Breaking the Balance (2)

At the very moment Aiden was burning with determination to provide jobs for the prisoners, the inmates in the semi-underground prison shivered, feeling a chilling, eerie sensation brush against the backs of their necks.

"What is this? Suddenly, I feel a chill."

"They say spring has come to the North, but it never gets warm. Ugh!"

The prisoners muttered to themselves, one after another. Perhaps it was because the unnatural, desolate cold was so unsettling that they couldn't shake their anxiety unless they kept talking.

"Can't you keep it down?"

Thwack, thwack, thwack!

They were forced to shut their mouths as the guard swung his iron club, but regardless, far above the dungeon, an emergency meeting of the Lord's castle leadership was being held in Aiden's office.

"Is there anyone who knows about the territorial boundaries of monsters and beasts?"

"I believe the hunters would be the most knowledgeable in that field."

"Should we send word to the skilled hunters who used to trade with our merchant guild?"

"Let's start with that."

"But it will take some time. Skilled hunters often live in villages quite far from the Lord's castle."

Kalisa clicked her tongue.

The North is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠vast. Because the Lord's castle is located in the warmest part of the North, it has plenty of farmland, meaning the ratio of farmers is significantly higher than in other villages. Consequently, while it was relatively rich in resources for the North, every light has its shadow; it wasn't easy to find people who made hunting their profession in the villages surrounding the castle. Especially not skilled ones.

'Can't be helped, I suppose.' Some things are shaped by environment, not talent.

"What about the chef? He's not a professional hunter, so would his knowledge be lacking in this area?"

When Aiden threw out the question with a hint of regret, Jamie and Kalisa nodded their heads incessantly, making a clattering sound.

"Ah! We have the chef! Why did I forget that? Should we bring him here immediately?"

"That's right. If it's Brikal... he might be more than enough to serve as an advisor."

The chef appeared in the office shortly after. It was a busy time, just before lunch, so Brikal's expression looked a bit impatient, but lunch time wasn't the priority right now.

"Hmm."

After hearing about the solidification of the beasts' and monsters' territories around the mine, the chef stroked his chin for a long time before giving a heavy nod.

"This is merely my speculation, but—." He carefully offered his opinion. "There might be a Spirit Herb around or inside that mine."

"A Spirit Herb? Why do you say that?"

"The fact that the beasts and monsters are in a constant standoff means there is something both sides cannot give up."

An unexpected term had appeared. A Spirit Herb, of all things.

"Occasionally, a Spirit Herb that awakens beasts and monsters into something higher occurs naturally. If it's a mine that hasn't been touched by human hands, the possibility is high. Especially since it's a mountain already famous for medicinal herbs."

"Is that Spirit Herb like a medicinal plant?"

"I cannot be certain, but they say the forms of Spirit Herbs vary wildly. Since they are created when mana existing in the world gathers in a specific place for a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠special reason, it could be a flower, a plant, or even a mineral."

"Oh."

He had learned something new. This wasn't in any of the books Aiden had read. 'Interesting.'

"But there is something more important than that." As Aiden's attention seemed entirely captured by the Spirit Herb, the chef shifted the direction of his words.

"No matter how much of a Spirit Herb there is, it is difficult for the boundary between the beasts and monsters to maintain its balance for so long. Does the Administrative Officer know the reason?"

"Well. As you know, I am a complete layman in this area."

"Essentially, it is because beasts cannot defeat monsters."

"Ah."

Now that he heard it, it was a painfully simple story. 'True. No matter how ferocious a beast with red blood is, how could it fundamentally beat a monster?' He hadn't seen one in person yet, but he heard some monsters could even breathe fire.

Aiden felt a bit embarrassed. He was ashamed that he didn't know something even young children understood. Noticing Aiden's expression, the chef smoothly moved on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to what he had to say next.

"However, there are times when a pack of beasts possesses enough power to confront monsters."

"That's when their numbers are high, right? There's no match for sheer numbers, after all." Jamie chimed in, trying to act knowledgeable, but the chef shook his head.

"If their population had increased that much, the village at the foot of the mountain where the mine is located would have already been razed to the ground, but there are no such reports."

"Ah."

"So, the answer closest to the truth in this situation is probably—."

"Probably?"

"That there is a Spirit Beast leading the pack. One that has lived for over forty years, at that."

"Good grief."

"My god."

At the chef's words, Jamie and Kalisa's faces stiffened instantly. Just as they say that when people are truly shocked, they can't even let out a shout, the two adjutants could only let out low sighs.

'...A Spirit Beast? What is that?' It seemed Aiden was the only one who didn't understand the situation.

"I feel like I might look like an idiot asking this, but it's better to ask than to guess. So, is the presence of a Spirit Beast that serious?"

Monsters of all kinds were roaming around, and there seemed to be a Spirit Herb in the mine, so what was the big deal about one forty-year-old Spirit Beast? Aiden, who possessed the delicate wildlife sensibilities of the 21st century, found this world strange once again.

"A Spirit Beast is a beast that has already swallowed a Spirit Herb. It is far stronger and smarter than a typical monster. Monsters just get bigger when they gather, but beasts led by a Spirit Beast are like a human army, making them extremely difficult to deal with. Especially since the beasts of the North are already larger, stronger, and smarter than those in other regions. If it's a Spirit Beast that has survived for a long time and has seasoned experience leading the beasts—."

In the brief silence, everyone in the office swallowed hard. They had anticipated what would follow.

"Perhaps that mountain range is no longer human territory."

***

Even after hearing the chef Brikal's words, Aiden, who couldn't give up on the mine, asked the same question to several professional hunters who had arrived late.

"Damn it."

He received the same answer.

"The situation was not good, Administrative Officer."

Jamie tried to comfort Aiden, who was in a foul mood, but it was insufficient to soothe the heart of a boss who had been filled with dreams and hopes of providing new jobs(?) for the prisoners.

"They say the village below the mountain range where the mine is located has traditionally been home to people who gathered herbs, picked mushrooms, and kept bees rather than hunting, so there aren't many who know the habits of monsters and beasts."

Because each village was so insular, knowledge wasn't shared, meaning they had missed the golden time to resolve the situation before the packs of beasts and monsters had grown to this extent. Some might mock this, saying, 'It's a conclusion worthy of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Northern barbarians,' but Aiden thought differently.

"We shouldn't blame the residents who lived by adapting to their environment. This is entirely the fault of the officials who knew the situation but ignored it."

The mine was discovered and surveyed thirty years ago. And the herb gatherer's grandfather had said, 'The number of beasts and monsters in the mountain full of herbs has increased rapidly,' forty years ago. There had clearly been a ten-year gap in between.

'If they had investigated properly back then, there would have been a way.' Aiden felt irritated and couldn't stand the thought of the many predecessors who had passed through this position. Whether they thought of it as exile or a demotion, if they were going to sit in the seat, they should have done their job properly!

"Let's just give up on that mine. It can't be helped."

"Is there really no way?"

Despite Jamie's suggestion, Aiden was aching with regret over the mine. 'If I give up like this, I'll probably see it in my dreams.'

A mine run by the free labor of prisoners! In other words, automated hunting. Isn't that a dream-like term? The criminals receive appropriate punishment, the victims are comforted, however slightly, by watching the hard labor, the residents learn a lesson, and the Lord's castle fills its pockets. This was killing two birds with one stone, catching two fish with one net. Therefore, he couldn't give up so easily.

"Even if you do, the iron ore from that mine is low-grade, so it won't be as profitable as you think, Administrative Officer."

"It's still much better than chopping down the trees scattered everywhere."

"That may be, but..."

"It's the prisoners' labor anyway. As long as we mine it, it's a guaranteed profit."

Aiden imagined a balance scale in his mind. He placed the reasons he couldn't give up the mine on the left scale, and the reasons he should give it up on the right, one by one.

'It's tight.' The imaginary balance scale remained perfectly level, not tipping to either side. It was just as difficult to give up as it was to keep going. The pros and cons were just too clear.

Aiden, thinking about what he could do if he just had iron ore, hoped there was at least one more trivial reason not to give up on it. 'I don't need a big reason. If there was even one tiny thing, the balance would collapse.' After all, you don't need a heavy weight to break a balance.

"...Huh?"

Aiden, lost in thought, jumped to his feet.

"That's it. You don't necessarily need great force to break a balance!"

Jamie and Kalisa could only look at each other and shrug, having no way to gauge what their superior was thinking again.

***

A while later.

Finally, the announcement for the long-awaited 1st Northern Life Hunting Competition for each village was distributed.

If the pack of beasts led by a Spirit Beast and the packs of monsters were maintaining a tight balance, couldn't he just be the one to create a crack in that balance from this side?