The hero who saved Ende had left the city, but Ende had no luxury to notice. Having briefly forgotten in the sweetness of victory, the reality was that the city had suffered far too many wounds. As soon as the anesthesia wore off, screams and clamor rang out from all across Ende.
The same was true for Oberli.
"Kill them! Kill them!"
If Ende's beastmen had learned anything from Orcma, it was this picket protest. Rebellions could be suppressed, and petitions could be ignored, but this protest was truly tricky to handle. If they tried to force them down, those numbers would erupt into a riot, becoming the second coming of Orcma. But if they ignored it, sympathizers would emerge. The Oberli guard dogs and the security force had no choice but to watch and twiddle their thumbs.
Empowered, Ende's beastmen held up their pickets and shouted in front of Oberli.
"Where else in the world gives good beds, food, and medical treatment to invaders!"
"If they were beastmen, they would have been hanged already! Are you sparing them just because they are humans!"
"Drag them all out and execute them!"
"Feed them to the tigers!"
Thanks to that, Oberli was also a cauldron of chaos.
They had defeated the Wolf King, but the conflict had not ended. Having consumed massive amounts of resources and food in successive conflicts, Ende had no choice but to incite hatred to keep their fighting spirit alive. Thus, Oberli revealed the vassal state's cowardice to all of Ende and fueled their anger.
Unfortunately, their operation succeeded. The problem was that it succeeded too well.
In the Oberli conference room, just a wall away from the cloud-like mob of protesters, a human shouted.
"Mayor Triver! Does this make any sense? Mere beastmen crying out to execute humans?!"
Heading north from Ende, one would find an ever-flowing river and the vast plains blessed by it. Unlike the south, which was hot and humid with alternating droughts and floods, the north had a warm climate and was a land seemingly born for farming.
Three vassal states spanned the territory, and just as much friction occurred over it. It was a land where borders were sometimes erased by overflowing floods, and lords changing hands was even more common.
Among them, Baron Eton, a loyal retainer of the Lilac Vassal State who ruled the southern passage leading to Ende, heard the news and visited Ende. His nominal purpose was to aid Ende, but everyone knew he was the vassal state's mouthpiece.
Hearing the sounds coming from outside, he shouted.
"I have come here to help with the tragedy that has occurred in Ende. Yet, not only has the vassal state's proud Black Tiger Army ended up in this state, they are also being persecuted by beastmen! How am I supposed to report this sight?"
"Shut your mouth, human!"
It was an extremely 'human-like' remark, but the beastmen, connecting the successive incidents, no longer held back. The reason Oberli's clan leaders didn't tear Baron Eton to shreds wasn't because he was human, but because the clan leaders were relatively well-mannered.
The clan leaders bared their fangs and shouted.
"They were the ones who attacked first! We were ambushed while tending to the wounded after defeating the Wolf King! You should be grateful we spared their lives, how dare you make threats!"
"Do you want to be fed to the tigers as well?"
Fierce shouts rang out from all over. One might shrink back at the violent atmosphere, but Baron Eton brazenly raised his head and replied.
"Do you have any proof?"
"What?"
"You want me to believe the Black Tiger Army attacked you first? Why on earth would the elite unit led by Yeondangeom claim to have attacked you? If you're going to make excuses, at least spout something that makes sense!"
The beastmen lost their words at the utterly shameless reply. The wounds on the backs of those who were directly attacked hadn't even healed yet, but Baron Eton had started spouting whatever came to his mind.
"The Black Tiger Army came to help Ende, and was attacked by a tiger in the process! You must take responsibility! Who are you trying to shift the blame to!"
In truth, it was also a bolt from the blue for Baron Eton.
The vassal state's elite unit, the Black Tiger Army, which had passed through his territory a few days ago, had been attacked by a tiger and annihilated. The vassal state had unwittingly become severely crippled. Where the vassal state's anger—having gone to remove a tumor only to lose an arm—would be directed, and whether Baron Eton's neck would be safe in the process, he could no longer be certain.
The only way for him to maintain his title, territory, and life was to shift the responsibility to Ende.
"If someone had to die, you should have died in Yeondangeom's place! Why is Ende still intact after the Mountain Lord swept through!"
The enraged beastmen snorted. Oberli's beastmen were relatively well-mannered and older, but beastmen were still beastmen. If those robust beings set their minds to it, they could use Baron Eton's limbs as toothpicks.
In the hair-trigger situation, a low voice interjected.
"It is because he dared to slight the Mountain Lord."
The voice of the old, wrinkled dog beastman was quiet but firm.
"Yeondangeom was... well, very disrespectful. Far more so than you, Baron Eton. He called beastmen beast fiends, and thought they should naturally cooperate with him. And that thought immediately turned into action.... But, who could have known? That the Mountain Lord was hiding among the beastmen, watching in silence."
"The Mountain Lord was among you?"
"He was. However, the Mountain Lord is a lofty and dignified being. He saw no reason... to let a human who dared to speak down to him live. He killed Yeondangeom, and only stopped after slaughtering the resisting Black Tiger Army."
He almost annihilated Ende's beastmen as well in the worst-case scenario, but Mayor Triver didn't bother mentioning it. It was better to let them misunderstand that the Mountain Lord was on the beastmen's side.
"He just watched that happen!"
"Would you have resisted the Mountain Lord, Baron Eton?"
"Of course! I would never submit to a savage beast..."
Baron Eton snapped his mouth shut mid-sentence. He, too, was the lord of the Enger Plains.
The proverb that tigers appear when spoken of is actually realized when it comes to the king of beasts. Therefore, the Mountain Lord was an existence that should never be invoked carelessly, even in passing.
He was far too formidable for anyone to muster courage against. Instead of daring to summon the Mountain Lord, Baron Eton seized upon a different thread of the conversation.
"Even so, do you think their appearance demanding the prisoners be killed will be forgiven!"
Mayor Triver couldn't easily answer that either.
The Black Tiger Army had attacked first, and Ende's beastmen were deeply shocked by the sudden betrayal. They were enraged when they realized the Black Tiger Army's true intention of driving the beastmen out of Ende.
However, that was strictly an unofficial position. If they denied it, that would be the end of it. Or even if they didn't deny it, the beastmen's anger was hard to empathize with, because the perception that beastmen were merely lowborn was deeply rooted.
"Cruelly executing prisoners has been forbidden by both the Empire and the Holy Imperial Court since the fall of the Hegemon! Are you trying to create a second Bottomless Pit! The Holy Imperial Court will condemn your atrocities!"
And if the lowborn barbarically killed prisoners, it would become an atrocity that even the Empire could not overlook. This was especially true because the Empire had been founded by punishing the sins of the Hegemon, who had massacred hundreds of thousands of prisoners.
Mayor Triver answered.
"...We have no intention of killing them."
"Hmph! Those cloud-like swarms of beastmen don't seem to think so! Well, they wouldn't know history from before they were even born!"
Empowered once again, Baron Eton jumped up from his seat and shouted.
"I don't know what 'accident' occurred, but free the prisoners immediately and hand their custody over to me! Otherwise, I will personally hold those beastmen accountable!"
The beastmen were already treated as barbaric. If they tried to violate the order established after the Hegemon's downfall, they would obviously be condemned. If Ende, unable to stand against the vassal state alone, were condemned by the Empire or the Holy Imperial Court, the only path left would be ruin.
Just as Mayor Triver was troubled.
"How noisy. Has Oberli not had a single quiet day lately? I can't get any sleep."
A familiar but unwelcome voice rang out. Duke Erektus, who had been driven out by Orcma and barely managed to return, appeared in the conference room looking exactly the same. With a massive yawn, it seemed as though he had just woken up.
Baron Eton recognized the face of the Duke.
"Duke Erektus! Finally, someone who can speak reason has arrived. These beast fiends are jabbering about..."
"The one I called noisy is you. Baron Eton."
Duke Erektus picked his ear and retorted irritably.
"Even if I am the Water Duke, I am still a Duke, am I not? Ende is my territory. You barge in without even sending prior notice and throw a tantrum? Baron Eton, is this the etiquette you pride yourself on?"
"The situation was urgent, so I came suddenly! More importantly, this isn't the time for that! What are you going to do about the beastmen outside!"
Baron Eton pointed beyond the wall. Beyond it, the beastmen were still continuing their protest, shouting words like 'kill' and 'execute' loud enough to be heard. It was unmistakably the sentiment of Ende's populace.
But Duke Erektus replied nonchalantly.
"Ah, that? Just leave them be."
"You're telling me to just leave them be?"
"What are you going to do when a kept beast barks? You need to understand. What do they want?"
"Understand? They're mere beastmen crying out for the public execution of prisoners!"
"Are you going to punish your pet dog for attempted murder if it barks fiercely? Good grief, there's a limit to nitpicking. Who would humor you for picking a fight over a beast crying out?"
Wait, he just completely refused to treat that massive crowd of beastmen protesters as humans? Baron Eton lost his words. He would have picked at any reasonable excuse, but Duke Erektus's statement was a step beyond the realm of comprehension.
"They were hit in the back of the head by the Black Tiger Army. It's like whipping the back of a beast that was already highly strung after finishing a fight. It's only natural for them to be startled, bristle their fur, and bark every time they see a human."
"D-Do you not know the history of the Hegemon!"
"I know. But it's natural for uneducated beasts not to know. I don't have a hobby of teaching history to dogs."
It was a remark that clearly treated the beastmen as kept animals. Baron Eton wanted to argue something, but couldn't come up with any proper logic.
Are beastmen humans? A few who pretend to be refined might say so, but if asked if they are equal to humans, most would shake their heads. Baron Eton was among that majority. The reason was largely economic: treating that many beastmen workers as equals to humans would reduce profits.
Yet, since Duke Erektus treated them outright as kept animals, Baron Eton had nothing to say. Furthermore, arguing for the advancement of beastmen's human rights here would be bizarre.
"If you understand, sit down. Stop clouding the issue. Really, sometimes I don't understand the nobles of the vassal states. If you dismiss beastmen as animals, you should treat them as animals. You treat them like animals while demanding human responsibilities from them. What do you expect me to do?"
"Such..."
"If you have something to denounce, it should be me. Right. What were we talking about just now? Go ahead, say it to me."
With the wind taken out of his sails, Baron Eton poured out exculpatory remarks, claiming he had no responsibility for the series of events. His words were incoherent and rambling, but his desperate desire to distance himself from the unprecedented disaster of the Black Tiger Army's annihilation was clearly conveyed. His wish for Ende to take the fall for his own safety was laid bare.
Mayor Triver felt complex emotions watching that sight.
He was born a beastman. To his shame, despite his father being a distant branch of the imperial family, he was abandoned and driven out, unable to remain in the Empire. At the very least, the vassal states were places where imperial blood sold for a high price, and Triver had used it as a weapon to claim a corner of power.
While serving as the mayor of Ende, Triver had dreamed of a utopia. A dream where all beastmen lived peacefully. A dream of enjoying the same opportunities as humans.
A dream of a world where everyone could eat at the same table, and no one would find it strange.
But perhaps, Triver had been harboring a massive delusion.
It wasn't that humans were inherently superior or beastmen inferior. Both equally tried to make the other the absurdity, but the more unfortunate side vanished when confronted with true absurdity.
From the very beginning, humans and beastmen had been sitting at the same table. Instead of smiling harmoniously, they wore disgusted grimaces and struggled to snatch each other's plates.
Perhaps even the dream of sitting at the same table as humans might have been a stubborn obsession born from an inferiority complex. After all, humans didn't necessarily get along with their neighbors either.
As he had said, humans were also beastmen.
Just as Triver was sinking into bitter thought.
"Welshi!"
Duke Erektus sprang up. Spotting his guard dog, Welshi, who was hovering near the conference room, he immediately stood and strode over.
"Didn't I tell you to stay in bed? Your wounds haven't fully healed yet!"
His tone sounded like a reprimand, but his expression and actions were as soft as those toward a beloved pet. Welshi, who had been waiting outside to avoid interrupting the meeting, had no choice but to come in when Duke Erektus dragged her in himself.
Welshi, feeling burdened by her master constantly fussing over her body, pushed him away.
"The King tended to my wounds before he left. I am fine now."
"Internal injuries last a long time. Rest without moving until you are fully healed."
"I have learned Qigong, so any further treatment will have no effect. The doctors have also returned to see other patients."
"What? Those quacks went back on their own?"
"It was not on their own. I said I was fine."
"Is it whatever you say just because you say so? You brats. Who do you think allows them to live as doctors in a city without humans! I'll immediately..."
Welshi said firmly.
"Master. I know my own body best."
"...I suppose you do. Tch! You learned Qigong, after all. Alright."
The master's fussing ended there. Welshi let out a small sigh.
Since Welshi had almost died in her master's place, Duke Erektus had completely changed his attitude toward her. He hadn't been stingy with her normally, but now he seemed willing to pluck out his own gallbladder for her, and the time he spent guarding the injured Welshi's side—when he was the one who should be guarded—had increased.
Saving his life with her own was naturally deserving of such treatment, but Welshi felt a great burden from the unprecedented coddling. Thus, Welshi tried to return to her original duties as quickly as possible.
"Worry about yourself first, Master. It is dangerous for you to walk around alone in this chaotic situation."
Duke Erektus's demeanor facing such a Welshi was clearly strange.
This was the same Duke Erektus who had relentlessly shot down Baron Eton. The man who would rather shut the other person's mouth than close his own was fidgeting in front of Welshi. After taking a long time to choose his words, he spoke.
"I no longer want to be guarded by you, either."
At the unexpected news of her dismissal, Welshi looked up at him and asked back.
"Did you find another guard dog to replace me?"
"That will never happen! You are my only guard dog. It's just, well... You have worked hard guarding me. I want you to stop your guard duties now."
It was a remark that clearly held a different intention from dismissal, but unfortunately, Welshi lacked the delicacy to catch it. She could not be blamed. Strictly speaking, it was the karma of Duke Erektus, who used to whip Welshi whenever he was bored.
Welshi drooped her ears and tail slightly and answered.
"...Then does that mean I am dismissed now? I will have to find another job."
"No, I said it is not a dismissal! Listen to me!"
He didn't care about the stares of others. Welshi and Duke Erektus, despite their awkward friction, were looking at each other.
Triver felt complex emotions as he watched that sight.
Perhaps he had been wrong from the start. Rather than creating a world where humans and beastmen could eat the same food at the same table without issue, finding the one they needed most, like those two, might have been a wiser solution.
Triver felt as if he was crumpling up the past years and throwing them into a trash can. However, rather than regret, he felt a pleasant, refreshing sensation.
Although the time left for him might not be long, there was still much to be done. Triver was grateful for the fact that he had the opportunity to do something going forward.