171 (9) How long has Kama been

"- The question went on for a while afterwards, but I don't think this was something worth highlighting"

Thus Gazran-Rutim's slightly thin report closed the curtain.

I was listening to it as I encouraged the planting work for tomorrow, and I let it sigh as it accumulated.

"Thank you very much. Gazran-Rutim's memory and reproduction skills are quite extraordinary."

"That's not true. But I think I've been told what I need to talk about."

"Yeah, enough is enough. It's hard just to chew the content."

I was the one who wanted you to tell me what the talks were about and how they ended, but I didn't expect you to be able to talk about it so crudely.

The place is not Fa's house, but Lew's main house.

Ai-Fa has been hearing reports on my behalf, and further back in the room, Raina-Lou and Sheila-Lou are working on drilling hamburgers. At last, I've decided to give the 'Giva Burger' a whirlpool today.

"I heard a story from Camua in advance, but the name" Red Beard Party "is the first I've heard of it."

"Yes. I only heard of it as a bunch of bandits, too. Doesn't that mean you didn't even mention it by name, considering it's a narrow story to us?"

"I wonder. I've never heard that name from anybody in town, but it's the other way around."

No matter how heroic a prostitute of the common man is, it is no surprise that his name will weather after as many as ten years have passed.

But somehow, the fact that Camua stubbornly put it in her mouth that much - is it a bit of a keyword?

Besides, it's the first time I've heard Banaam's chief of mission and militia.

That must have been what Camua called "the opponent who should also be called the political enemy of Cycleus".

As far as I can tell, the mission has the impression that a political opponent is a merchant enemy.

"Hmm. It is above all that the people of the division were to be forgiven early. Still, you just got poked at for letting Zazz-Sung get away with this."

"Yes, because that's not even an excuse. Graf-Zaza also drank words of anger. There seemed to be no other."

I had to think it was an unscented situation.

Cycleus has lowered the terms by calling it a sign of trust, but this one has revealed everything from the beginning with what we think is the best path, a folk-like straightness by the woods.

(I'm sure you didn't think it mattered to the branches from the beginning over there. But -)

I initially predicted that a person named Cycleus would have stuck to excessive demands as part of the capital's humane bargaining technique. Ultimately, I even thought you were going to drink this side of the spectrum dressed to give way to gratitude.

But things were different back then and now.

It is now suspected that Cycleus, who was only supposed to have missed that sin so as not to undermine the mood of the Sung family, is the mastermind of it all.

What if Cycleus was really such a nasty outrageous man and was abetting the Zazz-Sungs to commit a crime - what the hell kind of end would he want to end up in this noise?

(At least, you'd think you'd want to seal Zuro-Sung's mouth)

Tay-Sung had confessed that those who knew Zazz-Sung's ambitions no longer existed only in Zulo-Sung, besides himself. But Zuro-Sung, a coward, could not succeed in his will.

Even in the absence of that confession, it is likely that Zulo-Sung, who was the head of the family, had grasped Zazz-Sung's evil deeds.

If so - there is no chance that you have grasped the relationship between Zazz-Sung and Cycleus, either.

Whatever it is, it would be an irresistible existence for Cycleus.

But then all you have to do is draw on the views of the forest chiefs and order them to hand over only Zulo-Sung as a sinner to the castle.

I also don't see any point in stretching the negotiations in vain over this period, as Melfried's intervention should have set Cycleus on fire at his feet as well.

But still, if you've insisted on demanding the identities of all the human beings in the main house - are you afraid those people might have secrets too?

(If so, you're not kidding. Can you hand over Yamil-Ray and Midas to such a flamboyant man now?)

That's all I thought about, I was finally able to finish the meat cutting job.

I put a santoku knife on the slab and look back at Gazran-Rutim.

"So, was the next meeting fixed again about six months later?

"Yes, set the course by the fifteenth day of the white moon," he said.

Since tomorrow is the 31st, the last day of the Blue Moon, it is a whole month or more.

That's a lot of relaxation.

"What the hell does it mean to have so much free time? These sheikhs can think slowly, and I'm sure the Camuans are all hail because they can go through a lot of investigations, but does it do Cycleus any good to have so much sunshine?

"I don't know. But I don't think you're the kind of person who makes offers that don't benefit you."

"Hmm. Looks like Gazran-Rutim hates Cycleus from the bottom of his heart, doesn't he?

Let me point out, Gazran-Rutim nodded back in earnest.

"I'm aware that maybe there's a mix of personal feelings. Even if it wasn't such bad luck, I wouldn't have called that person my friend forever."

Is Cycleus a benefactor who is not so distasteful and alert to others?

Anyway, I'm not face-to-face with that person, so I can only have a vague impression.

However, I could understand the meaning of Camua-Josh's words, which he said could not judge Cycleus at this stage.

No matter how frivolous he is, there is no real evidence anywhere.

If you give only the possibility, you can also think that it was the leader of a militia group called Cycleus' brother, the person who secretly made contact with Zazz-Sung, who drew all the drawings.

Alternatively, the Zazz-Sungs could have managed on their own to replace the loot with a copper coin, regardless of the person in the castle, for example.

Or - what Zazz-Sung and Tay-Sung said was the lie, and maybe it was all the work of the bandits.

Without proof, you can think any way you want.

"Hmm. Is it just Jen whose personality is twisted, or was he really using Zazz-Sung to dye his hands at different evils - if you don't make it clear where you are first, you'll feel like there's no negotiation or anything"

"Yes. Camua-Josh also said he wanted to get proof of sin somehow in this period. He wants help from the people of the woods."

Camua-Josh?

The windmill, with its tremendous smile, is currently in secret talks with the chiefs in the main house of Lou.

What power can the people of the woods lend in such a conspiracy play? I can't imagine the place at all, so as far as I'm concerned, it's very unsettling.

I was trying to look back at you, wondering what kind of opinions Ai-Fa has keeping his silence from earlier.

But before that, Raina-Lou, with his freshly baked hamburger on a wooden plate, approached us.

"Asta, I tried to make it as I was told. Can you make sure it tastes good?

On a wooden plate, the same size as used in "Giva Burger," 180 grams, which patties were grilled up nicely.

The shades of the baking surface and the fuzziness are impeccable.

Although it is a patty of vegetables with no sauce or anything on it, it looks really delicious.

I grab a serious look and say, "Okay, I'll take it" and take a wooden spoon.

Dimending the patties with that wooden spoon, the clear gravy flooded the wood dish.

The fire is clear inside too.

When I threw the broken pieces of meat into my mouth in that way - the taste that did not betray my expectations spread all over my mouth.

"Yeah, that's just it. The carved aria is the right amount, and the meat is ideal for unwinding.... Oh, I ate vegetable patties for crackles, but I knew Giva's meat was delicious."

The patties are just a small amount of rock salt and pico leaves, but they are irresistibly delicious.

I accidentally spill a smile, and when I see it, Raina-Lou spreads a happy smile as well.

"Is that true? I thought I'd ask, but the look on Asta's face gave me heartfelt relief. But this makes me feel too big."

"Yeah, it's that morning that I'm gonna burn this guy. If you bury it in Pico's leaves overnight, it'll lose moisture and shrink a little bit. So in the first stage, we're going to finish it thick."

"Oh, is that what you mean? I understand.... So are you sure you want to finish 60 of these with me and Sheila-Lou?

"Yeah. Nice to meet you. Anyway, just be careful with that so it's even in size, okay?

"Yes," Raina-Lou smiled again.

He is a lovely smile, full of himself and pride.

Although his face was originally well made, Raina-Lou doesn't feel that he has recently grown more deeply in his charm.

"Ah, look at the taste too if it's good, Ai-Fa and Gazran-Rutim. If you eat this amount, Asta will have a bloated stomach before dinner."

It is a full Raina-Lou up to the care of others.

Gazran-Rutim nodded to Eagle Deep Fried and received a wood plate from me.

"Oh, this is delicious. I want the women of Rutim to give me another hand job."

"Oh, Ama Min-Lutim, even Hanba-gu's skill must have been pretty good, right?

Raina-Lou laughs with a grin, and Gazran-Rutim just puts his head on "Damn you".

With such a near-sighted look at them, Ai-Fa received a wooden dish with a face that seemed a lot of difficulty.

Then, take the hideous amount with a wooden spoon and transport it to your mouth.

"Hmm... Rayna-Lew, you really did raise your cooking arm"

faceless, Ai-Fa said so.

Raina-Lou asked, "Is that true?" I said gladly.

"It would be comforting to have Ay-Fa say that every day he eats Asta's dishes"

A smiling Raina-Lou and a faceless eye-fa stare at each other often silently.

On the verge of that length of silence inducing awkwardness, Rayna-Lew looked back at me.

"Okay, let's get to work. Thank you, Asta."

"Yeah. Nice to meet you."

Raina-Lou flicks herself and gently returns to Sheila-Lou.

Well - she didn't seem to notice, but I was just a little concerned about how ii-fa was doing.

It was the expression of Ey-Fa, who hissed his mouth a long time ago, that somehow felt that he was forcefully suppressing the expression of his emotions.

"... hey, you okay, Ai-Fa?

And I decided to sneak up on him.

Maybe again, "Make a better solder than that! I was a little nervous that they would say," or something like that.

Ey-Fa put his nose head on his fingertips before moving his mouth like it could be revealed.

What came to mind there was such an unexpected look - a smile full of confidence and pride that was truly satisfying, comparable to Rayna-Lew's as much as just now.

That's how you let me hover, and then Ai-Fa leans down to my ear with a smile on her face.

"... it does look like my arms are up, but Asta's Hanba-gu tastes better"

So, keep it up, I'm gonna twitch my head in the temple.

"But it wasn't a surprising improvement. Don't miss your refinement, Asta."

All I could say was "... yes".

Nothing, I don't think Rayna-Lew's hamburger was any worse... or anything, but I'm going to keep it from anyone that the feeling of sunshine has spread to my chest.

"Hey! You're eating something that looks delicious, Asta!

and suddenly a barbaric voice echoed there.

A long shadow and a small shadow stand side by side at the entrance between Kama and Kama.

Camua-Josh and Rudd-Lou.

"Oh, good job. Is the meeting with the Chiefs over?

"Yeah. I managed to get you to respond to my request. I wonder if we can catch Cycleus' black tail by next month's 15th meeting."

Answering that way, he is a camouflage staring at the wood dish that came back to me.

but i noticed that rud-luu approached zkazka and robbed the wood dish out of my hand.

"It's a dish made in my house, so I can eat it first, right?

"Ahhh. Just one bite and you can share it with me, Rudd-Lou."

It feels strange that Camua has a cheap mouth to Rudd-Lou.

But Rud-Lew didn't seem to repel this frivolous man that far either, and he was splitting the hamburger properly for him. Just one bite.

"Oh, Gazran-Rutim, thank you so much for earlier. Have you finished explaining to Asta?

With that bite bitten off looking important, Camua looked back at Gazran-Rutim.

Gazran-Rutim nods back quietly, "Yes".

"I think what I can explain was communicated without being overwhelmed"

"That's above all. Well, let me just say a few words from you."

And Camua's laid-back smile can be directed at me again.

"Hey, Asta. Listening to Gazran-Rutim, I think Asta probably had the impression that he was a nasty person to Cycleus"

"Yes."

"But if Asta gets a chance to face-to-face with Cycleus, the impression could be relaxed. Even then, I don't want you to think that Gazran-Rutim's impression was false."

"Yes?"

This was a more difficult statement of intent than usual.

But Camua seemed to have an awfully serious eye for this sober man.

"Excuse me. I don't know exactly what the words are. Can you chew it up and explain it so it's just a little easier to understand?

"Oh, I'm sorry. No, I was able to feel it for the first time in today's meeting, too. Apparently, Cycleus is looking down on the forest folk more than I thought."

"Looking down?

"Yes. That's not a sight to see a reciprocal human being. It was as eye-catching as you'd ever see in a filthy animal below the human level."

Camua said something really disturbing about it.

"Explained plainly, that was as eye-catching as seeing a slave.... and it was an eye-catcher who didn't see slaves as the same people. Slavery in the western kingdom means people in the northern kingdom."

"The people of the kingdom of the north, I mean, it's..."

"Yes, my mother's bloodline, for the kingdom of the west, is the mahydra of hostile nations. Cycleus has long been bitter about me entering and leaving the castle at the invitation of Marquis Genos, a mixed race with the people of the North. So, of course, I'm being seen by Cycleus with the kind of eyes he sees even in filthy animals."

…………

"This Genos is also located quite south of the western kingdom print. So most people will not face the people of Mahydra for the rest of their lives. But that Cycleus Goren is purposefully calling in slave traders from afar to buy slaves as a workforce.... It's not uncommon to talk about a town more north. There is no other way to enslave or kill a man from a hostile country who was taken prisoner in war."

The more I hear, the worse my chest gets.

But Camua is laughing a lot.

"On the contrary, I don't think I'd be that extreme if I were someone who could handle more slavery. A slave with a high workforce has a reward, and some of them have a lord who recognizes marriages between slaves? Human beings who don't treat slaves like livestock and crush them may be as few now. … that Cycleus belongs to that minority"

"What the hell is that?

"Yeah, so for Cycleus, the people of the woods are not equal people, even though they are a valuable workforce, which is what I can feel in today's talks. Though I was wondering if it might be so thin, I could be sure of that with my staring eyes at the people by the forest of Mitsuhito."

Gazran-Rutim stared very quietly at Camus.

Noticing that gaze, Camus laughs back relaxed.

"No one in the Inn Town would have looked at the people of the woods that far, would they? The people of the town don't seem to see the people of the woods as their compatriots, but at least they don't think of themselves as human beings or anything like that."

"I can't really feel one thing right now about the existence of slavery or the certainty of the North and West. But maybe Cycleus' eyesight is what makes our minds so strange - that's what we're in the mood for."

Gazran-Rutim was still the deposition itself, but I was in the opposite mood.

Instead of me, I have Ai-Fa. I have Gazran-Rutim. There are Rudd-Lou, Raina-Lou and Sheila-Lou.

For me, everyone is important.

Seeing such fascinating people as subhuman beings, etc. - such things could only be outside the realm of understanding.

"- So, Asta is an outwardly western people, even though he is a forest people. At the very least, it does not share any characteristics as a people by the woods or in the north. If that's Asta, Cycleus is left with the possibility of treating us like humans, so I just didn't want him to be confused."

"Thank you for that valuable information.... but isn't there any chance that I'll face that Cycleus?

"Yeah. I hope that doesn't happen to me, too."

Still, that's not a zero possibility, is it?

It is an unsettling story.

I breathed heavily, exhaling the starch that had arisen in my chest into my body, before being relative to Camus in a new way.

"... So what kind of request did Camus get the Chiefs to make? It's the first time Camua's ever made a wish to the people by the woods, right?

"Yeah. You're understaffed all this time. I was just going to ask you to help me find people."

"Looking for people?

"Yes. I decided to leave Genos and take a tour of this nearby town. The questioner is seen as the survivor of the Red Beard Party. You've already heard from Gazran-Rutim about that bunch, haven't you?

I take my breath by accident.

What the hell is that all about?

"No, actually, I've been looking for the location of that person for a long time. If we catch that person, we'll be clear about the Red Beard Party's whereabouts ten years ago. From there, I decided to try to put my back in that direction if I could not find a way to reveal Cycleus' old evil."

"... that bunch of robbers was destroyed ten years ago, right? Besides, wasn't all of them executed as sinners?

"Yeah, but only that person managed to crawl through the crusader's siege net. She was extremely close to the leader of the party, so she must have been pretty good at the time."

"Her? Is that a woman?

"Yes. A woman who was the leader of the Red Beard Party and the companion of the Red Beard Gollum. Originally he was excited to be the right arm of the party leader, but since the birth of the child, he was just waiting at home for the pawn owner to return. I guess that helped me escape the difficulties."

The partner of the bandits' party leaders - is it possible to extract valid testimony from such persons?

Well, I'd like to ask you something, as I'll leave that decision to the Camuans.

"... with the help of the people by the woods in that search? Did the chiefs agree to that?

"Yeah. I guess the Donda-Loux decided they wouldn't go on unless they put their back on it and exposed Cycleus' old evil. Even Graf-Zaza was still more of a frigid man than Cycleus, because he seemed to think about it."

That's what I said, Camua laughed like a Cheshire cat.

"Whatever, Melfrid can't move his soldiers for this personal use, and he can't put his foot up outside Genos like that himself. Thank you for agreeing.... By the way, I could borrow about three men from Luu's branch, so I'm just getting them to learn how to ride Totos right now. I want to leave Genos first thing tomorrow morning."

Shall we let the people by the woods drive Totos and take him out of Genos?

What an uninterrupted plan.

"Yikes! That sounds like an interesting story! If you weren't a stall escort, I'd have liked to follow you."

and so on and Rud-Lew says in a swallowy manner.

I said, staring directly in the face at Camus.

"Camua-Josh.... we can trust you, right?

"Yeah. Revealing Cycleus' old evil should also lead to a bright future for the people by the woods, right?

Either way, Donda-Lou and the Moribe chiefs have made the decision to take the offer.

Even for me, it seemed like the only way to fix my mind.

"Okay. I look forward to your safe return.... you'll be back by the day of the meeting, won't you?

"Right. Just as the Lew family is currently closed to hunters, it seems to have been a good tour.... but you just want to go back sooner if you can. I don't know what that Cycleus is up to half a month short of his due date, because it's nothing at all known."

That being said, Camua floated a clear light in her purple eyes.

"Asta and the others be very careful. I'm a little concerned that Cycleus didn't mention any of Asta's stores in today's meeting. The Astas, who are connected to the Inn Town, should be something he can't miss.... So I'm looking forward to eating Asta's food again in a few days?