Chapter 762 - Chapter 6: Negotiation with the Dragonewt Tribe
The last time I met the Chieftain was when we had the banquet with what I think was the [Wyvern]. At that time, we hopped between the [Water Dragon] and the [Wyvern]. For the [Water Dragon], I had Dune attend, and for the [Wyvern], I had Mel attend. Both of them heard that Violet and the Dragonewts were on the verge of a fight. And since they heard that from Violet, the two, who were in a fighting mood from the start, had each called out only the Chieftain into the shadows. He seemed to have been quite intimidated, and when he left, he gave me a very polite greeting.
"Has Jeanne come? Let her through immediately."
When the Wife went into the house and said so, the Chieftain's voice was heard instantly.
"Amazing, Jeanne. That Dragonewt is treating you with such respect."
"No, I think Dune and Mel are the amazing ones."
Could it be that the fact that I'm the only human allowed into the Chieftain's house is an appeal to Dune and Mel that he's giving me special treatment?
"Jeanne, eh? It's been a while."
"It's been a long time."
"Good of you to come, well, come on up."
Alex secretly nudges me with his elbow.
I'm telling you, Dune and Mel are the amazing ones.
Even though he was receiving guests, the Chieftain was wearing purple [Green Marble]. Is this also an appeal?
First, I introduced Alex and Germana.
Dwarves are good at long-distance [Teleport]. Because of that, they couldn't enter the village last time. This time they entered without a problem. Not only that, they even entered the Chieftain's house. Germana must be seeing him for the first time, yet she entered. Things have changed a lot.
Since I'm here in the capacity of an envoy from Magdalena-sama, I fulfill the requirement.
"First, I have a message from Queen Magdalena of the Kingdom of Sertoria."
"Is that so. What is it?"
"It's about your daughter's childbirth."
"I see."
"Your daughter has given birth safely. It's the birth of your grandchild. And it's a boy. Congratulations. That's what she said. Formal congratulations are scheduled to be sent as a letter from His Majesty the King through the exchange base."
"I see."
"She apparently recognized her mother as her mother."
"I see."
"From now on, Alex the Dwarf and Lich, who is directly under the Sertoria Royal Family, are scheduled to be in charge of the baby and the postpartum recovery."
"I see."
"Next is whether he speaks his first words, right?"
"That's right."
What a sour face. Usually, a grandpa's face is supposed to crumble when a grandchild is born safely.
"Now that you mention it, Chieftain. There's something I'd like to bring to your attention as soon as possible. Over there."
The Wife suddenly spoke. She's pointing to the back of the house. I wonder what it is. The young ones with us are supposed to talk about the [Anti-Magic Material].
"Excuse me."
Saying just that, the Chieftain stood up and disappeared into the back with the Wife.
"Hey. What's with that guy? So unsociable."
Alex started pestering the young ones. All four of the young ones here are male, and all four have partners and are undergoing fertility treatment. They can't stand up to Lich and Alex.
"No, the Chieftain has his position..."
"Position? Lich and I racked our brains for the future of the Dragonewts, and as a result, a grandchild was born safely. It's the first grandchild, right? And if it's a boy, he's the successor."
"No, well, that's true, but..."
"If that attitude is what you call the position of a Chieftain, I have some thoughts too."
"Now, now, Alex-san. We Dragonewts have been cooped up for a bit too long. Our response to other races, especially among the older generation, is a bit... or rather, quite poor..."
He's sulking... it's definitely an act. The proof is that Lich is watching with amusement... the young ones are flustered, gathering around Alex and Lich to try and soothe Alex.
It was when the young ones were soothing Alex with a panicked look. The Chieftain's Wife came out alone.
The Dragonewts gathered around Alex closed their mouths and returned to their original positions.
Almost simultaneously, some kind of roar-like voice was heard from the back.
What happened? The young ones stood up all at once.
"What is going on?"
Some have their hands on the swords at their waists. Alex and Lich came to my side and stood in front as if to be a shield. Gnome also came.
"Just now, I applied [Mute] to the Chieftain. No, I pretended to apply it."
Huh?
"The Chieftain is exploding with joy, so could you pretend you didn't hear it?"
The roar from the back continues a second and third time.
I couldn't help but lock eyes with Alex.
Perhaps having exhausted his emotions, the sour-faced Chieftain came out from the back. His cheeks are flushed and his nose is flared. I feel like his breathing is a bit rough.
The young ones all look down at once. If they laugh, they might be interrogated and then have their heads cut off.
"I want you to tell Magdalena-dono."
"Yes. What is it?"
"I thank her for her various considerations. To the King of Sertoria, once it is confirmed that he was born safely as a Dragonewt, I will send a letter again at that time. Therefore, this letter is unnecessary. Since he hasn't atoned for his sins yet. It's merely a progress report. Please convey it that way."
"Understood."
The reason Magdalena-sama said the King's letter would come later was because she anticipated this kind of response from the Dragonewt side. She immediately sent congratulations as the person in charge of the exchange base and created a time lag between that and the response as a country. With this message from the Chieftain, the future response has become clear. If a letter had come from the King, the Dragonewts would have had to accept it. It would be a bit rude to convey this argument in a reply. It's what you call diplomacy.
After the exchange between the country and the village ended, it became a private matter.
He thanked Lich and Alex. And as a token of gratitude for their efforts so far, the finest liquor made by the Dragonewts was served.
How is it made? If the Elves' fruit liquor is the mellow blessing of the forest, the Dragonewts' liquor has a transparency like the lake where Undine lives. And you squeeze seasonal fruits into it. It goes down smoothly and slides right into the stomach. Yet, it's sufficiently strong. Since they brought it to the banquets with the dragons too, I had it each time, and I thought I could breathe fire from my mouth. It's natural that it became a favorite of the fire dragons and Salamanders who actually breathe fire from their mouths, and Finis ended up purchasing a certain number through Sertoria for the fire dragons. Since it's extremely precious in terms of quantity, it doesn't circulate among humans. It might only be the Grand Archbishop, the royalty around Finis and Sertoria, and the Class of 175.
Alex also cheered up. Toasting with a smile without saying anything must have been out of pity.
At the banquet, the talk of the [Anti-Magic Material] finally came up.
The young ones timed it right, and cut in when Alex finished his small talk.
"In short, it's a building material with high magic defense."
"That's right. It won't budge even against ultra-high-level magic."
"Can it be applied to offense?"
"No, for now, that's impossible. Well, I can't say anything if you think that completely blocking the opponent's attack and forcing damage is the greatest offense."
It's the exact opposite of Eleanor-sama's way of thinking.
"And we Dragonewts will undertake that?"
"That's right. If you do that, the production volume will explode compared to if only we Dwarves do it, right? I don't know if it'll work against the Demon Lord, but it should be able to prevent the invasion of the Demon Lord's army. For example..."
He explains specifically how to use it. In short, it's the encirclement of the cave where the Demon Lord is resurrected and the Demon Realm.
"What happens to the monsters that are encircled?"
"Won't they live on their own inside the encirclement? Competition with humans will also disappear."
"For now, that is."
"That's right. For now."
"Monsters are bad at devising and refining techniques like humans. Humans are developing techniques more and more, calling it science. Eventually, won't they acquire techniques that could destroy the Demon Realm itself along with the monsters inside the encirclement?"
He started talking about something quite ominous. Techniques that destroy the Demon Realm itself... how much gunpowder would you have to gather?
"If they acquire it, then they acquire it. It's fine, isn't it?"
"Why?"
I can only say, why? Aren't high-ranking spirits like Dwarves neutral?
Alex said it wouldn't matter even if humans invented techniques that could destroy the Demon Realm itself. Why? I was aghast to hear the reason.
"Listen. Imagine humans inventing a weapon with that much destructive power. Do you think humans, who are killing each other, would stop at just measures against the Demon Lord's army?"
"They would use it for war."
"That's right. Even if there's a possibility of developing a weapon that could destroy this world. They'll kill each other with weapons several steps before that."
"Hmm. That's probably true."
"The world probably won't be destroyed, but a lot of humans will probably die. However, that's just humans perishing on their own. They'd get what they deserve. It's not a problem, is it?"
"Well, that's true."
"It has nothing to do with us spirits. Isn't it the same for you?"
"I see. If you've thought that far, I have nothing more to say to the Dwarves."
Uh, Alex. Isn't that a bit cold?
"Then, Lich. As a former human, what do you think of the Dwarf's words just now?"
"Hmm. Unfortunately, it is probably as he says."
"Is that so?"
"Umu. Even if humans were to go extinct after killing each other, I think it would be fine as long as this world is safe. Humans are only a very small part of this world. Even if they were to go extinct, it wouldn't have much of an impact."
He's starting to talk about difficult things again. He was cooped up in a hole for two thousand years, after all. It wouldn't be strange if he'd attained some kind of enlightenment.
"Moreover. I am also a researcher and a technician, but even if the sovereign who ordered the development of a powerful weapon was an ambitious and dangerous person, one would want to take on a new challenge. And one would want to test the effects of a newly developed powerful weapon. This would be the same for military personnel."
There's no salvation. They're heading straight for extinction. Why do they want to develop powerful weapons? That's why technological power rises all at once during a war.
"However."
Lich, who had a difficult face until then, showed a smile and looked at the Chieftain.
"Whether it's Alex's argument or my current argument, it's the worst of the worst. I think humans are a bit smarter than that."
"Ho. Smarter, you say?"
The Chieftain is half-smiling. No matter how you look at it, he's being mocked.
"Umu. Or rather, I should say there are also smart ones."
"That's right. That's the strength of humans."
Alex agreed. I don't really understand, but Alex seems to.
These two are strangely close, perhaps because they cooperate on the slug farm and the Dragonewt fertility treatment, and they get along well. Could it be that they've talked about what Lich just said many times between the two of them? Gnome is the same, but when men drink alcohol, they often have these kinds of arguments that I don't quite understand.
Beatrix somehow likes participating in such arguments, and at the banquets of the Nakanohara Vigilante Corps, she listens to the talk of the drunks while making interjections. It's the secret to her high popularity among middle-aged men. By the way, Will is the same. In Will's case, the middle-aged men even hold her in high regard.
"The strength of humans?"
The Chieftain probably doesn't understand either. He's asking again.
"Umu. Humans are a bit smart, so they think about various things, but there are more or less differences between each individual."
"Hmm."
"And there are an awful lot of them."
"That's true."
"In short, all kinds of thoughts appear. And because there are too many of them, they don't unite. They divide into several groups... factions, I should say."
"Hmm."
"That's the cause of their fighting, but at the same time, it's their strength. They don't lean in one direction."
The Chieftain, perhaps unable to keep up, frowned and tilted his head.
Lich's argument was that among the various thoughts, there is also the thought of opposing war, and that faction also has a certain number. Therefore, it's not so easy even if you try to decide everything simply by fighting.
"I used to serve the Demon Race. I was working on improving monsters to destroy humans."
"Hey, hey, that's a top-secret matter that only the Sertoria Royal Family knows, right? Is it okay to say it? There might be some loose-lipped Dragonewts too."
"A proud race like the Dragonewts wouldn't engage in unnecessary chatter. Right, Chieftain?"
"Of course."
The Chieftain, who was caught, glared at the four young ones, and they nodded in a hurry. Alex's restraint seems to have been successful.
"So, the Demon Race is clear. Whether it's the Demon Lord's policy or the Demon Race's instinct, they only defeat opposing races. However, humans are different. There are factions that try to reconcile and become companions even with the Demon Race they've been killing as sworn enemies. And they're serious."
"Hmm."
The Chieftain looked at me.
"Such factions will be a deterrent to factions that like killing each other. Therefore, even if humans acquire a weapon that is too powerful, I believe they won't use it to destroy this world."
Lich declared resolutely. It was as if to say, "How's that?"
"Well, that's how it is. I don't trust humans either. But it's certain that there are people who are worth trusting."
Alex said while jerking his chin toward me. These words are truly appreciated.
"I'm very happy as a former human to have you say that. Besides, you can think of human society as a single individual. It's not a Hydra, but if it can grow back even if its head is cut off, it should just cut off its own foolish head."
That analogy is too scary. Even a real Hydra didn't do that.
"I see. I understand."
"Then, will you jump on the talk?"
The young ones leaned forward eagerly.
"That's right. Let's jump on it."
Alright, it's decided. The negotiation is settled.
The four young ones stood up in joy, and the Wife came to my side and placed her hand on my shoulder.