Parker had a lot of open plains, given that the Beastman’s Plain was directly in front of us.
There were a few hills that looked like small mounds scattered about, marking the border between the Empire and the Beastman Alliance.
Though, it’s mostly the Empire that cares about the borders; the Beastman Alliance doesn’t really sweat the details.
“Is that… the Beastman Alliance up ahead?”
“Yes, that’s it.”
Lucia seemed quite fascinated by the fact that a different race’s country was so close by. Since she lived near the Blade Mountain, a natural fortress, it was rather surprising for her to see small mounds that could actually be called plains.
“The closest are the Blue Cat Tribe… the Cat Beastmen. Do you know who else is around?”
“I’ve only seen the Blue Cat Tribe in the area.”
The Beastmen living on the plains scattered around like a patchwork, banding together as they pleased. While there was a place known as the capital in the Alliance, and something called a central government, their reach didn’t quite extend to these fringes.
Given that most tribes had a belligerent nature, even if you forced them to comply, they’d fight back, or the tribes would wander around the vast plain playing hide-and-seek instead—it would be a waste of time.
So, it was no surprise that even the Alliance, their chief, wouldn’t have a clear understanding of where exactly specific Beastmen lived or how they lived.
“Do you like Beastmen?”
“…They’re cute.”
Now that I think about it, Lucia loved plush toys shaped like animals. I recall her glancing at Beastmen when they passed by at the Academy.
“If we’re here… It should be Liam to the East, right?”
“Yes.”
“Below Liam, there’s the royal tribe led by the Jin clan, and beneath that is the Jinang tribe. Further west, you’ll reach the coast.”
“You’re quite detailed—have you been here before?”
“Maybe? I haven’t sauntered around Parker and Liam, but I’ve had a bit of business roaming the plains. Do you have any idea how many criminals escape to the plains from the Empire?”
I’ve been around this area several times. Right after shedding my apprentice tag with the Royal Knight Order, I roamed here with my master, and I’ve continued to do so since becoming a Master.
Ironically, the plains, which are declared to be under the control of the Beastman Alliance, were one of the regions most closely watched by the Empire’s Masters.
They might not realize it, but quite a lot of human Masters have struggled to maintain peace among the Beastmen.
“Many criminals have escaped to the plains?”
“Yup. There’s no garrison at the border, and there’s nothing checking folks, and since it’s so vast, once they’re off, they’re hard to find. They might pretend to leave and hide in a border territory, which… isn’t uncommon.”
“Was that a common occurrence?”
“Yup. But since most border territories are rural, everyone recognizes when outsiders come through. So, genuinely hiding out is pretty much impossible. Still, quite a few people refuse to stay hidden out on the plains.”
In the countryside, seeing the same familiar faces, it’s tough for outsiders to blend in. Yet, even with that, some criminals make it all the way to the border and end up hiding right in the village—fully expecting to be caught.
“It’s scary. That vast green expanse looks like an endless ocean with nothing in sight. They get there and think, ‘Will I survive?’ and just end up hiding.”
The plains are definitely not friendly to humans.
“That down there is the village.”
At the bottom of the hill, a wide wheat field sat alongside some houses. Until now, it was hard to find anything that looked like it had been touched by human hands; it was mostly pure nature, but here, you could definitely feel the presence of people.
Well-kept roads, tended houses, people bustling about—undoubtedly, this must be the liveliest spot in this territory, aside from Parker’s Mansion.
“Uncle!”
Amy dashed towards what looked like a blacksmith’s workshop as soon as we entered.
The place she headed to had a middle-aged man with a muscular build despite his wrinkles from age standing there, shirtless. As he spotted Amy, he grinned, revealing a toothless smile.
“Wow… The little rascal really came back yesterday! Is that your friend beside you?”
Smack!!
Before he could finish, a middle-aged woman rushed in from behind and whacked him on the back of his head.
“Old man! If that girl’s friends are nobles, what’s with that wording in front of them?!”
Considering they both came from the same workshop, she’s likely his wife.
She grabbed the man’s hair and brought his head down before bending down herself.
“Oh dear, my husband’s manners left much to be desired.”
“W-Wait! No need to go that far!”
River, taken aback by her fierce reaction, waved his hands.
“Hmmhm! Seems like you’ve paid proper respect! I’ll commend you for that!”
There was even a beaming lizard man who looked genuinely pleased.
“He’s the only blacksmith in the village.”
“Haha… I’m just a blacksmith making farming tools.”
Still, after getting slapped by his wife, he had turned incredibly polite.
“Thanks so much for your help yesterday! It was a close call.”
“How bad was the damage?”
“Two injured, one dead… We cremated him last night. He was a young guy who recently moved here… Now we’ve lost a pair of hands to help.”
Though his words were light, his expression was far from it.
“Still, it’s a relief that you stepped in before things got worse. I thought I wouldn’t see you till your graduation, yet you returned pretty quickly.”
“I’m a student from the Academy.”
“If you made it here quickly from the Academy… did you perhaps use a teleportation scroll? Oh dear, that expensive thing…”
It seemed he assumed she used a teleportation scroll to get here, and he was quite shocked by it.
However, I had used it carelessly several times before, but teleportation scrolls are quite pricey among scrolls.
“Do you know about teleportation scrolls?”
“Believe it or not, I used to be an adventurer! Haha!”
“….”
At that moment, Amy’s gaze turned towards someone.
There, a little child peeked out from behind a woman and stared at Amy with big eyes.
“Wow… Is that Tom? You’ve grown so much…”
“Yeah. We barely saw each other after you decided to go to the Academy, right? Tom, you should greet her. She’s your big sister, Amy.”
The woman nudged the boy forward. He looked about six years old—a very little child.
That kid seems to be one of the new arrivals born after the tragedy Amy had mentioned before.
The child seemed shy, trying to duck back behind the woman, but was firmly held in place.
“Hello…”
The child named Tom bowed slightly to Amy.
Seeing Tom, Gemma curiously looked around.
“Wow… I’ve never seen a human smaller than Atlas before…”
Smack!!
“Ow!!”
“Are you asking for it??”
I lightly slapped the head of Gemma, who just opened her mouth without thinking. She looked hurt.
“I was merely stating a fact!”
“Right, and my hand just moved by itself.”
Seeing someone get smacked out of nowhere, Tom was startled and ducked back behind his mother.
Amy chuckled at the sight, but at that moment, the bells of the village began to ring again.
“The bells…?”
It was the same sound I had heard yesterday, a definite alarm indicating that danger was approaching the village.
“B-Beastmen!!!”
The Blue Cat Tribe was coming again!
————————–
This time, it wasn’t that Beastmen had snuck into the village unnoticed. Instead, it seemed they had spotted Beastmen running from far away.
“From yesterday into today…!”
The villagers were startled by the larger number of Beastmen and began to flee.
There were a total of 11 Beastmen running towards us from the plains—all of them Cat Beastmen.
Just from a distance, their prowess as warriors was evident.
And among the warriors, I spotted a Cat Beastman with blue fur.
Given the name Blue Cat Tribe, she must be either their chief or one of the chief’s direct descendants.
‘It’s rare for a chief to be a woman… could she be a daughter?’
She had ornaments made from hair that matched the color of her fur, probably made from her own hair.
While it seemed a bit crazy to make jewelry out of one’s hair, the rare blue-hued decorations were incredibly beautiful.
Outwardly, she seemed to be around the same age as us.
When they spotted us standing near the plain, they stopped in front of us.
“I am Irina Panta, daughter of the great chief Alexei Panta of the Blue Cat Tribe. We have come to retrieve our warriors who were captured. I hope they are all safe?”
She had quite the gruff voice for a woman. Just from her words, you’d think she was a man.
If she’s asking if they’re safe, that could carry multiple meanings.
If it meant whether they were alive, I could safely say all three were hanging in there.
But if it meant whether they were unharmed, well, one of them is missing an arm, so it’s a bit tricky to say they’re all fine.
“Well, they might not be whole, but they’re alive.”
