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Frontier Lord Chapter 033 – Those Squirming Inside the Sacks

「Indeed, they may seem like small creatures at first glance, but they are in fact a respectable race of beastmen. There are various kinds of beastmen, including those who look more like humans, those who look more like beasts, and those who look just like beasts. They are all classified as Beastmen. Even those that look just like beasts are classified as Beastmen, as long as they have a certain culture, handle tools and fire and speak the language.」

Hearing Camalotte’s explanation I was reminded of my parents’ bedtime stories.

The stories back then had stated that language was a wisdom given to man by God, and that only man could speak it. If that were true, then those rat looking creatures were as much human as they were Beastmen.

「They are known as the Jerboa Tribe. They have the characteristics of the Rat Beastmen, but they also possess distinguishing features not found among the Rat Beastmen, such as their long ears and tremendous leaping ability. They call themselves desert dwellers despite there being various other tribes throughout the desert…」

The Jerboa Tribe (Long Eared Jumping Rats) was essentially just what it described. 

(I suppose that’s quite straightforward. Still, the desert huh… Wasn’t that place that had nothing but sands and rocks in it? Huh? Wait… They live in the desert?)

「Is there a desert in Lord Eldan’s domain? I’ve never come across any mention of a desert within the kingdom.」

「Oh, no, just because their homeland is a desert doesn’t imply that there’s a desert in our territory. They were said to have inhabited a desert region far to the south beyond the kingdom’s southern border, but it appears they were hunted down and enslaved…」

Camalotte explained more about the Jerboa Tribe. His words linked to Eldan’s mission to conserve the wellbeing of the Demi Humans.

The Jerboa Tribe who could leap with their ears, once captured and turned into commodities by slave hunters, were safeguarded by Eldan after he’d brought them from an unscrupulous trader. They had continued to live under his protection ever since.

Eldan had assured the Jerboa Tribe that he would eventually return them to the desert once the circumstances were favorable. However, the Jerboa Tribe were far from convinced that he’d actually keep his promise. In fact, given that they had been brought out of the desert by humans, they harbored doubts about Eldan’s promise, due to his association with the humans. Which had led to their resistance.

Despite facing resistance, criticism, and condemnation, Eldan remained steadfast in his commitment to safeguarding the well-being of the Jerboa Tribe.

The Jerboa Tribe, originally a small and dwindling race due to raids by slave hunters and subsequent changes in lifestyle, were even rumored to have gone extinct. Eldan was unwavering in his resolve to avert such a fate for them.

「I can begin to fathom why they would attack you Lord Dias. After Lord Eldan picked them up they’ve only known kindness and a life without any inconvenience… And now after Lord Eldan seized control over the seat of lord the plan to return them to the desert was coming along, and wasn’t that far off…」

Camalotte took a breath and adjusted his posture before fixing his gaze on me. It was as if he was waiting for my response.

While the Jerboa Tribe might be considered Beastmen and residents of the neighboring territory, I held no resentment towards Camalotte and Eldan for this incident. Especially given that they’d honestly shared the history behind it with me. I wasn’t entirely sure about my emotions, but I was curious to know Aruna’s thoughts on this matter. So, I shifted my gaze towards her.

Aruna didn’t seem particularly interested in this type of discussion. She was rather  engrossed in tending to her bow. However, she was nonetheless attentive. She noticed my gaze and addressed me in a hushed tone.

「The first time I saw Camalotte he was white, but now he’s turned to blue. Given that I believe we can forgive him without requesting any compensation. On the other hand, those Jerboas were bright reds. Next time I see them I won’t hold back.」

「I understand.」 I nodded. 

I took into consideration Aruna’s opinion and my feelings and I tried to convey my thoughts in an articulated manner.

「As I already said, you do not need to apologize Camalotte. You’ve clearly conveyed your feelings to us. But if you insist on apologizing then we’ll gladly accept it. On the other hand, concerning the Jerboa Tribe… their behavior appears to be quite problematic. I cannot promise that we’ll hold back the next time we meet them, so make sure not to let them approach us anymore. As for their motives and their punishment behind this incident, I’ll leave that to you Camalotte… I can’t be bothered with it.」

Camalotte’s expression visibly relaxed upon hearing my words. He lowered his head again, a slow and deep bow, maintaining his composure. Although his eyes glistened, he managed to hold a composed demeanor as he expressed his gratitude.

No matter how much I insisted that his feelings were sufficient, Camalotte remained resolute in his intention to bring something as an apology next time. Given that he wouldn’t give up on it, I decided to accept as long as it eased his feelings.

Just as the matters on that were settled one of the guards, who’d been inspecting the interior of the carriage, approached us. 

「Sir Camalotte, the carriage is empty. While examining the crates I found some that appeared to have been opened, but apart from that everything else was clear. I checked some crates, thinking that there might be Jerboas hiding inside, but they were all empty. However, I wasn’t able to check it all. There are too many of them and too few of us.」

「I see… I hope you put your noses to good use, right?」

Camalotte asked, to which the soldier, who’d come back from inspecting the crates, replied,

「With our combined efforts, we thoroughly checked all three carriages. We did use our noses, but they didn’t prove to be that useful this time around, so do not hold too much faith in them. The Jebroas’ smell was still lingering everywhere, and given the amount of spices inside the containers even a Dogman’s nose proved futile.」

He explained.

The Dogman Tribe had a keen sense of smell due to their dog-like noses. Camalotte had been counting on those noses of theirs, however it would appear that they’d been obstructed by the spices.

As the conversation unfolded, Camalotte’s attention shifted to the spices that the Dogman guard had mentioned.

That was because the cargo was supposed to consist of only farming tools. Spices weren’t accounted for anywhere.

Right now what Camalotte wanted from the guard wasn’t an apology or what they’d found, but rather, he wanted to know more about those spices.