< Create Own Request if Theres None (Part 2) >
As Zin and Leona walked past the mountainous area, they spotted several holes that looked like ant lion pits.
It looks like the cave ants have been living in this area for a while.
Ugh, disgusting.
Similar to the regular ants, cave ants formed colonies. As Leona imagined thousands of cave ants crawling underground through the tunnels, she became scared.
Hmm
As they went over one mountain, Zin checked the map.
If we go north from here, well reach a building that used to be a prison. I havent been there, but it probably turned into a habitat. We will get there within today so lets rest up at that place.
Sounds good.
Up north was a building that used to be a concentration camp for political prisoners. Such places were easily converted into villages. It was very likely that those places were converted into points or castles because such places with buildings were scarce.
Because Zin and Leona had been on the road for a long time, they wanted to eat a good meal.
And Leona did not have much trouble travelling through the mountains, as she was lightweight.
Mister, so, are we not going to be able to hunt that cave ant? After walking for a long time, Leona asked the question curiously.
Zin was extremely upset about the loss, but he didnt actively try to hunt the cave ants. That probably meant that it was near impossible to hunt them, and Leona was curious. Zin shook his head.
I could hunt them, but it would take a lot of preparation, and its not worth it.
Why is that?
Hmm The cave ants can dig tunnels hundreds of yards below the ground. They can crush through rocks to dig tunnels. I can exterminate them, but it will be tough to extract the chips. The tunnels that the cave ants go through are not wide enough for me to crawl through. And even if Im able to go inside the tunnel, itll be crazy to fight against the cave ants inside the tunnel.
Well, they are one annoying group of insects.
Yes, they are.
So Zin did not recklessly force himself to hunt the cave ants inside the tunnel. It was better for him to let this one go than try to force it.
Hunters dont hunt every monster. They only hunt those that return a profit. I hunt cave ants only when there are requests to hunt them. If theres no request, its best to not even worry about it.
It was a very practical view, and it was the only way the hunters thought.
I see!
As Leona kept the teaching in mind, she nodded vigorously. There were monsters that were tough to handle, yet had hardly any chips. Hunters didnt like handling tough monsters, but they wanted to hunt weak monsters that yielded many chips.
People had many misconceptions about the hunters, but hunters were human, after all. Cave ants were hard to deal with. They were not worth the effort unless there were requests.
Wait a minute, Ive got an idea.
Zin slowly nodded as if he thought of something. I hope theres a village where we stay. And I hope they have enough chips.
Why? We dont even have gallbladders to sell.
stop talking about it. It hurts.
As Leona pointed out the truth, Zin frowned and started murmuring to himself. Leona asked again, Then whats the plan?
There will be a request from the villagers for sure.
How can you be so sure?
Zin started walking forward as he smiled.
There may be none. But if theres none, we could create some.
You are going to create requests?
If theres none, you gotta find a way to create some.
Zin was all smiles as he continued to walk, and he appeared to have forgotten about the red bear incident. Leona could not understand what gibberish Zin was talking about. She shook her head, and then shouted out in a hurry, Mister! Slow down!
Leona had to sprint to catch up Zin, who was walking too fast.
——
The camp that they arrived at was on a basin in between the mountains. It was surrounded with a wall that was about twenty feet high. The wall looked sturdy, and the land inside was cultivated for food.
Wow, there is a village!
Walking down the hill, Leona was surprised to see a village as Zin had foretold. Leona was amazed at how Zin was able to predict things.
What happens if they dont allow us in?
People in the castles were usually unwelcoming, and they usually rejected suspicious-looking people.
We gotta make them accept us.
Zin talked as if he had some plan. The castle in front of them seemed to have at least 500 villagers. Zin quickly scouted to check for their defenses.
No firearms, but they are all armed with crossbows
On top of the walls, they had ballistae to defend against large monsters, in lieu of firearms. This meant that there were craftsmen who built such weapons.
The castle appeared to be on high alert, as the weapons were guarded very well.
As Zin and Leona approached the castle, the people outside the walls were getting cautious. They held their positions, and someone started walking towards Zin and Leona.
Who are you? I havent seen you around here.
A guard who was armed with a crossbow slowly approached them. He was not aiming at them, but the bolt loaded on the crossbow meant that he was ready to fire at Zin at any given time.
I am a hunter, and Id like to rest up at the castle. And I can talk if needed.
Zin was unarmed, as he put all his weapons into void storage. The guard nodded.
I will ask the command center. Wait here, the guard ordered the others, who were quite nervous with the appearance of a stranger, and ran towards the wall. A lord was in charge of a castle, and held most of the power. The guards were also given power. In this castle, it seemed like the guards were keeping the villagers under control.
Hey there, dont stand idle, start working again!
At the shouts of the guard, everybody resumed working in the fields, keeping an eye on Zin and Leona as well.
Is this your first time at a castle?
Umm yeah, Leona nodded with a puzzled look. It was strange to see that people were being ordered, and following orders.
People lived in different environments, and people in the castle were protected at the cost of living as slaves. They had no other choice.
The guard came back, and waved at them to come in. As soon as they walked inside the wall, the guard captain welcomed them.
Welcome to the Jule castle, hunter.
Thanks for welcoming us.
Is this kid a hunter too?
Sort of.
Ha really?
The guard captain looked at Zin weirdly, but Zin didnt say anything.
Do you have any requests in particular?
Nope, we are self-sufficient. But we always welcome visitors spending chips. We have a lot of supplies here.
They did not have any requests at the moment. Hunters solved requests for villages, and they also provided chips to the villages by exchanging for goods.
That building over there is the visitors inn. Nightly rate is five chips. Meals cost extra, and you can buy supplies from there. Please do not wander around at night, if you do not want to get involved with any trouble.
Will do.
I have asked them to prepare a room, so youll need to wait a bit.
Zin nodded as the captain was speaking in an intimidating tone. The lodging fee was somewhat expensive, but considering that the castle was a relatively safe place, it wasnt that bad. Zin headed to the building that the captain referred to. The building was in good condition, and the villagers and the kids avoided Zin and Leona.
What is wrong with them?
Leona didnt like the way the villagers were looking at them.
People in the castle are afraid of strangers. They are not free. And they are brainwashed to fear strangers so that they will not run away from the castle.
How are they brainwashed?
They are told that if they come in contact with a stranger, their flesh will rot and die. They are told things that make no sense whatsoever.
Hah, then why do they believe in those lies?
It is easier to be afraid of the unknown.
Leona shook her head as she didnt quite get what Zin was saying.
Lets rest up first.
Whatever Zin was plotting, he was not planning to execute it right away. The visitor inn was a single-story concrete building, and most of the doors were closed. The rooms that were available had wooden windows, and some of the villagers were cleaning the rooms diligently.
They are a pretty hospitable people.
The guard ordered the villagers to clean up the room, and the villagers were soon dusting off the blankets in the sun. Zin sat on the chair in the hallway, and waited for the room to be cleaned up. The villagers also had water for washing.
The people here have very pale faces. Leona looked at the faces of the guards and the villagers, and was amazed that all looked white and bright. Before Zin could answer, a villager walked in with a wooden box holding an item. The aproned woman also had a white face.
That is because of soap.
Soap? What is that?
Its something that makes people clean, and sanitation is important. People of Jule castle have to wash up every morning when they wake up, and every night before they go to sleep.
At the explanation, Zin nodded as if it was funny.
Hmm its a very special castle
Isnt it? In the Jule castle, there are no epidemics.
What is a soap? How does it look like?
It is tool that contains disinfectants to remove oil and dirt.
You deliberately spoke with bigs words so that I cant understand, right?
Of course.
You are a punk!
The middle-aged villager didnt understand Zins explanation, either. The woman looked at the wooden box and, took out a bar of hexagon-shaped ivory-colored soap.
The woman explained to Leona how to use the soap, and Leona was surprised as she listened to the explanations.
Leona walked into the bathroom with the woman, and after using the soap, she made strange comments.
What this is slippery I dont like this feeling
Now you can wash with water.
Huh! Why are you spraying water on my face?
Hmm, you are quite dirty. Come over here, I am going to give you a full bath. Take off your clothes.
Ahh, mister! Help me!
Plop!
Waacck!
It sounded like Leona was throw into a bathtub, and she was washed with soap by the woman. Without paying much attention to Leona, Zin looked around at Jule through the door with his arms crossed.
A castle that makes soap well, all you need is some oil.
Monster oil or bear oil was used to make soap. The soap was used to maintain the hygiene level at the Jule castle, and many washed clothes were hanging on the clotheslines.
In many cases, cities had bad hygiene, and epidemics spread through the cities often. The health of the villagers was directly tied to the stability of the lord. The castles lord knew what was important.
Zin looked at the washed clothes hanging on the clothesline, and thought that it was very unique.
The castle seemed to be a very good place, as they provided free soaps to the strangers who might carry virus and germs.
Or, it was possible that the lord was just a neat freak.
Oh my goodness, look at this. Look at the dead skin that came off from your body.
Smack!
Aacck! Why did you slap me, maam!
It was pretty loud inside as Leona was screaming. About an hour later, only the voice of the woman could be heard.
Look at yourself now. Dont you feel clean and great?
My skin hurts so bad, I feel like it got peeled
We need to wash your clothes, too. Change yourself with these clothes. I will get your clothes ready.
Leona was wearing a white one piece dress when she came out again. The cotton dress looked very good, and it seemed to have been made by the villagers. The woman was happy to see the clean Leona, and smiled. The woman took out a mirror from the box, and showed Leonas face in the mirror.
Look, you are much prettier now, arent you?
Leona was amazed to see a mirror, but she was more amazed to see her cleaned-up face.
Her oily hair was cleaned up, and the oil and dust on her face were gone as well. The woman has scrubbed Leonas skin so hard that it was now red, but she was now as clean as a child.
Wow! Leona was amazed and shouted out, I am so freaking pretty!
Zin was speechless as he watched Leona, who was acting so funny. Leona looked into the mirror for a while as she fell in love with herself.
She had dark brown hair, brown eyes, and pale white skin even though she wandered under the sun for a long time. And the white dress looked very good on her…
Look! Mister hunter!
While the woman was drying Leonas hair with a towel, she started talking to Zin as she thought of something. You should get washed, too. You are beyond filthy right now, and you smell very bad.
Dont worry about me
If you keep on procrastinating, I am going to wash you up myself.
Okay, Im washing up now! Zin stood up in a rush, and headed to the bathroom area.