CH 308

Warning: Kanbee, the head of the Demon Country Envoy, has some pretty harsh, offensive things to say about Flora which can get rather misogynistic and racist.

Kanbee was dissatisfied when he was summoned by the Emperor and given an order. It had come so out of the blue. That same day, he was to go to a barbarian country as the head of a diplomatic mission. He found himself quite annoyed by it.

Of course, it is not a rebellious spirit against the country or the Emperor. It would be logical for those from barbaric countries to come to them with their heads bowed. Even so, why should Kanbee go out of his way to go to a barbarian country, when he has excellent abilities and achievements even among the other civil servants?

In the first place, it’s quite unreasonable to be ordered today and leave later that same day. The excellent Kanbee already has a lot of work to do. Despite that, he was summoned this morning, given the order, to leave later in the afternoon, and he has no idea when he’ll be back.

It couldn’t be… he doesn’t think so… but he can’t help but think this was a relegation.

There is no way the Emperor would demote someone as talented as himself. It can’t be. However, he can’t say that there is no chance that someone jealous of his talent had reported some kind of fabrication, and the Emperor took the deception seriously.

Nonetheless, there is no way to go against it as long as it is an imperial order. Kanbee selects and organizes a diplomatic mission upon receipt of his duties.

The necessary personnel was immediately gathered and organized in no time. Normally, with such a sudden dispatch, he would think that only incompetent people would be able to gather, but for some reason, all the personnel that Kanbee requested were easily acquired.

True, Kanbee himself personally made the request, but he hadn’t expected to get everyone he’d asked for.

Impossible… is it a matter so important that it has to be prioritized even if it means stopping all other work and duties?

Kanbee thought so and then shook his head in denial. He hears that the diplomatic partner is nothing more than a Feudal Lord of the Kingdom of Ploiss, their longtime nemesis.

Kanbee has never directly gone to war with the Kingdom of Ploiss, but that opponent is a small country in their region. Compared to their country, even the Kingdom of Ploiss is just a small state in the countryside, and even if they do diplomacy, they will be in a position to ask Ploiss to humble themselves. Moreover, how much support can there be, if there’s only one Feudal Lord among them?

In any case, the Feudal Lord seems to have a deep connection with their country’s prodigal second princess. The recklessness of ordering such a large-scale delegation today and leaving the same day is probably because of the connection to Princess Mikoto. Otherwise, there is no way that something like their country would give such special treatment to a Feudal Lord of a barbarian country.

Aside from that, there were some puzzling things to Kanbee. First of all, even though it was supposed to be a diplomatic mission, among the people dispatched was Isuzu, for some reason, even though she was called the Empress of the Imperial Court. No matter how much power you hold in the royal court, you have no hand in diplomacy. He doesn’t know why such an important maid who shouldn’t have been in this place is now going to join them on their trip to a small country’s countryside.

And the guards… A rare swordsman, Musashi, is so out of the ordinary and said to have been specially scouted by the Emperor. Kanbee doesn’t know why that Musashi is guarding such a mission.

That these two are dispatched means it must also be the Emperor’s will. Why are there two such people on the diplomatic mission? The escort may have been given special consideration by the Emperor to protect Kanbee, as he has a genius brain and is super talented. However, he can’t guess why Isuzu is here, too.

Even so, it is an arrangement that the Emperor insists on. Kanbee has no way of refusing it. Having made the preparations, in the Heavenly Fall room, Kanbee sees for the first time the Second Princess and what appears to be the barbarian messenger from the other side. She’s quite casual with the Emperor. She is even called the Emperor’s daughter and so on.

Kanbee doesn’t know how she managed to get into the Emperor’s good graces, but he doesn’t like her. Even though she looks like a whore who’s only good at charming others, Kanbee has no choice but to follow the imperial order.

The mission moved from the Heavenly Fall room to the Kingdom of Del, crossed the snowy mountains, and most of them stepped foot in Ploiss for the first time.

Down the mountain and through the woods, they were guided to a small town, or what could be called a large village. He doubted it would be a place ready to receive diplomatic missions. After all, it is a country of barbarians.

They follow the guide through the town called “Floren.” Kanbee had no intention of memorizing the name of a small town in a barbarian country, but it bothered him more to be thought of as an idiot with poor memory, so he will remember it anyway. Once this matter is settled, it will probably never be spoken again for the rest of his life, but even so, if he doesn’t remember it now, people will mistake him for a fool.

“We will rest here today,” the guide said.

“Th-… this is…”

It’s unsuitable for a small town… a huge mansion. Certainly, it is far from the imperial castle of their country. It’s a matter of course. However, it was a splendid mansion that was too disproportionate for the town that held it.

But it’s not a compliment or anything. Even though the common people are living a hard life, only the Lord has such a luxury. It is not something to praise a ruler for Building and maintaining a mansion of this scale means that the common people must be suffering from heavy taxes. After all, they are barbaric even among barbarians. They don’t even have the intelligence to consider the townspeople’s well-being. In line with that….

In line with that, Kanbee looked around, but… the sun was setting and the area was beginning to get dark, but even so, as far as I could see, this town was too beautiful everywhere. It is so brand new that it is still freshly made. It is well maintained and does not appear to suffer from heavy taxes.

Lights are lit up here and there in the town, and all the well-dressed townspeople are living happily. The standard of living seems to be too high for such a small rural town.

No… it just happened to be so. It must be a coincidence. Rather, it is a place set aside for the display of diplomatic missions. This town must be a fake settlement prepared to make your country look good. That’s it. If you think so, you will be convinced in various ways. Kanbee persuaded himself of this as he entered the mansion he was guided to.

“Dear members of the delegation, please rest in your rooms first,” the blond woman with the second princess said. “We will call you when meals and baths are ready.”

“Then, everyone, let us show you to your rooms,” one of the servants said.

The other servants in the mansion immediately began to move. From the look of it, it seems that they were not really planning to welcome them here. The House Servants are rushing to get ready. Even so, they do their job accurately and proceed with preparations one after another. Kanbee knew at a glance that they were very high-quality servants.

The mission members were disproportionately treated, even down to the soldiers and luggage bearers. Ordinary soldiers and porters are not treated like formal guests. After all, that whore seems to be good at charming people. The soldiers and luggage bearers don’t think much about it and are happy, but there’s nothing to be gained by buying the favor of such low-level members.

Even so, in such a small rural country, they must do their best to accommodate them, who are a delegation from a large country. They relax in the room they were guided to while thinking of the hard work to come. Wait, relax……?

It’s like Kanbee can’t relax…

It’s not that he’s displeased by the response or he was dissatisfied by what they received. As he felt at first, the House Servants here are very high quality. He can even say that he has no complaints at all. Then why is he not relaxed?

First of all, there’s a long chair next to him… For them, who are accustomed to sitting on tatami mats, this overly fluffy horizontal chair makes them uneasy. It’s very comfortable to sit on, but he can’t relax because of the niggling thought of whether it’s okay to sit on something like this.

And the many items that decorate the room. They should have been barbarians in the countryside… but despite the many pieces of art that you wouldn’t see in their country, they looked very good. Beautifully drawn paintings, carved stone statues, and splendid plates, there is no doubt that they are all very good items, even if they are different from their country’s goods.

It’s true that Kanbee is the highest-ranked person in this mission, but for some reason, it makes him uneasy to be treated like this, or rather, he’s more awed…

No! He definitely doesn’t think so. There is no way Kanbee, with all his accomplishments, would be intimidated by a small barbarian nation!

With that in mind, he scowled and deliberately sat down on the long chair.

That’s it. What was he afraid of? The opponent is a barbarian tribe in a small country. What do they, as the diplomats of a great state, have to fear? Wouldn’t it be nice to be candid?

“Pardon me for entering. Your meal is ready,” a maid said.

“Ah!” Kanbei cried as he sat cross-legged on the long chair.

As the Head of the Mission, Kanbee was given the closest seat to the blonde-haired woman he had seen back in their country. She sits on a tall chair and the table, the food is laid out in a manner different from that of their home country. Kanbee doesn’t know what to do, but the blond woman takes the initiative and serves as a model for them to imitate.

There was no way they could know the manners and customs of the barbarians, so they had no choice. The blond woman will do it first, so all you have to do is copy her.

“Nn… it has a strong taste…” Kanbee said.

Some of the mission members have been to other countries, like the Kingdom of Del and the member-states of the Kamaal Alliance. So there are people who are accustomed to the manners, customs, and seasonings around this region. However, Kanbee came here for the first time and felt that the food here was a little too seasoned.

“Does it not suit your taste?” the blonde-haired woman said. “We weren’t ready to welcome you all today, but we have sent a messenger ahead to properly welcome you all to our capital tomorrow. If you like the seasoning similar to your nation’s cuisine, you will have it tomorrow.”

Hearing that, Kanbee put his head to work. It’s ridiculous. He certainly thought it was an unplanned visit when they first got here. But if it really was unplanned, would they be able to prepare this much food, for this number of people, in such a short time?

The seasoning is strong, but it’s not bad. Kanbee was not used to this taste, so he was just surprised. From the perspective of those who have already traveled to the Kingdom of Del, they feel that tonight’s meal is very delicious and luxurious. It’s too good to have been prepared in a rush.

He really can’t decide if they really were treating them like they suddenly arrived today, unannounced, or if they had been planning this from the start, the response was so confusing.

And then… tomorrow they are going to prepare dishes similar to their country’s cuisine…but there is no way these barbarian tribes from the countryside can serve their country’s food. No, they may be able to produce something like an imitation, but there is no way they can catch up with the taste.

It is not enough just to imitate the appearance and materials. There are many conditions that must be overcome, such as the delicate seasoning and cooking methods, the skills of the chef, and high-quality ingredients. It would only make them feel bad if they were served tasteless dishes that only imitated them in appearance.

“No, that’s…” Kanbee said, trying to refuse.

“Huh?!” Isuzu cut in, despite not being a diplomat. “I’m so interested in how our country’s cuisine is made here! Well then, please do that tomorrow!”

She’s also too casual here. If such a barbaric country is shown a too-light attitude by their guests, their country will be taken lightly. After all, Isuzu is only a maid and probably doesn’t know anything about diplomacy.

It’s an acceptable nuisance if you act selfishly, but you don’t show that when you are a representative of your country in another state. Kanbee had a lot of things he wanted to say, but he couldn’t show his weakness to the other party, so Kanbee decided to handle it like an adult.

After finishing the meal, they were guided to the bath. He was wondering if barbarians in the countryside like this would even take baths, but once they arrived…

“Is… is this the bath?” Kanbee asked.

“I will explain the equipment for a while,” the maid said. “If you turn this faucet…”

“Oh!? It’s water!?” Kanbee yelled.

The oversized stone bath is filled with hot water, and when you turn the faucet, more water comes out. It seems a little different from them who are used to taking baths in tubs of wood. Of course, the basic bathing method is the same, but the type and quality of the equipment are quite different.

However… don’t think their country is inferior just because they were shown something like this!

Kanbee wondered in his mind who he was making excuses for. Certainly, the equipment is quite different, but that is just the difference in the direction of evolution. It’s not like one is better than the other… rather, it should have been.

There was surplus stone here, so it became a stone bath. Wood processing is popular in their country, so it became a wooden bathtub. That’s all……. that’s all there is…. also… the mysterious equipment that lets water come out of a faucet… the people of this country must have thought about various things. Just by chance, there was such an idea, not a difference in intelligence or technical ability. It’s just a coincidence and just one idea.

Kanbee takes a bath while thinking about such things, and though he usually sleeps on a futon on the tatami mat, today he lays down in a fluffy bed. It’s certainly soft, but it doesn’t feel comfortable to him. With that in mind, Kanbee and the mission ended their first day in Caan Territory, of the Kingdom of Ploiss.