As soon as the noise died down, I carefully pulled back the cloth to take a look around.

The soldiers were shaking the snow off their bodies with disgruntled expressions, while the cause of this whole disaster was breathing heavily, her hands on her knees.

"Ha... ha... ha... you made it... you caught up!"

Yesterday's Miss 'Strongest Knight on the Continent' stood there as if a herd of bison had trampled her. Her hair was disheveled, her locks frizzy, her breathing heavy, and her face flushed from the cold. Not the most presentable appearance.

But the worst part was something else.

There wasn't a single snowflake around her, only the paving stones that had once marked the road before it was buried.

And where did that body get such strength?

"Punctuality is clearly not your strong point."

"Consider this retribution for yesterday."

"The difference between 'yesterday' and 'today' is quite significant. Personally, I don't want to get caught in a blizzard because of your sluggishness and irresponsibility."

"It won't hurt you! Or are you irritated by having to wait for a woman? Let it be known, we spend much more time preening. Or maybe etiquette isn't something they teach northern nobles?"

"You're being unreasonable. Please watch your language."

"Who else is being unreasonable? If the bookseller hadn't asked for a price higher than the market price in this town, I would have arrived on time!"

"Have you been to a bookstore? Why?"

"I was buying books."

"You could have bought them in the capital, since you're bored."

"There wasn't even a book specializing in charms in the capital. The latest edition was only available here; they don't publish it anywhere else."

"So why didn't you buy them before?"

"Because the shopkeeper had his own affairs, and while they were being sorted out, time passed.

What do you have to do to forget about your own business? I hope she didn't get into trouble with that book thing."

"And what's this latest edition? Who's the author?"

"Tollek Larsson, 'Enchantment as a Weapon of War.'" the girl said without much interest as she hopped into the sleigh. Her subordinates followed her into the carriage, taking seats right at the entrance, ready to attack immediately in the event of a fight.

Tollek Larsson was one of the literary geniuses who once lived in this country; he wrote a number of works on enchantment. He was, it could be said, an outstanding scholar and publicist, who published the research of other scholars in the field of enchantment.

It is believed that his last book, 'Enchantment as a Weapon of War,' described all possible methods of combat using enchantment. It's just that finding the original book is quite difficult, and there aren't many copies left, so the price tag for this book is quite high even by metropolitan standards. And in a town like this, the price even triples or quadruples.

And she wasted time haggling with a merchant over an expensive book? What the hell is going on in that woman's head? Is she some kind of maniac who enjoys enchantments?

Not wanting to dwell on it any longer, I wrapped myself in the blanket I'd prepared, trying to retain as much warmth as possible. The runes embroidered along the edges of the blanket began to glow slightly.

Of course, I could have enchanted the entire sleigh, but that wouldn't be effective.

First of all, because the sleigh is constantly exposed to drafts, making the already short-lived effect negligible.

Secondly, enchantments aren't all-powerful, and the best way to keep them constantly active is to engrave a series of symbols in advance, serving as a kind of prayer to the nature spirits. For example, right now, the benevolent spirits of fire are helping me warm up.

On the other hand, the knight sitting across from me was unprepared for such a journey.

Certainly, compared to other knights who had come here and always made the wrong choice of equipment and clothing, she was well prepared. Passing through the near-northern lands, those idiots assumed the temperatures on the other side of the mountain range would be much milder, and so they dressed significantly inappropriately.

It's also worth noting that no northern city can surpass the materials found in mines and beasts.

But I didn't say anything, simply keeping quiet. I don't want to broach unnecessary topics.

But my soldiers weren't concerned, and when the silence began to ring in my ears, Byrne spoke up.

"Ms. Raubtin..."

"Just call me Velina," the girl said without much interest, staring at the book.

"But I can't address you that..."

"Then just use a courtesy title before your name. 'Miss' will suffice."

"In that case... Miss Velina, are you sure this equipment will be sufficient?"

"Well... I didn't expect it to be cool, so I have to cast additional enchantments, but overall, yes, I'm satisfied with it."

"And what materials are they made of?"

"Let me see..."

Placing a thread between the pages as a bookmark, the knight closed the book, set it aside, and began examining herself.

"Hmm... if I remember correctly, the cape is made of black bear skin, with a seven-antlered deer lining to keep the warmth in. The fur trim is made of silver fox skin. Near the mountain range, this is considered the warmest clothing, though the enchantments don't help much, so I had to re-insert it myself. The fur coat is made of hare, deer, and boar. The pants are made of different materials, so I can't say how things really are. As for the boots, I haven't replaced them. I constantly cast new enchantments on them, and they seem to be holding up."

"Aren't you afraid of frostbite on your feet?"

"Ha-ha-ha, if you keep up the enchantments, nothing bad will happen."

"And yet... a cloak, if it has built-in warmth, protection, and durability charms, will be useful, but you should change the rest of your clothes."

"And why not?"

"Materials from local animals are several times better than clothes that can't withstand extremely low temperatures. Besides, even though we're dressed rather lightly, modern enchanting methods allow us to make clothes lighter, more compact, and much more suitable for battle."

"So, clothes from Hyogo could, in theory, act like a magical cloak, capable of adapting to any temperature?"

"Well, not in theory, but that's true, though you'll have to pay a pretty penny for it. It's a luxury."

Surprisingly, she's acting more reserved than before we left the city. What's changed in her?

"Did she really start acting cautious as soon as we set out, or what? I just don't understand how people like that behave. What drives them? Why irritate some people and be at ease with others?" Besides...

Why didn't she just yank his head off for his lack of manners?

And as if reading my thoughts, Olaf spoke, glancing sideways at the couple.

"Idiot, where are your manners?"

"Manners?"

"Why didn't you introduce yourself first?"

As if he'd eaten an unripe berry, Byrne winced and turned his gaze to me, but all I could do was simply stare, putting the document aside.

Realizing there was no help to be had, he gathered his strength, took a deep breath, and spoke.

"Forgive me for such unforgivable behavior and rudeness! My name is Ragnar Byrne! I am a combat officer of the 3rd rank of the Fourth Army! Please, don't chop off my head!"

"What nonsense is this? As if knights chop off heads for no reason? Besides, a soldier isn't the type to think about propriety. Still, there are times when people get acquainted a little later."

So, she tried to hold me accountable for disrespect? Does she think only lower-ranking soldiers deserve leniency, or what? How does logic work in that head? I don't get it at all.

Ragnar smiled awkwardly and scratched his stubbly cheek, his violet eyes boring into the second soldier.

"Well, what's your name?"

"Olaf Abeto... also a 3rd-rank combat officer," Abeto replied dryly, continuing to glance out occasionally to make sure no one was following him.

"So, you're both 3rd-rank and trying to awaken an aura... pooh-pooh... but by Adventurer standards, what rank does a 3rd-rank combat officer rank?"

"By guild standards, that would be a 7th-rank Adventurer," I replied, to which the girl didn't argue and simply rubbed her chin thoughtfully.

"So that's it..."

Muttering something else, Raubtin opened the book and immersed herself in reading again.

I continued leafing through documents about the Brest Fortress until I came across a couple of interesting articles from last year. It looks like the inspection will be quite problematic.