“...What’s wrong with you?”
Góy?ń blinked a few times as he looked at Galilahi. When Galilahi returned to the fire, her cheerful demeanor had disappeared. She sat down, resting her chin on her hand, her wolf ears drooping back in a sad manner, her eyes staring at the campfire without saying a word. The wolves sat beside Galilahi, one sniffing, the other lying on her lap as if to reassure her master.
“What’s wrong?” Jarek asked curiously.
“He’s such a jerk!” Galilahi shouted, her wolf ears and tail standing straight up. “Rude, grumpy, mean. He refused food and drinks, refused cigarettes, and even chased me away. He was a guest and this is our village!”
“I’m so sorry you had to go through that.” Yong spoke up for Joker, her face showing a bit of remorse.
“He’s not good at talking to people, so he’ll have to give up~.” Jarek didn’t argue and added, “It’ll take time to talk to Joker.”
“Unlike you two, Jarek is beautiful and gentle, and Yong is polite and easy to talk to.” Galilahi looked at the two of them as if to comfort them.“Even if he’s a hero, he really can’t stand it!”
Galilahi lay on her back, her hair spread out over the wolf’s thick, warm fur. The chill of the night seeped through her clothes, but she didn’t care much, her eyes turned to the silver moon hanging among the stars. The scent of fragrant wine and grilled meat didn’t ease the frustration in her heart.
“To the point of being straightforward, acting decisively, Joker even gave me a heart attack.”Góy?ń’s comment was no different from a complaint.
“He did that to me too!” Galilahi sat up and rolled her eyes. “I’ll go and ask him to punish me—”
She stood up to leave. Almost immediately, Góy?ń grabbed her sister’s wolf tail.
“AH!” Galilahi screamed in surprise. “Sister!”
“However, he was angry for the people who were harmed, and also for the person who responded to your cries.”
Góy?ń kept smiling, his voice calm and unchanging. The female chieftain grabbed Galilahi’s shirt and yanked it hard. Her sister lost her balance and fell back to the same spot.
“Although it’s not the same, Joker was the one who initiated the war with Deep Gold Fish, and he was also the one who helped you rise from the dead.” Góy?ń smiled gently, full of sympathy. She gently stroked her sister’s hair. “Even the stew our village is eating right now was prepared by him.”
“...You died and were healed by him?” Galilahi was stunned upon hearing the truth.
“It’s true that we were the ones who brought the villagers back to the surface, but unfortunately, we couldn’t save you.” Jarek then added.
“Jarek’s medicine and medical supplies, my healing knife, all of them were useless.” Yong shrugged. “Fortunately, Joker brought the necessary Spellscroll and used it at the right time.”
Galilahi’s ears twitched after hearing the other three’s comments. A conflicting feeling arose within her.
“Heheh, the chieftain knows how to look at Joker~.” Jarek laughed happily, her Dragon tail swaying continuously like a puppy.
“You’re exaggerating.” Góy?ń put her sleeve over her mouth and chuckled. “I’m just stating the obvious truth.”
“No, it’s very impressive.” Yong added his compliment. “Not many people can see the positive side of that lone wolf.”
The three of them laughed loudly, expressing their shared opinion. Perhaps they found the Joker’s contrasting coldness on the outside and warmth on the inside hilarious.
“Everyone seems to think highly of him…” Galilahi glanced at the female Shapechanger. “You seem to care about him, huh?”
“Not that I care.” Jarek shook his head, her expression unchanged. “I love Joker!”
“So you and him are lovers.” Góy?ń clapped her hands together. As the female chieftain’s wolf ears and tail wiggled, a mischievous smile appeared on her lips. “How close are you two now?”
“We’re comfortable enough to talk, eat, sleep, and play games together.”
As Jarek talked about Joker, Galilahi felt conflicted. Disgust and hatred were rubbing against each other with admiration and gratitude. They created sparks, which gradually heated up inside her like a fire cooking a pot of mismatched spices.
“Perhaps I should leave the ladies alone to talk. Excuse me.” Yong stood up, he nodded slightly and walked to a house, which Góy?ń had previously chosen for his group to rest.
“Have a nice Dream, Yong~.” Jarek said his blessing.
Galilahi hugged her legs, her chin resting on her knees, her wolf ears perked up as she listened. Her sister and Jarek’s conversation was a way for her to convince herself that the Joker wasn’t so bad. Even so, the Joker she had seen, met, talked to, all sounded very different from what she was hearing. With no way to verify any further, she decided to observe for a while longer. She quietly left the campfire party, and went to the edge of the village once more. But this time, instead of going to talk directly, she hid behind a tree near the village gate to observe.
Bang bang bang
“Hm?”
The sound of air breaking continuously rang out, something that could only be heard when the space became quiet. Galilahi smelled the smell of fish and grilled meat wafting in the air. On both sides of the village gate, two torches she had never seen before. They were as big as a person, glowing brightly, the scent of grilled meat clearly coming from them.
“Heh!”
Galilahi was startled when she saw that the person standing near the pair of torches was none other than Joker. She clearly saw him raising his hand forward, the whistling sound of wind continuously rang out, the shadows of fish-shaped creatures that had pushed Jaci Village into a dead end continuously rushed over. Each spear pierced Joker’s body, but he remained standing firm. Each Deep Golden Fish fell down one after another until more than a dozen corpses were scattered on the ground.
“The fish-” Galilahi left the tree, she ran straight to Joker and shouted. ”You need to get treatment, your injuries are very serious!”
“…What are you doing here?” Joker turned his head, his voice still indifferent.
“But the wounds—”
Clank
The female wolf Beastfolk grabbed the other’s shoulders and was about to run at full speed to the village healer. However, Deep Gold Fish’s bone spears fell to the ground. Some had their shafts completely missing, some had their spearheads missing. Joker stood up straight, the holes in his body were gone, even the blood that had dyed the grass red had stopped flowing.
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“The wounds… they’re gone!” Galilahi looked at Joker’s condition and couldn’t help but be surprised.
“Nothing can kill me.” Joker replied and pushed the other’s hand off his shoulder. “And what business do you have here?”
“Ah… I…” She struggled to find an excuse, because she couldn’t say ‘I came here to watch you’. “That’s right, why are those damned fish here! And are you the only one fighting?”
“I told the gatekeepers not to join in.” Joker replied without hesitation, as if he had prepared the answer beforehand. “I am immortal, I can heal, even rise from death, but you guys can’t. So don’t join in without my request, or you’ll get injured and die for nothing.”
“…Not only are you rude, but now you’ve insulted the villagers too!”
Galilahi growled, her teeth clenched so tightly that her fangs were bared. Her tail fur and wolf ears were raised, a reaction of a predator ready to bite its prey that was provoking it.
“I’m just telling the truth,” Joker replied, his tone and body language unchanged. “...You guys stayed here longer and didn’t escape those seafood. We only came here for a few hours and finished everything. You’re about to go extinct, so find a safe place to hide. We’ll take care of this.”
Bang
Galilahi suddenly lunged forward. She grabbed Joker’s collar and lifted him up. Her bulging eyes were fixed on the other person. Her hot breaths came out of her mouth in white mist. Facing the enraged female wolf Beastfolk, Joker’s face remained cold and expressionless. His crimson pupils barely reflected Galilahi’s figure.
“Miss Galilahi, please calm down!”
The village gatekeeper walked over and raised his hand forward. He was ready to intervene at any moment if the situation worsened. However, a few seconds passed and there was no fight. Galilahi closed her eyes for a moment, and then she released Joker after sorting out her thoughts and emotions.
“Hmph! Do whatever you want!” Galilahi muttered as she turned away. “I don’t understand what Góy?ń and Jarek see in an arrogant person like you…”
“Think whatever you want.”
Joker sighed as he adjusted his collar. He completely ignored the wolf girl and went back into the village and out of sight.
“…That hurts.” The gatekeeper let out a sigh of relief. “I know you mean well, but you deserve better than to be hated like that…”
“It’s a waste of time and ineffective to persuade, it’s easier to provoke.” Joker spoke evenly as he continued to use his chopsticks to skewer each Deep Gold Fish to grill. “And I chose the most optimal way.”
“It would be great to have immortality like you.” The Beastfolk laughed bitterly.
“…It’s good,”
Joker commented after more than one fish skewer was being grilled. He looked at his hand, red and blistered from the burn. However, it healed within 10 seconds.
“But it makes me so weak…” He rubbed his fingers together and looked up at the moon. “I need more power than this…”
“What a great ambition.”
The gatekeeper's face was blank. He looked as if he was witnessing a man who would soon become a legend. Even though he was advised to rest, the gatekeeper decided to keep an eye on Joker. He himself did not know whether it was admiration, curiosity, or anticipation of receiving something. He was not sure what it was, but his warrior intuition was telling him that - a great change was about to happen.
---The Next Morning---
As the sun began to rise from the sea at the horizon, marking the beginning of a new day. Along with it, a very large shadow also rose and hovered in the sky, followed by smaller shadows. When the sunlight hit them, a dazzling golden light was reflected. They were also flying fish, but they looked more like whales and dolphins. Like Deep Gold Fish, they flapped their tails in the air as if swimming in mid-air.
[THE BARBARIC CREATURES!]
The sound rang out in the heads of every single person in Jaci Village like thunder. One by one, the people who had been sleeping soundly in the village were now startled awake. They left their houses and looked towards the sky.
[WE HAVE BEEN PASSIVE TO YOU. BUT YOU SEDUCED OUR ALLIES TO KILL OUR BROTHERS OF THE SEA. OBSTACLESING THE WILL OF THE LORD IS UNFORGETTABLE!]
The voice filled with anger made the villagers realize that this was the Deep Gold Fish!
[YOU WILL SUFFER THE WRATH OF THE LORD AND THE SEA!]
As soon as they finished speaking, the blue sea began to shake. From the undulating waves, they began to grow larger, accumulate more, and then rise up. They were like giants with black shadows covering most of the land!
The Jaci villagers quickly ran away, although some were screaming, others soon calmed them down and pulled them to find shelter. There were only two people going in the opposite direction, one was a wolf boy dressed in black from head to toe, next to him was a Chinese guy who was transforming into a Demon.
“Are you ready?” Joker calmly looked at the largest tsunami he had ever seen.
“Yup…” Yong tried to smile confidently in response.
---In the Sand World, Nighttime---
As the cold night returned to this land, the Dreamers from Earth began to act. Each member of the group (except Allan and Yona) wore a pair of goggles to see in the dark. They all rode on a bird larger than a human, with guns on their bodies - Gunbird. These feathered creatures, over 5m long, were the creations of Kuzunoha, and were also the feat of the fox Beastfolk who convinced Dr. Jei not to turn them into winged girls. Fortunately, the Dreamers had enough common sense to understand the problem. Optimally, humans riding humans could not fly fast. Morally, sitting comfortably and being carried by others was the way slaves were treated in the Medieval era.
Leading the group was none other than Allan. He was the one who found the Giant Black Snakes' shelter, so he was now also the guide. For the others, the cold from the wind that could easily blow people away was not an easy task. Even with the support of the temperature-correcting Magic Tools, breathing in refrigerator-like temperatures and keeping their balance without falling off the birds was extremely difficult. As for Allan, who had a tight suit of armor, and Yona, who was a Robot, the pressure from the wind and the cold did not affect the two siblings.
“Alright, who’s ready to parachute?” Allan asked the group through the communication device on his helmet.
“You and Yona will be the vanguard, we’ll be up high supporting, right?” Cide asked through his headset.
“Hurry, my girls are always ready~.” Jei directed his smile to the back, where the two lion Beastfolk girls were sitting.
“We’re about to face something this big…”
Yoru took a deep breath to calm himself down. He shivered as he watched the Giant Black Snakes curled up and sleeping on the sand. On his first day in this world, he had to run away with his life from these mountains of scales and sharp teeth that leaked poison. Now, he had to face them again, as a hunter.
“If you don’t want to be prey, then be tougher, Sir Yoru~.” Kuzunoha sat leisurely on the bird that flew parallel to Yoru.
“...I know I’m a coward, so I’ll use my strengths.” Yoru replied while pulling out a sniper rifle from his bag.
“Be careful, both of you. Keep a safe distance from the snakes as best you can!”
Elina sat behind Yona. She advised with a face that couldn’t hide her anxiety. Even though she had to watch her daughter run into danger once again. But with these new friends and new family here, she was somewhat more confident that everyone could overcome the disaster before her eyes.
“Yes~.”
Allan and Yona answered in unison, leisurely. Perhaps only the cousins ??could be this optimistic. This was a risky Monster hunting trip, but for the cousins, it was no different from going to the zoo.
“I’m sorry to leave you two to take the most dangerous part.”
Albina lamented. Her voice faltered as she looked at Allan and Yona. She wasn’t a warrior, so the anxiety of having to step into the battlefield or face life and death danger was inevitable.
“I’m not as good at mixing and assembling as everyone else.” Allan laughed, his hand revealing an assault rifle. “I’m a Hunter doing what I do best.”
“Don’t worry, Albina-san, Allan and I will retreat as soon as it gets too dangerous, just like mama told us!” Yona continued her brother’s words to reassure him.
“Then… everyone take care.” Albina forced a smile to cheer him up. “I’ll use my singing and potions to help you two.”
“The rear is counting on you and everyone else~.” Allan gave her a thumbs up and gestured. “Let’s go, Yona~.”
“Yes!”
Yona immediately replied. The two of them simultaneously launched their bodies into the air and fell freely from the Gunbird. The distance between the two of them and the Giant Black Snakes was getting shorter and shorter.
