“Should we turn in early for the night?” Gaius asked.

“Night?” Isabelle glanced out of the window, where sunlight was streaming into the restaurant happily. “I’m not sure, since it looks like afternoon to me.”

“If even you’re saying this, the world’s probably in chaos then.” Gaius mulled. “How about a board game? We did bring a few sets along, right?”

“Actually,” said Isabelle, “I would like to visit the Reinford Palace.”

“Alright, let’s do that then.”

Footing the bill, Gaius and Isabelle left the restaurant and took to the skies. The Reinford Palace, the heart of administration for Reinford County, was actually a small castle, much like the ones Isabelle had built.

On the way there, Gaius said, “Why doesn’t the Southern Assembly have a palace? I mean, both nations have a nobility system, so why is there a distinct lack of castles and palaces?”

“It’s probably the issue of culture, I guess. For all the bells and whistles, the Southern Continent generally prefers convenience over form. Why waste money on building an excessively grand palace when a mansion’s smaller and cheaper to maintain?”

“But wasn’t the concept of nobility all about looking as awesome as possible?” Gaius asked. “Why’s there a difference between the West and the South in this aspect?”

Isabelle rubbed her chin. “I think it’s due to the founding Champions. Champion Octantis was more of a utilitarian person; she apparently had this fixation with practicality and function.”

“What about Champion Lunaris?” Gaius asked. Lunaris was the Champion who pioneered the exploration of the Western Holdings; before the First Extermination, no such country had even existed. It was natural, given its distance from the rest of the Five Lands as a whole, but the classes Gaius had attended in the phrontistery didn’t seem to have much material on him.

“If I recall correctly, his vision of the Western Holdings was one of a standard…uh, fantasy world,” said Isabelle.

“Standard fantasy world?” Gaius repeated. “Well, castles are indeed fantastical, and there are lots of mines and fields here…”

“What does the latter have to do with fantasy?” Isabelle asked.

“The fields of adventure! Monsters in the mines! Rare, magical metals to be made!” Gaius glanced at the approaching palace. “I’m quite sure some of the more famous fantasy works on Earth have things like that.”

“Earth is truly a fascinating place.”

“Only in the realm of art and science. Flying like this is nearly-impossible on Earth, and there’s nothing like qi or energy,” said Gaius. “In other words, it’s a boring place.”

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“That’s because you lived there for many years,” said Isabelle. “Besides, things like the Display were created there! Locomotives!”

“I think I said this before, or the Oracle did, but all these are inventions based off fictional works on Earth…”

After a few more minutes of flying, the two were forced to drop their lively debate as they touched down in front of Reinford Palace. The countess had invited them over for a visit when the two left, with a promise of great drinks.

“Halt,” said a guard, who was clad in a red and white uniform. Two swords hung off his belt, and his peak cap looked rather nice. “Who goes there?”

“Friends of Countess Reinford.” Isabelle replied. “We’re expected. Tell her that Gaius and Isabelle are here to drop by.”

“Very well, ma’am.”

He scuttled off, and another guard took his place. Like the previous fellow, he had a stern look on his face, one that made Gaius want to poke his ribs. He didn’t quite understand why he had that urge, but by the intrigued expression on Isabelle’s face, it probably wasn’t a personal problem.

Nonchalantly reaching out to hold her hands, Gaius exchanged a non-verbal conversation with Isabelle, one in which he told her not to go and disturb the fellow standing guard.

After a few minutes of waiting in silence, the first guard came back and bowed. “Good sir and ma’am, the countess is waiting for you in the Palace Hall. A banquet has been laid out for you. Please, follow me.”

“Thank you.”

The huge gates opened inwards, and Gaius found himself marvelling as he followed the guard inside. He had been in the homes of a few important people, but none of them had a garden that was around five hundred metres in both length and breadth. All sorts of horticultural displays were on full bloom, and statues of men and monsters alike lined the path towards the palace itself.

There were lots of people wearing a maid’s uniform, the kinds that Gaius only saw and read about in fantasy works. Frilly white bits, puffy skirts — things like that.

“Are these maids?” Isabelle asked, her voice quiet.

“Yes, ma’am,” said the guard. “They’re highly qualified masters at the craft of housework.”

She continued to look around the place, but Gaius couldn’t quite understand her expression. Her attention, however, was clearly on the maids.

“What’s wrong?” Gaius asked.

“Just wondering about these maids,” Isabelle replied. “Isn’t it stuffy to have such thick clothes on?”

“Maybe it’s as magical as my Formless Pauldrons,” Gaius replied. “Besides, they aren’t sweating at all…or maybe they’re all Knights.”

“Knights do still sweat, though.”

“A bit,” Gaius replied. “Not enough to be noticeable.”

He glanced at Isabelle and tried to imagine her wearing such a frilly dress. It was somewhat hard, given that her usual attire when outside was like his — long pants, short-sleeved shirt and a cloak.

“You’re looking at me intensely,” Isabelle noted. “What, do you want me to wear a maid uniform?”

“N-no, of course not,” Gaius replied. “It’ll be nice if you did, though, but that’s the male in me speaking.”

Before Isabelle could say anything, the guard stopped in front of a set of double doors, one that was probably eight metres high and wide enough to fit an elephant.

As he stepped back, into the shadows, the person in the middle of the hall dispersed the people gathering around her, walking over to them.

“Welcome to Reinford County,” said the countess. “It’s been some time, hasn’t it? I’m glad you came.”

Isabelle smiled. “It’s been a rough day for everyone, so I thought visiting might be a good idea.”

“Yes. The Court of Hallows has been rather flustered with today’s turn of events.” Reinford rolled her eyes. “Would you like to take a look?”