Chapter 115

They decided to keep the Usuk corpses directly at the Academy.

Maybe because of the existence of the Chaos Forest, there’s a giant freezer specifically for maintaining the freshness of the materials.

However, disassembly and breakdown were mandatory, so the butchers gathered to carry it out. By the way, there were also Non-Combat Class students present.

Usuk is such a rare monster that it’s perfect for research and practical use. Thanks to that, it made things easier.

“I haven’t dealt with Usuk in a while… Let’s just give it a go. Who’s the owner of the one we caught?”

“Me. No, it’s me.”

“Please provide your name. Since it’s top-tier material, be sure to bring this paper when you come to collect it yourself. No proxies allowed.”

I didn’t even personally handle the butchering of the young ones; I left it to the professionals. No matter how capable I am, it’s tough to fully disassemble something without specialized knowledge.

Moreover, butchers are quite a privileged profession in this world. It’s hard to understate their importance due to the existence of monsters.

You can kill a monster and butcher it right away, but it’s generally better to leave it to the pros if you can.

In fact, there’s even a major specifically for butchering in the Academy’s Non-Combat Class.

Butchers are naturally going to get specialized because their job is closely related to “knives.”

“It shouldn’t take long since it’s a young one. If all goes well, you could pick it up just in time for lunch. Will you come then?”

“Yeah.”

“Understood. Looks like I’ll be putting in some effort after a while.”

Maybe it was an unexpected harvest, but the butcher smiled broadly. We agreed to settle the payment separately.

In the future, when Kara holds an auction, a lot of money will come rolling in. Until then, I can just enjoy cooking.

While all this was going on, the Academy was bustling because of the Usuk.

“Sivar student?”

“Yeah?”

A familiar voice reached my ears. When I turned my head, a squinty-eyed guy was looking at me.

It was Godin. As soon as I turned, Godin spoke up.

“The principal has called for you. Luna and Eli are also being summoned.”

“Me too?”

“Yes.”

At that moment, Luna, who had been wandering beside me, was also called. She widened her eyes at the news of her summons.

If I were going alone, I would’ve just brushed it off, but since she was called too, it must’ve been confusing for her.

However, since it was Rod’s summons, I had no intention of refusing. Besides, I didn’t have anything else to do.

They said the Usuk butchering would wrap up around lunchtime today, so I figured I could enjoy a delicious meal by dinner.

“Seems like it’s about what happened earlier today. Let’s go for now.”

“Umm… Okay. Professor Godin, didn’t you call Kara?”

“No, just you two were summoned.”

I had no idea why Kara wasn’t called. Maybe it was just the students who had entered the Inside the Chaos Forest.

Just before I took a step, I sought permission from Grace directly. I felt sorry that I keep falling away from my escort duties too often.

“It’s a call from the principal, so there’s no avoiding it. But you have to let me know what was said, okay?”

“Sure.”

She subtly revealed her shrewdness in asking for information. I figured I could trust Grace well enough, so it was fine.

Then we headed to the principal’s office. On our way there, Luna kept glancing back at the Usuk.

It seemed she had something to say about the Usuk.

“Luna.”

“Uh, yeah?”

“Do you have something to say?”

So I asked without holding back. The Usuk was all mine, so it was fine to ask.

Luna looked hesitant about saying something when I pointed to the Usuk. She had an expression that asked if it was okay to talk about it.

“Uh… Sivar?”

“Yeah.”

“I know it might sound conscience-less, but…”

As she hesitated, Luna struggled to open her mouth. She glanced at the Usuk and gave an embarrassing smile.

Then, she asked with the nuance of being embarrassed.

“You know the blade teeth I gave to Kara?”

“Yeah.”

“If you have some left over, can I get a tiny bit too?”

Now I understood why it could sound conscience-less. I thought that to myself.

She probably felt a bit greedy after seeing me give Kara the blade teeth. It’s a cute request, in a way.

If it were someone else, it might have felt like she was being greedy. But Luna’s desire was of a different kind.

“Why do you want the blade teeth? Are you planning to make a weapon?”

“Yeah.”

“You’ve already got a pretty good weapon you brought from the village. Did it break or something?”

Eli raised a question regarding Luna’s desire for the blade teeth.

As Eli pointed out, Luna currently possessed a sword of reasonably excellent quality. It’s a sword quite useful up until the middle of the story.

“That’s not it… I just want to get one for myself. Honestly, it seems kinda cool.”

“So you want to make one just because the materials are awesome?”

“Embarrassingly accurate.”

Luna simply found the blade teeth cool and made that request. Rather than trading it for money, she was focused solely on weaponry.

Perhaps she identified the value of the blade teeth through her “eyes.” Still, she chose equipment over money.

“No.”

Of course, that’s a no-go. I firmly rejected her.

Maybe Luna expected my refusal because she let out a sigh. However, she didn’t completely give up.

“Ugh… Really not allowed? You gave it to Kara as a gift, though…”

“Kara is strong, and you’re weak.”

“…Too harsh.”

When I hit her with the facts, she quickly backed down. Luna pouted her lips and sulked.

But this is just how it is. The blade teeth hadn’t been processed at all, but they’d make a mess of my hands.

If I made a sword or axe with that, it would yield an outrageous masterpiece. It would be useful even into the mid-late game.

“Instead, if you get stronger, I’ll give you one.”

“If I get stronger, you’ll give it to me?”

“Yep.”

“How strong do I need to be?”

“As strong as Kara.”

I can part with it if she gets as strong as Kara, no more, no less. It might take a while, though.

Still, it must have served as enough motivation, as Luna nodded seriously.

It’s a bit funny that one weapon could serve as motivation, but she seemed serious enough for me to let it slide.

“Okay, so I just need to get strong like Kara?”

“Right.”

“I’ll try. No, I will.”

By the time I would give her the blade teeth, the materials would still be available. The meat would be gone after being eaten, though.

Afterward, we walked the rest of the way, chatting about various things, heading to the principal’s office. Not the main hall, but the place I stayed previously.

“Come in. I think today has been quite a wonderful day.”

As soon as we arrived at the principal’s office, Rod welcomed us with broad shoulders. Smoke wafted from the teacup he was holding.

He then showed us a place to sit. It was a table that was familiar enough.

“I heard the news. You defeated the Usuk, right?”

“It was Sivar who did it alone, not me.”

As expected, the topic was about the Usuk. Strictly speaking, it’s because of the appearance of a high-level monster like the Usuk.

Ogres are treated as mid-level monsters, but Usuk is undeniably high-level. Although it’s a non-aggressive monster, the danger is still significant.

“I’ve heard the dismantling work on the Usuk is going smoothly… Do you know why I called you here?”

“Sorry, but I’m not really sure.”

“I’m not sure either.”

I genuinely didn’t know. The sudden reason Rod called us here.

After hearing our responses, Rod took a sip of his tea and continued in a serious tone.

“Because you all are the first students to meet Sivar and Ratatosk. By the way, speaking of Ratatosk, do you know where he is?”

“…”

When Rod asked about Porori’s location, Eli found herself smiling awkwardly. Luna looked no different.

But we couldn’t not say anything. Eli explained everything.

“Hmm. That’s unfortunate. But as unrelated as it may be, you should carry out an STD check.”

“Can animals get STD checks?”

“Not impossible. Why else would there be a veterinarian in the Academy?”

Without warning, Porori was going to have to undergo an STD check. I struggled to hold back my laughter.

Porori joked about it, but a tragedy amidst tragedy had occurred. If I laughed, it would be disrespectful as a fellow animal.

“Anyway, I need to ask you something. How did you find it when you entered the Inside the Chaos Forest? Was it noisier than now?”

Rod moved on to the core matter right after Porori. He first focused on the changes within the Chaos Forest.

In response to his question, Eli promptly pouted her cheeks with her fingers before she answered.

“It wasn’t noisy. If it weren’t for Sivar, I would’ve been killed by the Manki… Other than that, it was surprisingly quiet, right?”

“Elisa’s right. It was a surprisingly quiet place.”

It’s just how forests naturally are. They can be calm but suddenly thrown into chaos.

Being a forest, the Chaos Forest was largely quiet, too. There weren’t all sorts of monsters swarming like now.

“That’s so. In fact, it’s likely that the inner issues would improve as time passes. The real problem is the monsters driven outside and those flowing in from outside.”

“Won’t the outside slowly stabilize too?”

Rod shook his head at Eli’s question. It seemed he didn’t think that way.

“I initially thought so too. But after hearing that Usuk had infiltrated, my perspective changed. What fell was not the ‘balance’ but the ‘boundaries.'”

“The boundaries fell, you say…?”

“From now on, monsters from outside will begin to infiltrate. If those monsters fail in the internal competition, they will dwell in the outskirts. If that happens, another territory will naturally form, and it could become excellent prey for the monsters from outside.”

I think I understood what Rod was saying. To put it simply, he meant that the outskirts are starting to become like the inside.

Up until now, the Chaos Forest had clear boundaries between the outskirts and the inside. Inside resided strong monsters, while the outside was home to weaker ones or beasts.

But as Porori and I disappeared simultaneously, the internal competition for the food chain became intense, and the defeated monsters were naturally pushed to the outskirts.

Even just being pushed to the outskirts is troublesome, but there’s an even bigger problem. It’s the influx of monsters like Usuk, which take that as their prey.

Not only Usuk, but there were also Ogres reportedly coming from the north. Those that were halved by Usuk, after all.

“As you know, the Chaos Forest touches on all environments except the desert. It’s naturally quite favorable for outside entities to flow in.”

“Until now, there haven’t been many external entities flowing in, right?”

“That was because the outskirts and the inside had been nearly disconnected. But that’s not the case now. The boundaries between the external and internal have blurred, leading to an influx of outside entities.”

Like I mentioned earlier, the boundaries between deep within the Chaos Forest and its outskirts were quite clear. Outside entities probably wouldn’t have felt any interest in just the beings in the outskirts.

The entities that unwittingly stumbled into the interior were particularly strong. They must have instinctively been drawn to the magic power.

However, now the boundaries between the inside and outside are becoming vague, and outside monsters are naturally flowing in.

“If this happens repeatedly, it could pose a serious threat not only to the outskirts but also to the Academy. While I’m currently in a wait-and-see position, the situation could escalate beyond control.”

“The Academy may be at risk too.”

Luna pinpointed the essence, and Rod nodded in agreement. That’s the most crucial part.

If the outskirts turn into the inside, that would be catastrophic. Imagine if entities like Usuk were stationed everywhere.

Students and even the professors wouldn’t be able to handle it. It might get better if Rod intervenes, but even his body is one.

“As strong as humans are, they are powerless against strong nature. We need to take action now to guarantee the safety of the Academy.”

“So, what you’re saying is that we need Sivar and Ratatosk…”

“We’ll ask them to create a ‘territory’ in the outskirts of the Chaos Forest.”

So that’s why Rod asked about Porori’s location. I think I finally get the gist of Rod’s plan.

If the boundaries have fallen, then we need to create those boundaries back. It’s a simple, yet very effective method.

Porori and I were once predators dividing the Inside the Chaos Forest. Naturally, we were always marking our territory.

“Those who ignored that and came in were all devoured.”

In the wild, territorial encroachment is a life-or-death ‘challenge.’ If you succeed, you claim the territory all for yourself; if you fail, it results in death.

Back when I was weak, I hid away from Porori’s line of sight. Gradually, as I grew stronger, I’d begun marking my territory.

Would other predators mark their territory besides us? I smashed them with my stone axe, while Porori crushed their sternum with the Cheolsan-go.

The cycle of that continued, and eventually Porori and I ended up dividing the territories.

“If we create a territory, the outskirts will become safer, and the boundaries will be clear again. In the process, any encroaching predators can simply be removed. What do you think?”

“I’ll do it. No, I will!”

I eagerly accepted since this was not a problem I could simply sit back and watch. Porori would likely agree as well.

If this happens, the influx of outside monsters should decrease. The internal monsters defeated in competition will be dealt with directly.

Rod seemed pleased with my straightforward response, smiling widely. Apparently, he had been troubled over this issue.

“Thank you. Is there anything you might need? If there is, I’ll provide any kind of support.”

“Feed me.”

“Haha. Still the same, I see.”

Rod laughed heartily. He seemed to have taken it as a joke.

But to make a solid territorial marking, I need to eat more meals. This leads to a question.

“Then, Sivar, how do you plan on marking the territory? Do you have a method in mind?”

At just the right moment, Eli asked a timely question. Rod and Luna also looked curious.

Even with their attention focused on me, I calmly responded in my usual tone.

“By doing my business.”

“…Huh?”

Humans mark their territories through borders. But beasts do it differently.

They might rub their bodies against trees, leave behind scent or fur, or relieve themselves—so many ways to do it.

Among these, the most definitive way is to leave droppings. I preferred to use that method when marking my territory.

“It’s a clear mark. No one can trespass.”

“Ah, I see. That method is indeed very legitimate.”

“…Most beasts do use that method.”

Everyone had a slightly perplexed expression at my response. It’s only natural, considering it was probably something none of them had anticipated.

Except for one person, Luna. She seemed horrified at first, but then she appeared to contemplate something intently.

“…Sivar.”

“Yeah?”

“That thing I stepped on back then… wasn’t it…?”

After thinking it over, she asked her question. It seemed she suddenly recalled the traces of my territorial mark she stepped on.

Back then, I had ignored it, but… well, yes. That was indeed my mark. I just couldn’t bring myself to admit it.

“What?”

I feigned ignorance with a quizzical look.

After hearing my reply, Luna further elaborated on her immediate circumstances.

“Uh… That thing I stepped on when I first met you. Could it be your mark?”

Yeah. That was indeed my mark. You simply had the worst luck.

I had the words in my throat but forced myself to swallow them. I felt so bad for Luna that I couldn’t bear to lie.

“…I have no idea?”

I’ve decided that this would be a secret to take to the grave. Otherwise, I might sincerely feel guilty and end up agreeing to anything she asked for.

Fortunately, Luna didn’t pry any further. Instead, her expression seemed unsettled, as if suspicion lingered.

“I’ll have to give you a blade tooth sword later.”

That became the first debt of the heart.

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