221 ② Gatherers

(Is this the castle town of Genos...)

As I let myself down by the vibration of my luggage truck, for the first time, I had a clear vision of the castle town scene.

Both the streets and the houses are stone-made, which is exactly what the name of the stone capital deserves.

The road is thick and the building is huge.

Sometimes street trees and so on are also side-by-side, but we rarely see anything called dirt ground, and all the people we go out with look wealthy.

However, this castle town is also open to exotic merchants such as Schmiral and Dial.

There are also a small number of merchants in the south who are causing Totos to pull a load that looks heavy, or in the east who are completely hiding their faces in the hood.

Also, although the western people with yellowbrown and ivory skin were all dressed in small, the majority of them still appeared to be merchants.

This neighborhood, close to the castle gate, is probably an area for merchants.

Further down to the square with the large fountain, we could also confirm the opening of the stall there.

(Well, even people in Castle Town have to work to eat)

Because it's such a big town, I guess the number of its inhabitants can reach thousands or even tens of thousands.

It's nothing but a grip among the nobles.

There's a guy selling vegetables piled up like a mountain.

There's a woman trying to spread a beautiful cloth on someone on the road.

I have a toddler running around the fountain scratching red fruit.

It was filled with bright vitality and people seemed to sincerely sing a peaceful world.

(Even the people by the woods don't want to threaten the peace of these people)

Rather, it is only in order to preserve this peaceful and rich life that the people of the woodside are responsible for the harsh raw of the "giva hunt".

In this Genos, large-scale fields exist only in Turan and Dareim. They should be buying food from outside the stone walls to satisfy their hunger.

Fuwano, fruit liquor and a variety of vegetables will be bought into the castle town at high prices for good quality. Someone had previously blurred that there were only cheap sour tarapas in the lodging town, but expensive, sourless tarapas are all bought up by the residents of the castle town.

(It's not that that's bad. But... don't people who are stuck inside these stone walls even know that this richness is supported by the people by the woods?

Of course, the folks by the woods are not encouraging hunters to do their jobs in return or for words of gratitude.

Even on the face of Ey-Fa peeking out the window with me, I didn't see how impressed I was when it came to this.

But I still don't fall for it.

(Even if Cycleus is out of the question, what kind of mood is he in, such as Lord Genos' Marstein? If even the inside of the stone walls is rich and peaceful, is that the idea that the rest doesn't matter?

Without knowing my thoughts, Totos' luggage proceeded lightly down the street - and finally, we reached the mansion.

◇

"... we have arrived"

At the same time as the voice of your Lord came to tell you, the rear door opened wide.

We're gonna take him out and get out of the van.

At his feet there was a stone floor, and in front of him was a stone hall.

Just separated six days ago, it is the mansion of Count Turan's house.

This building was also the first time I had ever seen it in the light.

It's a big building built like a stone or a gray brick.

Only a cut shaped roof is oddly crisp yellow. Speaking of which, I think Schmiral used to refer to the Cycleus Mansion as a "yellow mansion" as well.

It is square and moist in style, with buildings lapping to the left and right like wings.

Only the central part has four floors, while the left and right buildings have three floors.

I was captured in the building to the right.

Up to this point, we were supposed to show off the townships of Castle Town, but we never saw a more splendid building.

In light of my senses, it's a building with about the scale of a little school building.

What surrounds its Cycleus mansion is a stone wall that is four or five meters high.

It was a huge courtyard that we stood inside the stone walls, accommodating four luggage cars and nearly thirty people.

A stone path is raging straight towards the building, with blue lawn-like ground stretching to the left and right of the road.

At night, a watchdog will be released into this space, I guess.

(... but there are only two families living in a big building like this. Then it's like we're preparing a big house like this just for a bunch of servants and soldiers)

With that in mind, Jimon started walking toward the building, "Here you go," he said.

We follow it, too, with the Chiefs at the forefront.

Two soldiers stood in front of the front entrance and the thought door.

Listed are long spears with silver tips.

As Jimon stopped a few steps in front of him, one of the soldiers pulled open a heavy-looking door with both openings.

"Come on, go ahead"

Jimon takes his steps further.

but donda-lu didn't move.

"Wait. The only people who move on from here are those who come to the talks"

"... what does that mean? For the escorts, we are prepared to refrain from doing so."

It was Dan-Lutim who was right behind Donda-Lou who answered Jimon's question.

"But if you knock at this door, will you have to keep the knife? I can't get rid of a knife or a guard or anything! Let us stay here."

"But... if I hadn't refrained by the chiefs, I wouldn't seem to be able to play the role of escort, etc."

"I have nothing to show you! Let the chiefs protect themselves from this building!

That being said, Dan-Rutim laughs alot gahaha.

"Is it Master Left," Gimon nodded small.

"Now that we have a few escorts, you will follow that captain's instructions, okay?

"Oh, sure!

"Well, thank you. … the chiefs, here."

We stepped inside the hall, being dropped off by smiling Dan-Lutim, seriously faced Rudd-Lou, viciously eye-catching Dulm-Lou, Dick Dom, etc.

First of all, it is a spacious entrance.

At your feet, a reddish brown rug has already been laid from here.

As we all stepped in there, the door closed behind us with a heavy tone.

"Welcome aboard..."

Waiting there were about ten small surnames dressed in yellow attire.

They are young boys with yellowbrown or ivory skin.

but all the boys standing in line with their eyes laying low about how well trained they were, all retained their faceless expressions.

"I will keep your sword..."

Some of them finally come out of hand.

Donda-Lou and the others handed over their hips silently.

"... may I also keep your coat...?

"No. This is hunter's pride."

Donda-Lou's voice was more calm than usual, but the boy who made the inquiry shrugged his neck in horror.

After a glimpse of the figure, Donda-Lou looks back at his compatriots behind him.

"Whoever is planting iron skewers or knives in the hunter's clothes, hand them over. Don't complain unless you're wearing something that's a weapon."

Following those words, the hunters pulled what they were told from the back of their capes.

Now everyone has lost their weapons.

Though it's been assumed from the start, my heart rate is still going up a lot.

"Okay, here you go"

With Jimon's lead, we begin to make our way down the carpeted corridor.

Taking the poking hit to the left, the road began to narrow and enter like a labyrinth.

We moved to the left wing of the house.

For me too, this building was an untouched realm, but this narrowness and diminution evoked a fierce sense of preoccupation.

A number of doors were installed on the walls, but they were all silenced, breaking the road to the left to the right.

Is the complexity of this path still built on alert intruders?

I get more and more isolated from the Dan-Lutims who stayed outside the mansion.

However, the structure of these Cycleus mansions had been communicated in advance to Donda-Lou.

On top of that, the Dan-Rutims were placed outside the mansion.

So you don't have to worry about anything - my heart rate is on the rise.

At the end of the day, the brick spiral staircase was to be climbed.

Keep pushing further down the corridor, then Jimon finally stops on his feet.

After all, two soldiers put up long spears, a very large door.

Standing in front of that door, Jimon raised his voice.

"Guests from Moribe have arrived!

Something crept back, and after hearing it, Jimon pulled open the door.

Jimon stepped indoors in an unparalleled foothold, and we followed it.

Finally - it's a reunion with Cycleus.

"Well done, chiefs by the woods... it was my convenience to take you to a place like this, and I am truly sorry"

Cycleus' squeaky voice echoes.

It was a large hall about ten meters long.

There is still a reddish brown carpet on the floor, with a great collision between the left and right walls, but a satin curtain behind the front.

That, Cycleus sat against the backdrop of a huge curtain embroidered with the Turan family crest.

"I didn't think I was feeling well, but if I still had enough strength to speak,"

Dari-Sautti looked indoors after responding in a blurry tone.

Along with that, I sneak a gaze of observation, too.

It is a room that is very luxurious but still feels like a killer landscape.

Collisions, curtains, carpets, etc. seem, of course, to be superior items to see, but other than that, I can only find about a round chair prepared for the number of people. It was a bizarrely rash that seemed just right when I put it on a large table in the middle.

On our front is a line of Cycleus and another unrecognizable person, about a few meters away, with two figures opposite it.

Mel Fried and an old man with gray hair who is still a stranger.

"Next to me is Silel, the leader of the Militia Corps, and instead of Lord Melfried, is Lord Zaylus, the lawyer of Genos".

This was Cycleus' brother, and I was the first to be interested in the front person.

Figure He is a magnificent man, wrapped in white abbreviated armor with a thick, large body.

It's kind of funny that the face that looks like it's going to flutter, characterised by its ragged nose, makes brown hair a mushroom-like big head.

The age would be about 40 years over. For now, it's nothing like Cycleus, a skinny, old-fashioned look.

It's just - only those eyes with a thin pigment felt like they had the same sticky light as Cycleus.

A figure named Zairas is a skinny old man who shined a golden ornament under his white long chest.

I can only see the sides from my position, but he seems to have a lazy, grumpy look.

"At the request of Lord Melfried, we were also asked to attend Lord Silhouel and Lord Zaylus. … Are there any differences among the chiefs?

Donda-Lou nodded silently.

Late told me that beforehand.

It is today that we expose Cycleus' old and evil to the day, in the presence of Silel, who is regarded as Cycleus' accomplice, and a legal officer more familiar with the laws of Genos than anyone else. That was Camua-Josh's plan.

However, the Camua-Josh is still absent.

Even in the absence of Camuy-Josh, will it be difficult to fight with Melfrid?

With a lot of concern in my chest, I sneak up on Mel Fried.

I had heard from Gazran-Rutim, but this was the first time I saw his face with my helmet off.

Lightly colored brown hair, muscular nose beams and tight jaw lines. The eyebrows are more brilliant than I imagined and full of aristocratic style. It could be said that its figure, wrapped in an abbreviated white armor, with a long, untrained figure, is almost a samurai figure.

But its eyes glowing gray are still as cold as reptiles.

It's even a cold, inorganic glance that's different from what Yamil-Ray once was.

"Come on, calm your hips first. Forestside Chiefs..."

Dali-Souty frowns as Cycleus nods at her.

"I appreciate your concern, but the people by the woods don't have the habit of sitting on something like this"

"I've heard that before.... but today is a long day, so why don't you follow Genos' custom? It's hard to feel comfortable sitting alone."

Dari-Sauti questioned further, but followed Cycleus' words with a look that seemed to recall something.

So we decide to follow Dari-Sutty, too.

It is a simple wooden round chair with no back.

Cycleus and his brother are somewhat overlooked from the start because that's what sits in a seat with big backs and elbows like a royal queen.

Also due to the large number of people, the seats were divided between left and right and lower seats, dressed in such a way as to siege the Cycleuses from afar.

On the right-hand side where the Melfrieds were originally in formation, Leyt, Barsha, and Ai-Fa and I sit, and on the left-hand side, six of the Chiefs, Zulo-Sung and seven others calm their hips in the middle lower seat.

"Well, call me when you need me."

And when he saw us get to our seats, Jimon left this hall.

So I could find out who the discomfort was that I was already obsessed with.

There are no escort soldiers around Cycleus.

Even nearby Jimmon withdrew, even though the previous talks talked about bringing as many as twenty soldiers.

Only my brother, who looks dull, is in the place of Cycleus.

"... don't get distracted, Asta. The soldiers seem to be lurking behind that enormous curtain."

And I'm hearing it as if I've guessed my suspicions.

"The number is twenty... no, I don't even know a lot more. No matter how much you kill your breath, you haven't been able to kill it until the signs."

"Right. I wonder if they're trying to keep us alert by hiding us."

"If that's the case, I can only say it hurts one belly. But the Melfried there were not allowed to carry swords either."

I was surprised to see Melfried next to one of the Balshas.

Posture In that hip sitting in a chair, I certainly don't see two long swords that I want to trade mark.

"At the last meeting, he and Camua-Josh should have been allowed to carry knives.... Turan and Castle Town have different learnings, but don't be too careful."

Dozens of soldiers, probably fully armed, lurk behind Cycleus.

In contrast, this one has seven hunters by the woods - eight if they include Mida, and Barsha and Melfrid are all bare hands, even if they are quite powerful as well.

If this develops into a rough matter, can we not have to look at the blood, etc.? In response, I felt anxious.

At that time - to the lid, Dari-Sautti gave an odd voice, "Oh".

At the same time, a strange smell drifts up to us.

"What, this funny scent!

Silhouel shrugged in a crushed voice.

"Excuse me. It seems to have crushed the fruit of Giva's exclusion on the edge of its seat."

"Gi, you say it's a fruit excluding giva!?

"Uhm. It's a rare fruit, passed down to my Sauti's house. It was an important fruit that it would take half a day to get rid of Gibba, but I did what I had to do."

It smelled like I didn't really like it, kind of like a stick in my nose.

"Don't worry, it's a harmless fruit for humans. But if there's a window, we should probably switch the air."

"... the sun is so high that all the windows are open. I'm sitting in the middle of nowhere, chief by the woods."

Sneering and laughing, Cycleus took it that way.

"Right," said Dari-Sutty, who was floating back.

I guess that window is beyond the collision on the right hand side from us. Light windows were also cut in the high position of the wall, so the interior was thin and bright there, and the air seemed to be falling out.

However, it seems that the fruit excluding gibberish has such a strong scent that my nasal cavity was irritated enough to make me want to peel.

"A month ago, when I led a group dressed as a chamber of commerce, I was allowed to use the fruit of this excommunication. It ended in total futility because they used so much gibberish fruit that they couldn't fathom it with such a thing. In retrospect, it was an abominable incident."

"... even if we don't hurry like that, the Jomtien bell is not ringing yet. Why don't we exchange words today to our hearts and minds and put an end to our unfortunate misunderstandings...?

With the same grin on his face, Cycleus said so.

He still has a pathologically blue and black complexion, but for once, he doesn't seem ill.

It's just - I can't help but see the small body tilting slightly diagonally in response to the elbow hanging.

"But... that blonde impudent who breathed a rave into Lord Melfried apparently doesn't show up, does he?

and Cycleus' sticky eyes look at Melfried.

"I didn't know you'd hide yourself while you slandered me and Silhouel so much... it's a clap, and I'm also angry. What the hell is Lord Melfried thinking?

"I'm not experiencing any inconvenience for once. Originally, Camua-Josh told me that there was a possibility that he might not make it to the talks, and that his deputies were keeping their faces properly in this way."

Late is grinning and Barsha is even staring at the front.

I didn't miss hearing that Balsha had a crush on her mouth.

"I see... is that what happened?"

Perhaps that voice could only be heard by me and the Ai-Fas in the seats on the same side.

Barsha seemed to dazzle his brother next door, not Cycleus, with a brave smile.

"That's a total joke! I didn't know a windmill who just got acquainted with the Marquis of Genos would defame me or my brother more than anything else!

Silhouel, the true brother of Cycleus, turns again in a cloudy voice.

"I'm the head of the Militia, and I've got a lot of missions ahead of me! It's not like the Kingsguard Guards to protect the peace in the castle!... don't you think so, Lord Melfried?

Melfried answered nothing, just looking back at Silhouel with cold gray eyes.

Silhouel steps on like a child while sitting down.

"Hmm, okay. Only today is that windmill's nasty plan! In the position of first son of the Marquis of Genos, the sin of hanging out in the paranoia of such a lowly man is heavy, Lord Melfried?

"Keep your words to yourself, Silhouel... for all truth will be revealed on this day."

When Cycleus stated it that way, from somewhere far away, the heavy bell tone sounded: GOWN...... GOWN......

The sun has reached Jomtien.

"... then let's start the talks..."

Cycleus said so with a strange grin on his blue and black face.