Tumbleweed Shoes, Baizi's Birth, and the Southern Direction!

After eating and drinking their fill, everyone began learning how to make shoes. Broly was learning too.

But his craftsmanship was rather terrible. Vines and hair always ended up as a tangled ball in his hands.

"You should still be able to wear them if you shove your feet inside."

Kurome commented on the shoes he had made.

Broly tried them on. They really were wearable, but probably only he could wear such round, rolling shoes and still move around freely.

"Need any help?"

Looking at the Tumbleweed Shoes on Broly's feet, even the youngest children found it difficult to say they needed help against their conscience.

"Broly Big Brother, I think it's better to make my own shoes myself."

"Alright, then. If you need help, just call me."

Broly looked a little disappointed. Perhaps he should not have finished his shoes so early.

"Need any help?"

Cornelia could tell that he merely wanted something to do, so she said, "If you can, Broly Big Brother, could you help scrape the bark off the vines?"

No one was skilled at making shoes yet. If some vine bark was woven incorrectly, they basically had to start over with new material.

"No problem."

Broly picked up a Small Knife and began helping scrape the vine bark. This sort of group handicraft work made him feel as though they were playing Cat's Cradle. Even if he was only lending a hand, it made him feel a little happy.

After experiencing the brief Primary School Student life of the Type-Moon World, Broly occasionally felt something called loneliness on Vampa.

Although he rarely showed it, that feeling did exist. Now, it manifested in his desire to feel more involved in group activities.

So, he scraped a great deal of vine bark, but only a small portion was ultimately used. The rest could only be burned as firewood.

"You wild children bought to be selected as prospects took down the entire group? There's nothing wrong with my ears, is there?"

"Lord Nishinomiya, there was someone in there who was incredibly strong, with monster-like power..."

"Stop. I'm not interested in how you were taken down. All I know is that Your Excellency Minister Honest ordered you to establish an Assassination Department.

And in accordance with that order, I already sent you the people, money, and provisions you needed. Yet you've brought me bad news."

"My lack of strength led to this failure. Please forgive me, Your Excellency Assistant Nishinomiya, but I still hope to receive some support and wash away this humiliation."

"Goeschi, you came from the Rakshasa Four Demons as well. If even you couldn't handle him, ordinary support would be useless, wouldn't it?"

"If possible, I would like to ask you to request aid from Minister Honest on my behalf. Please send support from the other Rakshasa Four Demons."

Goeschi spoke with bandages wrapped around his forehead.

"Goeschi, if you had said rebels attacked you and obstructed the establishment of the Assassination Department, I would have immediately mobilized local troops to support you. But you're saying you failed because of a child you bought?"

"He's a monster. His strength is terrifying. I can guarantee that with my life."

"Fine, even if what you say is true, what is his identity? Is he a rebel?"

"No."

"Since he isn't, where do you get the nerve to ask me to request reinforcements for you? It's one thing for you to embarrass yourself, but don't make me lose face before Your Excellency Minister Honest along with you.

The Empire needs people everywhere right now. This generation of the Rakshasa Four Demons is responsible for guarding His Excellency Minister's safety.

So no one has time to help you recover the dignity you lost to a child. Do you understand?"

"But that monster snatched away the assassin prospects we had selected."

"The Empire does not raise useless people. I don't want to hear your complaints about difficulties either. If there are difficulties, overcome them. Here, results will always matter more than the process. Likewise, what Your Excellency Minister Honest wants is only the result of successfully establishing an assassination force."

Driven out of the palace, Goeschi's expression looked rather unpleasant. If he had the ability to overcome difficulties alone, why would he have come here shamelessly begging for aid?

"That guy probably sees us as people who came to line our pockets."

Bill said.

"A miser. All he sees is money."

Goeschi cursed.

"Forget it. This is the Empire. The more seriously you do your work, the more you lose out."

"What do you plan to do?"

"I'm going to use Death Row Inmates directly for drug-enhancement experiments and control them with hypnosis. What about you? Are you still planning to look for that monster?"

Goeschi fell silent. Even an Imperial Arms had failed to injure the other party when it was broken. What could he accomplish by going after him again? He sighed.

"I'll do the same as you. I'll train those six Kids we brought out first. The big shots on the Upper Floors don't care, so there's no reason for me to care too much either."

"You'll die if you fail to complete your missions in the future."

Bill reminded him.

"It's just one worthless life anyway."

As an assassin, Goeschi understood an assassin's ending very well. Dying of old age in turbulent times was nearly impossible. Dying during some mission was reality.

Fortunately, training assassins took time. No matter how much he slacked off, he could still enjoy a few peaceful years. He would worry about it when the time came.

As for that little monster who had beaten his face swollen, if the Empire was not worried, what was there for him to worry about?

The moment the thought of slacking off arose, the world suddenly seemed vast.

A generation's Demon Sword assassin had run into a monster, reported it to the Upper Floors, and then, when the Upper Floors did nothing, directly became Baizi.

My strength may not be at the very top, but it's still first-rate. What kind of existence will a monster whom even my full strength could not harm become once he grows up? And if such a monster is recruited by the rebels, what will happen to the Empire? Heh...

As Goeschi thought about it, he invited the bald man beside him. "Want to go drink some Wine together?"

"No time. You're injured, so drink less."

The bald man, Bill, said this before turning and leaving.

Once the vine shoes were finished, the road became much easier to travel. However, perhaps the direction they wanted to leave by differed from where they had originally entered.

The group spent three full days following the paths blasted open by successive Energy Cannons through Jiffonora Sea Tree Forest before finally reaching the edge of the forest.

This was the border of the Western Border of the Empire, near the Western Kingdom, with a dangerous Mangrove Swamp region lying between them.

Upon seeing the Mangrove Swamp, the brown-skinned Girl revealed a somewhat delighted expression. "This is Rivarina's homeland. I used to live in a place like this."

She had been captured by a Slave Catching Team. She had never expected that, after following the group through the Great Forest, she would return to somewhere familiar.

Of course, this was not her home yet, but now that she had a point of reference, she knew which direction her home lay in.

"My Father once said that to the north of the Mangrove Forest is a Giant Tree Forest. There are many terrifying Danger Beasts in that forest, and we were told not to go near it. If this is the Giant Tree Forest, then Rivarina's home should be a little farther south."

Seeing the Girl's excited expression, Broly said, "Then we'll head farther south."

"Yeah!"

The children echoed him. Their days of travel had brought this temporary group together, and everyone trusted him greatly as their Big Brother.

"Idiots, you're going the wrong way. That's east."

With Tsukushi's reminder, the children who had been led astray returned.

"Let's try that again. We're setting out south."

After awkwardly returning to their starting point, Broly called out again.

This time, they had the right direction.