CH 19

Chapter 19 – The One Who Escaped

As I parked the microbus in front of the city gate, about ten people appeared to greet us from within the city walls.

They were carrying a variety of weapons in their hands, but none of them looked very strong. Perhaps the beastman and elves we carried are the most elite force currently available.

…Or maybe, the reason why they are in the Revolutionary Army or the Liberation Army is because of the unavoidable circumstances, and the beastman and the others’ main occupation is probably as farmers or hunters.

“What is this?”

“Is that a carriage? I don’t see any horses.”

“The thing on the front is a bear face, right? I’ve seen bears in the Dark Forest.”

“Bears aren’t that cute, are they?”

After a few moments of waiting, the gates opened, and we were welcomed in. The children sat in the back seat and did not get off, so we entered the city in the microbus.

…Oh, this is that, isn’t it? It’s like in “The Gauntlet” movie. The one where the bus gets shot from both sides by the cops and becomes a beehive. So far, the only thing that stings is the gazes.

There were forty to fifty people living in Casemaian, at least the ones that caught my eye. There were few women and children. I wonder if they couldn’t escape or if they were somewhere safe. They were also talking about how they were devoting people to patrolling and monitoring the area, so I estimated that there were around 100 people in total.

I stopped the car in the front yard of the church-like building, where it was wider, and told the kids to get out of the car so I could store the car. They complain, but I ignore them. This is not your toy or your secret base.

“I wanted to ride it more. Can’t you just leave it like this?”

Myrril, you too?

It’s fine to leave it there, but since it’s directly connected without an engine key, there’s a chance that it might start running while someone else is playing with it. To prevent accidents, I’d better store it away.

“It’s insane to let a human into the city. Who knows what he’ll do?”

“I’m not asking you to trust him. Just stay out of harm’s way.”

“How do I know he won’t hurt us?”

In the vestibule, the bear-man who had come with us in the microbus explained the situation to the people who had gathered. From the way he looked back at me from time to time and shook his head with some difficulty, it seemed that there was a lot of opposition to my acceptance, aside from Myrril.

During the discussion, I was met with looks of caution, anger, contempt, and even some murderous intent as I stood at a distance. If the situation was a war against humans, well, that’s what would have happened.

Thank goodness they’re not all against me and want me gone immediately, but there’s room for discussion.

Myrril is standing in front of me, trying to take care of all the bad intentions. I’m grateful for that, but I’m sorry if it has caused the beastman, elves, and dwarves to distrust her as well.

“Myrril, don’t worry about me; you should join the conversation over there…”

“I refuse.”

“But you know…”

“When I say no, then no! As far as I could tell from their words, they must have survived to this point after years of hardship. I understand their deep-seated distrust of humans. I understand that they are wary. But I can’t stand it when they look down on Yoshua like that!”

This noja loli is really a good girl…

But there’s something that’s bothering me. From what I’ve heard, people seem to think that Myrril is being used as my slave.

I guess they misunderstood me because of what I said when I tried to force Myrril to stay with me.

In other words, well, it’s my fault.

“Wait, how could you misunderstand me! I’m not Yoshua’s slave, and he doesn’t have any slaves in the first place!”

“How can you be so sure? If you have any facts to prove it, please tell us. You can’t prove anything, can you?”

I’m not sure if it’s only inflammatory words, tit or tat, or something like a kid’s quarrel, but the small man who seems to be a dwarf gives Myrril a piercing look.

I don’t know what kind of imagination led him to make that face, but I didn’t do anything to deserve it.

“Oh, well, I’ll tell you what. First of all, I don’t have any money.”

“…Eh?”

It was Myrril who looked most dismayed by my words, which I thought I had managed to help out.

What is it? I’m a man who doesn’t choose the means to achieve his goals despite my appearance, you know?

“I don’t have any gold or silver coins, or even copper coins, to buy a slave. Even if I were to force myself to capture one, I’d probably have less strength than that kid… Helma, right? I’m no better than her. Of course, I’m also slower than a beastman.

I started to feel a bit nervous. The beastman, in particular, took a bite out of my explanation.

Probably in a different direction than I intended.

“Hey, you’re kidding, right? Aside from his legs, his strength is… I mean, yeah, he may be right?”

“No, really. If I pushed him, he would have been blown up and not be able to move.”

That’s right. That was unexpected, but it worked pretty well.

Hearing Helma’s overly honest words, the subhumans, the beastman and others changed their attitudes. Their hostility and malice disappeared, and they looked at me as if they were looking at something pitiful. Oh no, I think I’m going to cry.

The elf man looked at me, tilting his head. There was a light tickling sensation all over his body as if he was appraising me.

“…Hmm, his magic power is also average. It may be high for a human, but it’s poor for a mage.”

I was so disappointed that I fell to my knees.

I knew it somehow, but I’m really that bad, huh…

“But, you know, he took off the slave’s collar. With magic.”

“What? Can you take off a slave’s collar? I couldn’t get it off no matter what I tried.”

“Yeah. Here.”

I took the slave’s collar out of storage and threw it out nearby.

“If anyone is having trouble getting it off, bring them to me later.”

“Oh, this is… you didn’t cut it off, huh? You really did remove it by magic.”

“Yes, he did. He also told me that he killed the kingdom’s mages and cavalry and that he brought the adults who died trying to protect us here. And he also gave us food and blankets.”

The beastman children who I had brought here tried to convince the adults to help me.

It was too late to follow up ― and I didn’t mean to give them the blanket ― but it seemed to soften their attitude a little.

“Hey, you. Is it true that you carried the body?”

Oh yeah, I forgot.

I asked them to spread a blanket on the ground, and I took the three bodies of the “Casemaian Liberation Army” out of my storage and handed them over.

The recipients were four elderly men and women and a young woman who looked like they were family members of the deceased. They all looked like they were about to cry, but they nodded and stroked the bodies lovingly.

“They seemed to have fought bravely to protect the children. By the time we got there, they were already dead… I’m sorry we couldn’t help them.”

“It’s okay. My brothers always said that. They always said it was their duty to protect and reclaim those who were captured.”

“If we had not sensed the danger with the magical light they were using to fight, we would have approached them unprotected and would have been killed as well. In that sense, they are a lifesaver not only for the children but for the two of us as well.”

“…I’m glad you said that, and my brother, too…”

The rest is inexpressible. The beastman’s girl broke down in tears, and the bereaved family members around her were gently comforting her.

“…Well, okay. We’ll allow you to stay. Helma and the others should keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn’t do anything strange.”

The residents, who had been blaming me and the others with venomous faces, broke up and went back to their homes and jobs. The remaining beastman children looked at each other, their tails hanging down in unison.

“Eeehh… that’s troublesome…”

“But I don’t hate this guy because he has good food.”

“Well, if he gives it to me again, I can keep watch.”

…Hey, wait, does the person being watched have to pay for the cost of the watcher?

I mean, maybe I should teach these little beastman boys and girls that being overly honest is not a virtue. Yeah.

I turned around to see if I could organize my things in storage for now, and the warm-eyed Myrril confronted me.

“…Yoshua, I think you should choose your words a little better.”

“Oh, yes.”

“Well, I’m glad it worked out in the end.”

She shook her head at my unintentional response. No, no, no, I can’t react when you look at me like a mother looking at a stupid child like that. Especially for a little girl who’s only half my age.

The way I see it, you have a habit of underestimating your own value. I don’t know what made you do it. So this is my selfishness.”

The serious-looking Myrril looked at me straight in the face.

“Remember that. I will not allow anyone who is important to me to be neglected.”