chapter 225

Chapter 225

Quite some time had passed.

The wolves quickly grew wary, quickly relaxed, then quickly became afraid again, repeating the cycle.

“It’s because everyone has become cowards.”

Arka, the chieftain’s friend, said that and apologized.

“I’m sorry, my friend. Up until ten years ago, the wolves weren’t this cowardly, but as time passed, their bodies grew weaker and their minds aged along with them. It’s a lamentable thing.”

“In an environment like this, how could they stay the same as at the beginning? Even if everything stays the same, living creatures are what change—yet the world now is far too harsh for all who live. You must have suffered greatly.”

“I’m glad you understand.”

As Arka let out a sigh, the chieftain, Gargal, approached.

“Don’t say only bad things to the guest.”

“Since you won’t listen to my small talk, don’t I have no choice but to grab onto the guest and chatter instead?”

“We have the wolf tribe’s dignity...”

“Gargal, dignity doesn’t fill our starving bellies.”

“Grrr...”

Gargal’s groan sounded somewhere between “kkiyung” and “keuung.” They said age wasn’t a very valuable concept to the wolf tribe, and even in relationships they didn’t really count age, but even so, it seemed hard for a seven-year-old to overcome the experience of someone who was thirty-five.

Argio felt his heart grow warm.

“You two really get along well.”

“You sometimes use... that kind of... way of speaking.”

“Did it not suit me?”

“It suits you too well—it makes my fur stand up.”

If it were a human, would that be something like “It gives me goosebumps”? Gio laughed.

“Your fur is still perfectly fine.”

“That’s just an expression.”

Groaning once more, the wolf chieftain quietly lay down beside Gio, who was far smaller compared to his bulk. It seemed he was being considerate of the sleeping pups.

Even though his body was enormous, the fact that he didn’t make a sound let you see why he had become chieftain at the age of seven.

“You’re always without a sound.”

“You’re awfully free with praise.”

“It’s because there’s no wolf as quiet and fast as you.”

“Then why do you think I’m the chieftain?”

“You know, yet I said it anyway.”

“More strange talk...”

Muttering like that, Gargal gently closed his eyes, and Gio—though it hadn’t been long at all—stroked Gargal’s forehead and scratched under his chin with practiced familiarity. Perhaps it felt quite refreshing; Gargal’s face loosened slack.

“Mmm, good. Very good... get under my ear too. Oh, that’s nice.”

“What a customer with a lot of requests.”

Argio scolded him once for form’s sake, then kept scratching him. Arka watched Gargal with amused eyes and lay down beside Gio as well.

It didn’t mean she wanted to be scratched too; she simply seemed to find the sight of the two quite entertaining.

“So they say humans really are good at scratching fur and hide—so it’s true.”

“Humans have the best form for making all beasts feel refreshed.”

“When you say things like that...”

Arka spoke as if whispering.

“You don’t feel like a human.”

“Then what do I look like?”

“Something that imitates a human.”

“That could be.”

“You keep saying things like that.”

“I always accept all diversity.”

Put nicely, he had no prejudice; put badly, he had no firm convictions.

Now that he had evolved into a portrait, the title of “ordinary human” had long since sailed away, yet at least Gio himself was open-minded enough to still think so.

“Anything is fine.”

They could see him however they wanted; that was enough.

“Aren’t we always living trapped in our own world?”

“And liking difficult, vague words isn’t particularly human, either.”

“Then I guess I’m not human.”

It didn’t need to be something that fit neatly into one.

“...”

“I respect you.”

Gio had no intention of cutting himself down into a single definition. He had been like that before, and he planned to be like that in the future as well. When he was versatile enough to become anything, why should he live trapped inside one image?

That would not be very fun.

* * *

A fox came, having heard the rumor.

“Might you also be willing to bestow mercy upon us!”

“Now this reaction is surprising too.”

Gio exclaimed in admiration.

“Can the foxes here also disguise themselves as humans?”

“Ah, it’s the little bit of magic we’re best at. A technique our ancestors used to good effect when they fought wars with humans in the past—perhaps it was inherited, haha!”

“Then why did you come disguised as a human of all things?”

“Well, of course, to win your favor! Living beings open their hearts fastest when they take on the same form. Exceptions do occur sometimes, but it’s an ancient and universal trait of living things.”

“Aha, so that’s why.”

Unlike the sly image that came to mind when he heard “swindler,” the one who came to see him—said to be the fox tribe’s chieftain—was extremely straightforward and crisp. Argio quietly stared at him.

‘...And yet, to be able to feel this much like a swindler anyway— in some sense, that’s impressive.’

Was it because of that thinly slit impression? Or because of that shallow smile? Looks surely played a part, but the overall atmosphere he gave off was slightly sinister and very, very suspicious.

That part was what made it interesting.

“So you came to find me while imitating a human?”

“It’s terribly rude to say upon first meeting, but our fox tribe’s bellies are just as empty!”

The fox tribe chieftain’s face, disguised as a human woman, promptly paled.

“And it’s not only the wolf tribe that has pups who haven’t even reached adulthood—so do we. The adults who’ve built up resistance won’t die no matter what they eat, but the pups still have very weak immunity. They’ve gained the bare minimum resistance to poison while inside their mother’s body, but... it only helps enough so they won’t die the moment they’re born.”

“Oh dear, that’s a sad story.”

“Yes, to be honest, you’re right—I brought it up because I wanted your sympathy. But I didn’t lie. More than anything, the fox tribe isn’t as sturdy as the wolf tribe. We can’t research and neutralize poison like the crows do, either.”

The fox tribe chieftain smiled helplessly.

“All the fox tribe can do is force resistance to build up by feeding the right poison at the right time. But there are too many pups who die before even reaching that ‘right time.’ At this rate, the fox tribe too... I think we’ll end up walking the path to extinction... so I came to seek you out like this.”

“Hm, fox pups are truly adorable. I would like to see your cute children—would you invite me? If I visit in the chieftain’s name, I believe the foxes’ anxiety will fade a great deal.”

“Ah, of course! If you permit it, we will do our very best to attend you!”

He was extremely skilled at rubbing his palms together.

“...”

Trembling, though.

“Listen, Gargal.”

“...I’m not sure this is a situation where I should butt in.”

“I only want to ask for an additional opinion.”

“Alright, I’ll listen.”

“Do you think it would be alright for me to make more friends here?”

“...That...”

Gargal, the wolf tribe’s chieftain, looked at the crimson human who was smiling as usual, and the fox tribe chieftain, Rami, who went white with fear and trembled, holding her breath whenever his gaze was not on her. It was the first time he’d seen such a reaction from an archenemy.

‘But I understand it.’

Gargal nudged the crimson human’s back with his nose.

“...Help me.”

“Oh, will it still be okay?”

“In any case, we had no future. The best we could do was find a way to die with as little pain as possible... and find the warmest, softest grave we could.”

Seven years old—not exactly an old age, but Gargal could become leader because he was the strongest and had the best judgment among the wolves. He often acted clumsy, but he was not a “coward.”

And yet, before “Gio,” he often curled his tail like a coward. He did not fail to understand what it meant, but they could not help it. The future was dark, and even if the hand extended was red, it was kind.

“We want a future.”

A wolf could do anything for family.

“There has to be a future to be able to choose. At least, we can gain a minimum chance. We already know that if we only keep dying like cowards, we can do nothing.”

“So.”

Argio smiled.

“You’ll take the evil god’s hand?”

He didn’t think they wouldn’t know.

‘Maybe at first that was the case, but the longer it went on, the stranger it must have all looked.’

From the start, it made no sense that a human—a creature from history said to have gone extinct—would suddenly appear on his own, wrapped in silk and gold and treasure.

And from their first meeting, he had wanted to hear the world’s history, and the parts he showed interest in were only those tied to the “evil god.” Even if information about appearance had been lost in the course of being handed down, there were plenty of things to frighten them.

‘Just like Student Cha Ara once did, everyone was also afraid of me as a portrait.’

Was it that they felt a rank of a different dimension? Or something like that?

‘And I piled up meat without poison—meat that cannot exist in this dimension anymore—like a mountain.’

At minimum, he could cross dimensions, was highly likely to be a being from history, and a strong one whose mere presence could make the sturdy wolf tribe curl their tails. Wicked divinity reeking of blood.

“...”

“...”

At maximum, the “evil god” of history; at minimum, an existence on par with it.

“They’re very afraid of me, you know?”

“...That’s true.”

In the wolf’s eyes, he could see Rami, the fox tribe chieftain, struggling to hide her fear. She was weak, and perhaps because of that, her little schemes spun faster than any other tribe’s—yet she had still come all the way here in the body of a chieftain.

‘Is it that desperate?’

Conflicts among beasts had almost vanished over the past ten years. It was because it would be a problem if, from fighting among themselves, they lost the leeway to protect and raise pups that had just been born.

Already anxious because they didn’t know when they might go extinct, it was especially severe for the fox tribe.

And then, a “human” appeared.

“But you’re still afraid, and yet...”

“But?”

At the benevolent voice that sounded like it was coaxing and soothing him, the chieftain finally made a decision as a chieftain.

“You treated us as friends.”

A wolf does not abandon family, and does not betray friends.

“So could you help us a little more?”

“Hmm...”

“Even if the wolf tribe survives alone, it could have no meaning. That unlucky fox tribe too, and the lofty crow tribe too—if we all survive together, then the meaning of enduring that long will remain.”

“You speak quite gently.”

“I-if you don’t want to, then forget it!!”

“Ahahaha!”

Gio ruffled the wolf’s face vigorously. He couldn’t stand it because he was so admirable and cute.

“So you really are a coward after all!”

What was there to fear about this weak human, that he had to be like this?

“Fox tribe chieftain—what should I call you?”

“I-If you call me Rami, that will do! It’s not an alias, it’s really my name. If you give us a chance, I can swear that all of us will do our very best to be to your liking!”

“Do not worry—I do not tear out oaths so easily.”

Gio was a rather gentle evil god.

‘To think my ill repute has spread this far— it makes me a little happy.’

He never denied himself as an evil god. Rather, he loved it. The river of blood wrought from his blood and his enemies’ blood was something that, as wicked divinity, he naturally had to welcome—and instinctively could not help but welcome.

Not knowing the future where this would become a bit troublesome, Gio smiled with satisfaction.

“I thought I might be forgotten behind history’s curtain, but it feels good that everyone knows me.”

“Your tastes are kind of unusual...”

“Gargal, if you have something to say, say it louder.”

“Ah, I didn’t say anything.”

“If my friend says so, then that’s how it is, yes?”

Argio turned back to the fox tribe chieftain, Rami.

“Guide the way.”

“Ah...”

“I’ll give you the help you want.”

And what Gio wanted from them was only one thing.

“And become my friend.”

So we can live happily.

* * *

Left alone, Gargal had a crow flap down to him—flap, flap.

“Is that your decision?”

“Elder Valp.”

It was Valp, the crow tribe chieftain.

“He smelled of very thick blood. He bestows mercy as pleasure, and has not even a fragment of heart to give toward enemies. If he truly is ‘the Erased Wrath’... then the feelings he turns toward us may not be so good either.”

“...”

“Even if he is not ‘the Erased Wrath,’ it is the same. That is not a human. It is immense nature, wrath, and pain imitating a human. And yet he lies easily—meaning he is a wicked rebel, not one who submits. Even so, is it alright?”

“I chose a future.”

“I see...”

Valp lamented it.

“Do you believe he can distinguish between friends and slaves?”

At the words of an elder who had given him help, great and small, since he was young, Gargal slowly blinked. It wasn’t as though he was not afraid of that splendid, blood-reeking something that imitated a human.

‘If it were a ghost, my heart would have been at ease.’

But hot blood clearly flowed from him, a beating heart could be felt, and he even had a tongue that could taste, and a stomach that could be filled. Before that privilege belonging only to the living, Gargal grew weak.

In the end, Gargal affirmed the existence of that crimson something.

“He bestowed protection upon our pups.”

“It might be a wicked protection.”

“More than anything, it smelled like sunlight.”

“...Sunlight?”

“It was a nutty, sweet scent.”

Gargal gently closed his eyes.

“Warm, soft, squishy...”

Even now, he could smell it vividly.

“...It was a scent so reassuring, it made me want to swallow it whole.”

“Wolves really are so intuitive it borders on foolishness.”

The crow let out a deep sigh.

“I understand your will.”

“Are you leaving?”

“We must look more closely as well, if we are to receive our own future.”

“Go carefully.”

“You also, take care.”

Flap—!

The crow took flight.

“...”

Gargal stared in the direction where the fox tribe would be.

“...Anything will be better than now.”

Compared to a world with only death, anything—pain and wrath included—was better.

(To be continued in the next part)