episode_0032

Having an uncomfortable body by Delchi city standards, I am generally of no help in battle.

The people of Delkish often describe barbarians as ‘stocky’, which is also a Delkish expression.

To put it in perspective, the barbarian tribes were short compared to the average adult male. They were about 150 centimeters tall. They had bushy beards on their faces, and they wore iron helmets that rose upward like a cone on their heads. This is why the helmets look like that. I don’t know. Is it to make him look a little taller?

Although they are called barbarians, the circumstances show that they were people who had reached the iron age civilization. Their swords and shields were made of iron, and the armor they wore was made of small iron armor placed on leather clothing.

I never saw the faces of the savages without their helmets because the adults, who did not greatly restrain children from going near the corpses of animals, did not allow them to approach the corpses of savages.

They said that they were not the ones who were ‘originally there’. The first appearance in the records was approximately 200 years ago, a period that, significantly, roughly matches the map, which is ‘at most 200 years old’.

After all, there was something in that period 200 years ago.

Is it somehow related to the now-vanished giants?

Of course, the existence of giants also appeared in records older than 200 years ago, and the people of Delkish existed even before that. Perhaps the changes in the world that occur once every few hundred years are still having an impact to this day.

… … It’s not like I can know the truth just by imagining things on my own.

Just because winter has come, those barbarians do not come down blindly, because they know that nothing good can come of facing the people of Delkisi, who have received a lot of support from the Archduchy.

The point at which they come down is when the animals in the north begin to disappear in earnest. Animals that normally stay in the north, where there are relatively few people, move south like migratory birds when the weather gets cold.

And barbarians are no exception to feeling that cold. Among the barbarians in the north, who are not properly prepared for winter, they attack other barbarian settlements around them, or if they cannot even do that, they move south as a last resort.

Usually, they are caught and killed by a scouting group of hunters before they even reach the walls of Delki City.

*

Today is a day when even those hunters don’t go out.

The polar night continues without the sun, and at the same time, there are days when the moon does not rise. Hunters do not go out on days when it is already dark and there are clouds in the sky and there is no starlight.

It is extremely dangerous to go outside before the sun gets close to the earth’s surface and shines even a little bit of light in the sky. Since you cannot see the stars, it is difficult to tell the direction, and you have to completely rely on the light you bring with you for your vision. The problem is that you cannot move with a light source like that. This means that its location is clearly revealed in terms of area.

Moreover, the fact that the sky is cloudy means that it will not be strange if it snows at any time.

Even so, there are guards at high guard posts located throughout the forest, but other than that, they do not go out. Both the guards at the guard posts and the people inside the castle stay inside the castle and spend their time quietly.

“… … .”

“… … .”

It was the same for Nana Amelia.

The two of us are sharing the same room now.

Rather than responding to an emergency alone, it would be better for me, a Delkish citizen, to be with you.

We placed two chairs in front of the red-burning fireplace and sat side by side.

“Honestly, it is difficult to adapt to the polar night no matter how many times you experience it.”

Amelia said grumblingly.

There are mechanical clocks in this world, but they are worth enough to have a few of them in the center of the castle. Of course, there are none that are small enough to be carried around, but thanks to that, if you want to know what time it is, you can do it.

So we knew that it was now around evening.

The sky had already turned black. The sky was covered with clouds and not a single star was visible.

The wooden window was tightly closed. If it had been open, it would have been extremely cold even with the light on.

However, this cold itself is something that everyone in the Alwen Kingdom experiences. At least, it is common sense for people in the Grattenmount region.

Therefore, none of the people in this room were afraid of the polar night.

“The barbarians can come down on a day like today, right?”

The person who called out and said that was the maid who had followed Amelia.

Although it was basically my room, Amelia was staying with me, and the maid who helped the Grand Duchess also came in as if it was natural.

I was able to leave Amelia alone when she came to visit me, but it seems I have no choice if I have to live with her.

And, this was also my father’s consideration to have at least one Delkish person next to the guest.

“Even if they come down, there is no need to worry too much. There are people from our family here. This is the most central part of the castle, so even if barbarians come down, we won’t have to see them.”

Of course, there was a warning from Amelia, so I’m being careful.

“I heard that all barbarians have monster-like distorted faces, curved backs, and sharp teeth, but do they really look like that?”

That looks like a werewolf, not a savage.

“I didn’t see it up close, but when I saw it, it at least looked like a person.”

“But you’re shorter than us, right?”

It will be smaller than an adult female maid.

“But it will be bigger than me and the Grand Duchess.”

“Do you really fight with your claws and teeth?”

At the words of the maid, who were so innocent, I let out a small laugh.

“If you run out of weapons, that could happen.”

“Be scared.”

The maid trembled as if she had taken my words literally.

“Are barbarians people?”

Amelia, who had been quietly listening to the two of us talking, suddenly asked that question.”

“Well, I’m not sure because I’ve only seen that long beard.”

“Oh, lady, is that possible? If that were the case, there’s no way they would be living up there and preying on our territory.”

“Most beings who prey on other people’s territory are humans.”

The maid was momentarily speechless at Amelia’s point.

“After the battle, the adults who brought the body back and buried it stopped us from going near it.”

When I muttered that, recalling something that happened a few years ago, the maid immediately nodded and said.

“Look at it. It must look like a monster. Or a monster! How hideous is it so you don’t want to show it to your children?”

“Because the person died after being cut with a sword, they may not have let you see it. A body that died a horrible death is not good to look at, regardless of whether it is human or not.”

Of course, the adults left it alone even when they got close to the animal corpse.

Oh, of course, if the corpse seemed excessively decomposed, it was not allowed to go near it.

“Whether the opponent is human or not, they are here to take what is ours, and we fight to protect what is ours. There is no change in the fact that it is an opponent that must be fought against.”

“… … .”

“… … .”

At my words, both Amelia and the maid fell silent. They both seemed to agree with what I said.

If those barbarians had approached us in a friendly way from the beginning, they wouldn’t have fought this fiercely. But they’re fighting because they’ve brought a sword to a place where they’ve lived for hundreds of years.

Well, I don’t know if we could have communicated from the beginning.

“… … .”

The maid fell silent, and Amelia looked at the burning fireplace again, lost in thought.

Is he perhaps thinking about the original work he knows?

From what Amelia said, it looked like barbarians would eventually invade the castle, but I wasn’t told when that would happen or how big it would be.

Even though Amelia knows the extent of it, does she keep quiet to hide the fact that she is the possessed person?

Or did he say it so vaguely because he really didn’t know the details?

One thing is certain: Amelia said that while risking the possibility that it would be discovered that she was a reincarnation.

… … Should I just reveal it? I’m also a possessed person?

But if you did that, you had to say, ‘In my opinion, you are also a person from a novel.’ If not, you could pretend to be possessed by a romance comic the way Amelia does.

For now, let’s dig up more information. Just like in this case, we’ll collect the information that Amelia spills one by one—

When I was lost in my thoughts.

Oooooh—

I heard a wolf howling.

It didn’t seem like the sound came from that far away.