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And so, after all those twists and turns, I found myself standing in the post town for the third time.
This was after I had my discussion with Donda Ruu in the main Ruu house.
Yesterday morning we left the Fa house and visited the Rutim, went to the post town, returned to the Rutim house and spent the night there, visited the Ruu house, and then went back to the post town again. It really had been a hectic two days.
Anyway, this was my second day in a row coming to the post town.
I found that little by little, I was starting to grow accustomed to the disorderly layout of the town.
However, it wasn’t Ai Fa who was currently standing by my side.
It was now the fourth day since the Rutim wedding. Ai Fa naturally couldn’t keep shirking her hunting duties any longer, so she returned to the Fa house on her own with the pot.
In exchange, I had Vina and Ludo Ruu here with me instead.
We really did make for a strange trio.
“Hehe! It’s been a while since I’ve been to town! It sure is just as suffocating as always!” Ludo Ruu merrily proclaimed.
“I love the post town. It’s just, it’s tough to relax when everyone’s staring at me...” Vina Ruu said, sounding like she was in a pretty good mood, too.
Even now, I could still clearly recall the sight of her in Shin Ruu’s kitchen begging me with tears in her eyes to just not get together with Reina Ruu. But now as she was walking down the stone highway alongside her brother, she had an even brighter, more relaxed smile on her face than usual.
Meanwhile, I was feeling a bit exhausted.
In order to bring the plan in my head to fruition I needed to visit the post town, so Donda Ruu ended up loaning me these two to take Ai Fa’s place, a favor I was sincerely grateful for. However, Donda Ruu had added the condition that I should have Ludo Ruu meet with Kamyua Yoshu.
It must have been a measure to feel out the unknown presence known as Kamyua Yoshu at least a little.
Anyway, the question of whether or not this group could meet with Kamyua Yoshu without causing some sort of incident was a worry that was weighing heavily on me at the moment.
“B-But Ludo Ruu has his duty as a hunter, right?” I had tried asking, but apparently the Ruu clan had called off heading into the forest for the day.
The reason why was simple: There were too many giba about.
There were so many that they had captured over two day’s worth just yesterday, and on top of that, several men from the branch families as well as Darmu Ruu had gotten injured.
Now that they had lost Ryada Ruu, they couldn’t exactly keep pushing themselves overly hard and risk losing any other hunters. And so, they decided to take a day off, which was apparently when we came to visit.
It was an urgent situation that impacted more than just the Rutim.
I was worried about Ai Fa’s safety in continuing to head out into the forest, but naturally she just gallantly replied, “It’s nothing to worry about. Actually, it may be a sign that the giba have been steadily moving south. The houses surrounding ours are all small and can’t hunt down all the giba, so perhaps the giba who have eaten all the food in their area have started moving on down.”
“I see...”
“And if they keep on moving south, eventually they’ll start ransacking fields. They may cause a lot more damage than usual this time around.”
Ai Fa’s voice was matter of fact, but sure enough the flames of anger were burning away in her blue eyes.
“Even so, all I can do is hunt the giba where my blade can reach, carrying out my own work... So Asuta, you carry out your work, too.”
“Got it.”
With that, Ai Fa and I headed our separate ways.
And so, I ended up here in the post town with the eldest daughter and youngest son of the main Ruu house...
“Ah, look, it’s a totos! Its face looks just as ridiculous as always! Hey, what do you think it tastes like, Asuta?”
“U-Um, Ludo Ruu, could you be a little quieter—”
“It’s like a dream, being able to work with you for 10 whole days... Thank you for this wonderful job, Asuta.”
“I-I mean, it’s still a job, y’know? So work hard, okay? And hey, make sure you keep your private and professional lives properly separated!”
We had only just arrived in the post town, but I was already in the midst of this whole commotion.
The number of gazes on us now was on a whole other level compared to normal, too.
By the way, Ludo Ruu was of course in his hunter’s ensemble, complete with fur cloak, but Vina Ruu was a little different today. She had a slightly transparent veil on her head, something like a shawl around her shoulders, and a single cloth with whirling patterns on it wrapped around her waist and extending on down to her ankles.
“It’s proper manners for women. Can’t go exposing skin to folks who aren’t our brethren, after all...”
That idea was all well and good, but unfortunately such thin fabric had no hope of concealing the sublime contours of Vina Ruu’s body.
On top of that, the way that you could see her cleavage through the upper portion of her outfit, or her feminine legs through the slits in the cloth, only made her seem more sensual than if they were all merely exposed. Well... thanks to that, she was currently gathering more gazes from overwhelmed men than we were getting looks of fear and contempt.
“Wonder if we’ll run into those fools from the Suun clan? If one of them goes and draws a blade, I’ll break both their arms!”
“Hey, cut it out! I’m begging you, don’t cause a commotion, Ludo Ruu!”
“Huh? Do I look like a big enough fool to go starting something on my own?”
He may not have looked like a big fool, but he sure did look to be overflowing with the stuff it took to kick something off.
Ludo Ruu was attracting a lot of attention with his loud voice and actions, but even so, Vina Ruu wasn’t losing out either.
But... the emotions pointed towards Ludo Ruu were a bit different.
Ludo Ruu was like the norm when it came to the forest’s edge. Personally, I didn’t have even a hint of a negative impression about him, like finding him overly noisy or dangerous, instead seeing him as being energetic and carefree.
Perhaps this town full of people and buildings was just too cramped for him, though.
I’m sure this boy was the type to need some space to stretch his limbs.
“Ah, it’s someone from Sym! They sure are dark-skinned! Is he a magic user too?”
That said...! At least don’t go pointing and yelling at people you don’t know!
“L-Let’s get going! At any rate, the first thing we’ve gotta do is meet with Kamyua!”
We hurried along towards The Kimyuus’s Tail, with me practically dragging the two of them.
“Geez... We stood out way too much because you caused a fuss, didn’t we, Ludo...?”
“What’re you saying?! It’s because you’re swaying around that huge butt of yours, Vina!”
“Cut it out, Asuta’s listening...”
Now that I thought about it, this was actually the first time I’d really seen these two have a conversation. That wasn’t enough to calm me down, but still, I wouldn’t mind getting my fill of seeing them interact at the forest’s edge.
“Welco— Oh, it’s you again,” the owner of The Kimyuus’s Tail, Milano Mas, greeted us, the look on his face growing sour again.
“Ooh, so this is an inn?” Ludo Ruu said while looking around nervously with eyes full of curiosity.
“Um, is Kamyua Yoshu here?” I questioned.
“Not today. I don’t know if he’s got work or is just playing around, but he’s been out since this morning.”
Is that so?
I felt relieved, but on the other hand, it’d be a problem if I couldn’t carry out my agreement with Donda Ruu.
As I was pondering that predicament, suddenly young Leito popped out of the back of the dining hall, where we had been yesterday.
“Asuta, welcome back! Who are these people...?”
“Vina and Ludo Ruu, from the forest edge’s Ruu clan.”
“Oh, from the Ruu clan?” Leito repeated with a smile.
It seemed he had already heard the name from Kamyua.
“...Who’re you?” Ludo Ruu questioned, his eyes narrowing a bit.
“I’m Kamyua’s apprentice, Leito. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance.”
“Apprentice? What sort of apprentice?”
“As a bodyguard, of course.”
I still didn’t know the full extent of that job, but from what I understood it involved making sure travelers were safe, so it definitely included fighting.
“Kamyua is out setting things up for next month. He left early in the morning, so I can’t imagine he would be out too terribly late.”
“I see. In that case, we’ll come again once we’ve done our shopping,” I replied, then I turned to face Milano Mas. I had business with this old-timer today, after all. “Um, I heard from Kamyua that this shop managed spaces and rented out stalls, but would you rent one out to someone like me?”
“Huh?” Milano Mas questioned as he turned to face me. “I’ll rent them out to anybody, provided they pay up. But just what are you even planning on selling?”
“Ah, the truth is, a bit of giba meat cooking.”
Instantly, the old-timer let out a displeased sounding snort.
“It’s up to you what you sell, but you’d better not go getting some strange stench all over the stall. If you do, you’ll have to buy it outright. Are you okay with that?”
“I can’t go so far as to say my cooking won’t make any smell at all since it does use meat, but are such things not allowed?”
“There’s no problem when it comes to kimyuus or karon. But if that giba stink seeps into it, it won’t be usable afterwards, right?”
He threw out another new noun for me there. Just what sort of animal is a karon, I wonder...?
“Man, you sure do go on and on, old-timer. You don’t even know how tasty giba meat is, but you’re still prattling on? If you’ve got some sort of problem, then you should at least try it first.”
The man’s thick eyebrows raised when he heard Ludo Ruu’s words.
“In that case, have you eaten karon or kimyuus? I’m sure you’re just grateful for stinky giba meat because you haven’t, right? If you don’t want me prattling on, then don’t go bringing stuff like that into town!”
Ludo Ruu’s expression still looked composed, but I still felt like I probably needed to chime in.
“Um, I know that people’s tastes vary, but there’s no point in having an argument over foods that the other side hasn’t tasted, right? And I’ve tried kimyuus meat multiple times now, but I don’t think giba meat falls short of it, personally.”
“You come from a town to start with, don’t you...?”
“Yes. I wasn’t born here in Genos, though.”
“I can tell that just by looking at your pale face. So you say that giba meat’s tasty, even so?”
“If I didn’t, I would never think of opening a shop and selling it, right? I ate all sorts of different meats back where I came from, too, but giba meat would still compete for first or second on my list.”
“Ridiculous... Did you eat mundt or giiz meat before eating giba or something?”
It seemed like this really was going to be rough going.
But as I thought that, Leito interjected, “Um, Kamyua gave me some dried giba meat. I ate that yesterday, and it was different than karon, but I still thought it tasted good.”
Naturally, that dried meat had been properly bloodlet beforehand, so I was glad to hear he liked it.
The old-timer, meanwhile, was furrowing his brow and looking doubtful. Before long, though, he shook his head and looked like he had given up.
“...Anyway, as long as you don’t get any strange smell all over it, then this is just business. I’ll loan out as many stalls as you want. With the fees for the stall and the space combined, it works out to two white coins in total.”
“And with that I can do business for ten days, right? By the way, about how big will the stall be?”
“If you go out and look, you should see plenty of stalls that I loaned out. This place’s name is written on their signs.”
“Got it. Well then, I’ll come talk to you again in the near future.”
It was best that I just went ahead and retreated already.
“I’ll see you again when Kamyua’s back,” young Leito called out, and then I took my two companions and left The Kimyuus’s Tail.
“That was amazing... You really are from town, Asuta...” Vina Ruu said, nonchalantly drawing in close to me. “I don’t think I could handle someone like that at all... I’m not Ludo, but I could definitely see myself slapping him without even thinking...”
“Um, you know you’re set to help me run the shop, right?”
“Right... If it’s for your sake, I’ll put up with any shame.”
Shame, she said.
Would I really be able to work together with her for ten whole days? I couldn’t help but be concerned about the future...
“Well anyway, for the time being, let’s take care of the shopping. Hmm...? What is it, Ludo Ruu?”
“No, it’s just... That kid from before...”
“Ah, you mean Leito? He’s a bit of an oddball too, isn’t he?”
“More than him being an oddball... I feel bad for him.”
“Feel bad for him? Why?”
I could see feeling sorry for him because he’s an apprentice to such a weirdo, but Ludo Ruu hadn’t even met Kamyua yet, so he shouldn’t know anything about that.
“Well, whatever. It’s got nothing to do with me. Anyway, let’s get going. I wanna look at the blades and stuff, it’s been a while.”
And with that, our incident-filled journey recommenced.
It really was a strange feeling, strolling through the post town alongside these two.
“First up, we’ve got to exchange our horns and tusks for coins. Are you going to finally use up those blessings you extorted out of us, Asuta?”
“Extorted?! Yeah, I had intended to use them, but these actually aren’t the ones that I got from you all.”
There was a necklace made with ten horns and tusks dangling from my neck. However, they weren’t the ones I had received at the Ruu settlement, but rather ones that Ai Fa had given me.
I had been planning on paying for the initial supplies for the shop using horns and tusks I had earned, but when I said that Ai Fa looked incredibly displeased.
“You intend to take everything on yourself, don’t you?”
“That’s not my intention! I mean, these ten alone won’t even cover the initial expenses, right? But even so, I don’t want to have all the cost fall on you this time around.”
“...I’m the clan head.”
“I get that, but... Put another way, if I don’t pay even a single coin of the expenses, I’ll feel like I’ve thrown the whole burden onto you.”
With that, Ai Fa started thinking. Before long, she pulled a necklace out of her cloak and adjusted it so that it had ten horns and tusks, then held it out to me.
“Give your necklace to me in exchange for this one.”
“Right... So, what are you thinking?”
“If your business in the post town ends in failure and we lose coins rather than gaining them, then I’ll buy aria and poitan with these horns and tusks I’m holding onto for you.”
As she talked, Ai Fa carefully stored away the necklace she had received from me.
“But if your business is a success and you gain a great many coins, then this necklace will end up back around your neck.”
“Ah... Yeah, that sounds fine to me. But you—”
“You already taught me last night just how frustrating it is, feeling like you’re leaving everything up to someone else,” Ai Fa said with a scary look on her face. “In that case, you shouldn’t have any issue with this... You didn’t truly want to exchange the blessings you received from Granny Jiba and the others for coins, right?”
“Y-Yeah. I’m surprised you knew, though. I don’t remember discussing that with you.”
“I can tell that much just by looking. I have absolutely no clue as to why you think that way, but... Well, as long as you’re not causing anyone trouble, there’s no need for you to force yourself to suppress your feelings like that,” Ai Fa said, with a somewhat gentle look in her eyes at the end there.
“What are you thinking about...?” I was asked, and suddenly my right arm was wrapped up in warmth. “It couldn’t be that you’re feeling lonely being separated from your beautiful clan head, right...?”
Vina Ruu had wrapped herself all around my right arm as we were walking through the post town.
I tried to pull my arm away in a panic, but she really was a person of the forest’s edge, so it didn’t budge an inch.
“Hey! Like I said before, you have to keep your private and professional matters—”
“I get all that. But it’s not work for today, right...? We just came here together to town because we each had shopping to do...”
Right, which is why Donda Ruu had said I didn’t need to worry about paying her for today.
“B-But Ludo Ruu is right here, right? Is it really okay to be doing stuff like that?” I whispered to her, only for her to shoot me her signature sensual sidelong glance.
“Ludo wants you to marry into our family anyway, so it’s totally fine. Hey, what did you think of my dance?”
“Dance?”
“For the banquet. I danced my hardest, just for you...”
Huh? What was she talking about?
I don’t recall a lively event like that at the banquet.
“After all the meat was gone, the unmarried women danced, right? Doing that draws a whole lot of attention from the men, so normally I wouldn’t ever do it, but I gave it my all for you, Asuta...”
After all the meat was gone...
That must have been around when Ai Fa and I were talking to Gazraan Rutim. After receiving my payment, I fell asleep while talking, then Ai Fa carried me back to the vacant house.
So does that mean the dancing all happened after I fell asleep, then?
“It couldn’t be... Did you not see...?”
“Huh? Ah, no, you see, I was just so busy that day, so I fell asleep right after I finished working.”
Vina Ruu stared blankly at me for a moment before casting her gaze downwards, then she squeezed my right arm tight.
She was insanely strong, as if she was a giant madarama snake or something.
And yet, though it was impossible to explain, I was also feeling a very soft sensation.
“That’s just awful... You’re just terrible, aren’t you, Asuta?”
“Owww! That hurts! You’re going to break it! Hey, Vina Ruu!”
It hurt like hell, and I was also touching places I really shouldn’t be.
Considering we were standing in the street in the middle of the day, this was bad.
“You better not tell Reina that, no matter what...”
“Owww! Huh...? What’s that about Reina Ruu?”
“Her dance was like a blazing inferno... She’s such a mature girl, so I never imagined she had such intense emotions hidden inside. She must have had her heart stolen by you, too...”
Vina Ruu smoothly slipped away from my arm, then gave a little sigh.
“I figured if you weren’t going to take me far away, I could at least just take you as a husband, but that’s no good either... If I did that, then I’m certain that Reina would hate me...”
Then, she shot me a pained sidelong glance.
“What a sinful man you are...”
I don’t recall committing any sins.
Still, it certainly was true that Reina Ruu had special feelings towards me.
Now that I failed to respond to those feelings in her wanting me to join the Ruu clan, just how would I interact with her, and what sort of relationship would we have?
I lifted my gaze up towards the clear blue sky, but naturally, I found no answers written there.
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