「Those self-proclaimed heroes were surprisingly weak… Compared to Reiji, can they even be called heroes?」
Among us, Sahoko was the weakest in terms of strength . But that didn’t mean defeating her was easy .
「Enough talking about that event, Chiyuki-san . You know Reiji-senpai is special . 」
Nao said ‘special’ with a strange tone as if making fun of that fact . Nevertheless, she was right . Compared to Reiji, those ‘heroes’ left much to be desired .
Even in our homeworld, only a few men could fight against Reiji on equal grounds .
When I looked at Nao, I noticed the rat she held in her hand . According to her, the rat had slipped into our luggage at some point in the journey .
It was my first time seeing that type of rat . Its shiny red fur reflected the lighting inside the room, making it look like it was on fire . The round body resembled a hamster . If it didn’t have such a cute face, Nao would have thrown it away the moment she caught it .
But it looked so cute that she wanted to keep it as a pet .
「Nao-san, it’s about time for our meal . Can you put the rat beneath the table?」
「Ye~sh . 」
Nao swiftly tied the rat with a tough thin cord to prevent it from escaping . At first, the rat seemed to hate the cord but it gradually calmed down .
Maybe I was just imagining things, but I got the feeling that the rat understood human language .
After the rat was secured under the table, a middle-aged plump man entered the room . He was the owner of the mansion, Tormalkis .
「Thank you for waiting, everyone . 」
Tormalkis was married to Atlan, the person we saved earlier . After our conference with Clasus, Atlan led him to meet us .
It seemed that he wanted to express his gratitude to us for saving his wife with a feast and a free night at the inn .
「Thank you very much for your invitation today, Tormalkis-dono . 」
As the group’s spokesperson, I put my hand on my chest and bowed toward Tormalkis in gratitude .
He was quite wealthy, even compared to other Republic citizens . However, he wasn’t native to Ariadya .
Being a successful businessman, he gained citizenship in Ariadya by investing in public facilities . He was even chosen as a Diet (parliament) member in response to his philanthropic actions .
「Nonono, I’m the one who needs to express his gratitude for saving my dear wife, O great heroes . Unfortunately, my wife must leave due to a pressing matter . Please forgive her sudden exit . In exchange, allow me to show my gratitude to you, Reiji-sama . 」
After he said so, Atlan left her seat .
Reiji made an extremely disappointed face once he discovered that Atlan was leaving . I restrained my urge to tell him not to reach his hand toward someone else’s wife . [ED: scumbag][TL:Agree]
「We put our everything into cooking today’s dishes . 」
That seemed to be the keyword for the servants to come in carrying the dishes . Fortunately, there were only young men and women amiss the servants . I felt relieved when I didn’t spot any Goblins .
Maybe it was because of his wealth, but Tormalkis preferred using human servants, which had a higher cost than Goblins .
He was just a normal citizen, not even a native . And yet he was wealthier than most influential people in this country . It may be a common situation in other countries, but not in Ariadya .
The young men served the dishes to me, Rino, Nao, and Sahoko while the young women served Reiji . None of them were ugly, they all had very refined appearances .
Maybe they weren’t just common servants . The inn might provide sexual entertainment for the clients who asked for such things .
But that kind of service wasn’t in our interest . I believe being entertained by an unknown man might irritate Sahoko the most .
Honestly speaking, it would have been better to replace the young men serving Sahoko with more women serving Reiji .
Reiji grinned non-stop while he was entertained by those young women .
How dare you!!
Aaargh, whatever .
「Well, then . Go ahead, everyone . 」
Tormalkis’s words prompted everyone to look at the dishes prepared for us . There was a mixture of dishes including cheeses, fish roes, and salads .
There was roast beef garnished with foie gras, fragrant mushroom soup, baked vegetables and meat pie wrapped with wheat flour . There was also some kind of fish steamed with herbs . [ED: why u do dis,? I hungry]
For dessert, there was a cake-like dessert with many layers of nuts . Each layer was kneaded with honey . They even added some sugary white ice cubes .
That was not all . More dishes had yet to arrive at the table .
And every dish was made with rare ingredients .
「Quite the luxurious banquet . It’s my first time seeing these types of dishes . 」
I took a sip of the liquor made of dried fruits . The rich aroma spread through my nose as I brought it to my lips .
「I have to say, only Ariadya can display this kind of sumptuous feast in this world . 」
Tormalkis had a delighted expression on his face . His tone was polite, but I could sense the cynicism in his words as if he looked down on the country hick .
The young man assigned to me gave me an in-depth explanation of the dishes . Where that fish came from, what part of which animal that meat was… Long story short, they practically used ingredients from every country .
However, these delicacies all had a point in common: none of them were specialty dishes from Ariadya .
From what stories I’ve heard, Republic Ariadya’s self-sufficiency rate was zero .
We’ve encountered many self-sufficient countries so far, but it was the first time I learned of a country with zero capabilities of sustaining itself . That might be a factor in why the demon populace was so scarce around this country .
I had long wondered why the territories of the city-states were generally so small . The demons might be the answer .
The expansion of human territories was probably being suppressed by the Demonkind . Humanity was very weak, after all . Even a mere Goblin was a threat to a human at night .
Since demons were always an inhibiting factor in the distribution of goods between countries, a city/country shouldn’t depend solely on imported goods .
That was why self-sufficient cities became the norm . Including daily necessities, citizens also needed to protect their city .
After a long time passed, such a flow of events would turn a city into a country .
But the Republic Ariadya was the sole exception .
The Republic formed a trade with its neighbors called the Ariad Union . The Union could be considered a country, with the Republic Ariadya as its capital .
Unfortunately, the recent events placed the Ariad Union in a crisis . Usually, an errant Goblin could be found only once or twice along the Union’s highways . Or, in the case of mountain roads, you might find a Harpy .
Since the prison break, there were half-human, half-fish creatures in Ariad’s Bay, Lizardmen attacking merchant ships docked on the Quiche River and Centaurs raiding the highways of the Minon Plain like bandits .
None of those races were natives of the area . At the moment, the damage wasn’t that great because their numbers were low .
But that could be remedied because demons could mate with humans . By kidnapping human women and breeding with them, they could bolster their numbers quickly . Soon, the whole area would become hard for humans to live in, just like in other countries .
Clasus assured us no superior Orc species were among the prison escapees, but it was obvious that those Orcs were attacking in flocks . Either there was a superior Orc among them or someone else controlled the Orcs .
Orcs were native of the region around Ariadya, but they rarely approached human settlements . However, the raids along the highways suggested a change in their ways .
Once they started assaulting human women, they would become a threat to the humans living nearby . And the majority of the human cities that lived nearby…
… Had self-sufficiency rates just as low as the Republic Ariadya .
If the circulation of goods kept getting delayed because of demon raids, those countries would fall into ruin . The damage wouldn’t be immediate because they probably had emergency rations stored . But how long could they resist in that situation?
Clasus acting so humble in front of us was a sign of how dangerous the situation in Ariadya had become . He was willing to use every method available to get out of that predicament .
「Good grief… Demons are finally running rampant just like in the rest of the world . And yet…」
I commented on a very low voice . In my opinion, Ariadya was a bit too luxurious, considering the situation .
Judging by how those men kept carrying in one dish after another, Ariadya had yet to show us its true wealth . But if the flow of money stopped, they might be unable to afford such a luxurious lifestyle anymore . Or so Tormalkis told us while laughing loudly .
He didn’t seem to feel any sort of crisis approach, nor did he seem worried about the situation . He should be a merchant, so the trade route blockade should spell trouble for him .
And yet, he didn’t appear the least bit interested in that matter . It was like he had no ability in business .
His current success might be all thanks to his wife, Atlan, who wasn’t present .
I wondered where she was… Could it be she had an important meeting with the other merchants regarding the runaway demons?
Many people had already started planning countermeasures against the demons . We were also going to start tomorrow .
It seemed that the other Heros made their move .
I held the liquor on my lips . It was so rich in flavor .
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