454 The end of the rainy season ③ ~ To a bright tomorrow ~

It was then another five days later that the completion of the work to cut through the woodland was announced.

As for the date and time, it refers to the 25th day of the red moon.

The work was scheduled to take up to the full red moon, but it was completed after about five days of respite.

Why the plans were speeded up was because only dozens of the people of the North had been added since the wounded came out in the raid in Giba.

Originally, the progress of the work was somewhat delayed, so I guess it meant that it was tethered in. They were doing their job solemnly, watched by the hunters by the woods who served as escorts.

The hunter of that escort, as originally planned, was to have Ravitz's house in the first half of the red moon and Sauti's house in the second half.

Only once in the meantime, it seems that a hungry Gibba had approached, but was quickly repelled by the hands of the hunters of Satie who perceived it. The story was that most of the people who were at the site of the construction had not even noticed that Giva was approaching.

The day after dawn, on the 26th holiday of the Red Moon, I decided to let them see the new path I had completed. If it is in the morning, I = fa can move too, so it is up to me to get rid of the minimum work and then rush in Gilr's luggage.

The road was cut open there for a long time, with a normal face.

The road is firmer than the path of the settlement cut north and south along the woodland. That much space is ensured so that no matter how big the luggage, it is different.

The road is slightly curved, stretching from west to east.

The starting point was the Trident, which led north to a forest settlement, west to the southern tip of the Dareim territory, east to the rocky mountain area at the foot of Morga - and, at its end, to Sim, the eastern kingdom.

"So, they're planning to build a fence or something on the road that leads to this settlement over here. If a traveler gets lost in a settlement, it's gonna be a mess."

It was Rudd-Lou who said so.

If I could get up early, I'd like to accompany him, so he asked me to stop by Luu's settlement while I went. Even Rimi-Lou and Giza -Lou, as well as Schmiral and Gillan-Lillin, had their faces together.

"At the end of this road, in the centre of the continent, you can leave. Originally, from Sim to Abouf, when you're on your way, it's a passing area."

"Is Abouf the name of a town in the west kingdom?

When Gillan-Lillin inquired, Schmiral nodded yes.

"Abouf, in the kingdom of the west, on the edge of the northeast, exists. From Genos to Abouf, it'll take a month."

"Hmm. From Genos to Sims, we talked about the full moon. How early can that be by using this path?

"I don't know. But I'm sure of the 10th. Also, a bitter desert zone, you don't have to go through. For that matter, the danger of a burglar, it increases, but the lodging town, it's a lot, so I don't think it's harsh."

"Heh, was there still a town beyond Morga Forest as well? I was wondering if there was anything to do with Sims."

After stating so, Rudd-Lou said, "Is that it?," he tilted his neck.

"But I thought you said earlier that Abouf is on the northeast end of Selva? And they say," Genos, the town on the southeast end. "

"Yes, you're right"

"Then whose is that town on the east side more than that? The Sims are building a town, not Selva?

"Sim, Selva, it's all sorts of things. Either way, it's not a people of the kingdom, it's a town of free-flowing people."

"You're a people in the west or east, but you're not a people in the kingdom? I don't know what that means."

"Free pioneering people, souls, four great gods, dedicated. But loyalty to the kingdom, no. Weren't the people by the woods, once, too?

"Is that the story of when the Ziba-Loux and their ancestors lived in a place called The Black Forest? Sure, 'Black Forest' was Jagal territory, but they didn't have much interaction with the outside world."

To Gillan-Lilyn's words, Schmiral nods "yes" again.

"The people by the woods, in those days, must have been free pioneers. But Genos, the emigration, the people of the kingdom, have become. Genos, king of Selva, recognized, town of the kingdom."

"Hmm. So if I had moved to another place more, I could have lived without being a nobleman or anything"

"Yes, but I don't think it exists in such a rich forest, in addition to the territory of the kingdom. Therefore, the Morga Forest, it must have been chosen."

At the time of the loss of the Black Forest in the war, there were more than a thousand people by the forest. I suppose it certainly doesn't exist that way, such as the woods, where so many people can live in hunting.

And the people by the woods are probably a clan that was drawn into the woods by hundreds of years. Therefore, we must have also not been properly aware that we were in a position to be called a free-flowing people. Then there was no way to come to the idea of finding a new home outside the territory of the kingdom.

"The mountain of Morga was a sanctuary more forbidden to man than in ancient times, and this woodland area at its foot was flooded with ferocious gibberish. Because it is, it has never been cut open in a forest as rich as this."

Ziza-Lou, who was quietly tumbling in the rain, snapped in a low voice.

"Indeed, our forefathers were searching for a land where they could live as hunters. Even if I was free to live, I guess I didn't feel like defining a forest free place as my home."

"That's fair enough, right? I didn't want to be born on another land, either.... it's not that bad to be involved with people in towns and castles."

With that said, Rudd-Lou spilled more white teeth.

Not answering that, Giza-Lou looks back at Schmiral.

"Schmiral of Lilyn's house, you were talking about running all over the continent as a merchant. So, let me ask you - after all, is there no such thing as a forest where so many people can live outside the territory of the kingdom?

"Yes, abundant forests, all, any kingdom, ruled"

"... so you say you don't like the noblemen or the people of the king's capital, but you no longer have a place left to move to us,"

To that word, Rudd-Lou reacted.

"Was Brother Ziza still thinking about dumping Morga or something? When I was with Cycleus, we talked about that."

"The first thing I said about that was Graph-Zaza. I didn't mean to throw Morga away. … but sooner or later, as a successor to the chief, I just thought I needed to know exactly what the world was like."

Was that, after all, a consequence of what the Melfrids call a visiting group to the King's Capital?

Marstein, Lord of Genos, and I have been able to do well so far. But will moreover the men of the king's capital, whose position above them, keep calm about the people by the woods? Even for me, I've been concerned about that one thing ever since I got involved with the people of the North.

"Whatever we do, we just go down the right path. And then the forest will lead us."

"It's okay. It's so much fun, it's decided you're on the right path."

That's the last thing Rudd-Lou said, we decided to turn back the way.

The new road, which no one would ever pass, was smoking white under the rain that snowed down.

◇

Even then, I was asked some extras by the Lou and Fou families.

One was that newly cut paths were also banned for some time.

Even after passing through the Morga Forest and the Rock Mountain Zone, he said it would take a while to advance through the rugged wilderness and the first lodging town a full day. Even unprepared travellers don't know if they can get there safely, and if suddenly even they are hit by the kind of oddities that make the dead come out, the face of Genos, who paved the way with hard work, crumbles. Therefore, this seemed to be the arithmetic of waiting for Sim's chamber of commerce, the Black Windcut Feather, to return and ask them to be the honorable first passers-by.

In the first place, it was Kukuruel, the leader of the Black Windcut Feather, who specifically suggested that we clear the way by the woods.

They are one of the biggest chambers of commerce in Sims, so they can safely let the road pass. And ask them to tell the Sims that a new path has been opened.

Then the Radajids will follow this path to Genos next time, too.

They're still halfway down the road to Sim. Is it time for the rainy season area to fall out? If their journey in the future was to be any more comfortable, it would have been as much a pleasure for me.

And it's about the fence we make in front of the settlement.

It seems that various proposals were delivered from Castle Town due to what kind of construction they would make of it.

But the Forestside Chiefs didn't really weigh in on the matter.

No matter how sturdy the fence is, it is possible to break into the settlement at all costs if you step into the left and right woods a little bit. Originally, the west side was cleared the way to rural areas, and access to people was not forbidden by law.

Therefore, it was the people of Castle Town who weighed in on the matter.

At any rate, right next to the settlement by the woods, the road was cut open. If this path is to be used normally, it doesn't necessarily mean that someone is pranking and doesn't break into the forestside settlements. When that happens, it may be the intruder that's more dangerous, but it's where everyone wants to avoid getting bored with it.

Besides, if it's daytime, the hunters are going into the woods. If we allow outlaws and other intrusions during times when there are only women, toddlers and old people, that's important.

And if there is any danger to our compatriots, the hunters will retaliate. If that happens, the people by the woods will again be feared by the public.

Speaking of which, Melfried once also argued that "the people of the woods need to show the world their power by lawless means".

Seriously, because we started doing business in the Inn Town and let them know that the people by the woods were not vicious barbarians, they feared that this time the people of the town would lose their guard.

Previously the people by the woods were the object of fear for the people of the town. As a result, he never had the nausea to sneak into a forest settlement. Even if that fear is diminished, we need to let them know that it is dangerous to give a little bit to the people by the woods. With that in mind, Sin-Lu was called upon to join the martial arts club.

There is also the aspect that the idea of crime prevention is rare for the people by the forest.

As Mim used to be surprised, there are no key facilities in the houses by the woods. All that exists is candlestick, and this can only be hung almost at night, too. Because there is no such thing as a fool trying to steal hardware from another person's house because he is poor by the woods, it was a long and useless object such as a key.

For this reason, even the proposal to install locks in houses had been exchanged from Castle Town.

At the very least, it was suggested that we try to lock ourselves up on an experimental basis, even just at the house of Sauti's family closest to the cut path. That way, even if a burglar sneaks into the settlement, there's nothing else to pull back on. Besides, it was their argument that there would be no more attempts to explore other houses with flavor.

So far, it has been decided to hold on to the matter.

Others say we should build a stuffing for guards in front of the fence, or amend the law to incriminate the unauthorized intrusion into the settlement itself, which is, anyway, sort of a fuss in Castle Town.

"Those guys thought about paving the way by the woods until they had such a hard time. I don't know how much wealth you get from that, but it's a total pain in the ass."

On the occasion of the meeting of the three chiefs, Dari-Sauti said so, apparently. It was Berdu-Fou who was present at the meeting who told me that. From the look on his face at that time, it appears that Berdu-Fow was in a similar mood.

And a few days later, I was supposed to hear about Castle Town from another source.

Where the story comes from is Mars, a platoon captain of the militia. Injured by Giva's raids, he was often given a rest period during which he stopped by our stall.

Of course, I didn't even know who it was or what it was. Taking off his guard armor, he appeared before us in the form of a western people who seemed to be everywhere. Barely, he was discerned before being named by his opponent because he hung his right arm under the rain gear.

"This is a hiccup. How about an injury?

"Hmm. Such a thing, you'll see. I broke my right arm, so I'm sorry for a while."

Still, he was in his capacity as platoon leader, so he managed to get a favor, and the story was that he could be reinstated as soon as his injuries healed. Some of the more badly wounded people have become feathers of resigning from guard positions, he said.

"Still, you seem to be plotting to build a jam by the woods without punishment. Someone who wants to stay in such a dangerous place."

"Right. I want you to make sure it doesn't become dangerous."

"... plus the castle guys are plotting to build a new lodging town over Morga Forest. Damn, its greed frightens me."

I'm going to be greatly surprised, too. Such a barbaric story was a complete first ear.

"Oh, what do you mean by a new lodging town? Just over the Morga Forest... naturally, it also means over the rocky mountain zone, right?

"Oh. We're talking about it taking a whole day to get beyond Morga to the Free Explorer's Inn Town. I guess the calculation is that if you build a town in the meantime, it will be crowded with travelers. Already there are people looking for land that could be made into water veins and fields."

"It's also... next on the road, is it a town? That's a really uninterrupted story."

"I guess so. Originally, that Mountain of Morga was also nominally Selva's territory, but the idea was to expand the territory further beyond. If it were to happen, it would be a noise where maps could be drawn all over the world."

Going that far, it was just a over-capable topic for me, too. Even the Forestside Chiefs will have to shrug their shoulders, "What do you know?"

"Well, it has nothing to do with us people down there. If I'm about to get anything, I'll just have to worry about it then."

"… are we the lower human beings"

"What, are you trying to tell me that you're a better person with nobility?

"No way. … just amazed that you, the people of the west, see the people of the woods as equivalent."

Then Mars glanced at him like he swallowed even pebbles.

"Grab people's verbal asses and don't say anything you don't want.... Bye. At best, earn good copper coins."

"Huh? Can't they eat something?

"... why should I moisturize your nostrils?

"No, I was wondering if you went out of your way to turn your foot on me when they were going to eat... sorry if it was early"

Mars becomes the top of the Buddha.

"I was just taking a stroll with my hippo. Have you ever bought food in your shop?

"Yes. You've always been at work. If the meal is coming up, would you like one?

Mars became more and more on the top of the Buddha.

But he doesn't try to walk away as it is, but looks around to get lost in the appearance of a sloppy line of stalls.

"If you like, give it a taste. Uh, how about a dish of juice? You'll have plenty of body on these cold days."

The stall on the daily menu for which I am in charge was "Fried and Grilled Giva", so I haven't set it aside. So I decided to entrust my store number to Tour-Din and move with Mars to the 'Cream Stew of Tripe' stall.

"Hey, I didn't say a word about eating, did I? I live in grace now, and I miss you too."

"Our food isn't that expensive either. It doesn't cost copper coins to taste, please."

That's how I pulled Mars, and it was Rimi-Lou who had the store number.

"Is that it? You were Rimi-Lou today."

"Yeah! I'm taking turns with Morn-Rutim!... Ah, you're the one I met in the settlement of Sauti! Are you okay with the injury?

Apparently Rimi-Lou remembered to see Mars' face. Yet Limi-Luu has a very impressive appearance, so Mars never forgot to look at it either.

"Oh, that's my daughter then.... you and your brother have been well taken care of."

"Rimi was just helping Rudd. Yikes. I wish you were healthy enough to walk!

Limi-Luu's smile was warm as a hiccup during the light rain.

"Limi-Lu, could you give this Mars a taste, if you like?

"Taste it? That's kind of a total hiccup! Then I'll leave the meat out of it."

Rimi-Lou laughed with a smile and split a small amount of stew into the wood dish. As declared, there is a piece of Giva rose meat in it.

With a wooden spoon to it, Rimi-Lou put it on the table, "Yes, please," he said.

Marus, who had a rough face, took a wooden spoon and carried pieces of giva meat into his mouth along with an orange stew - so he gave a funny voice, "Muggle".

"... is this the dish of giva meat"

"Yeah, it's delicious, right? Three red copper coins if you're hungry, and one red copper coin and half if you're half of them! Half the time, that's about it, and then there's one piece of fuwano dough."

Explained as such, Rimi-Lou poured a stew for a glass of ladle into a new wooden dish. Malus squeaks his throat.

"Well, then, three red copper coins..."

"Is Shi-chu all you need? I have a lot of customers who buy another dish in half."

"But I don't know what..."

"It's the gibbon next door that sells it, and it's very soft meat! What you're selling at Asta's is fried chicken! I wonder which one, if any, would it be?

Mars let his gaze wander in confusion.

In the process, you have eyes with me, and you blush under the rain gear.

"Oh, my God, those eyes! I don't care where you eat or what you eat, it's my choice.

"Yes, thank you for your purchase"

That's how Mars finally combined with the steps of purchasing Gibba's dishes.

The first time I looked at him was the day I was exposed to Lefreia. I still didn't know his name or identity by then, but it should have already been about nine months.

Mars, who had so stubbornly avoided Gibba's cooking, finally got to mouth it. If you look at it in a nagging way, maybe this was another prank of fate brought on by the rainy season.

◇

Then the day passes even further, and it is the thirtieth day of the red moon.

From that morning onwards, it was an unstable air pattern. When the gray clouds crack and I think I see the blue sky, the strong rain comes down on me. And then, more and more, the dark clouds drowned, and there was a shady mist rain - and in a few more hours, the blue sky peeked again, its repetition.

Apparently, this was the signal towards the end of the rainy season.

Indeed, strong and short rains like Skoll were the usual weather conditions found in Genos.

And in the last few days, I feel like the temperature is twitching. When I was dealing with fire, my long-sleeved jacket was enough to get in the way, and I = fa was also indoors not to wrap my long waist around it.

"The rainy season is finally over. It's been two months, really."

After dinner that day, at pre-bedtime chatting time, I let him say so. The Dora family thought they were quick, but there would be no objection to Ai-Fa.

The eye-fa, who loosened her hair and slammed it against the wall, nods "um" on her bedding.

"Tomorrow is the moon of Zhu. It's going to be a volatile day for a while, but there's no mistake that the end is imminent."

"You're almost done eating the Tripe or Onda. Well, it looks like we'll still have stock for about half a month."

"If Tarapa or Tino comes out, you won't even feel dissatisfied. Thanks to Asta and the others, I never felt unhappy during the rainy season."

Even today, Ai-Fa, was serene. It is something that was consciously strict at the dawn of the disease, but it feels relaxed so well that it returned to its original eye-fa. It also felt like a sign of the end of the rainy season.

"Now that the moon of Zhu is over, is it finally the moon of Huang? It's been a year since I came to the woods."

I wonder if they'll tell me I'm feeling fast again, and I'll say it that way.

Then I felt a slight shade on the face of Ai-Fa, which was serene.

"What's going on? Are you worried about something?

"No... remember when I stopped talking on the way over at Dora's house?

"Oh, sure. I don't see much of my usual eye-fa attitude."

"Um... the red moon isn't over yet, so maybe it's premature... but I'm not comfortable keeping it in my mind, so maybe it's time to put it in my mouth?

"Oh, my God, I didn't need to shy away from that. Isn't that more and more like an eye-fa? What the hell are you talking about?

When I was wearing the bedding next door, I looked back at Ai-Fa as I sat down.

Ai-Fa takes his back off the wall with Ai-Fa, and he still turns back towards me. However, it was not like I = fa to hold both knees together and pinch my spine.

"It kind of feels like a warm-up. It's not a bad story, is it?

"Uhm. It's not a bad story...... it should be. I can't tell you one thing right now."

"Don't worry more and more. I'll take any story, so don't hesitate to talk to me."

"Hmmm... that's a story about your birthday... are you willing to invite someone that day?

I was supposed to tip my neck.

"I didn't plan on that at all, but how could I care about that?

"That's... because if you were a man of hope like you, there would be a few people who wished to celebrate that birthday. Wouldn't that be how Lou and Rutim, and Ray and Lilyn, and those of their nearest families think?

"I wonder if so. But birthdays are supposed to be celebrated by family alone, right?

"But on my birthday I invited the Rimi-Lou's as guests, and the Harvest Festival and other nearby families were to gather to celebrate. It's not forbidden to stick around, so no matter what the story is, there's no wonder."

That's true, I guess you're right.

But I didn't know what to say.

"Well, anyway, I didn't get that kind of thank-you offer. For the most part, my birthday is still ahead of me."

"... so you can sometimes be wished for that in the remaining lid months?

"I don't know that. Only a few of you should know that you set the 24th of the Yellow Moon for my birthday in the first place."

Ai-Fa laid her eyes down to worry about something.

I bend over and peek into his face.

"So? I wonder what the heck I'm trying to say?

"Hmmm...... I wish I could just celebrate that day with Fa's family if I could......"

"Oh, really? Glad to hear that."

Reflectively answering that, Ai-Fa has kept his face close together for a long time.

"You said you were happy. Is that for real?

"Well, I guess so. What are you gonna do, lie to me?"

"Hmm. Because falsehood is a sin.... well, you think so yourself..."

As he closed his eyelids, Ai-Fa breathed much louder.

I make him laugh, "What's the matter with you," biting off the unlikely feeling of happiness there.

"No way, you've always cared about that? I wasn't going to invite anyone on my birthday, and if I-Fa wants to spend some time with you, I'd be happy to."

"But I had a hell of a happy time thanks to the Limi-Lu's. Besides, it was none other than Asta who led me on such a path. If you say you want to invite guests on your birthday, you can't complain."

"Isn't that nice? I'm a parent, so you can complain as much as you like."

"Is it something that you are allowed to imitate like treading on the feelings of such a family? … so I'd be very happy if you wanted to do the same."

And all of a sudden, Ai-Fa smiled.

That was the blue sky peeking through the dark clouds and the sunny smile.

"Especially this time, because it was Asta's first birthday by the woods, and it was our first anniversary face to face. I couldn't stop wanting to spend time alone."

"... if that's how you feel about me, I'd be happier"

"No, I'm sure I'd be happier, huh?

While stating so, Ai-Fa tilted his neck slightly.

On that side, he still smiles.

That temporarily abandoned my strict attitude as a parent, and I didn't hesitate to look like a sweet trick - in short, it was so cute.

"So can I assume that if someone makes such an offer in the future, they're not willing to accept it on Asta's side?

"Ugh, yeah. I don't mind if you think so."

"Well," Ai-Fa said, hands on his mouth, smiling again.

My behavior is so girly, my heart is already in trouble.

"Glad to hear it. I'm happy for you, Asta."

"Ah, oh. Welcome, thanks."

"I'll take care of the preparations for dinner that day, so you have a day. Relax."

"Huh?" Now I'm going to tilt my neck.

Ai-Fa remains smiling with the same expression.

"It doesn't make sense for him to cook a celebratory dish. All that day, I should stand on my knees and cook for the celebration."

"Uh, have Ai-Fa ever been involved in cooking in the last few months?

"Would you be as obsessed with that as you are?

Then the answer was supposed to be no. I wonder if I ever left the Easter fold of the Sun God, the store number of the stall, to Ai-Fa for just a short time.

"Oh, don't push me too hard, will you? I don't suppose I cooked my own food without touching the contraindications."

"It's not a question of contraindications. That's what I want. … of course, it would be incomparable with Asta's cooking."

While declaring it that way, Ai-Fa is still smiling happily.

"But it didn't take me long to cook a celebration for my dear family. Including that, I'm delighted."

"Well," she said, "I felt the anxiety in my chest tickle.

No matter how incapacitated I am, Ai-Fa wants to cook for me. The sense of well-being was so much so that there was not much to drive away the wild sense of anxiety.

"He's looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to seeing you in the next month."

"After the first month? Again, I feel like I was too quick to talk... but I'm glad I did"

Only the candlestick fire was in the darkness of reliance, and we smiled quietly.

So the red moon ended with the rainy season - and we were set to celebrate a busy and noisy day again.