After that, there were no further attacks, and we crossed the border and entered Zack’s town.
Zack’s townscape was reminiscent of medieval Europe, with stone buildings.
But what surprised me most was the public toilet at the town entrance.
When I asked Prim about it in surprise, it turned out to be a magic tool that a guest from my world completed after a lot of hardship about 200 years ago, and even the legal framework for its introduction had been established.
The Helios Orb has had guests from my world arrive several times in the past. Toilets here use magic to break down not only excrement but also odors.
Therefore, in the Helios Orb, one does not suffer from the stench in many towns.
In the Amister Kingdom, where that guest lived, laws were enacted quite early, and subsidies were even provided by the state; conversely, failing to have proper toilets could result in punishment.
While some foreign countries may not have such well-established legal frameworks, public toilets are still installed throughout the towns, so Prim told me that I haven’t been troubled by waste or odors in town.
I am grateful for this, but I can only imagine how difficult it must have been for the guest who created the toilets and the hardships they endured.
Be that as it may, Prim and her group originally planned to enter Amister while avoiding Porton, a border town on the Valentia side. However, due to the assassination of their beast carriage by assassins and thieves, they needed to procure a new one urgently.
But by my engraving magic onto the magic stones, I made it possible to move the beast carriage even without a beast, so there was no longer a need to procure a beast carriage in Porton.
No, I still need to procure one, but I no longer need to risk obtaining it within Valentia.
This consumes my magic power, but I didn’t feel the necessity of taking risks myself.
And so, we crossed the border and entered the Amister Kingdom.
Although it’s a border, it’s not like the walls that completely blocked off countries in the 20th century, nor are there any barriers, so crossing is easy.
When traveling, it seems that it’s not uncommon for the nearest town to be in a neighboring country near the border.
One of the reasons for avoiding Porton is the speculation that news of Duke Hydransia’s execution has already spread there.
It is said that the eastern part of Valentia, including Porton, has been rebelling against the tyranny of the Beast King of Valentia, but the situation may have changed due to Duke Hydransia’s execution.
The United Kingdom of Valentia is composed of six regions. The royal family rules the western part of the central region, and nobles with a status comparable to dukes, called Kings’ ranks, rule the eastern part of the central region and the northern, southern, eastern, and western regions.
Originally, the United Kingdom of Valentia was ceded from the neighboring Amister Kingdom about 300 years ago, and each was established as a separate kingdom. At the time, it is said that the Kings’ ranks ruled as kings of their respective countries.
However, about 200 years ago, wars broke out due to issues of royal succession, food, and resources. The then King of Amister, judging that this would spread to Amister as well, stepped in as a mediator. A meeting of the seven kings was held, and discussions were held to form a united federation.
Naturally, discussions were also held about who would become the king of the united federation. Based on the judgment that the center of the country should be in the central region, the country ruled by the current Valentia royal family in the western central region became the royal family. The Kings’ ranks of the eastern central region and the four provincial regions became nobles, and it was decided that the regions would be governed by a decentralized system, and the country would be operated by the joint decision of the King and the Kings’ ranks.
For this reason, the Kings’ ranks possess power comparable to dukes who are branches of the royal family.
However, the Kings’ rank families do not have succession rights to the throne. Conversely, the power gap with the ducal families, who have succession rights, has widened year by year. Now, the Kings’ ranks are treated similarly to counts, and the disparity between the central government in Centro and the provincial cities has become apparent.
The previous but one Beast King, who is said to be Prim’s grandfather, felt this was a problem.
The previous but one Beast King lamented that the status of the Kings’ ranks was beginning to be seen as lower than that of marquesses, and that many nobles in the center oppressed the provinces. He invoked the origins of the united federation and worked with the Kings’ ranks in the eastern central region to restore the status of the Kings’ ranks. As a result, provincial cities also developed, though not to the same extent as Centro, and the Kings’ ranks also regained their former status.
However, the nobles of the central region did not take this kindly. When the previous but one Beast King died and the previous Beast King, who followed his predecessor’s policies, ascended to the throne, their dissatisfaction finally erupted.
The person who ascended to the throne as a result was the current Beast King, Gymnos Basilious Valiente.
Gymnos was said to be third in line to the throne. However, he assassinated the Crown Prince, who, like the previous Beast King, focused on the provinces. He also disinherited the second prince, who was active as a hunter. Furthermore, by marrying Prim, who was fourth in line to the throne and highly anticipated and reputed as the first winged tribe member of the Valentia royal family, he planned to gain complete control while appeasing domestic and international dissatisfaction.
Duke Hydransia, Prim’s father, vehemently criticized Gymnos and never accepted his marriage to Prim.
Prim had originally stated that she would marry a man stronger than herself, and three Kings’ ranks supported Duke Hydransia, leading to a near civil war at one point.
The situation changed after the Southern Baron, who had been replaced, betrayed Duke Hydransia and handed him over to Gymnos.
Duke Hydransia was executed shortly after being handed over to the Beast King, and Prim and Apricot hastily fled to Amister and have been there ever since.
“So that’s what happened. Does that mean Prim will become queen if she defeats that king named Gymnos?”
Prim and Apricot were wearing dresses that were befitting of nobles, but they stood out too much, so they changed before entering Zack.
Prim wore a battle dress, which covered her joints and vital points with metal plates, while Apricot wore a modest but calmly designed dress with subdued decorations.
Although there are some differences depending on the country, to enter a town, one must present identification and pay 10 taxes as a tax.
In Amister, this applies to the royal capital, provincial cities, and border towns, and Feel, their destination, is also included.
Identification can be issued by the country or guild, or it can be from the library. However, I don’t have any identification, and Prim and Apricot cannot use their Valentia identification, so the library is the only option.
Since titles I don’t want to show can be hidden, the risk of revealing that I came from another world or that the two of them are related to the ducal family of Valentia can be reduced.
There’s a possibility of being found out by name, but many people don’t know the names of nobles in their own country, and there are even hunters with the same surname as nobles from other countries, so that should be manageable.
It’s not explicitly for that reason, but I’ve also submitted the bandits’ guild registration for assessment.
Well, when I say submission, I actually submitted the bodies of the bandits.
Ah, I could use the storage magic on the way to Zack, so I moved the bandits’ bodies to my storage.
Apparently, these guys were former hunters who had been causing trouble near the border between Amister and Valentia.
Their average level was 38, and the leader had already evolved at level 45, causing considerable damage, which had become a major problem in both Zack and Porton.
In fact, Valentia, attempting to increase the King’s authority by defeating them, dispatched the Royal Knights direct from the King’s direct command, but they were defeated and annihilated.
I didn’t expect them to be such formidable opponents, but thanks to them, there was a considerable bounty placed on them. Moreover, this time, for nominal purposes, I had to make it appear as if I had defeated them alone, so the amount handed over to me exceeded 300,000 El in total.
Regarding currency, El is the unit of this world.
The denominations, from lowest to highest, are copper coins, bronze coins, silver coins, magic silver coins, gold coins, platinum coins, and divine metal coins. One copper coin is 1 El, and then you can exchange for the next higher denomination in units of ten.
Based on what I heard, it seems that 1 El is roughly equivalent to 10 yen.
In other words, a divine metal coin, worth 1,000,000 El, would be equivalent to a whopping 10 million yen.
However, platinum coins and divine metal coins are rarely circulated.
By the way, magic silver is mithril, and divine metal is orichalcum, both of which exist in this world.
There are also ores like heavy blue adamantine steel and crystal silver, which is said to be a mixture of mithril and crystal.
“No way. Besides, I have no interest in the throne. Even now, I want to become a hunter. Of course, I want to defeat Gymnos, but after that, perhaps Leonas will ascend to the throne, or perhaps it would be better to return the land of Valentia to Amister.”
We are in the highest room of the tallest inn in Zack.
It’s a penthouse, with a large living room, washroom, and toilet, five private rooms, and beds.
It’s called a house room, and it exists in all inns regardless of rank. In top-class luxury inns, it’s not uncommon to have over 10 rooms.
Incidentally, one night with meals cost 1,000 El per person. A moderate inn costs about 60 El per night, and 10,000 El is enough for a family of four to live for a month, so you can see how expensive it is.
And then there’s Leonas Forest Valiente, whom Prim mentioned. He is the second prince who was disinherited. At the time of the previous Beast King’s demise, he was active as a hunter and was not in the country.
This was used as a reason for his disinheritance, but he is currently gathering forces to oppose Gymnos.
This prince, like Prim, has no interest in the throne. This likely provides an opening for Gymnos.
“That’s what the young lady says, but what about you, Mother?”
“Isn’t it fine? I don’t think Prim is suited for it. Besides, she’s declared she won’t marry unless it’s to a man stronger than herself, so there will be trouble with succession.”
During the journey to Zack, Apricot’s way of speaking has become considerably more casual.
However, when it comes to the succession issue, it would indeed be problematic.
The Duke Hydransia family might have been fine with it, but it’s not the case when it comes to the queen of a nation.
Now, let’s talk about races.
Four races live in the Helios Orb: Humans, Beastkin, Yokai, and Dragons. These races are also general terms for several sub-races.
First, Humans. This group includes Humans like myself, Elves, Dwarves, and Ogres.
First, Humans.
Most are of the yellow race, but interbreeding with other races can result in white or black races.
As is often the case in games and novels, they are a race without any distinguishing characteristics.
Incidentally, I was apparently a High Human, which means my skin is whiter, I have more magic power, and my lifespan is longer than ordinary Humans.
Next, Elves.
They consist of Light Elves of the white race and Dark Elves of the brown race, with the tips of their ears being long and pointed.
They have a very high affinity with wind, trees, and spirits, respectively, but their physical abilities are slightly inferior to Humans.
Incidentally, both Light Elves and Dark Elves have no clear differences other than skin color, and the reason for these names is said to be that they were popularized by a guest hundreds of years ago.
When they evolve into High Elves, their skin color becomes whiter than that of Light Elves.
And then, Dwarves.
These are very similar to their counterparts in novels and games. They are skilled with their hands and are a race of heavy drinkers.
They have brown skin and an average height of 150 cm, but they are strong. It can be said that they dedicate their lives to crafting and drinking alcohol.
Well, there are always exceptions.
Ah, for male dwarves, beards are a sign of being a full-fledged adult, and apprentices are not allowed to grow them during their training.
It seems that when they become High Dwarves, their skin color becomes lighter.
Ogres are, as their name suggests, ogres. They are the largest in physique among all races, with an average height of just under 2 meters for males and around 170 cm for females.
They are based on the yellow race and have two horns on their foreheads.
When they become High Ogres, their horns grow a size larger.
Beastkin.
This race refers to human-beasts like Prim and Apricot. In addition to Foxies, there are also Ulfies, Loxies, Tigaries, Rabbitties, and Ardillies.
They have beast ears and tails, and their five senses are superior. Which sense is superior varies depending on the sub-race.
Foxies are fox beastkin with skin color close to Humans.
Their fur color can be either white like Prim’s or yellow like Apricot’s.
They also have acute hearing and a keen sense of smell.
Ulfies are wolf beastkin with white skin and black or gray fur.
Their senses of smell and sight are acute.
Loxy are cat beastkin with white, black, or brown fur, either solid colors or mottled. Like Earth cats, their fur patterns seem to vary widely.
Moreover, their skin color can be white, brown, or yellow, making them the most diverse sub-race among the beastkin.
Their senses of sight and touch are acute.
Tigaries are tiger beastkin with brown skin. Their fur is white or yellow with black tiger stripes.
Their senses of touch and smell are acute.
Rabbitties are rabbit beastkin, with skin color similar to Humans and Foxies, and fur color that is either white or brown.
Their senses of hearing and sight are acute.
And Ardillies are squirrel beastkin.
Their skin color is white, and their fur color is brown or gray.
Their senses of smell and sight are acute.
Common to all beastkin, High Class beastkin acquire a sheen to their fur.
Yokai.
This race is a bit special, with most individuals having a form different from humans.
They consist of Vampires, Fairies, Lamias, Harpies, and Undines.
Vampires are exactly what they sound like, bloodsuckers, with pale blue skin.
Their ears are shorter than those of Elves, and their fangs are developed, allowing them to drink blood.
However, blood is a delicacy, so they can survive without drinking it, and some Vampires dislike it.
Currently, wine made from monster blood is popular and is enjoyed by many, not just Vampires.
When they become High Vampires, their skin color becomes a pale blue.
Fairies are like sprites, a race even smaller than Dwarves, with an average height of 130 cm.
They look like miniaturized Elves and have small wings on their backs, but they cannot fly.
They can hover a little, but it’s quite difficult.
They have high magic power and can use most systematic magic.
When they become High Fairies, their skin color becomes white.
Lamias have the lower body of a snake and have brown skin.
Their ears are pointed but shorter than those of Vampires.
Their tails, or rather lower bodies, are quite long, with an average of 2 meters.
When they become High Lamias, their skin becomes reddish-brown, and their scales gain a sheen.
Undines have the lower body of a fish, and their ears resemble fish gills.
They are based on the yellow race but are quite pale. When they become High Undines, their skin color becomes slightly bluish, and their scales gain a sheen.
Harpies have wings for arms and talons on their feet.
Their arm wings are large enough to appear capable of flight, but they can only glide and cannot fly freely.
However, they can wield weapons with their talons, making them the only race said to be capable of aerial combat.
Their ears are shorter than those of Elves but are covered in feathers.
When they become High Class, their feathers and scales gain a sheen.
Incidentally, Lamias, Undines, and Harpies can use Transformation Magic for their livelihoods.
However, this Transformation Magic requires a magic level of around 5-7 to master due to magic power requirements, and they don’t always have to use it.
In fact, Lamias can live without using it, but Undines and Harpies would have trouble with daily life if they didn’t, so more people use it.
Furthermore, no matter how proficient they become, they cannot completely remove the scales on their lower bodies or the feathers on their arms.
Also, Yokai are exclusively a female race.
I think it would be fine for Vampires to have males, though.
Finally, Dragons.
This race is small in number but consists of two sub-races: Dragonewts and Dragonians.
Dragonewts have characteristics of dragons, possessing dragon horns, wings, and tails.
Their most distinguishing feature is that they are born with one of eight elemental attributes: fire, earth, wind, water, lightning, ice, light, or darkness, which is clearly displayed in their library records.
When they become High Class, their horns, wings, and tails gain a sheen.
The Dragonian race is the dragon itself that exists in the Helios Orb and refers to their human form.
Like Yokai, Dragonians are exclusively female. This is because there are no male dragons, so they can take human form to reproduce.
When they take human form, their horns, wings, and tails are larger than those of Dragonewts.
Furthermore, since Dragonians reflect their original race, their library records will display the species of the dragon from which they originated.
As a special case, there are Winged Tribes.
The Winged Tribes refer to those born with wings, so strictly speaking, they are not a race.
Moreover, it is confusing because it does not include races that naturally have wings, such as Harpies, Fairies, or Dragons.
Apparently, in such cases, they have another pair of wings, which can be called secondary wings, in addition to their original wings. If they have these secondary wings, they are considered Winged Tribes.
The wings are said to be made of surplus magic, and even if they are injured, they heal immediately by channeling magic, and they can manipulate that magic freely.
It is similar to the principle where having more tails, like a Nine-tailed Fox or a Cat Spirit, signifies greater magic power. In the Helios Orb, this manifests as wings.
The wings of the Winged Tribes are often angelic, but in the case of races that naturally have wings, such as Harpies or Dragonians, they take on those forms. Some people have wings like those of butterflies or fairies, so it is unknown what kind of wings they will have until they are born.
Well, angelic wings or butterfly wings on a dragon would look incredibly strange.
The Winged Tribes are said to be born with very low probability, with at most a few individuals in each country. However, they have very high magic power and are favored in many countries.
Simply being a Winged Tribe can lead to invitations to important organizations.
Furthermore, this world has a concept called evolution. When one reaches level 41 or higher, it is possible to evolve into a class called High Class. Humans like myself become High Humans, and Elves become High Elves.
While their appearance does not change significantly, their magic power greatly increases, their lifespan extends, and their combat abilities soar.
Even at the same level 41, the difference between High Class and others is clear, with the former being at least 5 levels higher.
Of course, not everyone evolves, but it is easier to evolve as one’s level increases, and at level 50, evolution becomes almost mandatory.
Currently, there is one person in the Helios Orb who has surpassed the level 70 barrier, and that person has evolved into an even higher class called Ancient Class.
It feels like a regression to the ancestors, but I recall that races with “Ancient” in their names in games and novels were terrifyingly strong.
Regarding children, offspring often inherit the same race as one of their parents. However, rarely, half-breeds with characteristics of both parents are born.
Half-elves, born between Humans and Elves, are famous on Earth. However, in the Helios Orb, there are so many combinations that the library display is a bit complicated.
For example, a half-elf born between a Human and an Elf would be displayed as “Human Half-Elf” or “Elf Half-Human.” A half-breed born between a Dragonewt and a Tigary would be “Dragonewt Half-Tigary” or “Tigary Half-Dragonewt.” It cannot be known which race is the base until the child is born.
Therefore, there are not only half-elves but also half-humans, half-dragonewts, and half-harpies.
This is already complicated enough, but it gets even more complicated when the mother is a Yokai or a Dragonian.
Since Yokai are exclusively female, offspring, excluding half-breeds, always inherit the same race as their mother.
In the case of Dragonians, they become either the same race as one of their parents or become Dragonians themselves. Half-breeds are not born.
Apparently, they do not lay eggs.
Furthermore, polygamy is widespread, which is due to the high proportion of females throughout the Helios Orb.
Moreover, women may be absent from the front lines of work due to pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare, while men do not have such limitations. This means men must take on dangerous jobs like knights, soldiers, and hunters. Most bandits are also men.
As a result, there is a situation where there are few men, and the mortality rate is high.
On top of that, there’s the issue of pregnancy.
In the Helios Orb, individuals are recognized as adults at 17 years old. This is because one can only give birth from the age of 17, and not before the age of 16. In other words, one cannot become pregnant until the age of 17.
However, women generally have difficulty becoming pregnant, and few women have more than two children, excluding multiple births such as twins or triplets.
Therefore, it is not uncommon for women to have their first child at the age of 30. Even more troublesome is that both men and women lose their reproductive functions after the age of 40, making it impossible to have children.
While there is no problem with nighttime activities, the reasons for this include the high female population, the commonality of polygamy, and various other issues such as the extended lifespan due to evolution. It is said that the goddess of marriage made this difficult decision after much deliberation.
This also applies to guests.
For this reason, in the Amister Kingdom, it is not particularly frowned upon for commoners to marry nobles.
Especially if the heir is a woman, the family line would be broken unless a husband is taken. In some cases, there may not be any male nobles of a similar age. So, they cannot afford to be picky.
Certainly, if a family were to perish because of that, it would be counterproductive.
So, the most surprising thing I noticed upon entering Zack was that many of the people walking around were women.
Given that all Yokai are women, this might be understandable in a way.
As a side note, Duke Hydransia also had another wife besides Apricot. She reportedly passed away from illness about five years ago.
He had no children, so he doted on Prim, she said.
“Well, it’s late, so let’s take a bath and go to bed.”
“That sounds good. Mother, let’s go together.”
A day in this world is 24 hours, and a week is 7 days. However, a month is 30 days, and a year is 12 months, totaling 360 days, slightly shorter than on Earth.
Also, since there is no electricity, bedtime is early, with most people retiring by 9 PM at the latest.
Even in the bustling streets where light magic tools are used, things quiet down before midnight.
It’s just past 7 PM now, so it’s still early for me to sleep, but for Prim and the others, it’s their usual bedtime.
Incidentally, baths, like toilets, were apparently brought by guests.
I might take one later too.
“Yamato, if you peek, I’ll kill you.”
“I know.”
I have no intention of doing anything so suicidal.
Besides, I’m finally starting to understand the current situation and want to calm down and sort things out.
And the things I was taught on the road were not only about guilds, races, and currency, but also about magic.
Attribute magic is not as clearly systematized as Engraving Magic, but there are also systematic classifications such as Supplication Magic, Bestowed Magic, Guild Magic, and Unique Magic, which seem troublesome to learn.
Well, Storageing and Librarying are convenient.
Attribute magic consists of 8 attributes: fire, earth, wind, water, lightning, ice, light, and darkness. As it is, it’s sufficient for daily life, but it can also be used in combat.
However, fire magic is mostly used to throw fireballs or as a flamethrower, water magic as a water jet, and light magic as a blinding flash.
While the power varies depending on the level, it’s not that significant.
In that regard, Engraving Magic is more systematic and easier to use.
Therefore, there are classifications for unique magic developed by individuals, bestowed magic granted at birth, guild magic that can be used by joining a guild, and supplication magic created by dedicating oneself to the gods.
These four types of systems are collectively called Heavenly Magic.
I haven’t heard the specifics of what kind of magic they are, but I can somewhat guess.
That being said, now I need to practice the enhancement magic that Prim taught me.
She mentioned it’s quite convenient to use, and apparently, people in the Helios Orb can use it as naturally as breathing. So, I need to master it quickly.
