Chapter 44 - 4-8
Preparations for the hunt progressed during the summer.
Siddim had its own hunting laws, and hunting was strictly restricted. Haider Skyner ran about, requesting permission from the Forest Director and the forest deputies stationed in each wood, pushing through detailed planning documents.
Yugis read through the plan once and shook his head.
"This won't do."
At the Fourth Army barracks, in front of everyone, Yugis criticized Haider.
There weren't enough hunting dogs. The plan stated they would use local beaters, but Yugis wanted to use people they had selected themselves from start to finish. The number of Noro-deer permitted for hunting was far too low. He also demanded that if they encountered and hunted wolves, a bounty should be paid.
"Overall, it's lacking. Do it over."
The atmosphere in the room became heavy. Yugis paid it no mind. He had decided to push this hunt through with this persona.
Haider, being who he was, understood.
"Understood. I'll get to it immediately,"
he said, and left. It was only when Yugis saw that he wore his usual smile, rather than a displeased look, that his heart ached.
Is belittling a best friend in public a step toward becoming the Demon King?
Thinking that made him feel pathetic.
However, the reality was that if he didn't start from such a place, nothing would begin.
In the end, it became a grand project that spanned from the end of summer to the beginning of winter, touring the entire eastern region.
When they departed the royal capital, spectators lined the road. It was a large-scale hunt with over a hundred beaters. There were thirty hunters, twenty dog trainers with hunting dogs, ten baggage handlers managing the wagons, and additionally, they hired horn-blowers, taxidermists, and cooks, each bringing their own attendants. Furthermore, two officials under the Forest Director—acting as overseers—accompanied them.
Such was the procession.
"Do they intend to sweep up every piece of game in the forest?"
It was no wonder the citizens spoke up loudly.
A hunt of this scale had not occurred for a long time.
Malfa City was a military city where city walls crisscrossed the interior. Yugis had ordered the man in charge of the horns to blow them every time they passed through a city gate.
They had left the castle and were approaching the East Gate. Among the spectators was a figure on horseback.
It was Laicanel Thora.
He wore a smile. When Yugis raised one hand as a greeting, Laicanel stuck out his tongue.
It was a subtle gesture that could be seen as an insult to Yugis, or simply as him licking his lips.
"Did you leave people in the royal capital?"
Yugis was surprised by a voice suddenly calling to him from behind.
The one who pulled his horse up alongside him was his father, Urgil Necrat.
"What is it?"
"Did you leave anyone in Malfa?"
The mustache beneath the nose of his father's profile twitched.
In Malfa City, he was leaving a man named Arnosh Dracy, an attendant to Raslaf Dravar. Arnosh was a capable man who could handle most things. If he took him along, Raslaf would likely rely on this attendant. It was more useful to leave him in charge of the home front.
Yugis told his father this.
"Even if there is a sudden change in the royal capital, do not return immediately."
Yugis nodded.
Yugis's reading was that nothing should happen at this time. However, seeing Laicanel's earlier gesture, he felt he should revise that thought.
It had been a long time since he had spoken with his father alone. Not since his father had accompanied him to give greetings for his care at the King's School. When Yugis was being beaten by the royal army soldiers in the dungeon, it seemed his father had threatened to corner Sedias Thora over the matter of the Kosa people.
"It seems Father has some means of preventing an attack by the Kosa people."
"Do you remember what I told you?"
"What was it?"
"I do not expect any special action from you. Stay quiet."
Yugis laughed through his nose. "I intended to do nothing, but before I knew it, I was standing at the head of a procession like this."
"What's that? Do you want praise? This procession is junk from the front to the back. Don't get ahead of yourself."
"If sharpened, it will surely become a sword that destroys the enemy."
"The people behind you are merely looking at your shadow," his father said gloomily. "The real you is just a foolish child found anywhere. Be careful not to be rash. Leave the matter of the Kosa people to me."
Urgil Necrat slipped out of the line as nonchalantly as when he had arrived, like a river splitting into a tributary, and melted into the crowd.
"Father! Be careful!"
Yugis called out to his father's back. It was a voice that vented frustration.
The start of the hunt was the worst.
Game existed. If the hunters searched, traces could be found immediately.
However, Yugis did not permit the hunt.
Because they were small fry. The hunters would measure the height of footprints found by the dogs or the marks where deer rubbed their antlers against trees to judge the size of the prey.
"Sir, this one is a decent size."
The hunters would bring the Fukuronotsu, the skin of deer antlers covered in short hair. When early autumn arrives, deer rub their antlers against tree bark, scraping off the Fukuronotsu. Hunters judge whether the prey is nearby by looking at the freshness of the fallen Fukuronotsu.
"I said it's small. Don't make me say it again."
Yugis and the thirteen members of the Fourth Army had set up a table in the forest, where they ate the brought food and drank wine while waiting for reports.
"But... it's quite large."
The hunting experts collectively directed eyes of distrust toward Yugis.
—Can you even hunt prey larger than this?
That is what they wanted to say.
They could.
With this many beaters, any prey could be hunted safely.
Provided, of course, that the command was solid.
Two days had passed since departure.
Seeing Yugis reject the reports brought by the hunters one after another, his comrades' words became fewer.
"Hey, Yugis—"
When Cloden or Kashu Coil spoke up hesitantly,
"What" was the blatantly displeased reply he gave.
He had already explained the reason for targeting large game.
In a hunt of this scale, there was no meaning in hunting small fry. Because it was natural to be able to hunt them.
All the deer of Siddim belonged to His Majesty the King. To hunt wastefully would be disloyalty.
Yugis explained this repeatedly.
Everyone began to sigh.
He intended to listen to these sighs for a week, but the next day, news of something out of the ordinary flew in.
"Sir, we found one! Height of one jo!"
"One jo? An elk?"
The hunter presented the Fukuronotsu skin. "It's a Red Deer."
One jo was a height one had to look up at.
"Well done." Yugis laughed loudly and gave the hunter a dagger with gemstones inlaid in the hilt, sheath and all, as a reward.
"No way..." the one who spoke was the hunting officer appointed as an overseer by the Forest Director. "Do you intend to hunt it? You must not, that is surely the 'King of the Night'."
"King of the Night?" Hearing the poetic name, Yugis's heart fluttered.
"It is the master of this forest. A Red Deer like a monster with a violent temperament. All hunters who challenged the King of the Night have lost their lives. Even wolves are said to be scattered by the King of the Night and flee in packs."
"Did you hear that? It seems to be a famous deer." He looked around at his comrades in excitement.
There were several anxious expressions, but fortunately, no pale faces.
If he gave instructions, the anxiety could be erased.
"Udoh, Raidi." These two were skilled riders and had hunting experience. "Take the hunters and cut off the retreat. Pull back the dogs with a habit of fear, and take only the ferocious ones. The prey is huge; one thrust will cause deaths. Let no one stand in front of the prey. We'll meet at the 'Red Spring'."
"Understood!" The two, carrying bows and arrows and mounted, entered the grove as if sliding in, accompanied by several hunters.
"Cloden, take one hunter on the back of your horse and get ahead. Climb a tree and watch the direction the deer fled. Give instructions to the following beaters."
"I'll try."
"The rest of you come with me. Raslaf, stay by my side. Remember the caution: do not stand in front of the prey, and let no one stand between yourself and the prey. Follow me!"
The attendant Dash was waiting. Yugis received the horn from the attendant while walking.
He blew that horn.
At this signal, the pursuing dogs began to run. Hunting dogs do not rest until they corner the prey.
As for what to do with the slain deer, they ate it.
True to its name, the fallen King of the Night was indeed huge. That said, no matter how large the game, it could not be carved up for nearly two hundred people.
It was just after noon when they brought it down with arrows. Since there was still time, after lunch, Yugis ordered Raidi Mengel and Udoh Renne to hunt the remaining amount. It was the rule of the hunt to give deer meat to the beaters and the hunting dogs as well.
"I want to go hunt some small fry too," Kashu Coil said, edging closer. "Doesn't it seem easy?"
"Me too, I'm going too."
Zeal Andros also raised his hand.
Yugis permitted it. "Take all the idle hunters. Above all, do not be reckless. Listen properly to the hunters' words. Never get lost."
While seeing off Kashu and Zeal as they drove their horses forward with vigor, Yugis asked the head hunter nearby.
"Those two, how many do you think they'll hunt?"
"First of all, it'll likely be impossible,"
the head hunter answered. He had already attached the dagger Yugis gave him to his belt.
"That's harsh. My prediction is they'll hunt one."
"They won't hunt a single one. When they return empty-handed, they'll realize there was meaning in the Captain's instructions."
This man, who looked to be over thirty, had been calling Yugis "Sir, Sir," but it seemed he had upgraded him to Captain at some point.
"The two who left earlier will hunt one, maybe two if they're lucky. More than that, Captain, your handling at the 'Red Spring' was splendid."
"It's not my first time."
"The King of the Night must have been terrifying, right?"
"Were you afraid?"
The head hunter shook his head.
"I thought so."
Yugis did not believe the ferocity of the King of the Night described by the Forest Director's official.
Because there was not the slightest agitation in the head hunter's expression at that time.
Yugis saw that the hunting officer must have listened to rumors that were somewhat exaggerated. Even from Yugis's experience, a deer that scatters a pack of wolves was hard to imagine.
Though, when he witnessed the real thing,
—With this, even wolves would tuck their tails.
he had thought.
Upon arriving at the lake the locals called the 'Red Spring', Yugis immediately determined the prey's path and divided his comrades into two groups to lie in ambush.
This is what people cannot do in hunting.
Since the opponent is an animal, one does not know where it will pass.
Therefore, they tend to disperse the archers and set up a wide perimeter. With bows and arrows, if you don't concentrate them and fire at once, they hardly hit. If you disperse them, the hit rate drops significantly.
It is better to take the ambush point narrow, as if gambling. Even if it fails, you know immediately and can move to the next action.
As a result, the King of the Night passed perfectly through the spot Yugis determined and fell to the arrows released by his comrades.
Overwhelmed by the sheer size of the King of the Night, Yugis feared his comrades might be struck by a wind of cowardice.
Not a single person was frightened, and the giant deer fell.
At this moment, even Yugis, who had been behaving arrogantly, thanked his comrades, and the comrades, rejoicing, forgave Yugis's displeasure of the past few days.
It turned out as the head hunter said.
Zeal Andros and Kashu Coil could not slay a single one and returned empty-handed, while Raidi and Udoh brought back two deer. The head of the King of the Night became a taxidermy mount, and the party enjoyed a lively banquet that night.
Moving to the next forest, Yugis slightly relaxed the policy of targeting large game.
To be honest, he had no obsession with the size of the prey. He simply wanted to slay a large target that seemed unhuntable under his own command at the start to gain trust.
Zeal Andros's hunting skills improved rapidly.
If he were to appoint commanders within the Fourth Army,
—Zeal, then Raidi and Udoh.
Yugis thought these three were the ones.
In particular, the handsome Raidi Mengel understood Yugis's intentions well.
When stating his own opinion,
"In other words, we give the hunters a rest and then drive the prey to the cliff, right?"
he would rephrase Yugis's orders by breaking them down, and then
"Then, how about doing it like this?"
he would modestly suggest a new plan.
On top of being intelligent,
—To someone like me.
he was being considerate.
There was Raidi's younger brother, Zett Mengel. A boy with hair cropped short like a priest. He was serious, pious, and had a side that was inflexible. This Zett Mengel was also a rare find of a man.
Hunting did not always involve camping in the wild. When they came near a town, they naturally rented an inn in the town. There, they replenished food and wine.
When staying in a town, they were hot-blooded men.
Drinking and rioting, rioting in brothels, rioting by fighting with passersby—regardless of whether they were beaters, hunters, or children of nobles, in short, they rioted.
Yugis cracked down on this. He set rules and enforced them. That was fine. However, he hesitated to nag them to their faces. He didn't want to buy resentment over such trivial matters. If it concerned the hunt, he would explode in temper as much as he liked. He would insult them whether they were comrades or friends. He showed no mercy to those who interfered with the goal of hunting prey. He would yell at them thoroughly. Eventually, he would wage war with this group. If they didn't absolutely obey his orders, it wouldn't be a war.
However, he didn't want to say things like "don't buy women" or "don't drink too much." If he spoke of small things,
—A noisy fellow.
he would be seen as a small person. As a commander, that was fatal.
However, Zett Mengel, who never missed his morning and evening prayers, boldly cautioned them.
"As a follower of the Roma faith..."
He would start like that.
"Heavy drinking? Lust? Gambling? Filthy! Can you even call yourself a knight? If it were me, I would die of shame."
He calmly gouged out the human weaknesses that no one wanted touched. Zett Mengel cared only for the mood of God and paid no mind to being hated by people.
—I shall make great use of this guy.
And have him take on the role of the hated one, Yugis thought.
Raslaf Dravar and Kashu Coil also began to understand that they could hunt prey safely if they followed Yugis. Raslaf had good intuition and seemed like he could become a skilled hunter if given the chance. Kashu achieved results in ambushes. To Yugis's surprise, Kashu was a considerably patient man.
The students of the Fourth Army grew accustomed to their respective roles and began to work in an organized manner.
"Young Master, I've been wondering when to tell you,"
Dash, who came to pour wine during dinner one evening, said in a low voice.
"Your reputation has dropped quite a bit, it would seem."
"I imagine so."
"They were saying things like 'Necrat has changed' or 'He's playing the tyrant'."
"...I see."
"However, recently, no one has been speaking ill of you behind your back."
"Have things recovered somehow?"
"Not at all. Quite the opposite. Everyone has become completely disgusted with you and thinks it's not worth badmouthing you even as a joke. Because if they're heard, they'll be yelled at."
Yugis looked around at his comrades enjoying their meal boisterously.
Their existence felt distant.
—This is fine. It's fine.
he told himself.
Nagging was the only method he had right now.
A chill that ended autumn was slammed from the sky to the earth on the wind, and the grasslands began to wither. The hunt also approached its end.
The hunt was a great success.
Many large prey were hunted. Well, that was a trivial matter. It was evidence of how much the eastern nobles had held back for His Majesty the King—or rather, how they had refrained from hunting out of fear of the Thora family. Hunting must not have been conducted for a while. The forest beasts were abundant.
Yugis's harvest was that everyone could share the knowledge of the topography of eastern Siddim.
And that the organization had taken shape.
There were countless small accidents, but not a single death occurred. This was something to be proud of. However, it was regrettable that two among the beaters suffered serious injuries.
He was surprised, however, that Haider Skyner had prepared compensation money for such cases.
"Let's make it generous," Haider had said. "We should raise the people's reputation as much as possible while we can. It will surely be useful in the future."
Haider did not stand out much during this trip. He had handled the background work single-handedly, such as food management and cleaning up the hunting grounds. It was thanks to this man that the hunting proceeded without delay. It was not an ordinary level of skill.
If entrusted as a field commander, he would likely move the army best among the comrades.
Should he send Haider to the front lines?
Yugis thought about this point often. As a conclusion, he was leaning toward the idea that if the opponent were the Kosa people, those with a wilder personality like Zeal Andros or Udoh Renne would fare better. For Haider,
—It's better to let him see the whole picture.
He would be good at planning operations. He would likely handle the supervision of supplies well too.
Regardless, Yugis wanted Haider by his side.
If something happened to him, this man was the only one who could take over command.
Speaking of not standing out, Cloden also had no presence during the hunt.
Cloden, to begin with, did not participate much in the hunt. He likely didn't enjoy it.
Occasionally he would come to Yugis and, having heard it from somewhere,
"I heard that armor used by Great King Aframa's army remains in a nearby town. I'm going to see it,"
or
"I heard a great mage lives in this forest. I'm going to find them,"
he would say and leave, often accompanied by hunters he had become friendly with.
Yugis permitted only Cloden to act as he pleased. He was a man who displayed his talent better if not tied down poorly. In fact, Cloden brought back information such as legends of Great King Aframa's Kosa army, the local climate, and the temperament of the residents.
It was mysterious how he always managed to find and catch up with them no matter where Yugis and the others moved. Cloden indeed had something akin to a supernatural ability.
On the final day of the hunt, there was a grand banquet from just after noon.
They would return to Malfa City from the east, which was close to their hometowns. Normally, he would have wanted to disband them once here and let them see their parents' faces.
However, he should not permit such a thing. The comrades also suppressed those feelings and did not speak of them. Everyone behaved cheerfully. Yugis was happy about that.
When night fell, Yugis stood up to cool off in the night air.
The banquet was being held on a hill with a good view. They had pitched tents to make beds and lit several bonfires, using it as a venue. Yugis descended the hill toward the area where there were no people. It was a clear autumn starry sky.
Sitting his backside on the ground and throwing out his legs rudely, he thinks he spent some time thinking of nothing. Suddenly looking back, he saw Haider approaching.
"Is it a matter of 'somehow, somehow'?"
Haider sat down beside him.
"Yeah, thanks to everyone, the shape is becoming visible," Yugis said. "Sorry for being so wild."
"No, it was quite a sight."
While the two were laughing softly,
"Yo," Cloden also approached.
In his hand, he held a bottle of wine and three skewers of meat.
"I swiped these from those idiots over there. Let's eat them before we're found."
"You're a bad fellow."
"Those look like delicious spoils of war."
Each received meat, and they shared the wine.
Trivial conversation began. Being drunk, Yugis forgot his position for a while. This might be the last time they could talk like this.
The conversation eventually shifted to "from now on."
"As I thought, I absolutely want cavalry," Yugis confessed in a low voice. "There is only one cavalry captain in Siddim who can stand against the Kosa people."
"Who is it?"
"Ness de Syllabus. I want to make him a comrade."
"Laicanel's young master won't let him go. Besides," Cloden spat out the skewer he had in his mouth onto the ground. "Besides, I heard Ness has changed recently."
Yugis had heard that story too. The Ness Syllabus he had known when he was treated to wine before was a dignified son of a noble. But, perhaps having suffered a mental breakdown, the recent Ness was apparently nothing more than an erratic thug. His personality had become violent, and his memory and intelligence were declining.
However, contrary to the decay of his nature, his martial skills were said to have improved to an eerie degree. The story was that no one could match Ness in swordplay or unarmed grappling. He possessed a ghostly strength in spears, bows, and even daggers—and of course, in mounted combat.
Cavalry is the most difficult troop type to handle—that is the military consensus.
—Unless you have some kind of god-like ability, it's no good.
Yugis believed that Ness had that.
"Laicanel must be at a loss with Ness in his heart."
"Even if that's the case, pulling him into the Fourth Army is impossible. He'll refuse himself, and the Syllabus family won't permit it,"
Haider said.
"I have a trump card," Yugis said, feeling a weight in his chest as if he had swallowed a stone. "Ness has a younger sister, doesn't he?"
"So it seems—no way."
"That's right. What do you think?"
In other words, the plan was to marry that sister.
Marriage between nobles meant that the two families formed a cooperative relationship. It would become a legitimate reason to request Ness's participation in the war.
The two looked at Yugis with surprised faces. Then they immediately began to laugh.
"I see, finally, you too, huh."
Cloden patted his shoulder.
Yugis was grateful that the two did not mention Princess Lucy.
"The problem is how to do it. I'll try asking the adults to mediate, but it'll be difficult. Well, if it comes down to it..."
"That's right,"
Cloden followed Haider.
"What?"
"If it comes down to it, sneak into her bedroom and knock up Ness's sister."
It was lawless to the extreme, but not an uncommon method. One simply creates a fait accompli. Because there is such a thing as chivalry, one cannot be reckless. If rejected by the opponent, that's the end of it. Still, the reason this barbaric custom does not disappear is that there are many knights in positions where their luck won't open unless they do something like that.
"You should practice," Cloden said.
If it's such a fun practice, he'd gladly do it.
—Perhaps.
Should I sneak into the princess's bedroom and use it as practice for night-visiting? Yugis thought.
It was a bad joke, but there was a part of him wondering if it were possible.
No, perhaps.
If he did that, it might be a good turning point to give up on Princess Lucy.