Chapter 94

How unusual…

The murder of a beastman by another beastman caused a disturbance among the beastmen of the slums.

Although it was the slums, they didn’t interfere with each other unless one was a great outlaw. Since it was right now also a phase, where everyone was actually experiencing the city improving, the search for the culprit, mainly by the people who witnessed it, was tinged with a mania.

“So now it has come to the talk whether it’s not necessary to patrol the slums as well ~ssu.” (Gengu)

For Gengu there’s also the situation of one of his own tribe getting killed. Taking the initiative, he was looking everywhere for the bearman, who has been named as culprit.

“I’m doing my best at searching too, but it is quite difficult.” (Reni)

“I do know that, but why are you telling this to me…?” (Gengu)

Reni answered with a troubled expression to Gengu, who stuck out his tongue with a laugh.

“Rather than someone like me, isn’t such a thing a speciality for a dogman like Gengu-san?” (Reni)

“However, Hifumi-san’s leading slaves are Reni-san and Helen-san. I believe it to be wrong, if I don’t ask about your opinion first ~ssu.” (Gengu)

“Since when did we become leaders…? Surely it’s not because you have cold feet to directly consult with Hifumi-san due to being scared or such, is it?” (Helen)

Gengu unintentionally lets his look swim due to the partially teasing words of Helen.

“Bull’s-eye!? Even if it isn’t at the level of a tiger, a dogman should be plenty powerful, no?”

“That man is special! Impossible, it’s impossible even for tigers or wolves. That man’s strength is unrelated to being a human or such. Therefore, I thought it would be possible to request the favourite people of that man to put in a bit of a good word ~ssu.” (Gengu)

“Just a second, who is Hifumi-san’s favourite?” (Helen)

Due to Helen’s objection, Gengu tilted his head with a “Huh?”

“I hear that you were together with him from the beginning, when you entered this country, though ~ssu. You have a good relationship with Hifumi-san, right?” (Gengu)

“What good relationship?” (Helen)

Helen has become speechless with a red face, however Reni didn’t understand the meaning of Gengu’s words and is staring at him in puzzlement.

In reverse Gengu was surprised that they were still children to such an extent.

“This is, I of all people, have made a terrible misunderstanding…” (Gengu)

“Really! Don get such weird ideas, okay!?” (Helen)

Being angry with a huff, Helen’s ears stood on end and she ended up going somewhere.

“Oops~” (Gengu)

“It’s alright, Gengu-san. I will talk with Helen later. Leaving that aside, at the time something is stolen or people get killed, it seems that soldiers will investigate and arrest the bad person in the human’s city.” (Reni)

“Soldiers, it is? About this, to leave it to human soldiers is…” (Gengu)

“Well, then isn’t it fine if it’s not humans?” (Reni)

“Ha?” (Gengu)

“If we beastmen are able to cultivate land and run stores like humans, won’t we be able to do the same job like the soldier-san’s as well?” (Reni)

“I-I see.” (Gengu)

Gengu, who had dropped his shoulders, raises his head as if jumping up and runs away to gather his friends.

“Off he went…” (Reni)

Seeing off Gengu, whose figure vanished from sight within the blink of an eye, Reni began the continuation of her studies. What she is currently reading are the teaching materials used as examination to become a civil official of Fokalore. It’s content, which, putting Caim aside, took Doelgar and Paryu quite the troubles to remember, but Reni smoothly and obediently learns them as she has absolutely no prejudices either.

“Phew… the human’s studying, it’s quite hard.” (Reni)

The beastmen a.s.sociation, which was formed with a few words of Reni, was a filthy, grim group of men proud of their strength, but they were extremely superior as vigilante corps.

Patrolling the slums during the breaks of their own work, they solve crimes and lesser problems. They also actively move for things like sheltering new beastmen, who escaped from the humans, take care of drunkards and protect lost children. They have become an organisation, that gathers trust, with many more tasks than human soldiers.

Facilitating even the acceptance of beastmen, who weren’t able to find good work for the apt.i.tude they possess, the increase of their numbers accelerated with Gengu playing a leading role.

Discovering the corpses of human soldiers at the entrance of the slums again and again, it naturally even reached the point of the vigilante corps relying on the humans, entering and leaving, since those were b.l.o.o.d.y incidents, too.

And, the one, they had their eyes on, was Hifumi.

“Ho ho, aren’t you planning something quite interesting.” (Hifumi)

“H-Hifumi-san!?” (Gengu)

Due to Hifumi suddenly making an appearance at the old building, which is serving as headquarters of the vigilante corps, Gengu stood up in a hurry and brought the chair with the cleanest state.

“Ah, don’t mind me. Rather than that, something like establishing a vigilante corps, aren’t you pa.s.sing your time in a wonderful way?” (Hifumi)

“No, not at all! It’s thanks to having received a hint from Reni-san ~ssu. As they are originally clumsy guys, who have no brains and are only good at fighting, this is a comfortable gathering of people.” (Gengu)

Once asked, there are around 20 guys working full-time and around 50 beastmen, who are treated as reserve corps helping on the patrols while doing other jobs.

Basically they are operating with the donations of beastmen stores, but there is also a part of donations coming from humans.

“At present we are somehow able to handle it. … But, we haven’t been able to find that beast murderer yet…” (Gengu)

Hifumi gently called out to Gengu, who lowered his voice and showed is fangs looking frustrated.

“Well, don’t give up. However, if you can’t even find him in these confined slums while using such a number of people, isn’t it likely that he’s not in the slums anymore?” (Hifumi)

“In other words, he left towards the wastelands, is what you are saying?” (Gengu)

“No, it’s something else.” (Hifumi)

Hifumi shakes his head.

“I heard it from other guys too, but that criminal spoke with hostility towards the slums’ people before, right? And, that guy freed several beastmen from the humans. Do you believe such fellow will sneakily return to the wastelands?” (Hifumi)

“Then, did he go to where the humans live?” (Gengu)

“You should consider that possibility too, right?” (Hifumi)

“Such a… Well, then we won’t be able to pursue him anymore, eh…” (Gengu)

Hifumi lightly hit the discouraged Gengu with his fist.

“You give up far too easily, idiot.” (Hifumi)

“Eh? Is there some… way?” (Gengu)

Hifumi, who dropped his fist on Gengu’s head, breathed out a “You moron.”

“Ponder about it with your group a bit. Putting that aside, it seems like you should prepare more seriously, I came to tell you that.” (Hifumi)

“Is there something going on ~ssu?” (Gengu)

Due to Gengu asking while rubbing his head, Hifumi folds his arms and continues to explain.

“Yea, for the last few days soldiers have frequently tried to enter the slums here during the night. “By accident” I happened to pa.s.s by and since the other side attacked me by drawing their swords, although I haven’t done anything, they rolled around on the road being beaten and killed every time, but…” (Hifumi)

“So Hifumi-san was the cause of those soldier’s corpses, huh…?” (Gengu)

Gengu, who tensed his mind with “Good gracious, it’s the bearman’s doing, eh?”, becomes bitter at himself. He believes that “by accident” or such to be a lie, however since he values his life, he doesn’t voice that out.

“It seems, as result of the soldiers not coming back, they will team up with a knight group and come to the slums.” (Hifumi)

“Such a thing! But, why do you know about that?” (Gengu)

“Touring down-town, I grasped the castle buying food up, the n.o.bles employing weapon shops for maintenance and increasingly ordering new weapons. There are talks about the increase of requests regarding something like harness adjustment. Since the soldiers here don’t use horses, the ones moving are likely the knights. There are also rumours that the knight’s training increased. Because I’m unable to think of any other reason for the knights to expressly move at this point in time, I dare say that their aim is likely this place here.” (Hifumi)

“So, what will you do?” Hifumi asked, but Gengu wasn’t in a state of being able to answer due to the shock.

“I-It’s a disaster…” (Gengu)

“Calm down.” (Hifumi)

Receiving Hifumi’s poke in the forehead due to his nose running, Gengu drops to the floor, rolls over a few times and faints in agony.

“The way to deal with the knights is simple. First, humans are weak. Using horses, they barely manage to catch up with your beastmen feet. Using swords, they are somehow able to cause injuries to you guys.” (Hifumi)

“Eh? Then you are no human after all, are you, Hifumi-san…?” (Gengu)

Gengu had a fist lowered at him once again.

“Don’t change the subject. In other words, if you fight using your head and the same weapons, it will be a situation where you don’t have to be afraid of knight and their likes at all.” (Hifumi)

While Hifumi, who stood up, corrected the position of the katana at his waist, he looked down on Gengu, who has been showing his belly having fallen to the ground.

“Gather the guys, who have spare time. I will teach them the way of fighting.” (Hifumi)

Salgu himself was aware of being in a state you couldn’t call sane anymore.

He looks at the beastmen, who are enslaved by humans, specifies the house, they are attached to, for later and waits for them to fall asleep to kill the family during that time.

And he saves the beastmen, who have become slaves, but…

“What do you want me to do by saving me here?”

The wolf beastman, who lost all its claws on both paws, doesn’t even get up from the corner of the stable.

“Even I hated the humans at the beginning. But you know, if you get to know that, rather than living in the wastelands, the way of being the human’s slave is quite safe, comfortable and that you are able to eat food, there’s nothing to return to in the wastelands except danger.”

“…Is, that so…?” (Salgu)

“Even if I lost my usefulness, I won’t be killed, you know. It seems I will be thrown into the slums, but since I will receive sufficient of the human’s leftovers there, it appears I will be able to survive with small* rationed portions.” (T/N: *chima chima*)

“Seeing that my masters died, I guess there’s nothing left for me but to go there too”, the grumbling wolf beastman laughed weakly.

The expression of Salgu, who looks down on him, can’t be seen by the wolf beastman under the cover of the dark night.

“Don’t you feel the wish to return to the wastelands?” (Salgu)

“Eh? The wastelands, I miss them, but…”

Laughing foolishly, the wolf beastman shakes its head. It seems that he is shaking off some unpleasant memory with that gesture.

“That place is a h.e.l.l. You run from place to place like the rabbits and sheep or you have no choice but to continuously repeat a daily life of killing or being killed without even the time to sleep restfully. It’s not a place where you can sleep with a peace of mind like this place either. I don’t want to experience the sensation of hunger, which grows violent due to the hardships to look for food, anymore.”

“Is that so? Got it.” (Salgu)

Salgu brought down his fist, drove it into the face of the wolf beastman, who looked up at him, and sunk it it into flesh and blood with a soggy sound.

Staring at the fist, he extracted from the face with a wet sound, Salgu pondered.

There’s intense pain within his head, which has stirred up his thoughts like noise, but even so, he pondered.

“This city in itself has been a bad influence on the beastmen…” (Salgu)

The food, given by humans, the buildings, the livelihood, all of that caused the beastmen to lose the spirit, they should originally have, is what Salgu concluded.

He repeatedly puzzles over countermeasure with his head hurting strongly.

He sits down besides the fallen corpse of the wolf beastman in the stable, which is filled with the smell of blood.

“Calm down. If I smash up the humans, everything should come to an end.” (Salgu)

Salgu’s eyes are looking at the face of the dead wolf beastman. It’s completely as if he’s talking to him.

“That’s right. If I’m able to crush the boss of the humans too, the human city will be finished as well.” (Salgu)

Standing up, Salgu reached the point of being able to believe that things have become extremely clear in his head.

He walks forth in order to accomplish the clear, simple, decided matter.

“The human’s boss, where is he…?” (Salgu)

An insane bearman walks through the city’s night.