Chapter 112 : Chapter 112

Chapter 112 - The Animal Hater (3)

“Don't think too much about it. I'll take care of your food, clothing, and shelter while you're away.”

“Under…stood.”

Simon's tail and ears drooped as if they would touch the ground.

He looked just like a betrayed puppy.

“Collie, have you talked with your seniors?”

“Yes, but it seemed like they already knew.”

“I see.”

Considering the mystery of The First Beast, it was somehow understandable.

Perhaps, like last time, they were following them in the form of mice.

“It seems they will prepare for it one way or another, so the problem is indeed this side.”

Artier stood in front of the Teleport Gate and looked up at the sky.

The sky today was especially clear and bright. This way, he would arrive at his destination accurately without getting motion sickness.

“Master, but how do you plan to meet the leader of the beastmen?”

Collie's question was valid.

Even if he could enter the beastmen's village, meeting their leader was a completely different story.

After some thought, Artier answered.

“I have a few things in mind, but I don't know the beastmen well either.”

The beastmen were a famous death squad in <Cross Destiny>.

They were hunted by the Empire, killed by Hellmorphs, or sometimes they just died in civil wars among themselves for no particular reason.

Above all, unlike the elves who enabled the use of useful artifacts or the dwarves who provided equipment reinforcement, the beastmen were not a race that gave players clear benefits.

Naturally, they were also ignored by the users, and occasionally they were recruited as companions based on their stats.

“Let's just go for now. Whatever it is, we can do it once we arrive.”

The three of them stepped into the Teleport Gate.

“To Ker Tupa.”

[Warning: The area is a lawless zone.]

[You may be attacked unprepared in the town and cannot receive help from the guards.]

[Do you really wish to enter? Y/N]

Artier let out a dry laugh at the information window that appeared before his eyes.

It was because the information window that appeared only when entering the front lines had popped up.

‘That's how dangerous Ker Tupa is, I guess.’

“Let's enter.”

There was no turning back now.

With the embrace of a blue light as the last thing he saw, Artier closed his eyes.

***

‘Wow, this is really no joke.’

Could it be that he had arrived at a monster's habitat by mistake?

The scenery that appeared before him was so unique that Artier thought so.

What surrounded him was clearly a city wall, but the buildings inside were all tents made of huge fangs and leather.

It was like looking at a giant prison that had locked up nomads.

“This is strange. Why is there no one around?”

Collie and Simon looked around, but not a single ant could be seen around the Teleport Gate.

In fact, as if it had been neglected for some time, various bushes and weeds grew densely around the gate.

“The beastmen don't use the Teleport Gate.”

The magician who was guarding the Teleport Gate answered Collie's question.

He was a cat beastman whose fur was all black.

“You, what are you? Why did you bring a human?”

Sharp cat eyes flashed.

At the magician's question, Simon hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“He is my companion.”

“A companion? You're not from around here, are you? Are you from some remote tribe?”

The magician sighed and scratched his ear vigorously, then climbed a nearby tree.

Then, he lay down on the tree and gestured for them to go.

“It's a hassle… I don't know what you're trying to do, but do it quickly and leave. The people here don't welcome humans.”

Artier glanced at the magician who no longer paid him any attention and started to go down the hill.

‘The reaction is colder than I expected.’

For even a magician who receives a salary from the Empire to react like that.

It was obvious how the common people would react without even seeing it.

“It seems I'll have to use the first plan.”

“What is that?”

“Collie, return to your original form.”

“Eh?”

“Beastmen serve Spirit Creatures. I think they'll lower their guard a lot if they see your true form.”

“Mmm, I understand.”

Poof!

As Collie returned to his giant form, Artier jumped up lightly and got on Collie's back.

“Simon, you walk next to us. You'll act as a sort of groom.”

“…”

“Simon?”

Simon was staring blankly at the transformed Collie with a dazed expression.

His two ears were perked up, and his tail was wagging frantically from side to side.

“Simon?”

“You called.”

“What's wrong with you?”

“I, I don't know what you're talking about.”

‘Say that after you stop your tail.’

Did he notice Artier's gaze?

Simon hurriedly grabbed his own tail with his hands. And as if he was quite embarrassed, he drooped his ears and looked away.

“I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm like this either…”

“What's causing it?”

“When I look at Collie-nim's true form, for some reason my heart pounds and my blood feels like it's getting hot.”

“…What did you say?”

“What on earth does that mean?”

Collie and Artier stared at Simon at the same time.

Simon hurriedly poured out excuses like a mountain.

“It's not that I love him or anything like that! It's clearly different!”

“…Right.”

“Master, what does love mean?”

“You don't need to know.”

Artier glanced at Collie's eyes and couldn't help but laugh.

This guy Collie… he was pretending not to know when he knew.

“Eeh, please tell me, sir. Simon-ssi is saying he loves me.”

“I said you don't need to know.”

“If you keep this up, I'll search your head, Master.”

“Was that possible?”

“Aha, so this is what love meant?”

“I told you it wasn't like that!”

The silly conversation finally stopped when Simon shrieked.

The sound of Artier and Collie's giggling filled the forest for a while.

“So what on earth was that?”

“A kind of… respect.”

“Respect?”

“Yes. It felt like respect was forcibly boiling up.”

Simon said so and then turned his head away sharply.

It seemed he wouldn't open his mouth for a while.

‘If Simon, who has received no education from the beastmen, shows such a reaction… is respect for Spirit Creatures not education, but engraved in the race's blood?’

If so, this first plan might yield surprisingly good results.

And as they went down to the village, that prediction became a reality.

“What's that? Who's coming down from the back mountain?”

“Gasp… that form?”

“It's a Spirit Creature! A Spirit Creature-nim has come!”

Beastmen flocked from all directions.

Bears, dogs, cats, and various other animals' gazes were all focused solely on Collie.

“Th-this is overwhelming…”

“He spoke. As expected of a Spirit Creature-nim!”

“But why is he carrying a human on his back?”

The gazes sharpened in an instant.

Artier felt like his whole body was being pricked by needles.

‘Why is the treatment so different?’

In their gazes, he felt several negative emotions.

Underneath the fear, anger, and bewilderment, hatred was very thickly laid.

‘This is the karma of the human race.’

It couldn't be helped even if it was unfair.

This was a stigma that he could not escape even if he wanted to.

As long as he did not give up on being human, he would never be able to remove this label.

‘There's no time right now. I'm sorry, but I'll have to use Collie a bit.’

Having made his decision, Artier conveyed his thoughts to Collie.

Collie, call me Master so that others can hear.

Pardon?

Please. I think the residents' vigilance is too excessive.

Collie heard Artier's thoughts and thought for a moment before speaking.

“Master, where should we go now?”

“Master?”

“He called a human Master?”

The surrounding beastmen immediately started to murmur.

“Let's go to the Merchant's Guild. Our business is there.”

“I understand. Simon-ssi, please follow along as well, sir.”

“Yes.”

Thud, thud.

The sound of footsteps echoed unusually loudly. As Collie moved forward, a path naturally opened up.

No one obstructed them until they reached the center of the city.

“Master, but why did you do this?”

“What?”

“Honestly, there was no need to appear so openly, was there? If you wanted, it would have been enough to visit secretly or just send me, sir.”

Collie's words were valid. In the first place, if he had sent either Collie or Simon, this commotion would not have happened.

Nevertheless, Artier insisted on following them to Ker Tupa.

Artier scratched his cheek and smiled awkwardly.

“Since it's something humans started, shouldn't humans be the ones to clean it up?”

“Hmm… is that so?”

“That's right. And I wanted to see Ker Tupa in this state once.”

“Pardon? What does that mean?”

“It's just something.”

The Ker Tupa that Artier had always seen was only a burning image.

The resentful gazes of the beastmen were also incomparable to now.

‘So it was originally such a peaceful village.’

Children were riding horses and playing in the streets, and on the streets, there were wooden pillars with signs that said "for claw maintenance."

Sheep were grazing peacefully, and between them, shepherd dogs and beastmen children were joyfully running.

‘The survival rate is only 5%… Even I could count on one hand the number of times I saw the ending with the beastmen alive, I wonder what will happen this time.’

Soon, they arrived at the Merchant's Guild.

However, Artier, who got off Collie's back, could not go any further. A large number of beastmen were blocking the entrance to the guild.

“It seems the rumor has spread.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Don't worry. I have a plan for this too.”

As Artier walked alone, leaving Collie behind, the beastmen's expressions grew more and more hostile.

“Stop!”

“…I didn't come to eat you.”

Artier forced a smile and opened his mouth, but it didn't have much of an effect.

“Just state your business, human.”

“Can I meet the guild leader?”

“Grrr… What right do you have?”

Artier took out a piece of paper from his inventory.

“I have a letter of recommendation.”

[Letter of Recommendation]

In the name of Cranman, this is to inform that the bearer of this letter of recommendation is a guest of the Count's family.

Oron de Cranman

It was the letter of recommendation Artier had obtained while saving the Count.

The Cranman family crest clearly stamped at the bottom could not be replicated by any magic in this world.

“A letter of recommendation?”

But a moment later, the guild member snorted and replied.

“So what about this?”

“…Pardon?”

To show such a reaction even after seeing the Count's family's letter of recommendation?

The guild member threw the letter of recommendation and said.

“Listen up, human. This is our territory. We're not some small country that listens to the Empire's trivial commands!”

“No, that's not what I meant by showing it…”

“Get lost! Or I'll make you pay the price for fearlessly setting foot in our territory!”

As soon as the guild member finished speaking, all the beastmen in that spot drew their weapons or claws.

The street was instantly engulfed in a ferocious atmosphere.

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