WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 536: A Story Left Behind. Master and Dog

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The hero who had saved Ende had left the city, but Ende had no time to notice.

It had only forgotten for a moment in the sweetness of victory. The city had suffered far too many wounds. The moment the anesthesia wore off, screams and clamor erupted throughout Ende.

Oberli was no different.

"Kill them! Kill them!"

If Ende's beastkin had learned anything from Orcma, it was this kind of picket protest. Rebellions could be suppressed and petitions ignored, but protests were truly difficult to handle. If they tried to force the issue, that crowd could turn into another Orcma uprising. If they ignored it, more people would sympathize. The Oberli guard dogs and city watch could only stand by and watch.

The emboldened beastkin of Ende held up their signs and shouted outside Oberli.

"Where else gives invaders good beds, food, and medical treatment?!"

"If they were beastkin, you'd have hanged them already! Are you letting them off because they're human?!"

"Drag every last one of them out and execute them!"

"Feed them to the tiger!"

Thanks to them, Oberli had also become a cauldron of chaos.

They had defeated the King of Wolves, but the conflict was not over. Ende had consumed vast amounts of resources and food through its repeated struggles. To keep the city from losing its fighting spirit, it had no choice but to stir up hatred. So Oberli publicized the duchy's cowardice throughout Ende and fueled its anger.

Unfortunately, the plan succeeded.

The problem was that it had succeeded far too well.

In Oberli's conference room, separated by only one wall from the protesters gathered like clouds outside, a human raised their voice.

"Mayor Triber. Does this make any sense? Beastkin of all things are calling for humans to be executed?!"

North of Ende lay a river that never ran dry and a broad plain blessed by it. Unlike the hot, humid south, where droughts and floods came in turns, the temperate north was land seemingly made for farming.

Three duchies held territory there, and conflicts of interest were just as common. Floods often washed away borders, and it was even more common for lords to change.

Baron Eaton of the south, a loyal subject of the Lilac Duchy who ruled the road leading to Ende, had come after hearing the news. Officially, they were there to help Ende, but everyone knew they were the duchy's mouthpiece.

Hearing the shouts outside, Baron Eaton raised their voice.

"I came here to help with the disaster that befell Ende. Yet it wasn't enough for the duchy's proud Black Tiger Corps to end up like this. Now they're being persecuted by beastkin as well! How am I supposed to report this?"

"Shut that mouth, human!"

It was an extremely human thing to say, but the beastkin, who had endured one incident after another, would not tolerate it any longer. The only reason Oberli's clan heads had not torn Baron Eaton apart was not because they were human, but because the clan heads were relatively restrained.

Baring their teeth, they shouted.

"Your side invaded first! We were attacked while treating the wounded after defeating the King of Wolves! You should be grateful we let you live. How dare you threaten us?!"

"Should we turn you into tiger food too?"

Fierce shouts rose from every side. Anyone would have been intimidated by the violent atmosphere, but Baron Eaton shamelessly lifted their chin.

"Do you have proof?"

"What?"

"You expect us to believe the Black Tiger Corps attacked you first? Why would an elite unit led by Lord Duet Sword need to attack the likes of you? Even excuses need to make sense!"

The beastkin were left speechless by the sheer shamelessness of it. The wounds on the backs of those who had been attacked had not even healed, yet Baron Eaton began spouting whatever came to mind.

"The Black Tiger Corps came to help Ende and suffered a tiger attack in the process! You should take responsibility! How dare you shift the blame!"

In truth, it had been news like a bolt from the blue for Baron Eaton as well.

The Black Tiger Corps, the duchy's elite unit that had passed through their territory just days ago, had been wiped out by a tiger attack. The duchy had suddenly been crippled. It had gone out to remove a lump and lost an arm instead. Baron Eaton could no longer be certain where the duchy's fury would turn, or whether their own head would remain attached in the process.

The only way to keep their title, territory, and life was to dump the responsibility on Ende.

"If anyone had to die, it should have been you in Lord Duet Sword's place! Why was Ende the only place left unharmed after the Mountain Lord swept through?!"

The enraged beastkin snorted. Oberli's beastkin were relatively old and restrained, but beastkin were still beastkin. If those sturdy people wished it, they could use Baron Eaton's limbs as toothpicks.

In that hair-trigger situation, a low voice intervened.

"Because they dared to insult the Mountain Lord."

The old, wrinkled dog beastkin's voice was calm but firm.

"Lord Duet Sword was... well, very rude. More so than Baron Eaton. Lord Duet Sword called beastkin animal-ears and assumed we would naturally cooperate. That belief soon became action.... But who could have known? The Mountain Lord had been hiding among the beastkin, silently watching."

"The Mountain Lord was among you?"

"She was. But the Mountain Lord is lofty and dignified. She saw no reason to spare a human who dared treat her with such disrespect. She killed Lord Duet Sword, then slaughtered the Black Tiger Corps when they resisted, only stopping afterward."

The Mountain Lord had nearly massacred Ende's beastkin as well, but Mayor Triber did not bother to mention that. It was better to let them believe the Mountain Lord was on the beastkin's side.

"And you just watched?!"

"Would Baron Eaton stand against the Mountain Lord?"

"Of course! If it were me, I would never yield to some savage beast..."

Baron Eaton stopped speaking and tightly shut their mouth. They too were a lord of the Enger Plain.

The saying that a tiger appears when spoken of became reality when it came to a Beast King. The Mountain Lord was not someone one could casually mention, even in idle talk.

Baron Eaton had far too much to lose to find courage. Rather than dare invoke the Mountain Lord, they seized on another point.

"Even so, do you think their calls to kill prisoners can be forgiven?!"

Mayor Triber could not answer that easily either.

The Black Tiger Corps had attacked first, and Ende's beastkin had been deeply shaken by the sudden betrayal. When they realized the Black Tiger Corps truly intended to drive beastkin out of Ende, they were enraged.

But that was only the unofficial position. If the other side denied it, that would be the end of the matter. Even if they did not deny it, few would understand the beastkin's anger. The belief that beastkin were lower-class people remained too strong.

"Since the Conquering King's fall, both the Empire and the Sanctum have forbidden the cruel killing of prisoners! Are you planning to create a second Abyss?! The Sanctum will condemn your atrocities!"

If the lower classes slaughtered prisoners like savages, it would become an outrage that even the Empire could not overlook. The Empire had been founded by holding the Conquering King accountable for massacring hundreds of thousands of prisoners.

Mayor Triber answered.

"...We have no intention of killing them."

"Hmph! Those beastkin gathered outside like clouds don't seem to think so! Then again, how could they know history from before they were born?!"

Baron Eaton, regaining their momentum, sprang to their feet and shouted.

"I don't know what kind of 'incident' occurred, but release the prisoners at once and hand them over to me! Otherwise, I will personally hold those beastkin accountable for their crimes!"

The beastkin were already treated as savages. If they tried to violate the order established after the Conquering King's fall, condemnation was inevitable. If Ende, which could not stand against the duchy alone, were denounced by the Empire or the Sanctum, its only remaining path would be ruin.

As Mayor Triber struggled to respond, a familiar voice spoke up, one they had no desire to grow accustomed to.

"How noisy. Hasn't Oberli had a single quiet day lately? I can't sleep."

Duke Erectus, who had only barely returned after being driven out by Orcma, entered the conference room looking as he always did. His enormous yawn made it seem as though he had just woken up.

Baron Eaton recognized the face of the recognized human.

"Duke Erectus! At last, someone reasonable has arrived. These animal-ears are saying..."

"I was calling you noisy, Baron Eaton."

The recognized human, Duke Erectus, scratched at his ear and replied irritably.

"I may be called the Water Duke, but I'm still a duke, aren't I? Ende is my territory. You came here unannounced and started making trouble? Baron Eaton, is this the courtesy you boast of?"

"The situation was urgent, so I came without warning! More importantly, this isn't the time for that! What are you going to do about those beastkin outside?!"

Baron Eaton pointed beyond the wall. The beastkin were still protesting on the other side, shouting loudly enough for everyone to hear that the prisoners should be killed and executed. It certainly seemed to be Ende's public sentiment.

Duke Erectus answered indifferently.

"Oh, that? Just leave them."

"Leave them alone?"

"What can you do when the animals you keep bark? You should understand. What do you want?"

"Understand? Beastkin are calling for prisoners to be publicly executed!"

"If a dog you kept barked viciously, would you punish it for attempted murder? There are limits to nitpicking. Who would care if you picked a fight over an animal crying?"

He was not even treating the vast crowd of protesting beastkin as human. Baron Eaton was left speechless. They would have seized on any ordinary excuse, but Duke Erectus's words had gone a step beyond what they could comprehend.

"They were stabbed in the back by the Black Tiger Corps. They had just finished a fight, and someone whipped the backs of already nervous animals. Of course they'd be startled, raise their fur, and bark whenever they saw humans."

"D-Do you not even know the story of the Conquering King?!"

"I know it. But it's only natural that those uneducated creatures don't. I don't have a hobby of teaching history to dogs."

Duke Erectus was clearly treating beastkin as animals he kept. Baron Eaton wanted to protest, but could not think of a suitable argument.

Were beastkin human? Some people who liked to act civilized might say yes, but if asked whether they were equal to humans, most would shake their heads. Baron Eaton belonged to that majority. The reason was largely economic. Treating all those beastkin laborers as equals would reduce profits.

Yet Duke Erectus had simply declared them animals he kept, leaving Baron Eaton with nothing to say. It would have been strange to start advocating for beastkin rights here.

"If you understand, sit down. Stop muddying the issue. Honestly, I don't understand the nobles of the duchies sometimes. If you're going to call beastkin animals, then treat them like animals. You treat them as animals but demand human responsibilities from them. What am I supposed to do?"

"That is..."

"If you have someone to condemn, it's me. Fine. What were you talking about until now? Try saying it to me."

Thoroughly deflated, Baron Eaton poured out self-serving claims that they bore no responsibility for the series of events. Their words were rambling and long-winded, but their desire to distance themself from the unprecedented destruction of the Black Tiger Corps came through clearly. Their wish for Ende to become the villain for the sake of their own safety was laid bare.

Mayor Triber watched with complicated feelings.

They had been born a beastkin. It made little difference that their father had been a distant branch of the imperial family. They had been abandoned and driven out, unable to remain in the Empire. At least the duchies were places where imperial bloodlines sold for a high price, and Triber had used that as a weapon to claim a corner of power.

As Ende's mayor, Triber had dreamed of an ideal world. A world where all beastkin lived peacefully. A world where they enjoyed the same opportunities as humans.

Triber had dreamed of a day when everyone could eat at the same table without anyone finding it strange.

But perhaps Triber had been under a great misunderstanding.

Humans were not inherently superior, and beastkin were not inherently inferior. Both wanted to impose injustice on others, until the less fortunate side encountered real injustice and disappeared.

From the beginning, humans and beastkin had been seated at the same table. Rather than smiling warmly together, they twisted their faces in disgust as they struggled to steal food from one another's plates.

Perhaps even the dream of sitting at the same table as humans had been nothing more than stubbornness born from an inferiority complex. Humans did not necessarily get along with their neighbors either.

As Duke Erectus had said, humans too were beastkin.

As Triber sank into bitter thought, Duke Erectus suddenly shouted.

"Welshi!"

Duke Erectus sprang to his feet. He spotted Welshi, his guard dog, lingering near the conference room and immediately strode over.

"I told you to stay in bed! Your wounds haven't fully healed yet!"

His tone sounded accusatory, but his expression and actions were as gentle as someone fussing over a beloved pet. Welshi had waited so as not to interrupt the conference, but when Duke Erectus personally dragged her in, she had no choice but to enter.

Burdened by her master's constant examination of her body, Welshi pushed him away.

"The King treated my injuries before leaving. I'm fine now."

"Internal injuries take time. Don't move around until you're completely healed. Rest."

"I've learned energy arts too, so further treatment won't have any effect. The doctors have also gone back to treat other patients."

"What? Those quacks went back on their own?"

"Not on their own. I told them I was fine."

"You said you were fine, so that's it? Those fools. Who do they think lets them cling to life as doctors in a city without humans? I'll..."

Welshi spoke firmly.

"Master. I know my own body best."

"...I suppose you do. Tch. You've learned energy arts. Fine."

That ended her master's fussing. Welshi let out a small sigh.

After Welshi had nearly died in her master's place, Duke Erectus had completely changed the way he treated her. He had never been especially stingy before, but now seemed willing to give her his own gallbladder. The person who should have been guarded had also begun spending more time at the injured Welshi's side.

It was perhaps only natural treatment for someone who had saved him with her life, but Welshi felt deeply burdened by kindness she had never received in all her life. That was why she tried to return to her original duties as quickly as possible.

"Please worry about yourself first. It's dangerous for you to walk around alone in this unsettled situation."

Duke Erectus looked clearly strange when facing her.

He had relentlessly fired back at Baron Eaton. He would silence others rather than close his own mouth, yet now he was fidgeting before Welshi. After taking a long time to choose his words, Duke Erectus said, "I don't want you guarding me anymore."

Welshi looked up and asked about the unexpected dismissal.

"Did you find another guard dog besides me?"

"Of course not! You're my only guard dog. It's just... You've suffered a great deal while guarding me. I want you to stop doing guard work now."

The words clearly carried an intention other than dismissal, but unfortunately, Welshi lacked the sensitivity to notice it. It was hard to blame her. If anything, it was Duke Erectus's karma for whipping Welshi whenever he was bored.

Welshi lowered her ears and tail slightly.

"...Then have I been dismissed? I should look for another job."

"I said it isn't a dismissal! Listen to me!"

Neither cared about the eyes of others. Welshi and Duke Erectus stared at each other, awkwardly stumbling through the exchange.

Triber watched them with complicated feelings.

Perhaps Triber had been wrong from the beginning. Instead of creating a world where humans and beastkin could sit at the same table and eat the same food without issue, perhaps a wiser solution was for people to find the one they needed most, like those two had.

Triber felt as though they had crumpled up the years of their life and thrown them into a trash bin. Yet instead of regret, they felt a pleasant sense of relief.

They might not have much time left, but much work remained. Triber was grateful to still have the chance to do something.

Footnotes:

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