Chapter 3 - Chapter 3: "The Air of Freedom is Delicious"
Gokigenyou. I am Violia Nico Fortesia.
Right now, I am riding a horse westward from the Royal Capital immediately after my prison break, and I am admiring the morning sun from a mountain along the way.
"The morning sun of freedom is beautiful."
While stroking the horse's neck, I take a deep breath toward the dawn. It is a refreshing morning, fitting for the day after a prison break. I feel like I could even forget the feeling of being a fallen noble. Well, I won't actually forget it, though.
"Now, one more push. I'll sell this armor and helmet for money in a suitable village and have a meal. You can rest there too."
The horse lets out a snort and scrapes the ground with its front hoof as if to show it is still energetic. What a cute girl.
"...Then, let's head out!"
When I gave the signal to the horse, she began to run lightly again.
First, the thing I want to secure most is a hiding place.
After all, I am a criminal. I don't expect to be able to stay leisurely in a place where the sun shines without doing anything. Soldiers will surely chase after me and capture me soon.
...I can't kill all those hateful nobles and royals right this instant. I am aware of my excellence in martial arts, but it is truly reckless to think I could sneak into numerous mansions and castles with just this body and take the heads of my targets.
Humans possess the power of magic, but there is a power even greater than that.
That is the power of tools.
Weapons like swords and spears are tools, and poison and fire are also tools.
Sometimes tools allow a single human to achieve things they could never do with their body alone!
So in the end, what do I need to kill them all?
...Time and money.
It is time and money.
If I have time, I can prepare, and above all, I can make them lower their guard. And if I have money, I can obtain a hiding place, tools, equipment, and lodging!
...Or rather, money is a panacea. Most humans will turn a blind eye to things that don't concern them in exchange for money.
Conversely, humans don't care what happens as long as it doesn't involve them. There will surely be many who would turn me in just to satisfy some trivial sense of justice.
That is exactly why I need money. It can be used as a bribe. It can be scattered around to somehow improve people's impressions of me.
Working diligently to improve one's impression is, well, an option, but that is strictly a long-term strategy. For a short-term battle, rather than being diligent and serious, I have no choice but to throw bribes around, rack up achievements, and become an existence that 'cannot be crushed even if they wanted to' or 'where not crushing me is more beneficial than crushing me'!
...Therefore.
First, I'll aim for a town. It's only natural. If I need money, there must be a place where I can buy and sell to some extent.
Going to a town is partly for rest, but more importantly, it's to sell the armor and helmet.
Money is necessary for whatever I do. And right now, I only have the accessories I was wearing when I was imprisoned. Precious metals can be used almost like money without being exchanged, so I'd like to keep them as a trump card if possible.
Therefore, selling the armor and helmet is the only choice. In the first place, if I walk around wearing the equipment of a castle soldier, I'll stand out way too much. It's better to dispose of them before I'm suspected. Conveniently, there is a black market in the back alleys of Elsemarin. If I enter the town at night and move quickly, well, I'd like to think I can manage somehow.
However... there are also concerns.
If it's a town of a certain size, there are many people and it's very large. It's often said that the best place to hide a person is among people, so it would be a good place for me to hide... but there's a possibility that pursuers from the castle have already reached Elsemarin.
If soldiers are watching the perimeter of Elsemarin day and night, there's nothing I can do.
However, even if I wanted to bribe a soldier to keep them quiet, I'd have to go to a human settlement somewhere to get money anyway... and I'm likely to run into soldiers in that settlement... and the bribe I'd give to that soldier would have to be earned in a settlement...
It goes on forever, doesn't it?
Sigh, if only money were just lying around somewhere without any humans involved, that would be perfect...
...Or so I thought.
While I was thinking about such things and moving along.
"Yo, soldier-san over there."
Before I knew it, there were men in front of me who were clearly ill-mannered and lacked any refinement. Their filthy appearance and vulgar smiles only added to their boorishness.
"Being all alone in a place like this off the main road, do you have some circumstances?"
"Yes. Something like that."
When I answered, the men looked a bit surprised.
"...Heh. I couldn't tell because your face was hidden by the helmet. You're a woman, huh?"
"Yes. Is there a problem with that?"
"Not at all!"
When I asked back, the men let out vulgar laughter. As expected, it's a bit unpleasant.
"Heh heh heh, looks like we're in luck. To find a castle soldier, and a woman at that, all alone in a place like this..."
And the men insolently... surrounded me, brandishing machetes and hand axes, and attacked all at once.
"It's like you're asking to be attacked!"
"How trivial."
Of course, I am not the type to lose to such low-life scum. Naturally, I won an easy victory. Because I am a daughter of House Fortesia! This much is natural! No, but I was really surprised to be attacked so suddenly! I was surprised! I was truly surprised!
...But it's a good thing I had a weapon. Having even a single mass-produced spear makes a world of difference.
I am better with a sword or a bow than a spear, but well, I managed somehow, so it's fine.
"D-damn... what is this girl..."
When I struck the head of the fool who attacked me with the spear again, he became quiet. If one is to bask in the afterglow of victory, the groans of the losers are merely a nuisance.
"Damn... I thought she'd have something valuable..."
...However.
"Wait a moment."
I cannot overlook those words just now.
"What did you just say?"
"Eh, ah..."
"Speak!"
When I grabbed the groaning man by the collar and pressed him, he cried out with a face that looked like he was about to weep.
"I said I thought you'd have something valuable! M-my bad! I just thought a soldier would be living the good life! I—"
"Oh, is that so?"
I let go of the man's collar and instead strangled him until he passed out.
There was no one left to speak but me, and in the midst of the fallen bandits, I...
"...That's right."
I trembled at the thought that flashed through my mind like a revelation.
"If I don't have money..."
Ah, why hadn't I thought of it until now!
A way to earn money safely without entering a settlement and in a place where the soldiers' eyes likely won't reach!
That is!
"I should just steal it!"
Now that I've decided, I must hurry. 'Good things should be done quickly,' as they say. A perfect target for plunder is right here.
"Bandit. Wake up."
I found a bandit among those I had just defeated who seemed to still be conscious, slapped him, and then interrogated him.
"Tell me where your hideout is."