Cooking with Wild Game (LN) - Volume 7 - Chapter 2.5

5

The next morning, or actually before dawn even broke, the forest’s edge entered a state of high alert. The bad news of Zattsu and Tei Suun’s escape had spread from the north down through the entirety of the forest’s edge.

The villainous fiend was enough of a monster to tear out a man’s throat with his teeth and set fire to a settlement. By this point, nobody could possibly call such a man one of their comrades. Tei Suun was given back his clan name and an order was given that both he and Zattsu Suun were to be taken in dead or alive. And so, as soon as dawn broke, half the men of the forest’s edge dispersed into the forest while the other half stayed to guard their homes.

In addition to those who needed protection, there were also those who needed to be watched. Naturally, that referred to the Suun and the former members of that clan. There was a non-zero chance that the villains were plotting to take them away. And so the men of the branch families in particular were locked up in their houses and restricted from moving about as they pleased.

That didn’t just go for those who remained in the Suun settlement, either. The men taken in by related clans were treated the same. Their allegiances had been acknowledged and they had been granted freedom, but it was hard to say how they would respond if Zattsu Suun stood before them once again. It just made sense to keep that concern in mind when considering how Diga and Tei Suun had acted.

However, Toor Din’s father and the like were also included in all that. They had gained a new clan and started down the path towards living as proper men of the forest’s edge, and yet now they were being bound and dragged back to the Suun settlement. It made my heart ache to think how that father and daughter must have felt.

The former members of the main Suun house were also moved to where it would be easy to keep an eye on them. That meant the Ruu house for Yamiru Lea, Oura, Tsuvai, and Mida. Diga and Doddo had just barely managed to avoid having their heads sent flying, and instead were treated as prisoners and transported to the Zaza house along with Zuuro Suun. Then, a great many men were gathered at the Suun, Ruu, and Zaza settlements to protect the members of those clans while keeping an eye on those criminals, while also plotting a counterattack against Zattsu and Tei Suun.

As for our Fa house... it was decided that we would dare to keep doing business in the post town, all while being guarded by the elite of the forest’s edge.

◇

“Hey, what’s this all about?” Milano Mas questioned, looking over our group with a hostile gaze.

That came as no surprise, though. There were notably more people with us today, and those additional members were all hunters of the forest’s edge.

Ultimately, there were four people selected for guard duty: Ai Fa, Ludo Ruu, Shin Ruu, and Rau Lea. Those young, gentler-looking hunters were chosen so as to not get the townsfolk all worked up, but apparently seeing men with blades in and of itself was enough to throw people for a loop. As Milano Mas glared at Ludo Ruu and the others, his eyes were filled with what looked like full-on animosity.

“Sorry. There’s some circumstances behind all this...”

“Circumstances? What sort of circumstances are those? You shouldn’t need swords to do business, right?”

“Well, I’d imagine there will be an official notice from the castle soon anyway, but some criminals from the forest’s edge escaped and are on the loose,” I replied, only for Milano Mas’s eyes to open wide in shock.

“Criminals... from the forest’s edge?”

“That’s right. They’re two men who broke the laws of the forest’s edge, and they haven’t been found yet. We got on the criminals’ bad side in the past, so that’s why these guys are accompanying us as bodyguards.”

Normally, we wouldn’t be doing business at all on such a day. But we were ordered by the elites of Genos not to go on break, so we ended up coming to the post town after all.

“If you were to halt your business now when these criminals from the forest’s edge are loose, it would simply lead to unwarranted suspicion. If you have the resolve to stop business in spite of that then that’s all well and good, but otherwise I believe you should continue on much the same as you have until now,” Cyclaeus, the representative for the lord of Genos, had apparently stated.

I only sort of got his logic there.

“Cyclaeus may be planning to capture those two on his own. After all, he said he wanted to officially punish Zattsu and Tei Suun for breaking not just the laws of the forest’s edge, but also those of Genos,” Gazraan Rutim had explained with a distressed look on his face after returning from the meeting between Cyclaeus and the leading clan heads. “The townsfolk are protected by the guards, so feel free to keep going about your business. But if that’s not possible, then stay in the forest’s edge and don’t think of trying to open your shop in town. That’s more or less what Cyclaeus was saying.”

In other words, he was scheming to have us act as bait. And if we refused, we would be banned from working in the post town.

Seriously, what is that Cyclaeus guy thinking? I thought to myself in frustration, only for Milano Mas to idly mutter, “Criminals from the forest’s edge... So people of the forest’s edge are being pursued as criminals, huh...?”

“That’s right. By the time the sun hits its peak today, their names and appearances should be released to the public.”

Apparently, it had been decades since a person of the forest’s edge was last wanted as a criminal. And in recent years, the rumor was that the castle would cover for them even if they committed a crime. That was how the death of Milano Mas’s friend had been left unresolved.

Just how was the innkeeper feeling at the moment? Was he glad to see people of the forest’s edge being treated as criminals? Or was he feeling frustrated, wondering why his friend’s death was left unresolved for so long? If it were me, I’m sure both those contradictory emotions would be swirling strongly inside of me.

After staying silent for a moment, Milano Mas stifled his emotions and gave our group another once-over.

“I get what’s going on now. So, the folks from the castle ordered you all to keep on doing business, then?”

“Yes. I personally thought it would be best to hold back till the commotion died down, though...”

“Hmph. So it was a fancy way of telling you to be bait, then. Certainly sounds like something those guys from the castle would come up with.”

With that, Milano Mas departed.

When we circled around the back of the inn, we found the two stalls in their usual place, then I exchanged a glance with Ludo Ruu.

“Man, I thought he’d make a big fuss, but he was surprisingly calm. I guess no matter how much he may not like it, there’s no going against the folks from the castle,” the youth stated with a disappointed shrug of his shoulders. Now that I thought of it, he had met Milano Mas once.

While stifling a sigh, I went ahead and gave the order to head out. “Well then, let’s get going. If we’re late, we could cause the customers to fret.”

With that, we took off down the stone path.

The information about the pair of criminals shouldn’t have been publicly announced just yet, but we were still getting a lot more stares than normal. We may have gone with a younger, less threatening group, but hunters were still hunters. And so, we got looks more of fear than scorn from all around.

Is it really alright to be doing this...?

I just couldn’t wipe that thought from my mind.

It just wasn’t possible to tell how that fiend Zattsu Suun would act, after all. No matter how much he struggled now, the Suun clan would never regain their right to lead. In that case, it seemed like there was a high chance he would come after his long-time adversary and new leading clan the Ruu, the Zaza who abandoned them despite falling under them, or the ones who exposed their crimes, our Fa clan.

So was it really alright for us to be here in the post town? Didn’t that endanger the townsfolk?

Thinking logically, it wouldn’t be possible to march into the post town right in the middle of the day and attack us. Instead, they would need to attack us on the path between the forest’s edge and the post town.

However, I questioned whether someone who would injure his brethren of the forest’s edge and set fire to a settlement would be capable of properly thinking through his actions. Even if we were protected, if any of the townsfolk got wrapped up in it... The thought alone was enough to cast a gloom over me.

Milano Mas, Dora, Tara, Shumiral, Pops, Aldas, Yumi, Naudis... I had formed bonds with all of them, and so if I brought disaster their way, I wouldn’t be able to bear it. Honestly, I had never imagined I would end up having to open the stalls while being weighed down by such heavy emotions.

It was then that there was suddenly a surprised “Ah!” It was Tara, sitting in her usual spot next to her father.

“Hey there, Tara. You too, Dora. I’d like to buy some vegetables again today.”

“R-Right. If the same as yesterday is alright, then it will be eight red coins.”

The extra hunters in our group had caused him to go a bit pale, but he still said that with a smile.

Tara didn’t look quite that scared, though. However, she was nervously staring at Ludo Ruu.

“Ah, you’re that runt from a while back. I see you’re just as tiny as always,” Ludo Ruu said with a grin, causing Tara to timidly smile back.

“U-Um, I talked with Rimee Ruu a bit before. You’re her big brother, aren’t you?”

“Oh, I heard about that. She wouldn’t stop talking about it at dinner. I guess runts get along well.”

As I watched that heartwarming reunion between the youths out of the corner of my eye, I leaned in close to Dora and said, “Um, it’ll be announced by the castle soon, but...” With that, I gave him a rough synopsis of what was going on, causing him to go even more pale.

“T-That’s a serious issue. Criminals of the forest’s edge, huh...?”

“Right. They shouldn’t have any reason to harm townsfolk, but if you see a man who’s wasting away and looks like a skeleton or a man with grey hair, please don’t go anywhere near them.”

“G-Got it. They must be awful vicious for the folks in the castle to recognize people of the forest’s edge as criminals. I’ll take care not to let Tara walk around on her own today.”

“I’d be glad if you could let your acquaintances know, too. By the way, there’s something else I wanted to ask you about...”

With that, I went ahead and tried to clear up my doubts from last night. Which is to say, exactly when those wrongdoings by the people of the forest’s edge occurred.

“Eh? When was it...? Ruffians still cause trouble around town, though, don’t they?”

“You’re talking about someone getting drunk and drawing a blade in town, or wrecking a stall they don’t like, right? But what I want to know about is those more serious crimes like kidnapping women or stealing crops.”

“Hmm, let’s see... Well, it was quite some time ago that our crops were stolen. I think it was before Tara was even born. As for the rest, I’ve only heard rumors... I think you might need to ask someone from the castle to hear the specifics.”

“Someone from the castle?”

“Yes. A lot of people have given up, but I would still say most of those incidents were reported to the guards.” That might prove difficult. After all, the folks from the castle surely wouldn’t want to reveal their past misdeeds of hiding the wrongdoings committed by people of the forest’s edge. “Hey, Asuta, don’t go sticking your nose into any serious trouble, alright?” Dora said as he grabbed hold of my arm. “I know full well by now that you aren’t all bad people. And at least for me, that’s plenty. Just leave dealing with criminals to the guards and go about your business like you have been.”

“Thank you. It makes me very happy to hear you say that.”

What he had said was nothing special, but it really did fill my heart with joy.

Once we left Dora’s stall, our destination was just a stone’s throw away. And even from where we were standing, it was clear that a crowd was already forming. On top of that, there were also a good number more guards standing around than usual.

“Whoa, that’s a pretty nasty mood hanging in the air, isn’t it?” Lala Ruu whispered into my ear.

There certainly was an uneasy atmosphere lingering about. It looked like the crowd gathered there was starting to get worked up and hound the guards.

As we approached, a guard with a tassel atop his helmet that seemed to mark him as the highest-ranking one present yelled out, “Hey, you’re late!” We had left the Fa house a good bit earlier than usual today, but as we had to come to town after stopping by the Ruu settlement, we didn’t arrive till around 30 minutes past when we usually did.

With that said, though, it was a stall owner’s right to set their business hours. There was no logic behind a guard reprimanding us over such matters... But rather than bringing that up, I just said, “Sorry,” with a bow of my head. “I’ll start preparing right away, so please hold on for just a moment.”

With that, something strange happened. All of a sudden, about a third of the people gathered scattered as if fleeing, seriously catching me off-guard. Plus, all of those folks who left were westerners, and their faces showed clear animosity and fear.

After watching that, the six guards present also turned to leave.

“This puts an end to the matter. You don’t have any further complaints, do you? If you cause too much trouble, we really will arrest you,” the leader of the guards said to the remaining customers.

With a clear look of discontent on their faces, the customers then watched as the guards departed to the north. Normally, they would head towards their station to the south instead, so maybe they were currently tasked with guarding the northern entrance to the post town. Would it be possible to guard against an assault from those vicious criminals with just six men, though? Admittedly, we just had the four bodyguards, but I couldn’t imagine those six guards being anywhere near a match for them.

“Hey, there. Sorry for causing a fuss. Just don’t pay it any heed and go ahead and get working, alright?” Aldas said with a chuckle as he approached the stand.

While feeling relieved that Ai Fa and the others weren’t overtly shooting him a glare, I went ahead and asked, “What exactly happened, anyway?”

“You see, we were waiting in front of your spot like always when those guards came. Then they said some criminals from the forest’s edge had escaped, and that they might approach your stalls so we should leave if we valued our lives.”

“Really...?”

They ordered us people of the forest’s edge to continue doing business, but then warned the townsfolk they should leave. So that Cyclaeus guy really did just want us as bait and didn’t give a damn about any discord between the forest’s edge and the post town, huh?

My mood just kept getting gloomier and gloomier.

“So we just ignored them and lined up like always, but some folks from the west who were passing by heard that and started saying they shouldn’t let such dangerous people into town. That led to some of our men from the south losing their cool and lashing out at them, which turned into a whole big commotion.” I could feel my heart sinking as I listened, but Aldas kept on shooting me a hearty grin. “Don’t go making a face like that. We intervened, so nobody ended up getting taken away by the guards. We yelled out that if they caused too much of a fuss they wouldn’t be able to eat your delicious cooking anymore, which got all our men to settle down. The only ones who wouldn’t calm down to the bitter end were those folks from the west.”

“Hmph. Those westerners really have no guts at all. It’s easy enough doing business with them, but at times like this I just can’t stand them,” Pops chimed in, popping out from behind Aldas’s large frame. “They may be vicious criminals, but there are just two of them, right? Why should I have to hold off on eating delicious food because of them? The whole idea is ridiculous.”

“I really wish you’d consider your position at least a little more, Pops. If you get taken away, then we won’t be able to keep doing business, you know,” Aldas said with a strained chuckle.

Pops just gave a hearty, “Hmph!” in response, then said, “We’ve got something way more important to discuss, anyway! Hey, kid!”

“Y-Yes?!”

“We had your cooking at the inn! It cost seven red coins when adding in the cost of the fruit wine to go with it!”

“Huh? But wasn’t it supposed to be five red coins for a meal?”

“One bottle of fruit wine wasn’t enough! Seriously, what was with that meal?!”

“Did you not like it...?” I asked, worrying that was the case.

“Of course I liked it!” Pops responded even louder than before.

“Quiet down a little, Pops. We don’t want the guards coming back, do we?”

“Who cares about them?! Hey, you should have used tau oil like that to start with! Seriously, what the heck?! Do you just enjoy toying with us or something?”

“T-That wasn’t my intention at all. Until I stopped by The Great Southern Tree, I didn’t even know that tau oil existed.”

“What? Then you made that delicious of a dish the very first time you tried using the stuff?” Aldas questioned, his eyes going wide in amazement.

I shook my head while chopping up the tino for garnishing.

“No, you see, there’s an ingredient that’s a lot like tau oil back where I came from, which is why I chose that dish. Was it to your tastes?”

“It sure was. For us, tau oil is the taste of home... No wait, I can’t say I ever tasted a dish that delicious back home,” Aldas said with a wide grin.

“Hey,” Pops chimed in from beside him, leaning forwards. “Now that I think of it, I still don’t know your name. I’m Balan of Nellwea.”

“I’m Asuta of the Fa clan, from the forest’s edge.”

“Asuta of the Fa clan, is it? Asuta... If you ever come to Jagar, make sure you visit Nellwea. If you say you know Balan the construction worker, most of the folks there will know who you mean.”

“Huh? R-Right...”

“And if you ever need a house built, you better get in contact with me. We’ll build it for cheaper than any other construction group, and do a better job, too,” Pops said while crossing his arms, then arrogantly puffed up his chest. “So, when are you going to be ready to get cooking? You made us wait longer than usual, so I’m starving!”

“Ah, yes! Right away!”

Pops and his group really were just the same as always. Actually, I got the feeling that they were in an even better mood than usual now that I had started doing business with The Great Southern Tree.

The line behind them looked unchanged, too. So this incident with Zattsu Suun wasn’t that big a deal to the broadminded folks from the south and the calm, quiet easterners, huh?

However, the gap between them and the citizens of the west only seemed to be growing wider.

Dora and folks like him went so far as to worry about me, and there didn’t seem to be much of a change in attitude from the people who had already eaten giba meat. But for those who still felt distrustful towards the people of the forest’s edge, this was sure to be a pretty serious incident.

Still... Once you decide to do something, you’ve got to follow through.

There were criminals out there from the forest’s edge. Maybe what we needed to do was to display our own innocence personally while clearly acknowledging that shame. To show them that there was nothing shady about us.

Surprisingly, though that may have just been part of Cyclaeus’s official stance on the matter to cover everything up, it was true that the people of the forest’s edge also shared some responsibility for overlooking the Suun clan’s corruption. Looking at it that way, perhaps it was a trial given to them... A path to atonement.

“Asuta... Can you really make delicious food with such a brooding look on your face?” Ai Fa whispered into my ear. “There’s nothing for you to worry about. If those fiends appear, we’ll take care of them in a heartbeat.”

At some point, Ludo Ruu and the others had fallen back to the thicket behind us, leaving only Ai Fa by my side.

As I stared back at her resolute expression, I responded, “Got it,” with a nod. “Well then, Sheera Ruu, you’re up.”

“Right,” Sheera Ruu called back as she added aria to the tray, and with that our business for the day kicked off.