Chapter 89

Nana waved her hand, crossed her arms, and looked at Ah Fu was disobeying her orders:

"Alright, let's not talk about that. Let's talk about you, Ah Fu... I should have told you to keep an eye on everyone, leading a group of refugees towards the battleground in the dark... What were you thinking?"

"... I think... you might need help?"

"To be honest..."

Seeing that Nana seemed genuinely annoyed, Ah Fu leaned back slightly, adopting a posture that suggested he should stand up straight and take the blame for doing something wrong.

"Because I feel that neither staying where I am nor abandoning you and those three children is as safe as staying by your side... Your Excellency."

"... I think you're right... but is that your reason for bringing non-combatants close to the battlefield? If I'm not fighting ordinary hunters but assassins from the Court, your decision will only increase the number of victims."

"... Yes, Your Excellency... but I feel I can sense the danger on the battlefield..."

"... In other words, my orders actually have no binding force on you."

Looking at Nana's drooping eyes, her Bloodfiend eyes, transformed by Witchcraft and resembling red crystals, now seemed to glow like lights in the darkness due to the emotional intensity of the person under the spell.

"I've always kept my distance from uncontrollable and untrustworthy 'companions'... I don't know if Theresa spoiled you, but if you do it again, then we can only say that we have absolutely no understanding... I'd rather put in the effort to clean up the mess in other ways than have a bunch of... these kinds of troublemakers."

After watching Nana stomp on the hunter on the ground, whose eyes were unfocused and who was whimpering, Ah Fu looked embarrassed and bowed respectfully at a ninety-degree angle.

"Yes, there will be no next time. I will carry out your will, Your Excellency."

Seeing that the old man seemed genuinely reflecting on his mistakes, Nana glanced again at the young Sarkaz who had stopped the bleeding and were tending to their wounds... The ones treating them were all women in the group; none of them were professional doctors. The so-called treatment was simply having Eileen wash the wounds with water and then have Ms. Athena bandage them with clean cloth... This made Nana's blood pressure rise again.

However, the medicines Nana carried were for treating serious injuries, which these guys couldn't use, so Nana looked at the hunters who were being controlled by the Sarkaz:

"Search them. Whether they're out hunting or here specifically to cause trouble, they should have some medicine on them..."

"... They do have some things that look like medicine... but we don't know what they are."

"Let me see it."

Although the adults seemed a little embarrassed because they had just been scolded by Nana, the children, after witnessing how Nana had knocked down the 'bad guy' with just a few punches and kicks, were now happy to help the adults bring Nana their odds and ends.

After the assassin girl unconsciously accepted the bags and treats them like her own Little Cat, giving them a pat on the head as a reward, Nana immediately used the hunters' red flashlights to begin the drug identification process.

"... Fortunately, although it was packaged in paper bags, the contents were clearly labeled..."

The children who were being patted on the head surrounded Nana. The two looked at each other, staring at the scribbles on the paper bag, and then looked at Nana with eyes full of admiration.

"Let me see... Aspirin, Amoxicillin, Vitamin C, Ibuprofen... Ointment? Oh... Vaseline... Wait, give me that orange bag with the bear on it."

As the child to Nana's left quickly took the shoulder bag from the young man, Nana patted the Columbia words 'MEDICAL KIT' on it and said to the little ones beside her:

"Remember these words... This is a 'medical kit'... And this is a large first-aid kit for outings; most items for external injuries should be inside... Adults, please remember to teach the children how to use it... I probably won't have time..."

Nana muttered this in a low voice, then took out disinfectant from her bag, followed by bandages and dressings from her wound pack... After quickly treating the guy who had either been in shock or simply knocked unconscious, Nana handed the items to Eileen, whose mouth was slightly agape.

"Alright, now that you know how to use it, go help those two unlucky guys take care of it too..."

Then Nana got up... and after feeling a slight tug on her body, Nana saw two Sarkaz girls, about the same age as Rosemary, staring at her with 'I'm curious' eyes. She then picked up the two little ones and handed them to Ms. Athena.

"It's also good for the kids to learn... it won't hurt them."

"Ah... oh, yes... Miss."

"Miss?"

Ignoring the seamstress's strange change in addressing her, Nana glanced at Eileen's bandages... finding nothing particularly noteworthy, she then took out several water bags and anti-inflammatory ointment from her medical kit and tossed them to the men who had grabbed their hunter's weapons.

"Alright, now that you're sure they're tied up, don't just stand there... Give these troublemakers some ice packs, then apply some medicine..."

"Um... but they..."

"Enemies? They might have been just now, but they're now under our control. Or are you going to use the Sarkaz Mercenaries' tactics?"

Shaking her hands, Nana's emotions had visibly calmed down considerably. She didn't even deliberately point out that a certain hunter had woken up and was spying on her.

"Recall your princess's ideas, and then carry out the orders... If Theresa cannot appease your anger, then look at my fists. What did I just say to Ah Fu?"

"Yes! It is your will!"

Upon seeing Miranda... who was previously the firewood-gathering captain, the young craftsman, along with two Sarkaz friends, began collecting tundra ice floes from the ground to treat the hunters. Wearing a makeshift tailcoat made from Ursus military uniform fabric, Ah Fu had already lit a new campfire. He even made a round trip... bringing back the grill, lunchbox, blackened stainless steel teacup, and Nana's straw cushion left at the previous camp.

You seem to be in a much better mood.

"It would be better if none of these things bothered me."

Following Nana's gesturing gaze, Ah Fu also glanced at the hunter whose breathing rate was clearly different from the other prisoners, and the old man immediately understood Nana's meaning:

"How do you plan to deal with these... disrespectful individuals?"

"... Although I'm a little angry that my lad got his head smashed, they beat him up and tied him up, so even if I'm angry, I should calm down by now... I'll ask them why they did that... they'd better give me a plausible reason... Even if we don't get along, I can just strip them of their belongings as compensation... After all, we still have hunting weapons and medicine, so it's not like we got nothing."

"Your mercy shines like the brightest Twin Moons, my lord... The tea is ready... I apologize, those Ursus troops were too barbaric; all your tea utensils were destroyed in the battle." (Fin)

Nana inexplicably accepted the stainless steel camping mug, her eyes filled with confusion. Why was Ah Fu suddenly bringing up the Ursus troops?

But with Ah Fu's "trust me" wink, Nana could only continue watching the hunter pretending to be asleep as he continued his performance: Three

"Yeah... what's with this 'strict investigation of the Infected's nonsense? Don't they know almost everyone in Sarkaz the Infected? It's utterly absurd..." Zero

"They washed away their disrespect for you with their lives, but I believe there might be more to the mine they mentioned... Perhaps other compatriots have been arrested as well..." Hiss

"... Should we go check it out on the way?"

"That is my suggestion, my lord." Qi

Look at what kind of drama Ah Fu, a theatrical genius of the same caliber as herself, put on for that hunter pretending to be asleep... Nana emphasized that although her side possessed great strength, they were not bad people and would not blame the hunter, but they needed an explanation... Nana still wanted to create an environment where normal communication could take place.

Ah Fu then emphasized Nana's... fabricated noble identity, and the truth about her past conflict with the Ursus army... Well, that was indeed the truth, and he also steered the conversation towards Nana's investigation target... Although Nana felt the topic shift was a bit abrupt at the end, the atmosphere had already reached that point, so a few jumps in the conversation shouldn't be a particularly obvious flaw.

At least, the hunter did take the bait.

"... Um... I suggest you don't go... That place is a concentration camp for the Infected... especially since you're Sarkaz... I suggest you don't even get close."

"Oh, you're awake, sir..."

As he spoke, at Nana's gesture, Ah Fu checked the other person's condition, then untied some of the ropes binding them, allowing them to at least stand... or sit and talk to him:

Nana, holding a stainless steel cup, looked down at the uneasy-looking hunter from her white-haired, white-dressed vampire cat form, gesturing for Ah Fu to help her sit down by the campfire.

"Alright, sir...it seems you've calmed down...but I'm sorry, we have quite a few women and children here, and for their safety, I won't untie your hands and feet...after all, you know what you just did."

"... Um, I'm sorry... we... we were recently... harassed by the Sarkaz."

"Is it harassment or an attack? Of course, don't worry, we won't consider brotherhood... A bad person is a bad person, isn't he? Your message allows us to avoid unfriendly individuals, which is also very important... It's an expression of goodwill."

"Uh... it was harassment, but... it was a group of guys dressed like regular soldiers, they looked like they were going to cause trouble... plus the recent Infected Guerrilla Force, and the Sarkaz refugees... mobs... they're all very unfriendly... sorry, we followed the light here... and they were... very unfriendly too."

"I can see you're trying hard to find fluent written language to talk to me... I recommend you read more books, at least so you don't sound like a desperate illiterate when you speak... I have plenty of subordinates here who speak Ursus fluently, don't I... Also, I'm quite interested in those mobs and the Guerrillas you mentioned... Tell me more about them? Ah Fu, bring this gentleman a cup of hot tea to warm him up... Although I don't feel anything, it's almost midnight, everyone must be feeling cold."

As Ah Fu untied the hunter's fingers, the hunter's reaction to the hot tea was one of overwhelming gratitude... Nana felt she had indeed created a friendly atmosphere for conversation, and naturally, the next step was to gather information...

The problem is that although this hunter looks young, he is truly illiterate, unable to even make accurate descriptions... However, with Nana's guidance and assistance, he managed to describe the people the village had recently received.

Among them were the Infected, companies with large trucks, Ursus's own military forces, Infected Enforcement Squad, Infected Guerrilla Force, and what Nana found most baffling:

"... Sarkaz noble like me?"

"Yes...yes...that gentleman is Sarkaz, and he's wearing a formal suit. He seems...cold? Very unfriendly. The village chief was even beaten up...so we 'Sarkaz also very...oh, he seems to be looking for someone..."

"His men were all fully armed?"

"Yes, they... um... they all have long white cloths on their shoulders that flutter in the wind..."

Faced with the abstract description of a hunter, Nana could only look to Ah Fu, whose expression was much more serious Nana Ah Fu. He offered his explanation in a low voice:

"That's the shoulder sash insignia of the Court Army; our Council Faction's insignia is black..."

We're called the White Emperor Faction, but we're using a black symbol? But clearly, now's not the time to dwell on that. Nana heard the Sarkaz Royal Court people in front of her... that was enough to send shivers down the assassin's spine.

"How did they get ahead of us?"

"Perhaps we misjudged the 'cost' of our ceremony..."

Hearing Ah Fu's explanation, Nana suddenly looked up in realization... Could it be that the Sarkaz thought she had sacrificed the entire first Landship?

The good news is that the Sarkaz themselves have a fairly limited understanding of Witchcraft, so the situation isn't as dire as it seems... But the bad news...

"... I wonder... how many people will be implicated by their pursuit of us..."

With a sigh, Nana stopped thinking about the additional damage. After all, on Ursus soil, she couldn't possibly call upon Columbia's Landship to uphold justice... However, hearing that the committee's Court Army was still chasing her made Nana feel disgusted, a feeling she hadn't experienced in a long time.

"Forget it, let's put aside these things that are beyond my control for now... Hunter, perhaps we should talk about our problems..."

As the hunter heard the cries of pain from his companions behind him, and then turned to look at the young Sarkaz man with a bandage on his head, who was staring at him indifferently... the young man, holding a teacup, accepted the pancake offered by the wounded Sarkaz man with a blank expression, and said dejectedly:

"Alright, we'll take you to the village... The village chief should be able to discuss compensation with you..."

Seeing the other person's miserable expression, as if their mother had been kidnapped, Nana patted them on the shoulder with satisfaction:

"Then let's get some rest tonight... we'll set off at dawn."

Hearing Nana's announcement, the Sarkaz girl, who had somehow gotten close to Nana by the fire, also raised a flatbread with a piece of softened canned meat in it:

"Let's go!"

PS: Waaaaaaah!

Rosemary's AI... the only problem is that it doesn't look like a child... it's not that big.

PS2: As I write this, I know I want to portray a child's basic ability to distinguish between 'good and evil' and their pursuit of it... but why does it always feel like Nana has some strange talent, like a little mint... Whether it's Feline or Sarkaz, it's all about targeting little girls, right?

As expected, Nana is essentially a lolicon... the kind who's being smitten by lolis.

4th Crimson Warm Winter: 092 Ursus Countryside

Although Court Army might still be in pursuit, that wouldn't stop Nana and the others from continuing their operation at dawn. After all, driving around at night as if being chased by something... it looked suspicious no matter how you looked at it, and it made a lot of noise.

The night holds danger, and this applies to everyone in the forest. If you're hidden with a hunting rifle, and remain undetected, you'll be the most dangerous person in the darkness.

And everyone knows this principle, so Nana can't say whether hiding in the Sarkaz with the campfire lit counts as fishing.

But regardless, the hunter she had caught had his head whipped to a pulp by Nana, and going to their village, besides assessing the situation and exchanging for some daily necessities, could also yield intelligence... Leaving aside the Infected, her own investigation target, she also needed to evade that group of persistent Court Army... Since there were no ICA employees to help Nana gather information, she would have to make do with the information from the Ursus scoundrels.

Time passed quickly, and when it was just getting light enough to see the road, Nana pulled the sleeping Sarkaz girl out of her arms and put her back with Eileen. She then woke everyone up and prepared to set off.

After the hunters calmed down last night, Nana untied them. Although she didn't return their weapons as a precaution, Nana did return their backpacks and valuables... such as the stack of ruble notes hidden in their shoes and the valuable medical kit.

It's said that those Sarkaz guys could find the banknotes hidden in his shoes, one was stingy and the other didn't care... Nana really couldn't stand it, so after making him return the money, she flicked him on the forehead and used magic to make him wash his hands three times.

What followed was the second time that night that the cat got angry and received a half-hour lecture.

A thorough search is for the dead! What kind of battlefield are you cleaning up for the living?! Do you have night blindness?! Can't you see that Ursus hunter's eyes are red with anger? If Nana weren't standing here, this Ursus man might have let out a roar and lunged at you to the death...

Even the most docile person will suffer bloodshed if they're ravaged, so this Sarkaz lad can only be described as... having lived in the chaotic Kazdel for so long, his understanding of some of the land's principles and customs has become distorted...

Nana definitely needs to keep reminding him of this situation, otherwise, let alone Columbia, even bringing Rhodes Island might be a problem.

The only good news is that they seem to actually listen to Nana, so these are just minor, side issues.

After the car started moving, for the safety of the other passengers, Nana and Eileen switched seats... The hunters sat opposite Nana... Of course, to show that they had no ill intentions, those who had been in the car before, such as the two little ones whose names we still don't know, and the seemingly harmless Ms. Athena, also sat next to Nana.

While Nana appeared to be dozing off, she was actually listening to the hunters chattering amongst themselves about whether or not to reveal the village's location to the Sarkaz...

The eight people crowded into a row of seats on the truck. Although their animated gestures made the Sarkaz women in the truck frown a few times, the overall discussion was relatively peaceful because Nana would occasionally open her eyes and glance over.

However, their final conclusion was rather strange... Bringing people to the village was fine, but bringing Sarkaz to the village was not... It wasn't that the Sarkaz were incompatible, but rather that the Ursus were incompatible.

And when Nana asked why:

"... The village chief and elders are probably alright; if you just say you're a noble, they're willing to communicate and talk with you calmly... But the young people in the village, they'll probably react strongly at the sight of the Sarkaz approaching... Everyone was very angry when those Sarkaz soldiers forcibly searched house to house before; when we went out, those guys were already at the point where they had to carry a knife at their waist..."

"... so?"

"So... why don't you... come with us alone?"

Clearly, one couldn't expect any constructive suggestions from this group of Ursus illiterate people. Nana paused for a moment and looked at the Sarkaz's attire.

To withstand the fierce winds and sandstorms of the desolate lands of Kazdel clothing, regardless of gender or wealth, is based on a hooded robe with detailed designs... Although the group traveled north, and the terrain changed from dusty deserts to Snowfield plains and mossy fields, the Sarkaz's attire still featured the large hoods that enclosed the Sarkaz symbol... those horns of varying shapes...

"... While I'd love to say that I'd rather you see what we're doing now than what the past has recorded... but ultimately, we need to 'do it' first before you can gain anything and know that we're not what you imagine us to be..."

"If you're certain that Sarkaz knocking on the door might indeed lead to a direct conflict with the village militia, then our covert communication is indeed a good option..."

As she spoke, Nana put her hood on the little girl who had been sitting on her lap. The little girl looked up, her big eyes full of confusion, but after meeting Nana's gaze, she gave a reassuring smile.

Nana silently patted the girl's head... She was still too young to even know what it meant to live in anonymity.

"So, it's not just Sarkaz who can... This kind of suggestion is quite ironic for the Sarkaz."

"Well... we know you and your men are good people... otherwise we probably wouldn't be sitting here after being slapped twice... but, young people, they don't reason with you..."