Chapter 110: Summer Vacation’s Part 2 ~ Last Migration Interview ~

Asora. The Mist Town.

The location is undefined. A place whose details are unknown to all. Even Master Misumi Makoto cannot fully grasp it.

Currently, several races from the Wasteland have relocated there and established a settlement. They are constructing a town separate from their original home.

But for the size of Asora, the number of residents is far too low. Even counting everyone, the total won’t reach the thousands. Several reasons account for this. They must meet Makoto’s conditions, be accepted by his followers, and the invited races must agree to the migration.

Makoto judged that increasing the resident population and sending out invitations to races focused on the Wasteland wouldn’t pose a problem, but… no reports reached him of any races desiring migration. Several were suitable, yet not a single one had migrated.

Recently, Makoto has been busy with his activities in Academy Town, so the Highland Orc Ema, mindful of his situation, has been holding back reports to a certain extent until she receives a definitive response from the other party, to avoid any complications. The efficient Secretary Ema organizes all reports before presenting them to Makoto and his followers. She understands the shortage of people, so reporting every single migration request would only burden Makoto. That is likely why no decision has been made so far. After apologizing, she suggested they schedule another interview when Makoto has time.

When Makoto had time, meaning today, as Academy Town’s activities entered summer vacation (a term Ema is unfamiliar with), his activities in Asora increased. Moreover, he was engaged in training, sometimes staying there all day. This was the perfect opportunity. Ema informed Makoto of the races requesting migration and the scheduled interview times. These were all cases already approved by his followers Tomoe, Mio, and Shiki. Now, only Makoto’s approval was needed for their migration to be accepted. A total of three cases.

Although she had been holding back reports for a long time, three cases aren’t many. But it’s not as if migrating to Asora isn’t appealing. In fact, many cases showed significant interest, but most backed out mid-process.

Asora is attracting adventurers with a specific objective. This was a proposal by Makoto and accepted by Tomoe, but this action caused races already living near the entrance of the Wasteland to withdraw their migration applications.

Perhaps due to frequent battles with humans, the demonic beasts, demi-humans, and beast people living there harbor extreme hostility towards humans. Therefore, the mere presence of adventurers in Asora – even in a secluded area – deterred their desire to migrate. These are random races with strong hostility, so Ema didn’t dwell on it. It’s better not to sow seeds that might cause problems later. Invitations were initially extended, but all were refused.

In exploring the deeper parts of the Wasteland, the hostility towards humans is generally less intense. The number of humans who have become that hostile is few, and the races living there generally adhere to the “the strong prey on the weak” principle.

Thus, invitations are mostly initiated by races from these areas. The Forest Oni are an exceptionally rare case. Well, they are currently undergoing Spartan training that would make even Mist Lizards pale, and it’s not a complete migration either.

From this point, Makoto’s follower Tomoe begins the selection process. The investigation usually includes the race’s diet, social nature, special abilities, etc. Depending on the follower, the selection criteria differ. Mio is the most whimsical and instinctive; Tomoe is meticulous and selective; Shiki emphasizes ability and prioritizes safety. In short, Mio’s agreement, a degree of perseverance, and a minimum level of ability are required for selection. It’s incredibly rigorous.

After that, the race is approached about migration.

Even if the three are suitable, there’s a chance they’ll refuse, so… it was difficult to reach the final interview. This is one of the reasons Asora is understaffed. No one is complacent, and the investigators know this. It must be a race worthy of respect, or future difficulties will arise. There’s no guarantee that problems won’t occur after migration.

This time, based on her experience, Ema has three cases where she anticipates a positive outcome. There’s still a possibility of problems, but there’s a chance all three will migrate. She wasn’t involved in the investigations, so she only knows the various races from documents, but based on the information, this is her assessment.

If the migration is finalized, it will become busy again, but for Ema, it’s a happy kind of busy. Because the comrades will increase. Children are born from every race, and there are subtle changes in Asora, but as expected, it can’t compare to the change a new race’s migration would bring.

“Excuse my intrusion.”

“Ah, Ema. Good morning. Today is the interview, right? Is it beginning?”

“Good morning. The representatives of the three races have already been invited here. If it suits Makoto-sama’s convenience, I plan to begin after this.” (Ema)

Makoto speaks in broken phrases, and Ema responds with a smile. He used to be polite, so she once asked him to conduct himself as a lord. Now, he speaks more like a friend, and that’s how he acts with Ema. It’s not the goal, but it makes her happy.

“Eh? We aren’t the ones receiving them, huh. Calling them to us, how impressive~” (Makoto)

“Makoto-sama. We initiated the migration talks, but they also desired it, which is why it has reached this stage. Therefore, it is natural for them to come to us.” (Ema)

For Ema, Makoto is the messiah who saved her family, the Highland Orcs. Moreover, he invited them to a prosperous and magnificent world. She views him as a being close to a god. Even if that’s his speech and conduct, there are times when his humble demeanor isn’t amusing to Ema. Even if he explained that it’s his upbringing and unavoidable, she understands but can’t accept it. She even thinks it would be fine for him to be slightly more haughty. For Makoto, it might have been quite the difficult request.

“Ema, you were a bit frightening just now. I see, they are already here, huh. Did Tomoe bring them?” (Makoto)

“No. They arrived via Komoe-sama’s gate creation training.” (Ema)

“So Komoe-chan can already do that. Even though Shiki was only recently able to do it. I feel like he might get depressed again.” (Makoto)

“She is, after all, like Tomoe-sama’s child. Well then, let’s move to another room.” (Ema)

“Understood. There were three cases, right? Could you please show me the documents?” (Makoto)

“Yes, here. Please review them while we move.” (Ema)

Ema hands Makoto the documents. Opening the door, she leads Makoto to the room. Ema walks slightly ahead of Makoto, maintaining a fixed interval. It was silent. The only sound in the hall was the rustling of papers as Makoto walked. In the area where Makoto’s room is located, even though Asora is peaceful, there’s a reasonable amount of security. On a day like today, when Makoto’s movements are known beforehand, they remain hidden out of consideration. Makoto doesn’t mind much, thinking only, “There are few people here.”

“Heh~. This time, there are races with a significant number of people. If all of them migrate, we would surpass the thousands, no, as expected, it won’t be that much. For there to be so many from the inner parts is quite impressive.” (Makoto)

“Even if we call it the inner part, it is a prosperous region. The third race to be interviewed is one of those cases. That place is constantly embroiled in conflicts over rich lands, so their numbers have steadily decreased. They are also the most active in seeking migration.” (Ema)

“I see. Like an oasis in a desert, huh. Then those guys have been protecting their village with their skills.” (Makoto)

“That’s right. The first ones you’ll meet are a race that lives in a special place due to their abilities, and the other race, because of their racial characteristics, foreign enemies do not engage them in combat. Both have high combat power, and their social nature is currently not problematic.” (Ema)

“… Certainly. And they also acknowledge living on level ground. Fufu, I am looking forward to meeting them.” (Makoto)

“This is the room, Makoto-sama. I originally wanted this to be in the audience hall, but since this was a request, we prepared a table. Please be mindful of your words.” (Ema)

The two arrive at a room where two Mist Lizards stand guard on either side of the door. Ema felt the Mist Lizards’ bodies, already firm, become even firmer with Makoto’s arrival. In this Asora, there aren’t many jobs that allow direct involvement with Makoto. These two, selected as door guards this time, must be quite nervous. A smile touched her lips as she imagined their situation. By the way, for some reason, in Makoto’s mansion (or rather, lately it’s starting to look more like a castle in Makoto’s perspective), there’s a large space prepared for audiences. When he heard Ema’s report that they would be using that space, Makoto hurriedly asked her to change it to a normal room with a table. “I shouldn’t have told him,” Ema muttered, and Makoto didn’t miss it.

Inside the room, a table and chairs are set. As usual, they are crafted with excellent skill, the work of the Eldwas. The windows are open, letting in the fresh air, and there’s no musty smell of an unused room. Makoto, seeing two chairs prepared, estimates that there will be two representatives for each race he meets today.

“Please sit and wait here. I will bring the guests.” (Ema)

Ema urges Makoto to sit, and after confirming he is seated, she leaves the room. She tells the two lizards she will fetch the relevant parties and heads to the adjacent room.

Meanwhile, Makoto sits and waits for the representatives, reading the documents for the first race he will meet. Of course, he uses [Sakai] to observe his surroundings. He knows which room Ema went to and understands there are two guests there. When they come to him, he plans to hide the documents and greet them standing. Ema wanted to avoid exactly that, which is why she asked him to stay seated, but he didn’t understand at all.

(The first ones I’ll meet are… a race called winged people, huh. Well, they obviously fly. In that case, were they living in high places? Do they have bird wings, or maybe insect-type wings? Ah, it’s written. They have bird or bat wings on their backs, huh. Both are the same race. Even if they don’t mix, they can be born with either. This is a social hierarchy society. N~ it should be alright. If they talk about social hierarchy here, it would be troublesome. After all, we basically don’t have higher or lower races here.) (Makoto)

Looking at a portion of the documents, Makoto feels uneasy. But it could be considered a reading error. The winged people are born with bird or bat wings. The distinction is simply due to power differences. Based on that, they divide their work according to strength, and as a Wasteland race, they are quite numerous. They have a community of about three hundred. Of course, the strong ones get important jobs and authority, but it comes with its dangers. It was a bit different from the social hierarchy society Makoto imagined. What he imagined was a bad image of a society divided into commoners and slaves.

(Anyways, if I don’t meet them and see for myself, nothing will start. If they are too awful, I’ll excuse myself.) (Makoto)

Makoto senses the three approaching and stops his thoughts. He stands and waits for the door to open.

Soon, the door opens. Two figures, the height of a normal person, with folded wings on their backs, and Ema, who sighs slightly upon seeing Makoto’s posture, appear. The two winged people have a dusky complexion, reminding Makoto of the Forest Oni.

“Nice to meet you and welcome to Asora. My name is Makoto. I hold a position similar to a feudal lord here.” (Makoto)

In front of the three approaching the table, Makoto introduces himself first. Ema sighs again. From her perspective, she probably wished Makoto had said something like, “Great to see you have arrived in our world.” The winged people seem confused by Makoto’s behavior as well. They had already been interviewed by Shiki. Sensing his powerful aura, they couldn’t understand the behavior of the man before them, who should be above that person.

“… Eh? Ah, go ahead, sit down first.” (Makoto)

Before sitting, he urges the stiffening party to sit.

(Both of them have white bat wings, huh. The highest-ranking ones have arrived.) (Makoto)

Makoto observes the winged people with a slightly mistaken understanding. Besides the difference in bird and bat wings, there’s also a difference in wing color. White and black. In other words, there are four types of wings. The highest is white bat wings, then white bird wings, black bat wings, and black bird wings.

“… Nice to meet you. For this offer of migrating to such a splendid land, we thank you very much. I am the elder of the winged people, Kakun. This is my counselor, Shona.” (Kakun)

“Nice to meet you, Makoto-sama. A pleasure to make your acquaintance.” (Shona)

After their words, the winged people sit facing Makoto. Male and female. The one claiming to be the elder is male, and the one who greeted without introducing herself is female.

With a slightly strained expression, Ema sits beside Makoto last.

“I have received reports that you wish to migrate to Asora. As a preamble, I have several questions. Is that alright?” (Makoto)

“Of course.”

“Excellent. I will hear your questions later. Well then, first of all…”

Makoto begins the interview with the winged people, completely unaware that Ema has resolved to warn him about his behavior later.

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(The following sections are translated similarly, maintaining the formatting and paragraphing.)