The first one the Fish tribe’s poisonous claws dug into was the Kobold tribe, who had frequently been in the area where the Fish tribe lived for construction work.
The day n.o.buhide distributed money to the residents of the town, the Fish tribe tried to find someone frivolous from the Kobold tribe, and invited him to gamble.
Gambling was simple. As long as the result was unpredictable, all you had to do was to bet money. For example, throwing a stone up into the sky and betting which direction it would fall. Even though it was such a simple thing whereby betting money was considered gambling, it was unique in this world where the entertainment was very limited.
The variety of gambling games the Fish tribe prepared was immense. Bug fights, mouse racing, guessing games, et. cetera.
However, in reality, those games were by no means unpredictable. The same result always occurred when the Fish tribe partic.i.p.ated. They would first let their target win and then praise the target so that they would get overconfident. The target would then misunderstand that the fake win was due to their own strength.
The chosen target usually has never been particularly praised until now. The fact that they were able to do well without a sure way to win would make them feel good, as if drugs being injected into them. Even the Kobold tribe which was said to be clever was not immune against this cunning malice.
For the Fish tribe, who cheated on a regular basis even against their own kinsmen, tricking these people was like s.n.a.t.c.hing candy from a baby.
Then, the target would lose even if they were in perfect condition. Even though they seemed to be able to win, they somehow couldn’t win. But, the moment they think about quitting, they would win. That kind of game would continue so that the target would constantly dream of winning so that the bets continued without ending.
Nonetheless, the monthly stipend given by n.o.buhide was not much. Eventually, the target’s money would begin to run out, and those from the Fish tribe would then offer a big gamble.
“It’s a decisive match which can turn the tables.”
“If you win, would you not be able to get back what you’ve lost so far?”
“It’s probably your turn to win by now.”
The Fish tribesmen skillfully tempted the target with words and made them feel that they could win. The target would then be soundly crushed. Since victory and defeat were manipulated by the Fish tribe, it was a natural result.
When the target became unable to pay money, the Fish tribesmen would change their att.i.tudes and surround him.
“If you don’t have money, then you can bet something else instead of money. If you don’t have anything, borrow from someone.”
The target would usually not have something to subst.i.tute for money. There was also no way that they could tell someone that they needed a loan due to gambling since their contribution to their tribe was low. Their situation could be said to be a burden, and if such a person caused trouble for someone else, it would not be strange for that person to be abandoned by their tribe.
“There are camels, right?” The Fish tribesmen don’t particularly care about anything. They could even commit taboos without blinking an eye.
Camels were divine beasts as n.o.buhide, the leader of the town, loved camels. It was something unacceptable to be made as a subject of betting.
“Anyway, if you just say that the camels escaped, he probably wouldn’t mind it.” The Fish tribesmen urged.
The target would listen to their devilish whispers, and do something that cannot be undone anymore. The Fish tribesmen would then kill the camel, roast the meat and eat it. The target would also feast on the camel meat as well. By doing this, the Fish tribe would have successfully made an accomplice who would never betray them.
Thereafter, both parties would seek to gamble with the others. The taget knew that they were worthless, but they could not permit themselves to be the only unfortunate one.
Thus, the gambling spread like a ripple in a lake, and the town gradually became rotten.
However, there was also an exception - the Wolf tribe.
For the Wolf tribesmen, they were proud of being trusted by n.o.buhide more than any other tribe. That pride made them have a strong heart, and they never became lazy.
After n.o.buhide gave the Wolf tribe the power of upholding order, the residents who drowned in alcohol and gambling also started to work seriously. The town seemed to have regained its original shape.
But, that was just on surface. In the heart of beastmen other than the Wolf tribe, dissatisfaction was slowly being acc.u.mulated due to the power which was given to certain people.
Being ordered without impunity by the Wolf tribe who was supposed to be equal to them, it was impossible for the other beastmen to bear.
One night...
Inside the brick house built on the west side of the town, the head of every tribe except for the Wolf tribe were gathered. They were sitting in a circle with liquor and camel meat.
“Good grief, I am sick of working day after day.” The chief of the Fish tribe complained. Beside him, the chief of the Crow and Snake tribes also agreed loudly.
“......”
There was no response from the other chiefs. Many people have become lazy, but only those old chiefs remained stalwart. However, they could not even admonish their own tribesmen because they, too, were accomplices of the Fish tribe.
The chief of the Fish tribe behaved like they had no special attachment to the town. Their terrifying, reckless behaviour has been going on since they made these old beastmen accomplices in murdering and eating the camels. This made it hard for them to go against the Fish tribe.
Therefore, the old beastmen merely watched the the Fish tribe calmly. By doing so, the Fish tribe would not to make a move against them.
However, the Fish tribe’s chief’s confident remark was in vain. If n.o.buhide actually ordered them to leave the town, they would definitely lower their head without any shame to prevent that. This was something the old beastmen knew of from their shallow accompliceship.
“Even so, he only gives special treatment to the Wolf tribe. What is Fujiwarsama thinking?” The chief of the Fish tribe complained yet again.
“That’s right. Why is he always treating the Wolf tribe especially well?” The Pig tribe’s chief agreed.
They could not help but agree on this as they usually always see the Wolf tribe get preferential treatment. However, the Wolf tribe was the first one to settle here, so that was actually not something surprising.
“The wolf tribe also seems to be eating more delicious food, right, Gobi?” The chief of the Fish tribe looked at the only person who was not a chief in the circle.
It was Gobi of the Wolf tribe. Not everyone of the Wolf tribe was an honest person. Ill-natured wolfmen also exist.
“Ah, there is no mistake. Fujiwarsama is always eating delicious food with old man Jiharu. I’ve stolen some food that Fujiwarsama gave him, and it was extremely delicious.” Gobi said while stuffing his mouth with camel meat.
It was such a scene. In the present situation where food was guaranteed, the beastmen, who were extremely fond of delicious things, had tremendous interest in it.
The chief of cat tribe also began to speak. “A while ago, those who did a night raid on the human army were also treated to delicious food by Fujiwarsama.
The taste was something that couldn’t be forgotten. Even now, those people are still talking about it. The people from the Wolf tribe were also part of that at that time.”
It was the Wolf tribe yet again.
“We are also working hard like the Wolf tribe too. Why is there such a difference in everything?” The chief of the Fish tribe stated indignantly.
The other chiefs also agreed vehemently, and everyone began to speak of their dissatisfaction.
Certainly, while every tribe had a life that couldn’t be compared to the time here. But, after they got accustomed to it, the value of the meals that the beastmen obtained now dropped.
Desire knew no bounds. The beastmen were not satisfied with the current situation where they were living peacefully.
“To begin with, Fujiwarsama is too naive for a human!” The chief of the Goblin tribe shouted as he slammed the sake cup onto the floor.
The beastmen, under n.o.buhide’s directions, had repelled the humans. That fact made them have self-confidence that beastmen were superior to humans. For these people, who had deep resentments towards humans, to have their relationship reversed, they craved vengeance.
However, what n.o.buhide did was only giving consideration to humans, such as treatment for the injured people.
“How much did we suffer before we arrived at this town!? We should get revenge on the humans by throwing them out, not by giving them food!” The chief of the Goblin tribe yelled.
Again, voices of agreement echoed throughout the house. As soon as they settled, the chief of the Fish tribe looked at each chief’s face with his round eyes, and asked.
“Why, are you all listening to what a human says?”
Human. Needless to say, it was about n.o.buhide. The old chiefs stared at each other silently.
“Why, you ask..? It’s because he helped us when we were starving...” One of them replied hesitantly.
“However, was it not the humans who robbed us of everything?” The chief of the Fish tribe countered, and was met with silence. “Then, are we not qualified to get even more things? It should be an obvious right given to us.”
“Certainly...”
“That is certainly true.”
The chiefs nodded.
n.o.buhide had given them food and a place to live. That was the beastmen’s viewpoint. It was definitely thanks to n.o.buhide that they were able to live a much better life than most people in this continent. Even so, inside the beastmen’s hearts, a feeling of being victimized by n.o.buhide was swiftly born before they even knew it.
“Even so, how does Fujiwarsama do all these things?” The chief of the Fish tribe asked aloud.
Then, the chief of the Kobold tribe answered. “...The place where Fujiwarsama lives is suspicious. Every time there’s something new, it always comes out from there. At first, we thought that they’re things he produced with the art of alchemy, but Fujiwarsama does not even know of the word “ma” from magic. Perhaps there is something over there, something that produced all of the things in town.”
n.o.buhide had been persistent in asking about magic from the Kobold tribe. If he could use magic, why does he not know about something which everyone knew?
“Has anyone ever climbed over the wall?” The chief of the Fish tribe asked.
Everyone shook their heads in response. Everyone was interested in the place where n.o.buhide lived, but the size of the stone walls that were surrounding was on a different scale than the stone walls surrounding the town.
It was natural for them to think that he was hiding something, and become suspicious. However, they feared of being kicked out from the town if they did something to annoy him, so they did not take action.
“In other words, if we can get into that place, this town will become ours, the beastmen’s?”
The old chiefs were startled. Making the town theirs... They had never thought about it. But, they were still hesitating. This was regarding something every beastman had forcibly put in the corner of their minds, after all. Besides, they still felt indebted to n.o.buhide.
“W-Wait! Fujiwarsama has mysterious weapons. n.o.body can win against that! Even if we manage to take him by surprise, he’s always surrounded by those people from the Wolf tribe. If we make one mistake, we will suffer annihilation!” The chief from the Leopard tribe tried to change their minds.
They were frightened by n.o.buhide’s weapons. When they compared themselves to him, they did not have satisfactory weapons. At best, there were individuals who only owned bows and arrows, and farming tools such as hoes and plows.
Nevertheless, if they could catch him off guard, they might be able to beat n.o.buhide. However, n.o.buhide was more vigilant than ever now, and he was always escorted by the Wolf tribesmen.
“What? Is not there not someone from the Wolf tribe over here?” The chief of the Fish tribe looked pointedly at Gobi.
Gobi, having not listened to the story, merely grinned with cheeks red from liquor consumption.
Then the chief of the Fish tribe continued. “Also, someone from the Shugurin Dukedom contacted us. Soon, that country will come to attack this town. In that case, they would like for our Fish tribe to help.”
“Fool! Is the other side not a human as well?” One of the old chiefs spat. It was a natural reaction from the old chiefs.
However, as having antic.i.p.ated that, the chief of the Fish tribe smiled widely, showing off his jagged teeth.
“That’s right. I have no intentions to ally myself with the Shugurin Dukedom.
But, when it comes to war, Fujiwarsama will distribute weapons to protect the city. Then, we will be able to use the bows and cannons too. If we act together, we can use that chance. After we take over this town, we can then also defeat the Shugurin Dukedom.”
The old chiefs gulped audibly as their faces paled.
It was okay if they were just complaining. But, when it came to actually having to do it, they needed resolution. They need to prepare to return back to the painful lives they had before they arrived at this town.
“Interesting... My tribe will do it. To fear humans is a disgrace to beastmen.” The chief of the Crow tribe pledged.
“My tribe too. Our pride as the Snake tribe will not allow us to work under humans.” The chief of the Snake tribe followed up quickly.
Their words tickled the pride of the other beastmen.
“Ooh, brave people who aren’t afraid of humans. Now, these are true beastmen!” The words of the chief of the Fish tribe further stimulated the pride of the other beastmen.
By the way, this was arranged before the meeting. Usually, the three newcomer tribes quarrelled and tried to kick the other two out. However, because they were pursuing their own interests, they became united against a common enemy.
The chief of the Fish tribe looked at the old chiefs. His eyes were glinting, as if taunting them for being afraid of humans.
“L-let’s do it!” A trembling voice stated.
It was the Goblin tribe’s chief.
Amongst them, the Goblin and Kobold tribes had the closest a.s.sociations to the humans. But, they also hate humans the most. No, it should be said that this was because they were close to humans. Because of their close relations to humans, when they were rejected, the humiliation and rage penetrated into the marrow of their very beings.
“W-We, too will.” When the Goblin tribe partic.i.p.ated, it was impossible for the Kobold tribe to not partic.i.p.ate. These two tribes were always opposing each other after all.
“...We will too.”
“...Us too.”
After that, peer pressure made the remaining people decide. If someone had said no, a different result might have occurred. But, it was difficult to disagree when flow has already been decided.
When everyone finally voiced their approval, the chief of the Fish tribe nodded with satisfaction.
“This is why we are beastmen. Everyone, let’s blow away Fujiwara.” He declared.
The usual honorific for n.o.buhide has disappeared.
◆
It was the beginning of August, a rather hot day.
Far away south of the Kingdom of Sandra, the clear blue sky was spread over the place which some parts of the human world called the Beastmen Town.
The bright sun illuminated the world. The black barrels of the mountain cannons lined up atop the stone walls surrounding the town dimmed the reflection of the sunlight.
It was not only the cannons that were illuminated by the light on this intense day. A tremendous number of beastmen were also on the stone walls.
The Wolf and Racc.o.o.n tribes were both atop the northern stone wall. There was an artilleryman attached to the cannons, and archers lined up between each cannon.
n.o.buhide Fujiwara, the head of the town, was at that place too.
Their line of sight were uniformly at the ground far away. A human army had appeared once again in this place. The enemy was setting up camp far away, and a messenger had come to the town while riding a horse.
Then, an archer pulled his bow at the messenger.
“We are of the Shugurin Dukedom! This place will become the territory of the Shugurin Dukedom! Surrender immediately!” The messenger announced loudly.
He was wearing good attire. It was different from last time since they even sent a messenger. This meant that a real army was coming to invade.
“We will accept your declaration of war and take up arms!” n.o.buhide shouted loudly.
When he heard that, the messenger turned around and rode back to his own camp. The archer still had his arrowhead pointed at the back of the messenger as he left.
Suddenly, n.o.buhide looked at his right side, as if being lured that way.
For some reason. It was really something that didn’t need any attention. But, for some reason, he just had the urge to look.
Then, someone from the Wolf tribe aimed an arrow at n.o.buhide.
―― And he let loose the arrow.