The middle of October. It was October and Allen was eight years old.

　Today is the day of the lord's arrival. A few days ago a messenger had told the chief of the village the date of his coming. The next day the chief's messenger arrived and informed Rodin and Gerda of his arrival.

　Allen was to be the guide. He had to explain the boar hunt to the lord. And the previous day's dinner will be served. I'll have to answer if he asks me anything about the hunt.

　Get ready early in the morning and leave for the chief's house before noon. Rodin and Gerda will not be there. It's not easy for a serf to meet his lord.

　Arrive at the chief's house before 9:00 a.m. and stay at the chief's house for a nap.
　Before noon, you will be woken up by a commoner working at the chief's house. He tells you to take a bath and get ready now.

(Oh?)　Maybe it's my first time in a bath. (There is a water bath, though.)

　On a hot day in the middle of summer, I sometimes fill up a large tub with water and go in naked. As a farmer, he usually just wipes himself with wet linen without soap.

　Soak in a wooden vat of warm water. Take a long time to clean yourself until the water cools down. The clothes they give you are of fine quality, something not many commoners wear.

　Then you'll have to wait for three hours. I'm told to stay awake and wait.

(Seriously, you made me wait too long.)

　The 3pm bell rings and we've been waiting for another hour or so and it seems we've arrived. The house is quite rustling.

　Not long after that, the lord entered the chief's house. Now it's time for dinner in the chief's hall. It's just dinner. The lord and his men will be eating. Only the chief will share the meal on behalf of the village.

　The village chief told me about the lord beforehand.

　The town where the lord is located is called Granville, the capital. It's about five days from here. From now on, you'll be in charge of waiting for the Baron Granvelle. You've traveled five days to get to the village, and you must be pretty tired.

　If you're thinking about that, it's time to go. The rather large kitchen at the chief's house is abuzz with activity. I wonder where five or six women were dispatched from to prepare the food. The neatly arranged dishes are lining up.

　In front of the door of the hall's entrance is the village chief. The lord is already in the hall, but it seems that Allen will enter with the chief. I feel the chief is quite nervous.

　The chief enters first. As soon as you enter the door, welcome to the house. The meal is ready.

Bring the food in.

　Through the door, the village chief instructs you to bring the meal.

　Allen will bring in the food from the appetizers. There is one table in the center.

At the far end is the lord, I suppose.

　At the far end of the birthday table sits the lord. He is a hawk-eyed man with lilac hair. He has a stern stare. He must be in his mid-forties.

　Try not to stare at his face as he silently brings the food from the lord at the far end of the table.

　More and more food is brought in. The food is ready on a plank in front of the entrance of the hall. There is no need to return to the kitchen. You walk back and forth between the entrance and the tables. Everyone else should have done the same, but only Allen is in charge of serving.

There are six of us, including the chief. Hmm?　You even have kids?　(The daughter of the lord?)

　Carrying them in turn . A man who appears to be the lord, a man with white hair and a beard who looks like a butler next to him, the Knight Commander and Vice Knight Commander who came to see Krsna .

　And next to the lord sits a girl with light purple hair, just like the lord. She looks about the same age as Allen.

"But thank you for settling the village.

"Oh, thank you.

　The lord expresses his gratitude to the village chief.

It's been 15 years since the territory's settlement order came into effect. Fifteen years later....no one has ever settled the territory as successfully as we have. Debozi. You have done a good job of bringing the people together and developing the village.

(Territorial Development Order?　(What's that?)

　While the lord praises the village chief, Allen overhears the conversation. This is because some information might pop up before tomorrow's boa hunt.



We have all worked hard for our lordship.

　It's the chief who is starving. You barely touched your appetizer. They have no time for food.

"I'm really sorry about the boar meat. This is the king's life.

(Hmm?　The king wants me to hunt boa?　(That's getting pretty big.)

　More listening as we talked about boa hunting. I'm busy serving you.

"So this was by order of His Majesty the King?

Well, yes. Well, technically, it's Lord Charnel's fault. Lord Charnel took the trouble to mention boa hunting in his audience chamber, thanks to ......

　It's the lords who become angry as if remembering. His eyes grow tighter. The village chief's demeanor has changed and he's frightened. Oily sweat is rising from his forehead and cheeks.

"Sir, the chief is frightened. And the master's reputation will rise again if he reaches his goal of 20.

　Without looking at the lord, a man of nearly sixty who looks like a butler interrupts.

'Huh?　Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry, chief Debozi. The king heard about the boa hunt. You asked for more.

It was, wasn't it?

　Lords who tell you about the circumstances of the increased number of boa hunts in scratching .
　Then bring the meat for the main dish. The lords put down the plates one by one.

''Mm!　What's this good meat!

"Ho, it's really good!

　The lord and his daughter marveled at the deliciousness and their eyes widened.

What is this?　It's a village chief.

　Ask the village chief if it was so good.

"Huh?　Huh?　Let's see, this is ......

　The village chief, suddenly asked and at a loss for words.

This is the meat of Albaheron. We caught it yesterday and presented it to the lord. Its parts are the breast, thigh and liver, and it is flavored with herbs.

"Hmm?　Oh Soka ......

　Allen replies on behalf of a speechless mayor.

　All at once, everyone's eyes are drawn to Allen. It's the lords who were curious because a boy with pitch-black hair and eyes was serving them.

　Noticing the stares, Allen bows and cleans up the finished dishes. Although there are only six people seated, you are very busy serving yourself. I'm bustling back and forth between the hall and the entrance.

That's the chief. You've got a good son. You did not hear me!

"Huh?　Well, this is the son of someone named Rodin. ......

　The lord who says that there is a solid child. The village chief who denies that the child is not his.

Rodin?

Oh, I remember. My Lord, the boy is Rodin, the one who organizes the boa hunts.

　The Knight Commander seems to remember. I sat with the Knight Commander two years ago at a banquet.

"Son of Rodin of Boa Hunt?

"Yes, my name is Allen, son of Rodin. Tomorrow I will be giving you a tour of the Boa Hunt.

　I was approached by my lord, and I greeted him.

'Was Rodin a crumbling knight or something?　You've got some pretty fine kids.

No, no, he must have been a serf since his parents' generation.

　Because of the child's good manners, his father Rodin asks if he was formerly a knight or something. The chief knows Rodin's father, too, and says no, he was not. That's the time.

"Huh?　There's a serf in this hall!

　The girl, who appeared to be the daughter of the lord, expressed her disgust when she found out that a serf was in the hall. She looked at Allen with a beautiful twisted face.

'What?　Cecil, serfs are fine people in my land!　You don't have to say that!



　I'm sorry.

"I'm sorry. Father.

　Lords daughter Cecil apologizing with tears in her eyes. And

　Kick!

(Ugh, about being stared at so much for some reason.)

　He glares at Allen as if to say, "You made my father angry at me. He glares at you with his parental bullish eyes. The crimson eyes seem to express your current emotions. You remove your gaze to avoid making too much eye contact with Allen.

"So, it's Allen.

"Yes, my lord.

　The lord speaks to Allen again.

"Tomorrow, you are going to lead us on a boa hunt?

"Yes.

And be sure to tell me how to hunt.

Then I will do so.

Zenov, listen carefully.

"Ha!

　The Knight Commander responds. The Knight Commander is named Xenov.

(Hmm?　Knight Commander often hear?　(What does that mean?)

　A question mark appears on Allen's face.

"Son of Rodin. You must achieve this strike count of 20, son of Rodin. I am the king's commander.

　It's the Knight Commander talking to Allen. He seems to answer Allen's questions. Allen also turns to the leader.

"Yes.

If it looks too difficult to achieve after a visit, our Order will join us.

(Huh?　(You're not just here for a tour)

　I finally understand why the lords have come. We must take down 20 this year. We killed 15 last year. But there's no guarantee we'll be able to hunt 20 this year.

　My lord is afraid that I won't make it.
　I've come to fulfill the king's command to lead the knights in a hunt for the boa.

Isn't that right?

　The chief understands the situation. He nods his head in agreement.

My lord.

　Then Allen says the words.

What's the matter with you?　It's all right. Just give me a good explanation and the Order will take care of the rest. You have nothing to worry about.

　This is a lord who only wants to teach me how to hunt.

No, my lord. It's only 20, my lord.

"Buh!

　It's the village chief who erupts at Allen's words. Both the lord and the knight master's eyes widen.

''Tomorrow's boa hunt, I will show you that if the village of Krsna pulls together, we can certainly achieve our goal of 20 animals.

　In the midst of six gazes, he bowed his head and assured them. There was no fear, no hesitation.
　He said it so clearly that no one could gasp and respond.