Chapter 22: Lives and Rules

We are led into the house of Colt, the man with silver fox ears and Tina’s grandfather. His house’s interior design gives me the image of Japan somehow. As I thought, they have different culture than townspeople.

“This is the parlor. Make yourself at home.”

It’s a culture without the usage of tables and chairs, as Colt sits upon the tatami-like floor by folding his legs in seiza. Chloe the elf also sits at his side. Following after them, Tina and I sit down as well.

The female elf who showed up earlier came to serve some tea. She should be the house helper here.

After calmly choosing the moment, Colt is the one initiating the conversation.

“Firstly, Kurt. Thank you for putting your life on the line by coming to the spirit village even after hearing about the disease outbreak.”

Colt lowers his head.

It shocks me, a little.

I heard of how they are from an elusive race, I assumed that I was going to be told to scurry away without even listening to what I have to say.

“Please lift your head. It’s not yet known whether I can cure the disease or not.”
“Even so, I wish to express my gratitude for putting your life on the line and coming here. Then, you have my deepest gratitude for bringing my granddaughter here.”

Colt stares at Tina fixedly. In his eyes, there’s nothing but affection. As if she notices that, Tina’s wariness slightly dissipates.

Tina opens her mouth.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Tina. That. Are you, my ojiisama?”
“If Tina is Culrina’s daughter, you’re my granddaughter.”
“……In that case, I am your granddaughter.”
“I see. Tina. I’m happy to be able to see you. You look exactly like Culrina.”
“I am also the daughter of the man who eloped with my mother. Do you hate me?”

Colt makes a shocked expression. Then, he smiles.

“As if I could hate Culrina’s daughter. Even now, I still love that child. Besides, I don’t have any bad impression of that man. I still have the grudge over taking Culrina away, but I can understand why she would fall in love with him. He’s a good man.”
“Then, why did you banish them from the spirit village!?”

Tina raises her voice. She’s so sure that he would be more evil, the embodiment of devil with prejudice against humans, but the man in front of her doesn’t seem to fit the shoes.

“That’s because it’s the village’s rule. We cannot allow any human to live in this village. This land, in the first place, was built to be a shelter for those who were chased away from their homes or have been the victims of humankind. There are a lot of folks who despise humans. As their head, I cannot break the rules that I initiated.”

I can relate to him. If the ruler cannot protect the rules, no one will accept them.

“However, in the end, as a father, I’ve done something that I cannot ever forgive…….”

Colt shakes his head, his voice rebuking himself.

“Actually, there’s nothing to forgive or not to forgive. Culrina made her choice; that’s all there is to it. Living outside with a human. Or living in this land being separated from him. Culrina, with her own will, chose to be with the person she loved more than being in this village. I respected and supported her wish. That’s because I thought it would lead to Culrina’s happiness. Besides, I told her that she could always return.”

Colt is speaking in a plain manner. Even though he expressed how lonely he was just now, he still followed his reasoning.

“That’s……. That is too…”

“At that time, Culrina and I reached a mutual conclusion. Most likely, if we forced this village to accept a human among us, both Culrina and the villagers would suffer.”

Tina couldn’t say anything.

Even though she understood the logic, she surely couldn’t agree with it in her heart.

Colt throws a question at that Tina.

“Tell me one thing. Is Culrina doing well?”
“Mother, along with Father, died from an illness.”
“……I see. If only they had their happy moments after living outside the village, I would be saved.”
“Indeed, they had.”

Colt covers the corner of his eyes for a second. A single teardrop falls. However, when he removes his hand after so many seconds, his expression is calm.

“Tina, after Culrina passed away, has life been treating you badly?”
“I’m all right. I’ve been under Kurt-sama’s care ever since.”

When Tina tells him that, Colt looks in my direction.

“I am a doctor as well as a noble who looks after a fief. I met Tina who just lost her parents on the roadside and employed her as a servant. Right now, she has long surpassed a servant, she’s been helping me as my assistant.”

He must have been interested in his granddaughter’s well being. I let him know the way it truly is.

“So Kurt has saved Tina. My gratitude to you has just grown deeper and deeper… Tina. If it’s all right with you, the spirit village… …No, please forget what I just said.”

In the middle of asking Tina to come home, Colt stopped. It shouldn’t be because he has any ill will about Tina. Since this village is rampant with epidemic, Tina won’t become happy if she returns here. I can tell that much by looking at his eyes.

We are enveloped by a suffocating silence for a short while.

“My apologies for bringing up my personal issue. Shall we get to the main problem? Kurt, you said that you came here as a doctor to save this village…… but, my apologies. Can you go home instead?”

I swallow my breath. I didn’t expect to crash into those words at this timing.

“Wait— Colt-ojisan! What are you saying?!”
“Chloe, this is my judgment as the village head. Do be quiet.”
“But! He might just be able to save everyone!”
“If you’re making more ruckus, you may excuse yourself out of here.”

Colt admonished the noisy Chloe.

This has turned ugly.

“Is it because you have no faith in my power?”
“The problem lies before that. The spirit village has decided to live without having anything to do with humans. It’s as simple as that. I’m very grateful that Kurt has come here. I will reward your kindness and courage accordingly. However, I can’t borrow a human’s strength.”

So it’s decided.

I also understand that rule.

However……

“If you are not the only one who reached that conclusion, I will consider it.”

I naturally open my mouth to object.

“I am the head of the village. It is my obligation to decide what goes in this village.”
“Indeed you should. However, we’re now in the state of emergency. For the sake of Culrina’s happiness, you could decide whether she left the village to live with human or remained alone in this village. Why was it that you didn’t make that choice with the whole village?”

It’s a half accusation. However, I don’t think that I’m saying the wrong thing.

“Kurt, I wish you’d speak in a way that I’d understand.”
“I understand that there’s a rule that no human will be relied upon in this village. However, I think that we need to ask those who are currently suffering from this sickness, whether they die like this, without borrowing a human’s power. Or, if they wish to leave the village as the price of violating the rule and having their lives saved by a human.”

This is an extreme argument. They die, or they break the rules and get banished from the village. I have no qualms in leaving those with death wishes. However, there’s no reason to leave the others to die, those who can’t make peace with their deaths. If it’s me, I’ll definitely pick the road to live.

“There’s some truth to your words, Kurt. Then, what would become of them if they go out of this village? They’re all folks who know nothing outside of the life in this village.”
“They can choose to take care of my fief. Just their luck, I’m still lacking manpower in my village. Moreover, Tina is the perfect example. There’s a land that will welcome other races than human.”
“We will only be the feed for humans.”
“When you look at Tina, do you really think that I’m that kind of human?”

Tina tightens her grip on the hem of my shirt. The fact that she completely trusts me probably reaches Colt as well.

“……Honestly, what a glib-tongued man. However, that’s a fair argument. I see. Indeed, there are those who wish to live.”

Colt smiles bitterly before looking at me straight in the eyes and speaking up.

“What is the compensation that you’re aiming for? I’m sure that you’re not here simply out of obligation, right, Kurt?”

It directly escalates to that point, huh? Oh, well, not that I mind.

“Originally, if I can save this village, I want a tenth of one year’s worth of the pinal and paple fruits that you harvest here.”
“Is that amount good?”

Colt asks with a puzzled look.

“The pinal fruit that Chloe treated us to is a very outstanding fruit. So outstanding that it’s actually enough to exchange for healing those who are sick.”
“You’re extraordinarily honest, aren’t you? I thought that humans were more greedy.”
“I’m greedy enough, actually. It’s something that I absolutely need for the sake of achieving my dream.”

According to Chloe, for the rich spirit village, the amount requested should cost them virtually nothing. They don’t trade the fruits away, so those they don’t eat will just be thrown away.

However, for Arnold, those thrown fruits are as precious as gems. If I have the pinal fruit from this place, I can make a large profit in my pastry business.

“However, the circumstances have changed. If I save the whole village, that much is sufficient, but I want a seedling of pinal and paple fruit tree for each person that I save. Moreover, the banished folks will have to come to my village. I’ll lend my hand for that. I’m planning to grow the fruits in my village.”

It’ll need time to reach the point where I can harvest them, but securing both future harvests and the manpower aren’t bad conditions to trade for.

“The reward in itself is not a problem. However, I cannot give you an immediate reply on the issue of sending the villagers with you. This is on the prerequisite that you can indeed cure the sickness to begin with. First, why don’t you examine the current patients. After you’ve confirmed that you can treat them, we’ll continue this talk. There are patients in the second floor.”

Colt stands up and gives us a cue to follow him. He should be intending to bring us to the sick ward.

“Tina and Chloe, please stay here. It’ll be bad if we add more people who might contract the disease.”

When meeting the sick, there’s a danger of being contaminated. It should be all right if I’m the only one who gets exposed to the danger.

“No way, I’m going too. She is my mother, after all! In this case, I have to be together with her all the more!”
“I understand. Chloe should go with us too.”

With that, leaving Tina behind, the three of us head over to the patients.

I can’t put it into words, but I do have a bad feeling about this. I have a bad premonition. If the premonition is correct, speaking right before we’re going to deal with it, this village will soon perish.

While sincerely praying that my premonition is a miss, I’m starting up.