“So, it seems everyone has finally evacuated from Lindor’s territory,” Ivern said, setting down his luggage.
“Hey,” I said.
“What is it?”
“Where do you get all this detailed information?”
He’s always been good at bringing back rumors from town, but lately, his information has been incredibly accurate.
This guy should really become an information broker, shouldn’t he?
I asked him that, and Ivern immediately explained, “Oh, you know the Weimar guards at the forest entrance?”
“Yeah, the ones doing it voluntarily.”
Ivern gave me a sidelong glance when I said that.
Nara-kun, not knowing the situation, looked puzzled.
“Huh? Those people are guarding this place voluntarily?”
“No way. Kenta pressured them into it. Semi-forced, I tell you.”
“…As expected of Maya-san.”
“Why are you so freaked out? I didn’t ask for any of this.”
Well, I did say something about how it would be troublesome for us if that ridiculous wanted poster caused any problems…
“So? What about those guards?”
“Oh, right. I’m the only one going in and out of this forest, right? So I got friendly with the new guards. They’re the ones who tell me all sorts of things.”
“You’re being used as a convenient messenger, aren’t you?”
“Huh, that’s how you get such accurate information, I guess,” Nara-kun said, completely oblivious.
Well, Nara-kun isn’t that jaded yet.
He doesn’t seem to understand that the royalty of this world wouldn’t have their guards share such information out of the goodness of their hearts…
“Haa… So? Messenger. Did they say anything else?”
Ivern looked a little surprised when I asked that.
“Messenger?”
Oh, that’s what surprised him.
Or rather, is the word “messenger” not a thing here?
“Sorry. Never mind. So? What’s the deal?”
“They did say something… but how did you know?”
“It’s obvious. Villages, towns, and even the Capital City, with all the buildings left behind after people leave. It’s the perfect place for criminals to set up shop.”
Ivern let out a small “Oh” when I said that.
“That’s amazing. They said the exact same thing.”
“And because of that, they have to allocate personnel to border security, which is a pain, right?”
“Huh? Were you eavesdropping on my conversations with them?”
“I don’t need to eavesdrop to know that.”
Weimar is subtly leaking information about the surrounding countries to me through Ivern, trying to divert my attention away from Weimar.
I don’t know what that will lead to, but I guess they just want to keep the information flowing for now.
“Well, it doesn’t really concern me, though.”
Lindor only brings back bad memories, and besides, it’s the country that kidnapped me, lied to make me obey, and then betrayed me in the end.
I don’t feel an ounce of sympathy.
So, I decided that was the end of the Lindor talk and headed towards the house with the luggage Ivern brought back, mainly the wheat. But Nara-kun was lost in thought.
“What’s wrong, Nara-kun? Let’s carry the luggage.”
When I called out to Nara-kun, who was spacing out, he snapped out of it and approached me.
“Maya-san!”
“What?”
“Everyone’s gone from Lindor, right!?”
“Yeah.”
“Then, Maya-san, why don’t you just take over the former Lindor territory?!”
“Are you an idiot?”
“Ouch!!”
I smacked Nara-kun on the head for coming up with such a stupid idea after all that thinking.
Nara-kun, who received my knuckle strike, was crouching down, holding his head.
“Hey, don’t sit there. Hurry up and carry the luggage.”
When I said that to Nara-kun, who was crouching, he glared at me with teary eyes.
“That hurt! It was a great idea, wasn’t it!? Why did you hit me!?”
“What’s so great about it? I just finished building your house, you know?”
“…Ah.”
This guy… after all the effort I put into building a house for Nara-kun and Eva.
Ah, I see, I see.
“Okay, Nara-kun, you can go to Lindor by yourself.”
“I’m sorry! It’s all based on the premise that Maya-san is there, so it’s pointless for me to go alone!”
“Based on the premise that I’m there?”
“Yes! Because Maya-san, you know how to fix that barren land, right? I don’t know how, so it won’t work without you.”
“Then it’ll never work.”
I ignored Nara-kun’s nonsense and went into the house with the luggage.
Then, Nara-kun followed me into the house.
Hey, what about the luggage?
“But it’s a great idea, right? Maya-san, you could easily take over a country.”
“I wouldn’t do something so troublesome. Besides, if I took over Lindor, they’d form a Kenta Maya subjugation army, wouldn’t they?”
A subjugation coalition army would head towards Maya Castle, built on barren land.
Since I’m the target of subjugation, the Demon Tribe would probably join too.
This is totally me in the position of the final boss.
“I’m fine here. I don’t need a bigger place than this.”
“Well, yeah, even if we got a whole town, we’d definitely have too much space.”
“Right? If you understand, then that’s the end of this conversation. You should go take your luggage back to your place.”
“Got it.”
Nara-kun replied and was about to leave the house, but for some reason, he suddenly stopped and turned towards me.
“Come to think of it, they call a town where people have disappeared a ghost town, right?”
“Yeah.”
“What do you call it if it’s a country?”
“I don’t know! Just go already!”
It’s something that doesn’t matter, but now I’m really curious!
What is it? What do you call it?
A ghost country?
I’ve never heard of such a word.
Besides, it’s impossible for no one to take over the territory after a country disappears.
In that sense, this world is messed up.