.
"Thank you for coming all this way and for your kind words. I serve the Sylvester Kingdom, so I cannot act on my own, but I would appreciate your support in helping those who have fled from the Senett territory due to the Marquis Prentis family."
He couldn't straightforwardly say he wanted to cooperate against the Marquis Prentis family.
Al felt a bit unsatisfied with Naresh's words, but he knew it couldn't be helped. Al himself had some issues with the way the Marquis Prentis family provided food to the Barbarians.
However, there must be complicated reasons why Naresh couldn't cooperate with the Tagard family.
Nora seemed to have somewhat anticipated Naresh's response, lightly nodding.
"Actually, Sir Naresh's mother, Lady Tara's father, the previous Count Senet, is the one who married into the Senet family from our Marquis Tagard family. This means that Sir Naresh and I are distant relatives by blood. I hope we can get along well. Well, since Sir Naresh is busy, I don't want to disturb him too much. I'm relieved that we could talk directly. I will take my leave now."
With that, Nora bowed and showed signs of leaving.
Did she really just come to offer her congratulations?
However, she then lightly glanced around and seemed to notice the damaged metal armor from Al's spell earlier.
"This here is..."
She said, looking around.
Then, she noticed Lord Zora and had a look as if she had thought of something.
"Oh, I see. You were testing the spell here. I think I've seen that magician before in the capital of Tempest. Is he a magician from the Sennett family?"
Nora seemed to misunderstand that Naresh had ordered Lord Zora to cast the 'Piercing Spear' spell to check its power.
Al, who didn't particularly want to stand out, felt relieved.
"That's quite a terrifying spell."
Naresh said, nodding. Nora also nodded in agreement.
"That's true. The biggest problem is that it's too powerful, so we can't practice much. It easily goes through targets like wood... Oh? Did you really prepare such a thick iron plate? I see, you changed the thickness to check the power. Sir Naresh is well-prepared."
She seemed impressed by the multiple steel round plates with different thicknesses that Al had prepared.
Indeed, there might not be many shields that thick.
"With a thickness of 1.5 centimeters (0.6in), it made a small hole, and at 2 centimeters (0.8in), it just dented."
"Thank you for the information. You're quite diligent in your research. I need to have the magicians of my Marquis Taggart family follow your example. By the way, I heard there was a major discovery about spells in Viscount Lester, where Sir Naresh is from. There must be many excellent magicians there."
A major discovery... It felt like it was about the magic options Eric announced.
"Is that so? Unfortunately, I've been in Parker for a while, so I don't know about recent events in Lester. I'm sure everyone is working hard."
Did Naresh not know? No, he might have mentioned it...
Al thought for a moment and realized that maybe he was trying not to say anything.
Oh, right, this person was from another country. Could they be a potential enemy in war? Was Lord Zora okay?
No, since he was someone who was supposed to serve Naresh, he should be fine. However, once he started thinking about various things, it became troublesome.
"By the way, that's true."
Nora noticed something and stared at Al intently.
Then, she looked at the Glee pendant hanging on Al's chest with a curious expression.
"I'm sorry. Who are you?"
"Eh?"
In response to Nora's question, Al glanced at Naresh.
Since he nodded, it was okay to answer directly.
"I'm Al, a friend of Sir Naresh and an adventurer."
"Adventurer... I see, so your friend is a bodyguard. What kind of magic tool is that pendant?"
'Did she realize it's an assistant device?'
Glee whispered in a voice only Al could hear, sounding puzzled.
As a high-ranking noble, she might know about Riana's assistant device, which has been passed down in the Tempest royal family.
And she might think this pendant looks similar, even if it's a bit smaller. However, she shouldn't be able to conclude that for sure.
The Ring of Pact was hidden away and not worn. It was good that it wasn't being worn.
"It's a magic tool, but I'm sorry, I can't say what kind it is since it's also part of my livelihood."
Al answered while trying to keep a neutral expression. Since he wasn't one of her subjects, she probably wouldn't press for more information.
But how did she figure out that this pendant was a magic tool? Could it be a magic tool? Or maybe she herself is a magician.
He had been careless today, but maybe he should always have either the 'Magic Sense' spell or the 'Detect Magic' spell active.
"That's true. It was my fault for asking. It looked similar to something a friend had."
Nora easily gave up on asking after Al's answer and smiled brightly. She probably thought it looked like Riana's assistant device.
Al thought again that he couldn't let his guard down.
"Well then, Sir Naresh, I will take my leave this time."
"I'm sorry I couldn't offer you any hospitality. Until next time."
Nora and Naresh politely bowed to each other. Then, she got back into the carriage and hurriedly left, just like when she arrived.
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