Chapter 60

As the night shift opened, customers began to arrive one after another. The members of the demon king extermination team, wearing masks, were being observed by the male customers, who, despite being curious about their masked beauty, refrained from asking impolite questions.

Cody was popular with female customers, and despite it being his first time serving them, he handled it like a pro. Eileen cheerfully guided the guests to their seats and took their orders with a clear, resonant voice.

The tough men from the slums, who had grown up in the streets, raised their glasses in a toast. A woman with a mysterious air sat in a corner, savoring a blend that catered to her refined tastes. Rigel and McKinley clinked their mugs of ale, and to everyone's surprise, Sekt was also seated at their table.

Lia, Reiza, and Sakyua seemed to be worried about their master. The master, who had taken on the job, was working faster than I had imagined, and his service was so calm and collected that it was a bit concerning. However, together with Cody and Eileen, the hall was running smoothly.

While working, the master kept an eye on us, ready to step in at any moment. Mimiya, who had been captured by the collar, was still afraid of the master.

The master had not yet apologized. He had told Mimiya that he had been involved in her kidnapping and expected to be punished by her father, Gustave. However, that did not happen.

Even after his daughter was kidnapped, Gustave—no, given his age, I should use an honorific—Gustave-san did not blame the master. I found this surprising myself.

The werewolf father and daughter were sitting at the counter, looking uneasy. Mimiya, with her hands on her knees, was huddled up, but the noise of the bar seemed fresh to her, and her fluffy tail was wagging in response to the sounds, showing her curiosity.

"... The beastmen here are showing their ears normally. Most of them usually hide them with hoods when they walk outside. Is this bar really free of discrimination against beastmen?"

"Not everyone in the capital has a prejudice against beastmen. Lia's master is a human woman who serves as a centurion in the knight corps. They trust each other so much that it's hard to emulate."

"I see... Not all beastmen living in the capital are looked down upon."

Gustave-san stroked his wolf-furred beard and let his triangular ears droop. Beastmen express their emotions through their ears—Mimiya was no exception, and she seemed eager to take off her hood while listening. It must have been bothering her.

Still, the father was stern, while the daughter was small—like Yuma's family, which made Yuma feel a sense of kinship with them. Inside the counter, Yuma was receiving instruction from Verlene and pouring a black ale for Gustave-san without letting the foam dissipate. Miralca, who had volunteered, was making a drink for Mimiya, carefully following the recipe with a scale, as befitting a professor.

"Thank you for waiting, sir."

"Huh, I haven't ordered anything yet."

"From that customer... no, from the owner."

It was the same routine, but it felt a bit awkward coming from a drunk in the corner. Gustave-san took the black ale and stared at it for a moment before a smile appeared on his lips.

"Mimiya, you can drink if you want. I won't get drunk today."

"... Don't worry about me. Dad, you like drinking, so go ahead and have a lot."

Her speech, which seemed awkward for her age, might have been due to the shock of her recent capture—thinking about it made my chest tighten.

"In my opinion, you don't need to worry about anything... Sakyua, a moon rabbit, guided me to my daughter. Your guild saved her. If one of your comrades made the collar, there must be some reason for it, but I can't understand the complexities. One thing I can say is that even if I took revenge on you, Mimiya wouldn't be happy."

"... I'm still afraid of the person who made the collar. But if this guild is watching to make sure they don't do bad things, then I can feel safe."

The master was watching us from a distance, listening to our conversation. I couldn't tell what he was thinking from his eyes.

"I can't understand it with my simple mind. It's too complicated to have someone you should hate in the place of your benefactor. And if that person is a young girl, it's even more complicated. If they were doing evil, I'd want them to look more menacing."

"... Gustave-san, can Mimiya forgive them?"

"... To be honest, I don't remember anything from when I was a beast. I just woke up at the doctor's and my dad came to get me. So, I was only scared when they put the collar on me. But it's off now."

She showed her neck, which had no marks from the collar or any bruises from being restrained. This was probably due to the healing abilities of beastmen.

"I came here to thank you. Sakyua said she serves a high-ranking person here."

This explained why Mimiya was relatively friendly towards the guild and us. She was grateful to Sakyua for rescuing her and reuniting her with her father.

I hadn't been suspected of working with the master to capture beastmen, which was probably due to Sakyua's good communication. Normally, seeing the relationship between the master and me, people might have suspected collusion.

"Excuse me, sir, for interrupting your important conversation. Ale is meant to be enjoyed with its foam, so it would be best to drink it before it disappears."

"Ah, right. Then... thank you for taking care of my daughter. I'd like to express my gratitude again."

"... Dad, should we toast?"

Mimiya nudged Gustave-san's elbow. He chuckled, moved to let his daughter join in, and the three of them clinked their glasses.

"Cheers."

"Ah, sorry. It seems my daughter has always been fascinated by the interactions in bars."

"When I grow up, I can drink like Dad, so I've been looking forward to it... but it's not alcohol."

"It's a bit early for you. In the capital, it's legal to drink from the age of 16."

Gustave-san knew the laws of the capital. Although he seemed to have a poor impression of the capital after coming to rescue his daughter, he wasn't completely ignorant of it.

Beastmen are trying to understand humans, but many humans still push them away out of fear that "beastmen are stronger than humans and can dominate them if they band together."

There are areas where humans are dominated by beastmen, so this fear is not entirely unfounded. However, in the capital, what humans are doing is using their majority to exert pressure and dominate beastmen.

"Not all humans can accept the differences between races, but I hope we can reduce the tension. I don't want humans to exploit beastmen again."

"... If there are more people like you, it might not be impossible. I understand that I should take action. My father is old, so I'll soon become the next clan leader. As a representative of the werewolves, I want to work with other beastmen and hold peace talks with humans."

With the help of Gustave-san and Riko, the great-grandson of the tiger clan leader, it might be possible to gather representatives of all the beastmen in the Albein Kingdom and representatives of the humans to discuss the future of all races.

One option is to negotiate with the king and call for a grand conference of all races. However, the first step is for me to work behind the scenes and gain the understanding of each race.

Beastmen are wary of the kingdom's interference and live scattered across the land. It won't be easy to gather them. I need to persuade the kingdom's beastmen discriminators in advance, soften their attitudes, and lead to mutual understanding. If they don't come together, a tragedy could occur.

If humans and beastmen can reconcile, it will be a historic event in the kingdom.

I want to leave that to someone who can stand on the stage. I will only set the stage—yes, I want to give a flower that will last a hundred, no, a thousand years to Manalina, the king's daughter and heir to the throne. Of course, I need to talk to her and understand her intentions.

This is not just to apologize on behalf of the master.

While talking to the beastmen and understanding their feelings, I just felt the urge to do something.

"... Let's put the serious talk aside for now. This is a good drink... I've never had anything like this in the village."

Gustave-san took a sip from the black ale mug and drank it down in one go.

He froze for a moment, then finished the remaining black ale in one gulp.

"... Huh... What is this? What is this drink... It's good. Too good...!"

He was already red-eyed after the first glass and said excitedly. Mimiya was surprised next to him but, after watching her father drink, she looked at her own drink.

A drink called 'White Moon' made with 'Moonberry' syrup, which werewolves like, and layered in white and yellow. Mimiya, recognizing it by the smell, held the glass with both hands and took a sip.

After a small sip, Mimiya's eyes started to sparkle. She looked at me, Verlene, and the others in the counter, Miralca and Yuma, and her mouth moved but no sound came out—she was too moved.

Gustave-san placed his hand on his daughter's head to calm her down. Mimiya, blushing, took another sip of her drink.

Beastmen prefer the fruits of their homeland, and people of all ages eat them in various ways. This time, I brought out the sweetness of their favorite fruit.

The syrup used to make Moonberry is made from a special honey produced by the 'Queen Killer Bee' nest, and its refined sweetness seemed to please her.

"... I've never had Moonberry this sweet. It would be good on bread."

"We also have it in bottles for you to take home. It has a long shelf life, so you can bring it back to your village."

"Yes, I want my wife to try it too. It's hard to get sweets in our land..."

Sugar is a precious commodity, and in some parts of the Albein Kingdom, it's not available at all. In such places, a rare batch of sugar brought by a merchant can be exchanged for the same weight in gold.

The Queen Killer Bee is a dangerous monster with poison, but I can detoxify it, so I'm not afraid. I once investigated its habitat and found that it might be possible to domesticate the Killer Bees and mass-produce honey. If I can teach this method to the beastmen, they can produce their own sweets.

"We don't know each other's cultures well. Just as Gustave-san enjoyed the black ale, I think the specialties of the werewolves could move many human hearts. It might seem mercenary, but I want to consider such methods to bridge the gap."

"... I might just be a big drinker, but you have a point."

Yuma poured another ale, passed it to Verlene, and served it to Gustave-san. With the second glass, Gustave-san's face lit up like a boy's, but he restrained himself in front of his daughter and cleared his throat.

"Cough. Cultural exchange... I never thought about it. It might be a way to persuade my fellow beastmen. To be honest, many werewolves are big drinkers like me...? What is this fragrant smell...?"

"It's not just the drink. This is a herb-roasted ribeye steak."

When I offered food to go with the drink, it seemed they hadn't eaten anything, and their stomachs growled in unison.

"... Do we eat this with this three-pronged tool and a knife?"

"Let me explain the etiquette to you."

Werewolves usually eat with their hands. The tiger people used utensils, but there seemed to be differences between races.

Mimiya tried to use the utensils by imitation, resisting the urge to eat with her hands, and first ate the meat Verlene had cut for her.

"Mmm...!"

"～～～～!"

Their tails jumped. Mimiya, so moved that she jumped on her chair, excitedly patted her father's back. Seeing this, Cody and Eileen were also laughing happily from the hall.

"What is this meat... The part near the bone shouldn't be this soft. How did you...?"

"Marinating it in fruit juice or processed milk softens the meat fibers."

"... I understand now what they mean by 'my cheeks are falling off.' This meat is not just meat. It's something else, something delicious."

The taste of meat can change depending on how it's prepared. I think it's important to share this knowledge with the beastmen, who are known for their love of meat.

And the vegetable-averse beastmen, when they tried the salad Miralca brought from the kitchen, experienced a new kind of amazement—no matter what I fed them, they were so happy that the cook even came out of the kitchen to watch.

◆◇◆

Until the store closed, Gustave-san and his daughter savored drinks and alcohol, and in the end, Gustave-san was in high spirits, singing with Rigel and the others. Rigel's ability to get along with anyone was a great help at such times.

Sekt was also involved, but when he learned that Sekt and Mizuha were siblings, Gustave-san introduced Mimiya to Mizuha, asking her to be kind to his daughter. Realizing they had similar backgrounds, the two girls quickly became close, and Mimiya's talkative nature and smiles returned.

—But the fun times passed quickly.

Gustave-san finally called out to Mimiya, who had been talking with Mizuha until the last minute.

"Mimiya, it's time to go. They have to clean up, too."

"... Okay. See you, Mizuha."

"Yep, come again, Mimiya."

The whole store saw them off. Gustave-san spoke to the master, who had been watching from a distance.

"Gustave and I were saved by this guild. In return, we'll forgive what you did. But even if we forgive you, the law of this country will still judge you."

"I'll accept any punishment. It's the only way to repay what Dee did for me."

"I see. Then I'm fine. Mimiya, what do you think?"

When Gustave-san asked, Mimiya walked up to the master with a determined look.

"... I need to apologize to that brother, not me."

"... Yeah. I