Chapter 86

“Lord Ainzich , how about trying this as well?”

It was a sunny afternoon, and I was enjoying a tea party in the courtyard with Leila.

The fact that I couldn’t completely close the gap between Leila and me was due to my own emotional issues… But now that we’ve shared our feelings, I’m finally living the affectionate life with Leila that I had dreamed of.

As Leila fed me a bite with her “Ah, open wide,” there sat Arte next to us, quietly on her chair, looking rather awkward.

“Um… why exactly am I here?”

Obviously, it’s because I wanted to indulge in the harem atmosphere, but I decided to set the joke aside.

I placed my teacup back on the table, adjusted my expression, and turned to Arte.

“Partly because I wanted to deepen our camaraderie… but also because I have something I want to ask you.”

“You want to ask me something…?”

I nodded once.

“It’s about the history of the beastkin… There’s not much written in the records, so I’d like to hear it directly from you. Only if you’re comfortable, of course.”

Normally, Wolf might know a lot about this, but he’s currently out scouting Count Kastaren. It’s hard to predict how the fugitives who orchestrated the mass escape of the villagers might act, so it’s necessary.

I felt a bit guilty for disturbing the peaceful tea party, but Leila also seemed interested, gazing at Arte.

Arte, too, lowered her eyes, as if deep in thought.

“If it’s just my personal perspective…”

“I’d greatly appreciate it.”

Arte seemed to have decided to speak and looked at me with a serious expression.

“A long time ago, beastkin lived divided by their respective tribes, each in their own villages.”

While Wolf’s tribe now consists of a mix of various species, it seems that they used to be divided.

“There were warlike tribes and peaceful tribes. I’ve heard these tribes existed all over the world.”

“So, there were many different tribes?”

The only beastkin I’d personally encountered were Mimi, the cat-eared beastkin, and Arte and Wolf, the wolf-type beastkin. I was naturally curious about what other species might exist.

Arte pointed to her own ears, which twitched playfully.

“When it comes to warlike tribes, that would be us.”

Well, they are wolves…

Leila, intrigued by Arte pointing at her ears, began stroking her head. Arte’s face softened in pleasure. I couldn’t help but feel envious…

I cleared my throat to refocus the conversation, and Arte returned to her serious demeanor.

“As for peaceful tribes, the bovine beastkin come to mind.”

“Bovine beastkin? Like minotaur types, with horns growing out of their heads?”

Arte looked surprised that I knew and nodded in agreement.

Resting my chin on my hand, I pondered. Wait a second… Minotaurs in fantasy settings usually have an aggressive, mid-boss vibe. Peaceful, really?

“While they’re physically robust, they are an agricultural tribe with gentle dispositions.”

Ah, that makes sense. Yeah, cows grazing on grass do give off a calm image. So, they’re agricultural? But are they still considered beastkin? I can’t help but think they resemble demons.

“Sorry, I went off on a tangent.”

Learning about the various types of beastkin and their traits was fascinating, but that wasn’t today’s main topic.

“Not at all. I’ve also heard that while there were conflicts among the tribes, overall, it was a peaceful era for the beastkin. However, that began to change after a certain event.”

Somehow, I felt sure of what my next question would be.

“What happened?”

Arte hesitated, as if it was difficult to say, but eventually met my gaze with determination.

“It was the attacks from the Arieist Church.”