[Anh_Minh]

Fact: there are plenty of roads, and inns, and at least some cities, which means traders and travellers.

Spoiler for Volume 12:

Fact: it's been remarked by Raphaela that there are yomas in the wilderness, and that they're a hazard.

(I don't remember, has it been mentioned before that? If so, maybe this could all be taken out of spoiler tag...)


Conclusion: there are two types of yomas. One is the one Claymores are hired against. They're smart, can take the shape and the memories of the people they eat, and are nigh unstoppable by normal humans. The other type isn't nearly as bad. It probably lacks the impersonating abilities of the former, and while they remain dangerous man-eaters, they can be defeated by human beings. It may take several armed men and people have to travel in groups, but it can be done.

Reasoning: if they were all of the first type, traveling would be practically impossible, or maybe the wilderness yoma would be so rare they wouldn't be worth mentioning. I mean, as long as you stay in your village, you can hope the yomas will eat your neighbours instead of you, while waiting for the Claymore to arrive. But if you're lost in the middle of a nowhere, everybody in the group could be taken by a few yomas who decide to gorge, and there's not a damn thing you can do about it. You'll just never get to your destination. And even if you only lose a few people at each trip, helpless to prevent passing yomas from grabbing a snack, let's say you have a 1/20 chance of getting eaten at each trip to the nearest city... Those aren't good odds. You've got a roughly 60% probability of dying before your tenth round-trip. Also, nobody would welcome your group for fear of you bringing a yoma impostor in you midst.

Speculation: the term "yoma" may cover several related species. Or the two types may be one species at different points in their life-cycle. Maybe once one of the second type has eaten enough people and absorbed their intelligence, he becomes of the first type and may decide to set up shop in a populated area as a fake human.