Ten days later.
Porant Empire, Northern Continent.
As the Porant Empire's rural residence, Chikel Manor stood in Bojinhe County, approximately six hundred kilometers north of the capital, Jerusalem.
When greater privacy and security were needed, a border manor might be chosen as the site for high-level negotiations.
The manor had been gifted to the royal family by Sir Arthur decades ago, with the purpose of providing the nation's officials with a place away from the bustle of the capital, Jerusalem, where they could rest and work.
In this border county city at the northernmost edge of the Porant Empire, the climate remained cold even in August. Drizzle fell without end, and heavy clouds filled the sky, making the daytime seem as dim as dusk.
It was only ten in the morning.
Yet the heavy clouds already hung low. On the streets, people hurried about, as if trying to blend into the gray walls around them.
Most of the buildings in Bojinhe County's main city were made of stone. Even after years of erosion by wind and rain, they still looked sturdy. The city streets were narrow and winding, while the cobblestone roads glimmered faintly blue beneath the rain, reflecting the outlines of the surrounding buildings.
A Snowy Plains Deer Carriage bearing the royal crest of the Demon Realm passed by. Unmelted snow still clung to it, and its wheels rumbled as they rolled along, splashing water into the air.
Hughberlian glanced out the window before pulling the curtain halfway closed again.
"Haah."
She sighed.
Unlike Demon King City, where every night was filled with song and revelry, after crossing the Land of Eternal Night and arriving in the Porant Empire, all she saw was a gloom that refused to disperse.
"When we arrive at Chikel Manor later, will you handle