Chapter 37 - 4-1
Geraha awakened to his sexuality during the war.
It was in the midst of the conflict with the Byo Empire. The Byo Empire could be called a global superpower.
Geraha fought as the chief of a two-thousand-household army. In reality, most of these two thousand households were cavalry following Astai. As always, Astai was content to remain as Geraha's vice-commander.
"I'll stay with you for a while. Tenge wants that too."
Geraha was grateful for these words from Astai.
Furthermore, there were many soldiers from the Ishma tribe under Geraha's command.
"They are good soldiers, Geraha," his older brother Tenge had said when he entrusted them to him. "Those fellows are itching to run wild against the Byo nation."
If one were to ask which part of the conquest of the Byo Empire Geraha, Astai, and the five-hundred-household chief Radoba were centered upon, it was looting, massacre, and assault.
The main force of this expeditionary army was Sinkuk's five-thousand-household army. Sinkuk was the deputy for the tribal chief Salakesh.
Adding Tenge's three-thousand-household army and Geraha's two-thousand-household army, the total was ten thousand.
His older brother Tenge seemed dissatisfied with Sinkuk being the general. However, it was Sinkuk who had persuaded Salakesh and Zuft Wolf, who had opposed the attack on the Byo nation. Without Sinkuk's five-thousand-household army, the war likely would not have happened.
Ten thousand riders galloped across the plains. As they approached the Byo Empire, they slowed their horses.
They invaded gradually from the empire's borders. Geraha's army split into several groups, attacking local towns and villages, carrying out looting and assault, and departing in an instant.
The Byo Empire suffered from continuous poor harvests. Almost the entire land was covered in famine. On top of that, having their food stolen by the Kosa people was unbearable. The people tilling the fields abandoned their homes and became refugees, heading for the imperial capital, Saada. Once gathered in the imperial capital, they would consume all the provisions stored in Saada.
This was the outline of the strategy devised by Tenge Wolf.
If food became scarce, they could not maintain a siege. The imperial army would have to leave the castle and force a decisive battle. In a field battle, the Kosa cavalry had various ways to handle things.
The Kosa expeditionary army doubled in size in just one month. Nomads wandering around the empire's periphery joined in, and local armies within the empire surrendered, turning it into a miscellaneous composite army in the blink of an eye. Even so, they lacked soldiers. There was information that the Byo Empire was coming to strike down the Kosa army with a regular army of two hundred thousand. His older brother Tenge was rushing into the diplomacy of manipulating the surrounding foreign tribes.
Meanwhile, for Geraha and the others, every day was looting and assault.
The orders received from Tenge were surprisingly detailed.
'Do not kill the people who flee. Give them as much time to escape as possible.'
'Massacre the people who remain. Make them bleed in large quantities by cutting their throats and such. Do not burn the corpses until a plague is confirmed. Corpses indoors must be placed directly in front of the doors to instill terror in those who open them. Corpses outdoors on the road are to be placed face up. For the corpses of women, strip away their clothes to show they were violated.'
'Do not kill children and the elderly. They will be a hindrance to the enemy. Show the children the state of the killings to instill terror in them. Confirm the disguise of pregnant women. Pregnant women must not be killed. This is so that they may raise the surviving infants.'
'Thousand-household chiefs and hundred-household chiefs must not rape women. If they do, it will be regarded as the monopolization of spoils. This does not apply to ten-household chiefs, but they must not monopolize women.'
He thought it was the height of cruelty, but considering the nature of the operation, it was convincing.
Regardless, instilling fear was the important thing.
Geraha diligently performed his duties.
It was then, while watching the soldiers rape women, that he became conscious of sex.
Having developed excessively, Geraha had felt an aching in his lower abdomen since he was five or six years old. He felt as though the aching was relieved when he rode a horse, but he had not known its true nature until now, as he approached sixteen.
—I see. So this is what one does.
Years of doubt melted away.
Whenever Geraha found a scene of rape, he always stopped by and watched the whole thing. Half of his heart felt dread, and the other half was uncontrollably envious. Watching it always excited him, and he would constantly make beast-like snorts through his nose.
"General-dono, it... it must be difficult to work,"
some soldiers would say, trying to distract him.
One day, while gazing at a woman being raped as usual, he felt a pain in his buttocks.
Thinking he had been bitten by a dog, he looked back to find a child just pulling a spear out of Geraha's buttocks.
Fortunately, the wound was shallow. Geraha snatched the spear and snapped it. He made a gesture toward the child as if brushing away a fly. Then, the soldiers who had been waiting their turn to rape suddenly became murderous. He hurriedly captured the child.
Astai arrived there. Astai drew his barbarian blade and killed the child with a single stroke.
"Geraha, come. Let's talk a bit."
In the northern part of the Byo Empire, dust storms blow in around the end of summer. Even so, in early spring, it is a region rich in greenery, where fields and farms spread out lushly. Water is abundant, and irrigation is well-maintained. If there were no Kosa people and no screams to be heard, it would surely be peaceful. Geraha and Astai sat on an embankment. Hundred-household chief Radoba also arrived there.
"That boy was likely that woman's son. He probably swung the spear wanting to avenge her. However, once you hold a spear, you are no longer a child, but a warrior. He had to be killed."
Astai-ni said this first.
"Geraha, do you think the soldiers are raping women with great joy? Surprisingly, it's not quite like that. A man's happiness, after all, is to love a woman and be loved by a woman. If you dig to the very bottom of their hearts, in truth, even the soldiers do not want to strip their clothes in front of their comrades. Even so, men are miserable. As you have noticed, on the battlefield, they cannot help but do such things. On top of that, they must kill the woman they raped. This is a painful thing unless one can completely become someone else within oneself."
Geraha nodded silently.
"Geraha, stop watching the soldiers rape women. It's unsightly, and it brings shame upon your comrades."
Geraha blushed. "Astai-ni..."
"I understand. Your body is suffering, isn't it?"
"Geraha-dono," hundred-household chief Radoba also joined the conversation. "When it is painful, there is a way. Like this, you grasp the thing, and then like this—"
Geraha felt even more ashamed. He had already tried and knew the method of relieving the tingling that the hundred-household chief was teaching.
"However, Geraha-dono, it is just a little more patience," under Radoba's bold, black eyebrows were eyes of utter seriousness. "I envy the Lord. The Princess Sura of the Byo nation is said to be a beauty that could topple a kingdom."
The giant youth shrank his body and shook his head.
"Astai-ni, Radoba-dono. Mine is a little, no, quite different from that of the soldiers."
Astai and the hundred-household chief looked at each other.
"That 'it' is the thing, isn't it?"
"What do you mean by different?"
As Geraha acted shy, Astai became irritated.
"Undo your belt. Let me see it for a moment."
Though he hesitated, it would be faster to have them see it than to explain with words. Geraha stood up and lowered his trousers and underwear. His member was not yet cold and was pointing upward.
He thought they would find it disgusting, but it was different. Astai and Radoba's eyes sparkled.
"I suspected as much, but—"
"To be such a magnificent thing—such a thing!"
"Look at the head. It looks like it's the size of a clenched fist."
"It has the air of something auspicious, a lucky charm."
"If we show this, perhaps the Byo nation will surrender?"
There was a playful ring to the two men's voices.
"With this, will I be able to love a woman?"
Only Geraha remained anxious. The two laughed.
"And here I wondered what you were going to say."
"A luxurious worry indeed."
"Geraha, women give birth to infants, you know?"
"Rather, you are blessed. Once a woman tastes the Lord, she will be unable to leave the Lord's side. You must use fingers and such to gradually accustom the partner's body before performing it."
Is it possible?
With a woman, that thing. Thinking that, he felt relieved. Simultaneously, his scrotum twitched like a horse's neigh, and his nearly withered penis suddenly became engorged. The skin and mucous membranes tightened, and the size certainly increased about twofold.
The smiles vanished from Astai and the hundred-household chief's faces.
"—That said, just in case, you should consult a doctor."
"That would be best. Now, Geraha-dono. It will affect the wound on your buttocks. Please put your clothes back on."
"...You two, what on earth..." Geraha was bewildered.
The two of them would not meet Geraha's eyes.
What is it, he wondered.
What, after all, is it no good?
While putting on his underwear in the middle of enemy territory, Geraha felt disappointed.
—With this ugly form, trying to be liked by a woman is impossible.
Geraha mocked himself.
This is fine, he told himself.
He no longer had the luxury of worrying.
The Byo nation did not move as expected. The population of the empire's north was undoubtedly undergoing a great migration. The imperial capital was overflowing with refugees clutching hunger. However, the great city Saada responded to that enormously swollen appetite.
Conversely, a situation occurred where the Kosa army's provisions were stolen by the Byo imperial army.
Supplies from Kandasyata were attacked by the Byo empire's cavalry. It was said the enemy cavalry came straight as a flying arrow. The Kosa household chief in charge of supplies was so impressed by their polished riding that he was left speechless.
"The Byo nation likely wants to say this," Sinkuk deciphered the enemy's intent. "If the war drags on, it is Kosa that will wither and die."
—It seems the enemy has good cavalry.
Geraha felt an interest in that. Even so, the Kosa cavalry were ten times more capable. If Geraha had commanded the attack on the transport unit, he would have shredded the baggage train and disappeared without anyone seeing the retreat. Moreover, he would have returned leisurely after thoroughly disrupting the enemy's rear.
—Our feet are faster.
If they were Kosa cavalry, could they not push deeper into the imperial territory?
If they wanted to fuel the enemy's anxiety and apply pressure, it would be better to cut in further.
Sinkuk and Tenge took the fact that the enemy cavalry had taken their rear seriously and began rearranging the troops. That in itself was a convincing response.
—Does Big Brother intend to do this slowly?
The war might drag on.
If it were me.
What would I do, Geraha thought deeply. There were times when he became so absorbed that he thought for hours without noticing.
Contrary to Geraha's expectations, the war situation improved surprisingly quickly.
The Mukuri people became allies. The Mukuri were nomads whose domain was the northeast of the Byo Empire. In the time of Great King Aframa, they were one of the tribes constituting the Kosa nation. When the Kosa nation split, they became independent and frequently invaded the Byo Empire.
The empire countered the Mukuri by sending the Ishma tribe against them.
The Mukuri and the Ishma tribe were in a relationship of conflict, having danced to the Byo empire's schemes.
It was about two months after the war began that Tenge Wolf visited the King of the Mukuri, bringing a general of the Ishma division.
Before departing, Geraha had a chance to speak with his brother.
"I thought I would mediate between the Mukuri and the Ishma tribe,"
Tenge said, but Geraha thought it would be difficult.
"Big Brother, is it not dangerous?"
Tenge laughed. "I'll tell only you, but in truth, the deal is already settled through a trustworthy person. So there is no need to worry. However, you must not tell anyone about this. It might reach the general's ears."
"Is it something bad if Sinkuk-ni finds out?"
"Despite how he looks, Shin-ni takes other people's credit. You be careful too."
He wanted Big Brother and Sinkuk to get along, but regardless.
A few days later, Tenge returned with the King of the Mukuri and the King's soldiers.
Geraha was called to the next day's military council and saw the King of the Mukuri. The King was a small old man with white eyebrows covering his eyes. He had a strange name, Kirikiri. He laughed, geh-heh-heh.
"I have been waiting for this time, geh-heh-heh," he would say. "The day I can become a Kosa person once again. Looking at you all, you are all so young. You likely know nothing of war. Heh-heh."
Kirikiri spoke of the achievements of the Kosa hero, Great King Aframa.
He spoke as if he had seen it, saying that a demonic nature lurks within the dynamics that move war, and the Great King knew that demonic nature completely.
"But well, the Great King's greatest achievement was proving the power of us people of the grasslands to the world. If the people of the grasslands combine their strength, there is no enemy on this earth who can match us. Is Salakesh-sama thinking of that? Namely, the act of taking the world."
Tenge stole a glance at Sinkuk's profile. Sinkuk also looked at Tenge with a displeased face.
"Geh-heh-heh. Well, enough. Enough. Regarding the strategy,"
he said, making a serious face.
"The Mukuri will attack Saada. Without a doubt, the Byo will surrender with that. The actual situation of the empire is terrible. You all should just remain unscathed and keep a watchful eye. I ask that of you."
Suddenly becoming humble, Kirikiri bowed his head.
"However, please do not forget that it was the Mukuri who shed blood first."
The old man, who raised his eyes to emphasize the point, looked exactly like a wolf prostrate on the ground.
As a result, Kirikiri did exactly what he said.
The Byo Empire sought peace. However, it was not as easy as the old man's tone suggested.
Geraha participated in the attack on the imperial capital. As expected, they could not leave everything to Kirikiri. Sinkuk and Tenge's armies were preserved, and Geraha's army, treated as a mobile force, participated in the attack.
Geraha did the job of driving away the enemy's reinforcements and allied forces coming from the south of the empire. The reinforcements were cowardly. They fled immediately.
Timing it for when things had settled, Geraha went to observe the siege.
The war could be seen at a glance from the high ground.
The scale of the besieging army was large. As far as the eye could see, people filled the area around the city. The voices raised by the soldiers were like the earth groaning. Because of the dust they kicked up, Saada looked as if it were in the middle of a storm. When the soldiers moved in herds, it became a spectacular sight, as if the earth had split.
The city of Saada was surrounded by walls. The bravery of the Mukuri people attacking them was enough to evoke a nightmare. The Byo empire's garrison soldiers were not weak. The Mukuri people, pitifully, descended from their horses and clung to the city walls using ladders, but they were knocked down one after another. They fell like leaves blown by the autumn wind.
Even so, look at the sheer number of the besieging army.
"Are there five hundred thousand?"
When Geraha asked, Kirikiri raised his face as if bothered. Flies were swarming his tattooed neck. After swatting them, he spoke.
"First, first, I gathered them with the prospect of winning."
He did not give an exact number.
It seemed not all of them were Mukuri soldiers. There were several unfamiliar flags.
When he asked for an explanation, Kirikiri laughed with a dirty voice.
"Those are the Nanzen, and those over there are the Katan tribe. Both are blood allies of the Mukuri."
"What about those ships over there?"
Geraha pointed to the warships floating at the river mouth.
The fleet blocked the river mouth, preventing supplies from the sea.
"I don't know,"
the old man answered displeasurably.
His attitude toward Geraha was overtly bad, but it didn't bother him. Rather, he felt comfortable.
"Those are likely the Jamal navy that Tenge manipulated."
"Big Brother did?"
Geraha was once again impressed by his brother. The nerve to go into the midst of people who fight with ships was amazing.
In the siege, it looked as if the Mukuri people were losing. Kirikiri was calm.
"You are impatient. The Byo will wave the flag of surrender soon."
That is exactly what happened.
A few days later, the flag was waved.
The greatest objective of this war was to make the Byo Empire stop contact with the Ishma tribe.
Tenge came for the peace negotiations. The conditions Tenge put forward were mainly two. The Byo nation would recognize Salakesh as the representative of Kosa and would not negotiate with any Kosa people other than Salakesh. The Byo nation would submit to Kosa and pay tribute every year.
In the first year's tribute, the Emperor's daughter, Princess Sura, was included.
The peace envoys took the conditions back. The next day, sad news was brought by the envoys.
Princess Sura, upon learning she was to be married to Geraha, had committed suicide.
When he received the news, Geraha blinked.
—To the point of death, huh. She hates me enough to die.
His brother and Astai comforted him incessantly. Especially his brother Tenge was enraged.
However, Geraha remembered. He had forgotten during the war. Geraha was a clumsy giant with a disgusting face.
—I had forgotten. I had forgotten.
What was it to forget one's true self? During the war, only when given a role, Geraha could think of himself as a decent human being. What would happen when the war ended? Tenge had a family. Astai did too. The two would return to their families.
What would happen to me?
A body that cannot even embrace a woman. I can never have a family in my life. Once the war ends, Geraha will be alone.
Can I return to that loneliness from back then?
Geraha shuddered.
—I wish the war would continue forever.
He thought so from the bottom of his heart.