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Chapter 273 part 2

Gudo crossed his arms as if he were thoughtfully choosing his words. He closed his eyes and let out a small grunt reminiscent of a hungry bear. This sound made Yachiyo and Fuuko’s ears droop momentarily.

「Of course it’s not good. If I had to say whether it was good or bad, I would say it’s bad. I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of it on your way to Uminal. And you’ve seen how the rebels, demi-humans, and other races have been treated by the empire, haven’t you?」

「Yes. We started our journey of observation from the Grand Duke Linosart’s territory. In Elkeney and the surrounding area, demi-humans and other races were able to work together quite well. But here, humans are shunned even if they are not Romal person.

But, I did see humans working around this port without any particular sign of surveillance.」

「Oh, those are not humans who live in Uminal or this area. They are humans who belong to trading countries across the sea.

The Roaring Sun’s Majesty’s ideology applies to their own people, not to neutral trading partners. It is not something that they would impose on trading partners with whom they are not in a hostile relationship.

Even so, fearing that those who are too influenced by the ideology will run wild, the Roaring Sun’s Majesty has placed calmer individuals around the port to avoid trouble.

Even so, the atmosphere is tense, so even the humans in our association complain that it has become more difficult for them to do their jobs. The transactions themselves have become more favorable to us than before, but the worsening atmosphere cannot be denied.」

Hmm, those who had been working in Uminal for many years would naturally be sensitive to changes in the atmosphere. As we had investigated beforehand, the terms of trade themselves seemed to be better than they had been during the empire, but at this rate, it was unclear how long that would last.

Those who were currently at Uminal, including the Gudos, were likely to start using other good ports with better conditions if they became available.

「So, Mr. Gudo, how are the humans who remain in this city being treated? Our investigation indicates that they are treated as simple laborers and are not taken to the battlefield as soldiers.」

「Your information is correct but incomplete, Miss Ana. Non-romal people aren’t captured, but Romal people are segregated into specific districts and made to work on assigned tasks day after day.

It seems that some of those who were involved with the authority or the military have had their skills and knowledge recognized but under certain conditions and surveillance. By the way, Miss Ana…」

Hmm, this was also within the circumstances that we had anticipated.

「Yes, what is it?」

「If we look at the history of the world, both ancient and modern, when the oppressed rise up and reverse their positions, it generally falls into two categories. Do you know what they are?

「The two… will fight until the other side is destroyed or until one side gives in?」

It seemed that Ana’s answer was different from the correct answer that Gudo had prepared, but Gudo’s mouth turned open in surprise at the radical nature of her response. It was a statement that belied Ana’s appearance, which suggested that she would not be able to kill even a bug.

Perhaps it couldn’t be helped, but was it because she had been influenced by Yachiyo and Fuuko, who came from a homeland that had been in a state of turbulent war for a long time, and by me?

「Well, that’s one way to see it. How can I say it… Let me put it this way: Either they retaliate in the same way that they were attacked, or they don’t retaliate because they are different from those who oppressed them.

In the latter case, they often champion equality as their motto, declaring that they will never do the same to those who discriminated against them unfairly. However, this approach often collapses over generations, and in some cases, it even ends within the lifetime of those who advocated it.」

Hmm, if I dug up my memories from the time of the Ancient-Celestial Dragons, I saw that there were a few exceptions, but Gudo’s words were generally correct.

「From what I’ve heard, it seems that the Roaring Sun’s Majesty’s actions seem more aligned with the former, but is that not the case?」

「To our shame, we initially thought that the Roaring Sun’s Majesty would do the same after they rebelled against the Romal Empire and achieved a certain level of success. However, they have treated the Romal people more moderately than we expected.

The important thing is not only the fact that our expectations were wrong but also why they were wrong. The various races that make up the Roaring Sun’s Majesty share the common goal of breaking free from the rule of the Romal Empire, reclaiming their ancestral lands, and avenging the humiliation of their past defeat.

It is understandable that they would pass down this ideology from generation to generation to strengthen the unity within their race and tribe. And that is how they have achieved their current results. However, their current treatment of the Romal people seems to be quite lenient.」

He seemed to want to teach us that there was something we were missing if we simply thought that the Roaring Sun’s Majesty was treating humans as inferiors because of the humiliation they got in the past. Ana must have thought the same as me because she stared into Gudo’s eyes and urged him to continue.

「As far as we know, there seems to be a difference in ideology or “attitude” within The Roaring Sun’s Majesty.」

「It’s like the split between those who loudly proclaim that they have the right to revenge, following the long history of humiliation and hatred that has been passed down, and those who argue that they should not become like the Romal Empire because they themselves have been oppressed, I believe?」

「That would be easy to understand, but the difference in attitude is among those who cry out for the right to revenge.」

「…In other words, it’s a matter of to what extent they will take revenge. There is a difference in temperature in terms of who, to what extent, for how long, and how they will take revenge.」

「Exactly. Let’s call them extremists. The difference in attitude among the extremists is what is leading to the current tepid response in Uminal. By the way, the moderates within the Roaring Sun’s Majesty are quite a small minority.」

If the discrimination had been something that happened to their ancestors and was a thing of the past, there would have been more moderates, but it is understandable that this is not the case since the rebellion was led by the generation that was actually discriminated against.」

There might have been other ways to say it, but instead of a conflict between the extremists and moderates, it was a difference in attitude within the extremists themselves. Well, well. They were much more difficult to deal with than the Seven Fangs of Elkeney.

The Arkrest Kingdom must have received this level of information through the Aldam merchant’s association, but could we provide them with any new information?

「As you can see from the current situation in Uminal, the extremists who are currently in control are the moderates-among-the-extremists. …Even I have to say that it’s a confusing term.」

「Then, how about naming each faction after the representative figure? That way, we can also keep track of the names of the people we need to be careful of, and it would be easier to understand.」

「Oh, that’s a good idea. In that case, the representative of the moderate extremist faction is led by a young male Lionfolk named Asya, hence, Asya’s faction. The more extreme faction within the extremists is headed by a female Lionfolk named Leko, thus Leko’s faction.」

「So, considering Uminal’s situation, The Roaring Sun’s Majesty must be represented by the moderate Asya?」

「Well, that’s where it gets complicated. The Roaring Sun’s Majesty isn’t represented by either Asya or Leko. Their leader is a young Lionfolk with a golden mane from the Leonix family Regul.

He was originally a proponent of the ideology close to that of Leko’s faction, but perhaps because of the heavy responsibility he bears as chieftain, he has cooled his head and started to think about the future of the entire tribe, putting his emotions aside.

If the Leko’s faction had been in control, they would not have allowed humans to visit Uminal even on ships from other countries.」

That would make the key figures in the southern Romal Empire’s rebel forces to be Asya, Leko, and Regul. Considering Amria’s background, it would be difficult to arrange a meeting with Leko and Regul, but it might be worth considering making some contact with Asya. But, well, even Asya was still an extremist.

After thinking for a while about the more complicated than expected internal affairs of the Roaring Sun’s Majesty, Amria voiced her thoughts.

「In that case, understanding which way Regul’s heart leans is crucial.」

Hearing Amria’s words and seeing her resolute eyes, Yachiyo and Fuuko beside her gasped in realization. It seems our next visit might be to see Regul’s lion face.

Yachiyo and Fuuko, who were sitting at Amria sides, let out short gasps as they listened to her words and looked into her eyes. I understood that as well. Those were the eyes Amlia made when her resolve was firm. Hmm, it seemed that the next step would be to go and see Regul. Hmm, hmm, hmm…