863 The Eleventh Day of the Silver Moon ③ - Payfay's Laughing Mouth

A harsh climb blocked my vision, and I was forced to squeeze my strength to the extreme.

The knees, ankles, and hip are stinging and sore as if they were stabbed in a burnt pile, and the momomo and calves are trembling like cramps. And my whole body was sweaty as if I wore it in water, and my throat and lungs hurt tight.

But this is a lesson and a code set forth by Tia's brethren. If you're not allowed to step into the sanctuary unless you get through this ordeal, I really didn't want to take the other hand until I couldn't take a step forward on my own. I didn't think it should be easy to soak up the warmth of the people of the sanctuary that I could borrow the other hand if I ran out of strength.

We even continued on a rugged mountain path, blocked from sight by the 'Sealed Mask' and unacceptable to speak or drink water. Its approximation seemed to be in deep bushes, but sometimes rocky places were also walked. Besides, it sometimes goes down a loose descent path rather than up, and that's when that kind of caution was needed.

So, how much time has passed...

At several extremes, when my consciousness was coming a little farther away, I heard Lyta's voice coming from the front.

"I see it. That's where the council of chiefs is -" Payfay's Laughing Mouth. "

I was weak and I almost got into it by accident.

There, I hear further voices.

"In about a hundred steps, we arrive at the entrance to the promised place. Until the end, I want you to keep the code."

That 100 steps made me feel infinite.

My legs tremble when I want to, and it feels like my heart's beating all the way to my head. It was as if the agony and fatigue that had been enduring had hit me with a doubling of momentum.

"... All right, fine. I am delighted that everyone has broken the code. I want you to take off the" sealed mask "and get some rest."

That word reached my ear, and I almost collapsed.

Its back is supported by powerful hands. And the mask I was wearing was stripped rough.

"Are you okay, it's Asta? Isn't that terrible?"

Ai-Fa's angry face peeks me in from the side.

That's how I-Fa let me sit gently on the spot, supporting my body.

"You are the weak one. Be mean, be reasonable."

I tried to answer something but my throat was tight and I couldn't speak well.

With the same look on his face, Ey-Fa pokes a water bottle pulled out of the cloak's hidden bag.

"Don't panic, drink one by one. You can let go of the rope now."

I still held onto the rope in my right hand.

My fingertips were shaking fine as I let go of the rope and tried to receive the water bottle.

When I mouthed the water from the water bottle, supported by the hands of Ey-Fa, the unexplained sobriety filled my body. Water at room temperature is like sweet dew.

"Oh, I'm back.... Exactly, I-Fa, you look fine"

"... compared to you, of course"

Ey-Fa grabbed my shoulder and clasped his forehead around his temple.

"I know you want to weigh the code of the sanctuary. But still, this is not the way to be impotent."

"Yeah, sorry. I've been going to the limit so many times, but it feels like a little pause, so I didn't get a chance to make a sound."

That's what I said, and I made Ai-Fa laugh.

"By the way, you kept your bowel meat in Ai-Fa. Can you split one?

"What? I don't think you should eat until you're tired."

"Maybe so, but I'm probably too sweaty to have enough salt. I want salt air, and I feel like my body's screaming."

Ai-Fa wiggled my head in a shake before taking out my bowel meat.

I do not remember how my stomach feels in this condition either, so I decide to squeeze the stinging intestinal meat like candy. The salt and nourishment from it made my head so clear.

So Ai-Fa gives a low voice, "Ugh."

Ai-Fa looked scared for a moment, and she's spinning my head around again.

"You're bleeding out of your feet! Why didn't you tell me sooner?

"Huh? Oh, it's true... my leg mame must have been crushed"

What we were wearing were leather sandals. From the base of my right thumb to the back of my foot I could finally see the thread of blood dripping.

"... I'll give you a hand, so I'll let you go. Support yourself so you don't fall down."

"Yeah, I'm fine."

I let my left hand follow the ground as I grabbed the flesh of my wig with my right hand.

So I realized for the first time that this was not a bush but a rocky place.

I = fa go around at my feet and start to unwind my leather sandals. I apologize to Ai-Fa, but I hadn't recovered enough strength to still be able to handle myself.

(Everyone else is -)

Looking around, the others were relaxed thoughtfully.

In it, Raylis is flipping over to the rocks. The chest wrapped in a thick torso was wide up and down, and the beautifully set hair was also wildly disturbed.

"A... Lord Asta is just a forest folk... I don't want to expose myself to all this..."

That's what Raylis has been saying with only his neck pointed this way. The voice is blurred like someone else's.

"Uhm! Finally you can speak! Then it's time to drink some water!

Dan-Rutim approached us slightly. Like Ai-Fa, he seems to be in enough condition to enjoy a little mountain climbing. After all, the health of the people by the woods was out of standard.

"But that one over there seems quite sturdy! As a person in town, it's a big deal!

That's what Dan-Rutim said as he woke up with Leiris' body.

If you follow that gaze, you're observing the surrounding scene, a little further away from Gemd. I could not even feel the shadow of fatigue in its appearance standing on the rock.

"Guests, I don't want you to be too far apart. Step out of our forgiveness and you'll be wasted all your hard work."

And Writa, who was talking to Tia somehow, skipped the word toward Gemd.

Gemd nods one thing and comes back here. What he was looking around at was the look of the deep woods, thinking we had stepped over.

If you look the other way, there's a rocky mountain standing this way. It was almost as inclined as it was perpendicular, with dark green bushes overlapping at the end of the head. Perhaps we should have called it the side of the cliff rather than the rocky mountain.

As far as the cliff is concerned, a black crack can be seen running.

The cliff is about ten meters high and the position of the crack would be about five meters. It was a horizontal half-moon shape, and its width was also likely to be about five meters.

"That's Payfay's Laughing Mouth. The entrance is cramped, but the cave is deep in the back, so it is laid down on the occasion of the Council of Chiefs"

And that's how Writa explained it to me.

On that occasion, people who were scattered all over the place also come and gather here. The hunters by the woods looked spectacular to everyone.

"Good job, Schmiral-Lilyn. That's the hunter by the woods."

"No. Limit, it was close"

Speaking that way, Schmiral-Lilyn smiles with a serene face as usual. Even if I've been a hunter for a year or so, I guess I'm still pretty well trained. Only me and Raylis seemed to be in a state of exhaustion.

"... I sincerely apologize for making Asta go through such a hard time"

And Tia peeked into my face.

I make Tia laugh at the look on her face the way she said it.

"You don't have to be sorry about anything. I wanted to accompany you, of my own accord. Compared to all the hard work Tia's been carrying, there's nothing more to it."

"Tia was only redeeming the sins she had committed. Asta just got involved with Tia, and she's going to be carrying this kind of hardship."

"Still, the joy of meeting Tia is many times worse."

Tia turned into a panicked face and pulled herself back.

"I have to make an explanation to the Chiefs from now on, but I can't shed a tear. Asta wants you to say something that will make Tia cry."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

Tia was a little twitchy, but eventually smiled with a grin as she plucked something.

After looking sideways at Tia's smile like that, Ryta looks back at Donda-Lou.

"When I get my breath done, I want you to come to the conference room. The Chiefs should already be waiting on that spot."

"Got it. … you seem to be leaning for a long time."

Looking up over his head, Donda-Lou replied that way.

It's a place stuck in deep woods and cliffs, so I don't even know where the sun is. However, slight plugging sunlight showed signs of dusk as early as possible.

(I can't believe I lost my sense of time altogether... but you almost walked half a day. Well, if you're not a hunter by the woods, you're gonna snap)

So Ai-Fa woke herself up, "Okay."

"I've handled the wound. Looks like Asta's been able to regain some strength."

"Yeah. I'm all right now."

I put the meat back into the wrap and let the contents of my mouth chew.

Raylis also nods one thing as he muddles the sweat that has been newly engulfed by hydration.

"I'm fine, too. Thank you for your help."

"No, if you were a young boy without a hunter, it wouldn't have been a strange journey to make a sound. It would be praiseworthy because the fragile outsider did not make a weak noise to the end"

It was Luja, who had refrained by Madarama, who answered that way.

"So, do you want to head to a meeting place? The Chiefs will be tired of waiting."

That's how Ruja turned back to the cliff, hitting her fingertips in the palm of her mouth, whistling high.

After a while, from the fissures of the half-moon form, many ropes are draped. It's the same rope that kept us gripping this far.

"Use this to go up to the entrance. Can Tia go up on her own?

"Uhm. No problem"

Tia snagged the hunter's clothes in his hand onto his right shoulder.

Ryta nods and turns back at us.

"What about the Guests? If it's hard to get up on your own, I'll give you a hand."

"Stick around, let's not have a problem! … that's not how Asta and the people of Castle Town can be."

With Dan-Rutim's eyes on him, Gemd responded, "No."

"At this height, I wonder if there is a problem. The scaffolding also seems to be solid."

"I, a little… in my present state, may be difficult"

Rayliss said with all due respect, Dan-Rutim said, "Right!," he laughed.

"Then I'll carry you! If you're not left with the power to grab it, you can do it on your shoulders, but I don't know what?

"Well, then I'd like to borrow your back. Sorry for the inconvenience."

"What the hell! So, how about Asta?

"Asta, let me carry you"

Faster than I was, that's how I-Fa answered.

I said, "Huh?" Looking back at Ai-Fa, he is blinded back with his half-eyelid lowered eyes.

"What? No way, are you going to overlap any more impositions?

"No, that's right, me too, I think it's hard on my own...... but is Ai-Fa okay?

"Don't let the fool out. I carry a heavier giva than you, but I can't help but climb as high as this."

The resolute tone of I-Fa had no objection either.

Of course, if I tried to be an eye-fa, I wouldn't have felt like depositing my life with the rest of us - as far as I'm concerned, my chest had only been noisy before I moved it to execution.

"Now, Ryta, Tia and three guests, let me go up first. I want Ruja and Madarama to see all the guests safely climb up"

Without waiting for Ruja's reply, Reita laid her hands on the rope at the right end.

Then a Valve wolf with a grey brown fur hits Lyta's back. What a volatile posture with both forelegs hooked onto Writa's shoulder but not clinging like a human being.

"I want the previous one up, and then the next one up. Okay, I'll wait upstairs."

As Lyta thus began to climb up the rope, Valve moved his hind legs along with it. Valve is a giant, so even with Lyta's body in between, the tip of his foot reaches the wall. So the two names were without any bitterness, and they went up five meters high.

In the meantime, Tia and Donda-Lou and Gazran-Rutim and Schmiral-Lilyn begin to climb up the rope in the same way. Neither Tier, who is hurting his right shoulder, nor Schmiral-Lilyn, a rookie hunter, had any danger at all.

"All right, let's go too."

The remaining members are Dan-Rutim and Leiris, Gemd, Birdu-Fow, Chim-Sudra, and me and Ai-Fa. Me and Leiris are carrying each other, so it's possible for five pairs to go up at the same time.

Ai-Fa put his hand on the rope at the left end and he bent his neck and looked at me.

"Then get caught by me. Whatever happens, don't let go of me, okay?

"Yeah. I know that..."

Ai-Fa wraps around the hunter's clothes, so the body itself never snuggles.

But from the neck up, that's not how it works. When I tried to hold Ai-Fa's neck and lock my elbow tight, my face was to be nodded at by golden brown hair.

"Ko, is this good?

When I called, Ai-Fa shook her body slightly.

"... Asta, when you talk, your ears are all over you"

"Oh, I'm sorry. But if you don't tilt your neck, it's hard to breathe."

"So I told you not to talk!... Then let's go."

Ai-Fa demonstrated its physical abilities and began to climb the cliff rope.

In the meantime, my body fills with Ey-Fa's body temperature and fragrance. I've stopped using "Sacrifice Hunting" for a long time now, and I'm talking about gibberish actually only setting a trap - but still, the smell of Ai-Fa's hair was sweet and didn't make me indulge.

But well, such time is also only a few seconds. On the cliff, the people who had climbed up ahead were waiting to bow themselves, five ropes firmly tied to rock masses that protruded like teeth.

"Watch your head. Around here, it looks like the red folk are only about as tall as they can get."

It was Gazran-Rutim who advised me that way.

The height of the red people is between 130 and 140 centimeters. Having arrived safely, I and I-Fa were also to take a knee-standing position so as not to hit their heads on the roof of the rock bed.

Waiting in the dark that way, a large face of Madarama peered loosely from beyond the rift.

Madarama crawls in front of us in a hurry to free up space. This was the first time I had ever approached this Madarama, so I was supposed to hold my breath.

(but...... guide, you look cute)

When we once fought hard in the river of Rant, we didn't loose that much time to observe the face of the madalama seriously.

On both sides of the flat head, the black eyes of the circle blink, and the blue and black scales glow and shine. It was also a complete plastic beauty, different from that of mammals.

"You kept me waiting. Above all, without anyone falling over."

Ruja also arrived with a grin that ate people.

Ruja picks up five ropes and pulls them together. Unless there was this rope, it should have been difficult to get in and out of whoever it was.

"Okay. Now let's head over to the Chiefs. I want you to be careful not to hit your head."

From the other side of Donda-Lou and the others, the voice of Lyta was heard.

As we headed to the back of the cave that way, the ceiling grew higher and higher, and after all the ten meters, Donda-Lou and Dan-Lutim were also able to walk without bending their hips.

But the further away from the entrance and exit rift, the darker the area gets.

As it is, I wonder if my vision will be completely blocked sooner or later - and when I endangered it that way, the world was enveloped in light by a pretense.

Dan-Rutim, who was walking ahead of me, said, "Oh!" I raise my voice. It may have been a very slight light, but it felt much brighter in the eyes that were used to the darkness.

It was a natural, square-like space.

The ceiling was high and would have been about three or four meters. The ceiling was glowing blue and white.

"What, this!? Is this what magic is!?

As Dan-Rutim shrugged, Ruja laughed with her nose as she was holding her grudge.

"Even though the Great God hasn't woken up, there's no way he can use magic or anything like that. It's star moss."

"Horseshoe?

"Mm-hmm. It grows on rocks, it's like grass. I hear that burning fire in this place blocks my breath, so I grew this much star moss that I brought from the extra room."

"The grass will glow like that! That's a hell of a story!

Not only Dan-Rutim, but the ten guests were to look around at the blue and white glowing ceiling with dismay.

But I can't be distracted like that forever. A truly astonishing being was gathered beneath its brilliance.

"Here you are... Waiting for you, Tia, son of Hamra, chief of Namkar"

A shady voice echoes through the cave.

"And so are the ten guests... all happy to have kept the code of the sanctuary and made it this far. First, I want you to expose us to that."

Following those words, we aligned ourselves side-by-side. That's all there was to it.

That's how we exposed ourselves, and at the same time we saw who we were dealing with.

of the sanctuary, are the chiefs.

Consolidating the image wherever possible, I intended to come to this occasion - but still, I couldn't help but breathe.

Was the number of red people about fifty? Everyone lays a fur rug at their feet and sits facing this way. The area of the square was loose, so it was a pair of two people, dressed as sitting dots.

Naturally, all of them dye themselves in the color of wine red. But because the light source on the ceiling was blue and white, its appearance seemed oddly black.

Perhaps it is a pair of women who are chiefs and men who are offerings. Although many people seem to have a neutral appearance, one of the groups wore a fur or scaly coat and the other felt in a feminine shape.

Approximate human beings are blushing hairs, and sometimes they can also be seen who have tied up long, noose hair or pruned into strange shapes. The colour of the eyes also seemed to be urban, but it was also uncertain with the addition or subtraction of light.

The only thing that was common to everyone was that their physique was small. It's hard to understand because it's sitting, but few people feel bigger than Luja. And even the most significant felt that the 150 cm was not exceeded.

And it is the serpent of Madarama and the wolf of Valve.

On the spot, there were about thirty Madaramas and Valves each.

Madarama was on the left, Valve was stopping on the right, but not exactly solidified between his fellow countrymen. Mixed with red people scattered all over the place, they sit still. Inside, he could also scatter those leaning against the giant of the Valve and those stroking the back of the Madarama.

(Really... in this place, the Red People, the Valves, the Madaramas are reciprocal.)

The story was heard beforehand from Tia. In the mountains of Morga, Valb and Madarama were talking about making a family of them and making friendships with the Red People.

I guess that means that the Valves and Madaramas gathered here are also the chiefs of their respective clans and their offerings.

Humans, wolves and serpents are gathered together for the same purpose. That alone was an unrealistic sight for me - and besides, they were diverting everyone's wild vitality. On that occasion, there was more enthusiasm and power swirling than at the Parents' Conference by the woods.

"Hmm... I heard that the people in the outside world are wearing big figures, but this seems to be the size to ask"

And, the first person to raise his voice overlapped the words further.

It is arranged in the front row near the center of the square, with a giant madalama of pure white wrapped around it right behind it. She seemed to be quite an aging woman, with a big sticking out under her chest of outfits like a piercing jacket.

"My name is Raal-Boze-Chautarta. This Raal, the oldest bloodthirsty Shautarta chief along with Namkar, was to be entrusted with the partitioning of this day's meeting. First, I want ten guests from the outside world to name their identities and names"

"I understand. Does that order matter in a way that follows our teachings?

When Donda-Lou questioned him with a grunting voice, the red folk named Raal smiled with garlic.

"I don't care what happens. We just want to know the identities and names of our guests."

Donda-Lou nodded one thing and looked back at Leiris.

So I finally realized, too, that Raylis was standing up with a bright blue face. Well, at least they were flying their souls on the same or higher level as me. For a human being born and raised in the midst of a civilized society, that was the natural story.

"Wow... let me name you one last time. Let's start with the folks by the woods."

"I understand.... I'm one of the chiefs by the woods, Donda-Lou."

"My name is Gazran-Rutim, and I am a family member of the Rutim family."

"I am Dan-Rutim, the father of Gazlan and the parent of my predecessors! Oh, my God!

"My name is Shmiral-Lilyn, and I'm a family member of the Lew family."

So Ai-Fa and Birdu-Fow exchanged their gazes. I guess you checked which one should be named first in fa or fou. At the end of the day, Ai-Fa gives a ringing voice.

"I am the people by the woods, the head of Fa's house, Ai-Fa"

"I'm a family member of Fa's house, my name is Asta."

"I am the forest dweller, the head of the Fou main house, a man named Birdu-Foo."

"I'm Chim-Sudra, the head of Fou's family Sudra."

"… My name is Marstein, Lord of the Marquis of Genos, and Raylis of the Knights of Saturas, deputy of the First Son Melfrid"

"I am the deputy of Lady Fermes, a diplomat of the King's capital, and my name is Gemd"

The people of the sanctuary gathered in the square listened to us silently.

After a while of silence, Raal snaps "I see".

"In the sanctuary and the outside world, codes and learnings are different. Therefore, there are a few things that may seem suspicious, so let me confirm them."

"Hmm. What could have been suspicious?

"First of all, what is a parent? And what is the family?

Donda-Lou frowned and looked back at Gazran-Rutim.

Gazran-Rutim has a serene face and nods "yes".

"I will answer. A parent indicates the head of that house. A family name indicates the name of a family. Perhaps the chief of the clan for the Red People will be the head of the family and the clan will be the family."

"So what is a chief to you?

"A chief is a chief, to lead all his family on the right path. There are three chieftaincy muscles around the forest today, and the head of that family will be the chief."

"What is the main house? What is a division?

Gazran-Rutim often thought of it, but soon pronounced a starkless word.

"I hear Tia is the son of a clan chief named Namkar, and your Lyta is his blood clan. In Moribe, they call Tia's parents and brothers home, and Reita's parents and brothers home."

"I see. So why are parents and chiefs male?

"By the woods, it is a lesson for men to hold their parents. However, it is also permissible for the women to hold the head of the family until the handover of the main house has grown. This eye-fa has no other family to inherit in Fa's house, so we have a parent."

"Hmm... the people by the woods have heard that they are a Giva hunting clan. There seem to be a lot of learnings similar to ours, but there are also very different ones."

Raal seemed to shrug his shoulders small as he stroked the back of his white madalama.

"As for the last two, I had no idea what kind of status they were. I want you to explain that, too."

"I understand. This Raylis will represent the head of Genos. Genos is a territory that stretches out at the foot of Morga, and includes the woodland. In addition, a clan that once made an inviolable covenant with the people of the sanctuary is referred to in the outside world as an 'old people' and will either become a family of Genos or leave Genos to become an extra human being. I hear it was about 200 years ago."

Apparently, Gazran-Rutim recognized Genos' history more correctly than I did. Perhaps, as we interacted with the people of Genos, we were to acquire such knowledge.

("The Old People" is about people with Mr. in Genos, like Milan-Math and Siri-Low, because until 200 years ago, those people lived as free pioneers... plus the interpretation that their ancestors exchanged an inviolable covenant with the people of the sanctuary)

While I was thinking that way, Gazran-Rutim kept explaining.

"The outside world is governed by something called a kingdom. The kingdom exists one at a time, east, west and north, and Genos is included in the kingdom to the west. And the place where the head of the kingdom lives is called the King's Capital, and this Gemd will be the birth of the King's Capital."

"So in this, that person is the highest rank?

"No. I have heard that Gemd's master is a man named Fermes, and that he is… not a so-called chieftaincy muscle, but a trace of a division of a house called Veheim"

"So who is the most tall person in all this?

"Let's just say that, Raylis. The master of the people by the woods is Marquis Marquis Marstein of Genos, and Leiris is his proxy for Marstein. Fermes, the master of this gemd, has come out of the king's capital to see if Genos is ruled in the right way."

"Hmm. Is the most powerless person in this the highest stature? After all, there seems to be a lot of confusion in the outside world about codes and tricks."

Raal chuckled as if it didn't even seem funny and threw it away like that.

Somewhere, it is an attitude that also leads to Ruja. Even though Tia and Lyta seem extremely innocent and honest, Ruja and Raal seem to have a lot of temper.

(Maybe... in a clan that makes Valve friends and a clan that makes Madarama friends, you have a different temper?

If so, it is a swordswallowing story. Roughly half of the red people gathered here are of the Maddalama family.

But it would also be premature to say no that way with just four samples. And whatever temper they were in, it shouldn't have changed what we were supposed to do.