novelraw Chapter 136
Chapter 136
Chapter 136
The Horse Tribe was famous for being nomadic.
They frequently moved their settlements in search of pastures to raise their horses.
But the true wanderers were these fellows.
The Mouse Tribe—who lived scattered apart, each group fending for themselves.
Closer to squirrels than rats, the Mouse Tribe roamed the northern part of the Levela Peninsula like gypsies.
‘I did want to meet them someday, but to think it would happen under these circumstances...’
Out of nowhere, a Stone Giant had appeared, turning the Mouse Tribe’s campsite into a mess, leaving many injured.
We managed to heal a few of them with our potions, but by the time we arrived and took down the Stone Giant,
many of the Mouse Tribe had already lost their lives in that short span.
Had we not arrived in time, most of them would’ve been wiped out—
their crossbows completely useless against a Stone Giant.
“Thank you so much, travelers. You saved our lives.”
Apparently, the Mouse Tribe shared the same sentiment; as soon as the Stone Giant was defeated, one of them ran up to me and bowed deeply.
The fluffy tail swaying behind them was quite impressive.
For some reason, I felt an odd sense of familiarity with them—like they weren’t strangers at all.
“It’s unfortunate. If we’d been a bit faster, there wouldn’t have been this much damage.”
Naturally, my tone softened.
Of course, there was no way we could’ve come any faster under the circumstances, but I still felt sorry for those who’d died.
—As expected of the Mouse Tribe. They’re ones blessed by Lord Bestia with adorableness.
‘Adorableness?’
I looked at them again.
The males were about 170 cm tall, the females around 160—
roughly ten centimeters shorter than the average Beastman.
Their round faces and lush tails enhanced their cuteness even more.
No wonder they seemed strangely approachable; their entire aura was different from other Beastmen,
who typically exuded a sort of natural toughness.
—Adorableness leads to friendliness. No Beastman ever looks down on the Mouse Tribe. Well, except for those pig bastards, of course.
So that’s why I’d heard so many stories about them—they got along well with other tribes.
Even the crossbows they used came from the Monkey Tribe.
They’d probably traded for them after making sealed containers from Metal Slimes for the Monkey Tribe.
I didn’t know why they refused to settle down and wandered so much, but it seemed their lifestyle went like this:
They roamed from place to place, helping other tribes with their work and receiving goods in return.
And since most Beastmen had favorable opinions of the Mouse Tribe, it made sense.
“Oh, my! I almost forgot. We’ll prepare a feast for our saviors. Please, join us.”
“Well, sure, why not?”
As wanderers, they couldn’t possibly prepare anything extravagant, but it was only right to accept their hospitality.
It wasn’t that I wanted anything from them—rather, I wanted to prevent another monster from attacking the Mouse Tribe.
Even the Stone Giant, which usually lived in rocky gorges, had suddenly appeared here to attack them.
Who knew what other monsters might show up next?
‘I’m also curious about what’s going on around here.’
Whenever I’d heard stories about the Mouse Tribe from the Cat or Monkey Tribes, I’d wondered what kind of people they were—
this was my chance to find out.
Spending tonight with them and listening to their stories seemed like a good idea.
“Alright, let’s set up camp here. We’ll stay beside them.”
“Yes, Lord Iron. I’ll prepare it right away.”
Stone Giants weren’t monsters worth harvesting from.
Their entire bodies were made of rock, so not even their hide or bones could be salvaged.
Only their heartstone could yield a good amount of Mana Crystals, but it wasn’t exactly the resource we needed.
We collected a few heartstones, loaded them onto the wagon, and set up camp.
“I am Iron Johnson, Lord of Johnson Territory.”
“Ah, I see. Once again, thank you deeply, human lord. I am Verodos, the 14th chieftain of the Fluffy-Tail Tribe. May Lord Bestia’s blessing follow your steps.”
“Well, I already feel Lord Bestia’s grace every day. After all, the Spirit of the Rabbit Tribe walks with me.”
“Spirit... Ah! Now that you mention it, I’ve heard that one of this generation’s Guides is human...”
“That would be me.”
For smoother communication, I revealed that I was the Guide of the Rabbit Tribe.
It was the most effective position when dealing with Beastmen, and Verodos, the Mouse Tribe chieftain, reacted with deep respect—
especially touched that the Rabbit Tribe’s Guide had been the one to save them.
‘This one seems quite devout.’
—Indeed. Not all Beastmen are the same. In fact, smaller tribes like the Rabbit Tribe or Mouse Tribe tend to revere Lord Bestia even more.
‘Makes sense. The weaker you are, the more you need something to believe in.’
As the atmosphere relaxed, our real conversation began.
The Mouse Tribe were Beastmen too, and that meant potential allies.
After all, these were the clever ones who used Metal Slimes as airtight containers—
a tribe with skills no others possessed, and that alone piqued my interest.
“The Mouse Tribe lives scattered in many groups. I am the fourteenth chieftain, and there are over fifty others like me.”
“Is that so?”
Unlike other Beastmen, where the chieftain ruled over the entire tribe, the Mouse Tribe had over fifty village heads, each managing a small settlement.
At first, I thought it would be nearly impossible for them to communicate living so scattered apart—but when I asked, that wasn’t the case.
“Oh, with those birds…”
“Yes, they’re called Peco birds. They have a strong homing instinct, so once they’re properly tamed, they can be used for communication.”
“I see.”
Several pigeon-like birds huddled together inside a large cage; apparently, they used them like carrier pigeons.
Considering that even the Rabbit Tribe got along well with creatures like mountain goats, it seemed that most minor tribes maintained good relations with various animals.
—Isn’t it an insult to compare the Mouse Tribe to the Rabbit Tribe? These fellows, aside from their cuteness, have no real advantages.
Unlike the Rabbit Tribe, whom even other Beastmen recognized as versatile workers, the Mouse Tribe was rather ambiguous in every respect.
They weren’t particularly dexterous, and their physical ability was the weakest among all Beastmen.
Even when performing the same task, their efficiency was said to be lower than the Rabbit Tribe’s.
If not for the gift of cuteness bestowed upon them by Lord Bestia, they might not have been able to get along with other Beastmen at all.
‘But isn’t being able to handle Metal Slimes more than enough?’
In a world like this, the ability to make airtight containers out of Metal Slimes was already a tremendous asset.
“Bear! Look at this! These guys have something amazing!”
While I was talking with the chieftain, Leisha, who had been snooping around, burst into the tent as if she’d made a great discovery.
In her hands was something I found quite familiar—a Metal Slime container.
‘That’s a Metal Slime... why make such a fuss about—wait. What’s inside that...?’
At first, I thought she was overreacting to something ordinary, but when I looked closely, I noticed something different.
To be precise, the contents inside the Metal Slime were unusual.
Inside the container Leisha held were neatly cut pieces of peaches.
Peeled peaches filled the transparent liquid inside.
‘That’s... canned fruit?’
No matter how I looked at it, it strongly resembled canned peaches.
“May I... try some of this?”
“Yes, of course. We were saving it to serve to our guests.”
“Then I’ll help myself.”
I carefully opened the Metal Slime container and poured the peaches into a wooden bowl I had prepared.
A sweet, fruity fragrance filled the tent.
Even though food quality in Johnson Territory had improved considerably, real fruit was still a rarity.
The sight of the luscious peach slices made my mouth water.
“Wait, this...”
Without much thought, I took a sip of the liquid the peaches had been stored in.
I wasn’t expecting much—just thought it was water infused with peach flavor.
But the taste was entirely different.
It was rich and sweet, just like the syrup from real canned peaches.
‘Sugar? But... this region doesn’t produce sugar.’
Unlike pepper, which we’d managed to find a substitute for around the Vines area, there was still no proper substitute for sugar.
At best, there was honey.
You could boil grains to make something like malt syrup, but the efficiency was extremely low.
Before the Great Cataclysm, sugar had been imported across the southern sea from the Maritime Alliance, but now that sea routes were closed, sugar had practically vanished.
Just like in Earth’s medieval times, sweetness had become a rare luxury.
‘So how... did they make this?’
The taste of these peaches was almost identical to the canned fruit I remembered from Earth.
I couldn’t help but be amazed.
When I asked where they got it, I learned something truly interesting.
“There’s something like that in the Horse Tribe’s domain?”
“Yes, indeed. In fact, the reason our village recently visited their territory was to obtain ‘sugar beets.’ To preserve fruit for long periods, storing them in sugar beet syrup is the best method.”
In the Horse Tribe’s region, there was a root plant shaped like a gourd. When its juice was boiled down, it produced a sweet white powder.
The Mouse Tribe called this root “sugar beet” and used it extensively.
“So you just seal the peaches with the sugar beet juice, and that’s it?”
“If you do only that, it spoils quickly. After sealing them together, you must boil the container once.”
“Ah, I see.”
Even their method was remarkably similar to the process of canning fruit.
They boiled it to sterilize the inside of the slime container.
‘These guys... might be more useful than I thought.’
The ability to create pseudo-canned goods using Metal Slime was incredibly practical.
Our territory currently transported Horned Rabbits using refrigerated wagons operated by a freezing magic circle—but it wasn’t easy.
While human territories generally had cold storage facilities, Beastmen territories did not.
For example, the Cat Tribe lacked cold storage entirely, so they transported jerky and live Horned Rabbits instead.
They would likely continue relying on jerky, but making it required a lot of labor, making mass production difficult.
‘Sure, in time, all Beastmen will probably have proper storage facilities, but that won’t be easy.’
But if I brought the Mouse Tribe to our territory...
‘We could make canned meat, just like canned fruit.’
It wouldn’t be the same as the famous ham cans I knew, but something similar could surely be made.
We already had magic tools for extracting oil, so creating one to grind meat should be possible too.
‘The Mouse Tribe’s the weakest among Beastmen, huh?’
—Indeed. They’re nowhere near the Rabbit Tribe’s level.
And yet, that very weakness made them appealing.
They were true workers—dedicated laborers.
Of course, I acknowledged that the Rabbit Tribe were elite workers, but lately, with the way things were going, they hardly behaved like workers at all.
But these fellows?
They were so weak that all they could do was work.
To someone like me, who needed workers, they were irresistible.
‘Now... how do I bring these workers back to my territory?’
As I savored the long-lost sweetness, my mind began to spin with plans.
Perhaps it was the sugar—but I felt more energetic than usual.