After Scarlet told Sir Thomas of her being cursed, the destruction of her carriage, and the subsequent assassination attempt, Sir Thomas immediately agreed to let us ride alongside him.
He had even changed the route they were taking.
As for the purplish black miasma radiating off of her, Yuki had already taken care of it by using a light elemental spell called Illusion. As the name of the spell suggests, it was not a cure. It is a spell that alters perception of anyone who looks at Scarlet, making them see nothing out of the ordinary.
At Scarlet's behest, Yuki had used the spell on the soldiers momentarily putting them in a daze allowing us ample time to load the armors and weapons they had collected into the fifth carriage.
According to Scarlet, her travel to the Dragon Empire was well known and if she were to return and be seen cursed, it would affect the Dragon Empire's reputation and would even cause civil unrest in both nations.
Sir Thomas knew the gravity of the situation; therefore, he had increased the security around the moving caravan, letting only one fourth of the soldiers take a break within the other carriages at a time. To be honest, Arthur felt a little bad the soldiers were outside having to keep up pace with a moving caravan while he was in the comfort of a carriage. It wasn't any carriage either, it was the super high class carriage Sir Thomas and his son Ezekiel had come out of when they first met.
Though it didn't contain a dimension like Scarlet's carriage it was still comfortable enough.
With a table full of tea and cookies separating them.
Arthur was currently seated near the window with one seat separating him and Scarlet with Yuki curled up in her lap.
On the other end of the table sat Sir Thomas who had requested Butler Albert to join them.
For some reason, ever since Sir Thomas listened to Scarlet's request and had learned what she had experienced thus far, he had been acting weird.
Arthur had initially thought it was because he was worried about a fourth assassination attempt on Scarlet's life.
From what Arthur could tell Sir Thomas held great respect for her and might have been worried for her safety.
Though Arthur wasn't wrong he wasn't completely right either because after the caravan was on its way it looked as though he wanted to say something yet hesitated whilst looking at Arthur.
Despite learning of Arthur's assistance during their battle, his appearance there felt too coincidental.
Noticing the gesture, Scarlet assured him of Arthur's truthfulness.
Trusting Young Miss Scarlet's judgment, he started his story.
A month prior he had received a letter from Marquess Baret stating he was in need of ten pounds of orichalcum for a reasonable amount of price. Finding it acceptable, he went to procure the orichalcum from the Grand Duke. After receiving it he was about to set off when he received another request of orichalcum this time twenty pounds from Cardinal Joshua of the Holy Light Theocracy. Since Cardinal Joshua gave an irresistible offer of holy light herbs. Thus, he postponed his trip to the Dragon Empire since his deal with Marquess Baret had a deadline of a month. Instead of going to Dragon Empire and back home and then leaving to the Holy Light Theocracy he decided to procure more orichalcum and make a single round trip.
But that was when the problems started. He thought it might be a coincidence but now he was unsure. During his previous trips to the Holy Light Theocracy, he rarely encountered bandits yet this time he ran into six groups of bandits. Two of the bandit groups were quite well known with huge bounties on their heads. A trip that would have taken three days took five days to arrive at the Holy Light Capital. After arriving at Cardinal Joshua's mansion he was asked to return the next day because Cardinal Joshua was working on a ritual that repeated for four days until the trade concluded. With the trade being successful he immediately left for the Dragon Empire.
But that was when even he could not control his frustrations as he started to become suspicious. As soon as his carriage lined up to enter the border town of Sampir, he, his son, and the soldiers sent by the Grand Duke to protect the goods and his life were arrested on the grounds of smuggling despite having and showing proper documentation to the soldiers of Sampir. It was only on the tenth day that with the use of his connections, he was set free. After that ordeal, things went smoothly with no bandits attacking them nor soldiers stopping them from entering cities or towns. And with only two days to spare, even his trade with Marquess Baret was concluded with no hassle causing him to think maybe it was all a coincidence…
"But after meeting Young Miss Scarlet and hearing what you have been through I no longer believe it to be mere coincidence."
After listening to Uncle Thomas' story, Scarlet blamed herself as she bowed and offered an apology "It seems I have brought undue trouble to you, uncle."
"Young Miss Scarlet, there is no need to apologize. It is the fault of those who are scheming against you and your family. I am just thankful that you are safe! So, please raise your head!"
"Scarlet, Sir Thomas is right this is not your fault. You shouldn't blame yourself."
"Young miss, I too agree with Sir Thomas and Young Arthur."
Despite still feeling apologetic, Scarlet knew there was nothing she could have done to stop what had happened since only the ones who were scheming in the shadows knew of their own plans.
At least she can take solace in knowing nothing bad happened to Uncle Thomas, his son, and to the soldiers who were all dragged into her mess.
She can only hope that her father and Uncle Edward can find out who was behind her curse and subsequent assassination attempts.