### Chapter Twelve: The Strange Traveling Merchant
In the northern regions of the Western Continent, snowflakes fluttered down like soft cotton flowers, blanketing the earth in shimmering silver that seemed to merge with the sky.
On the spacious road, a hundred shiny-armored knights marched through the frosted world, their steps echoing with the sound of golden leather boots, leaving a jumbled trail behind.
Amidst this long line, a luxurious war chariot was sandwiched in the middle, where the sound of bored banter floated out.
“… three pairs and a two.”
“Pass.”
“Pass.”
“Eight to King straight flush, one card left.”
“Royale flush.”
“… Little Shay, why are you blowing up on me when we’re on the same team? Blow up him! He’s the landlord!”
Carlos, with a face full of little sticky notes, looked at my equally sticker-covered face with a rather helpless expression.
“I don’t care. Whose fault is it for playing that card and blowing me up?”
Feeling quite pleased with myself, I let out a smug snort, giving him the universally recognized hand gesture. How dare he blow me up when he was the one who played first? I didn’t care who the landlord was; I just didn’t want him to win so easily!
“… you’re a traitor.”
“A pair of Aces.”
“A pair of threes, anyone want to blow up? If not, I’ll play a pair of Kings.”
Knight Captain Clair’s face was calm and his gaze indifferent as he spoke. Having grown accustomed to this scene, he completely lost any sense of enjoyment from the game.
Initially, when he was invited, Clair was indeed stunned by this game called “Landlord.” The rules were intriguing, and he prided himself on being clever and good at card games. Being a man, Clair naturally wanted to impress the stunning Miss Silvya.
But after playing a few rounds, he realized a sad truth: whether or not he was the landlord, Miss Silvya would only attack Mr. Carlos. As long as Carlos lost, she would be happy whether she won or not. Even when he got the landlord cards, he didn’t really need to think; he could throw down cards willy-nilly, never getting the chance to show off his genius.
Clearly, he was just a number, and winning or losing wouldn’t catch the lady’s attention.
One must have self-awareness. Clair had come to terms with it. He was just there to be a playmate, and that was enough.
No matter what, being able to interact closely with Miss Silvya was always a pleasure. Though she looked young, her bright eyes and lovely teeth, along with a slightly melancholic expression, made one feel as if they were experiencing first love, no matter how long they gazed.
He couldn’t help but resentfully glance at Carlos, the same Pope Knight as Miss Silvya, wondering which lucky fellow would end up with her in the future.
“Hey, Little Shay, hold him back! He’s down to one card!” Carlos’ attention was entirely consumed by the cards, his eyes wide and dull, occasionally glancing sideways at me.
“I won’t hold.” I shrugged at him, unconcerned.
“If you won’t hold with a pair of Kings, then why the heck are you blowing up?”
“Because I want to.”
“Mr. Carlos, you’re not holding either? Then I’m afraid I must be rude.”
Clair played down his last card, declaring this round’s game over.
“Not playing anymore.” Carlos slammed his cards down, pointing at my nose, “You’ve got no card ethics.”
“Yep~ so what?” I picked up a small torn paper note and pretended to slap it on his face. Carlos immediately dodged aside.
“Trying to cheat because you lost?” I shouted unhappily.
“First, put one on yourself.”
“I won’t! I’m giving it to you!”
Watching the two heroes behave so childishly, Clair shook his head helplessly, a goofy smile breaking out.
“Mr. Carlos, Miss Silvya, if you’re not going to continue playing, I need to get off the war chariot to lead the team.”
“Oh, oh, alright, thanks for your hard work~” Carlos waved him off, and once the Knight Captain got down, he turned to me with renewed enthusiasm, “Little Shay, did you come up with this way of playing?”
“Um, sort of?” I answered evasively. There was no explaining this kind of thing, so I quickly changed the subject, “Hey, we’re in the Valen Empire, right?”
“Yeah, didn’t we just pass the watchtower? That’s the border checkpoint.” Carlos pushed the card pile away, settling comfortably in his seat. “The Church has special entry channels, and this is one of them. Just show a pass to avoid a lot of trouble. When we get to Winter City, I’ll have someone get you one too. Keep it safe; losing it would be a nuisance.”
“Okay. How far do we have to go?”
“At our current speed, if all goes well, about another ten days, not too far off.”
“Wait, so half a month more?”
My mood immediately sank, and I kicked my little feet dejectedly. It had been just over a month since we set off from Emerald City, with practically no time to rest. Despite the beautiful scenery, as someone from the internet age, this whole month of either being in the war chariot or around it made me feel like an aggrieved woman stuck in a deep boudoir.
Having frequently flown before, I hadn’t thought much of it until now, suddenly realizing what a tremendous invention flight was.
Carlos tilted his head to observe me, noticing my droopy expression, and found it quite amusing.
“What’s wrong? Feeling a bit impatient?”
I nodded pitifully.
“You really have no patience, huh? Why not hop down and walk with the knights?”
“…”
True, I would go down for some fresh air.
I tightened my little shawl and shot a defiant glance at Carlos, then lifted the curtain and jumped down.
The cold wind hit me like a wave, instantly sending my hair flying chaotically, with the ends tickling my face.
I raised my hand, hooking my pinky around my hair and brushing it back, revealing my delicate ear.
“Miss Silvya, why did you come down?” Knight Captain Clair looked surprised to see me out of the chariot. “The northern weather is very cold, you should go back in. Be careful not to catch a chill.”
At his words, I smiled charmingly and shook my head lightly.
“I’m fine. I’m not cold. It’s stuffy in the chariot; I wanted to stretch my legs.”
Please! How could someone so intimately acquainted with the Frost Order like me feel cold? Rather, this snow-filled weather made me feel more comfortable and at home.
Besides, this body of mine seemed immune to illness.
“Oh, then be careful; if you feel unwell, hurry back to the war chariot.”
Knight Captain Clair looked at me with much concern, which struck me as particularly funny. I couldn’t help but wonder if my appearance made others see me as a delicate little girl, to the point where this Knight Captain had entirely forgotten I was also a Pope Knight.
Why couldn’t I have a more hunky setup, like a character who jumps out and yells “RUA!”?
Right now, I was far from a macho man, and my somewhat dainty charm felt rather natural.
With a hint of dejection, I looked down as my feet crunched in the snow, which barely reached my ankles, making satisfying crunchy sounds.
I exhaled a puff of white mist and looked up at the sky.
The sunlight was hiding behind the clouds, casting a faint gloom.
We could probably go a little further; once it got dark, we’d have to set up camp right there.
After all, unlike Carlos and me, they were just regular folks who didn’t have a war chariot to ride in. The knights were used to training their physical strength and were still able to chat and laugh, while the merchant crew appeared incredibly fatigued; if they didn’t rest soon, it might affect tomorrow’s preparations.
“There’s still quite a long way to the next town; we definitely won’t make it today. We should find a place to camp soon.”
“Yeah.”
“Miss Silvya, is this your first time in the Valen Empire?”
Knight Captain Clair seemed a bit awkward trying to make small talk, and I surprisingly caught a glimpse of his nervousness, which made me want to chuckle.
I reached up to catch the falling snowflakes in my palm, just about to respond when suddenly, a flicker of inspiration struck me, and familiar scenes flashed through my mind like a fast slideshow.
I stood frozen, feelings of inexplicable emotions surging up within, my eyes momentarily losing focus.
This sensation passed in an instant, and I subconsciously pressed my forehead.
What was that?
The images flashed too quickly; I couldn’t remember… It felt like, in the last moment, a pair of slightly rough big hands had brushed my head.
Such a gentle touch. What was that?
There was no one like that in my memory.
Looking back at the vast snowfield, a sense of dreamlike familiarity filled my heart.
Suddenly, I felt as if… I hadn’t come here for the first time…?
“Miss Silvya, are you okay? Is everything alright?”
“I’m… fine.” I shook my head.
Snow continued to fall into my open palm and quickly melted into drops of water from my body heat.
“Maybe you should go back into the war chariot.” Knight Captain Clair said with concern.
“What’s going on?” Carlos peeked his head out of the war chariot, curious about the commotion.
“Nothing. Maybe… my eyes are just a bit dazzled?”
I tilted my head, making a questioning face.
“… Snow blindness?”
“Probably.”
“Then what are you doing just standing there? Hurry back up!”
“Oh.”
But it could also be that I had been cooped up in the war chariot for too long, leading to hallucinations.
I lifted my foot, just as I was about to hop back into the chariot when I noticed a knight hurrying over from the front of the line.
“Captain Clair, there are people ahead!”
“People? What kind of people?”
“They look like a group of traveling merchants from Silgaya.”
“Traveling merchants from Silgaya? At this time? On this road?” Knight Captain Clair furrowed his brow at the news.
Silgaya was an agricultural powerhouse, exporting almost all agricultural products to other countries. Logically, trade activities should have concluded over a month ago, and this would be considered the off-season. Why were there still merchants heading for the Valen Empire?
Moreover… they were using the Holy Church’s exclusive entryway?
That was a bit odd.
“Captain, they seem to be in some trouble; should we go help?”
