Cast of Characters:
Nana: One of the Fougma of Village Four. A spy who usually dressed as a simple village girl.
Hitoe: Youko’s daughter.
After Giral defeated the giant sea magic beast, a message of gratitude arrived from the Sea Race. The contents were fairly straightforward:
"Thank you for the condolence money." "Thank you for slaying the beast." "The sea beast was delicious."
As it happened, the messages from the Sea Race were carved into clay tablets. Paper was useless underwater, and wooden boards were difficult to write on in the depths. Thus, they used clay. They gathered the clay from the seabed, processed it into tablets on the surface, inscribed the characters before the material dried, and then sent them off once they had hardened.
Thinking about it, if they were doing the writing on the surface anyway, wouldn't paper or wood have been easier? Clay tablets were heavy and prone to breaking, making them a nightmare to transport. Still, I reminded myself not to disparage someone else’s culture. If this was how the Sea Race communicated, I had to respect it. Though, I did wish the tablets were a little smaller—the ones I received this time were roughly the size of a large flat-screen television.
Some time later, a village that previously had no ties to Village Five reached out to us. They claimed there were unfamiliar magic beasts lurking nearby and asked if we could take them in. They weren't asking us to exterminate the creatures, but to adopt them.
"Apparently, the meat and eggs from those beasts are quite the delicacy," Youko explained during dinner one night.
It seemed the creatures were highly prized as ingredients, but Youko remained hesitant.
"I have never heard of a successful attempt to farm them. Moreover, we would have to be the ones to capture them first."
"Are they that dangerous?" I asked.
"I’m told veteran adventurers find them manageable, but mid-tier or rookie parties struggle against them."
I nodded. If they were that troublesome, then trying to raise them would likely be a headache as well. There was no need for us to overextend ourselves. I suggested we decline the offer.
"Mmm. I reached the same conclusion. However..." Youko trailed off.
"Is there something else?"
"Put simply, that village is in a bind because of those beasts."
I was confused. If they were in trouble, shouldn't they be begging for help? Or at least posting a request with the Adventurer’s Guild?
"It seems the village head is a proud man. He can't bring himself to admit he needs help. He did post a request at the guild, but the reward is so low that nobody will touch it."
I see.
"Naturally, since the village has nothing to do with us, we could just ignore them, but..."
"But?"
"The village head’s son reached out to us. He said he intends to oust his father and asked for our assistance."
I really didn't want us getting tangled up in the internal politics of another village.
"Quite right," Youko agreed. "However, that village is situated in a perfect location for when Village Five eventually expands its influence to the east."
"Are we planning to expand that way?"
"Not for conquest, mind you. But as a trading partner. Shashato City holds the west, the Gate Guardian Dragon is to the north, and the sea lies to our south. The only way forward is east."
"So, we want to help them now to put them in our debt?"
"It would leave a bitter taste in my mouth to simply watch them collapse."
"What about the local Lord?" I asked.
"If the Lord were reliable, they wouldn't have brought the matter to Village Five."
I sighed and gave in. "Fine. But only after we clear it with Beezel and Yuri."
"Understood."
I can't recall exactly when that conversation took place, but eventually, I found myself looking at the magic beasts in a temporary ranch built at the foothills of Village Five. Despite their reputation for being difficult to raise, the staff had brought them back to give it a shot.
The magic beasts were essentially giant... chickens. They stood about three meters tall, though their faces were far more intimidating than any farm bird I knew. Their beaks looked positively lethal. However, looking at them, I could believe that their meat and eggs were good. They were definitely chickens. There were about twenty of them in total.
But I had a concern. "Nana?" I called out to the woman who had guided me here. "The fence seems a bit low. Won't they escape? I know chickens aren't known for flying, but these things could surely jump several times their own height. Especially wild ones."
"It’s fine," Nana replied calmly. "They won't escape."
"Are you sure?"
"I am."
I pointed at one of the creatures. "That tail... is that a snake?"
"It’s just a pattern that looks like a snake."
"Oh. So these aren't Cockatrices, then?"
"No, they are definitely Cockatrices."
I stared at her. "The kind that petrifies people with a bite?"
"That’s the one."
"Then isn't this incredibly dangerous? Is a fence like this really enough?"
"Petrification is mostly a superstition," Nana explained. "It’s actually a type of paralysis venom. It just makes the victim unable to move for a while."
"That’s still dangerous!"
Nana went quiet for a moment. She looked as if she wanted to say something, so I told her to go ahead.
"In the eyes of the general public, dragons, inferno wolves, and demon spiders are considered catastrophic threats," she said flatly.
I winced. "Fair point. I shouldn't judge them before seeing how they behave."
"Actually, I think dragons, inferno wolves, and demon spiders are plenty dangerous even when you see how they behave."
"That’s not true at all! They might get a little rowdy sometimes, but they’re adorable!"
"The Village Head is the only person on the planet who would call them adorable."
"Th-that's not... wait, Urza says they’re cute!"
"That's cheating. She's your daughter."
We went back and forth with that pointless argument for a while before I steered us back to the topic at hand. I asked why these Cockatrices were considered safe.
"Look over there," Nana said, pointing.
At the far end of the enclosure stood a perfectly normal chicken. It had a familiar, arrogant air about it. It was a chicken from the Village of the Great Tree.
"That's right," Nana confirmed. "It’s one of the birds from the courtyard of your mansion."
I remembered lending a few out recently.
"Youko-sama brought it here. Since then, it has reigned as the absolute boss of this ranch."
"Reigned? You mean that little chicken is keeping the Cockatrices in line?"
"Indeed. When the Cockatrices first arrived at Village Five, they were in individual crates, and they rampaged so violently they nearly smashed the wood to splinters. Everyone assumed farming them was a lost cause—until that chicken Youko-sama brought in beat every single one of them into submission. They’ve been perfectly obedient ever since. They won't even try to hop the fence."
I watched the giant birds for a moment. It wasn't my imagination; the Cockatrices were definitely casting pleading glances my way, as if begging for rescue.
"We’d like to keep the chicken here until our permanent rearing system is established," Nana said.
"As long as the chicken isn't unhappy, I don't mind," I replied. Though the Cockatrices certainly seemed miserable. Still, how did Youko know that a normal chicken would be able to subjugate them?
"Apparently, the chicken volunteered," Nana said.
"Volunteered?"
"Yes. Youko-sama was venting her frustrations about the rampaging beasts, and the chicken supposedly stepped forward."
I was impressed, but also a bit concerned. I wondered if Youko had really been reduced to complaining to the livestock. The image made me realize I was probably piling too much work on her. I made a mental note to praise the chicken once it returned home, and then I went to find Youko.
"I wasn't venting to the chicken," Youko corrected me when I brought it up. "I was venting to Hitoe. She must have passed the word along to the birds. Regardless, it has been a massive help."
So that was how it happened. Either way, I felt bad for giving her enough stress to warrant such complaining.
"You should take a proper vacation soon," I told her. "A long one."
"And who would manage my duties?"
"I know I can't do it all myself, but I have some help in mind. Malbit mentioned she wanted me to find work for some of those lazy angels who have talent but no drive. I'll make them pitch in while you're resting."
Youko looked skeptical but didn't outright refuse. She likely had too much on her plate to stop immediately, so I told her she could pick a time that worked for her.
"Just... let's try to avoid the busy weeks in the fields," I added sheepishly. "I'm sorry."