Chapter 672: Mid-Summer Islands 2
Galatea has been following me and the others around while we listen to Captain Theo’s explanation of the current situation. She’s hiding, but she’s not trying to avoid sticking around in front of Captain Theo, so her presence is obvious to everyone. Her casual hiding is actually rubbing Captain Theo the wrong way.
“……Hey, Galatea. Don’t get all cuddly with this guy like he’s a dog”
“……Hmph”
“Galatea!”
“Father’s weaker than him”
“Ku……s, so what does that have to do with anything?”
“You always say things like 『A man who’s not strong at sea is worthless』. Why is father acting like he’s better than him?”
“Parents are different!”
“Why?”
“……It’s different!”
Captain Theo is even being outdone by his own daughter. The dignity he had built up as a hard-nosed leader of the sea is crumbling away day by day since our intervention. I feel really bad about it. Also, even though I have the upper hand, I’m no match for him in terms of physical strength, so please stop trying to stir things up like that. I’d be in trouble if Captain Theo got so worked up that he started talking about a direct showdown!
“Hey, what’s this cat beast with the shaggy hair saying?”
And Beatrice, who doesn’t read the situation, seems to dislike Captain Theo… or rather, she doesn’t like him. Even though they don’t understand each other’s language, his tough, scary attitude towards everyone seems to give Beatrice a sense of meaningless arrogance and intimidation. Also, since she’s only ever seen a lion beastman up to this point (and only briefly), she doesn’t seem to understand the differences between them and the cat beasts. ……Actually, I don’t really understand either. What I do know for a start is that most of them have blond hair and a lot of it and they don’t have the casualness of cat beasts in their temperament and they tend to have intense personalities……or rather, I can only see the similarities there because the samples I’ve met so far are few.
“They’re lion beasts. They’re a slightly different species from cat beasts. Be careful, because some of them get really angry if you make a mistake”
“……How can I tell them apart?”
“The atmosphere. They’re usually like this”
When I said that, Beatrice looked confused. Seeing this, Irina offered a helping hand.
“The easiest way to tell is by their tails. The lion beasts’s tails have tufts of hair at the end”
“Really? That’s all?”
“Their bodies are also different from other beastmen. Compared to other beastmen, whose leg strength tends to be disproportionately developed, they also have high arm strength. From the human race’s point of view, they have no weaknesses and are scary”
“What do you mean they have no weaknesses?”
“They’re not as slender as elves and they’re not as hard-working or strong as cat beasts……they even have higher magic aptitude than humans. From a military perspective, there’s not much you can do to take advantage of them. At best, their overall high pride and aggressive nature can easily turn into poor politics”
“If you only hear about them, it sounds like they’re more advanced than humans, but I don’t see them very often”
“I guess their personalities are too difficult to deal with. I hear there’s a country just for them in the south of the continent, but I don’t know the details of how that came about”
Well, if I just look at whether they’re strong or not, the human race’s advantages are really quite small. Still, since the human nations control most of the continent, I guess individual performance isn’t that important.
“……Anyway, why do you let this old man bark at you like that? He’s weaker than a dragon, you know”
“I’m not going to start nitpicking about how other people talk. If they talk and cooperate properly, that’s fine, but threatening them with dragons every time you have a problem is just going to cause unnecessary antagonism”
“Weak-kneed”
“I’m not trying to dominate this place. If being weak-kneed is good enough, then being weak-kneed is good enough”
Beatrice didn’t seem to like Captain Theo’s attitude of not backing down, but to begin with, Beatrice herself was a rather troubled girl for saying various things when she didn’t understand the language.
“The women we took in are being calmed down by giving them medicine for the time being”
Captain Theo says this while showing Hilda the list of apathetic women he has gathered at one of the forts, and she looks depressed.
“Actually, I think it would be better to stop giving them the medicine immediately……”
“If they can be cured by the miraculous spring, then there’s no problem”
“Drugs don’t just affect the brain and heart, they also take their toll on the body. If you say that you’ll get better if you live, then you will, but there are also cases where people suddenly drop dead because of the drugs”
“……But there’s no one who can look after a woman who’s gone crazy from withdrawal symptoms. We can’t do that”
“……Yeah. That’s true, but……there’s no other choice but to deal with it realistically……”
Hilda sighed. If they go to Polka, they’ll be cured. So, until then, they’ll have to use drugs. As a doctor, she probably finds this simple and cruel scheme hard to accept.
“If you have the stuff at hand, there’s a danger that even normal people will start to take a liking to it and think that drugs are a good thing. If possible, I think you should avoid having them at all”
Irina, who is participating in the treatment, gives her opinion. The area is already on the move by carriage and there is no trace of the lecherous slaves who were all naked and having a wild time.
“I don’t think there are any idiots like that among our sailors”
“A few are fine, as long as they have their own will……that’s how drug addicts usually get started. Especially for young people who don’t have a strong sense of obedience, the temptation is hard to resist”
“……Mu, u”
“Pay close attention to the management, Captain. You don’t want to owe Smithson-dono any more than you already do”
Irina showed a cunning intelligence that didn’t match her young face and made Captain Theo, who was all tough on the outside, falter. Well, that works best with the captain. It would be too humiliating if I had to show my belly any more than I already have.
After the usual business conversation, we start talking about what we should do from here. First, we wait for Bauz. That’s fine, but then we have to choose between staying here for a few days and then returning, or leaving straight away.
“We’re not in such a hurry to go home”
“There’s also the question of whether we should stay so long on a pirate island that’s hot and humid and full of ugly men”
As Laila says, it’s so hot here that you can’t spend any time in the shade without breaking out in a sweat. It’s a tropical island in the middle of summer, so it’s not surprising. For Laila herself, who isn’t even sweating, it doesn’t seem like a particularly hot temperature. But it’s a pretty good base for sightseeing in the exotic southern islands.
“Maybe it would be nice to go for a swim a little further afield. There are lots of deserted islands and beaches around here, aren’t there?”
Anzeros suggests. If you just want to go for a swim, the Celesta South Coast or a river in the country would be fine……but the sea around here somehow arouses the desire to swim. Also, if it’s a deserted island, the girls can take their clothes off in peace. No, I’m not saying I’m happy about it. That’s one thing, but swimming while wearing clothes is tiring, right?
“H, Hey!”
Galatea finally stuck her head in there. Or rather, Captain Theo had been watching Galatea with lingering affection, but after a quiet family quarrel, she was finally sent away.
“Umm……I know about good uninhabited islands and interesting ruins in the area, so……why don’t you come with me……”
“You’re so annoying. Don’t follow me”
“!?”
Beatrice suddenly launches a preemptive attack on Galatea. However, Galatea doesn’t understand Kalwin language, so she appeals to the others with her eyes, unable to understand what she’s saying and Neia reluctantly whispers the translation. Galatea was naturally outraged.
“What is this girl? I wasn’t talking to you”
Then, Beatrice made a face like she didn’t understand, so Emma, who had been sighing, taught her.
“I’m……th, this guy’s female slave! He takes better care of me than you”
The two of them started to argue in a low-level way with the interpreter in between.
“I’m also being looked at closely, even naked!”
“Hee, is that all?”
“…….Mu”
“A female slave is naked in front of him every day. In fact……”
Neia and Emma, who were translating, started to look exhausted, so I gave Beatrice a chop on the head.
“What are you suddenly biting at someone you’ve just met? Female slaves shouldn’t make decisions on their own before their Master”
“B, But”
“Also, you’re not an official female slave yet”
“……Uh”
It seems that Beatrice, despite being a stubborn person, has developed an instinctive rivalry with Galatea, who is itching to get along with me. The other members all smile wryly.
“So, what should we do?”
I put my hand on Galatea’s head in response to Aurora’s question.
“Well, I think it’s okay to have her show us around”
……It’s hard to give away a necklace, especially a memento like the one I borrowed.