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The next person to approach us was Annero, Versis’ hero. While reptids were very strong, reading their expression was nigh impossible, so until then it looked like they were simply observing the people there while standing still. Since the nobles had close to no experience fighting, they all avoided speaking to him, only a crowd of soldiers and knights approaching him. I had a hunch the only reason he spoke to us was to avoid that crowd, and not because he held any specific interest in us.

“Excuse me. You’re Bordaule’s hero, yes? I’m Annero, hero of Versis. A pleasure to meet you.”
“The pleasure is mine. I’m Luvias.”

Reptids did not seem to have the habit of shaking hands as a greeting, instead he joined his hands like a prayer and bowed. Luvias retracted her hand after a moment of perplexion and imitated him.

“This is how we reptids greet each other. I hope it was of no offense.”
“Etiquette and customs change between countries and species, so I don’t mind that at all.”
“I appreciate that. You seem to have a pleasant character.”

As he said that, his tail swung from one side to another, making the people behind him jump aside to evade it. I guess it was okay to assume it was like a dog’s tail and that meant he was happy? I really could not read his face.

“From what I’ve seen, your entire party appears composed of strong personages. How did you get so strong at such a young age?”

Luvias’ eyes turned to look at us.

“It’s all thanks to our master. We are trained to the brink of death every single day, and before I noticed we had become like this. Though we’re still a far cry from our master.”
“I see. Training that leaves you at death’s door. I wish I could see that someday, for future reference.”
“If you ever come visit our country, please come by the city of Surfour. If you see the students practicing in the training school there you’ll be satisfied even if you watch from afar.”
“That’s truly intriguing. Our country has also started raising new training grounds, but I’ve never witnessed how other countries perform their training. I’ll make sure to oblige by your invitation if I have the chance to.”

As Luvias and Annero continued talking, the three of us began talking with his followers as well. Surprisingly enough, one of them was a female. When I heard that, I took a closer look at her and noticed that indeed, she had a slightly more delicate build and her scales shone in a different, more beautiful way. But the difference was so subtle it was very hard to tell.

“Isn’t it a very long trip to come here from Versis?”
“It is. It took more than two months to get here. We traveled a distance by boat, then in carriages, and even some distance by foot. It was a very hard journey, but we also got to learn many new things, so I feel like we’ve grown compared to when we left.”

The only female in their party, Sweelen, said that while flexing her arm. Her biceps were large and well-toned, with even some veins visible on it. If she swung any weapon with that arm, any run-off-the-mill monster would be gone in an instant.

Reptids in general never were good with magic, so even in Annero’s party everyone was a frontliner with physical weapons, so a party that focused on attacking. I wondered what they did when someone was hurt then, but apparently they had already thought about that.

“The potions of our country are very efficient, so we always carry a few at hand. Small wounds can be healed by licking just a few drops of them, and drinking more can easily heal fractured bones. Regular potions normally only work if you drink an entire bottle, so having ones where you can ration the contents is much more efficient wouldn’t you say? It also ends up being more economic in the long run.”

She had a point. That could make it more practical to go on more dangerous adventurers, where even if they had to investigate remote places or fight against monsters, their item choices were made easier. Or in other words, there was always a limit to the items one could take, no matter how strong one was from training. It was impractical to carry a giant bag on one’s bag full of tools and items, or even more stupid to have both hands full of stuff. Too much load could make it harder to prepare one’s weapon, or a large bag could wreck someone’s balance in a dangerous climb. Then taking nothing at all could be easier, but then being attacked by a monster could be deadly, or what about getting caught in a trap inside a dungeon? That could end very badly as well. Because of all that, adventurers and travelers in general always had to make many choices to select the correct items to take with them.

Under all those conditions, potions that could heal someone with just a few drops were extremely convenient. The space freed by that could make the load lighter, or be employed to carry more food and water, or even be able to harvest a larger amount of items from defeated monsters. It was nothing too showy, but fundamentally useful. Versis’ potions were definitely one of their strongest allies.

After a while of more enlightening conversations, they left to greet the emperor. As soon as they were gone, Freya from Lumielle came to take their place. I knew she was a friendly person, but since the party started there was no end to the flow of people around her. Still, she decided to come to talk to us.

The crowd followed behind her as she walked, like a priestess with a herd of believers. Everyone who had spoken to her even for a short time, had become strongly attached to her.

“Nice to meet you, Luvias. I’m Lumielle’s hero Freya. It’s an honor meeting you in person.”
“Nice to meet you as well, I’m Luvias, hero of Bordaule. I’m more honored myself, being able to talk with the famous saint Freya.”

The two firmly shook hands. But something else had caught my attention, ‘Saint’? I had no idea she had a title like that. Though considering her naturally charming personality, friendly smile, holy aura surrounding her being, and the ability to sneak up on me, it made sense she would be called something like that. I heard some people in Surfour spoke of me the same way, but considering who I was in the interior I knew I would never get close to justifying a title like that.

After talking with Luvias for a while, she turned to me and grinned.

“We meet again. I did not get to introduce myself earlier, I’m Freya.”
“I’m Lapis. Sorry I couldn’t greet you properly earlier as well.”