CH 67

[Persuasion]

As I approach the forest, I can feel the presences of monsters from inside.

Dimol seems to have raised a cry in response to the presences.

That guy must have hide here.

When I tried to enter the forest, a giant horse with a black body full of scars slowly walked out and appeared from the depths of the forest.

“Bruhihiin.”

Did the giant horse expect me to come? It neighed as if saying ‘Do you need something?’

“To think that you would come out to welcome me. It seems like you know I was coming.”

“Buhihiin.”

The giant horse pointed at the figure of Dimol seen from the gaps in the forest with his chin.

“So, you know I was coming by seeing Dimol’s figure huh. As I thought, you’re a smart guy.”

The giant horse before me seemed to be an ordinary war horse that hasn’t turned into monster, but he displayed intelligence that was higher than ordinary.

He had displayed his cleverness many times by escaping the capture of the adventurers.

Although he doesn’t speak in words, he can communicate his intent normally.

I was once again impressed at the giant horse in front of me.

Looking at such me, the giant horse once again neighed as if saying ‘What is your business?’

“Ah, sorry. My business in coming here, right. I’ll be straight, actually, I came here with the intention of capturing you. But before that, I want you to listen to my story.”

Even after hearing my words, the giant horse didn’t run, he began to sit before me as if saying ‘Let’s listen to your story.’

If it was a wild animal, not to mention sitting in front of the hunter, it would have escaped at the sign of a person but the giant horse before me was sitting boldly without escaping.

“Thank you for listening. It shouldn’t be a bad story for you and your herd.”

The giant horse who had sat down nodded as if saying ‘Tell me more.’

“To start with, it seems that the capture order for you was originally issued after you escaped from the branch office of the Royal Guard Knight Order in Inbahanes. The current situation is that the lord’s representative, the Magistrate, being a pain in the ass, sent out a request for your capture to the Adventurer’s Guild, so the adventurers are coming to capture you and your herd one after another. Can you understand up to here?”

Having listened to my explanation, the giant horse was making a pondering gesture for a while, but eventually nodded as he understood.

“As long as you run away, the bunch in your herd that are longing for you will always be targeted by the adventurers. That’s not your true intention, right?”

“Bururu.”

“That’s why. What I’m suggesting is have you caught temporarily, hand you over to the Royal Guard Knight Order, and then get you to escape. If the capture request is completed this time, the Adventurer’s Guild’s side have promised that they will never accept another request to capture you. If you escape, there will be no one other than the Royal Guard Knight Order who will be pursuing you. In that case, they won’t be able to capture you in this vast grassland, and I think that your herd will not be harmed as well; how is it?”

Having listened to my story, the giant horse had his face down to the ground as if he was thinking about my proposal.

The branch office of the Royal Guard Knight in Inbahanes seems to only have a small number of personnel; if the Adventurer’s Guild doesn’t receive the capture request, it would be the same as it gaining substantial freedom.

After the giant horse that had been thinking about my proposal for a while stood up, it let out a loud neigh that echoed in the forest.

Attracted by the voice, the Chaos Horses and Horn Horses in the forest came and gathered here.

Facing the gathered herd of horses, the giant horses neighed as if telling them something, and then forced his mane into the mouth of the Chaos Horse which had the next largest body after himself.

I wonder if that meant that he handed the command of the herd over to that Chaos Horse.

That guy, he might have concluded that he was a bother to the herd and decided to leave them.

“Bruhihiin!!”

After the giant horse neighed with a loud voice again, the horses of the herd ran away from the forest immediately, led by the Chaos Horse that had become the new leader.

“You… Are you really fine with that?”

“Bururu.”

The giant horse snorted as if saying “Of course.”

I don’t know how the giant horse before me became the leader of the monsterized horses, but I’m impressed that when he found out that his existence was a bother for them, he decided to give up his position as a leader and set the herd free.

“I see. As long as you’re okay with it, if you have nowhere to go after you have escaped the Royal Guard Knight Order branch office, you can come to my place. We’re staying at the kingdom army’s garrison outside the city of Inbahanes. Besides, I’m planning to leave this place after I’m done with my tasks and then travel around the kingdom. It’s fine if you don’t have spare time to come though.”

Feeling fascinated by the existence of the giant horse, I asked him with words that is close to invitation to become my companion.

Hearing those words, the giant horse, tilted his head a little and let out a little neigh as if saying, ‘I will consider it.’

“Ahh, it’s fine if you don’t have a spare to come. I’m not forcing you after all. Dimol unexpectedly seems to like you as well, he is smart too, so I think you guys will be a good conversation partner. Noelia and Suzana are good people too. Ah-, Cinzia-sama is a bit strange, but I think that she’s not a bad person, so it’s I’m sure it’s okay. I already warned her to stop wishing for your bones—”

The giant horse held me, who kept talking incessantly, on my collar and put me on his back.

“Bruhihiin.”

With me on his back, the giant horse neigh as if saying ‘let’s go’, and start walking toward the exit of the forest.