[Part 4/5]
"I want some too. Carrots would be good."
"Go get your own!"
"I've got some dried meat. Who wants to eat it?"
The candied sweet potatoes that were at the center are gone by now, but pickled vegetables have appeared from somewhere, and the sound of vigorous chewing continues as always. Well, this isn't a tea party or anything anymore, is it?
"Hey, Ichiyō. Have some of this. It's a treat from the juniors."
"Uhh..."
As I served as the audience for their grumbling, I happened to catch sight of it out of the corner of my eye. In a corner of the room, some former servants whose bodies were relatively intact were helping those who had collapsed by offering them hot water and giving them sweet potato candy and pickled vegetables. Like caterpillars unable to move from their spots, they were whispering something to the caretakers nearby...
"..."
"Hey, Tomobe."
"Huh? Whoa!"
Perhaps because my attention had wandered, I suddenly became aware of Kuchinasi's presence, which had come right beside me.
"Um, what is it?"
"Give me your time for a moment. ...It's better that way, don't you think?"
Before I could say anything, his words were already spoken. However, I had no choice but to accept his offer...
"Well, they're making quite a fuss. They won't be able to hear us even if we talk here."
Kuchinasi said, moving to the back of the hut and sitting on a stump. As he spoke, he took out a worn-out smoking pipe.
"It's an old one. I got it from my former boss... the squad leader. Apparently, he got it from the squad leader before him. It's a second-hand item."
Realizing I had noticed his gaze, he explained to me and then put a mixture of tobacco with coarse-cut herbs into the bowl of the smoking pipe. He snapped his fingers. Ignition through magic. Then, with the pipe in his mouth, he began to slowly inhale.
"So, it's not like you came here just as an escort, right? Isn't that so?"
"...How much do you know?"
I respond to Kuchinasi's words with a serious tone.
"I don't appreciate answering a question with another question. You guys have a habit of being cocky just because I'm not a squad leader anymore. Quite the audacity."
Kuchinasi lets out a dry chuckle as I averts my gaze awkwardly.
"I'm afraid I don't know anything. But I can tell you don't like me. I don't like you either. If you don't have much of a connection with Hisame and you still came here, it's only natural to assume you have some ulterior motive, right?"
"...You're astute."
And so, I speak. The reason for coming here. The reason for coming to see him. After hearing everything, the reaction I receive is very similar to Sarujirou's.
"You're going to a lot of strange efforts. This was supposed to be an easy job. You should just accept it. If luck is on your side, it's a perfect opportunity for the princess to take notice of you, you know?"
Kuchinasi complains as if he wants to take over my position.
"Don't say it so lightly. Haven't I told you? Who recommended me to be here. My background, the rumors... when you put them all together, it's not a pleasant image."
Kuchinasi knows that I used to be a former laborer apprentice and that I used to be the personal attendant of the first princess. He probably knows about the Main Family Head's infatuation with the first princess's mother, and the rumors about the complicated relationship with the second princess's mother, the legitimate wife. Given all that, it's not hard to imagine what could arise from there...
"If it's a conspiracy, well, that's fine. If you can handle it well, it's an opportunity to rise. They say the Second Princess is a genius, no, a prodigy beyond her years. She probably won't fall easily into a trap."
But she does fall for it. ...Well, I can't say for sure since the details, including the process, aren't described.
"And even if you meet me, it won't change anything. You probably relied on the things I told you when I was over there... but unfortunately, those guys over there are as cold as ice."
Kuchinasi lets out a sigh as he exhales smoke deeply. He admits that they've discarded him because he's become useless.
"...Is that true?"
"What's the use of lying here? It's a golden opportunity."
When I question him again, doubt clearly present in my voice, Kuchinasi denies that doubt as if mocking me.
"Opportunity?"
"Assuming there was a scheme. If you can maneuver well, you can build connections. If that happens to me, there's a chance for me to get back on my feet."
He's really strong. Truly resilient. After all, he's not planning on staying peacefully here. Frankly, I'm rather taken by his determination.
"You fool. It's because of this kind of place. Ha, what's Yasunaga? Just a name for a place to dump unwanted things. We're self-sufficient for food and necessities. There's no help. If you fall ill, it's over."
Kuchinasi goes on, listing criticisms about this new residence. I'm impressed that he's come out this far to say it, but at the same time, I can't help but agree. The environment here is simply that bad.
Two out of the three people dumped here with severe injuries died within half a year. There's no land tax, but with no one in good health, the field work doesn't progress quickly. There's no weaponry either, so they have to set traps to catch meat. Since there are so many weakened individuals, they have to hold funerals every year. They even carry the unclaimed bodies to bury them themselves. There's little entertainment.
Fortunately, things are stable now. However, that stability is fragile. According to what Kuchinasi heard from the old-timers here, about ten years ago, there was a shortage of food and an outbreak of disease, leading to public punishments and silencing of mouths. It's still raw in their memory.
"If it's about what I know, some secrets, I'll tell you a bit. Don't expect more. Debts have to be repaid."
"I don't want to repay it...!!"
Kuchinasi's merciless and unreserved words draw my heartfelt honesty without any regard for hierarchies or politeness. Well, it's better than nothing, but still!!
"You're a noisy brat. ...Sigh. Looks like I worried for nothing."
"...Worried for nothing?"
I tilt my head, unable to fully grasp his intention, as Kuchinasi's words escape his exasperated expression. Kuchinasi begins to explain patiently in a slightly relaxed manner, addressing my confusion.
"It's because you were an unreliable brat in various ways. Not just your background, but also your quick integration into the Yun-shoku, your skill in maneuvering through different situations. Even Shirato was cautious of you. Now, he's even showing sympathy for you."
"Wait, are you saying Shirato Squad Leader was cautious of me...?"
It's a truth I didn't want to know. It makes me lose faith in humanity.
"It's in the past tense, so relax. You were an outsider. You have to accept it as a natural initiation."
"Well, that's..."
Being the personal attendant of the fist princess is too much of a good image from the perspective of lower-ranked servants. It's reasonable to be cautious of a situation that led to being demoted to a servant, or rather, being treated too leniently.
Certainly, anyone with a bit of intelligence would be wary and wonder if there's more to it.
"It is also suspicious that your assigned squads kept falling apart one after another is suspicious too. Especially Tokusa's squad, which was being wiped out... and you're the only one who survived. The Yun-shoku guy trusts you and has you around at home, but from my point of view, you're practically a youkai disguised as a human. No, it's more unsettling that the people around here somewhat trust you."
"I have no excuses..."
Kuchinasi's attitude toward me has been cold, just as he tried to use me as bait in the previous mission. But in a way, it might have been his way of showing concern for the servant group.
"Do you still feel the same way?"
"...Are you showing up at unattended graves?"
His response to my words wasn't what I anticipated. I'm taken aback internally.
"...You knew?"
"Since coming here. Even the previous guests saw you at the unattended graves. Admirable, isn't it?"
"It started when I was brought by Yun-shoku. Helping with cleaning and offerings. When Yun-shoku is busy, I do it alone... well, it's my duty as a cohabitant."
I'm not lying. After my first squad was wiped out, I was taken by Yun-shoku to the unattended graves in the back mountains, partly to offer solace. Now it's just me doing the cleaning to ease Yun-shoku's hard work.
Well, an elderly monk who comes to clean regularly helps, so it's not heavy labor. And the offerings aren't entirely from my own pocket money, either.
"Did you know Kae's favorite food?"
"Yes."
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