Chapter 17: The Raid, and the First Time ……

The exiled former villagers are returned to where they were standing earlier. They have not fallen into the hole because the banishment position was changed.

Some of them are trying to enter again, pushing and hitting the wards. But – the moment they were repelled, their villager status was automatically cancelled. No matter how hard they try, they cannot enter.

“It’s useless. It is impossible to destroy this membrane unless you impact it with quite a few people.”

“……. Is there any other way to get into the village?”

“I am very sorry, but there is nothing I can do about it.”

A moment of silence fell around us.

“I see. I’m sorry, but it looks like we have no choice but to give up. But may I at least ask you to interact with us?”

“Yes, of course. You are always welcome to visit us.”

“Thank you very much. Then I will be back.”

He left with five others in tow, without any particular complaint.

——————————————

“Whew, that was nerve-wracking.”

“I was nervous the whole time.”

“Me too.”

Tsubaki and Sakura seemed to have lost their strength as they were released from their tension.

I’m not sure if there were other transferees. By the looks of it, there are still a lot of people in transition.

I was surprised to see six people suddenly arrive.

But all of them were repelled.

Well, this is normal. It is not so easy to suddenly trust a complete stranger.

This was another challenge for the future. How do you gain trust from people you have never met before? We need to think about how to do that.

“Those people said they were going to interact, but what is the purpose…..?”

“Oh, that. You may not know, but they are going to attack us in large numbers this time. Maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow morning.”

“The situation was life-threatening, but the other side readily backed down. It is indeed suspicious.”

“I don’t know, maybe they were planning to attack us again today if all went well,” 

They want to know how many people are on our side and how to get through the warding.

I think they found this place even earlier than yesterday. He was too calm to have seen the warding for the first time.

“Why do you say ‘a lot of people’?”

“Didn’t we talk about destroying the barrier? Shocking with quite a few people.”

“Oh, that surprised me, too. What?   The barrier can be broken?”

Sakura’s question is valid. It is a lie that they can be broken if you hit them with a lot of people. No, the possibility of breaking is not zero, but …… I think it’s unlikely.

I told them that as a way of leading them on. Maybe they heard that and decided to back down.

“I see. –How many people do you think will attack us this time?”

“I don’t know. I think there will be at least twice as many. Next time, they’ll be at almost full strength.”’

“I see. …… How will you deal with them?”

“Well, first of all…”

After that, I explained the strategy to them and got to work.

I had them expand the existing hole further and get the Sakura to fill it with water, and also dig one more additional hole. It took some time because I was constantly on the lookout, but I was generally able to complete what I wanted.

◇ ◇◇◇◇

Life in Another World, Day 10

About half an hour after dawn, a large group of 20 people came to the house.

As I peeked through the glass door of the house at the group, I saw them begin to attack the ward all at once. All of them had weapons in their hands and were poking and hitting the ward. Most were equipped with sharp wooden sticks, but some of them were using what appeared to be knives or machetes.

“Well, we’ll start as planned. Worst case scenario, we might have to kill them out of the blue, so be prepared.”

“Yes!”

I watched for the moment when they were all attacking, and will them all at once to invade and expel them. And just as i had planned, they all fall into the hole.

“Aaaaah!”

“Aaah!

“Ow!” 

“Ouch! ……”　

Things proceeded as planned, and when I peeked in, I saw that the hole was filled with screams and cursing. After an hour or so, it quieted down.

After returning home to rest, I left it for another two hours before going outside. When I peeked into the hole from inside the ward, all of them looked tired because they had been immersed in the water for a long time. But when they saw my face, they started cursing at me. They seemed to still have energy.

“Hey!　You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“Get me the hell out of here!”

“What are you doing?　Get me out of here!”

I listened in silence for a while, but the situation showed no sign of abating. I had no choice but to warn them in the most indifferent way I could.

“I’m only going to say this once, so listen carefully. Anyone who speaks without permission from now on will be considered lifeless after this.”

“Don’t play dumb with me!　What right do you have to say that?”

“Yes, this is unacceptable!”

Two of the men who came yesterday shouted at me.

“The two who just spoke up will not be let out of here until they die. The monsters will come soon. If you want to die, please speak up as soon as possible.”

“……”

The two people from earlier were making a fuss, but the others were silent as if they couldn’t see them.

“You’ve finally calmed down. Then, Mr. Katagiri, could you explain the situation?”

“……”

“Speak up.”

“I’m sorry. I was trying to hijack this place.”

“Is that the consensus?　This is a question for you. Please answer carefully.”

“Not all of them. But I think most of them agreed.”

“Next. Do you have any other associates besides the ones here?”

“We are all here.”

“Let me ask you all the same question. If you have any other companions, please answer honestly.”

Many people shook their heads and answered.

“I understand. Then, ladies and gentlemen, who is the ringleader of this matter?”

When I asked them to point to the ringleader, they all pointed to Katagiri without hesitation. Katagiri himself had given up, or perhaps he was not making any excuses.

“Katagiri-san, then, are you willing to become a villager again?”

“…… does that mean you can help me?”

“If you can get into the village, that is.”

Katagiri answered “yes” after hesitating for a while. The true meaning of this is unknown, but if it is “no,” you just have to leave it alone. For my part, it would be the same no matter what I chose.

I pulled up only Katagiri with a rope and made him touch the boundary after making him a villager. He was automatically banished to the other hole I dug right next to it. There was no way he could survive alone in the forest, so I didn’t care if he escaped in the process.

“That’s too bad. Well, it means you are the ringleader.”

I silently threw blocks at him in the hole. Over and over again.

◇◇◇◇

“Ladies and gentlemen, he’s gone quiet.”

All of their faces are drawn together, as if they have guessed the meaning of the sound and voice they just heard. There are some young children in the group, but I have no intention of taking them into consideration.

“’Next, those of you who did not agree to the raid, please raise your hands honestly.”

Nine people raised their hands in unison, and I asked them, slowly separating the words.　

“Listen to me carefully. As long as you stay in this village, you will be safe. At least, we can protect you from monsters and assailants like you. I promise that I will never disrespect anyone who trusts me, even to some degree. Of course, you will have to follow my instructions in the village, but it is for your livelihood and not to take away your freedom. That is how these two work together as well.”

Tsubaki and Sakura nodded silently.

“I don’t know if you believe me at this stage, but I swear to you, I have never treated these two people disrespectfully or violently. With that in mind, let me ask you this. — Would you be villagers?”

I don’t know if my clumsy speech had any effect, but all nine of them timidly raised their hands, so I gave them permission to reside.

“Now we will take the nine of you up first, but first you must drop all weapons in your possession. This is all of you.”

Even if i tell them to throw them away, there may be some who have concealed weapons. If that happened, I would have to strip them naked, but I wasn’t going to do it because it would affect their loyalty.

“Those of you who unfortunately did not make it into the village, we will release you on the spot, so please get out of sight right away. If we see you in the future, we will consider you as a hostile person at that time, and if you resist or stay, you will become one of Katagiri-san’s friends.”

With a firm threat, the villagers were brought up to the ground one by one with a rope and accepted into the village in turn.

In the end, five of them became villagers, but I don’t know if that is a large number or a small number. The four who could not become villagers did not resist, perhaps out of fear, and left in pieces.

“Well then, new villagers, we welcome you and look forward to working with you from now on.”

Tsubaki and Sakura greeted them as well, and all five responded modestly but politely. Some of the villagers were still quite upset, but for the time being, we were able to secure the villagers.

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