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Frontier Lord Chapter 045 – The New Resident and Banquet Preparations

I stood in front of the warehouse, watching Geraint fly away, leaving behind the distinctive high-pitched buzz of his wings.

After drinking plenty of water, chomping on plenty of beans, and building up his strength, Geraint headed for Eldan’s mansion.

Geraint, who was flying with my signature, which confirmed I’d received Eldan’s letter, and some letters I had written in his bag, was expected to arrive at Eldan’s residence around evening.

The letter that I had left with Geraint, in addition to the acceptance of the Dogmen and the detailed conditions regarding it, it also stated that Eyma was here and that we’d be taking care of her.

「Lord Dias, I look forward to being here.」

Eyma, who was currently standing on my shoulder, said cheerfully. She’d decided to stay in Irk Village per her own wish.

Back in the yurt, she’d told us all about her story and about the Jerboa Tribe’s situation. After which she’d suddenly expressed her desire to stay in Irk Village.

I’d been quite shocked at the time, and had naturally asked her about her reason, to which she responded,

「Well, I’d like to stay by Young Senai and Aihan’s side. I’m quite curious about their future… I’d like to watch both of them grow up, kind of thing. Also, despite that I look like this, I know how to read, write and do math. So don’t paint me useless! I can even teach Young Senai and Aihan! If there’s anything I can do to help, just say the word. I’ll do anything to stay here!」

Her words had been filled with such vigor that I’d even gotten goosebumps.

Even when I’d told her that Eldan was working on a plan to return the Jerboa Tribe to their homeland, and that she’d be able to join them as long as she went back, Eyma had refused me, saying she nonetheless wished to stay in Irk Village.

More than anything, she was a strong blue and Senai and Aihan looked quite attached to her.

And when it came to the assault, Eyma had not personally attacked me, rather she’d also tried to stop the attack. Taking all of these things into account, as well as her determination and extensive knowledge in academics, there had been no reason for me to refuse Eyma’s request.

After that I’d gone around the village with Eyma, introducing her to everyone, and asking for their opinions, just as I had done for the Dogmen. In the end, everyone in Irk Village had agreed that there was nothing wrong with Eyma staying.

Even Aruna, who bore a strong dislike for rats, and initially hesitated to allow rats to live in the village, had buckled under Eyma’s assurance that the Jerboa Tribe of the desert lived clean lives and that Aruna shouldn’t compare her to the Rat Tribe.

In the end, Aruna had agreed to let Eyma stay on the condition that she’d maintain her clean lifestyle.

And that if she spotted even a hint of Eyma slacking, that she’d personally punish her by bathing her in a hot medicine bath.

Anyway, this was how Eyma Jellyboa, a member of the Jerboa Tribe, became part of Irk Village.

Afterwards I retrieved a piece of paper and pen from a small box that I’d received from Peijin. I’d proceeded to cut the paper into small pieces to fit in Geraint’s bag, and had written a short paragraph on each piece, entrusting the pieces with Geraint. I’d then bidden him farewell alongside Eyma.

After finally bidding farewell to Geraint I proceeded to clean up the wooden box of beans that was at my feet.

Geraint had expressed his wish that I store the box, because he’d love to snack on the beans the next time he came to visit us.

Apparently Geraint would be the one delivering letters to us in case something urgent happened.

(If he’s going to come here so many times, we might as well build him a hut where he can eat and rest his feathers.) I thought. 

With this idea in mind, I entered the warehouse with the box and Eyma on my shoulder. I put the lid on the box tightly, and tucked the box away in a corner of the warehouse.

Thanks to the hard work of Klaus and Grandma Maya, the warehouse had been completely cleaned up, and the dust was gone. 

However, I felt like there was some kind of subtle decrease in the amount of cargo in the warehouse, but I dismissed it as my imagination.

But then,  I realized it wasn’t just my imagination. Some packages were definitely missing.

The barrels of walnuts, some of the bags of foodstuffs that Eldan had sent to me earlier as a sign of friendship, and even the barrels of liquor I had hidden in the back of the warehouse had disappeared. 

Although some of it had been shared with the Dogmen during the construction of the stables, there must still have been quite a bit of it left in those liquor barrels.

When we had the banquet before, I had mentioned that the next time we would have a banquet would be when something good happened. Little did I know that it would be so soon.

「Lord Dias, did something happen? You look out of it…」

Eyma on my shoulder noticed my distraction and asked in concern.

「It’s nothing. Some of the rations that were supposed to be here are gone…」

「Hm, is it from the meeting yurt? I can hear people happily cooking at the yurt, so I think they are using it there. I can’t hear clearly, but there are a few voices saying it’s a banquet or alcohol… Could it be a welcome party for me? Wow! That’s so nice! Lord Dias! Lord Dias! Let’s go meet up with the others!」

Eyma said, after her ears had picked up on various voices, that I had no way of hearing.

She was so excited that she leaned forward with a twinkle in her eyes, as if to say that if I didn’t go, she would just run there herself.

「Well, yeah, you’re right. There’s no use in thinking about this and that here. Let’s go there first.」

I flipped open the cloth at the entrance of the meeting house and entered, where everyone in the village had gathered.

Not only was everyone present, but there was also a barrel of alcohol in the center of the meeting yurt, and several desks were arranged around the alcohol barrel.

When I looked at the hearths built in the meeting yurt, I saw bags of foodstuffs and people working diligently to cook, indicating that the preparation for the feast had already begun. 

Eyma, perhaps excited to see such a meeting yurt, was buzzing with enthusiasm and wagging her tail as she asked questions one after another.

「E- Excuse me, Lord Dias! I-Isn’t that Sir Klaus over there? H-He’s burning pots inside the hearth… Just what is he doing?」

「Oh, that. He’s baking bread. They first preheat the pots with the dough inside, after which they decide whether to put the lid on top of the pot and let the dough rest, or to continue baking it for a bit more. Klaus is very skilled at baking bread that way.」

「So, what about the pot that Lady Aruna is using right next to him?」

「Oh, that. That’s for making rice dishes.」

「Oh, rice! I’ve had it a few times at Lord Eldan’s place, but I don’t like the spicy flavor…」

「So that’s how the people over there make it, huh? The rice dishes of the Oni Tribe have a sweet hint to them. Sometimes they are also both sweet and sour, mostly depending on the ingredients. The first time I tasted the Oni Tribe’s rice at one of their banquets I was quite surprised by its lingering sweetness. After stir-frying onions, carrots, and other vegetables, dried meat, dried grapes, and other fruits are added. After that, it is boiled and cooked with water, sweet herbs, and salt to taste. I’ve heard that members of the Oni Tribe prepare rice dishes during banquets or when special guests visit their homes.」

The rice that was simmering in Aruna’s pot was most likely the same as the one that I’d eaten during our engagement feast. 

(Aruna probably used up all of our remaining rice to make it just for today.)

As I thought that Senai and Aihan, holding wooden utensils, carefully came running over.

Senai said something to Aruna, who was cooking while inserting a large wooden spoon into the pot, and then Senai poured the contents of the bowl into a pot with enthusiasm.

「Lord Dias, look! Young Senai and Aihan are putting something into the pot! Those looks like walnuts!」

「That’s right. By adding crushed walnuts to the rice it gives it a better texture and a nice aroma. Walnuts are good compliments to rice. Though Senai usually wants to add walnuts to everything, regardless of whether it makes it taste good or not, haha!」

「Wow… A-And what are the elderly ladies kneading on their desks?」

「Hmph, I’m not sure myself. There’s sugar in that pot next to them, so they’re probably making something with it.」

The moment I mentioned sugar, Eyma’s  jumped down from my shoulder, yelling, 「Sugar!」 and hopping her way towards Grandma Maya’s direction.

It seemed that Eyma had a fondness for sugar, and she started begging for it while chatting with Grandma Maya and the others. 

I couldn’t help but sigh as I observed the meeting yurt becoming even more lively with Eyma’s cheerful presence.

I couldn’t help but wonder just when they’d decided to have the banquet, or how they’d made all the preparations.

I figured that they must’ve taken the food out of the warehouse while I was away to Klaus’ yurt to get a pen and paper.

(They probably gathered here and began their preparations while I was busy seeing Geraint off. I don’t mind the banquet, but they could have at least told me about it…)

As I pondered these thoughts, Aruna, who appeared to have finished cooking to the point where all she needed to do was boil it, placed her wooden spoon on the edge of the pot and approached me.

She looked at me with a cheeky smile, implying that their prank had been a success.