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| Renta. |
The next morning, I didn’t wake up
well. That was because we had to take medicine for the pheromone fever and went
to bed. I didn’t sleep well, and I was still tired. I sat up stiffly and
stretched, then got out of bed. However, I lost my footing and fell onto the
carpet. Luckily, it was my room, and the carpet is soft so I didn’t feel
anything but a dull thud. Though, my knees hurt a little.
Was Lucas was okay?
I took a shower and saw my face in
the mirror, I had dark circles around my eyes. I had to put on more concealer.
The brigade members managed to stop
us before we got too heated. But some of my shame and dignity have died. Lucas’
quick mind managed to get out clothes back together before they came in, so
nothing important was seen. Lucas had gotten quite ill, and after being given
the neutraliser, had to stay at the ranch while I was sent home in a carriage.
Actually, Lucas wanted to take me home, but his men stopped him. He didn’t look
well at all. The neutraliser had a sedative effect which was like a relief. If
the heat couldn’t be dissipated, I’d be in a haze like Geist.
For Geist, it seems the
neutralising drug doesn’t work as well. I think it would be best to examine the
biology of the chase wolfe in the department’s reference room. Perhaps there is
a more effective method of neutralising the pheromones. I had never been in
charge of a chase wolfe knight. If he passes the application process, Geist
would be my first chase wolfe knight, and I will regularly inspect him and his environment.
If I know the detailed biology, I can deal with unforeseen circumstances.
Touching a knight beast was not a violation, it is encouraged as part of
inspecting a knights good health and well-being.
Ah~ his winter coat would be so
fluffy. I want to touch when it grows. Come to think of it, didn’t chase wolves
go into heat in the autumn?’
During that time, Geist would have
to be sequestered like all other carnivorous beasts. But that was a matter for
after the application has passed.
If possible, I would like to do
something before Lucas made contact with the Cranbert Company rep. I know Lucas
didn’t want me to meet with Chris, but that was the quickest way to get inside
information about Cranbert’s shady dealings. But, I couldn’t depend on my
acting prowess, yesterday’s spoilt young lady schtick was the worst. Had I been seen by an acquaintance, I would barricade myself in my apartment for eternity.
But with Chris, his stuff here
would be useful to get him here to talk. I had put his things in a box in the
cupboard near the entrance of my apartment. I had been thinking of just tossing
them with the garbage, but since I still had it, it might be useful.
It was time to go to work. I picked
up sensible shoes next to which were my Deeper Deeper shoes sat.
These shoes brought Lucas and I
together, I smiled at the thought. To think only a few days ago I wanted to
toss them and never see them again. I put back the sensible shoes and put on
the Deeper Deeper ones. Seeing the grass green ribbon fluttering as I walked
filled me with smiles, and I left home dashingly.
‘May I have number 16, please.’
As usual, I was at the counter
handling knight registration applications.
There had been applications for
knights bred by the Cranbert Company. I had never cared about it before now,
but if something happens the knight breeding and sales industry may end up in
turmoil. There are few brigades like Rejude that do everything from capturing
to breeding knights, and doing knight requests on their own.
‘I will come to your stables to
inspect in three days’ time.’ I said to the applicant as I stamped the
application form. He nodded with a smile and left. When I looked up to call the
next person, there was no one else. The number of applications had dwindled in
the last couple of days, so work was progressing smoothly. Alright, I would use
my spare time to study up on the chase wolfe. I placed a call bell at my window
and put the thick document on my desk to read. It documented the biology and
ecology of the chase wolfe.
There were different species of
chase wolfe; there were chase wolfes that inhabited the cold northern climes,
and there were wolves that inhabited warmer climates. The northern chase wolves
have a grey or white coat. The warmer species had black or brown coats. Geist
is white, so he must be a northern specie. Lucas did mention he had come from
the northern regions.
The northern wolves had been over
poached for their fur, but due to conservation measures, the number of wolves
were increasing, though they were still rare.
‘Hi Mira, are you proudly slacking
off?’
This irritating voice is…
I looked up to see Clyde. He seemed
to be getting into my business a lot lately. Didn’t he have other things to do?
‘I’m not skiving. I was studying. I
am reading about the ecology of the beast I might be in charge of.’
Unlike the person in charge of the
nation knights who’s hanging about doing nothing. But I didn’t say that out loud.
‘Chase wolfe? Is this a bit much?’
‘Because it’s a rare beast, and I
don’t want to make mistakes. It’s different from people who only deal with
dragons.’
‘Dragons need to be handled
differently depending on the type. You may not be able to see that. Or do you
want to be in charge of dragons?’
Why does he come to bother me so
much with his high handed manner, and then get annoyed when I reply him? He
really can’t hold his nose. Sure, he’s been in charge of the national dragons
since the start of his career, I’m not particularly interested in looking after
dragons, he doesn’t need to get defensive. He was the one who came to poke his
nose in my business.
‘The man who picked you up a few
days ago was from the Rejude Brigade, right?’
‘What?’
I was a bit shaken. Clyde must have
seen Lucas waiting for me in hiding near the back entrance. How sloppy we’d
been. (Zuben: What is his business?) while it might seem suspicious, why is he
harassing me with this now?
‘Nothing of your concern. But you
seem to enjoy doing vulgar things like peeping at others,’
‘Me? Vulgar? You must be out of
your mind. I just came to tell you that it was noted.’ Clyde said as he pushed
up his glasses.
Did he think he looked cool doing
that? What a dunce.
I returned to reading the material
I had before me rather than listen to him, but Clyde didn’t like being ignored.
He placed his hand over the book.
‘You guys are being careless. It
doesn’t matter who you get along with, but if you’re going to be with that guy,
others will think that you will give them leeway.’
‘Are you mad? What part of my
evaluations and inspections show that I give anyone “leeway”?’
He was out of his mind, insulting
my work. I glared at him.
Clyde scoffed, ‘Even if you don’t,
others will think that you do. You’re an inspector. Being involved with people
we are duty bound to oversee undermines the trust. You should be careful about
your position.’ (Zuben: Wah wah! I wanna be the one to squeeze them boobies)
With that said, he walked off to
his desk. Clyde really had a knack for poking at a person’s weakness. Because I
was an inspector, I couldn’t favour anyone. Lucas and the brigade are
inseparable, and so is me and my duty to this department. I have never favoured
the Rejude brigade and had no intention to do so in the future. But from the
perspective of others who don’t know me, it would look that way. How
disappointing.
Perhaps Clyde was right.
But, between giving up inspecting
the Rejude Brigade or breaking up with Lucas, I don’t want to do either. If I wanted
to change the Rejude Brigade inspector, I would have to declare that I was
dating Lucas, but I don’t think my love life is anyone’s business.
The other option would be to change
departments, but…I turned to look at the notes I was studying, I chose to be in
this department because I liked beasts. I liked going to see all kinds of
beasts, and talking with the vets and their carers, and my seniors about
beasts. I love learning new things. And thanks to that used to work at the
Rejude Brigade whom I had many discussions with, my skill as an inspector has
increased.
Which department would I change to?
There was Housing, Environment, National management and so many more. The
knight registration office was part of the Highway Traffic division. There was
nowhere I wanted to go. I wanted to be in charge of inspecting knights and their kennels and ranches.
It would be best to talk to Lucas
about this, and see what he thought. But I’m sure he’ll say something like.
“You don’t have to hide our
relationship. We’re dating and it wouldn’t be good to cause suspicion. I think
you should do what you think is best for you.”
It is certainly a valid opinion,
don’t disappointment me, Lucas Rejude – brigade commander!
When I spoke to him about the
matter, it was exactly as I expected. So, I casually told my boss that Lucas
and I were dating. But how is this situation casual?!
Lucas
Three days later, Cranbert Company
contacted Rejude Brigade. They wanted to speak with the brigade leader. They
had tried to negotiate many times with no success. I decided to stop delaying
the matter and met with them.
Because I had gone to the Cranbert
company without any disguise (Zuben: this was obviously changed round in the
comic), I wore mustache and a wig and glowered at them to my heart’s content.
‘Pleasure to meet you, I am Miles Cranbert,
representative of the Cranbert Trading company.’
‘To be blunt, we are not interested
in pets or knight beasts.’ The overweight man spoke in an exaggerated manner,
wiping sweat on his forehead with his handkerchief even though it was not hot.
‘Commander, I am here to ask you…’
‘For us to do a job? There is no
need for you to come all the way here for that.’ I interjected brusquely
But Cranbert shook his head making
his jowls shudder.
‘This isn’t a normal request. We
request your help to breed a beast.’
Things were going as we expected. I
grinned inwardly. As a result of our request for a chase wolfe, the Cranbert
was forced to come to negotiate. Breeding was the fastest way to get a chase
wolfe to sell.
‘Breeding a beast. Are there any
advantages for the Rejude?’
For breeding, a market has been
established to ensure excellent offspring. All breeding animals and their
progeny were registered to prevent in-breeding resulting in inferior offspring.
If the beast were a rare or well sought out breed, the mating fee can be quite
high. So, a company has to have a lot of financial resources to use the market.
I glanced sharply at Cranbert, and he began to sweat even more.
‘Of course, I will add this much,’
he replied, raising three fingers, ‘more than the market value.’
Triple? They must be desperate.
‘Unfortunately, the breeding of a
beast registered as a knight is out of the question. Ask someone else.’
‘I understand that. Don’t worry
about it; I will give you five times more. Please mate with our chase wolfe.’
Was the purpose just mating? There
must be hope that four or five cubs will be born, which to be honest, is more
efficient than trying to capture one. I had assumed Cranbert would place a pile
of money before me to capture one. Capturing chase wolves was a very difficult
task. Before the beast capture became regulated, there used to be hunters who
specialised in capturing chase wolves. A chase wolfe was a very powerful and
cunning beast. If they are fought head on, it was likely that hunter or beast or
both will die. But the beast was needed alive for the pheromone distillation.
‘Are you only using the female
chase wolfe for breeding? When we asked a few weeks ago, your company bluntly
refused. Are you just thinking about profits now?’
‘My subordinates are very sorry for
their rudeness. As a token of our apology…’ Lambert held out a small bottle
that fit into the palm of his hand with liquid sloshing inside.
‘This is…?’ Why would he show me
something like this?
‘Our female is in heat, perhaps
because of the unfamiliar climate. She’s secreting the pheromones regardless of
where she is, so we have refined it. It is a product of coincidence, therefore,
it is not illegal.’
Was it really just coincidence?
Wouldn’t it have been better to spend money on a care plan to make the beast
more comfortable instead of spending money on refining the pheromones.
‘Chase wolfe’s pheromones. How did
you refine this much?’
‘It seems the commander is very
interested in this.’
‘I’m not interested in the estrus,
but to get this much, your technique must be amazing.’
‘Our research facility has clever
scientists. And we have a few investors. It’s quite pure.’ Lambert tried to
open the vial, but I hurriedly stopped him. Was this man stupid? Wasn’t he
aware of the power of the pheromones? What am I supposed to do if I get it up
in front of this tub of lard? Just imagining such a scenario made me feel sick.
But if this man starts showing symptoms, I will mercilessly hang in on a tree
in a public square and expose him.
‘I don’t want that, but if you can
show me your facilities I will think about it.
‘Really?’ Cranbert sat up
excitedly, his protruding belly shook with it. My eyes were drawn to the belly.
One. Two. Three. I’ve never seen a three-tiered belly. (Zuben: Is your stomach
flat when you sit down, Lucas?)
‘Think about it.’
‘It’s perfectly fine. If you’re
happy with our research, at least once.’
‘Let’s see first, we can talk about
it afterwards.’
‘I’m sure we will get the next
results.’ Lambert held his hand out, I took it. As Cranbert left the room, I
quickly wiped my hands.
That worked out unexpectedly.
I do hope the assistant doesn’t try
to contact “Ludwig Trautner”, who was actually a quiet easy going person,
before we have sorted things out. If she does, I would have to make my move
immediately, to protect Mira. There shouldn’t be any government inspectors or
it would turn into a mess.
The day before yesterday, Mira came
to talk to me about something. Something had happened at work, so she wanted to
know my thoughts. I thought I would have to bow and apologise to her, but Mira
unexpectedly came to talk about the future.
‘I’m thinking of putting in a
request to move departments.’ She said.
I was stunned by this.
‘A colleague of mine saw you and me
that evening when you came to pick me up. I’m in charge of knight registrations
in Piazza and you are a brigade leader, some people might start to think that I
would be favouring you. So, I am thinking of applying for a transfer.’
I was relieved that Mira was
talking to me about this. It wasn’t the worst thing. When the words came out, I
expected that I would be told we couldn’t see each other again.
‘Oh, by the way, are you alright?’
she asked. She’d been worried about me getting struck by Geist’s pheromones.
She’s so caring. I was falling in
love with her more and more. I can only love you, so please don’t abandon a
stupid man like me.
Anyway, back to the situation; Mira
was thinking of handing over her duties in Piazza to another district. It was
fine if that was what she wanted.
‘You don’t have to hide that we’re
in a relationship. We’re dating so it is better not to cause suspicion. You
should do what you think is best for you.’ I told her.
Mira pouted shyly and blushed. Mira
had such a cute shy face. What can I do? Even she doesn’t want to leave me.
Mira really liked beasts. She had
investigated the ecology of the chase wolfe and had investigated a drug that
could safely nullify the pheromones. It did exist, but it was fairly expensive.
Mira told me that she would get the reagents from her contacts.
Mira was very conscientious about
her work and proud of it. Perhaps I shouldn’t have involved her in this after
all.
Perhaps, it was best to keep her
out of the loop. Mira wanted to see Geist. Geist was already fond of Mira. He
would wag his two tails when she came to see him.
What would Mira do if she found out
about my decision? She would likely get angry. She was already very protective
of the female chase wolfe. I liked the way she looked at the beasts with
glittering eyes. Being a knight inspector was the perfect job for her.
Mira came over again.
‘I’m bothering you. Is Geist doing
alright?’
‘Welcome back. He’s okay. He’s been
waiting for your visit longingly.’
She laughed, ‘I’m home…’
We went to the kennel to look in on Geist. (Zuben: Japanese writers do not write coherently! I didn’t know which was past and what was present😓)
Thanks for the chapter!
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