After sitting down, the caravan leader didn't rush to answer his subordinate's question. Instead, he first picked up his teacup and took a sip, then slowly turned to look at the visibly displeased subordinate across from him.
"Why? Our line of work is fundamentally about making money. The silver they paid is more than enough to cover the entire journey's services. Of course, that's just the surface reason."
At this point, the caravan leader paused, took another sip of tea, and only continued when the person opposite started to show impatience.
"I've been traveling with merchants since I was young decades of going north and south. I've gained some experience and can still read people fairly well. In your eyes, what kind of impression do those two young ladies give off?"
"This..." The person opposite hadn't expected the question to come back to him, but he quickly set aside his confusion and shared his thoughts.
"Those two are quite generous with their money, and their clothing and demeanor are both very refined. They must come from a wealthy family."
"That's it? You're not wrong." The leader nodded lightly, seemingly acknowledging the answer, but then he abruptly changed his tone.
"But it's not enough. Anyone can see those superficial things. I don't want you to develop any bad ideas because of them."
"I didn't " Seeing that the leader had misunderstood him, the subordinate hurriedly tried to explain, but before he could finish, the leader's next words cut him off.
"I know you didn't. I'm just giving you a reminder. If the caravan wants to last long, don't do anything risky especially with people who are young yet dare to wander the world alone.
This world isn't peaceful. Even our caravan has to hire many guards to travel safely. For two young girls to come out on their own, they must have some kind of backing.
As for whether they're just sheltered flowers who don't understand the world's cruelty I don't think so. Do you think I've been interacting with them all this time for nothing? I feel like her understanding of this world is far greater than yours."
"Captain, then what do you mean?"
Facing the caravan leader's comparison, the subordinate didn't get angry. He still held great respect for the captain.
"I feel they might be ninja. Along the way, no matter what happened, they were always too calm. That kind of composure isn't possible without some ability to protect themselves."
"I understand, Captain. For the rest of the journey, I'll treat them properly and make sure no one else disrespects them."
Hearing the assurance, the captain couldn't help but sigh. Now he finally understood the grateful look his friend had given him when entrusting his son to him.
But there was no helping it his friend's child was now under his care, so he couldn't just ignore him.
"You still don't get what I mean. I only said they might be ninja I never said they definitely are. And since they're hiding their identities and posing as ordinary people, they have their own reasons.
Just don't do anything extra. Treat them the same way you have been up to now. Leave the rest to me."
...
Upon arriving in a city in the Land of Iron, since their goals differed, the two bid farewell to the caravan group and began searching for Fujita Kazu's location based on the information Tachi had provided.
Finding Fujita Kazu wasn't difficult. Tachi hadn't exaggerated about his friend Fujita Kazu really was a renowned master swordsmith in the Land of Iron, with tremendous fame. Furina only had to ask around a little before she got his address.
"This should be the place."
After confirming she hadn't come to the wrong location, Furina stepped forward and knocked on the gate of the courtyard in front of her. It wasn't extravagant, but it had a refined style.
Not long after knocking, a burly young man opened the door. His expression showed slight impatience, as if he had gone through this many times before.
"Is there something you need? If you're just here to visit my master, please leave. My master's schedule is packed he doesn't have time to meet everyone one by one."
After opening the door and getting a clear look at Furina's appearance, a flash of amazement passed through the young man's eyes. His expression softened a bit as a result, but he only added a couple more sentences no sign of letting them in.
"Of course we have business. This is a letter your master's friend wrote to him. Just give this letter to your master and it'll be fine."
Though the young man's attitude wasn't great, Furina could understand. As a well-known swordsmith in the Land of Iron, it was natural that many people would want to visit him but how could Fujita Kazu possibly have time to meet them all?
If the young man let just anyone in without question, he might as well quit.
"This..."
Looking at the envelope Furina held out, the young man showed a conflicted expression on his face. He had seen this kind of "delivering a letter for someone" trick before and naturally couldn't trust it easily. But seeing how serious Furina looked, he felt she wasn't lying.
"Shiichi-oniichan, what's wrong?"
Just as the young man was torn, a very young-sounding female voice came from behind him. Hearing it, all three instinctively looked toward the source.
The newcomer was a girl who appeared slightly younger than Furina. Her cheeks were round and chubby she looked very cute.
"Chiyo-sama, why are you here?"
Though the young man sounded puzzled, the moment he saw Chiyo, his earlier conflict vanished, replaced by a sense of relief.
"Oh, it's a letter for Father. Then just give it to me I'll take it to him."
After listening to the young man explain the whole situation, Chiyo didn't hesitate. She immediately took charge of delivering the letter, accepted the envelope, and turned to head back into the courtyard.
"Then please wait a moment, you two. The young miss should deliver the letter to my master soon."
"Of course."
Sure enough, it wasn't long before a middle-aged man hurried over. Behind him came Chiyo, rushing to keep up. Without surprise, this was Tachi's good friend Fujita Kazu.
"I never thought I'd still have the chance to receive a letter from that guy Tachi. What a surprise. For that guy to write me a letter you two must have helped him a great deal.
Otherwise, that prideful guy would never contact me. I've read your purpose in the letter, so don't worry. Since you're friends of that guy Tachi,
you're also my friends. I'll forge the most suitable weapon for you in the name of the Land of Iron's top swordsmith."
"Then I'll have to trouble you."
Though Fujita Kazu's chuunibyou attitude at his age caught Furina a bit off guard, she could understand it. As long as one has passion, you're forever young.
Or rather, for Fujita Kazu to become a renowned swordsmith in the Land of Iron, this pure-hearted innocence was crucial. Only with it could he keep pushing forward relentlessly instead of giving in to temptations and falling into indulgence and decline.