Chapter 73

“……After that, I submitted to the Dragon King. As per Irolwel’s last wish.”

The Langwang’s story came to an end. It was quite a decent comedy and thriller. A comedy without a jester, a tragedy without a villain. My one-line review of Langwang’s past.

“Their retaliation… didn’t happen?”

“Monsters aren’t stupid. Well, most of them are dumber than humans, but when it comes to profit and loss, they’re smarter than anyone. They were already weakened; there was no reason for them to antagonize someone they didn’t have to.”

“Hmm.”

“I never wanted to be king. All I wanted was to stay with Irolwel. The reason I opposed her advice and created this confrontation wasn’t to rival the Dragon King or the throne but because I wanted to throw a tantrum since Irolwel rejected my love.”

“And then?”

“…If only I hadn’t insisted on the throne in the first place, everyone could’ve been happy. Whether ruled by the Dragon King or me, it wouldn’t make much difference to the beasts. Fewer animals would’ve died. Irolwel knew this fact. That’s why she called it ‘a meaningless revenge.’ Now, I understand.”

Well, I think differently.

Langwang Yohan isn’t wrong. In his story, it seemed clear to me too that he cared more about sharing a meal with Irolwel than sitting on some western throne.

Had he truly become king, Langwang would’ve never been happy, and it would’ve just led to tragedy.

But I see another reason. The reason why Irolwel stopped Yohan’s revenge even at the cost of her horrific death.

Dragon King Endros.

A dragon so ancient that even the representative dragon lords of a generation pay him respect—truly the progenitor of all dragons.

When a confrontational stance arose between Langwang and Dragon King, old monsters sided with the Dragon King, while new ones took Langwang’s side. Why? Not because either had ever done anything special for them.

People and monsters alike tend to blindly believe what they’ve seen and heard. New-generation monsters only experienced Langwang’s power. Plus, before she grew weak, they thought Irolwel was also on Langwang’s side, so naturally, they believed Langwang was stronger than the Dragon King.

Why? Because Langwang was the strongest being they’d ever encountered.

However, old monsters who had lived hundreds or thousands of years and survived the era of the Five Kings knew better.

Five Kings.

Dragon King Endros, whose single breath can redraw the map of the Demon Realm.

Horus, the Eagle King, whose brown wings can cover the entire sky of the Demon Forest when spread.

Arachne, the Spider Queen, who weaves webs that not even gods can sever, cutting through space and time.

Jormungandr, the Serpent King, who can stretch his body to encircle an entire continent and bite his own tail.

Kraken, the Fish King, who found the rivers of the Demon Forest too narrow and moved to the seas of the continent.

For tens of millions of years, as hundreds of Demon Kings and thousands of heroes changed, these five kings remained unchanging rulers. They were practically untouchable, even for Demon Kings.

Of course… the Demon King Canos of this generation is an exception. No matter how absolute or strong, if Canos harbors true malice, everyone dies. He wasn’t lying when he proclaimed himself “the god of gods” during his visit to Tartarus.

Anyway, the point is, no matter how much of a tantrum Langwang threw back then, he wouldn’t have beaten the Dragon King. Irolwel, well-versed in history, must have known this.

Of course, two hundred years from now, Langwang will team up with the great wizard Merlin Gregory to kill the Dragon King. That’s a historical fact.

Still, there’s something important not to overlook.

Merlin Gregory is an unparalleled wizard, unmatched before or after.

At that time, Merlin Gregory was part of the Hero Party.

In other words, it was a raid: the Dragon King Endros versus the entire Hero Party, plus Langwang, an absolute powerhouse.

The only ones who survived and became famous in later generations were Merlin Gregory and Langwang. The strongest hero, saint, grand knight, and elven archer of that generation—all dead, thanks to Dragon King Endros alone.

Old monsters knew the strength of the Dragon King. Hence, they tried to stop young hotheads from raising a new banner against the awakened Dragon King.

Even during the conflict period, while monsters were fiercely battling each other, the Dragon King was merely sleeping. Actually, the ones fighting Langwang were the Dragon King’s subordinates, not the Dragon King himself.

Old monsters feared that if the Dragon King woke up, the new generation might provoke him, turning the west of the Demon Forest into a sea of fire. So, they formed their own factions.

And Irolwel…

Unaware that her death was predetermined, driven by mere youthful pride, Langwang charged ahead, while Irolwel, the wise seer, watched knowingly.

Knowing the ending, Irolwel told Langwang to stop his revenge. As Langwang himself admitted earlier, if only Langwang hadn’t antagonized others, the monsters of the Demon Forest wouldn’t have needed to form factions and fight among themselves. Things would’ve continued as usual, with the law of the jungle.

But Langwang couldn’t, and ultimately, Irolwel sacrificed her life to break Langwang free from his vengeful cycle. Essentially, she saved Langwang’s life.

“Afterward… I lived quietly. Occasionally, those bomb beetles come running toward this hut, but blowing them away solves everything. It’s a bit annoying. And I regret not listening to Irolwel sooner.”

Langwang doesn’t know these facts, though. There’s no need to tell him. If he realized he killed Irolwel, things would get messy.

“Hooh… What a beautiful tale. Truly a holy child.”

“Bark bark, Skaface. My friend. Langwang who is kind to wolves is a good human.”

“Holy Saintess Irolwel… I should have been a Holy Knight like her…”

“Tsk tsk, lower your voice. Especially you, King of Wolves. Do you want Langwang to discover we’re here by barking like that?”

“Bark bark? Bark bark bark! Am I embarrassed?”

“Ah, Aru! Lower your voice! How can you be so loud!”

“Tch, after hearing such a righteous human’s story, why am I surrounded by such fools? It’s maddening.”

Outside the walls of the hut, murmurs could be heard. Despite my repeated warnings to keep quiet, our trio of assistants was truly…

Oh right, one of them isn’t really an assistant but a bug eater. These useless fellows.

Do they actually believe the walls of the hut provide soundproofing? If so, how did they hear Langwang’s story in the first place, you dumbasses?

“Beatrix… Are you aware your voice is the loudest right now?”

“Hem, anyway, Aru hasn’t been hiding his presence, so Langwang must have noticed us all. Is he not the Langwang for nothing?”

“Bark.”

Sigh, fine. I’ll lower my expectations.

We have a wingless angel, a wolf with the intelligence of a wolf, and a fallen paladin. How did such troublemakers gather together? At this point, I’m starting to question my judgment for picking them as companions.

As I held my head in pain from the noise outside, Langwang pointed behind him with his thumb and asked,

“Companions?”

“Yes, if you call them that, they are.”

Langwang smiled faintly, his scruffy beard wiggling.

“Companions… good. Cool.”

“Is it? I don’t find it very good.”

“You don’t realize their value until they’re gone. Then you feel lonely and sad.”

I don’t feel lonely now that they’re gone in this life, but Langwang’s melancholic tone makes it hard to refute. Is he going through a midlife crisis?

“One of them… is a wolf?”

“Yes, the mighty Wolf King. Who’s currently just a poopy dog.”

“Bark? I’m not a dog! Much less a poopy dog!”

Pointing at Aru’s silhouette, Langwang spoke. Hearing it, Aru instantly teleported from the back of the hut to the front, pushing the wooden door open and stepping inside.

Langwang gazed deeply at Aru.

“Wolves… good creatures…”

Now that I think about it, Langwang once had a connection with wolves too—Skaface. We share a commonality, but I don’t know how to use it.

“Earlier… didn’t you mention the Moonlit Wolf Association? Isn’t it called the Wolf King’s Guild?”

“Ah, that? That was just a lie. Since you have no intention of revenge anyway, there’s no need to deceive you further.”

“A lie? Hmm, didn’t expect that.”

My revelation of truth only slightly surprised Langwang, showing no hint of regret. He truly has no intention of revenge. After all, anyone who goes through such experiences and doesn’t develop trauma over revenge probably has some mental issues.

Thinking about how Langwang teams up with Merlin Gregory 200 years later to defeat the Dragon King, I mistakenly assumed he harbored revenge and started planning based on that. So how did Merlin Gregory manipulate Langwang? More questions arise.

Still, after just a few hours of conversation, his language skills have improved significantly. Indeed, this is the human king of all beings. Now I understand how Saint Irolwel managed to bring Langwang to a conversational level within just a few months.

“Grrr… Cancel it! Cancel! I’m not a dog!”

“Hey man, there’s a time and place for everything. What’s a puppy doing interrupting adult conversations…”

“Nom-nom…”

“Aah! Cancel, cancel! Aru is a wolf!”

“Grrr, Bark! That’s why you tease me…! I’ll get punished…”

“Oi, the crazy wolf is disciplining its master. I’m so heartbroken…”

“Woof, the wolf seems a little aggressive. But wolves are still good creatures.”

Wow, calling Aru a good creature. Never thought I’d hear that. From that traitorous poopy dog.

There’s a lot I want to say, but I’ll hold back for now. Once I recruit Langwang as an assistant, I can badmouth Aru all I want. Whether it works with a barbarian is uncertain, but maybe I’ll be the first demon to successfully gossip with a barbarian. Anything first is good, so I should celebrate.

“By the way, why did you lie?”

Langwang asks while poking Aru’s forehead with his thick finger, eyes wide open.

“The guild thing?”

“That’s right. Was there a reason to lie?”

“It was an excuse to recruit you as a companion. Though it failed now.”

“Companion?”

“Grrr, stop it…”

“Companion…”

Poke, poke…

“Grrrr… One more poke, and I’ll…”

Poke…

“RRAAAAWWR!”

Finally, Aru snaps. With his mouth wide open, Aru lunges forward, sharp fangs ready, biting down on Langwang’s finger. Damn, trying to recruit Langwang was hard enough, and now he gets bitten too…

“KYAAAH! KYAAAAH! KYAAHHH!”

Wait, what?

“KYAAAHHH! KYAAH! KYIIIIIING, KYIIIING, KYYYYYYYIIING…”

Instead of retaliating, Aru clutches his own mouth with both hands and runs around frantically. Backing off here, retreating there, Aru eventually hides behind me, tears streaming down his face. What happened?

“KYIIIING… KYIIIING… Boss… That’s weird… KYIIIING…”

Calling me boss only when it suits him, this damn wolf son of a gun.

As Aru trembles, pointing at Langwang’s finger, I focus more carefully and notice there’s not a single scratch on it.

Ah, so he tried to intimidate by biting but ended up hurting his own teeth on something unexpectedly hard?

Confirming my guess, Aru opens his mouth and starts touching his own teeth. One of Aru’s front teeth is wobbling precariously.

I burst out laughing upon seeing it.

“Hahahahaha! You arrogant wolf pup! Your days of biting soft demon fingers are over! Here comes the wild-trained barbarian with fingers harder than steel rebar! Hahahahaha!”

“KYIIIING…”

“All this cockiness built up from biting soft stuff is about to end! Wild barbarian training strikes again! Uhhahaha!”

“KYIIING… Mean… Those young demons are mean…”

Aru whimpers with teary eyes. Oh man, feels great. All my pent-up stress is flying out the window. Next time Aru tries to bite me, I’ll hide behind Langwang.

To do that…

I need to recruit Langwang as my assistant first.

“Companion… Companion…”

Langwang keeps muttering the word “companion.” What’s up with him?

“Hey, you.”

“Yes?”

“If you don’t mind, I don’t care about becoming your companion.”

“…Eh?”

“You want to be companions? Companions are good. Don’t know what you are, but you talked to me. You’re nice.”

“…Hmm.”

Just realized something.

Thinking about it, Langwang has no reason to reject becoming my companion.

Unlike Aru, who initially hated me upon meeting, and Beatrix, who lives with the trauma of her father’s death, I didn’t need to put on any annoying yet fun shows to win his trust.

“Alright! You’re now my ‘assistant’!”

This time, there’s no need!

So exciting!

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