Chapter 143

It was not a good idea to leave the door of a heated greenhouse open for too long.

In that sense, it would be inappropriate for Woojin’s group to keep wandering in and out of the naga tribe’s hatchery. After finishing their tour tactfully, they hurried on their way.

Cindy suddenly murmured,

“That’s a little sad.”

“Why all of a sudden?”

“Well…”

Cindy hesitated while trying to explain. She had spoken without much thought, but everyone’s attention had suddenly turned toward her.

Veshkan was also quietly watching her. His gaze made Cindy slightly nervous.

“Ah, it’s nothing.”

She tried to brush it off as if to smooth things over. Veshkan encouraged her.

“I won’t reproach you, so speak. What were you trying to say?”

“…Well…”

Cindy continued cautiously.

“Those eggs in the hatchery… it made me sad that they have to be separated from their parents before they’re even born.”

The naga tribe had no concept of family bonds.

Men and women mated when necessary, and the eggs produced that way were taken to the greenhouse to hatch. The mother was not even allowed to hold the child once.

The boys endured harsh training to become warriors, while the girls either became attendants or mothers who produced more eggs. It was an extremely mechanical society.

Cindy had thought this cold system was sad and had muttered it unconsciously.

But she suddenly worried that such a comment might insult the naga tribe, so she seemed uneasy under Veshkan’s gaze.

“I’m sorry for saying something unnecessary.”

Cindy apologized timidly. Veshkan replied as if it were nothing.

“It’s fine. It wouldn’t be strange for you to think that way. The path we have chosen does not appear beautiful.”

But it had been unavoidable.

“It is not a situation where we can pursue individual happiness. Compared to other tribes, the naga’s physical abilities are rather weak.”

To survive in the harsh and dangerous demonic realm, efficiency had to be pursued.

It was common for a species to disappear in the demonic realm. One could not afford even a moment of carelessness. When a great wave of danger arrived, everything could be lost.

Of course, aside from that…

“…If our tribe’s lives could become more prosperous, that would certainly be welcome.”

Veshkan muttered almost to himself.

Cindy quickly grasped the meaning.

That had been a request of sorts.

Through maritime trade, the naga king hoped his people could live better lives—just as the gnoll tribe had prospered by adopting human civilization.

That’s why he showed us the hatchery and other city facilities.

See the naga tribe’s culture and way of life, and then bring trade goods that could improve it.

The naga king had expressed his thoughts indirectly. To meet that request, Cindy carefully observed the city with full concentration.

Watching her, Woojin smiled and quietly spoke so that only Veshkan could hear.

“What do you think? Looks like I brought the right person.”

“I cannot deny that.”

That clever girl would make the land of serpents more comfortable and prosperous—just as her father had once led the development of a frontier city.

***

After touring the naga city once, Woojin’s group rested comfortably in the palace.

Each spent their time in their own way.

Claire, apparently bored, went to torment Veshkan with another game of chess, while Arwen played with Coco by waving around a tuft of fur she had found somewhere.

Only Cindy seemed deeply troubled.

“Oppa, what do you think the naga tribe would like?”

“Hmm…”

Woojin fell into thought as well after being asked for advice. What kind of goods would be best for trade?

The first thing that came to mind was…

“…How about bringing iron tools?”

Metal was essentially the domain of humans.

The native inhabitants of the demonic realm possessed impressive craftsmanship, but they did not know how to forge metals such as iron or copper.

As a result, gnolls and nagas made tools from the bones and hides of magical beasts. Those tools worked reasonably well, but they could hardly match the advantages of iron tools.

After hearing the explanation, Cindy nodded repeatedly. She seemed to think it was a good idea.

“Now that I think about it… earlier I saw the warriors grilling fish on stone slabs. If we brought things like frying pans, they’d probably like them.”

Where should they place the order?

Now that she had something to think about, Cindy sat at her desk and began scribbling rapidly with a quill pen, busy planning the details.

Not wanting to interrupt her concentration, Woojin quietly stepped outside.

What should I do?

He didn’t think long.

It’s been a long time since I came to the demonic realm. Might as well go hunt some magical beasts.

Time to return to his main occupation.

With that decision, Woojin headed toward the naga king’s audience chamber.

As usual, Veshkan was sitting in front of the chessboard, deep in thought. When the naga king carefully moved a piece, Claire—sitting across from him—responded immediately.

“Check.”

Veshkan crossed his arms and pondered for a long time again. Seeing this, Woojin said casually,

“Lost again?”

“I haven’t lost yet.”

“Looks like a matter of time.”

Veshkan growled irritably.

“Why are you suddenly being so annoying?”

“It’s nothing serious. Just wondering if there’s any prey worth hunting nearby. I’ll take care of a few for you.”

It was much easier to hunt with information than to blindly search the surrounding region.

Veshkan thought for a moment before speaking.

“There is one creature that’s been bothering me… but it would be difficult to hunt it just for fun.”

“What kind of creature?”

“A magical beast from the deep regions. It’s intelligent and can fly, making it troublesome to capture.”

A cunning and powerful beast.

It kept preying on the naga tribe’s livestock, so Veshkan had personally gone out to hunt it. But each time, sensing the presence of a strong opponent, the clever creature escaped a moment before he could catch it.

Hearing that, Woojin grew curious. It wasn’t common for Veshkan to fail at hunting.

“I should take a look at what kind of creature it is.”

At that, Veshkan gestured to one of the naga warriors standing nearby.

“You will guide him.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The naga warrior stepped forward toward the door. Seeing this, Woojin asked,

“So I just follow him?”

“That’s right.”

Veshkan answered casually and waved his hand as if shooing away a fly—probably telling him to leave quickly so he wouldn’t interfere with the chess game.

As Woojin walked toward the door, he suddenly heard Claire’s voice.

“Checkmate.”

“…Couldn’t you take it back just once?”

“This is already the third time.”

“……”

After gathering several items for the hunt, Woojin followed the naga warrior who was leading the way.

Before long, the forest unique to the eastern region spread out before his eyes. The humid scent of water and tangled thickets of trees greeted Woojin.

“I’ll go alone from here.”

It was easier to hunt alone, so he decided to send the guide back.

The naga warrior expressed concern.

“Are you sure that’s alright? From here on, there are many dangerous magical beasts. Some of them live in groups.”

“It’s fine. You can head back now.”

“…Understood.”

The naga warrior did not insist a second time. After bowing respectfully toward him, he quickly slithered back the way he had come.

Woojin walked into the jungle alone.

It felt refreshing to go hunting again after so long… but the excitement didn’t last very long.

…I still don’t like the eastern region.

The terrain was too harsh.

The waterlogged ground was muddy, and every step sank down to his ankles. It felt like walking through a swamp.

The vines constantly blocking his path were another problem. They were covered with black spots like overripe bananas. Woojin sliced through them with the machete in his hand.

Slash!

Green liquid poured from the cut vine. When the liquid touched the back of his hand, his skin quickly became rough.

Poison.

Just great.

Woojin shook his hand in annoyance. His mood for hunting was already fading.

The jungles of the eastern region were notoriously difficult terrain. That was why the Church Alliance avoided entering this area and instead focused on developing the western wastelands—the territory of the gnoll tribe.

Let’s just push forward.

It was annoying, but not unbearable. Woojin walked deeper into the jungle.

He struggled through swamps that clung to his ankles, steadily making his way forward… when suddenly he heard a strange whistling sound in the air.

He raised his hand reflexively.

Thump.

He caught something flying toward his head. Woojin immediately checked what he had caught.

It was a sharp spike carved from a wrist bone. The tip of the bone shard had been coated with green poison.

Thud, thud—!

The strange wind-like sound echoed repeatedly. Sensing danger, Woojin dashed forward.

Thwack! Thwack!

Poison darts flying from somewhere struck the ground in clusters. They kept pouring in, almost as if they were tracking Woojin’s footsteps.

He quickly hid behind a nearby tree. Once safe, he looked toward where the darts had come from.

A group of monkeys sat on the branches.

They were holding tube-like objects that resembled flutes. One of the monkeys put the tube to its mouth and blew into it with force.

Whoosh!

Woojin instinctively leaned his head back. The dart that flew in a moment later passed exactly through the spot where his head had just been.

A blowpipe.

Also known as a blowgun. A primitive hunting tool where poisoned darts were placed inside a hollow bamboo tube and shot out by blowing air through it.

It was a very primitive weapon… but its power wasn’t something to ignore. The monkey-type magical beasts had powerful lungs, so the darts shot out almost like bullets.

“Kee-kee! Kiki-kiki!”

With unpleasant laughter, the surrounding branches shook wildly.

The monkeys moved busily through the trees, surrounding the area. At the same time, heavy footsteps sounded from the ground as large magical beasts approached.

Black-furred gorilla monsters, their fur as dark as ink.

The appearance was familiar.

Bigfoot.

They were the same gorilla-type magical beasts he had hunted together with Roland when they purified a rift core before.

There were five of them.

Strangely enough, these primate-like magical beasts seemed to cooperate while hunting their prey. The monkeys provided fire support with their blowpipes, while the powerful gorilla beasts handled close combat.

Feels like watching Planet of the Apes.

The situation was a bit amusing when he thought of it that way, but things quickly became troublesome.

How should he deal with them?

Burning them with a firestorm wasn’t ideal. The recoil was strong and it would make a loud noise. If he wasn’t careful, the real prey he was searching for might escape.

I’ll just beat them to death.

With that thought, Woojin stood up.

He expected poison darts to come flying from every direction… but strangely, the monkeys did not fire their blowpipes.

Instead, they began cheering.

“Oo! Oo! Oo! Oo!”

The monkeys sitting on the branches shouted together. Some of them even began banging hard fruits with bones like drums.

Thump! Tak-tak, thump! Tak-tak…

A lively rhythm.

Then one of the large Bigfoot beasts stepped forward, roaring loudly.

A human and a gorilla standing face to face.

And spectators surrounding them as if watching a show.

Woojin finally realized what was happening and smirked.

These bastards… they’ve opened an arena.

More precisely, it was an execution.

Just like a cat playing with a mouse before killing it, the intelligent monkey beasts had surrounded their prey and intended to enjoy themselves first.

From Woojin’s perspective, it wasn’t a bad thing either.

After all, this kind of situation was a first for him.