The next day, I spent a productive time practicing magic during the day and, as soon as it got dark, took Eleonora outside.
As planned, I joined Lowell and headed toward the place where the Beastmen lived, as we had discussed yesterday.
The destination was much closer than expected. About 20 minutes into our walk, a moving Vampire navigation system popped up with a message.
“From here, you have entered the Beastmen’s territory.”
I had already started to smell something like animal scent nearby. The smell of blood was quite strong, suggesting that there had been quite a few injuries from yesterday’s battle.
Though there are rules in the forest, if a Vampire is wandering around while blood is being spilled, it would disrupt one’s mental stability. While we’re not on intimate terms, they’re likely more sensitive than usual right now.
By the way, they should be noticing our presence soon.
If they don’t want to see a bleeding Beastman and a Vampire together, they should hurry up and come out to guide us.
“Come here—”
“…Miss Scarlet. I trust you haven’t forgotten what we discussed yesterday.”
“Just kidding.”
I threw that out there as a bit of a joke for being in someone’s home, and Lowell turned half-serious.
Does he not trust me at all? If I meant it for someone to hear, I would have shouted it loud and clear.
Sort of irritating… I thought, but when I met Eleonora’s clear eyes, which held no doubt after hearing our exchange, I found myself uncomfortable.
Why? Because it seemed like she firmly believed I could spring into action without warning, no matter the situation.
Having killed many people in front of Eleonora and sometimes pretending to be crazy, I reasoned that I shouldn’t have to face her calm reaction as if it would be no surprise even if I suddenly stood on my head and barked like a dog. That’s an unreasonable slander.
While I might have been sentencing Lowell and Eleonora in my mind, one of the movements over there seemed to notice us and began to approach.
Yeah, what matters now is us.
I pointed in that direction at Lowell, indicating someone had come.
In less than 20 seconds, a Beastman man appeared, with a sword strapped to his waist. He seemed a bit impatient, as he abruptly questioned us.
“What are the Vampires doing here?”
I didn’t expect much, but, as expected, the vibe wasn’t very friendly. However, if this guy were a reasonable person, I wouldn’t have needed to ask for guidance.
“Hello, messenger Lowell here. May I meet with the Chief?”
Definitely a social butterfly at max level. Without a wrinkle on his face, he smoothly approached the conversation.
Even though this Beastman was meeting us for the first time, he didn’t seem overly surprised, as if he had heard of us before. However, he eyed our request to meet the Chief with some suspicion.
“Did you come to hear about the next deployment date? It hasn’t been decided yet. Besides, there’s no need to meet the Chief about this matter.”
“Today isn’t a mission for the Security Maintenance Force. These individuals mentioned they have a matter to discuss.”
Only then did the Beastman’s gaze turn toward us.
He scrutinized me and Eleonora, both bundled up in fluffy cloaks, with a suspicious look.
I remained silent, even though his glare might have seemed rude.
Though I expressed it gently, in reality, Lowell had asked me to keep my mouth shut to prevent complications, so I planned to observe quietly from behind.
But there are always fools who only learn the hard way.
Having kept my mouth shut, he seemed to think I was easy prey, and the clueless beast took on a cocky attitude.
“What are you two doing here?”
“…They’re new arrivals from the other day. Could you please deliver a message?”
Lowell was anxious, glancing my way.
I haven’t done anything yet. But I remember your face and scent.
“What the hell, based on what do you think you can take newcomers to see the Chief? If you’re gonna talk crap, just go back.”
Looks like I’ve gained a bit of a reputation. Although I tried to sound intimidating, I almost laughed.
No matter how much I begged for my life, screaming that I would be killed, Raul used to start each morning by pulling out my intestines, and Martini would stuff my body into a grocery crate for training! Compared to that, this was cute.
And telling me to go back? Now that’s just amusing. Quite funny for someone acting like a gatekeeper, isn’t it?
A gatekeeper’s role means they must use force to stop someone who should not pass.
Rules without power are no different from a vacant store in a slum without CCTV.
“But you can’t stop me.”
This guy doesn’t even look like a real gatekeeper; he just happened to pass by. If I walk on without asking for permission, he has no way to stop me.
From my experience, the world generally favors the insane.
As soon as someone starts to reason and think logically, they can’t beat the crazies who just act without thinking.
However, since violence is the ultimate solution, when two crazies meet, the stronger one tends to survive.
Thus, in most cases, strength is the ultimate truth and a creed to be worshipped.
But what happens when that ultimate solution is sealed within the forest’s rules in the Mist Labyrinth?
Of course, the one who acts first will have the upper hand. After making a rational judgement, a normal person’s actions can never follow someone who acts on impulse.
“Should I just fall back to Plan A?”
…No. Not yet.
Plan A: Division of labor and specialization lead to huge backlash.
As long as I live in the Mist Labyrinth, I’ll need to involve myself in the Beastmen’s battles occasionally, so if there’s a chance we won’t fall out with them, I should at least give it a shot.
Unless negotiations break down and we run out of food, forcing Eleonora to starve, it’s not yet the right time.
“Haha, what could you possible do with schemes in this forest? Besides, before scheming, Deivalt is not one to be easily thwarted. I’m just worried about possibly taking away the time of a distinguished warrior who’s been struggling.”
Lowell approached the Beastman man with a pleasant smile. Having been a merchant in his human days, he seemed to have picked up some smooth-talking skills along the way.
As Lowell rubbed his hands together excitedly, he discreetly slipped something into his sleeve and then handed it over to the Beastman soldier.
In a natural motion, the soldier reflexively reached out and upon seeing the item in his hand, twitched his eyebrows before bursting into a hearty laugh as if he had just met a friend from three years ago.
“Hahaha! It’s not enough trouble to deliver a message! Follow me!”
‘This can work.’
By the way, the comparison to a friend of three years is a bit ambiguous because the Beastman doesn’t hold that kind of service mentality, even when it comes to Vampires, no matter how long they’ve known each other.
Still, we’ve managed quite well. When we first set our plan yesterday, it felt way too simple to work, but seeing it in action today confirmed its effectiveness.
The item Lowell handed to the Beastman man was none other than money.
Specifically, it wasn’t currency from the Suwong Kingdom in the east but rather human currency that was commonly traded among humans.
No matter how much gold is the all-powerful truth around the world, I was taken aback when I first heard that Beastmen found human currency to be effective as a bribe.
After all, where would such beasts use something like that? Especially in a forest like this.
But even this made sense when I gave it a moment’s thought.
According to Lowell, it stemmed from the relatively loose social atmosphere in the west compared to the east.
In human countries, a Beastman hiding in a city gets murdered or turns into a slave the moment they’re found, which is a common occurrence.
However, since the surveillance in the west is somewhat lacking, it sounds feasible to sneak through the cracks.
And ironically, the Beastmen who have snuck into the Mist Labyrinth need to interact with humans to fight against them, even at the risk of danger.
After all, nearly all the resources in the Terra continent have been monopolized by humans since the species’ war.
Named mines and fertile farmland are all under the control of human territories, meaning for the Ain, most of the supply sources they need are from humans.
In the Mist Labyrinth, where they have no choice but to rely on external supplies, this situation has only become more pronounced.
So the Beastmen here are taking the risk to secretly interact with the humans in the west.
Of course, if caught during a checkpoint, it’s a death sentence, but some Beastmen have gone so far as to cut off their own ears to reduce detection risk, which is something I can’t help but admire.
While pulling off hats and searching through hair would reveal them as Beastmen, it’s quite rare for it to go that far.
Successful infiltrators manage to purchase everything from limited supplies of food to some equipment and supplies.
Thus, the Vampires here hunting and looting their belongings afterwards is something they do when they have the means. Since by living here, they inevitably get entangled with the Beastmen, they have this means of negotiation in case of emergencies.
Lowell’s earlier gift of money probably came from Pahera.
By the way, it’s also said that the contributions paid to the Security Maintenance Force can also be made in human currency instead of blood—though that’s likely to be much more expensive, I wonder what those guys who constantly bring in ghost stories will think.
‘The more I understand, the funnier the forest’s situation is.’
The Vampires and the Beastmen aren’t exactly friendly races but, due to the common enemy of humans, they have an uncomfortable coexistence under one roof.
To make matters worse, one of the intermediaries connecting them is the money taken from the humans they’ve killed—now that’s just absurd.
But at the end of the day, the reason doesn’t matter much.
What’s important is that with just a few coins, we can step into the place where the Beastmen live so comfortably.
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