The Legend Of The Railway Hero Volume 1 Chapter 1

The first chapter is longer than the average chapter.

"Where am I?"

The ordinary high school student, Tamagawa Teruya, woke up on a bed and asked himself.
He was on a bed and not on the futon that he usually slept in. He didn't realize that it wasn't his bed the first time.
The snugness was too good.
He was in a fluffy bed packed with pure cotton instead of a spring-loaded mattress.
Furthermore, he also came to notice a canopy in his line of sight the moment he woke up.
He didn't know why he was sleeping here.
While walking on the way back home, he remembered being surrounded by light, but he didn't remember anything beyond that.
Did I collapse on the sidewalk, helped by a rich person pa.s.sing by, and taken to their mansion?

"Have you come to?"

Teruya was asked by a maid with blonde hair.
Her hair was tied in a braid to make it easy to move around. She was a beautiful woman with a pretty face.

"Come to where? "

Has a housemaid hotel been constructed in Akihabara? Could high school students even check in there in first place?

"Princess, he has woken up."

Having been called, a blonde-haired lady wearing a white dress came forth.
Her height was a little smaller than Teruya, her blue eyes as clear as the sky, her white skin like porcelain, and her blonde hair soft and dazzling. Her figure was one size smaller than himself while possessing a cute form befitting her appearance.
She was a girl surely worthy of being called a princess.

"That's good."

The girl being called princess looked at Teruya and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Can you get up?"

"Y-yeah."

Teruya inadvertently answered and got up.
Even at Teruya's school, there wasn't a girl as beautiful as this girl. If such a girl with peerless beauty were to ask, a young man would just follow instinctively.

"Uhm, you are-"

"Right, I have yet to introduce myself."

As Teruya was hesitating to ask, the girl answered politely.

"I am Queen Julia Cornelius Lutetius of the Lutetia Kingdom under the Rigunia Empire. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance. Behind me is my maid, Elizabeth Rutherford."

"I am Elizabeth. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Tamagawa Teruya. Nice to meet you."

Teruya replied to the two beautiful women who had introduced themselves. There was another silver-haired woman right at the wall, but she stayed silent and did not say anything.

"Uhm, if I may ask, where exactly are we? I have never heard of the Rigunian Empire or Lutetia Kingdom."

"Indeed. That's because you're currently in a different world."

"Eh?"

Teruya was at a loss because of the Queen's unexpected words.

"Uhm… Is this some sort of a joke?"

"I feel very regretful, but it is the truth."

"H-how is that possible."

When Teruya asked with a stiffened face, the Queen looked down as she voiced her response.

"The story begins with the experiment of our kingdom's Chief Court Magician, Janet."

"Ah?"

"To further develop Lutetia Kingdom, she was researching long-distance teleportation magic. Her goal was to connect to a faraway gate and achieve instant teleportation. However, the magical array went out of control in the middle of the experiment, consequently s.h.i.+fting the coordinates, and connecting to a different world. And a moment ago… you were summoned."

"Ah?"

Teruya became perplexed when the words magic and magic array were mentioned. He was just a normal high school student with a peculiar hobby and could not follow conversations about magic, fantasy or chuunibyou stuff among his peers. He found it very unfortunate to have been lumped in the same category by his cla.s.smates.
However, he couldn't afford to keep listening in on this conversation.

"Is it possible to go back?"

That was Teruya's priority.

"Since you were able to come, you should be able to go — Those were Janet-sama's words."

Elizabeth answered on behalf of the Queen.

"Should be able to?"

"Yes, proper research is necessary."

"Eh? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, Janet, who was the perpetrator, is currently imprisoned in the magic academy's tower to take responsibility for this incident."

"Can't you let her out?"

Of course, Teruya wasn't asking out of benevolence.
If he was made to suffer like that, then he believedthat the perpetrator should receive an appropriate punishment, but if the person knew of any methods to return him to his previous world, then he would like her to be released.

"That's impossible."

"Can't you make it happen somehow?"

"It's because she's currently incapacitated."

"Eh?"

"Janet-sama was caught in the experiment and has been badly hurt. Absolute rest for three months is necessary."

"Such a thi-"

For a moment, his face darkened, but he decided to think of the bright side because there was possibility that he could return in three months' time.

"Even if she recovers, it will be difficult to reactive the magic array."

"How so!?"

Elizabeth, however, dropped the bomb that destroyed Teruya's hope.

"Due to the enormous amount of mana that Janet-sama used for the magic array, it will take about half a year to restore. Moreover, the magic array was put together during the course of over six months. Since it collapsed during that incident, it will be necessary to build it from scratch, starting from flattening the soil. In addition, it is also necessary to rearrange the magic array. It would take about a year to redesign it. Therefore, it would take a minimum of three years or even more for you to be sent back."

Teruya was at a loss due to Elizabeth's words yet again.

"The kingdom will take responsibility for this. I will personally see to it that Teruysama will be well-taken care of until you can return home."

Teruya wasn't any less disheartened even with Julia's words.
A place where he knew no one, an unfamiliar place. No, an entirely unfamiliar world. Would he really want to live there?
Presuming that this was all just a bad dream, he went back to bed and slept through the night. As soon as he didn't wake up in his own room, he knew he was still in the same fantasy room.
Teruya put on the shoes that were placed next to his bed and opened the gla.s.s door to the veranda.
There were white steeples lined up outside.
Teruya observed that he was in line with the steeples and that the castle was surrounded by high ramparts. Furthermore, the townscape that stretched outside looked like medieval Europe.
Further up ahead, the townscape was again interrupted by a rampart. Outside the walls was the countryside and a large river that could be mistaken as the sea.
Looking carefully, you could see the opposite sh.o.r.e and a little stream.
She had introduced herself as the Queen, and the castle would fit a queen precisely.

"It definitely seems like I am in a country somewhere in Europe."

He still couldn't fully believe the story about him being in a different world.

Kishaaaaaaa (Dragon roar)

At that moment, a dragon soared in front of his eyes. The dragon had the wings of a bat, and green scales that would appear in movies.
A human was riding on its back as if it was a mode of transportation in this world.

"Right, this is a different world."

Teruya further despaired, confirming that he was indeed in a different world.

"Pardon my intrusion."

A husky voice resounded from Teruya's back.

"I am called Sebastian Berthier. I was a.s.signed as Teruysama's attendant. Please treat me well. Have you gotten used to it?"

"No, I am still reaffirming that I am in a different world."

"I'm sure you're still worried. With all sincerity, I want to give you peace of mind."

The black-haired boy lowered his head.
He should only be a little younger than Teruya.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I was just expecting a maid instead of a butler."

Although he didn't live in a delusional world, he was still a man, so it was inevitable for him to think about getting closer to a girl.
In such a setting, it seemed like being helped by a maid of the same age was a pretty clichéd development in light novels and the likes for sure.

"Uhm, would you be fine having a woman take care of your personal needs? Like your change of clothes and laundry?"

"It's embarra.s.sing after all. A butler would be better."

I would still be very embarra.s.sed to have a girl of the same age see my underwear.
Boys are better, no h.o.m.o.

"Please don't lay a hand on Elizabeth-sama. My lord would kill me."

"Is the lord you're referring to Queen Julia?"

"It's different. Rather, it's the Earl of the Rutherford territory, Lord Jack Rutherford."

"Is Elizabeth-san a n.o.ble?"

"Yes, it's a custom to serve the house of a higher ranking n.o.ble as a butler or housemaid as training before reaching adulthood."

"I thought n.o.bles were ones who employed servants."

"There are still a lot of people like that, but people have been starting to think that it's outdated. Being employed by a higher ranking n.o.ble is the best way to extend your own personal connections. For that reason, my lord thinks the benefits outweigh the hards.h.i.+ps."

"Then, are you also a n.o.ble, Sebastian?"

"That can't be. I am from a landlord of the Rutherford territory. Our house had ties with the lord and I was employed there, but Elizabeth-sama was going to serve the royal family, so I went to the royal castle together with her."

"Don't you need to serve Elizabeth-san?"

"There's no problem since it's Elizabeth-sama's orders. Besides, there are other servants."

"Hmm."

Though it's natural that they do things differently as they live in a different world, the difference is still a little confusing.

"Ah, Sebastian-san, one more thing."

"You can drop the honorifics. What is it?"

"Are you, Elizabeth-san and Her Majesty, of the same people? Like, the same clan?"

"Hm? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, it might be my misunderstanding, but when you told me your names, I thought they felt disconnected. In my world, those names all come from different countries. I a.s.sumed it wasn't different here."

In the real world, where Teruya is from, Julia is an Italian or Greek name. Meanwhile, Elizabeth is British and Sebastian is French.

"No, that's not wrong. The Queen's, Elizabeth-sama's and my ancestors came from different places."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you know anything about this country?"

"No."

Because it was suddenly brought up, he did not understand at all.

"Please have a look."

Sebastian stood in front of the map displayed inside the room.
A continent where three lands were connected was drawn in the center of the map. A central line was drawn in the middle of the upper peninsula, and a picture of a city was drawn on a coast in the south.

"This is a map from this world."

"Then, is this castle in the middle of the town of that city?"

"It's not. That's the imperial capital of the Rigunia Empire."

"Hm? What's that?"

When drawing a world map, you usually would draw it with your country as the centerpiece, but that map was centered around another country's capital.

"This country is under the Rigunia Empire."

"Aren't empires and kingdoms equal?"

"Would you mind hearing the history?"

"Not at all."

"Initially, Rigunia prospered as a coastal city-state. It was in the middle of the Lepanto sea, the Great Rigunia Peninsula and the main continent. After establis.h.i.+ng its naval supremacy and unifying the area around the Lepanto sea, it s.h.i.+fted to an imperial rule. The conquest of the Great Rigunia Peninsula began and succeeded. My ancestral land, 'Gaul', and Elizabeth-sama's ancestral land, 'Britannia', were also conquered in the process."

"And you're under their rule?"

"In a sense. Anyway, the a.s.similation policy was carried out, and their civilization and culture was handed down and integrated over the past hundreds of years."

"What about Lutetia?"

"Lutetia is right here."

Sebastian pointed east of the Rigunian Empire, which lay surrounded by a river at the tail of a mountain range.

"Approximately four hundred years ago, the empire which conquered the Great Rigunia Peninsula decided to conquer the Alps mountain range, and the army commanded by Sir Julius Lutetius conquered the land across the mountains. Due to his achievements, Julius-sama was then permitted by Rigunia to build a kingdom, and he named it Lutetia."

"Such a feat was allowed?"

"Right, that's because the empire is huge, remote areas as such would be difficult to rule. Subsequently, the n.o.bles and the royal family as the frontier n.o.bles were given administrative power to reinforce the land."

"Then what if they revolted and asked for independence?"

"In order to prevent that, the selection was limited only to n.o.bility from the city-state. Especially for Lutetia, they selected the first king from the royal family. Moreover, marriages with the royal family continued without end. Julisama's mother, Cornelisama, is a daughter of the emperor from two generations ago."

"I see. But why are you all hailing from different regions? Is it due to past campaigns?"

"Indeed. I've heard that the Rutherfords came to follow King Julius to this land and granted a territory. Although this vast land cannot be reclaimed with troops alone."

"So they solicited for settlers?"

"That's right. The Empire invaded the neighboring countries using Lutetia Kingdom as a bridgehead to further expand the territory. Therefore, the development of Lutetia as a base was a pressing need."

'Invasion.' 'Expansion.' Those were words Teruya felt a little opposed to, but he convinced himself that it was their ideals and thoughts and listened to the rest of the story.

"Settlers were recruited from all over the empire, and people came to apply one after another."

"So, since people from different parts of the empire migrated, there were also lots of people with different family names?"

"Exactly. I heard that my ancestors had a tough time being farmers in our ancestral land, so they migrated."

'So it's something like the United States?' Teruya a.s.sented to himself.
In the early days of the United States, when it was a British colony, only the British settled down, taking away land and expanding. After the establishment of the United States as a country, it attracted a lot of immigrants from Europe and expanded westward.

"What happened to the original inhabitants?"

"The tribes who resisted were destroyed while the tribes who submitted were ranked with the n.o.bles. Captain Maia is a descendant from the group of absorbed n.o.bles."

"Maia?"

"She is Her Majesty's Chief of Staff. She's the one with the gorgeous silver hair."

"Ah, the person at the wall."

He did not instantly realize as she was so discreet.

"So, is Lutetia surrounded by enemy countries?"

"Yes, there's Epthal to the north, Zhou to the east, Maratha to the south, and Axum southwest of us. It has remained tranquil thus far, but since we've had frequent wars, it wouldn't be strange if it starts up again."

Teruya thought that it was highly possible to commence again soon.
Judging from the story, the empire was a nation of conquests.
Securing new land and expand. Distributing procured land to buy people's loyalty to the empire.
People support and serve the empire to be conferred some land. The empire conquers further to meet the demand.
The Ancient Romans, the Russian empire, Great Britain, the n.a.z.is, and j.a.pan during the Toyotomi regime.
Those nations went into decline as expansion slowed down.
It became necessary for them to turn aggressive and it wouldn't be a wonder if war were to break out at any moment.
It seemed that large-scale magic and facilities are needed to open a portal to another world. A stupendous amount of budget and effort are probably necessary.
If war comes, the budget and effort would definitely be used for that, and Teruya's return would be even more delayed.

"You need not worry. The Lutetia Kingdom's army is at its best. We would best any country if war does break out. And when needed, we can count on the Rigunia Empire's army to join as reinforcements."

"Oh? So the country is safe no matter what enemy comes then."

"Yes. If the enemy is just another country…"

"What's that?"

"Nah, it's nothing. And I forgot to mention, we would like to request for your summoning to be kept in secrecy."

"Hm? What does that mean?"

"If known otherwise, the kingdom will be suspected of manufacturing a new magical weapon, and there will be consequences for us."

"I'm human though…"

It dawned upon him when he said those words.
‘Wouldn't one acquire strange abilities after being summoned to another world? Or maybe have some weird objects attached to their body?'
Teruya then inspected his own body.

"It's okay. As a result of an inspection, we've already ascertained that Teruysama is human just like us," said Sebastian, seeing Teruya's actions.

Said Sebastian, seeing Teruya's actions.

"Are you sure?"

"We're sure of it."

Although Teruya felt relieved, he was also a bit disappointed.
He had hoped he'd just be in a situation where he was a bit of a cheat where he could do great deeds.

"What's wrong?"

"No, it's nothing. Speaking of which, I can understand what you're saying."

"That's courtesy of the a.s.sociate Court Magician, Jainas, who applied the translation magic."

"Is that so? It's a secret that I was summoned, right? But how do we go about concealing it? What should I say if I was asked by a stranger?"

"In the very far east, there is a country called Fuso. Just like Teruysama, it seems that people there have black irises, black hair, and yellow skin. Please say that you came from that land and are liked by the Queen and are staying as her guest."

"Are you sure strangers would buy it?"

"Lutetia is coincidentally a trading hub for the eastern countries, so people from other countries often enter. It is rare but not so strange."

"That's convenient."

"Also, only I, the Queen, Elizabeth-sama, the a.s.sociate court magician Jainas-sama, the chief of staff, Maisama, and Prime Minister Antonius knows about it."

"I see."

"Anyway, breakfast is ready. Would you like to eat?"

"I would love to."

Teruya, who hasn't eaten a meal for a day, gobbled up the prepared meals like a refugee.

Teruya silently ate for several minutes before he was asked.

"Are the meals to your liking?"

"Yup."

"By the way, what are these dishes?"

"Right. You had the pork meat bun, the beef bacon and fried eggs, pickled cabbage, pumpkin pie, and the stew with onions, carrots, and potatoes. Then, there's white bread made out of wheat. Next is the corn gruel that's good for digestion. And the drink is a white wine grog. The dessert is a pudding of rum-soaked raisins and other dried fruits. Is it to your tastes?

"I'm satisfied!"

Although he was hungry, it was still very delicious.
Hence why he exclaimed loudly.
Teruya kept gobbling down the food until all the served dishes were completely devoured. When he fell back onto his bed he was momentarily incapacitated.

"Whew…"

It's a place where finding an abundance of oil, salt, spices, fresh vegetables, and fresh fruits wouldn't be considered a luxury. They were plenty delicious by themselves.

"Teruysama,"

Sebastian, who had finished putting away the finished plates, entered with a stiffened face. He was taken aback by how brutish Teruya was in his meal.

"Her Majesty Julisama wishes to see you in her afternoon tea. Is that a good time?"

Although he had asked politely, it was pretty much a de-facto command. It would be rude to brush the this castle's word aside.

"I'd be honored to. I would meet her by all means."

As Teruya said that, Sebastian felt relieved. It seemed that Teruya's guess wasn't far off. Sebastian was wondering what to do if he had refused.

"Then, I will come to pick you up in the afternoon."

At that moment, Teruya remembered to ask what he was wondering about.

"Uhm, so Julisama is the queen of this country, right?"

"Yes, that's right."

"But Elizabeth-san called her princess?"

"About that, they have been friends since their childhood. Ever since they were younger, she had already been serving Her Highness since her stint as a princess before enthronement, so sometimes Elizabeth-sama slips and calls her princess outside of formal occasions."

"Ah, that makes sense."

Teruya couldn't move in the morning due to overeating, so instead, he stayed in the bed to read a book. Fortunately, a rough understanding could be achieved thanks to the translation magic, and the characters appeared as if they were the English alphabet.
Having read the book, he came to the conclusion that magic and monsters aside, the world followed the same laws of physics as he had in his original world. Even the length of time was almost exactly the same.
He initially thought it would differ a lot, but he could easily adjust as there was almost no difference.
He skipped lunchtime due to overeating during breakfast, but he later came out for the scheduled afternoon tea.

"I'm really grateful that you have granted my request, Teruysama."

"I would never decline Your Highness' invitation."

The location of the afternoon tea that Teruya was invited to was the castle's pavilion.
It was a simple building that had pillars on all sides to support the roof.
Preparations for the afternoon tea had already been completed as both the scones and the teapot had been placed down.

"Please have some,"

As she said that, Queen Julia volunteered and took the teapot and poured some tea.

"Did Your Majesty brew this?"

"Yes, I've always brewed the tea in my afternoon tea. This way, I don't hinder anyone. Not even Elizabeth is allowed to."

Teruya sensed a bit of dissatisfaction from Elizabeth who was next to him.
Indeed, that was Queen Julia's commitment.
Teruya received the tea and drank a mouthful.

"It's delicious."

Teruya hadn't had much tea; he couldn't tell what it was, but it was neither bitter nor sweet. It spread throughout the mouth and calmed his heart.

"I'm glad."

Queen Julia chuckled for having her tea praised.

"Pardon my intrusion."

There came an elderly man. He looked like a n.o.ble with his fancy collared tunic.

"How did it go, Antonius?"

Queen Julia asked with a hint of annoyance. However, Antonius replied in a calm manner.

"Yes, we have received an appeal from all the guilds."

"Again?" Julia retorted, seemingly fed up.

"I've already said that I cannot allow it."

"But the situation can't be helped. As the farmers are about to snap due to poverty, a rebellion may be possible.

"AHHHHHH……"

Teruya was surprised at the blurted sigh that shouldn't had come from a woman.
This was because Queen Julia, who had always seemed like a divine queen, showed behavior that would come from a modern teenage girl.
Meanwhile, Queen Julia noticed that Teruya was watching and corrected her att.i.tude in a panic.

"Please excuse my behavior. I've shown you something unbecoming of me, Teruysama."

"N-no, no. Don't worry,"

Though he said that, Teruya didn't know up to what extent he was able to get away with it.

"I could vacate my seat if you're busy."

"No, I do not mind. Besides, I don't want anyone to disturb my afternoon tea."

"Ahh."

Queen Julia replied, still in a bad mood.

"Uhm, if it's fine, why don't you speak your mind? It might not help you solve your problems, but at the very least, it could make you feel better."

"Thank you very much, Teruysama. Then, let me take you up on your kind offer."

Queen Julia began to talk as if to cover her earlier att.i.tude.

"To be honest, it is very embarra.s.sing to admit, but Lutetia Kingdom is in a crisis."

"A crisis…"

That's a fantasy-like cliché.

"…Is it man-eating t.i.tans?"

"No, it's true that they exist, But they were exterminated through a joint effort, and the remaining survivors were turned into slaves and are used for labor."

Then, was it a development like in popular mangas?

"Ahh… then, did a dragon appear?"

"It's certainly troublesome that it uses magic, but it is manageable if a magician is around. Now, we can just shoot them down with guns."

So they can use guns? And this world has that advanced of a technology? Doesn't seem like dragons are a match to firearms either.

"Then, did a demon lord emerge from a different world?"

"Stop wasting time blabbering nonsense."

Rather than a princess, Teruya felt the words of a higher-cla.s.s n.o.ble lady. So he decided to quiet down as chills ran down his spine.
No matter how graceful Queen Julia might look, she was still the Queen of the warring nation of Lutetia. Her words were deadly to the touch.
But in the end, what was the crisis?

"Well, it's a different kind of threat."

"Hmm, speaking of which, I guess it can be described as a demon."

"Which is?"

"It is a metal horse and a track of metal that is laid all the way to the empire, the railway."

"Even a railway!"

The moment he heard the word 'railway', Teruya dilated his eyes and exclaimed in a loud voice.

"Eh?"

Seeing Teruya who had been acting well-mannered until the moment he shouted, Julia watched in shock.
Meanwhile, Teruya without any sort of care leaned over to Julia, clasped her hands and started firing a bunch of words at her like a machine gun.

"So you have a railway!? Where is it!? How fast does it go!? Is it a steam locomotive or a modern train!? How many wagons!? Is it a pa.s.senger or a freight!? Operated by the kingdom or a private sector!?"

From then on, Teruya's manners and common sense were completely broken.