Monster no Goshujin-sama - Volume 7 - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Villages of Aker

We arrived at the village at the foot of the mountain early in the afternoon. In this world, where monster attacks were a constant threat, it was typical to see defensive walls and a moat around such settlements. The reclamation villages on the paths cutting into the Woodlands had walls of stone, but other villages used thick logs tied together with straw ropes. Even though we’d gone from the Empire to Aker, this hadn’t changed. The modest wooden houses were a little shabbier, but at a glance, they looked to be built in the same way. The reaction we got from the people living here was entirely different, however.

“Oooh, I recognize that armor. Are you one of the Alliance Knights?!”

An old man with a well-worn sword at his hip greeted us. The moment he saw Shiran, he rushed over with a huge smile.

“Yes. I would like a room at an inn for the night,” Shiran replied.

“I see. Unfortunately, there are no inns in a village as rustic as ours. If you’d like, I could offer you my house.”

“You will? I would be most grateful.”

“Think nothing of it. I never thought an Alliance Knight would visit our village. Are you on some sort of mission?”

“Yes, well, something like that. I apologize for surprising you with our sudden visit.”

“There’s no need for that. It’s an honor to have you.”

They weren’t receiving us as simple travelers; they were welcoming us with open arms. I could see other villagers checking us out a little farther away and could even hear them calling their friends over to watch. This kind of reaction wouldn’t have happened in the Empire.

“The Alliance Knights are famous in Aker,” Kei told me, seeing how confused I was. “The title of knight is considered prestigious, even beyond our borders. This is especially true in the Five Northern Kingdoms, where they have a strong militaristic spirit. Knights are extremely popular among the people. The Royal Army and the Order of National Defense protect the country at the command of the royal family, but the Alliance Knights, who defend humanity at Fort Tilia, are recognized on an entirely different level.”

It wasn’t all that strange that knights who ventured into the Woodlands to exterminate monsters would be a symbol that commanded respect. Also, in this country, it didn’t appear to be a problem that Shiran was an elf. The commander was a princess here; it pretty much stood to reason. Even now, Shiran continued to have a lively conversation with the old man.

“By the way, I’ve been wondering all this time...” the old man said. “Are you perchance Lady Shiran?”

“How could you tell?” Shiran asked.

“Ooh, so you really are. I thought so, considering how young of an elf you are. Rumors of you have even spread to these remote lands.”

It turned out it wasn’t just the Alliance Knights who enjoyed fame. Shiran was popular all on her own. This made perfect sense. Shiran was a lieutenant among the already-prestigious Alliance Knights, and she was even known as the strongest knight in the northern Woodlands.

Nonetheless, it seemed Shiran was unaware of her popularity. Ever since she started at Fort Tilia and began accruing fame, she’d never once returned to her home country, so this was probably the first time she was experiencing this treatment.

Shiran turned around and gave me a troubled look. With that, the man speaking with her finally noticed our presence.

“Lady Shiran, who are they?” he asked.

“They are of blessed blood. I am currently escorting them.”

“Oh my! I am terribly sorry for my behavior!”

The man’s complexion changed entirely. People of blessed blood were descendants of visitors. In other words, they were descendants of legendary heroes. Visitors often socialized with the upper echelons of society, taking spouses among the noble class. As a result, many of blessed blood were also nobles.

There had been those among the visitors who had Asian features, so Katou and I pretended to be of blessed blood during our journey. We figured it would be less troublesome than telling people we were actually visitors. Plus, we had one other reason to lie like this.

“B-But our village doesn’t have anywhere luxurious enough for those of blessed blood to stay...” the man said.

“There’s no need to worry about that,” I replied. “So long as there’s a roof, I’m not going to complain about any old shack you have lying around.”

“Th-That won’t do! Th-Then, allow me to guide you. P-Please follow me.”

At the man’s invitation, we entered the village. There was a slight tension in the air. After taking a few steps, I turned around to look behind me. Rose walked gracefully at the end of our line, her braided hair swinging behind her. She was pretending to be an attendant to me and Katou. It was normal for people of high standing to have someone to look after them. It wasn’t suspicious for a person of blessed blood to have an attendant around. Shiran had assured us of that, at least.

Furthermore, though Gerbera had made her clothes, Katou, Shiran, and Kei had helped with the design. Shiran had supervised the whole thing, so not only did they hide the majority of Rose’s body, but they also matched the clothing of this world so as to avoid standing out.

Nevertheless, I couldn’t help but feel a little nervous now that we were giving it a try. But since none of the villagers seemed to suspect that Rose was a monster, I finally relaxed.

“It looks like Rose will be okay,” Katou whispered to me.

“Yeah. Seems we don’t need to worry,” I whispered back.

We continued walking, looking at the fields spreading to our sides, when we noticed one of the major differences between this village in Aker and the ones we’d seen in the Empire. The security around the perimeter was armed with spears and bows and wore leather armor, just like the security in the Empire. However, all of the villagers here, male or female, including the elderly, were armed with shortswords. Even the villagers working the fields had full sets of weapons and armor at the ready under canvas tarpaulins next to their workplaces.

Rather than looking like armed villagers, they looked more like soldiers doing fieldwork. Taking into account the village’s small size and the lack of reclamation in the area, monster encounters would be numerous out here. What’s more, they were likely always short on hands when it came to battle. Still, there didn’t seem to be much difference between livelihood and combat. It was as if their lives and battle stood back to back.

“Hey Kei, this is considered a normal village in Aker, right?” I asked.

“Yup. What about it?”

“The air feels strangely heavy.”

“Oh, you might feel that way when you see it for the first time,” Kei said in a cheerful yet triumphant tone. “In Aker, even the farmers are all fighters. It is said that a savior with close relations to Aker passed down this way of life several centuries ago.”

“It’s different from the Empire, huh? It’s like they’re ready for monsters to attack at any moment. Even the children and elderly.”

“It would be difficult for the children or the elderly to defeat a monster, but if they can damage a monster’s shoulder or something in exchange for their life, it would reduce the danger to everyone else that much more.”

Kei had spoken like it wasn’t a big deal, but that was quite the fearsome explanation. She’d mentioned before that Aker had a militaristic spirit, but I only understood the extent of it now.

As we continued talking, we arrived at a bungalow a little larger than the other houses in the area. After we exchanged greetings with his family, the man guided us to our rooms.

“I will come and get you when dinner is ready,” he said to me. When I handed him payment for the lodgings, he nervously added, “We have spare rooms, so please use this one with your wife. Lady Shiran and her sister can use that one over there.” Then he left in a hurry.

Those of blessed blood were descendants of saviors, visitors who were revered with religious fervor, and they were often nobles as well. The man’s overawed behavior made me smile bitterly, but something far stranger than any of that stuck out to me.

“My...wife?”

What was he talking about? One beat later, we all turned around at once and met Katou’s eyes.

“Oh.”

She also realized the man’s misunderstanding around the same time. Her face turned red in the blink of an eye. But his mistake wasn’t surprising. I was the only man in this group. Shiran and her sister Kei had been assigned a separate room. Excluding Rose, who was dressed like an attendant, there was only one person left.

“Uhh... Sorry,” I said.

“Don’t be...”

Katou covered her scarlet face and fidgeted with her pigtails. A restless air enveloped us.

“Let’s talk inside for the time being,” Shiran proposed out of consideration.

I was very grateful for her intervention. We all entered the room together.

“Anyway, looks like you’re pretty famous, Shiran,” I said, taking the initiative to change the subject and ward off this strange atmosphere. “I’m a little surprised.”

“So am I, Takahiro,” Shiran replied, taking a seat on a bed next to Kei and forcing a smile. “This country is my home, so I know how highly they regard the Alliance Knights, but I see there are things you don’t understand until it concerns you directly.”

“I guess you also really admired knights when you were a child then?”

“Yes, well, pretty much all the children born in Aker come to admire knights at least once in their lives.” There was a nostalgic look in her eye now. “In my case, though, my admiration was a little more specific. My elder brother served as a lieutenant in the Alliance Knights, so I swore to myself that I would also become a knight one day.”

A shadow then suddenly fell over Shiran’s expression.

“I feel a little bad for tricking that man, though, when he was so delighted by an Alliance Knight’s visit. I kept quiet because it does us no good to thoughtlessly spread it about, but now that the commander is under arrest, for all intents and purposes, our company is dissolved. I’m not even sure whether I can call myself a knight now. That man doesn’t know...”

“Shiran...”

“Sorry. That was unnecessary,” Shiran said, shaking her head and pulling herself back together. She turned her blue eye to me, her gaze honest. “More importantly, Takahiro, our plans were to gather supplies and collect information on the vicinity, correct?”

“Yeah. We need to confirm that this is close to Diospyro.”

“In that case, we don’t have much time. Let’s finish our discussions with the locals before the day is over.”

Shiran got up with confidence. The anxiety that had hung over her just moments ago was gone.

“Hey, Shiran,” I called to her just before she left the room. “Even if your company has been dissolved, even if you’re no longer a knight, it doesn’t mean you’ve lost what you wanted to accomplish by being one, okay?”

“Takahiro?” Shiran came to a stop and turned around in the doorway.

“I don’t think you tricked that man.”

She looked surprised. After a short while, she gave me the slightest smile.

“Thank you very much.”

With that, Shiran left the room and I followed her out. Just as I entered the hallway, someone grabbed my hand. I looked down to see Kei smiling up at me. I returned her smile, then gave chase after Shiran.