“I understand the situation, but…will they be okay with me?” Yae asked hesitantly. She didn’t necessarily dislike the notion of being married off to a neighboring province. This world was different from her last one, and it was rare for people to marry someone they liked.
“Are you worried they won’t be attracted to you?”
Yae smiled faintly and nodded in response to his ill-mannered question. Along with deformation and the enlargement of mysteriums, this world had one more strange characteristic.
“Hmm, it’s true that your Nature never emerged despite your growth. I was sure you would have a Gentle Nature because you were awakened here in Kaki Province… And you’re not an elebeast, either,” Kadaru muttered.
Yae stole a quick glance at him. The single richly colored wing on his back was proof that he was an elebeast. This world resembles ancient Japan, but it sure does differ in some major ways. She dropped her gaze.
Nearly everyone in this world was born as an elebeast, a type of person with some bestial feature like Kadaru’s wing. Some could transform into a beast or possessed special beast-like abilities. There weren’t many people who looked like ordinary humans, such as Yae.
Whether or not a person was an elebeast wasn’t all that important in society. What was important was one’s Nature. The Four Natures were the biggest factor that made this world distinct from her last. It could be thought of like the four blood types and their related personalities. The Four Natures gave rough shape to a person’s personality like many believed blood types did, but Nature was also directly linked to a person’s soul. It was tied to instincts, which greatly impacted a person’s emotions.
The Four Natures were as follows: Wild Nature, Gentle Nature, Blessed Nature, and Strange Nature.
Most people with a Wild Nature were men. They had fierce, rough masculine instincts and often possessed elebeast features.
Most people with a Gentle Nature were women. They were gentle and kind and tended to dislike conflict.
Almost all born with a Blessed Nature had divine power. This was a rare Nature. Their divine power allowed them to perform magic, but many had special beast abilities as well.
Peculiarly, most of those with a Strange Nature were intersex. This was also a rare Nature. It was somewhat possible to influence the Nature of a child, but the birth rate of Strange-Natured people was still extremely low. They also tended to live short lives, though a short life here was normal by human standards.
The Four Natures lived in a sort of rivalry with one another. Wild Natures were the toughest and lived long lives that stretched two hundred years, and they were greatly attracted to Gentle Natures. Gentle Natures, on the other hand, detested Wild Natures.
Strange Natures were easy targets, so they kept their distance from the other Natures. Unfortunately for them, however, their souls released a sweet fragrance that attracted others like insects to nectar. Blessed Natures and Strange Natures did not get along, despite their similarities.
The Four Natures had a strong impact on a person’s lifestyle. Just about every village was primarily made up of one Nature. Other Natures existed within the province as well, of course, but they were much less common. Kaki Province was a gathering of Gentle-Natured people. There were more women than men, so the village sustained itself primarily through farming. On the contrary, Miya Province was composed primarily of Wild-Natured people. The majority of the population was male, and they primarily sustained themselves with hunting.
Yae didn’t have a nature. This situation was referred to as Natureless.
“…I don’t think a Wild-Natured man would be happy to be paired with a Natureless woman,” Yae said dejectedly, no longer able to bear Kadaru’s piercing gaze.
“You’re probably right,” Kadaru agreed readily. “He probably won’t reject you, but he won’t be happy about it, either. Wild-Natured men are especially attracted to Gentle-Natured women.”
“And yet you chose me as one of the women to be married off…knowing that I would disappoint my husband?”
Kadaru laughed wryly as if he could hear Yae calling him a brute in her head.
“The villagers of Miya Province are insisting that deformations have increased because the laws of harmony have been disturbed. They believe that homogeneous marriages are to blame, so they want an influx of different Natures.”
This “homogeneous marriage” didn’t refer to a marriage between two men or two women, but rather a marriage between two people of the same Nature. Heterogenous marriage, then, held the opposite meaning.
“That is why they asked for Gentle-Natured women,” Kadaru finished, crossing his arms and rustling his wing. Yae spoke up hesitantly.
“I would think that homogenous marriages and the deformation outbreak are unrelated.”
“You would be right. I hardly think it is the true cause. However, any offhand remark will come to mean something if repeated often enough. Lies turn to superstition, get handed down as legend, and eventually masquerade as truth. As someone who knows the power of naming, you should be aware of the danger of that, correct?”
“…Yes, I am.”
“More importantly, I don’t want them attacking Kaki Province seeking Gentle-Natured women,” Kadaru said matter-of-factly. Yae figured that was his true motive for this arrangement. “It is undeniable that the populations of both Kaki Province and Miya Province have skewed too heavily toward one Nature. I, too, would appreciate some extra men to help kill monsters born from deformation.”
“Does that mean the same number of Wild-Natured men from Miya Province are being married into families here?” Yae asked.
“Just so,” he confirmed, once again eyeing Yae as if measuring her worth. “I appreciate the exchange of villagers, but I don’t want to hear of the women we sent being abused just because the number of deformation cases didn’t decrease. I can’t allow them to use that as an excuse to invade.”
…And that, then, is his biggest motive, Yae thought. “Oh, I see… That’s why you chose me.”
Kadaru smiled. “Once you’ve spent a few years in Miya Province satisfying the arrangement, you’re welcome to divorce and then return here.”
“You should really try to be a little more considerate, Chief Kadaru.”
“Hmm? No, it really will be a blow to lose you. Since you perform most of the ceremonies for us, we will have to train new people to take your place.”
That wasn’t what she had meant. Yae mulled over his words. Even he didn’t expect her marriage to work out, despite being the one behind the scheme. Furthermore, he didn’t want it to work out…or perhaps that was wishful thinking on Yae’s part. Though his invitation to return once she had handled the other province’s deformation outbreak seemed some proof that he valued her.
“Anyway, I thank you for your understanding in this situation,” Kadaru said. He was indirectly threatening that she couldn’t back out of the marriage. Yae looked at him with a mixed expression.
“Of course. But if they tell me to get lost as soon as they find out I’m Natureless, I’ll return here right away,” she stated. If that happened, she didn’t want to take any blame.
“Oh dear. I would like you to try a little harder than that,” Kadaru responded with a smile. Sensing that he had nothing left to say, Yae stood up and spoke.
“There would be no need to, would there? Even if the deformation continues, the fact that they turned me away would protect Kaki Province. And I wouldn’t need to force myself to spend years living there.”
“That’s true.”
He’s clearly already thought that far ahead. Yae pouted internally, and she decided to give him a taste of her true feelings as she left. It wasn’t anything as dramatic as revenge. The chief had a nice side despite his cool demeanor, so she expected this would make him regret what he had done at least a little.