The gift of talking to animals, huh? Looks like we have an astonishing little beastman on our hands here.
As I thought about it, next to me Liscia quietly whispered, “The country of the mystic wolves is far to the north. There shouldn’t be any in this country.”
“…A refugee, huh,” I murmured. Ah, that would explain the beat up clothes then, wouldn’t it?
With the expansion of the Demon Lord’s Domain, a number of countries and villages had been destroyed. Those who had lost their lands had fled south, becoming refugees in other nations, and they were starting to put pressure on the economy. Different nations dealt with them in different ways. Some proactively took them in, while others moved to expel them. Though, that said, even when it came to the countries taking them in, most either forced them into hard labor such as mining or sent them out as additional manpower to fight against the demons, so both types of country were hell for the refugees.
Even in my kingdom, refugee camps had sprung up outside the capital Parnam. At the moment, the decision on what to do with them was still “on hold.” If we helped the refugees when we didn’t even have enough food to feed our own people, riots might well break out. If we expelled them or forced them into hard labor, we would have to deal with the refugees’ resentment. If they went into hiding and turned terrorist on us, that would be terrible. As things stood, they were causing a decline in public safety, but we had no choice but to maintain the status quo.
In order to offer a helping hand to others, we need to be in a good place to help ourselves first, I thought.
“I said if they had a gift, I would put it to use, and I don’t intend to twist those words,” I said out loud. “If she has a gift, it doesn’t matter if she’s a foreigner or a refugee. We’re in no position to be particular about such things, after all.”
“You’re right.”
When I said that, the mystic wolf girl who had just been introduced hesitantly opened her mouth to speak. “Uh… Um… King Souma…”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Um… Well… Uh, I also… have something I’d like to say…”
Because she was extremely tense, she spoke as if forcing the words out. It was hard to make out what she was saying.
“Did you have something you wanted to say? I don’t mind. Please go ahead.”
“Yesh… Um… Actually…”
“Hm? What? You need to speak up, or I won’t be able to hear you…”
“Um… I…” Tomoe had tears in her eyes. She was still young enough to be called a little girl, so it was painful to see her with a face like that.
“…I understand. I’ll come over to you, so don’t cry anymore,” I said.
“Awoo…”
I walked over to the girl’s side and crouched down next to her, putting my ear next to her mouth. As the one in charge of guarding me, Ludwin had a disapproving look on his face, but I ignored him.
“Now I should be able to hear you,” I said. “Say whatever you like.”
“Yep. The truth is…”
What she whispered to me next made me doubt my ears. I stood up and stared at Tomoe’s face.
“…You’re certain of this?”
“Y-Yep.”
“Have you told this to anyone else?”
“N-No… Nobody but my mom…”
“I see…”
I breathed a sigh. It was half of relief and half of worry when I thought about what was to come. This was more than just some rare gift. This girl had the potential to be a “bombshell” to this world.
…Calm down. Breathe. Don’t let anyone here notice how agitated you are.
“Whew… I’m a little exhausted. I’d like to take a little break here.”
“Souma?”
When I said that, looking around, Liscia looked at me dubiously. The others had about the same reaction, but I ignored them, boldly raising my voice.
“I would now like to take a thirty minute break. The presentation of awards to the remaining two, this girl included, will take place after that. Madam Juna.”
“What is it, Sire?” When I called her name, the lorelei songstress stepped forward.
“Right now, our countrymen are watching us over the Jewel Voice Broadcast. It would pain me to make the people just wait during our break. So, could I ask you to keep them entertained with your singing for half an hour or so?”
“Of course, sire. Our songs are the pride of my family. I will sing my heart out for them.”
With those words, Juna gave an elegant bow.
Our eyes met for just a moment. It felt as if she were checking with me: There’s a reason for this, isn’t there? But, even so, she chose not to ask, doing as I had requested.
Even without her beauty and singing, I would want a considerate person like her among my subordinates.
While Juna was buying time for me, I gathered those I could trust in the governmental affairs office. This included myself, Liscia, Marx, Ludwin, and Tomoe. That was all. As for Aisha, who didn’t want to be separated from me now that she had sworn her loyalty, I had her stand outside the door to ensure no one was listening in.
“Is all of this caution really necessary?” Liscia asked in bewilderment, to which I responded with a nod.
“We are in a very bad situation. Did anyone hear what Tomoe said earlier?” I checked with the other three, but all of them shook their heads.
“…I didn’t hear. Her voice was so quiet.”
“Neither did I.”
“Me either.”
“…Then, is there any risk people heard her over the Jewel Voice Broadcast?”
“That should probably be fine,” Liscia said. “It’s not that sensitive.”
As soon as I heard that, I felt as if a great weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
“Is it that bad?” she asked.
“Yes. It was literally a bombshell statement.”
Everyone’s focus narrowed on Tomoe, causing her to shrink into herself even more. It seemed like it would be hard to get her to talk, so I answered on her behalf.
“She can converse with animals. You all heard that, right?”
“Yes. It’s an incredible gift, isn’t it?”
“She used that power to talk to a demon, apparently.”
The moment I said that, the room went cold. Everyone was speechless, just mouthing voicelessly like a bunch of goldfish. Before I go into detail about it, there are some things you need to know first.
What people in this world thought of when they talked about demons or monsters and what people in the world I came from thought of when they talked about demons or monsters were slightly different. In the world I came from, monsters were not “people” or “plants and animals,” they were seen as aberrations.
However, in this world, the words “person” and “animal” were defined very broadly.
To be more specific, humans, elves, beastmen, and dragonewts were all “people” and fell under the category of “mankind.”
In the categories of “plants and animals,” even at four meters tall, a red grizzly was still a mammal. Even if it looked like a dinosaur, a monitor lizard was still a reptile. Even if it was as big as a person, a giant ant was still an insect. And even if it ate people, a maneater was a plant. Furthermore, gelins, the slime creatures that did things like merge together, split apart, melt, and more, also fell under the “plants and animals” category, for some reason.