Chapter 154 (1/2)

Volume 2

CH 10

「Three Heroes + One」

Unfortunately, there was no way to say that the day the beastmen would be liberated was a beautiful one . The weather was the complete opposite of what such an occasion called for, with thick gray clouds hanging in the sky above the capital .

Since the city hadn’t been cleared of undead yet, many people were forced to stay in uncomfortable tents camps behind the inner wall .

However, the faces of the people didn’t reflect the gloomy atmosphere .

Stories of how the undead horde outside the city had been wiped out had spread throughout the populace, there was even talk among the citizens about forming search parties to hunt the remaining undead .

Many citizens had already volunteered to help destroy the remaining undead, the atmosphere was far from depressing and full of energy and liveliness .

According to Zahar, rumors of the beastmen being set free had intentionally been spread throughout the populace whenever talks about rebuilding the city came up, although the full story hadn’t been leaked .

I was wondering why they took such measures, but he politely explained the circumstances behind them to me .

“Before we arrived to rescue the city, the capital lacked the necessary manpower to defend the city, so all the beastmen slaves and those gathered for the church had been mobilized . Originally, it had been planned to hand them over to the church after the crisis had passed, but now there’s no need comply with their demands since the cardinal was exposed . ”

Zahar had an unpleasant expression on his face as he spoke .

“Still, it’s possible that the beastmen will try to escape the capital . It’s possible that some them have already fled after yesterday’s battle had concluded . The King had to spread rumors in advance to prevent them from recklessly trying to escape the city . ”

I nodded and muttered an affirmation after listening to what he had to say .

It would be an easy feat for the physically endowed beastmen to scale the inner wall and escape now that most of the undead were slain .

Still, it was a dangerous action to take nevertheless, enduring slavery didn’t leave much physical endurance in a person .

Ariane, Chiome, Ponta, Zahar and I were currently in the reception hall of a guest mansion that had been built near the palace, watching the garden below through a window .

Normally, the general public wouldn’t be allowed inside the royal palace, but a multitude of beastmen had been gathered in the large garden .

There were quite a few of them, though Zahar said that they didn’t exceed more than a thousand people .

It was obvious that the beastmen who voluntarily made their way here came to witness, with their own eyes and ears, the declaration that would affect their place within this country .

Then they’d be able to report back to their peers what they witnessed .

Chiome had been immersed in deep thought ever since she saw her brethren file into the garden .

Zahar gave her a sideways glance before bringing up what had happened yesterday .

“Chiome-dono, there is no excuse for Nina’s rude behavior yesterday . ”

He was trying to apologize again, but Chiome’s blank expression remained unchanged . A look from Ariane told me that I would be our representative today .

“Chiome-dono doesn’t seem too worried about it, so don’t worry about it Xahar-dono . ……I haven’t seen Nina-dono today, is she with Princess Lille?”

Zahar scratched the back of his head and smiled bitterly when I asked about her whereabouts .

“She was punished by Lille-same after the incident and is still reflecting on her actions……”

I heard a small sigh for the two other people listening to him .

When I looked at the two people in question, their eyes were suspiciously directed at the horizon .

“……So, Nina-dono was serious about it . ”

I found myself imagining the still pre-pubescent princess chastising the female knight with a whip in hand, as I glanced back out the window .

The thought of Nina shouting “I’m sorry!” after the whip bit into her back made me blush and apologize in my heart for having such a daydream .

Either way, it seems Lille could be entrusted with Nina’s punishment, so I cleared those disgraceful thoughts from my head and asked Zahar another question .

“Zahar-dono, why is it that you don’t carry any malice towards the beastmen?”

Hearing my question, he offered me a small, self-depreciating smile .

“Unlike Nina, I don’t belong to the nobility . When I was a child, living in a small village, I met and befriended a beastman child and his community by chance in the nearby forest…… I earned their favor by informing them where and when a slave hunt would occur . ”

As Zahar told me this, he nodded slightly and had a somewhat envious look on his face .

“Is that so……”

I wanted to ask him what his beastmen friend was up to now, but given his expression, it was probably better to avoid digging into what was obviously an unpleasant topic for him .

Eventually, guards carrying trumpet-like musical instruments silently entered the garden and began to blow into them .

The chatter below came to a stop as everyone’s attention was focused on one location .

King Asparuf, accompanied by two royal guards, stepped onto the balcony that overlooked the garden after the song played for fanfare came to an end .

One of the guards announced the King’s arrival with a shout .

“King Asparuf Nozan Soulia, of Nozan Kingdom!”

The majority of the beastmen gathered in the garden had never seen the King before, so whispers immediately sprung up within the crowd .

Meanwhile, King Asparuf slowly walked up to the railings and looked over the beastmen that had gathered down below before he began speaking .

“Thank you, everyone, for gathering here today . As you all know, our country faced an unprecedented crisis just the other day . While our fate was in God’s hand, it was due to the effort of the beastmen that we survived . On behalf of the country, you have my utmost gratitude . ”

The beastmen looked at one another at the King’s show of appreciation .

They were confused because a human king, the apex of the nation, had just personally thanked beastmen for their help .

However, there were those who were disgusted when they heard the king’s words .

They must have been thinking that the only reason the king was being so generous was that the country had been in danger . Perhaps they thought that the words of a conniving king weren’t credible .

After all, only the bare minimum had come to this place since the majority of the beastmen assumed that this was a trap meant to recapture them .

Not to mention, that none of the armed guards that surrounded the garden spoke out against what the King was saying .

“You all have probably heard that the undead who were besieging the city have been almost completely annihilated . They vanished so abruptly that I was certain they would return to the capital in larger numbers . ”

That rumor had definitely spread amongst the people……  it was said that almost every undead had been slain and the King confirming it to be true caused a small cheer to raise from the crowd .

“During this crisis, my daughter, Princess Lille became a messenger and invited three heroes from other countries to fight on our behalf . It is because of their strength and ability that I stand before you today . I swore to provide them the greatest reward their efforts warrant . ”

The noise became louder as Asparuf continued to spin his yarn .

Unsurprisingly, the King proclaimed that three people were being rewarded for their achievements had everyone looking around in confusion .

The crisis the capital faced wasn’t a situation where just three people would have been able to make a difference…… some were already starting to doubt that the attack had even occurred .

However, those who had actually taken part in the war effort were quick to refute those claims since they’d actually seen the innumerable horde of undead besieging the city .

Besides, the primary source of their unease was why they had been gathered here to listen to the achievements of others .

For them, the three heroes and their being her were incompatible with one another .

Moreover, Princess Lille had been expressly identified as the messenger who had brought the heroes here…… if said heroes hadn’t been non-human mercenaries, they would’ve had no choice but to flee, considering the state of the country .

However, neither the inhabitants of the capital nor the citizens of the kingdom had been gathered in the garden .

The hundreds of beastmen who had gathered here were equivalent to the students of a single school gathering for an assembly, so I was a bit reliant to receive the hero’s mantle .