“T-That is a remark that can even be interpreted as threat directed at Her Majesty, the Queen! Besides, no matter how powerful the soldiers of Fokalore might be, something like challenging the soldiers of the entire nation is…” (Adol)
“There’s isn’t any necessity or such to take on all soldiers. For us something like getting rid of only the important people crawling in the castle is a simple matter.” (Origa)
“But, Hifumi-sama is…” (Imeraria)
“Your Majesty, it isn’t a nice feeling for you to call my husband’s name in an overly personal manner.” (Origa)
“Aren’t those words to merely interrupt the words of the sovereign?” As one would expect, even Imeraria had lost her patience.
“Hifumi-sama won’t attack us, if we don’t oppose him. Please cooperate with us without fail. So, Origa-san, why is it acceptable for you to cooperate with us?” (Imeraria)
Due to Imeraria deliberately not changing her way of calling him, Origa opened her eyes widely. Imeraria’s feelings towards Hifumi might be stronger than I thought, causing Origa to raise up Imeraria’s rank as target to be cautious about within her mind.
“What I’m desiring is to be together with him even at the time he is sent away from this world. Therefore, I’m even ready to help you at the time of return.” (Origa)
“Hey, I will probably be useful”, is what Origa said.
☺☻☺
“I want to try seeing a human country.” (Reni)
Is what Reni suddenly blurted out during the time of them having breakfast.
“W-What are you saying?” (Helen)
Helen, who chewed an after-meal dessert bodan, was surprised and spilled bright red fruit juice from her mouth.
Hifumi is silently listening to their talk.
“In yesterday’s story of Hifumi-san, humans weren’t people, who only wage war. I wondered, if there are people living a different life. Besides, we aren’t as strong as Hifumi-san. Since I don’t have the experience and skill like you, Helen, who can hear various sounds, I think it’s wrong if I don’t get to know a lot more different things.” (Reni)
Reni’s facial expression is serious. She said it was the result of carefully thinking before sleep and wished for Helen to understand it as she bowed to her.
“Hifumi-san, forgive me for being a burden ahead of time. Although we will enter a human city, would you take me along as well?” (Reni)
“You are unreasonable, Reni! If a beastman is discovered in a human country, they will be killed or turned into slaves!” (Helen)
“It will be fine as long as I’m together with Hifumi-san. Therefore I believe that this is the first and last chance.” (Reni)
Hifumi, who remained mute while having his arms folded, expressionlessly turned towards Reni and bluntly said,
“So, what do you plan to do after seeing the life of humans?” (Hifumi)
“That is, even I still don’t know that. … But, rather than living secretly, without knowing anything, in the wastelands, where I don’t know when I might get killed, I wondered whether there isn’t something a lot more different.” (Reni)
“I don’t know anything about the destination country. I’m unable to show you around. There is also the possibility of you getting involved in strife.” (Hifumi)
“So far I lived by hiding and running away in the wastelands. At the time of battle I will be able to preserve by hiding in order to somehow not get killed. You don’t have to show me around the country. I thought I want to see how humans are living their lives.” (Reni)
Hifumi and Reni locked their gazes onto each other for a short while.
In front of Helen, who looked as if worrying with her heart going pit-a-pat, Hifumi placed his hand on Reni’s head.
“Got you. It’s a good thing for a child to study by observing various things. Moreover, it’s fine if you have decided that you want to do so by yourself. However, in Swordland you will let me treat you as my slave.” (Hifumi)
“Understood. Please treat me well.” (Reni)
“W-Wait a bit! Treat as slave, you say…” (Helen)
“Don’t worry”, Hifumi proudly says facing Helen.
“If it’s the treatment of slaves, that’s something I’m familiar with. Besides, it’s merely a pretence.” (Hifumi)
“B-But…” (Helen)
“It’s fine.” (Reni)
Reni gently hugged Helen.
“I’m truly sorry for being selfish. Once I’ve seen various things, I will tell you how the humans been, Helen, okay? Perchance I might discover a great breakthrough to change the village.” (Reni)
“Speaking of village, it’s your village, where the sheep and rabbits are gathered, huh…?” (Hifumi)
While tapping his knee with a fingertip, Hifumi was apparently struck by some idea. He organizes it in his head.
“It won’t be strange to encounter something that might change your village, too.” (Hifumi)
Looking at Hifumi broadly grinning, Helen stood up in a fluster.
“I-I will come along as well!” (Helen)
Acknowledging Helen’s request as well, the three changed their plans and it became a situation of them heading towards Swordland without parting from each other.
☺☻☺
The name of the current king of the Knight Country, Swordland, was Buell.
He, who is a muscular knight you can even call an exact resemblance of the founding king, devotes himself to training immediately after dealing with the governmental affairs. He is referred as being stronger than any of the knights within the country.
“A Knight, who left to hunt beastmen, hasn’t returned, you say?” (Buell)
Shaking his short-cut blonde hair while practising sword swings in the back yard of the castle, he questioned the report with 「The reason is unknown?」
“Haa! Going by the records of entry and departure, it is believed that he hasn’t gone too far into the wastelands, but at present it is under investigation.”
“Ignore it.” (Buell)
“Ha?”
Putting down his sword, Buell wiped of the flowing sweat.
“I told you to ignore it. If that person is a knight, who embraces our country’s pride, it will be fine to receive him at that time, since he will likely return even if he hunts for several days. However, if it looks like he had been done in by the likes of beastmen, this knight won’t be needed in this country.” (Buell)
“However…”
Without being tolerated to object, the knight, who came to report, was driven away with a mere gesture of the king.
In exchange it was a single chamberlain, who is constantly following the king, that stepped forward close to the king.
The chamberlain accepted the cloth, which the king used to wipe off his sweat, and took out cooled water.
“A beastman can be arranged.”
“If that’s the case, bring it here right away.” (Buell)
“As you wish.”
At the time the chamberlain, who left that place with a bow, returned, there were two soldiers, dragging a leopard beastman, having its hands and feet bound by chains, in his back.
“Hmm. Today the opponent is a leopard, eh?” (Buell)
Grasping the sword, Buell, who stood in front of the leopard beastman, points his sword at it and says,
“Though being a filthy beastman, are you strong?” (Buell)
The leopard beastman, lifting its head, glares at the king in silence.
“My king. Since this thing was persistently shouting, we have crushed and burned its throat. It won’t be able to raise its voice.”
“What, is that so? Oy, beastman. I will have the chains binding you removed now. And, if you are able to cause even a single scratch on me, I will release you in the wastelands.” (Buell)
With the instruction of the king, the soldiers unfastened the clasps and quickly got away from the beastman.
The beastman, who was suddenly liberated from the restraints, looked
below his knee for no more than an instant, nimbly leapt back and set up its bare claws.
The king daringly laughs at the leopard beastman, who put more attention into glaring.
“That’s right. It’s good to also do that in order to desperately cling to life like that. But.” (Buell)
He takes a peculiar stance of pushing out the sword, which he held with both hands, diagonally above.
“After all you are a beastman. Consider it a honour to die by a knight’s sword technique.” (Buell)
Soundlessly raising a roar, the leopard approaches fiercely.
The leopard beastman, who slipped underfoot by making sure to crawl on the ground, aimed at the kings neck as it stuck out both arms while at the same time raising its body.
“Naive.” (Buell)
Drawing the sword, he knocks down the fingers sticking out by wielding the hilt and sweeps the blade sideways savagely.
The moment the leopard beastman judged that its narrow evasion was successful by lowering its body once again, the king twists his body and swings the sword once more by rotating as if a spinning top.
“Humph!” (Buell)
With a sound closer to slapping into something rather than slicing something, the leopards head was split open into top and bottom.
Without giving an eye to the leopard beastman, who collapsed and scattered brain matter, the king thrusts out the sword towards the chamberlain for them to wipe the blade.
“It’s first movement was great, but I was able to deal with it in an instant.” (Buell)
“It was magnificent, my king.”
The king expressed his displeasure by snorting due to to the chamberlain’s compliment.
“If I have a hard time with a fellow of this level, I can’t be called the Knight Country’s king. I ought to be as strong as the founder. Go search a stronger beastman at once and bring it here.” (Buell)
“Ha! At your command.”
The soldiers, who brought the beastman, bow to the king and leave while dragging the corpse along.
“My king. It’s time to slowly return to the castle.”
Hearing the words of the chamberlain, the king shook his head.
“I will leave it to someone. I’m off to the female’s* room. It’s welling up after a fight after all.” (Buell) (T/N: mesu = female animal)
“Certainly!”
The king, who heads towards the room, where the beastwomen are confined, in the castle’s basement, was seen off by the bowing chamberlains.
Chapter 89: Trust?
What Reni and Helen snugly put on their heads were the hoods, attached to the mantles, which were used many times by Origa and Kasha to avoid the eyes of guards. Given that he had thrown those into the darkness storage, he passed those to the troublesome two, who would also make a racket in the surroundings, and had them wear those.
“Well then, next.”
Currently, for the sake of entering the gate into Swordland, where Hifumi’s group has arrived at, they have slipped among the people lining up to enter there.
On top of being an independent nation, which faced the wastelands, the chattering was cut off within the protective walls. Hifumi wondered whether it was a city with little traffic, but there are places for hunting and farming other than the city. Apparently the number of common people coming and going isn’t usually this small.
Be that as it may, if you compare it to Fokalore, which has had a tremendous increase in population, it’s insignificant. With it mostly being people entering and leaving everyday, the probability of them being acquaintances of the guards doing the inspections seems to be extremely high. There’s only few people showing something like identification papers.
“Next… you? You may pass.”
“Yes. Thanks as always.”
Due to them saying such, the queue is rapidly shrinking.
“Next is… a face I haven’t seen yet. Also, your two companions, remove your headgear and show your faces.”
As he was told by the soldier, Hifumi quickly pulled down the hoods of the hesitating Reni and Helen.
“This…, beastmen!?”
“Don’t get flustered. My slaves are no danger. There’s likely something else you have to do rather than being surprised.” (Hifumi)
“Ah, u-understood.”
Being told that high-handedly, the solder reflexively confirms the name in a businesslike manner and records it down. Thereupon, apparently realizing what he has been doing, the soldier’s face became bright red and he continued to question Hifumi.
“As there doesn’t seem to be a record of you leaving this city, where did you come from? What’s your objective?”
“It’s because I’m from Orsongrande, on the other side of the wastelands. My objective is to merely go on a pleasure trip.” (Hifumi)
“You say, you came out of the wastelands? Didn’t you get caught by beastmen over there!? You are amazingly talented or had great luck.”
Due to the soldier looking at them with a scrutinizing look, Reni cast down her eyes and Helen clenched her fists, but they endured it without leaking a single word.
Seeing their state, Hifumi decided to have a slight better opinion of those two.
“They are my assets. Don’t stare at them too much. So, is it already fine to pass as well?” (Hifumi)
“Ah, sorry. Carry this permit. The admission tax is 5 silver coins, but… do you have those?”
On the desk the soldier, who was facing him with a doubtful look, has been placing his elbow, Hifumi casually piled up around 10 gold cons.
The design of the gold coins is different from the one in Swordland, but their size is one size larger. Even the portrait, which had been thoroughly engraved into it, is detailed and beautiful.
Hifumi sighed with a “Good grief”, as the soldier had his breath taken away and was unable to take his eyes off the gold coins.
“It’s the money of the country over there, but money is money. Because I don’t need any attraction, hurry up and let us through.” (Hifumi)
☺☻☺
The bearman Salgu returned to their nesting place within the woods being accompanied by the tigerboy’s group.
It was the first time the boy’s group learned of it, but bear beastmen don’t form packs. Apparently they are basically living by themselves or, at most, with their families.
Although there is mingling with their fellow members of the same race, they are told that it almost never happens for them to live together.
“Accordingly, the bear beastmen cherish their family ties. If a child loses its parents prematurely due to something happening, the other adults will look after it and raise it as well.” (Salgu)
Tearing off a fruit, that was growing at a high place, Salgu equally split it with Olra, who is his daughter, and the boy and his younger sister.
“T-Thank you…”
“Let’s hear your name. You are the lifesaver of my precious daughter after all.” (Salgu)
“Something like benefactor… I’m Malfas (T/N: Marufasu <<) and my younger sister is Riedel (T/N: Ri~deru <<).” (Malfas)
Summoned Slaughterer - Book 5 Page 14
