The Vegetarian Troll's Cabin, Part 5
"I see. So you've already paid a visit to the human village..."
"Honestly, I kind of wish we'd just listened to you in the first place."
Billy had pointed them toward the village, but he had also warned them that they wouldn't find anything useful there. Yohan's recent encounter had proven that Billy hadn't been lying in the slightest.
"So, what brings you out here all of a sudden?" It was time to get down to business. Yohan asked Billy what his purpose was.
"You need to leave this area as soon as possible. At the very least, get away from the village."
The reason was too obvious to even bother asking.
"Because those villagers are going to run straight to the trolls and tell them a couple of fresh humans and an elf just rolled into town?" Yohan asked with a smirk.
Billy let out a heavy, complicated sigh. "Exactly. The trolls never allow the villagers to leave, but they welcome outsiders with open arms."
The reason was simple. It gave the villagers a way to redirect their pent-up terror and resentment onto someone else.
"Come to think of it, some people tried to pick a fight with us at the entrance, but a really fierce-looking guy stepped in and stopped them," Falco chimed in.
"That man... he probably realized you two weren't ordinary travelers and stopped the villagers before things got out of hand."
"I knew it." Yohan confirmed his gut instinct had been spot-on. "So they keep an eye on each other to make sure nobody escapes, while trapping any clueless idiots who wander in from the outside to keep the trolls happy."
It was a literal living hell. Rather than feeling angry at the villagers, Yohan actually found himself pitying them for being driven to such extremes.
Billy nodded at Yohan's words. "Yes. The rumors you heard about the man-eating trolls were likely leaked by someone who managed to escape not too long ago."
Billy's next words confirmed Yohan's suspicions. The man-eating trolls didn't limit their prey to just the villagers.
"But we only heard rumors that trolls were out here. Nothing beyond that. No news of the local lord sending an army, or hiring skilled mercenaries."
Despite the rumors of a man-eating troll pack spreading to the outside world, there had been no further action taken.
"They probably didn't see the need," Billy said.
The trolls never ventured outside this specific region to hunt. In other words, as long as outsiders simply avoided this place, it wasn't their problem.
"Then the reason you live all the way out here by yourself is..." Yohan looked at Billy, his voice trailing off.
Billy gave a bittersweet smile and nodded. "Yes. To warn travelers like you."
"Wait a second. Then why do the trolls leave you alone? If you're doing that, you're basically a massive pain in the ass to them," Yohan pointed out.
"There are two reasons. First, the troll village doesn't feel an absolute need to hunt down every single outsider."
"Hmm."
"An outsider might be an ordinary traveler, but they could also turn out to be an incredibly powerful hero, right?"
So they keep up a barbaric custom of eating humans, yet they act more calculating than anyone when it comes to self-preservation. Yohan clicked his tongue in disgust.
"And the second reason is... honestly, it's a bit difficult for me to say." For some reason, Billy hesitated to state the second reason. He seemed genuinely uncomfortable bringing it up. "To them, I am still technically one of their own."
"Hah." Yohan let out a dry chuckle.
Even if he was a half-breed, he had troll blood in his veins, so they treated him as one of their own. What an irony—monsters who ate humans purely for sport, yet fiercely protected their own kind. It also meant these man-eating trolls weren't just mindless beasts; they were intelligent beings capable of reason.
"To the tribe, I'm just a rebellious youth going through a phase. Even if it's only a quarter, their blood still runs through me," Billy said with a bitter smile.
Yohan immediately understood why Billy felt that way.
"But because of that, you've been able to live in peace and stop more innocent people from dying," Falco, who had been quiet all this time, finally spoke up.
Billy's eyes widened slightly at her words, and then a gentle smile touched his lips.
"Yeah, she's right. You're just playing the hand you were dealt," Yohan chimed in.
Just as Falco said, Billy was making smart use of his unique position as a half-troll. The anonymous traveler who had passed the information about the man-eating trolls to Wilhelm had undoubtedly escaped this place safely thanks to Billy's help.
"Thank you," Billy said softly after a brief silence.
"Don't mention it. You could've just packed up and left this place whenever you wanted, but you chose to stay."
Billy belonged to neither the human village nor the troll tribe. Of course, the trolls treated him as one of their own, but his conscience would never allow him to associate with monsters who devoured humans.
"It's getting late, so why don't you rest at my place tonight? They don't usually prowl around this late anyway. Driving a carriage along mountain paths in the dark is just asking for an accident."
"I agree about not driving the carriage at night, but we can just sleep in there. No need to impose on you."
"Yohan's right. We're used to sleeping rough," Falco added, nodding in agreement.
"Still, getting a good night's sleep indoors is much better than shivering in a cramped carriage."
"Well, if you put it that way..." At this point, refusing any further would just be rude.
Billy's cabin was certainly small, but it was still far more spacious than the interior of Yohan's carriage. Plus, the fireplace inside made it significantly warmer than the outdoors. Although the southwestern region of the continent generally enjoyed a mild climate, the mountain air at dawn was still biting cold.
"To be honest, since I'm always alone, it's actually nice to have guests over like this." Before heading to bed, the three of them sat down to chat over warm herbal tea brewed from dried petals.
"Ha. You tell outsiders to run away the moment you see them, but at the same time, you're happy to have company?"
"Haha..." Billy let out an embarrassed chuckle at Yohan's teasing.
"So, how is the tea? I gathered and dried the petals from the nearby mountains myself."
When Billy asked, Yohan nodded immediately.
"It's not bad," Falco agreed. Even the strictly carnivorous elf gave it a surprisingly generous review.
"Once I stopped eating meat, I started to appreciate these kinds of flavors and aromas," Billy said, taking another sip of his tea.
"Oh, right." Yohan had actually been waiting for a chance to bring that up. He set his cup down and spoke. "That 'unavoidable circumstance' you mentioned yesterday... do you mind sharing what it is? Honestly, I'm dying of curiosity."
Even in this world, vegetarianism was far from a common diet. At most, there were rumors that the forest-dwelling elves lived on nothing but leaves and grass—excluding the meat-loving elf sitting right next to him, of course. Yohan glanced sideways at Falco, who was silently sipping her tea.
"Oh, that..." Billy trailed off at Yohan's question.
"Ah, if it's a really sensitive topic, you don't have to tell me. I was just curious."
No matter how he looked at it, the reason couldn't be ordinary. It might even be related to the man-eating troll tribe. Perhaps he had decided to change his diet entirely to distance himself from his cannibalistic kin.
Thud—
Just as Billy was about to open his mouth, a faint tremor shook the cabin from the outside.
"Wait... why would anyone come here at this hour?" Billy said, his face pale with panic.
At the same time, Yohan and Falco's expressions sharpened.
"I know. I know," Yohan muttered irritably in response to the Goddess. He reached for the sword at his waist.
Thud— Thud—
The heavy vibrations—no, footsteps—drew closer and closer.
"I know you're in there, so why don't you come out quietly?" a gruff, grating voice called out from beyond the front door.
Billy closed his eyes tight, let out a heavy sigh, and reluctantly stood up to head toward the door.
Creeeak—
As Billy opened the door, a green-skinned giant thrust his head inside. It was a troll. A pure-blood troll, at that. Even Yohan had never seen one in person before.
"Haha. Nice to meet you," the troll greeted them, but none of the three replied.
We've been sold out. Yohan realized the villagers had moved far faster than he had anticipated. Wait, is Billy, this half-troll bastard, in on this too? Suspicion flared, and Yohan glared at Billy. But Billy looked even more panicked than Yohan or Falco.
The Goddess also seemed to believe Billy had nothing to do with this.
"They really were here. I went down to the village earlier, and they told me a human with a carriage and an elf had arrived."
The troll grinned widely at Yohan. Instantly, Billy stepped between Yohan and the troll, blocking the giant's view.
"They're just travelers. They'll leave as soon as the sun rises."
"Sure, sure. I knew you'd say that."
"There's still plenty of time left before the next sacrifice!" Billy argued desperately. But even to Yohan, it didn't look like the man-eating troll had any intention of listening.
"Now, now, our cute little Billy. Hand over those two pieces of meat."
The troll spoke in a sickeningly sweet tone, uttering words that were utterly bloodcurdling. Hearing such threats in a voice that sounded like a hot poker scraping against iron made it all the more horrifying.
"No!" Billy cried out, his voice trembling. Yohan could see the half-troll's broad shoulders shaking violently.
"That won't do. Or... are you offering to give us different prey instead?"
"..." Billy froze solid at the troll's question. Standing behind him, Yohan and Falco instantly understood the implication and were struck with horror.
The Goddess was right. Billy hadn't stayed here by choice. The trolls were blackmailing him through fear. They would tolerate his minor "rebellion" as the cute antics of a young clansman, but if he crossed the line, they would slaughter and devour the innocent villagers.
The Goddess called out to Yohan in a low voice. And Yohan knew exactly what she meant, better than anyone else.
"Alright, step aside. I'll handle this."
"Yo—Yohan!"
Yohan strode forward and placed a hand on Billy's shoulder.
"..." He had hoped for a cool, dramatic pose, but Billy was so massive that the gesture ended up looking incredibly awkward. It felt like Charles trying to lean on Falco.
"Oh—yes. That's more like it. What a good, obedient piece of meat." The troll, seemingly delighted by Yohan's cooperation, grinned so wide his yellowed teeth were fully exposed.
"Sigh... seriously, every single one of you." Yohan let out a deep sigh as he walked out of the cabin. He scanned the surroundings to make sure there was no one else nearby.
"I shall reward your bravery and selflessness. I'll slice your neck clean off in one go. As for that cowardly elf hiding behind you, I'll impale her alive on a—"
Flash!
In an instant, a brilliant light burst from Yohan's hand. At that exact moment, the troll, who had been rambling on with his gruesome threats, suddenly fell silent.
Thud—
Immediately after the flash of light, the troll's massive head slid cleanly off his shoulders and tumbled onto the dirt floor.
"W-wait—!" Billy cried out in panic at Yohan's sudden, violent action. But Yohan simply raised an index finger to his lips, signaling Billy to shut up.
"To be honest, while I was listening to your story, I was actually debating what to do," Yohan said casually. While Billy tilted his head in utter bewilderment, Falco wore a deeply satisfied smile.
"I was thinking of just leaving quietly like you suggested. But well, I guess that's out of the question now." Yohan lightly nudged the troll's severed head on the ground with his foot.
"We're heading to the Troll Village at first light. Lead the way," he commanded in a low, chilling voice.