Ende faced the enemy known as the wolf pack. The wolves were fierce and powerful, but they were not a difficult enemy. This was because all the other procedures normally present in war—identification of friend and foe, maintaining secrecy, numerical combat, boosting morale, rooting out spies—were omitted.
Humans are allies, wolves are enemies. Victory means life, defeat means death. It was simple enough for even beastkin to understand. If one could focus solely on the enemy before their eyes, it was essentially the same as having already achieved a strategic victory.
That was why Ende's beastkin felt no wariness even upon seeing an army in full armor. Humans could not possibly be their enemy.
Marquis Rafaeno and his army had approached quietly relative to their scale.
"Are you Grull! Glory to the Boar!"
Grull, having unexpectedly received a guest, wore a bewildered expression.
Naturally so. If a stranger came leading a legion behind them, even someone as bold as Grull would find it difficult to accept comfortably. And if that stranger was a middle-aged man with an oppressive mustache, the reluctance would multiply several times over.
Furthermore, Marquis Rafaeno did not hide his realm. Seeing the aura sharpened like a blade, Grull instinctively swallowed.
An equal, or perhaps even a superior. Grull looked at Sapien and asked.
"What is this?"
Sapien was startled.
"Mind your words, Grull. This is the Black Tiger General, Marquis Rafaeno."
"Ah. One of the five fingers of the Principality you mentioned?"
"I said mind your words."
Grull knew basic etiquette. But he also knew how useless it would be to bow and submit from the very first meeting. Grull spread his five fingers and sneered.
"Fingers have their own rankings too. Where do you fall among the five? About a middle finger?"
"Grull...!"
"Hahahaha! Bold, truly bold!"
Fortunately, the kind of situation Sapien worried about did not come to pass. Marquis Rafaeno generously brushed off Grull's transparent provocation.
"Indeed! Our Five Tiger Generals are often compared to fingers! The five fingers that wield the sword of the Principality! And did you know? Sometimes people are born with six fingers in this world! Can there be anything wrong with having more fingers to grip a sword!"
He's a noble of the Principality, yet he responds with goodwill to such a weak provocation. It meant he wanted something from Grull. And mentioning six fingers here could only mean one thing.
He was asking Grull to become the sixth finger. Grull said.
"Are you suggesting you want to scout me for the Principality?"
"I heard you were clever, but it's really true! You figured it out without me even mentioning recruitment!"
"So it was real. That's unexpected."
Though he said that, Grull had inwardly anticipated this might happen. It would be strange for a Master who had reached the Principle not to attempt appeasement.
'I have no intention of joining under someone. But a cooperative relationship is something I could establish. Let me test him a bit.'
Having resolved to take responsibility for the boar beastkin, he needed to extract more. Things like interests or food supplies. Grull finished his complex calculations.
"Such a proposal is excessive for a savage like me. What does the great Principality gain by taking me in?"
"Savages have their own uses. Our guild is particularly interested in you. More precisely, in the treasures of the Myriad Nations you could deliver."
"Spirit medicines, I presume. Understandable interest."
With the Wolf King gone, the Enger Plain would once again become a route sought by adventurers. To find the path to the Myriad Nations, they would need Beast Tide, and Grull, who had even run a business with that, would be quite a coveted talent.
"Indeed. Do you know how many spirit medicines it takes to raise one Qigong Master? It's beyond words. And even after feeding them all those spirit medicines, there's no guarantee they'll become a Master. You have to keep investing knowing it might all be for nothing, which is why spirit medicines are always in short supply. Meanwhile, some savage somewhere who only scavenged crumbs of spirit medicine might suddenly reach the Principle."
"What would you offer such a savage?"
"What else would you give a Qigong Master? Better manuals, more precious spirit medicines, and the opportunity to spar with other Masters."
Grull was also a martial artist, so he couldn't help but be instinctively tempted by those offers. Still, those were things a Master belonging to a nation should naturally receive. Grull crossed his arms as if telling him to say more, waiting for the next offer.
"And I will entrust you with this city, Ende."
It was so radically unconventional that Grull failed to manage his expression.
"...What did you say? Ende? Are you serious?"
"Indeed. The wolves are gone now, so it's time to return to the house the original owners left vacant. The Principality has decided to manage Ende from now on. While we're at it, we might as well recruit a Master too."
Recruiting Grull while simultaneously entrusting him with Ende. It was so unexpected that even Sapien was at a loss for words.
"Just a moment, Marquis Rafaeno. That's too sudden."
"Sudden? What can be done. The moment we failed to prevent the beastkin rebellion, it was already decided. It's time for humans to stop playing king among the beastkin."
The news of Orcma's rebellion had already reached Marquis Rafaeno. Sapien bit his lip with his shortcomings exposed, but Marquis Rafaeno didn't even glance at him. Grull thought this was quite unexpected.
'For someone Sapien warned about, he's surprisingly reasonable. And unconventional too. What exactly is supposed to be absurd about him?'
Despite bringing an army, he didn't flaunt his power. He didn't suppress them with authority. Wasn't he more human than the Duke who lorded over them simply for being human?
Just as Grull's heart began to lean slightly toward Marquis Rafaeno.
"We will soon issue an eviction order to the beastkin as punishment for the rebellion, so prepare yourselves in advance."
The quietly spoken words were like a bolt from the blue.
The house the original owners left vacant. Ende will now be managed by the Principality. Stop playing king among the beastkin.
Drive out Ende's beastkin, and humans will move into the empty land. Marquis Rafaeno's words were all connected to this one thread.
Sapien, well-versed in current affairs, realized it before Grull did.
"Those who rebelled were only some of the boar beastkin! Most of the beastkin had nothing to do with it!"
"What difference does it make?"
"What do you mean, what difference..."
It was Sapien whose words were blocked by the Marquis's retort. Marquis Rafaeno stroked his mustache and spoke indifferently.
"Beastkin are all the same beastkin. What's different? They should be grateful we even let them live for a while, yet they dared attack humans, forgetting their debt of gratitude... That alone is reason enough to act. Is there any need to distinguish which ears they have?"
Why should Orcma and the rest be distinguished, why should boar beastkin and other beastkin be differentiated? Sir Rafaeno was genuinely asking.
"That's...!"
"Don't get so worked up. Did anyone say your authority would be taken away? Your title and authority will remain as they are. If you wish, you may even bring the beastkin you command into your homes. However, the other beastkin must be sent back to their original places. The Principality has tens of thousands of subjects without homes, so we can't let beastkin occupy empty houses, can we?"
The land of opportunity, Ende, had become a city of free beastkin because of the Wolf King. Humans preferred to live safely under the Principality's shade rather than enduring the wolf threat in the harsh Enger Plains.
But now that the beastkin had driven out the wolves, this land of opportunity was slated to be reclaimed by humans.
"It's better news for you. How long will you remain a frontier city? Having overcome the wolves, you should start gathering people and leading the city properly."
Beastkin aren't even acknowledged as objects. They aren't even worthy of being insulted or disregarded. Grull interjected.
"Wait. Marquis. I'm one of those beastkin you're talking about."
"What does that matter, Grull? What matters is that you're a Master thirsty for power. A well-cutting sword, whether it's a demonic sword or whatever, must first be sheathed."
Marquis Rafaeno picked his ear as if annoyed.
"If you truly want to care for these beastkin... I recommend accepting the proposal. Don't you need the Principality's support to at least pitch tents for these beastkin?"
If Grull were an ambitious cold-blooded person, he would accept Marquis Rafaeno's proposal. It would be an opportunity to fulfill his ambition.
Even if Grull possessed the gentleness to care for his kin, he would still have to accept the proposal. Otherwise, the beastkin driven out of Ende would be abandoned by everyone.
It was half a threat. But one could feel the sheer will to place Ende firmly within the Principality's sphere of influence. And Ende could not escape that will. Unless Grull stepped in personally.
The absurdity truly came absurdly. Without even a moment's gap, rendering Grull's resolve meaningless, it approached with only a single choice. While Grull's mind was spinning complexly, the one who stepped forward first was... another Duke.
"Marquis Rafaeno. There was something I couldn't simply let pass."
When it came to discriminating against beastkin, Duke Erektus would refuse to be second best. The moment people saw him, they tensed uniformly as if witnessing the personification of a bomb. Sapien seriously considered grabbing him by the back of the neck and dragging him away before he worsened the situation.
Marquis Rafaeno searched his memory.
"That... who was it again?"
"Duke Erektus. The lord who remained in Ende and stood his ground when everyone else fled from the wolf threat."
"Ah, the Water Duke... What is it? What complaints do you have about the Principality's decision?"
"There can only be complaints. The Principality is currently violating private property."
"Private property?"
Tens of thousands of beastkin lived in Ende. Even if they were actual beasts, that number would be difficult to possess, yet Duke Erektus treated them all as private property as if it were natural.
"Yes. The beastkin of Ende are the property of the Duke of Oberi, who has protected this land for a long time. They are the assets of our Duke, who upheld pride and duty when everyone else fled from Ende. I respect the Principality's judgment, but... I cannot accept the eviction order. It is our duty to protect our territory and property."
Racism met with racism. At that far more radical statement, even Marquis Rafaeno was momentarily speechless.