At Zeke's command to bring out Big Joe, the beastmen exchanged uneasy glances.
As Zeke gripped his Horse-Cleaving Greatsword and slowly advanced, one of them hurriedly dashed inside.
Zeke sheathed his sword and turned toward Helen.
"Sister, are you alright?"
Helen, her face gaunt, managed a smile at Zeke.
"I'm fine. But Zeke, did you come to this dangerous place alone?"
"Due to circumstances, the knight order is remaining in the Autonomous District."
To explain the external situation first, Zeke mentioned how the Imperial Army had sent assassins from the Nostra Family to attack him.
Helen was startled by his words.
"The Nostra Family? Does that mean the Empire has allied with them?"
"Yes, and not only that—they're the ones who unleashed these monsters in the first place."
Hearing Zeke's explanation, Helen clenched her teeth.
"Those Empire bastards... doing something like this..."
"They can brainwash not just monsters, but beastmen and humans alike, using
Awakening Drugs made from soma and Dark Magic."
While Zeke and Helen talked, Zoin tribesmen and beastmen emerged from within the fortress.
Thud!
At the forefront of the Blackwing Tribe, holding a hefty iron club, stood the Song of the Crouched Flame.
Beside him were burly beastmen boasting massive muscles and broad shoulders, with Big Joe—a rat beastman dressed in gentlemanly attire—standing at their front.
Seeing him in person, Zeke was once again struck by how this small, elderly figure had united the rough beastman gangsters into a vast organization.
Big Joe approached slowly, leaning on his cane, and glanced at the tiger beastman assault captain slumped against the gate before he spoke to Zeke.
"Tsk tsk, Sir Zeke Draker. I've heard much about you. If my boy was rude, I'll apologize on his behalf."
Big Joe removed his fedora and bowed his head to Zeke.
From this gesture, Zeke sensed that Big Joe was no pushover.
'His speech was polite, but his voice didn't waver at all. Despite being exhausted, his eyes were sharp.'
It was disadvantageous to make enemies of opponents like this.
Zeke looked at Big Joe and said,
"I've brought a message from Kali Draker." Big Joe's brows furrowed at the words.
"A message from Lady Kali Draker. You've had a hard journey here, Sir Zeke Draker. But in this situation, I wonder what meaning Lady Kali's message could have."
Zeke stepped forward toward Big Joe.
The beastmen behind Big Joe immediately moved to block his path.
Big Joe waved them off.
"Tsk tsk, stand down, lads. Sir Zeke is a gentleman. You should act like gentlemen too."
The Crostel organization members, their beastman eyes gleaming fiercely, stepped back.
Zeke looked at Big Joe and the Song of the Crouched Flame before he spoke.
"If the Zoin Tribe and Crostel form an alliance and formally declare independence for the Ghetto Region, Kali Draker has said she will support that declaration and provide aid."
Big Joe chuckled.
"An intriguing proposal. However... from this old man's perspective, it's hard to accept it positively."
Then, the Song of the Crouched Flame beside him spoke up.
"I don't see the difference between Kali's army and the Empire's peacekeeping forces." Perhaps due to the weeks of isolation, his tone was sharply edged.
Zeke addressed Big Joe and the Song of the Crouched Flame.
"Those monsters outside—they were unleashed by the Empire."
Big Joe's brow twitched at his words, and the Song of the Crouched Flame gripped his club tightly.
Zeke continued.
"You've probably seen the Empire's experiment reports by now. The Empire is experimenting not just on beastmen or humans, but now on monsters too, to control them as they wish. In this situation, will you keep turning against each other?"
Big Joe slowly opened his mouth.
"Hmm, it's not a decision to make lightly. Song of the Crouched Flame, what are your thoughts?"
Big Joe naturally deferred the decision to the Song of the Crouched Flame.
With a piercing gaze, he replied,
"Humans can't be trusted."
The Zoin Tribe, long persecuted in the Ghetto Region, could hardly help harboring deep hatred toward humans.
Zeke looked at the Song of the Crouched Flame and asked,
"What would it take for you to believe me?"
The Song of the Crouched Flame stared at Zeke.
"The only trustworthy human is a dead one. Prove it by stabbing your own gut with your sword and dying."
Helen stepped forward in outrage at his words.
"Song of the Crouched Flame. We've come to this hellish place for your sake. Watch your words."
As Helen spoke threateningly, the other Zoin tribesmen raised their clubs and spread their wings.
Seeing the Blackwing Tribe warriors ready to unleash their war cry at any moment, Zeke waved them down.
"Enough. If we fight here now, it'll only help the Empire."
Zeke opened his inventory and pulled out a crate filled with food.
"When you're hungry, your nerves get sharp, so let's fill our stomachs first and talk." *
Thanks to the food Zeke brought, everyone in the fortress could finally sate their hunger after so long.
But this wouldn't sustain the hundreds inside for long. They needed another way to find provisions.
With monsters everywhere outside, hunting other game was impossible.
'I could absorb the monsters, but others couldn't eat them...' Monster meat was toxic and too tough to serve as food.
Then, something flashed through Zeke's mind.
'Wait, if it was just tough and toxic...'
After pondering, Zeke leaped over the fortress walls to the outside.
He then clubbed a wandering Minotaur with the Giant-Slayer and dragged it back.
The beastmen guarding the fortress gasped as Zeke returned, hauling the Minotaur by its horns.
They opened the gate to let him in.
Thud!
As Zeke dropped the Minotaur in the open space, several beastmen gathered around.
One of them asked Zeke,
"Sir knight, did you catch this to eat?"
"Yes."
The beastmen shook their heads in shock.
"Don't talk nonsense that'll get you in trouble. It looks like beef, but it's all muscle, and the blood's highly toxic—no way to eat it."
They occasionally processed Minotaur horns or hides, but the meat was unusable.
Only barbarians could eat and digest monsters.
Zeke nodded at their words.
"Well, in this state, sure."
He drew Anexiʼs Dagger and skillfully butchered the Minotaur.
He skinned it, deboned it, and cut it into portions.
As Zeke finished, not just beastmen but some Zoin tribesmen came to watch.
The Zoin were far more cynical.
"That foolish human is thrashing about."
Once done, Zeke carefully drew Agamemnonʼs Mask from his bosom and cast Purification on the massive chunks of meat.
Sizzle—
The meat, now free of toxins via Purification, shifted from dark red to vivid crimson.
The beastmen were astonished.
"Huh? That... looks tasty."
"Yeah, low fat but springy—grilled, it'd be tender..."
"How did he do that?"
Beastmen mostly ate meat, so they needed plenty of it.
Trapped here, they were on the verge of withdrawal from lack of fresh meat.
Zeke ignored their murmurs, gathered scattered large stones, and sliced them neatly with Bahamut.
He placed the purified Minotaur meat on the smooth stone slabs.
Raising his hand, he cast Sacred Radiance Technique on the meat.
Whirr!
A warm, pure white light emerged and seeped into the meat.
It softened, sizzling under the Sacred Radiance Technique's glow.
"What is he doing now?"
"He's a knight, right? That looks like magic..."
"What the hell is that?"
Ignoring the growing buzz, Zeke summoned the Purest Flame beneath the slabs to heat them.
With Sacred Radiance Technique above and Purest Flame below, the meat grilled to release an intense aroma impossible with ordinary fire.
Once it seemed done, Zeke cut a piece with his dagger, tasted it, and nodded.
"Not bad."
A wolf beastman, drooling nearby, couldn't hold back and raised his hand, stepping forward.
"S-Sir knight. Can I try a piece?"
The meat looked so appetizing he wanted to taste even Minotaur.
Zeke nodded.
The wolf beastman lunged, sinking his claws into a chunk and tearing into it with his teeth.
After chewing and swallowing, his eyes widened.
"Huh!"
He glanced at Zeke, who nodded, then devoured it ravenously.
The other beastmen were shocked.
"Is he crazy? Hey! That's Minotaur meat!"
"Damn, he's going all in."
The wolf beastman patted his belly happily after finishing the chunk.
"Wow, Sir knight! Best meat I've ever had! Juicy and tender... can I have another?" Zeke grinned.
"Eat your fill. I'll grill more if needed."
The wolf beastman wagged his tail joyfully, gnawing bone and all.
The other beastmen were confused.
'What's going on? It should be toxic and knock him out.'
'Whoa, looks delicious. Maybe just a bite...' Zeke addressed the hesitant beastmen.
"The toxins are removed, so eat without worry."
They hesitated, then grabbed chunks and nibbled cautiously.
"Huh?"
"Oh!?"
"My god..."
The beastmen froze, then tore into the meat like they'd coordinated.
"Hey! You already ate two!"
"You bastard! That's mine!"
Half the Minotaur vanished in moments.
The beastmen lounged contentedly, rubbing full bellies.
"Ahhh, so good."
"I could die happy now."
Helen and the Iron Knight Order knights watched in bewilderment. Happy over monster meat?
Then Zeke approached them with something.
"You've probably not eaten properly for a while, so soup might be better for a few meals."
Zeke distributed soup made with Minotaur meat to Helen and the knights.
Chunky meat and fresh vegetables made it appetizing.
The knights lost appetite knowing it contained Minotaur meat. Beastmen might handle it, but humans were different.
As they hesitated, Helen took a bowl and spoon.
The knights tried to stop her.
"C-Captain! They're beastmen, so it's fine for them! Humans eating monster meat is dangerous!"
Helen brushed them off and scooped up a large piece, eating it.
Her eyes widened as she chewed slowly.
"It's delicious."
She began devouring the soup voraciously.
The knights panicked.
"Captain? A-Are you okay?"
Helen finished her bowl swiftly.
The knights eyed their bowls and her alternately.
They swallowed, then tentatively tried a spoonful.
Their eyes lit up at the flavor.
"How is it this good?"
"It's like the fancy soups in Atlas!"
The knights polished off their bowls like Helen.
Zeke smiled and started grilling the rest.
Then—
Thud!
The Song of the Crouched Flame approached Zeke with a sharp gaze as he grilled.
Looking at Zeke, the Song of the Crouched Flame said,
"What the hell are you doing, human?"