Chapter 77

Previous Summary:

Gerbera: "What, Outerturtle!?"

The incident where Kudo saw everything.

23

Kudo and I faced each other, each leading our own monsters.

I had thought that I would meet Kudo again someday.

But I never imagined it would be at such a time.

"It's been a while."

Kudo smiled and greeted me warmly.

I had no words to respond.

Our relationship was not one where we could exchange greetings with a smile.

Another monster tamer.

A boy who shared the same origin but took a different path.

While I lead monsters with whom I share a heart through my abilities, he chose to control monsters with collars. He was undoubtedly my enemy.

This was truly a case of misfortune piling on top of more misfortune. I was already struggling with the current situation, and now you show up here.

No, perhaps it was precisely because of this situation that you appeared.

Did you come to take advantage of my weakness?

"…Master."

At that moment, Gerbera gripped my hand.

She squeezed it so tightly, almost painfully.

It might not be ladylike, but it was very much like her, strong and determined.

"…Thank you, Gerbera."

With that, the unnecessary tension left my body.

"It's fine now."

"Indeed."

With the tension gone, my mind began to work more clearly.

The fact that he initiated this conversation suggests that Kudo does not intend to attack immediately.

If that's the case, perhaps we can get through this somehow.

Kudo looked at us holding hands with a somewhat amused expression.

I met his gaze head-on.

"It's been a while, Kudo."

It's been two months, hasn't it?

He looked no different from when we parted… No, perhaps he had lost some weight. Or maybe it was just that his clothes had changed, giving a different impression.

Of course, the two months had passed for Kudo as well. I turned my gaze to the monsters that followed him.

They had also changed to some extent.

Among the shadow army, there was no sign of Anton, the queen who created them, so I couldn't tell about her. However, Berta, the two-headed wolf, now had five tentacles extending from her waist, which she didn't have before.

Originally, Berta was a deformity of the Fire Fang, a monster from the depths of the forest.

The deepening of her deformity could be a characteristic of her as a monster, or perhaps it was due to the method of raising her, similar to the worm poison, by making monsters eat each other.

"…You seem to have been quite active."

Kudo smiled and nodded at my words.

"Yes, well. I have a purpose, you see."

"…A purpose, huh."

The word left a bitter taste in my mouth.

—I am the 'Demon King.' Humans are not to be saved but destroyed.

Beaten, hurt, dignity lost, and in the end, even life taken away…

By thinking of myself as the Demon King, an existence that avenges humans, the boy managed to barely hold on. Now, he can no longer live any other way.

In a sense, he has been straightforward, continuing his activities for this purpose over the past two months.

The results of his efforts were right in front of me.

Namely, in the form of his select minions, starting with Berta.

"There are some you haven't met yet. Let me introduce them. This is Tsessar, of the 'Dirty Sludge.'"

A green, muddy substance emerged from the cuff of Kudo's sleeve.

A monster I had never seen before. It probably doesn't inhabit this area. The fact that he even named it suggests it's likely a rare monster or better.

"And this is Dora, of the 'Nightmare Stalker.'"

At Kudo's words, the girl beside him stepped forward.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, another king."

She bowed her head in greeting.

Her hair, skin, and eyes were all black, like a shadow, but unlike the shadow army of Dopplegangers that followed Kudo, she was not a shadow itself.

Though her appearance was clearly inhuman, she was still one of the more human-like among Kudo's minions.

"Dora is a sudden mutation of one of my clones."

One of the Dopplegangers, now in the form of a boy, spoke.

Tall and well-built, the boy was Tenji Dazai—his form copied as a characteristic of a monster, reflecting the will of the Dopple Queen, Anton.

Unlike the real Tenji, Anton had a stern face with a mechanical, inorganic quality. He placed his hand on the black girl's shoulder.

"As a clone, she has no special abilities. She is a defective product as one of my terminals. However, in exchange, she excels in combat. …Perhaps she could even kill you, the White Spider, in your current weakened state."

"Your polite greeting is appreciated. Then, as a sign of our acquaintance, shall we try something?"

A tense atmosphere hung between us, who were sizing each other up.

Berta, seeing this, raised one of her wolf heads.

"…Stop it, Anton. We are in the presence of the king."

"I understand."

The clone in Tenji's form shrugged and stepped back.

Gerbera snorted, and Dora lowered her black eyes.

"It seems the introductions are over."

After a brief glance at the minor conflict between our minions, Kudo turned to me.

"I apologize for not being able to show up immediately when you were in crisis. After all, 'Vedaten' Yano Yuna was here."

Yano, who thought I was Kudo's accomplice, would have pursued me to such a place. If she knew about Kudo, she would have crushed him without mercy.

Now that Yano is incapacitated, Kudo has come to make contact.

"…No, wait. How did you know about my current situation?"

I was about to accept it, but then I noticed something odd.

"Originally, how did you get here? Surely you didn't have one of your subordinates follow me all this time, did you?"

"I don't do stalker-like things."

"Are you sure about that?"

Gerbera muttered under her breath, but Kudo continued without paying attention.

"I learned about your crisis in the town of Seratta. While gathering information there, I heard some suspicious news. Fortunately, I also got information about 'Vedaten,' so I had her followed. Luckily, she was using a horse, so it wasn't too difficult to catch up."

"I see. So that's how it happened."

As I nodded, one of the words Kudo said caught my attention.

Information gathering.

Was that also one of the activities he has been doing over the past two months?

Like me, Kudo, who leads monsters, finds it difficult to move in the human world, but he also has minions that can easily blend into human society.

Anton, the Dopple Queen, who can control numerous clones.

Her clones can copy human forms. Unlike Mimic Slime Lily, they don't need to eat the target to copy it. Considering that they can be remotely controlled, the convenience of using this ability for espionage is immeasurable.

Perhaps the reason Anton's main body is not here is that she is engaged in such activities.

Even if remote control is possible, there are limits to the distance. It's entirely possible that the main body couldn't reach this far.

Or, considering that only Berta, Tsessar, and Dora are visible among his select minions, perhaps Anton is engaged in some other strategic operation with the other monsters.

"I understand the circumstances."

With a general grasp of the situation, I decided to get to the main topic.

"So, why did you come chasing after me?"

"Oh, I think I mentioned that earlier."

Kudo's response made me frown.

Indeed, when he appeared in front of me, he had already stated his reason for being here.

"…You said you would lend a hand to help Lili."

"Yes, I came here to help you, senior."

Kudo smiled without any hint of doubt in my attitude.

"I've heard the situation. Your important slime was taken by Takaya, right? If you allow it, I will lend you my minions here."

"…Do you understand what that means?"

Takaya Jun is a Warrior with a cheat ability. Battling him carries the risk of losing one's life.

It's not a situation where you can casually lend your minions.

However, Kudo nodded without hesitation.

"Of course. You can use them as your limbs in the battle against Takaya."

He showed no hesitation at all.

"Even if you use them up, that's fine."

His tone was as if he was talking about expendable items… No.

To Kudo, the monsters he commands are truly expendable.

Our perceptions of our minions are different.

At the Chiria fortress, Kudo used and discarded hundreds of monsters.

At that time, they were all mindless normal monsters, but even if they were special minions with wills, his stance would not change.

If my minions, Lili and the others, are jewels to me, they are pebbles to Kudo.

If they can hurt the enemy, that's enough. There are plenty of pebbles lying around, so there's no need to go out of his way to pick them up.

Thinking about it, the minions that follow Kudo are pitiful.

However, I don't have the luxury to feel sympathy for them in the current situation.

I shook my head lightly.

"…So, Kudo, what do you expect in return?"

Even if they are pebbles to Kudo, it still takes effort to gather them.

There's no reason for him to give them away for free, and it's only natural that he would expect something in return.

In that case, it's probably…

"Yes."

While putting the sticky Tsessar back into his sleeve, Kudo paused for a moment before asking.

"Do you remember the proposal I made before?"

…Of course, I expected this.

I couldn't help but frown.

"Your expectation is that I will team up with you?"

This was the proposal Kudo made when we parted ways at the Chiria fortress.

I, who lead monsters, and Kudo, who commands them.

Though our stances are different… No, perhaps because they are different, our abilities complement each other perfectly. We can fill each other's gaps.

This means that we have the potential to either save or destroy this world, which is filled with the threat of monsters.

It's no wonder Kudo is fixated on me.

In this case, Kudo's proposal is not unreasonable.

I lend you a hand, and you team up with me. It's a fair deal.

I know Kudo's ability is powerful. If I can use his help here, the chances of successfully rescuing Lili will increase.

However, teaming up with Kudo also means severing ties with the human world.

It's a deal I can't accept.

But as if reading my thoughts, Kudo spoke first.

"I don't think it's a bad deal for you, senior."

His tone was slow and persuasive.

"Since you've been in contact with human society for about two months now, you must have realized by now which side you should team up with."

"…"

—Would you kill someone to get your monster back!?

The words Yano had said to me echoed in my mind.

To me, they felt harsh.

But the real problem is that such a mindset is not unique to her.

For example, let's say there are two people.

One is captured and will die if left alone.

But if the other person sacrifices their life, the captured person can be saved.

Let's assume this scenario.

If a friend of the captured person knew about this situation and had a normal mind, they wouldn't and couldn't tell the other person to "sacrifice your life." The idea that not sacrificing one's life is inhumane would rarely come up.