Don’t Run Away My Lord

47 – The Territory Dominated by Fur (3)

Looking around, all I could see were steep slopes covered in trees and bushes.

If I had been a little unlucky and the dimensional portal had shifted slightly to the side, I would have fallen straight down.

Where on earth did Kaita send me?

I hope she didn’t send me to the opposite side or to a different kingdom, that would be a headache.

For now, I had to at least examine the surrounding terrain, so I started climbing up the slope without any plan.

I had to go to a place where I could have a clear view, no matter what I was going to do or say.

As I kept climbing, breaking trees along the way, I soon reached a relatively flat ridge.

Looking at the terrain roughly, it didn’t seem like a completely different place, but somewhere in the Murei Mountain Range that bordered the Viscount’s territory to the east.

If that’s the case, I have to cross this mountain to get to the Marquis’ territory.

I hope I at least landed near the Marquis’ territory.

If it’s too far north or south, it will take a long time to walk…

Fortunately, as I crossed the ridge, I could see the city in the distance.

I couldn’t tell if it was the Marquis’ territory or not.

By the way, why did Kaita mark the coordinates so far away?

No… I marked them correctly on my end, so maybe I made a mistake when casting the spell…

Even though it was over five hundred years ago, considering the time I spent in the tower, I wouldn’t have used magic for that long.

I need to teach her quickly so she can fulfill her role.

I, too, as a Black Dragon, have the innate ability to use magic, but I am not capable of teaching or guiding others to the extent that I would like.

However, it is not appropriate to hire a magician to teach other magicians…

With these thoughts about Kaita in mind, I descended the mountain.

But even until I reached the city center, I couldn’t find a clear answer.

* * * * *

I arrived in the city center just as the sun was setting in the west and the eastern sky was darkening.

I stopped a passerby and asked if this was Gilan County.

Gilan County’s city center seemed slightly larger than Goda County’s.

It must be because Gilan County is located in a position that connects to the east.

Where there are many people, money naturally flows.

The owner of a place like this, a cat beastman, must be holding the reins…

The atmosphere of the streets was nothing particularly special.

Humans were walking around, occasionally dwarves could be seen, businesses were operating, and there was a delicious smell coming from the restaurants.

It was just the appearance of an ordinary urban area in a territory.

I didn’t get the feeling that the cat beastmen were causing trouble or acting out in this area.

However, as the sun completely set, the atmosphere of the streets suddenly changed.

The sun disappeared behind the western horizon, and a deep blue darkness emerged from the Morey Mountains, covering the sky of the territory.

Then people started walking faster, and the shops along the road lowered their shutters and closed their doors.

“What are you standing there like an idiot for? Go back home quickly!”

One of the passersby ran past me, hitting my shoulder and shouting.

Since the ship was already in a bad state, I followed Rianna’s advice to go to the tavern first and headed to the tavern I had seen earlier.

As I entered the tavern, which was about to close, the owner hurriedly shut the door.

“You barely made it. If you were a little later, no matter how much you knocked, I wouldn’t have opened the door for you.”

“Thank you. Can I have a meal?”

“Of course. Just because I lock the door doesn’t mean I won’t do business.”

Now that I looked around, the tavern was already bustling with people.

Everyone seemed to have fled from something.

“What on earth is going on?”

“What do you mean?”

“The streets suddenly became clean.”

The tavern owner, who had been quiet, snapped his fingers.

“Oh! You’re not from around here? Then you must be confused. It’s all because of those Ttekaruk.”

“Ttekaruk? That’s a strange name.”

“Ttekaruk. Deculuk. Tanto. Choknyapsek. They’re called by many names.”

“So what are they?”

“See for yourself.”

The owner pointed to a very small hole next to a window.

As I peered through it, I saw a group of beings roaming the dark streets.

Upon closer inspection, they were not humans, but cat-human hybrids.

With tall bodies and cat heads, they swayed their tails and patrolled the empty streets.

The feet that didn’t wear shoes made no sound as they lightly stepped like a cat.

“They’re cat shifters.”

“That’s right. Those damn kittens… I mean, cat kittens, give me a headache every night. Oh, please have a seat. I prepared some food for you, even though we don’t have a menu.”

The owner, who encouraged him to take a seat, had prepared the food without a separate menu.

Fortunately, it wasn’t stew, but finely chopped meat with vegetables stir-fried.

The owner then served a glass of beer and began to talk in earnest.

“At some point, the cat shifters started appearing in the territory. But back then, it didn’t seem strange. It’s natural for shifters to not settle in one place and wander around.”

“Is that so? They don’t gather together?”

“Why gather? They need to eat and survive. It’s better to live in the mountains, away from people’s eyes, even if it means starving to death.”

“That makes sense. Please continue.”

As he spoke, the owner took a spoonful of the stir-fry and ate it.

Hmm… I’m done eating… Let’s have some beer.

“The ones who were increasing one by one suddenly became an unstoppable force. Since then, they gathered among themselves and formed groups, and started committing crimes.”

They clashed with the existing gangsters in the territory, drew boundaries, and extorted protection fees, engaging in all sorts of crimes.

“They sleep all day and only come out at night like that. Unless they’re crazy, they never go out after sunset.”

“I see… But why are there so many cat shifters in this territory? What are the soldiers doing?”

He already knew why it turned out this way, but he wanted to hear the opinions of the people in the territory.

“Soldiers? Do you think the soldiers are like a local security force or something? It’s a relief if they don’t get involved with those troublemakers. And the soldiers can’t handle the troublemakers.”

Cat shifters overpower humans in terms of physical abilities.

In fact, among intelligent beings, there are few who are physically weaker than humans.

If it weren’t for an extraordinary intellect and sociability, humans would have long since regressed and become slaves to other species.

“And in fact… even if I could overpower them, I probably wouldn’t lay a hand on them.”

“Why is that? Do you have some leverage on the Cat Beast Lord?”

Upon hearing this, the owner was startled and widened their eyes.

“How did you know…?”

“I just guessed. But seriously, what connection does the Cat Beast Lord have with you?”

“The Lord’s mistress is a Cat Beast…”

Not surprised by my response, the owner lowered their voice and added with a somber tone.

“The Lord here enjoys mating with beasts…”

“Using that, the Cat Beast Lord seduces and manipulates the Lord as they please, right?”

Expecting me to scream or at least spit out my beer, the owner nodded with a slightly disappointed expression.

“That’s right. They won’t let go of the Lord with their lower jaw.”

“In that case, the residents of the territory would want to kill that Cat Beast, wouldn’t they?”

In response to my words, the owner, perhaps worried someone might overhear, lowered their upper body and whispered.

“Oh, indeed…? I wouldn’t even be satisfied if we dragged that little b*tch to the square right now and tore her apart.”

“Hmm… What about the Lord? If mating with beasts is a hobby, there’s no guarantee that a similar incident won’t happen again.”

At that moment, the owner almost inaudibly lowered their voice.

“That bastard is a real son of a b*tch…”

Right. Yeah. I see.

“Thank you for your hard work. Once that little b*tch and the Lord are both dead, you’ll probably have a festival, won’t you?”

“Festival… I wish we could have a festival. But… as expected, it’s better for the lord to be alive…”

The owner suddenly went off topic.

Just a moment ago, he called me a bastard, but now he says it’s better to be alive?

“Why is that? Are you still an exceptional person?”

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“Exceptional? Ha. I’m too busy dealing with these idiots to have any exceptional abilities.”

“Then is there another reason?”

“It’s not because of the lord, but because of the young lord. They are still young and kind-hearted, and it saddens me to see them alone.”

The young lord… seems like they have a son.

“What kind of person is the young lord?”

“They have just become an adult, and unlike my worthless father, they have a very good character. Our people in the territory all like the young lord.”

I see… but that’s a bit problematic…

There is a separate center where public opinion gathers…

Even if we try to remove the lord and the dark cat, in the end, the young lord will take the lord’s place.

But we can’t even get rid of the young lord who has won the hearts of the people in the territory.

It’s impossible for just the four of us to calm down the angry public opinion.

Then maybe we should explore other territories…

The lord must have had a reason to start with the Gillan Marquisate…

Hmm… if they started from there, there must be a reason…

Suddenly, a clue, like a wordplay, came to mind.

Strictly speaking, they didn’t tell us to occupy the Gillan Marquisate, did they?

If you’re determined to occupy another territory, start with the Marquis of Gillan’s domain, they said.

What could that possibly mean…

For now, I have a rough idea of how the people in the territory perceive things. I need to confirm what the situation is like inside the lordship.

But how do I get into the lordship?

I can’t just barge in and break down the door…

At that moment, a loud banging on the door of a tavern could be heard from outside.

The owner, upon hearing the sound, grimaced and cursed under his breath.