"W-Well, if you don't know what parents are, then what about whoever's in charge? Any adult who can communicate normally... like a village chief? Doesn't your village have a chief?"
After thinking it over, Goredolf chose to ask about someone else.
Their most important goal right now was communication, but whoever they spoke to, it should not be this half-grown child.
"A village chief?"
But to Goredolf's surprise, even after he put it that way, Gerda still wore a strange expression.
"Someone with a very high status! Like me!"
"Like you, mister? Does that mean they're chubby too?"
Gerda had mistaken status for body size.
After all, the greatest difference between the uncle before her and the three investigators was their build.
Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash both had fairly well-proportioned physiques, capable of adapting to all sorts of environments and physical activity. Norla was still a child, but he was not chubby either. If anything, he seemed somewhat thin, which had to do with his experiences before death.
"You're still saying that?!"
Goredolf felt a flicker of despair.
"Dignity has absolutely nothing to do with body size! Honestly! How did your parents even raise a child like you?!"
"Ah, no, no, no! You don't have parents—well, um!"
"Someone with more authority than everyone else—"
Seeing that Gerda still looked confused, Goredolf felt his blood pressure rising steadily.
"The most dependable one among you! The most impressive one!"
At last, he found what was probably an appropriate way to put it.
After all, in a primitive society, individual strength was naturally valued more than something like "authority."
Whoever was strongest had the most say.
"Do you mean the Envoys? They're stronger than humans, so these three great ones are Envoys."
Perhaps because Goredolf had been speaking rather loudly, Gerda looked a