501 – Even The Flowers Fall In Spring
If they came out of nowhere to conduct an ideological investigation, there was no way they would believe the answer, ‘We just came to ask.’ Mayor Triber realized our true purpose with his experience.
“I know what you mean. Your Excellency must be feeling uneasy about the turbulent situation in Ende. If the city is in chaos, it will be difficult to confront the Wolf King.”
“I’m not particularly uneasy.”
“You’ve just arrived in Ende, so you don’t know the situation. I understand.”
Mayor Triber nodded and said with a smile on his thin face.
“However, I hope Your Excellency will understand us as well. The pig beastmen have suffered too much. If I can get some compensation for them, I intend to dedicate myself to it.”
“Is that compensation taking over Oberon by force and then abusing your power?”
“Abuse is a strong word. Before this happened, they had no power to return to. As you know, the pig beastmen have suffered too much.”
One of the things the mayor of Ende does is to appease collaborators who are dissatisfied. Some people in the world think of it as lobbying and think it’s inappropriate, but Mayor Triber was the one who knew the importance of lobbying better than anyone else.
“You must be familiar with this. The empress Agartha, the descendant of the five monarchs and the one with the power to be loved by all, wanted slaves who worked like beasts but talked like humans. Like the king of beasts. So she committed a taboo and conceived a being called a beastman. It’s a taboo that’s hard to even talk about.”
The three taboos, intercourse. Before the empress, it was a forbidden taboo that was questionable whether it was even possible.
Mayor Triber, who had politely explained, continued.
“In the empress’s country, pig beastmen were born only to be eaten. That’s why there were so many of them and they did all the chores. All beastmen were humble slaves, but pig beastmen were different. They were destined to be slaughtered when they were no longer needed after suffering from labor.”
“Even so, the orcs prospered quite a bit after the fall of the empire. At that time, they were a force that threatened the empire.”
“A beast that is eaten a lot must be that numerous. The pig beastmen, who were large in number, prospered for a while after the fall of the empire, but that was all. Unlike other beastmen who easily entered civilization with their innate talents, the orcs, who were powerful, collapsed under the control of the empire and the vassal states. It was natural because they were practically refugees, even though they were called orcs.”
Collapsed was a very polite expression. To humans, pig beastmen were evidence of sin, a threatening enemy, and a target of discrimination and hatred. The victorious humans used every means at their disposal to eliminate the pig beastmen before their eyes.
“The fact that eating pig beastmen was treated as a taboo only happened after the appearance of the hairy saintess. Before that, it was common to eat them, and it was a time of madness when books were published on how to cook pig beastmen. They had so, so many hardships.”
“Even so, thanks to the hairy saintess, they are now equal, right? The past does not justify the current riot.”
“The balance was skewed from the beginning. Not only humans, but even the same beastmen committed great sins against the pig beastmen and sent them to hell. It is too harsh to demand that the balance, which has been terribly damaged by irreversible sins, be restored only by legitimate means. I want to fix the broken scales in this way too.”
“Yeah. I understand, but…”
‘It doesn’t seem like a very good choice. Something’s going to go wrong.’
Mayor Triber smiled falsely at the worry on the returnee’s face.
“It’s okay. This is my job. Please do your best to defeat the Wolf King. I will somehow take care of Ende.”
“You look like you’re going to die right now. What if you collapse from overwork?”
“hahahaha. This much is nothing… Hmm. It seems like there’s a guest outside.”From earlier, a faint vibration could be felt outside the office. The Regressor, sensing the disturbance, put away the Celestial Cherry that had been controlling the space. The moment the seal was released, the office door burst open and Urkpeng strode in. He was visibly agitated and demanded an explanation from the mayor.
“Mayor Trever. What have you been doing? No matter how much I knocked, there was no answer and the door wouldn’t open. As the mayor, how could you…”
“I was talking to him.”
The Regressor answered in his stead. Urkpeng, who had been crossing the office without hesitation, stopped short when he noticed the Regressor. His eyes widened in fear.
“You, why are you here?”
“What.”
“Ah… right. You must have come to see the mayor too. But I have urgent business to report…”
“What’s so urgent?”
“Why would I tell you… no, I suppose I should.”
Sometimes it helps to be seen as a beast. Urkpeng, instinctively docile, reported in a slightly uncertain voice.
“Wolves have appeared. A shepherd working on the outskirts of Ende was killed, and the guards were wiped out. Over 20 people are dead, and nearly half the sheep have been lost. The search party and the guards are in chaos right now. It seems like something needs to be done.”
Even though you know bad news will come someday, you can’t help but wish it wouldn’t. Mayor Trever spoke as if it were inevitable.
“It seems the wolves’ offensive has begun.”
Mayor Trever immediately searched through a pile of documents and found a small one. He added a token and an envelope to it, handed it to Urkpeng, and instructed him.
“This document lists where the necessary supplies are located. If you show the token, you will receive a day’s worth of supplies. Take this to Lord Grull. He is the one who fights the beasts outside Ende, so he will come up with an appropriate solution.”
“Lord Grull. Everyone would acknowledge his strategy.”
“I’ll go too. I have to see it for myself.”
“You, you…”
Urkpeng didn’t want to be in the same space as the Regressor, but who could stop him if he said he would go? Mayor Trever, who had been watching Urkpeng with a grim expression, spoke up.
“Urkpeng. I mentioned it to you last time. Did you pass it on to Poina of the Orcma?”
Urkpeng, who had a momentarily bored expression, turned away from him and said.
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“…I’m not your subordinate. You should tell her yourself.”
“I emphasize it every time we meet. You need to take care of it too. Without the Sapiens’ cooperation,Ende’s guards and security forces are nothing more than a rabble. It will be difficult for him, but it is something that must be done someday. If everyone in Ende does not cooperate, we will not be able to overcome this crisis.”
“Hmph. I got it!”
Urkpeng walked away, annoyed as if he had been given an unpleasant task. Then he saw the Regressor following him and was startled.
If the wolves have invaded, it must be the beginning. I wonder if we can hold out until then. Well, I should get going now.
“Ajiya. Let’s go too.”
“Woof! I’ll go!”
As I was about to leave with Aji, who greeted me cheerfully, Mayor Trever called out to me quietly.
“Magician. I have something to say for a moment.”
“What is it?”
“Thank you for persuading him. Thanks to you, I was able to ease my mind a little. However…”
“However?”
Mayor Trever asked me with a face full of doubt.
“Do you really think they are human?”
“Didn’t you hear what I said to Mr. Shay earlier? Are you doubting my words?”
“I do not doubt you. But, Magician. I have heard of what you have done. As a magician, you have put the Orcma through severe trials.”
No. Not to the point of being severe. I didn’t kill anyone, and I didn’t see much blood.”I don’t blame you. In your eyes, trying to defeat the Wolf King, the Orcs must have seemed like a disruptive group that was causing trouble in the city. However, with your power, there must have been a more certain and moderate way to stop the Orcs. I’m sure that you, who chose ‘that method’, do not consider the pig-men as equals.”
What do you mean by ‘that method’? Are you talking about intimidation, threats, theft, and disruption? That’s not peaceful at all.
Tsk tsk. You only know one thing and not the other. The real kindness that comes without a price is what I’m giving.
“Then I guess I was wrong. No one cares about them as much as I do. Even you, while colluding with the Orcs, only supported them from behind, and never thought of turning Ender upside down.”
Mayor Triber gasped at the secret that was casually revealed. He looked at me with an expression of astonishment and asked with difficulty.
“…How did you?”
“The King of Dogs has appeared. He has decided to fight the Wolf King. Grull is coming. The Orcs know the secret story that was shared in Oberli. How could the Orcs, who are not allowed to enter Oberli, know the secrets of Oberli? Of course, someone from Oberli must have told them.”
I read his mind. From the beginning, Mayor Triber had been carrying out a secret welfare program for the pig-men. The reason it was kept secret was because official welfare could cause division in itself.
“But who would secretly tell the insignificant pig-men secrets that they can’t even eat? I didn’t know that much. But today, I realized it after hearing your story about wanting to turn the tilted scales. It must have been you, or someone who did it under your orders.”
I read his mind. Of course, Mayor Triber’s, and the elder Orc’s thoughts as well. Thanks to that, I knew that the two of them were in cahoots.
You wouldn’t just leave a high-ranking aristocrat who holds the position of mayor of Ender, even though he’s not a public figure, just because he’s ‘useful’. Especially if they’re stupid pig-men. You should have either dragged them out or put them under surveillance.
“That’s…”
“It’s okay. I’m kind to all humans. Of course, I wanted to listen to the pig-men and your wishes as well. How is it? The changed appearance of Ender? Are you satisfied?”
It’s probably not as beautiful as you expected. It probably wasn’t as gradual as you expected. But this sight is definitely the result that Mayor Triber wanted.
However, Mayor Triber seemed uneasy even though his wish had come true.
“…The timing is a bit off. The Wolf King is coming.”
“No, it’s the best time. Strong external pressure strengthens internal unity. You wanted everyone to unite, so you passed on the information that the Wolf King was coming to the Orcs, didn’t you?”
“The pig-men lack experience in running a city. This is too difficult a task.”
“The more difficult it is, the faster the collapsed scales can be restored. It’s not legal, but how about it? Grull and Mr. Shay will be there too. If you just overcome this crisis with their help, the pig-men will really take their place with dignity.”
“But.”
“Are you anxious?”
I know why you’re talking so much. I smiled and poked at his sore spot.
“Can’t you believe it? Do you think it’s impossible? Incompetent, noisy, absent-minded, lacking in perseverance, and full of useless victimhood, they’re just plain disobedient. To you, the pig-men are such beings? For now, at least.”
People don’t look at reality. They always stand on the steps they’re on and look up. Only the thirsty crave water, only the hungry want daily bread, and only those who are buried underground want to go up.
Mayor Triber believes that everyone is equal, and he wants it to be so.
Because the reality he knows is not like that.
“You’re just like that. You might be able to be the same someday, but you’re still lacking, so you believe that the pig-men need a ladder. Well, I understand that belief. The pig-men are also human, so it would be nice if they could become equal.”The wind blows there. It moves humans to fill the gap between belief and reality. It was his wind that made Mayor Trevor work.
I was just willing to respond. Any number, or human. That wind is precious.
“Unlike you, I’m real. Just as you’re not surprised that the sun rose in the east today, it’s so obvious that humans are pig-humans that I don’t even bother to say it.”
I suddenly spoke and tilted my head at the slightly changed tone. What? It’s the same words, but what’s different? Ah.
“No, should I say that pig-humans are also human? Well, it doesn’t matter. In any order. Because it’s the same.”
Nod. I nodded my head deliberately and took a step with a smile. Leaving Mayor Trevor with his eyes wide open.