Wortenia Senki (LN) - Volume 8 - Chapter Ep

Epilogue 

The Holy Qwiltantia Empire reigned over the western continent’s western regions. Located in its southern territory, near the border with the southern kingdoms, was the port city of Lentencia — the flourishing heart of commerce and trade in southern Qwiltantia. 

Just as the sun was beginning to rise above the horizon, a single man appeared in this city. He was clad in a cloak and hood that hid his face. It wasn’t clear at a glance if he was a mercenary, an adventurer, or some kind of traveler. His appearance didn’t indicate much, but he wasn’t particularly suspicious either. If anything, his presence felt oddly faint. 

The man quickly passed through the gate’s guards, and headed immediately into Lentencia’s pleasure district. 

“Hmm... Is this the place?” 

Confirming the sign, which had the words ‘The Echo Hall, Purveyor to the Guild’ on it, he headed into the tavern. 

“Oh, you’re here early, mister.” A younger man who was working the bar noticed the man enter. “Drinking this early in the day?” 

“Mm. A drink and something to eat,” the man said, lifting the hood from over his eyes. 

“Oh... Still adventuring at your age? That’s rough,” the worker said, shrugging upon seeing the man’s face. 

Despite how trifling the comment was, the man seemed to have taken offense to it. 

“You can spare me the bullshit...” The man glared at him. “Now, where’s my food and drink? Something to fill my stomach would be appreciated.” 

“Ah, sorry...” the worker said respectfully. “Well, just sit wherever. All the girls are out until the evening, though. You don’t mind?” 

The worker started speaking apologetically. His instincts were blaring out alarm bells regarding this man. The public order in this pleasure district was rather bad, and so the fact he worked here meant he had to have been quite strong by necessity. After all, there was no phone to call the police in this world, and this worker was experienced enough with kicking out drunk adventurers and mercenaries. 

But against this man, even five people on this worker’s level would stand no chance. 

Scoffing at the worker’s sudden toadying, the man looked away as if having lost his interest. 

“I don’t need to tell you my order, right? Then hurry up... And get me two glasses and a pitcher of water.” 

With that said, the man took a seat on the furthest table from the door. It was, in fact, not a convenient spot to carry his order to. 

What’s his problem...? He doesn’t need to sit in the corner like that... 

Sitting by the counter would make things that much easier for both of them, but since he’d already taken a seat, the worker couldn’t very well ask him to move. 

Oh, fine... 

Heaving a small sigh so the man wouldn’t notice, the worker disappeared into the kitchen. And then minutes later... 

“Here you are, mister... Thank you for waiting.” The worker carried in a large plate full of what looked like pasta noodles and soup. 

“Ooh...” the man exclaimed, the smell of the condiments whetting his appetite. 

Judging by the pepper-like spices on the dish, it was likely something akin to a bacon peperoncino. 

Mm... It looks good, the man thought to himself. 

Normally, peperoncino was made only using spices, peppers and olive oil, and didn’t include bacon or any kind of meat, but this was a dish belonging to this world. Without voicing any complaints, the man took up his fork and started eating. 

“And here’s your beer and water,” the worker said, placing the drinks on the table. 

He mustered what little courage he had to inquire at the man’s mood. Sneaking a glance at the worker, the man reached for his coin pouch. 

“I’ll be staying till nightfall today. How much for the fee?” 

“Huh? Till nightfall...?” the worker parroted him in surprise. “You’ll be staying here that long?” 

The tavern was open all day and all night. Being in a pleasure district, the place got most of its business during nighttime, and was mostly open as a restaurant for the city’s workers during the day. As such, there was no real reason to turn down the man’s request. 

But it was seven in the morning. Staying there until nightfall meant he’d spend a full half-day just sitting there. True, some people drank the night away, but people drinking the day away wasn’t very common. 

“What? Is that a problem?” the man asked, noting the worker’s surprised attitude. 

“N-No, not at all, but...” the worker stammered. 

There wasn’t a problem per se. But even if the store was busiest at night, it still had its share of customers during the day, and given the traffic of customers, one person ordering a bit wouldn’t make for much of a profit. 

But the man, sensing the worker’s hesitation, took a gold coin out of his pouch and held it out. 

“My fee for taking up space. This enough for you?” he asked, flicking the coin. 

“Whoa... Mister, are you crazy or something? If you’d come around at night, you could buy some pretty girls.” 

Confirming the weight of the gold coin in his hand, the worker eyed the man questioningly. This single gold coin was worth far more than just sitting in the store for a day. It might not have been enough to rent out the most expensive store in Lentencia for a day, but in a store like this one, he could have all the waitresses it boasted attend to him. Including their special nightly services. 

Refusing payment from a customer was an odd thing to be sure, but since they were servicing customers, they had to know where to draw the line. 

I thought he might be a bit weird in the head, but... It doesn’t look like it... 

His appearance was mismatched, but it was still within the bounds of reason. He didn’t give off the sense of incoherence a madman did. And besides, the man seemed to have waved him off as if to say the discussion was over, so he was forced to accept the coin. 

Oh, well... Guess I’ll just take his fee for the food and drink out of this. 

Though even with that, there was still a pretty hefty sum left over, but at least it wouldn’t torment his conscience that much. Besides, if he was planning on drinking now, he’d end up spending a good amount on snacks anyway. 

I’ll ask the owner what to do later... Wait, what’s that old guy doing? 

As he pondered the situation, the worker looked behind him, seeing the man pouring water from a pitcher into a cup. Him drinking while he ate wasn’t out of the ordinary, of course, but the man only filled the cup halfway, and then covered it with an empty plate. It looked like the prank of a child who’d been dragged into a boring situation by their parents. The worker had seen it happen in the past. 

But the man’s expression didn’t look like he was trying to pull a prank. Looking at him again, the worker shrugged and went behind the counter, the meaning behind the man’s action lost on him... 

That night, one woman marched through Lentencia’s trade district. Her healthy, brown skin and chiseled features would make anyone from Ryoma’s world assume she was a woman of Arabian descent. She looked to be in her mid thirties. Her limbs were toned, and her bosoms and buttocks were plump. One could say she had an appearance and age that accentuated her femininity. 

Her appearance gave the impression she was a tavern’s waitress, or a prostitute — a woman of the pleasure district. But even as she walked, surrounded by inquisitive gazes, the woman slid into a certain company’s entrance with a flowing motion. 

“Forgive me for coming in at this time of night,” the woman said, bowing her head respectfully to the doorkeeper. 

“Aren’t you... One of the Echo Hall’s waitresses?” he asked. 

This doorkeeper frequented the Echo Hall with his friends on his days off, and so he knew her face. He couldn’t help but feel it was odd to find her here so late at night, though. 

“Yes. Actually, there’s a customer in our establishment... I’d like to see Liu Daijin and report something about him.” With that said, the woman took a card out of her cleavage and presented it to the doorkeeper. 

In this world, one would recognize it as the identification card used in the banks and the guild. The moment he saw it, the doorkeeper’s expression changed. Scolding himself for thinking she was just a waitress, he quickly took the card and poured a bit of his prana into it. 

“My apologies... I’ll go check and announce your arrival. Please wait right here.” 

After confirming the pattern that appeared on the card, the doorkeeper spoke in a manner that was the very opposite of the suspicion he’d shown her moments ago. The woman didn’t take any offense at it, of course. His behavior was merely proof she’d done her duties well. 

“Thank you.” She bowed her head to the doorkeeper as he disappeared into the building. It only took a few minutes before the doorkeeper came back with a man in tow. He was a middle-aged man of medium build clad in a tailcoat. He had swept-back black hair. The doorkeeper’s words that he’d announce her arrival weren’t a lie, it seemed. 

“Thank you for waiting. I am called Zheng, a butler in service of Liu Daijin. I hear you wish to meet my master. Do come with me...” 

Following after him, the woman headed deeper into the company building. They took a staircase underground, where the woman found herself facing a large wooden door. The room ahead probably used the entire basement floor. 

“Master... I’ve brought the guest,” the butler said, knocking on the door a few times. 

“Come in,” a man’s voice echoed from behind the door. 

“Excuse me, then.” The butler opened the door. 

A room full of glittering colors greeted the woman. 

“It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Liu Daijin,” the woman said, kneeling down and hanging her head as soon as she noticed the man before her. “I am Ruqaiya Redouane, the Organization’s dispatch in this city.” 

Liu was a tall man with a long beard that extended down to the floor. 

“We’re both part of the Organization. You’ve no need to insist on ceremony... Rise,” Liu said, prompting her to get up. 

“I’m not worthy, sir...” 

Ruqaiya was relatively well-known within the Organization for her skills, and one could even count her among the group’s upper echelons. But the old man before her was of a completely different status. He was one of the twelve most distinguished members of the Organization, who had set up the very foundations of the group. 

Martial thaumaturgy had greatly curbed his aging, and so one couldn’t quite see it from how he looked, but this man was approaching a hundred years of age. Even if the Organization had placed Ruqaiya in charge of Lentencia, Liu Daijin was above and beyond her in rank. 

“I’ve heard you have something to tell me. What is it?” Liu asked, cutting to the heart of the matter. 

“Well...” Ruqaiya muttered evasively. 

She’d only come here because she couldn’t quite decide what to do by herself, but now the prospect of speaking to an elder member like Liu left her rather timid. Realizing her dread, Liu regarded her with a cheerful smile. 

“I see. I suppose I should at least serve you some tea, shouldn’t I...?” he said, reaching for the tea set on his own. 

“Oh, erm, uhh...” Ruqaiya stuttered. 

“It’ll be ready in no time. Take a seat right there and wait,” he instructed her. 

Ruqaiya obediently did as she was told. 

“Now then, this was made in this world, but its taste is quite fine. Do try it.” Liu placed a tea jar over a bowl, adding tea leaves into it and pouring hot water into the bowl. 

The water was already being heated up, it seemed. Ten minutes later, he presented the tea bowl to Ruqaiya, who promptly took a sip. 

“It’s... delicious.” 

It had a floral aroma and a relaxing flavor that seemed to seep through her body. 

“Wonderful... Its quality does not compare to the real thing, of course, but I’m glad you liked it,” Liu said, pouring more tea into the bowl. 

They spent the time calmly like that for a while longer, after which Liu eventually parted his lips again. 

“Well, now that you’ve calmed down a bit, let us speak. What brings you to me?” 

Guided by his words, Ruqaiya told him of the mysterious man who appeared in her establishment. 

“Ooh... Now that is unusual,” Liu said pensively. “Someone who yet knows of the Chawanjin’s password...” 

“So it really was the password...” 

“Yes. I cannot guess who it might be without seeing them, but from what you told me, it seems safe to assume he’s familiar with the Chawanjin...” Liu said, stroking his beard with narrowed eyes. “Just the fact that he did it in a tavern shows he knows of the Organization’s passwords.” 

With this, Ruqaiya realized she was right to come to him. The Chawanjin was the codename of a secret society based in China. Its name meant the ‘Tea bowl society,’ and true to that name, they relayed information in the form of ciphers using arrangements of tea bowls. 

Taking after that tradition, some of the Organization’s operatives employed that form of code in the past. Though that said, the Chawanjin left their codes in tea shops in China and not in taverns. But since tea shops were more unusual and attracted attention in this world, taverns were used instead. 

But the fact that the man used the Chawanjin’s signals brought up one major problem. 

“How many years has it been since those passwords were last in use?” Liu asked. 

“Yes, I believe it’s been 20 or so years since we began using cards as means of identification and stopped using the Chawanjin passwords.” 

The Organization had put effort into utilizing or recreating technology from Rearth. They knew that given this world’s technological level, recreating even a single piece of technology would be enough to grant them an overwhelming advantage. One such development was these cards, which displayed a certain mark when filled up with prana. 

The cards were made from unique materials, and so it took time to create them. As such, they were only used for transmitting the most important and confidential letters and documents, but they were also often used to identify members of the Organization. 

With this kind of technology, the Organization didn’t need its members to use Chawanjin ciphers to identify themselves. Ruqaiya herself only knew of the passwords, but had never actually used them herself. That’s why she came to Liu, one of the Organization’s elder members. 

“Hmm... What could this mean...?” 

A mysterious man, using a now abolished communication method. Even as a high ranking member of the Organization sent over to watch over Lentencia, Ruqaiya didn’t quite know how to tackle this. 

He’s probably some country’s spy who happened to perform some old cipher he’s seen out of interest. Or maybe he was just drunk, and accidentally did it while fiddling around... 

But Liu’s interest was quite piqued by the possibility behind this man’s identity. 

The part about him carrying a Japanese katana was curious indeed... I should see for myself, I think. 

“Zheng, could you send over a few skilled members? We should go confirm that man’s identity,” Liu said, rising from his seat.