Is that another beastkin who wants to live here?
No! It's a lich anaconda! A monster!
They're being chased!
It got him!
Help!
Somebody!
Wait! We're unarmed!
Phew.
"Phew" nothing!
Going up against a monster barehanded is insane!
S-Sorry, Alna.
We both ran out here without weapons, so I'm just as responsible.
No, I was the reckless one.
I'll be more careful from now on.
Are you okay?!
Come out!
It's not too late!
Yahoo!
He's alive!
Thank goodness.
You saved us.
That giant snake spotted us on our way here.
Thanks to you, we're all safe and sound.
I am Dias, lord of this grassy domain.
A human, and a lord at that, greeting dogkin on their level?
You've had a hard journey. All of you are welcome here.
Thank you so much.
You really did save us.
Sir Dias and...
My name is Alna. I'm Dias's wife.
She's a looker.
A young wife, huh?
What a pretty young wife.
M-My name is Canis.
Canis, are you hoping to immigrate here, too?
No, I work for Lord Eldan as the caretaker of all the small-ilk.
I was accompanying this group as a guide today.
The ones wishing to immigrate are these three clans.
Those with the black fur are the Tibe Masti,
a clan of courage and great strength.
I am the clan leader... milord.
My name is Marf Tibe Masti.
No need to be so formal.
Speak with me as you would anyone.
Those with the brown fur are the Bah Senji.
A very serious clan, they've even been called inflexible.
I am the clan leader, Sedorio Bah Senji.
Well met.
Indeed.
Nice to meet you, Sedorio.
Those with the black and white fur are the Ausun Shep,
a clan brimming with curiosity.
I'm clan leader Rhinehartgodofyahdishev Ausun Shep!
Oh, but that's so long! Please call me Shev!
Sure.
Good to meet you.
Their clan names are very important to them, so please remember each one.
Got it.
I used Soul Appraisal on everyone.
Canis is pale blue. Practically white, in fact.
All the small-ilks are strong blue.
Every one of them? That's surprising.
E-Excuse me.
I forgot to mention something important.
All of them love to work.
Not having a job to do stresses them out.
Is that going to be okay?
Stare...
There's all sorts of work to do.
For instance, we need help making the cisterns.
The horses and cattle need tending.
And those who'd like to can even serve the realm.
All right!
Sir Dias, by "serve the realm," do you mean as soldiers?
Yeah, which would normally mean guarding the village at night and combat training.
And of course, in an emergency, they'd have to go into battle.
Simple jobs are one thing, but they can't hold weapons with their paws.
They're also small, so no matter how willing they are, I don't see it working.
I understand your concern.
Canis, will you be staying here for a bit?
Yes. I'll be reporting to Lord Eldan about how the immigration goes.
Then I think I can convince you before you leave.
Klaus!
Looks like a busy day, Lord Dias!
Thanks for standing watch.
These must be the immigrants.
Yeah, I'll introduce you later.
For now, this is Canis, who's in charge of them.
Nice to meet you. I'm Klaus, captain of the...
Is something the matter?
N-No! It's a pleasure to have you here!
The pleasure's all mine!
I'd like to go ahead and show you the village.
Yes, by all means.
He's so easy to read.
TEN DAYS LATER
Water's coming up! Snag it!
Sure.
Don't spill any!
I've got it.
It's been ten days since the dogkin came to Iluk Village.
They're all doing good work.
Senai and Ayhan recently started their own garden.
It seems to be progressing well, thanks to help from the dogkin.
All right, group one!
All of you, attack me at once!
Yessir!
You got me.
That was great teamwork.
Your reactions are improving by the day!
Klaus has slain numerous enemy generals.
He's a fearless fighter they called the Head Collector.
And it only took these guys ten days to learn how to beat him.
Damn impressive.
Wow.
During the war, the enemy's war dogs were a huge thorn in our side.
These guys have skills to rival them, and they can even speak.
The way I see it, they'll do peerless work.
They can even use tools well after a bit of tweaking.
They're managing daily chores and guard duty without any issues.
Are you convinced now?
Of course.
Well, then I'm off to check on the field.
Are you okay?!
Did you twist your leg?
I tripped over a stone.
I'll help!
Miss Canis... Thank you.
I've never met a human who would so readily treat an injured dogkin.
Human or dogkin is irrelevant.
A comrade was hurt because I wasn't paying attention.
SANSERIFE KINGDOM, THE FIRST KING'S TOMB
The treasures in this royal tomb will be our war chest.
Don't go pocketing everything.
Princess Diane, what do you intend to do with that scepter?
I'm going to use it, of course.
Respectfully, if word gets out that you entered this forbidden place
and carried off royal treasures,
you might end up being censured.
No one's going to censure me!
I'm striking down that traitor!
Dias, who mocked me with his lies!
I will do it using this scepter,
with which the first king of old is said to have reduced
ten thousand enemies to ashes.
After that, I'll use the fortune he's hiding
along with his dragon materials to fund raising an army,
strike down my meddling siblings, and take this kingdom for myself.
There's no need to be so anxious, Prinessia.
I also have this secret scheme.
The king's seal?!
You heard what that man said.
During the war, Dias would slaughter innocent civilians.
They hail him as our kingdom's heroic savior,
but his achievements are all fabrications.
The time has come for me to show the world true justice!
Royalty ended up being easier to trick than the beastkin.
If Diane slays Dias, I shall have my revenge.
And then if I slay Diane, I can put my father and the others to shame!
I'm sure he will be happy about it, too!
Then I'll be the hero of the kingdom, won't' I?
THE FRONTIER LORD AND THE NEW SUBJECTS
This has grown into a real problem.
You're dismissed, Prinessia.
I will keep up my infiltration and gather more information.
No, you needn't return to Diane's side.
Stand by for your next orders.
As you wish.
You heard her.
She hasn't just taken the royal scepter. She's also stolen the king's seal.
And she's leading a force toward the plains of Nezrose.
What a bona fide idiot.
What will you do, Prince Richard?
Will you have the nobles in your faction mobilize their troops
to subdue Princess Diane's force?
There's no need to interfere.
If we pursue them now, we'd be at significant risk of encountering Dias.
You've been sayin' we should avoid him for some time now, Prince.
Is he all that dangerous?
"The kingdom's heroic savior" is hardly his only nickname.
"Dias the Kindly" and "No Balls Dias" are the well-known ones.
It's the way he got those that betrays his true nature.
During the war, there was a royal order to slaughter the enemy kingdom's subjects.
Dias refused to obey this order.
He also forbade the soldiers under his command from murdering and plundering.
In other words, Dias has no issue defying the king's orders.
Then what about "No Balls"?
A more fitting moniker would be "Ballbreaker Dias."
There was a military unit made up of the sons of nobles
who wanted to make names for themselves in the war.
One nobleman's son went along for foolish and far less savory reasons.
Dias happened to be nearby, so he came running.
He subdued all three men present.
Why would you do such a thing?
Why? Because I happened to lay eyes on a real beauty!
She should be honored that a noble like me took a shine to her!
If a commoner assaults a noble, is he not put on trial at the palace?
Yes, but...
My parents taught me that
the nobility exists to protect subjects who cannot protect themselves.
Meaning there is no way those guys are nobles.
I did not see a single noble in the room.
Father publicly praised Dias, saying he did the right thing
as a subject of the kingdom.
The case was dismissed.
The captains of the knight orders came to Dias's defense as well.
They said he was too valuable to the war effort to lose.
Dias doesn't take kindly to those who cross him.
It makes no difference if they're nobility or royalty.
Huh? Has he attacked royalty, too?
Once upon a time,
there was a very willful boy who'd been spoiled by his parents.
Shall I stop?
Continue. At this point, it's best they understand.
The boy declared he wanted to fight in the war,
and he found himself surrounded by the enemy on the battlefield.
A certain violent man showed up and rescued the boy.
And then...
Why do something so stupid and reckless?!
You know, that's the only time anyone's ever struck me.
Even when he learned who I was...
If you wanna play your royal games, do it in your own castle!
For the next three months, Dias worked me hard.
Dias's influence led Prince Richard to become a hardworking,
honest, upstanding man who does not discriminate against commoners.
Dias sounds like a great man.
It's no wonder the king took a liking to him.
I wonder why he was banished to the frontier.
My father did not banish him.
He left the grasslands in Dias's hands because he thinks
that he can do something with them.
They are our kingdom's first defense.
Dias was constantly offsetting errors we made in the war.
To my father, Dias is a hero, the man who saved his life,
and a close friend going back twenty years.
But I heard Dias was left out there with no money or help.
Father prepared an adequate amount of workers and capital.
My brother Meiser probably appropriated it all for himself.
If this kingdom is led by the corrupt, it will be doomed to fall.
That's why we must do something.
Pay him, Schild.
Yes, Highness.
Here's your job, Narius.
Bring Diane and the king's seal back before she makes contact with Dias.
Do so in secret.
On the off chance you come in contact with Dias, give him half the money.
It would be a travesty if the kingdom's heroic savior starved to death.
KASDEKS DOMAIN, THE LORD'S ESTATE
Welcome after such a long journey, Your Highness Princess Diane.
Uh, what may we do for you?
I will get straight to the point.
I believe I will slay the traitor Dias,
confiscate his assets, and use them for the good of our kingdom.
Pardon?
Some of my men deserted along the way, and now I find my numbers low.
Hence, I hope I can count on your cooperation.
This news is rather sudden.
I would first ask for evidence that Lord Dias is a traitor.
The lord of Kasdeks Domain is hereby ordered
to comply with Third Princess Diane's request
by investing all of his forces and finances
in assisting with the subjugation of Dias the traitor!
Such is the king's decree!
The king's seal?!
Okay, lift the board!
Hooray!
It's pooling like we planned!
This was a team effort. Thank you all.
Geraint, why're you in such a rush?
I-I bring urgent news from Lord Eldan!
This isn't worded like a typical royal decree,
but this is unmistakably His Majesty's genuine seal for his exclusive use.
In other words, it's legally binding.
Can we stall them?
We are buying time by way of the welcome feast.
Either way, we cannot afford to get
Lord Dias involved in the royal capital's absurd power struggle!
I understand all too well how you feel, but this is a crucial time for you.
I would advise you to proceed with caution.
Lord Dias is an important friend, but I'm not speaking on a personal level.
He is cultivating fields in the grasslands!
He is doing what no one else has been able to!
If the vast prairie becomes a breadbasket, our domain stands to benefit too,
but if Lord Dias is struck down, that potential will vanish with him.
Geraint!
Here is Lord Dias's response!
What?!
Hey, you're an intelligence operative.
You must have peeked at the letter.
What does it say?
It is no wonder Lord Eldan is shocked.
The letter says he should cooperate with Diane, as the royal decree states!
What?!
I will protect each of the mastis with my life.
I don't want you to die out there!
Hearing you say that gives me great joy, Canis.
I swear I'll come back, so wait here for me.
I will.
War it is, then.
War it is.