novelraw Chapter 130
Chapter 130
Chapter 130
The expedition to the territory of the Cow Tribe began.
Right now, Yuria was riding behind me.
The envoy had departed in quite a hurry.
I hadn’t even decided what to do yet.
To make any decision, I needed information — and since there were several things to confirm, I had her come along.
Even among beastmen, Leisha wasn’t the type to care about what went on outside her region, so Yuria, who had traded with the Cow Tribe before, was a much better person to consult with.
“That fox female took my seat again…”
Leisha’s sharp glare toward Yuria was fierce, but it couldn’t be helped.
In this matter, I had no choice but to rely on Yuria.
“Who’s the final decision-maker among the Cow Tribe? You said their groups are divided into three, right? Do they have some kind of high chieftain?”
“Each village has its own chieftain. The three of them gather to make decisions together.”
“The three chieftains discuss things?”
So, a sort of triumvirate system?
If three people had to discuss every matter, disagreements would surely come up often.
Still, since there were three, they could settle things by majority vote if needed.
“But tell me — can they really go back on their word after agreeing to wait? Rudelrof said he definitely got their promise.”
“Yeah, that’s strange. They’re quick-tempered, but also pretty simple-minded. They’re not the type to say one thing and mean another.”
“Really?”
“Something must’ve changed. Seeing how they haven’t moved yet, maybe they’re still coordinating their opinions.”
“Could be.”
The Cow Tribe, from what I’d heard, was about average for beastmen — the kind to keep their word.
Simple and honest — not the type to deceive anyone.
So if they were hesitating instead of keeping their promise, it was safe to assume some new variable had appeared.
‘In that case, I should start by figuring out each chieftain’s temperament.’
No matter how hot-blooded they were, not every chieftain would be a hardliner.
If they were, war would’ve already broken out.
It seemed an unexpected factor had appeared, causing division among the chieftains.
They were probably still negotiating among themselves.
Since they hadn’t reached an agreement yet, they couldn’t send anyone to Rotsy.
“But is there even a variable to worry about? You said the Levelium front is quiet right now?”
“Right. They’re all busy trying to reclaim farmland. They completely missed the farming season, and most of their fields were destroyed. They’re not in any condition to launch an attack anytime soon.”
“Could it be that the Fox Tribe lost track of their movements?”
“Maybe. Many of our collaborators were wiped out when the war began. And apparently, the Empire’s keeping a close eye on the remaining residents — we’ve been getting far fewer reports from them lately.”
“That’s a problem.”
“Well, they’re not trained intelligence agents or anything. We can’t expect too much from collaborators who aren’t even from the Fox Tribe.”
It was true that there were holes in the Levelium information network, but it didn’t seem like the front there had changed drastically during this lull.
So what on earth had caused the Cow Tribe to hesitate like this?
“I guess there’s no other choice but to check in person.”
We’d have to meet them face-to-face to understand what was going on.
Once I met the Cow Tribe and heard their side, if they really were considering an invasion, I’d have to persuade them otherwise somehow.
The most important goal of this operation was to stop the Cow Tribe from acting rashly.
After three days of riding, we reached the territory of the Cow Tribe.
In the distance, I saw white castles — three of them.
Each one was built around a vast plain: one in the south, one in the north, and one in the east.
Our destination was the eastern castle, First Horn, ruled by the eldest chieftain of the Cow Tribe, Rioxen.
Whenever an important issue arose, the other two chieftains would gather there to discuss it, so that was where we had to go.
“The castle looks sturdy enough. And that… is that lime?”
“Ah, yeah. They say if you grind lime and mix it with other stuff, it hardens like that.”
“I see. So the Cow Tribe builds their castles with that.”
Humans didn’t use lime or cement in construction — the magical adhesive we had was far too convenient.
But since beastmen didn’t use magic, they must have built their structures this way.
No wonder the walls looked white — they were coated with layers of lime.
Ironically, this kind of architecture felt far more familiar to me.
Using cement for walls and buildings had been ‘common sense’ where I came from.
It was the humans’ obsession with magical adhesives that seemed strange to me.
‘Even without enhancement magic, those walls look incredibly solid. Not inferior to human fortresses at all.’
Perhaps because this region was close to human lands, the architecture resembled human style as well.
Compared to the Lion Tribe’s walls — which were reinforced with wooden panels and iron sheets — these looked much sturdier.
If they ever added magical reinforcement, they’d be nearly impenetrable.
Even if the Imperial bastards attacked, this fortress wouldn’t fall easily.
“Doesn’t look like a war zone. There are plenty of residents working out in the fields.”
“Yeah. Seems we’re not too late.”
“But… are the Cow Tribe’s fields always like that?”
“Well… the wheat seems to be growing fine, right?”
“Sure, but that’s only because they have so much land… whatever. It’s impressive enough that they’re farming at all.”
The Cow Tribe’s farmlands were enormous, but not exactly efficient.
The wheat was sown haphazardly, with no proper order, and many parts were untended — the sight was somewhat irritating.
In my own territory, the fields were at least somewhat orderly.
Farming so chaotically couldn’t possibly yield good efficiency.
‘They’ve planted over such a wide area that their overall harvest might be decent, but they’re not very good at this.’
Compared to the Rabbit Tribe — true professional farmers — they clearly lacked skill.
Still, for beastmen, this level of productivity was remarkable.
“Stop! Who are you and where are you from!”
Then, at that moment—
Warriors in heavy armor poured out from the castle.
They were the Cow Tribe’s warriors.
Seeing us charge in with a herd of Three-Horned Mountain Goats, they must have sent out their warriors in caution.
Since the knights leading the way on goats looked a bit like an invasion force, I couldn’t really blame them.
‘Guess we were a bit too hasty.’
I sighed and looked around.
There were about a hundred of them — all towering figures wielding massive weapons.
The sight actually felt strangely familiar.
A sense of kinship, even.
— Kraang!
When the warriors of the Cow Tribe rushed out, Leisha immediately leapt forward.
Before I could even say anything, she’d already exploded into action.
The Cow Tribe warriors, who had charged out so confidently, froze the moment they spotted her.
“…It’s that crazy bitch!”
“Go tell the chieftain right now! That crazy lion woman’s attacking us!!”
Some of the warriors bolted back into the castle, while the rest gripped their weapons tightly, tense and ready.
It was chaos.
At least they weren’t actually attacking us yet — that much was a relief.
They were so wary of Leisha that they probably hadn’t even noticed anyone else with her.
‘What in the world did she do to get that reaction? The crazy lion woman?’
At this point, the rumors about Leisha being a lunatic didn’t seem too far-fetched.
“What the hell did you do?”
“Nothing in particular.”
“Then why are they acting like that?”
“Beasts that don’t understand words need to be beaten until they do.”
The Cow Tribe were farmers, yes — but they didn’t neglect hunting.
The Lion Tribe also hunted monsters on the plains to supplement their meat supply.
Sometimes, their hunting parties ran into each other out there, and those encounters often got… violent.
Not to the point of bloodshed, but apparently there were plenty of “rough adjustments” involved.
‘Well, if it’s Leisha…’
If an argument had broken out over prey, would she have backed down quietly?
Not a chance. She’d probably beaten them within an inch of their lives.
If any of these Cow Tribe warriors had that experience, their tension now made perfect sense.
‘This isn’t exactly helping the mood… why did Rudelrof even bring her—’
— It’s not such a bad thing, is it? They went to call the chieftain. That means he’ll come straight to us. We’ll meet him directly.
‘Ugh, I guess that’s one way to look at it.’
At least our identities had been confirmed.
If they recognized Leisha, they’d know we were envoys from the Lion Tribe.
The atmosphere had turned rather stiff, but we’d made a strong first impression, at least.
‘Maybe this is better than groveling from the start. Maybe Rudelrof brought Leisha expecting this exact outcome.’
A moment later, when the Cow Tribe’s chieftain appeared, I realized the situation wasn’t all that bad.
“Hm. So, friends from the Lion Tribe. And the human accompanying you…”
“Iron Johnson of Johnson Territory. Also the Guide of the Rabbit Tribe.”
“I see. A fine warrior indeed. You are welcome here, human friend — and you as well, black lioness.”
The chieftain of the Cow Tribe greeted us with surprising composure.
More than anything, I could sense genuine respect toward strong warriors.
Even though we’d galloped right up to his castle with a herd of goats, and Leisha had let out a lion’s roar, he didn’t scold us at all.
‘So that’s how it is.’
— They only listen to those stronger than themselves?
‘Is that normal for beastmen?’
— Not exactly, but the Cow Tribe seems to be like that. They used to be much more patient and steadfast.
That gave me a good idea of how to act.
When dealing with the Cow Tribe, I couldn’t afford to look weak.
We entered the castle and followed the chieftain’s lead.
A large brick house — his residence.
As we moved through the castle, I took a look around. The place was messy, even chaotic.
The brick buildings seemed roughly made, and the roads weren’t well kept.
From the outside, the fortress looked impressive, but inside, it felt less organized than the Lion Tribe’s Rotsy.
They didn’t seem very skilled at maintaining order or internal management.
‘Crude. There’s a lot that could be improved here.’
When we arrived at the chieftain’s house, the other chieftains were already gathered.
The beastman who had guided us here — a man in his mid-fifties — was Rioxen, the chieftain of First Horn and the eldest among the Cow Tribe leaders.
Facing me was a beastman who looked to be in his forties — Delmason, the chieftain of the southern castle, Second Horn, the one closest to human lands.
And lastly, a smaller but sharp-looking beastman — Gariman, chieftain of the northern castle, Third Horn.
‘So they were already assembled.’
The reason all three chieftains were here was obvious.
Before we even arrived, they had already gathered to discuss something.
It seemed our guess was right — some new variable had arisen.
“I already sent word that the tunnel between Johnson Territory and Rotsy was open. Why didn’t you send any caravans through? You should’ve had urgent supplies to trade.”
After brief greetings, I went straight to the point.
Dealing with beastmen wasn’t like dealing with humans — there was no need for small talk.
Directness was their form of courtesy.
So I asked why no caravans had been sent — and got a strangely hesitant reaction.
“Yes, well… about that.”
“Why? Is there a problem?”
When he hesitated, I pressed again.
And then came an unbelievable answer.
“Humans already sent a caravan.”
“Humans sent one? From Levelium?”
“That’s right.”
A caravan had come from Levelium.
I couldn’t help but furrow my brows at that.