Lord Of Doom!Reincarnated Into a Novel as the Strongest Side Character-Chapter 76: A next-door Neighbour

They had been taken to the house by carriage once again, halting right in front of it. Eliza was the only one free, so she had escorted them here. It was a ride of about fifteen minutes from the Department, a straight road for a while before one turn, and then they had arrived. On foot, it wouldn’t be hard to navigate.

The trip had cost a total of 10 pennies, quite expensive, but so was the management of the horses and carriage. No one would expect a family man with many responsibilities and debts to absorb that cost in his transportation charges as a carter. The carriages in Eden Peak were mostly owned by private individuals. While some other cities in the Kingdom had at least one station for carriages owned and controlled by the Royal Council, which were supposed to be cheaper, it was the opposite here: a trip like this would cost 15 pennies.

And this was all done by the carters; it was not the fault of the Council, who were unable to curb the corruption existing among men. They were here, hoping to defeat the demons, yet something as simple as this remained difficult.

The current monarch was King Lurgan II — the son of the first King Lurgan, who had died in a war against another Kingdom.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand. Gojin grinned at the sight of the building; at least it was beautiful, and being a one-storey building, he loved it. Their flat was located on the top floor, while the ground floor was mostly a room with a public toilet and bathroom outside the building, to the side, deep in the alley. What a hassle!

Luckily for Gojin and Toki, they had their comfort in the flat. freewebnøvel.com

Eliza had left them with a key and a bit of a chat about what to do and what not to do, advice that Gojin barely paid attention to, as it seemed like the normal rules of any society, though Toki had listened carefully. The living area of the city was quiet and clean, with only a few people walking by, and some children playing silently in corners.

The building itself was a modest one-storey structure, with a wooden frame and brick walls, adorned with a small balcony that overlooked the quiet street. The balcony, with its simple wrought iron railing, offered a view of the surrounding area, though it seemed more functional than decorative.

"Well, let’s go in, Little one," Gojin said, slipping his hand into his hakama’s pocket. The locals and children stared at the two new neighbours; they looked and dressed differently. Gojin wasn’t going to let their distinctive appearance stay the same.

However, they had come with nothing and hadn’t received any advanced payment, so there was no way to afford a tailor to craft them the native attire. Well... an evil smile crept onto Gojin’s face; it seemed like Toki was going to be working quite a bit, at least that was the real reason for him coming along.

Gojin, of course, had noticed something three months ago, when they were still being briefed about this Kingdom, and he had confirmed it now that he had arrived here. The two eras were of different timings; they didn’t align and were not the same. This world was strange—more mysterious than ever. It was a novel world, but still, being able to build something like this was an extraordinary feat by the creator.

Certainly, only Gojin was aware that this was a fictional world.

During their studies, the trio—Gojin, Kenji, and Sakura—had embarked on a series of deep investigations, wondering why certain things were different. Sakura had brought this up first, as she knew a bit about history. The teachings didn’t seem to match the timeline; rather, they veered further into the Late Medieval Era. The idea of the Heian Era and the Late Medieval Era coexisting on the same timeline was highly unusual.

The problem was that the two eras were typically separated by a sixteen-year gap. The Heian Era in Japan had ended around 1185, and the Late Medieval Era in Europe usually began around the 13th century. Yet, in this world, both eras seemed to be existing simultaneously, which defied historical expectations.

The timeline was twisted, confusing, and unexplainable. Gojin had finally confirmed all the theories they had come up with. Knowing this was the Late Medieval Era was easy—it was typically around the 13th to 15th centuries, and many developments had begun to emerge, most of which he had seen, as Sakura had mentioned the developments as well.

However, Kenji, ever since his arrival in this land, even before Gojin, had not spoken about his situation nor his movements. He simply communicated through letters, asking how they were doing and then sending hidden messages to the Emperor and Reikishi only. In other words, Kenji had changed drastically.

***

The two arrived at the front of the wooden door, bolted with a lock. They inserted the key and unlocked it, leaving the now-open lock hanging as they pushed the door open. It creaked under the weight of time, though it looked aged.

That said, the interior was very different from how Gojin and Toki had imagined when they first arrived at the door.

The flat was small but well furnished, with a simple yet comfortable layout. There were two rooms, neither particularly large, but adequate for their needs. The first room was the main living space, where the plush couch was located, along with a sturdy wooden table and some chairs. The second room, just off to the side, was a modest bedroom. It contained a bed made with simple linens, along with a constructed space for keeping clothes, a small wardrobe built into the wall.

The rooms were functional, each with its own small window. The living room had a set of double doors leading out onto a small balcony, which overlooked the quiet street below.

Toki quickly dropped the heavy load he had been carrying, and it made a clattering sound as various items inside shifted.

Gojin, hearing the noise, quickly turned and called out, "Be careful with that! There are precious things in there."

Toki groaned, "Sorry, Senior," and then quickly slumped down onto the plush couch, letting out a deep breath as he settled. His back ached terribly, and his neck felt like it could snap at any moment.

Gojin went to the window, opened it to let in the fresh air, and then briefly used his wind technique to blow out the dust that had settled in the flat. The air felt a bit fresher now, though the place still carried the faint scent of old wood and time.

"Once you’ve rested enough, you should start arranging the things in the backpack," Gojin said, glancing over at Toki, who was staring at the ceiling, hoping for just a bit more rest before he began. "No normal human boy would have been able to carry that load," Gojin added, somewhat praising, though his tone was not unkind.

Toki nodded lazily, his eyes half-closed as he let himself sink deeper into the couch, intending to sleep just a little longer before starting the task.

Meanwhile, Gojin rushed to find the bathroom. When he found it, he quickly entered and locked the door behind him. His focus shifted as he activated his Devouring eyes and shifted his perspective, linking with Boss.

Boss was currently atop a high tower used for monitoring the city—a structure about ten storeys tall. Gojin’s first task was to find any church, to see what they were doing, or to discern who might be there, perhaps related to knights or witches.

Boss set out immediately, transversing across the high buildings and keeping a distance from the ground, in search of a church. If luck was on their side, they might even come across the Nightgale Church, though Gojin had no idea what it looked like. He could only hope there was some form of recognition or an inscription on the building to guide them.

His concentration was soon interrupted when Toki, still resting on the couch, suddenly announced, "Senior Gojin, someone is at the door."

Gojin quickly switched his perspective back, but instructed Boss to continue the search, knowing he would return to check on its progress soon. He then left the bathroom, heading towards the door to see who had arrived.

First, he read the aura—human-like, but still something was off. He opened the door to find a young man with striking red hair standing in front of him. The colour was eerie, as dyes didn’t exist in this era, and it was unnatural for someone to have such hair unless they were special in some way.

Gojin noted the man’s handsome features: a strong jawline, deep brown eyes, and an intriguing expression. He was about 6’0" tall, and had a calm demeanor.

The young man smiled with his head titled to the side, offering a small plate of biscuits. "I’m Omaru, your downstairs neighbour," he introduced himself.

Gojin blinked, a little thrown off. Someone from their side was living permanently in Eden Peak? His mind raced with suspicion.

Also, It wasn’t normal for someone to just appear with a treat, especially when it had only been a few minutes since they arrived. Gojin had no solid proof, but this man was giving off bad signals, despite appearing human.

"Sorry, this is what I had left and came to offer as a welcome gift to you. You also don’t seem to be from around here, perhaps Heian-kyo? I too hail from there. I’ve been here for four years now, already settled down to live in this peaceful society." Omaru spoke with a warm yet cautious tone, his smile polite.

Peaceful, huh?