However, none of the humans admired it. Even excluding Tir, who had no interest in food, Peru showed more interest in the Regressor's words than the ingredients.
"...From the Yeol Nation?"
The Regressor answered casually.
"Yeah. We shouldn't eat that, right?"
"...What do you mean?"
Peru's question contained more than just the literal words.
If it meant that ingredients from the Yeol Nation were of such low quality that they were inedible, Peru would have nodded in empathy. Because it was true.
But no matter how he looked at it, the Regressor's tone was not like that. It was as if the Yeol Nation was cursed... as if they were discussing something inherently inedible.
Of course, that wasn't because the Regressor looked down on the Yeol Nation or held any malice towards it.
Simply because it was the truth.
"It's better not to eat food from the Yeol Nation. All crops produced by the Golden Mirror are homunculi."
"..."
The Yeol Nation's dark secrets spilled out of the Regressor's mouth. Peru couldn't even bring himself to try to stop the Regressor's mouth.
Naturally. They couldn't have even imagined that even we, who were in the same party, didn't know.
"Due to the homunculus dilemma, it couldn't directly create humans. But since everything in the Yeol Nation is an artificial creation made by the Golden Mirror, the bodies of the Yeol people exposed to it develop deformities, right? Eating a little might be fine, but I'd rather not put it in my mouth as much as possible before meeting the Golden Mirror."
'Because if a part of my body is filled with the Golden Mirror's creation, I don't know what will happen when I directly meet him.'
No, Regressor. Isn't that the Yeol Nation's biggest secret? Why are you talking about it like it's common knowledge? Don't assume everyone knows all sorts of secrets like you do. I'm surprised.
Appalled, Peru looked back at all of us and asked.
"...Does the Military Nation... know that much...?"
No, we don't. Not only Hilde, but this is my first time hearing it too.
Even Peru, the Lodge Master, didn't know that the crops were homunculi!
"Well~? It's a secret, so~."
Hilde put on a sly smile pretending to know, but called me over with her eyes.
'I didn't know at all? It's unexpected. Why on earth is a taboo popping up here? Father, did you perhaps know?'
No, I didn't know either. To be precise, I hadn't read such thoughts until the Regressor spoke today. I read Peru's thoughts and roughly knew about the Golden Mirror and homunculi, but....
I told you that even Peru didn't know! The deformities in the Yeol Nation are because of the homunculus crops made by the Golden Mirror?! You should think about such important facts in advance. So I can read them and prepare beforehand!
But anyway, as if accustomed to this reaction, the Regressor replied nonchalantly.
"Why? If you're a Lodge Master, it's a fact everyone knows, right? It's not strange for me to know."
"...What kind of Lodge Master... would tell such secrets, to an outsider."
"I can't tell you that."
'I heard it from the Ure Lodge Master of Claudia in the previous turn. Since I didn't hear it in this turn, I can't reveal it.'
The Ure Lodge Master is the de facto ruler of Claudia and the greatest Lodge Master, right? Tch, what's the use of reading the Jannok Lodge Master's thoughts with mind reading. That human has come back knowing much greater secrets from the previous turn!
Because I've only been in the Military Nation, I forgot. The Regressor, this woman, was putting a lot of effort into the Military Nation... but actually, the Military Nation is just a passing phase for the Regressor.
The Military Nation is, so to speak, the first stage. The cornerstone that the Regressor must lay first. For the smooth progress of the future, it needs to be done perfectly, but it's simply the easiest stage to build up.
The path to reach the King of Sins is endlessly long and arduous. Obstacles of a completely different caliber from those encountered in the Military Nation block the way. Demon Gods, Taboos, and even the Holy Emperor's Court and the Lord of All Things.
And probably most of them... will overlap with me.
Having learned an unexpected fact, Peru spoke with even more tension.
"...Then. You must know. Why the Yeolpok Lodge Master was so desperate."
"Hmm?"
"...The Yeol Nation wants land where the Golden Mirror does not set foot. Like Claudia, where they can settle."
Claudia, built in the Mist Mountain Range, is beyond the reach of the Golden Mirror. Therefore, that place is safe from the Golden Mirror's alchemy, and is one of the few lands in the Yeol Nation where one can settle.
Therefore, Claudia is the most important land in the Yeol Nation. Because the Golden Palace is not a land, but closer to a kind of phenomenon. Claudia, the most prosperous city, is the very heart of the Yeol Nation.
"...The Abyss is a hole that swallows all things. The Golden Mirror did not go there. Therefore, if we obtain that land. It will become a second Claudia. A place where we can raise children..."
The explanation is still lacking. Tir, unsatisfied with Peru's words, showed curiosity and asked me.
"A place where you can raise children? Does this country even have designated places to raise children?"
"That's not it, but when Yeol people have a child, they earn the right to reside in Claudia until the child turns ten. You can't make much money in Claudia, but you can live a stable life. So the first thing those who are seriously injured during their scavenging life do is find a spouse. Because if a child is born, they can rest until the child grows up."
"What if they don't want to rest?"
"Then they say they sell it to someone who wants to rest. Because of that, the trade of newborns is said to be carried out openly."
This is not a secret or anything, it's something taught in Military Nation history classes. Except for the tendency to disparage countries other than the Military Nation as hopeless nations where even surviving a day is hard, it's mostly true, so I used to just pass it off thinking it was somewhat conscientious~
"Up to this point, it's a well-known fact, but thinking about what Shei said earlier. The reason the Ure Lodge Master of Claudia actively accepts children is...."
That must also be because it touches upon a taboo.
As I expected, the Regressor nodded.
"That's right. If they grow up eating food produced by the Golden Mirror from a young age, their flesh will become a homunculus. The Ure Lodge Master made such a rule to prevent all Yeol people from falling to become his homunculi. Because the food in Claudia is not homunculi but normal."
The four taboos that humans must never commit.
Gluttony. Grafting. Copulation. Heresy.
Here, the Yeol Nation, if classified, is like a country that has reproduced the Second Taboo.
The Second Taboo, Grafting. The taboo of replacing the weak human flesh with something else. The Yeol Nation, where the entire country is a byproduct of the Golden Mirror, directly violates the Second Taboo. In the Yeol Nation, where deformities are not strange at all, they must fill their lacking bodies with alchemy. Furthermore, homunculi can be said to be the crystallization of the Second Taboo.
The Holy Emperor's Court wouldn't just sit back and watch this, but the Golden Mirror is a living Demon God. I thought they couldn't touch it carelessly... Hmm.
Whether the rule set by the Ure Lodge Master is instinctively acquired wisdom, or whether the Holy Emperor's Court did something, I need to check once.
Tch. If this happens, I'll have no choice but to follow the Regressor. I was thinking of cutting ties and getting off at the right timing...
When the commotion was sorted out to some extent, Peru spoke on behalf of the Yeol Nation.
"...The Yeol Nation needs that land. We won't give up easily."
"Heh. You know that's an absurd request, right? Whatever circumstances you have, it's none of 'my' business?"
As soon as the representation of the Yeol Nation's position ended, Hilde, the spokesperson for the Military Nation, flared up and said.
"If you wanted it, you should have tried to eliminate the Abyss by pouring in money, time, manpower, and resources like 'our' Military Nation did. You didn't even approach for fear of losing your things, and now you want to swoop in and take a share? Not a chance!"
"...I admit it."
"What?"
"...That's why, I'm guiding you. To the Golden Palace."
When Peru nodded, Hilde was left speechless. Hilde sat back down and muttered.
"Why did you admit it so readily? Now only 'I' who flared up for nothing look like a narrow-minded person!"
"Hilde, you do seem a bit narrow-minded."
"Did Father confirm it?! I asked if you confirmed it!"
How would I know without confirming. It's obvious at a glance.
While Hilde flared up again and shouted, Peru looked into the distance and murmured.
"...Even if I admit it. The Golden Palace might be different..."
Maybe because we were inside the Juggernaut, time flowed properly without us noticing. After roughly finishing dinner and cleaning up, it was already getting dark. On the loud Cataphract, I wondered why time passed so slowly, but on the Juggernaut, it's night in the blink of an eye. It seems time also rides a vehicle.
During that long time, the Juggernaut ran without resting. Whenever it tried to slow down, Peru took pitch-black steel from the warehouse and threw it into the furnace, and every time, the Juggernaut accelerated as if whipped.
I suddenly became curious and asked.
"I heard the Juggernaut runs on the Lodge Master's ability. Does this move at night too?"
"...If you put in a lot of fuel."
It's fascinating how that happens, but even Peru doesn't know the principle. Because the one who made this is the Golden Mirror. We just have to accept it.
With my stomach full, and my body washed clean for the first time in a while. Peru said to me as I looked for a place to sleep.
"...Room. Over there."
Peru pointed to the room used as a warehouse. The roughly organized room had two beds simply placed. It looked so cramped that it was hard to maintain a lifestyle, let alone privacy.
I frowned and grumbled.
"Hey. As a guest, I don't want to be too picky, but why do I have to sleep in that corner room? Unlike Ajina and Tir, I am a human who needs a sense of livelihood."
"...No other way."
'...There's not enough space for two beds. So we have to put the two men in the warehouse.'
If I could sleep entirely alone, that would be somewhat satisfying, but it's not even that. Of all people, my roommate is....
"Huh? Why am I in the same room as him!"
A cross-dressing Regressor. It's seriously dangerous.
If I even approach her in my sleep... I might get counterattacked with the Cheonban Mirror and die without even waking up.
"Why is Shei being so picky? My safety sleeping with Shei is rather more dangerous!"
"Where is the danger for you!"
'If we share the same room, it's much more dangerous for me! I can't even rest comfortably for fear of my identity being revealed! Tch. How long do I have to live being treated as a man...!'
What's dangerous? She's not a kid, feeling a sense of crisis just from sleeping in the same room as the opposite sex? If it were the same bed maybe, but a room is too much. If she's going to be like that, she shouldn't have cross-dressed in the first place.
"I don't have the strength to resist if Shei has improper thoughts! If we are left alone in a closed room, who knows what I'll be subjected to!"
"When did I have improper thoughts! I've never had improper thoughts about you! In the first place, I!"
"You, what?"
'I'll just reveal that I'm a woman...! Phew. Calm down. It's too early. It's advantageous to stay as a man until the work in the Principality is over. It probably won't happen, but if I'm mistaken for a saintess... the Principality and Tirkanjaka might turn into enemies.'
The Regressor calmed her rising impulse.
The power to know the future belongs to the Saintess. So it seems the Regressor has been mistaken for a Saintess many times. Being mistaken for a Saintess is beneficial in quite a few cases... but not right now, when she is with Tir.
The Regressor has her own strategy. Indeed, I'm not sure if it's just a 'misunderstanding' that she's a saintess.
"Last time, when I tried to wake you up, you almost sliced my neck off, right? And then you shamelessly said not to touch you when you're sleeping. Wow, there's a limit to shifting the blame."
"T-That can't be helped! A traveler must have at least some means to protect themselves when sleeping!"
"If it ended at protecting yourself, I wouldn't say anything! The problem is that it precisely aims for the neck of the person kindly trying to wake you up!"
"I didn't cut you!"
"If you had cut me, you'd be a murderer! Don't boast about not cutting me, and be grateful that I didn't let you cut me!"
While we were arguing noisily, a short-bobbed boy walked in from outside the door. A boy with such a pretty face that he could be mistaken for a girl chuckled and spoke to us.
"Oh, my. Shei doesn't know how lucky she is~. How precious an opportunity it is to sleep with Father."
The Regressor looked at Hilde and tilted her head.
Clearly, Hilde now resembled the Regressor. The sharp eyes revealed under the short bob that fully exposed the neck looked exactly like the Regressor's.