Chapter 23: Preemptive StrikeWe delivered the pushinee to Gerashim’s town of Magatan.
「Master……」
Risha was firmly grasping the cuff of my clothes.
I understood how she felt.
Magatan was as bad off as Bisk in a different way.
Bisk was destroyed by monster attacks and that scorpion.
It was simply from destruction.
Magatan was destroyed in a different way…it felt like it had naturally withered away until it fell apart.
The moment we entered the town, all the people we saw were wearing tattered clothes and the buildings were crumbling.
「It’s like the first time we saw Madway…」
I thought so as well.
Madway…the first man I met after coming to this world. He was living alone smack dab in the middle of the wilderness.
Every single person in this town looked to be as badly off as he was when he lived alone.
「You’ve arrived!」
Gerashim said as he half trotted over.
He had an undisguisable look of joy on his face.
「Yeah, we came with the food.」
「This much…..thank you very much!」
「It tastes bad, but it’ll fill your stomachs.」
「Even so, thank you very much! Can I distribute this to everyone as soon as possible?」
「Do as you please. Agafon, you help out too.」
「I understand.」
Agafon and the men from Bisk went to begin distributing the pushinee around.
The people began to gather around and eat it.
They all ate the disgusting food with smiles.
「…….it seems like it’s been a long time since they had something to eat.」
I murmured and turned towards the town itself.
There I saw Risha and Mira coming to talk to me.
「Let’s rebuild the houses.」
「Let’s make them clothes.」
They both had differing opinions, but neither of them were wrong.
「I’m sorry Master.」
「I’m sorry……….」
Both of them apologized for having differing opinions.
I patted both of their heads and said with a smile,
「I’ll have to put down a lot of magic circles so I’m going to need the two of you to put your noses to the grind stone okay?」
「—Ok!—」
「I understand!」
The two of them smiled and charged my DORECA with a small amount of magic.
Just like I said I would, I made magic circles one after another.
First I put down the circles for rebuilding the houses and infrastructure of the town, then I found out the number of townspeople and laid down twice as many circles for clothes.
I remade their town carefully with food, clothing, and housing…just as any good town should be.
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「Thank you very much, I really don’t know what words I can say to express my feelings.」
Gerashim said while bowing.
To the side the people were moving about.
After they had filled their stomachs, they heard what they needed to do with the magic circles and began to move around and gather materials.
「Next I need to make some weapons. They’ll only eat pushinee because they were starving until now, but if you continue to eat that daily, you’ll begin to feel unhappy and unwell. To achieve the minimum standard of living you need to be able to hunt for yourselves.」
「Yes of course! I truly must thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thanks to you Akito-san this town might somehow….」
Gerashim was moved to tears. It’s not a bad feeling to be thanked…but it’s a bit gross to be thanked so profusely by a man with tears and snot coming from his entire face.
I’d done what I needed to do, so I decided to leave before things got more uncomfortable w
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hen…
「Araa, I wonder what’s going on…here?」
I heard a gross voice coming from the entrance of town.
I looked over and saw a bald muscular man riding a two legged horse surrounded by subordinates, walk into town like he owned the place.
In his hand was a steel whip which he was making noise with.
「It seems like this place looks quite rich nee~? Didn’t you say that you didn’t have any more to give n~?」
Are you an Okama (extremely effeminate man)?—–at least that’s what I thought from the grossly effeminate voice coming from the muscular bald man.
He moved in front of Gerashim and glared at him.
「What’s the meaning of this hmm?」
「Marukovich-sama….th-this is…」
「Oi Agafon, who’s this?」
I asked Agafon in an inaudible voice.
「Marukovich…Marato’s right hand man—his strongest subordinate. He has the strength to split mountains and speed that’s faster than sound…or so they say.」
Agafon said with a frightened face.
I see, it’s another of Marato’s cronies.
Marukovich surveyed his surroundings.
The citizens noticed this and stopped working. They began to gather around at a distance to see the outcome.
「Oh dear, I won’t scold you for making the town all pretty. It’s best for people to live the best they can ne~」
「Th-thank yo——-」
「Al~though…」
Marukovich cut Gerashim off.
「A pretty town has that much more value ne~」
「Huh?」
「In~oth~er woorrrds~ the price for protecting it should be more…don’t you think~?」
「…….it can’t be…」
Gerashim’s face fell into despair which soon infected the other people.
After tasting the sweet joy that they could work to better their lives, they were forced to come face to face with the bitter despair of the words ‘you need to pay more’.
「Let’s say…double of what you’ve been paying till now ne~」
「That! We can’t pay that!」
「No~t my~ pro~blem」
「H-how could you…….」
Gerashim’s face fell even deeper into a black void of despair.
………..I can’t just watch this.
「Oi you. Okama b.a.s.t.a.r.d.」
「Hmm~?」
I stepped forward and Marukovich turned to me with a threatening sound.
「Ara, aren’t you a good man? What’s your name?」
His voice suddenly changed into a soft and sweet one. My entire body was covered in goose b.u.mps.
「I’m the one who fixed this town.」
「Ara~?」
The look in Marukovich’s eyes changed.
He looked at me in a different type of appraisal.
I had never before felt so uncomfortable than when this guy stared at me.
「What’s your name?」
「Akito.」
「I see. So, what’s the meaning of all this?」
「The meaning?」
I thought about it and then looked at the people around me.
I’d gotten involved this far and I’d gotten them involved as well…so it didn’t feel right to just abandon them.
Besides, I was planning on enlarging my territory and becoming King someday.
In that case.
「I have decided to take this town of Magatan and the town of Bisk.」
「What did you just say?」
Marukovich glared daggers at me.
「You…do you understand what you’re saying right now?」
「Yes.」
「You’re saying this even after knowing Marato-sama’s dreadfulness ne~?」
「………」
「I see. Ok then~. I can’t make a decision about this myself…and I can’t do anything so I’ll return to Marato-sama with this news…」
Marukovich pulled on his horse’s reins and turned away from the town.
For now the situation seems to be resolv——-
「As if!」
Marukovich abruptly turned! He rushed on his horse towards me and swung his steel horse whip.
The flexible whip tore through the air towards me.
「Fu!」
I unsheathed Eternal Slave Kai in an Iai stance.
「Mira!」
「Yes!」
I simultaneously touched the blue gem on it and sucked in Mira.
I counterattacked with a swing of my katana—and the next moment Marukovich’s right arm went flying through the air.
「Wha——」
On the return swing I sent the surprised Marukovich’s head flying.
After seeing their leader killed, his subordinates scattered like baby spiders.
「Oooooo!」
「He got that Marukovich!」
「Amazing!」
A cheer went up among the crowd.
They all shuffled around and surrounded me, praising my strength.
I wasn’t in the mood to listen to such things.
This was the second time this had happened including Bisk.
「Risha, follow me.」
「Ok!」
「Mira remain as you are for the moment.」
(I understand.)
I took my two slaves with me and rushed out of town.
I went to chase after Marukovich’s escaping subordinates.
I was aiming for Marato’s base.
I had cut down his subordinates twice. If I don’t settle this now, then sooner or later there would be victims…of that I was sure.