Eileen: “…”
Only now did she finally understand why Mia held this kind of attitude toward them.
To put it simply, it was like being a department supervisor only to suddenly be ordered by the boss to pour tea and serve water for an employee one usually bullied at will. How could there not be resentment?
It was only because the one giving Mia the order was Kate, the strongest combat force in the Principality. If it had been anyone else, she would probably have thrown down her work and refused long ago.
Kate had indeed given them the highest level of care, but she had also truly failed to consider the resentment of people like Mia.
The other accompanying personnel in the ordinary carriage had never shown their faces. They were probably in the same mindset as Mia.
Normally they were lofty members of the Duke’s Private Knight Order. Today they had to look after two bottom-tier E-rank adventurers. Who could endure such a contrast?
“Miss Eileen, this…”
Atia turned to look at Eileen, seeking her opinion.
“Just get on first.”
Eileen wasn’t being pretentious. She simply pulled Atia onto the carriage.
It was clear that Mia already held a grudge against them. If they further obstructed the work Kate had assigned her, the entire journey might become very unpleasant.
After the two of them boarded, Mia followed right after and got on as well.
As the highest-specification carriage in the Principality, it was far more than just two rows of genuine leather seats.
A small table sat in the middle of the carriage, laid out with exquisite tea snacks and drinks. Anyone who didn’t know better would think they were inside a private room of some high-class restaurant.
Of course, no matter how luxurious a carriage was, it couldn’t completely avoid the bumps of the road. Even if the interior was made as refined as possible, a long journey of jolting would still leave everything in a mess.
For that reason, this carriage had a small shock-absorption magic specially designed into the chassis, making it almost impossible to feel any vibration.
This indeed raised the comfort of riding in a carriage, but it also created an unavoidable problem—motion sickness.
The Ignis were very fast. Combined with the fact that there was almost no noticeable trembling inside the carriage, sitting in it felt like riding a high-speed train. Paired with the soft leather seats, it was simply top-tier enjoyment.
The only downside was probably that the road was far too boring.
It was Atia’s first time riding in this kind of carriage. She was already so excited she completely forgot about chatting. Her entire body was pressed against the window as she admired the scenery flashing past along the way.
Eileen tried several times to strike up a conversation with Mia, but Mia’s responses were extremely cold. It was either “mm,” “ah,” or “oh,” or she would use some empty formalities to shut down the topic, giving her no chance at all to continue chatting.
Later, Mia perhaps grew impatient and simply closed her eyes to rest.
The thought of still having several more hours of road to cover left Eileen in a wave of despair.
Days without a phone are too hard to endure…
“Ugh… Miss Eileen, I-I feel a little unwell…”
Just as Eileen was also planning to simply take a nap, Atia suddenly tugged at the corner of her clothes. Her face was ashen, and she was covering her mouth, looking as if she was about to throw up at any second.
“Stop the carriage! Stop!”
Eileen was greatly alarmed and hurriedly called for the coachman to stop.
Mia opened her eyes and immediately frowned. “Why are you reacting so strongly?”
“Let me ask you, how much does this carpet cost?”
Eileen asked.
Mia didn’t understand, but still answered truthfully. “This is a velvet carpet imported from the Elven Kingdom. Roughly one gold coin or so?”
“Good. Then give me one gold coin right now.”
“?”
Mia’s head was full of question marks. “Why are you asking me for money?”
“Nonsense. If you don’t let the coachman stop right now, I’m going to have to pay compensation.”
One gold coin was no small sum for the current Eileen. Although Kate would definitely cover the cost for her, she didn’t want to keep spending Kate’s money.
Mia didn’t understand, but still had the coachman stop the carriage.
The moment the carriage stopped, Atia charged straight out, squatted by the roadside, and began vomiting rainbows.
Only at this moment did Mia understand why Eileen had insisted on stopping.
With that pile of rainbows going down, not only would the carpet be ruined, the entire carriage would probably stink.
There was still half a day’s journey left to Mordin City. If Atia really threw up inside the carriage, she didn’t even dare imagine how tormenting the rest of the road would become…
“I’ve only ever heard of people wanting to throw up from riding teleportation arrays. This is the first time I’ve seen someone throw up from riding a carriage.”
Mia clicked her tongue in amazement.
“If you remove the shock-absorption array, she probably won’t throw up.”
Eileen said.
“Why?”
“Although the carriage has a shock-absorption array and is much smoother, it isn’t completely free of vibration. Instead, there is continuous low-frequency and irregular swaying. For someone riding this kind of carriage for the first time, it is even more likely to cause dizziness and nausea than intense jolting.”
Eileen explained, “Why don’t you try turning off the shock-absorption array afterward?”
“I refuse.”
Mia immediately rejected the idea.
Without the shock-absorption array, how would that be any different from torture?
At the same time, the other carriage also stopped. The other accompanying personnel took the opportunity to get down and get some air. Eileen finally saw their true faces for the first time.
After boarding, Mia had briefly introduced the other two accompanying members of the Duke’s Private Knight Order. One was an expert who studied magical beasts, and the other was a warrior of considerable prestige within the Knight Order.
“Lady Mia, since we’ve already stopped, why don’t we just take care of lunch first?”
The accompanying Knight Order warrior—Declan—proposed.
“That’s right, Lady Mia. There’s still half a day’s journey left. Our bodies won’t hold up if we don’t eat something.”
The Knight Order’s magical beast expert, Lucen, chimed in as well.
However, their goal wasn’t actually wanting to eat lunch. They were simply looking for an excuse to rest.
The ordinary carriage did not have any of the amenities of the luxurious one that Mia and the others were riding.
Without a shock-absorption array, and with the Ignis running at high speed, the jolting along the way could shake one’s backside into eight pieces.
The seats were also simple wooden ones with only a thin cushion laid on top. The jolting was one thing, but it also hurt…
Mia understood what they meant and naturally did not call them out on it.
“Then find a place to start a fire. I’ll go to the river and fetch some water.”
“Lady Mia, leave this kind of rough work to me.”
Declan hurriedly stopped her.
Mia was an Upper-rank Mage and a girl on top of that. How could they let her do this kind of rough work?
“Enough. Did you really think I would go fetch water with a bucket?”
Mia stretched out a small hand. The water in a small puddle on the road gathered at her fingertips. “Water magic, kid.”
“Oh oh…”
Declan nodded repeatedly.
Water magic was truly convenient…
“Mia, be careful using water magic by the river. Pay attention to the flow of magic power.”
As a former S-rank mage, Eileen saw the situation and spoke up with a reminder.
Water magic was one of the most basic types of magic. It was indeed simple and full of convenience in daily life, but it also carried a certain degree of risk, especially in turbulent rivers.
One moment of carelessness could lead to failing to control the flow of magic power and being swept into the river by the current.
However, faced with Eileen’s reminder, Mia paid it no mind at all.
What a joke. She was an Upper-rank Mage. Did she need an E-rank adventurer to remind her?
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