“It’s nice and peaceful when there’s nothing, but to think there’s not even a road.”
I unconsciously spoke.
To the south of Loreille is the capital Trisnia. North is a road to the kingdom of Arcland with many fortresses. The west side has the large river that flows to the Federation, North Terjes. However there is nothing to the east other than small villages.
I once saw on a map that there aren’t any countries east of Triea, these areas that border the Central Mountain Range lack in both strategic significance and production capacity, so the kingdom only requires the local Lords to conscript soldiers during wartime from the villages and leave them alone.
Because of that, the local Lords don’t have the capacity to do large-scale public works, and while there are lots of large open grassland areas, the roadways are only at the level of animal trails and any bogs or fallen trees along the woods were left as they are, making it difficult for transportation.
The small hills and brooks that dot the roads would become large hindrances whenever it rained.
“If only there were a properly done road, this trip would have taken only 2 days.”
“Yes… My mother always lamented this as well.”
I know that Ruu and Mireille work away from home, and the distance from the eastern villages to the kingdom’s center is far.
“What’s worse, even bandits would appear so traders would of course stay away.”
The reason the traders visit the remote eastern villages despite that, is for the opportunity to buy crops and furs on the cheap and sell city products at high prices.
Not a bridge they’d want to cross at the risk of being dispossessed root and branch by bandits.
“Mireille, you seem to have bought a lot of food, do you have a big family?”
“I have two parents and I am the eldest daughter, younger than me are 4 girls and 3 boys, 1 boy and 2 girls work the fields, but the land is becoming infertile. And they’re all still little brats that only know how to cry.”
It seems to be quite a big family, food for a family of 10 in the winter is already determined to be a large payload.
“Turnips are easy to get even during winter you see, and the nearby forest has some game too.”
She laughs, “But bears that aren’t sleeping are scary.”
“Ruu, does your family have lots of people too?”
“No! I have a mother and an older sister, my older sister farms and watches over mother. …Mother hasn’t been able to move much since she got a big burn last year.”
She’s got her own burdens, too.
“Since I’m like this I can’t do much field work, so I was told I might as well go earn money in the city.”
“Though I wasn’t able to earn much money anyway”, she added.
“I see, then we have to hurry so you can meet them again sooner”
“Yes!”
On a side note, Carla is heading straight down the road of a pervert, doing things like bashfully rolling up her shirt whenever my gaze meets hers, reaching her hands from behind onto my crotch whenever we practice riding on Schwarz, and masturbating in places where I’m sure to find her.