This was nonsense, of course, but my standing gave the lie a sense of legitimacy. Satisfied, the naïve young soldier returned to his station. Once there, he would surely spread the hero’s prediction to his colleagues.
George awaited me in the main hall. He held a chain in his hand, the other end of which was connected to Johnny’s collar. Johnny was a bright, well-behaved orc who would never lash out at people, but if we didn’t chain him, he might be mistaken for an escaped orc and eliminated. Outside of my territory, the chain was needed for his own safety.
“Your Excellency, I’ve brought the goods you requested.”
Orcs on Dragonbone Ridge were treated as mere livestock, hardworking beasts of burden.
“Well done. I’ve arranged the use of a cabin on the edge of the village. You’ll stay there with Johnny for the time being.”
There was a village a short distance from Dragonjaw Gate. While I called it a village, there were no farmers there, as it was a settlement where merchants gathered to cater to the needs of the soldiers. There were shops, bars, and brothels, among other things, as well as some civilian housing for those soldiers with families. It was the destination for soldiers with free time on their hands.
There had formerly been far more soldiers stationed here, but now empty houses were the village’s most prominent feature. I had managed to secure one of these. This arrangement offered privacy and prevented Johnny from having to sleep with the other orcs in their dungeon cells. Not to mention, George had originally been a priest, and there was no guarantee he would go unrecognized.
My language lessons with Johnny resumed that very day. The cabin my guests stayed in was quite close to my own quarters, so I would drop by whenever I had the chance to teach Johnny the names of various new items.
At first, the lady we hired as a housekeeper was disgusted, and she kept her distance from George and Johnny. However, once I’d demonstrated Johnny’s tricks to her, her attitude changed dramatically. Eventually, she even considered our clever boy cute. She was also quite warm toward George, and he reported to me that she was looking after them both with kindness.
Sometimes, soldiers on break would come to watch me train Johnny in the yard. I told them it was research to see if I could turn an orc into a soldier to fight on our side, but I could tell they saw through my façade. To them, it seemed I was just fooling around, teaching an orc tricks to kill time. To reward him for his tricks, they started throwing apples and coins whenever they watched Johnny carry out my commands. These rewards became Johnny’s food and George’s pocket change.
The number of soldiers dropping by to watch gradually increased. Before I knew it, George had installed benches in front of the house, and on those days when the crowd grew especially large, a local tavern would set up a stall nearby. The tavern owner would always bow to me, beaming, when we crossed paths. It seemed his stand was quite profitable.
Johnny’s tricks were nothing too flashy or complicated. Everyone was just starved for entertainment. Occasionally there were hecklers, and they put Johnny off, making it harder for him to work. While I did consider driving them away, I didn’t want people talking about how I was secretly sheltering an orc. I wanted these spectators to see us in a good light.
On this day I was training Johnny as usual when I heard a soft “ah” from the crowd, and all the onlookers went silent. I turned to see Worion approaching, leading a number of priests.
“I heard rumor of the hero doing some peculiar things,” Worion said. “What is the meaning of this?”
I’d been dreading this. The usually gentle head scholar wore quite the grim expression. Perhaps I should have been a little more covert, but it was too late for regrets.
I started off with an excuse I already had prepared. “Our shortage of troops has grown serious. I’m training him to see if we can repurpose captured orcs as soldiers. If we can make orcs fight other orcs, we can lower the losses of humanity.” To me, this sounded perfect.
“The subjugation of orcs is the divine duty of all true believers, and true believers fight for themselves.” With one stroke, he defeated me. “I took the liberty of watching this training of yours from afar.”
Worion glanced at Johnny’s feet, where various sorts of plants littered the ground. I had been listing the names of plants, which Johnny would then place in the order given.
“I fail to see how knowing the names of plants relates to military training.” He’d already seen through the act. “Also, if you wanted to train it to be a soldier, why did you choose a female orc?”
What a shocking revelation. Johnny was actually a girl? Well, in my own defense, while orcs were perpetually naked, they didn’t have dangling bits like humans did. Their sexual organs were tucked away in the folds of their bodies. Leave it to a learned man like Worion to distinguish an orc’s gender in a moment.
I didn’t consider myself an exceptionally intelligent man, and the exchange had a hot panic creeping up inside me. Picking up on this, Worion heaved a deep sigh.
“Hero, I see you have not given up on your ideas.”
“R-right.”
“I would not want you filling our virtuous adherents with such nonsense as orcs being able to understand words. I ask that you abstain from this little performance of yours.”
“I-I’m sorry.”
I lowered my head. I had no choice but to humble myself, if that was what it took to avoid trouble.
“The show is over!” Worion called out to the onlookers. “Be at ease… No one here is to blame. Reflect upon your faith as you fulfill your duties, but rest is also one of a soldier’s duties. So disperse now, and seek your rest!”
The crowd broke up with a few glances our way, leaving just Worion, Johnny, and myself. Once we were alone, the head scholar addressed me. “Hero, it is really quite troubling for you to be doing this. It seems you and I need to have a nice long chat on the matter. I would like to invite you to dinner this evening, if you would accept.”
It seemed there was a lecture in store, more than a simple chat, but for now the trouble had died down.
“Of course,” I said, lowering my head again. “I’m sorry for creating a problem.”
“It is fine, as long as you understand the importance of what I am saying.” With a courteous bow, Worion turned and led his priests away.
That night, as invited, I joined Worion for dinner. Like me, he had been afforded a room in the barracks meant for those of noble standing. Despite this, it was still a room in a fortress, not spacious at all and bereft of decorations. With a table, two chairs, and a priest standing by to serve us, the space felt cramped. Even the food was plain. Grilled river fish as the main course, and a thin vegetable soup, rounded out with hard bread. Our glasses were filled with diluted ale.
“My apologies,” Worion said. “This must seem frugal compared to what you usually dine on, but this is my customary fare.”
I normally ate what the soldiers did, which was never anything extravagant, but there was usually some meat and the helpings of fish were greater. Plus, the ale wasn’t diluted, and I was allowed refills if desired.
We offered our prayers, then commenced eating a quiet meal, which given the portions was over soon enough. I asked, “Do the other priests eat like this too?”
After swallowing a mouthful of bread, Worion replied, “At present, these portions wouldn’t be sufficient for the others, channeling their mana all day as they do. They need to eat better than me.”
“I see.”
“Well, are you ready now for our little chat?”
The server left without a sound. It was finally lecture time—or so I thought, but Worion rose from his seat and began fishing through a box behind him. The item he was searching for was apparently at the very bottom. When he finally produced it, it turned out to be a wine bottle made from glass, which wasn’t a common material in this world. From the tableware the server had left behind, Worion took our two wooden cups. He filled one of them to the brim with amber liquid from his bottle and placed it before me.