We’re Causing An Incident! (3)

I sat on the steps and began talking with several whale beastkin in front of me.

“So you’re saying you don’t really need things like houses, right?”

“That is correct. We drift in the sea, or follow the currents depending on the season.”

I thought they were a peculiar people. They were said to be extremely rough, yet they weren’t particularly hostile toward humans, and even when they went berserk, they fought among themselves rather than attacking ships.

That was because, as their long history showed, if they touched ships, it led to large-scale whale beastkin massacres—and that instinct remained in them, so even in a berserk state, they avoided getting involved with humans.

Even so, they said that when the whale beastkin were berserk, humans often hunted them.

“When we transform, we become literally closer to whales. Compared to now, our bodies grow to at least twice the size.”

They were already huge, so the idea of them becoming even bigger was absurd. But whales around six or seven meters long… if you didn’t recognize them as beastkin, you really might try to hunt them.

It was practically whaling.

Whaling was a money-making scheme that would make any human’s eyes roll back. Even on Earth, despite being illegal and punished harshly with heavy fines and penalties, it still happened from time to time.

If that was true on Earth, there was no reason it wouldn’t happen here.

“In the sea, besides whale beastkin, aren’t there actual ‘whales’ as well?”

“There are. They are like us, and yet different. They evolved in accordance with nature, whereas we evolved in accordance with human life.”

Or had humans evolved in imitation of whales?

That thought crossed my mind, since I’d heard that when they were in human form, even their organs, body structure, and lifestyle were similar to humans.

I concluded they were simply one unusual humanlike race that lived by drifting aimlessly across the sea.

“How did you hear rumors about me?”

“From humans who trade with us from time to time.”

“Trade…?”

“Yes. Humans, hmm—let’s see. They consider things like this extremely valuable.”

What Ulde produced was a pearl. It was as large as a thumb joint, and even without a brain you could tell it looked expensive.

“…What do humans give you in exchange for that?”

“When we go berserk, they prevent us from being hunted. A kind of protection tax? That’s what they called it.”

My head rang.

“How can you trust that they truly protect you?”

“Well… truthfully, it isn’t something we can verify. We can only believe, because each year after the berserk period, our numbers have not decreased dramatically. And they are naval forces operated by the kingdom. It is only right to trust them.”

In other words, there was no evidence at all. And because they were beastkin, they lost most of their memories during the berserk period. So no matter what happened, they couldn’t know, and all they could do was confirm that their population had shrunk less than expected and simply believe the humans had protected them.

I couldn’t call them stupid. Their survival depended on it, so they had no choice but to believe.

But I was certain humans also hunted them. Was it killing two birds with one stone…?

“If you didn’t have to do that trade anymore, could you give us those pearls?”

“So it was true—the divine messenger would give us medicine that stops the berserk state…”

“This time, nearly all beastkin on the surface around the Ingrad Domain safely got through the Demon God’s Moon with that medicine. There were regions where incidents occurred, but even there, it was only a few injuries—no one died.”

“Oooooh!!! A wondrous thing!”

My ears felt stuffed. This whale beastkin’s voice was insanely loud.

“It’s something that must go through a council decision… but for the sake of a quick decision, could you show us proof?”

“Of course. But can whale beastkin transform by will as well?”

“Of course. Unlike surface beastkin, sea beastkin have many enemies. We are in beast form more often than human form.”

It was unexpected, but if I thought about it, it made sense.

Swimming the ocean in a human body and cruising through it in a whale body were obviously different.

At Ulde’s gesture, he ordered several beastkin floating in the sea to transform, and their shapes changed at once into the kind of whales I was familiar with—almost cute, in a way.

Their whale forms looked similar to orcas.

So I opened my subspace pouch, took out a few tablets of magic-power suppressants, placed them into Ulde’s hand, and said,

“I don’t know how effective it’ll be given your size, but start with one tablet. If it doesn’t work, increase the dose one by one.”

“Hm. Because it was calibrated for surface beastkin?”

“Right. By our standards, you’re too big.”

Ulde said he understood, then began tossing the pills as if feeding livestock. But as expected, one tablet wasn’t enough.

“It is uncomfortable, but only to that extent.”

That was the response when I asked about the condition. When he fed a second tablet, the smaller whale beastkin gradually shrank and returned to human form.

But the others still seemed able to endure it.

Only after the third tablet did they forcibly shift into human form, and they testified that even when they tried to transform, their magic power wouldn’t move—proving the suppressant’s effect.

“Incredible… with only three tiny tablets…”

Ulde was amazed in a different way than I was, but then he said,

“In that case, the council may conclude quickly.”

“So how long…?”

“Hm… one month?”

At that, Demina shook her head with a sigh.

It was clearly an “I knew it” reaction. Still, one month didn’t seem too bad. We hadn’t even fixed the construction schedule yet, and we were planning to break ground only after winter passed.

Demina had no way of knowing that, so I subtly motioned for her to hold it in, then said to Ulde,

“I’d like a faster decision, but even if it takes an extra month, that’s fine. Please reach a conclusion.”

“Hwahahaha! The divine messenger is generous indeed. We are deeply grateful!”

After that, I watched as most of the whale beastkin, including Ulde, returned to the sea to ‘hold a council.’ I told them we’d meet again in a month, then had to climb back up the cliff with Demina.

I felt like my energy had been drained, and I wanted to get away quickly.

“They’re an exhausting people…”

“They’re a tribe with little malice. That’s why there are quite a lot of humans who interact with them.”

“But the reason they sought me out… is because they can’t really trust those humans, right?”

“They’re not fools. They just… want to be killed less, using pearls as leverage.”

It was unfortunate. Still, if we could draw them in properly, wouldn’t they become a tremendous force?

I realized I probably couldn’t ignore the sea as a stage going forward.

After that, I inspected the Forest of the Demon Dragon border—sites for building the Sky Bridge toward the Northern Continent—and then returned to the domain.

A few days passed, and Vincent informed me that the people I’d been waiting for had arrived. Before going out to greet them, I told Riin to prepare bread and cookies with chocolate added.

When I went to meet them at the entrance of the lord’s residence, I came face-to-face with the two of them, and as I looked at Rubins and Tein giving proper courtesy, I said,

“I’m sorry for summoning you so forcefully.”

“No. After reading your letter, we believe the fault lies with us for not coming even sooner.”

At Rubins’s words, I gave a small smile and asked Tein,

“Was the journey uncomfortable?”

“Thanks to your consideration, we were able to come quickly.”

They had come along the route beneath the bridge. I had instructed the beastkin stationed at the First Rest Stop to read my letter and let them pass through at speed.

I’d thought that if they used escorts, they could run straight through without delay. I asked because I assumed the road’s roughness would have been uncomfortable, but Tein didn’t mention that at all.

I appreciated it.

“Let’s go inside and talk. And this brooch—I’ve been using it very well.”

Like me, Rubins and Tein were also wearing their brooches. Seeing all three of us with the same brooch made me think of an “alliance,” and as I started walking ahead, Rubins asked cautiously,

“Um, I heard from a merchant that there’s something called ‘coffee.’ Could we possibly taste it this time?”

“I thought you wouldn’t be interested in tea, but I guess not?”

“Ah, I’m not accustomed to the culture of ‘tea’ itself. But I thought there’s no harm in experiencing it. And the merchant praised it so highly that I wanted to try it.”

“I feel the same. I’ve always admired the viscount’s marvels, but this time, I’d say my curiosity has grown even deeper.”

I thought they were just being flattering. But since there were chocolate cookies that paired well with coffee, I figured I might prepare a sweet latte this time and serve it.

I was very curious what their reactions would be. We moved straight into the lord’s reception room and took our seats. Since the kitchen was nearby, the faint aroma of chocolate drifted in, and the Hameureun siblings looked intrigued.

Yet rather than asking questions, they waited politely, which was unexpected.

A short while later, as we sat facing each other and waited, Linda entered the reception room. I’d already been informed that Matilda couldn’t come to the lord’s residence today due to having a lot of outside work.

“This is Linda. A newly appointed retainer.”

“My name is Linda. Though I’m a commoner, I’ve been granted the honor of serving Viscount Ingrad at his side.”

“Nice to meet you, Linda. I’m Baron Rubins.”

“Nice to meet you too, Linda. I’m Tein Hameureun.”

As I watched the Hameureun siblings exchange introductions with her without any dismissive attitude, I felt confident that if used well, I could do many things with them.

I knew one shouldn’t trust people lightly, but for external affairs, wouldn’t it be possible to keep them close by sharing appropriate profits? I’d discussed that with Linda and Matilda, and this meeting had come about as a result.

“All right, introductions are done. Before we get into why I called you two… how about we start with tea time?”

“I was thinking it might be nice to warm up as well. I agree.”

Tein responded first, and Rubins nodded as he added,

“Whatever you give us, we’ll accept with gratitude.”

It didn’t take long before horror formed in Rubins’s bright eyes. But what surprised me was Tein’s reaction.

With a rather serious expression, Tein tasted the coffee, chocolate cookies, and brownies I’d prepared, falling into deep thought. It made me feel like something meaningful might be about to unfold—and I couldn’t help looking forward to it.