"L-Lord Yupa?! What are you talking about? I don't understa-"
His excuses grew weaker and weaker under Yupa's piercing, all-seeing gaze, until the words finally caught in his throat.
"Have a chat with me," Yupa said, blocking the doorway alone and looking completely unguarded. "Who exactly is this 'lord' you keep talking about?"
"Wait, please let me explain! Nausicaä fooled everyone. There was never any miracle! Only by accepting help from outside can the Valley of the Wind-"
Seeing Yiduo's near-madness, Yupa's helplessness was plain on his face.
"Alas... I'd still held out a sliver of hope, unwilling to believe there were traitors in the Valley of the Wind. But now, it seems I'll have to ask you all to come with me." He sighed.
"Yupa, don't push us too far!"
Barton, Huo'er, and Huomu sprang to their feet, grabbing iron skewers, wooden stools, and whatever else was at hand to fight their way out.
"Aaaah-!"
The powerfully built Barton let out a low roar and attacked first, swinging an iron skewer. With him leading the charge, the Huo brothers rushed forward at the same time.
Fight! Even if he's a sword saint, he can't possibly take on all five of us at once...
"Ah!"
"Urgh!"
"Thud."
The fight was over.
Barton and the other three hadn't even seen how their opponent moved before their vision went black and they fell to the ground.
"Hm? Why aren't you attacking?"
At those words, Jijinsi, who had huddled at the very back from the start and watched Yupa dart forward and knock his four companions unconscious with his bare hands, wore a bitter look.
"I... I've long heard of your great name. How could I overestimate myself like they did? Besides, I was forced into joining them..."
"Whether you were forced or not, you can tell me in a cell."
Thwack.
A chop of the hand came down, and Jijinsi crumpled to the ground as well. To avoid alarming the other villagers, Yupa could only ask these men to sleep for a while.
"All right, carry them all away."
Yupa wore a strange expression as he watched the militiamen pour in behind him and drag away the five "idiot thieves" sprawled across the floor.
Could the likes of them really have thrown the Valley of the Wind into such turmoil?
Was Nausicaä too lenient, or were the people here too trusting?
But compared with these fools who had been led astray, he was more concerned about the "lord" and "reinforcements" they had mentioned.
It wasn't hard to infer from their conversation that they were in contact with an important figure of considerable standing. That was his real target.
And that important figure was very likely an agent Tolmekia had planted here.
It seemed he would have to continue his tracking work for a while longer.
As for the so-called reinforcements, though he had already suspected as much, he was now almost certain they were that group of explorers.
Now that he knew what the enemy was planning, he could take steps to counter it in advance.
If he still let the enemy sneak in as they had discussed, he would be a truly incompetent intelligence worker.
As for now... everyone should enjoy the celebration.
Yupa watched the militiamen head for the castle before turning and disappearing into the deepening dusk.
Night fell, and more and more villagers arrived at the forest.
Since the Erdtree's existence was to be revealed to everyone, the forest was no longer sealed off.
Some villagers unable to contain their curiosity came early and watched from a distance the woodland that had been declared off-limits a few days earlier.
Though the celebration had been decided on at short notice, Gol's efforts ensured that the preparations were anything but sloppy.
In the clearing at the edge of the woods, craftsmen had built a broad, simple wooden platform for speeches during the celebration.
Though simple in design, the podium was very sturdy, built from logs, and its position had been carefully chosen.
From the center of the clearing, the podium appeared to sit directly beneath the Erdtree more than ten meters away, creating a clever visual overlap.
Besides the podium, the clearing held several large stone fire pits that had yet to be lit, with wooden benches neatly arranged around them.
Cast-iron cauldrons sat over the fire pits, their wooden lids tightly shut, leaving everyone to guess what delicacies were inside.
But what drew the most attention was the pile of sacks beside the podium, stacked as high as a small hill. Golden grains of wheat could just be glimpsed through gaps in the bulging sacks.
"So much..."
Several craftsman foremen helping to carry the banquet tableware couldn't help glancing over repeatedly, their throats bobbing involuntarily.
Gol clapped his hands beside them. "All right, stop staring and get to work. Everyone will have their fill tonight!"
Though Beruto had kept him in suspense, Gol believed the stubborn old farmer would never make empty claims.
At the thought, Gol couldn't help looking forward to the banquet himself.
Before long, the fires were lit. Flames climbed upward with the rising heat, driving away the chill and illuminating more and more faces as people gathered.
More than six hundred villagers assembled, their excited conversations rising and falling around the clearing.
At last, they saw the true face of the "divine tree."
From the fires, they could see the mysterious, stately little golden tree in the woods nearby, giving off a gentle glow in the night.
And what drew even more attention than the Erdtree was, naturally, the little mountain of grain.
Word had already spread that the grain, each sack of which could feed a person for a month, would be distributed as a reward to those who had "performed outstandingly"!
What everyone cared about most was whether they would have a share in the commendation and be counted among the so-called "outstanding performers."
This was a novel event unlike anything that had ever happened in the Valley of the Wind's history.
The guards, who had undergone last-minute special training from Mito, all stood up straight as they solemnly maintained order.
They had learned that someone might cause trouble, and to avoid being chewed out by the elders, they stayed on the highest alert, watching for the slightest disturbance.
Soon, the celebration's main participants arrived one after another.
Several elders, along with Master Yupa, the guest of honor, walked up and took their places in front of the podium.
Then, under everyone's gaze, Nausicaä steadily mounted the platform in a sky-blue ceremonial robe bearing her family crest.
The noisy conversations gradually died down.
"Everyone of the Valley of the Wind, we have gathered here today first to celebrate Master Yupa's return from his long travels, and second to celebrate the end of the famine that has troubled us for so long."
Though she spoke calmly, her words drew an immediate burst of cheers from the crowd.
Hunger was one of the most painful things in the world.
Only after living through days when they woke hungry in the middle of the night and could only fill their stomachs with cold water did people truly realize how precious the seemingly basic need for enough food and warm clothing really was.
And now, those days, worse than death itself, were finally over.
"But," Nausicaä said, looking around at everyone, "we must not forget what caused the famine."
Her words brought the cheers to a halt.
"Let us remember: who forced us to watch our loved ones march off to a battlefield that had nothing to do with us? And who forcibly took the grain we worked so hard to grow, driving the Valley of the Wind into a desperate plight?"
"It was not the curse of the Sea of Corruption, nor the betrayal of the land, and still less was it because we failed to work hard."
"The Valley of the Wind's suffering, now and even in the past, has one source, and one source alone."
"The plundering of Tolmekia!"