"Yukito-san, you understand now, right?" asked Hime.
"If you accidentally slip up, we might get caught and considered as kidnappers, you know." replied Yuu-chan.
Hah... I'm not sure if I can do it, but I'll try.
Since we'll be arriving at Necvalion soon, there's no way I can call her "Hime."
Of course, people will know that she is Sephira Hime, the princess of the Necvalion kingdom.
The same goes if I call her Sephira.
And so, Hime decided to use the name "Char" as her alias.
It sounds familiar, doesn't it? Hime said she took that alias from Charlotte's name.
Since she couldn't think of any other name at the moment, that's why she used a piece of someone else's name.
"Char, right? Maybe I'll get used to it eventually…" I said.
To be honest, if I wanted to, I wouldn't call her by that name.
It's not that the name sounds bad or unfitting for her, I just feel it doesn't suit me when I say it.
My tongue is not used to names like that at all.
——
We stopped near the entrance gate, not because something was blocking us or an accident happened.
But there was an inspection carried out by the government of Necvalion at their city gate.
I don't know what they want to secure or check, but I hope it won't cause problems.
Roff-san said that most likely, we just need to show our certificate cards, whether you're an adventurer, merchant, or a common citizen.
If they don't have any of those three, the last option is the nobles and important people.
For them, there would be no stopping at all, and they would be allowed to pass. The social gap is extremely wide.
Ah, here it is, finally our carriage is being inspected.
——
There were around ten to fifteen people guarding and working at the inspection at this gate.
Only four people were actually checking, meaning the others were on guard duty.
"What is your purpose for coming here?" asked one of the people inspecting us.
The six of us immediately took out our certificate cards as adventurers or merchants.
We should be allowed to pass… hopefully.
"You're a merchant, right? Then, what are you bringing into the city today?" the man asked, which had to be answered by the carriage driver.
"Ah, I'm just escorting an acquaintance who's sitting in the back. He's an adventurer from Malcro and wants to look for a mission in this city's guild." he replied.
The man immediately returned our certificate cards and allowed the carriage to enter the city.
Back then when I left Necvalion heading to Ulvur, there was no such checkpoint.
Even then, there were only three fully armored men stationed there — just them.
There was no ID check, everyone could enter and pass freely.
Their job was only to stand there while observing, in case something happened.
But now, it has turned into an inspection point like this. Is the city in a state of crisis? Impossible, the Necvalion kingdom is one of the largest kingdoms on this continent.
Necvalion should be able to handle any crisis that hits them.
"You three don't mind getting off at the guild, right?" asked Roff-san.
"Of course, we're very grateful." I replied.
——
"Thank you for the ride." the three of us said in unison.
"We'll go first, okay? Don't die out there, alright?" said Roff-san while clenching his fist and holding it out to me.
Ah, it's been a while since I've seen someone do a fist bump like that again.
I clenched my fist as well and bumped it with Roff-san's.
As fellow adventurers with almost similar thinking, I feel like I can ask for his help if I'm in trouble.
Especially if something like last night happens again, the two of us ended up forgetting the time from how fun it was.
"So, where should we go first?" I asked.
"Let's go inside first, I'll submit our mission reports from our earlier quests." said Him— Char.
Our earlier mission…? Ah, the mission where we went to Ulvur to take down the monster on the road leading to that city.
That was our original intention, with another goal, which was to find a closer route to Charlotte's home.
Normally, I'd wait outside, but this time, I chose to enter with the three of them.
Because that would prove that the three of us are indeed a party.
At the receptionist desk, I met my old acquaintance again. When I first visited this guild, Lyra-san.
"Fuu-chan! It's been so long since we last met!" said Lyra-san after seeing the three of us approaching her desk.
"And who's the cute girl beside you?" she asked Hime.
"Ah, this is Yuu-chan. We met a while ago and decided to become a party." Hime replied.
Ah, that's right. Not only Hime was using an alias in this city, but I was too.
The name "Yukito" had spread widely throughout the city, that's why I used "Kid" while we're here.
By the way, the reason is the same as Hime, who used a part of Charlotte's name.
"And this is Kid. You didn't know his name before, right, Lyra-san?" Hime asked.
"That's true. Well, I'm glad to meet you both." Lyra-san said with a smile.
"If you've returned, that means you've completed that mission in Ulvur, right?" she asked again.
"Y-yeah, something like that…" Hime answered while slightly averting her gaze. Why does she do something that makes others suspicious?
"So, what are you planning to do next? Most importantly, I hope you'll come back with good news." she said.
"Of course, we will." Hime replied.
The three of us left Lyra-san's desk and walked out of the guild.
——
Hime said she wanted to stay at the same inn we stayed in before.
Back then, Yuu-chan didn't have her human form yet and was still just a status screen.
Just like before, Hime also rented the same room. Is she trying to revive those memories?
Back then, I woke up in the morning and felt something heavy and warm on top of me.
I opened my eyes and saw Hime sleeping soundly on top of my body. She was treating me like a soft bed.
Yuu-chan ended up waking Hime, and Hime became embarrassed and left the room.
None of that would've happened if the room only had one bed. Well, the current room still only has one bed.
"Just like before, Yukito-sama will sleep on the floor. The two of us will sleep on the bed." said Yuu-chan.
"Yeah, yeah… I know." I replied.
Since the situation is completely different now, I have to sleep on the floor again.
Well, I'm already used to sleeping on floors, so it won't be a problem.
——
That night, once again, I couldn't sleep. Not because I was sleeping on something hard or because it was cold.
But my eyes simply didn't want to close and wanted to stay open.
Then suddenly, I heard a very loud bell.
In the middle of the city, there is a large bell that is rung whenever something serious happens.
And that bell is being rung this late at night… I'm getting a bad feeling.