Chapter 60 [Interlude: In the Village of Beastmen]
"Yaku... you're safe... well done..."
In a village of beastmen, where they successfully reclaimed their kin from slave traders, a figure holding a young beastman, tears mixed with sobs. A bit away, wiping the corners of her eyes, was Warya, the elf from the Silva Forest who had contacted the beastmen. Upon closer inspection, the mother holding the sobbing child appeared to be the acquaintance Warya had mentioned, the one whose child was abducted by humans. The beastmen in the distance, dressed in similar simple clothing, seemed to have been gathered from various villages. Their ears and tails varied, suggesting they were abducted from different places. The eyes of the group, huddled a little apart, reflected warmth and a profound sadness, as if remembering what they had lost. Many of them had witnessed their kin being killed right before their eyes.
"Sorry, but I'd like you all to stay in this village for a while. We intend to send you back to your hometowns as soon as circumstances allow, but we need some time. We're sorry, but for a while, you'll have to sleep in the assembly hall. As you can see, there are no vacant houses. If any of you want to live somewhere else, we won't stop you, but we hope you'll keep in touch with this village. If you can provide for yourselves, you're welcome to do so, but please coordinate with us to avoid disrupting the village's hunting grounds."
The young man, possibly the leader of the beastmen village, was explaining to the freed slaves. They had no objections, and for the time being, they agreed to cooperate with the villagers here. Many of the beastmen had their home villages destroyed. The village elders were considering that a considerable number—most of them young women—might stay in this village.
"However, truly an adept foreign spirit magician..."
"Yeah, we not only retaliated against those hated humans but also reclaimed many of our kin. We owe a great deal to the spirit magician."
"Yes, the people of Edra are not ungrateful. We must repay this favor."
"But... to handle those humans so easily... what on earth did the spirit magician do?"
"Hmm. The lord's private soldiers didn't move at all. The number of guards was surprisingly low. Well, dealing with a slightly increased number of humans is nothing to us."
"Don't say that. The mentioned spirit magician is also human, you know?"
"It means not all humans are bad. The people of Elgin's territory don't scorn or discriminate against us."
Unknown to Crow, his reputation was steadily rising in places he was unaware of.