Episode 10 : The Semites Gather - Part 3

 And so, while the leopard-headed warrior was preoccupied with the impending battle against Mongol's invading army, his companions - Linda, Princess of Paro, her brother Remus, Prince of the Succession, the faithful Suni, and the Valakian warrior Istvan He was invited, quite unconcernedly, to the house of the women to be feasted by Rak.

 In the village of Rak, the two large houses on either side of the square seem to be the only public facilities for the Rak, and the one on the right is the meeting place for the men - or rather the chiefs - and the one on the left is the house for the women, where they entertain guests and prepare food for the feast. The one on the left is a house for the women to entertain guests and prepare food for the feast.

 After Guin had gone into the chieftain's house to relieve her fatigue, all the women of Rak were busy at the women's house entertaining this rare guest.

 Linda, Remus and Istvan were seated on the top seat of a caveman's house, with the floor pulled down and a furnace in the middle, just as Guin had been invited into it, and they were comfortably wrapped in dry grass and furs that smelt of the sun. In front of them there was a succession of hospitable delicacies, jars of wine and jars of milk, which were constantly being replenished.

 Istvan sat on his furs with his legs crossed in the manner of a Valakian, and watched all this with a twinkle in his dark eyes. If he had been a warrior, he should have joined Guin and the others in discussing the measures to be taken; but he was by nature a sluggard, and thought only of himself, and he was hungry and thirsty. And to be honest, this Valakian-born mercenary, who was barely twenty years old, was still too young to demand to be treated as a warrior first at any time.

 There he sat down slowly and comfortably by the flickering fire of the furnace, secretly worrying about the fact that he was only wearing a pair of armor and footpads, and trying to find out how much food there was and what it tasted like.

"After all, he's a monkey!"

 He deliberately shouted louder, knowing that Linda and Remus--and Linda--would be reluctant to hear him say that.

"You never know what they'll feed you... because the only things Nosferus monkeys eat every day are mosses stuck to rocks and earth-eating worms in the ground. Oh, monkeys."

"Hey, stop calling me 'monkey, monkey' like that!"

 Linda knew that a reaction would only make the young rascal happier and more agitated, but she couldn't help but say something.

"They've been so good to us... and if they find out, they'll be offended. And Rak is not a monkey. They're very kind and gentle and sincere, and much more human than you or any of Gora's nasty demons, Istvan."

"There's probably a reason you're so close. Your ancestor or great-grandmother or something had a monkey."

 was the answer of the black-eyed rascal.

"Well!"

 Linda was immediately taken aback.

"You insult the Holy Royal Family of Paro!"

"Don't bother me, Linda. It'll make you even more uncontrollable."

 Remus said.

"Hey, you got a little mouth on you, little man."

 In anger, Istvan reproaches Remus. But when he dipped his finger into an unglazed bowl that had just been brought to him, he was so preoccupied with tasting it that he immediately forgot all about it.

"What do you think, it's quite edible, it's-- it's, it's boiled in horse milk. Yes, it's good. That's very kind of Sal. Try it."

"We've had enough.

 Linda smiled slyly and pushed the plate in front of her towards him.

"We rested and fed in the village of Rak all this time. You and Guin must have had a hard time the whole time in the wilds of Nosferus, searching for Mongol's army. I'm really sorry about that."

 Istvan, hearing the unexpected words, looked dumbly at Linda.

 The girl, however, managed to hide the mischievous glint in her eyes in the innocent expression of an angel who could not kill a single insect. Remus had his nose in the jar and was drinking milk.

 Istvan then sniffed and, mumbling, set to work on the plate in front of him, quickly making a mess of it.

"Not bad for a guy who can eat."

 Licking their lips, they admitted. The women of Lach gave freely of all they possessed to the hospitality of their guests. Whatever the Semites ate and lived on, it was not likely to be good, for the place must be the barren land of Nosferus. The guests were served with an abundance of food, including sloppy, green stews of rock moss, roasted mushrooms that grow on rocks, roasted sand lizards, the peeled pith of cacti, and dumplings of the Japanese millet.

 The Lak women continue to bring in plate after plate, as if there were thirty customers instead of only three. At the feet of these women, little Semitic babies cling, their round eyes fixed on the food on their plates, as if they were eager to eat. But the mothers smite them and drive them away.

 Istvan bit into the juicy marrow of the cactus without caring, and ate the dumplings of the astragalus in the stew, his appetite whetting, and he seemed to have forgotten that he had cursed the monkeys' food for its stench. Suni sat leaning against Linda's feet, his eyes fixed on the mercenary's gurgling mouth with a reproachful look.

"Yeah--this is good too. I don't know how you survived all those years chewing on vacha nuts. ... Ugh, that's horrible. I once survived a shipwreck in the Corsair Sea by eating human flesh--just between you and me. I'm sure I'll make it out alive, no matter what happens, but I've only had one experience that made me so hungry I wanted to eat my own feet.

"Well--so much, you've been through so much, and you're still so young?"

 Linda tilted her head adorably and asked. Because she had rested, her skin and the color of her eyes had recovered their original luster, and because she had washed her hands and feet and brushed her hair, this originally fairy-like girl and her twin brother looked as lively, as noble, and as dazzling as the light of the moon that had just risen, They were like two moons themselves in a dark house.

 Suni was looking at them with eyes full of adoration. István looked at them and was about to speak when something made him change his mind.

"Of course, I've been through everything, you know."

 He bragged and looked at Linda's face as if to gently distract her.

"I'm the Mage, the Red Mercenary, the Istvan of Valacia. I will not be frightened no matter what I run into and I will get through anything. On top of that, I feel that I have an extraordinary destiny that is different from even the most ordinary heroes. Sometimes I'm afraid of myself, wondering just how far I'll go."

"I'm wearing it!"

 Remus chuckled and added a comment, but Istvan was in such a good mood that he did not care.

"Oh, my God, I'm sure I'll be a great king - maybe even an emperor. They may look down on me as a bad horseman. But they're about to find out. I'm not like the others. I can foresee danger and I can always survive a crisis... and the stars are always on my side. And when I meet the Lady of Light, with her pale iris, it will be the beginning of my fortune and my path to the throne.

 Don't you think, Princess Linda, that I've already met the Lady of Light? I mean, the way you're sitting there with your silver hair and silver eyes glittering in the furnace fire, you look like a shining doll made of star drops and moonlight. Did I tell you that I already know that and I'm aware of it? If you didn't tell me, I'll tell you now-- you're very, very beautiful."

"If you're rude to Linda..."

 Remus shouted, but Linda laughed lustily and restrained her brother.

"Well, thank you very much, Istvan of Valachia--now, be that as it may, you're going to get cold. That was very thoughtful of Rak and the others. I hope you enjoy your plate of food."

"Then so be it. After all, that's what my future queen says."

 Istvan stretched out his hand and took the plate Linda had given him.

 On top of it, something whitish, translucent, and not very good-looking was served, half burnt. Istvan frowned, wondering what it was, but he was young, and he had the strength of a mounted tiger.

 He did not notice that the women of Rak were pecking at each other, looking a little worried, or that Linda and Remus were pecking at each other with their eyes shining like little devils and their elbows full of expectation. He threw it into his mouth and chewed it a couple of times.

 However, he suddenly became sick in the chest and spat out the food in his mouth.

"What--what the hell is this?"

 His sallow face twisted in disbelief and bewilderment, he cried out.

 Linda and Remus finally burst out laughing, and broke down laughing. As if startled, the women of Rak came running towards them.

"I'm afraid it's not to your taste, my dear."

 Linda giggled and translated as she watched their imitations.

"Whether you like it or not, what the hell is this?"

"Whatever you've ordered, Istvan. It's roasted sand hill!"

 As soon as she said it, Linda laughed so hard that Suni jumped out of her skin in panic.

"Sandhill--?"

 The mercenary's eyes rolled up in his head, and as soon as he finally understood,

"Geez!"

 He clutched his throat and looked like he was about to throw up.

"What the hell are you--! What did I--!"

"But you couldn't get a black pig, but you could at least roast a sandhill and wait for me! That's why the kind Raku went out of their way to get it for you!"

"They came all the way to ask us if the Black Man really eats sandhills. Sandhills are made from the corpses of Shem and humans, and they were surprised to hear that we eat them in the land of the black people."

 Remus laughed so hard that he choked. Istvan, his heart in his throat, rushed away from the chopped flesh of the leeches which had fallen at his feet, and which still seemed to be groaning, but as soon as he saw the faces of the twins he became furious.

"You little bastards! How dare you carry a man on your back and use him as a toy... so you've been grinning at me with that scheme for a while now, haven't you! You little pranksters! You, you--"

 His cheeks had turned red with anger and indignation, and he was about to burst into tears as he ranted.

"You accursed twins - by the tail of the Doll's eight-poster, I swear I'll never come to your rescue, no matter what happens to you next! Doll's black pig shit! By the three old sisters born of it! You can't do this-- this ..."

"Because you're the one who said you wanted to eat it."

 Linda pointed out with a cat-like coy look on her face.

"It's so rude to think we're scheming. First of all, you're a Valakian Istvan, the Red Mercenary, who's not afraid of anything or anyone, are you?"

 Being put to the sword, Istvan became even more angry, and stretched out his hand to seize the mischief-makers in a flash. Linda and Remus burst out laughing, and Suni fell down with a yelp.

 Raku's women rushed to calm him down... and that's when it happened.

"Wait!"

 Linda suddenly stops and seems to be listening for signs of life outside.

"You can't fake that!"

"No, it's not. Listen to me."

 Linda puts her hand to her lips impatiently.

"Hey, Remus?"

"Yeah--?"

 For a little while he did not hear any sign or sound that had come to his sister's ears. So he stood up as if he were about to leave, and looked out with a light heart.

 But when he rushed back to the house, his boyish cheeks had a hint of excitement in them.

"Oh, my God."

 He cried out in a fit of coughing, and looked up in turn to his sister and to Istvan.

"Outside, everyone -- Shem and the others are ... in great numbers!"

"What?"

 Istvan's reaction was swift.

 He grabbed the greatsword that was lying by his side and ran out with agility. Linda and Remus, followed by Suni and the others, rushed out.

 And I stopped.

 Istvan, too, stopped, as if unconsciously, and was for a time completely distracted by the crowd of Semites that filled the square - or rather, the great army.

 In all, perhaps, they numbered two thousand, or even nearly three thousand. And each of them, with their heads and chiefs at their head, crammed into the great village of Rak, not only in the square, but also between all the houses, and even then not enough, even at the mouth of the valley.

 Illuminated by the bonfire, the countless eyes of the Little Apes could be seen filling the area like stars, and the axes in their hands and the arrow feathers in the cudgels on their backs were white in the darkness.

 And on a high platform in the middle, looked up to by all of them, is the figure of Guin, exceedingly huge.

 He noticed Istvan and the others and nodded a little, but then went on with his work, sending the chiefs to the front, the warriors to their places, and the women and children behind them.

 And the Chiefs' Conference began.