Ch.1185Reckless Compatriot

From within the thick smoke and haze, I propped myself up using Durandal thrust into the ground and glared sharply at the rock monkeys before me.

The third non-human race I encountered after descending into Naraka: rock monkeys.

Just as the nagas had described, they resembled bipedal gorillas with gray skin, their entire bodies covered in gray or brown fur.

Most wore somewhat crude cloth garments with rocks attached like armor, while some individuals had added leather cloaks or feather decorations, making them look quite elaborate.

…Aren’t they just monkey werebeasts rather than a new non-human race?

Well, if they were merely clothed bipedal gorillas, I might have thought so, but…

‘…I wasn’t told they had four arms.’

These creatures had a total of four arms.

Two muscular arms attached below the shoulders. Plus two slightly thinner arms attached to the shoulder blades on their backs.

This was a characteristic I hadn’t heard about from the nagas. They had just called them bipedal monkeys, not four-armed monkeys.

Such a noticeable feature, too.

[Perhaps the snakes considered four-armed monkeys to be normal.]

‘…How could that be normal?’

[It could be. In this underground—Naraka, was it? Have you seen any normal-looking beasts here?]

Ah, that’s true.

Even deer and frogs in this underground world looked like monsters. Four-armed monkeys aren’t particularly unusual in comparison.

—-

Anyway, I was able to accomplish my goal of stopping their stone-throwing without much difficulty.

“…Not sorcery?”

“Enemy? Flying snake person? Is that possible…?!”

These four-armed rock monkeys were so shocked by my sudden appearance that they forgot about attacking the wall and just stared at me intently.

“What enemy! What kind of enemy is it!”

“Can’t see! Stay alert!”

Their speech was somewhat clumsy, like that of children.

The bizarre accent mixed with squeaking cries made them difficult to understand, but the language itself was similar to Eastern, so I could grasp the general meaning.

This confirms that the Ka’har are indeed a monkey-like race.

“Calm yourselves! It’s just one snake, what reason is there to fear!”

The leader of the creatures—their king, it seemed—spoke quite fluently compared to the others.

And not only was his speech fluent, but his appearance was remarkably ornate.

He wore red-dyed cloth decorated with embroidery, adorned with ornaments made of bent steel and gold.

Unlike the other rock monkeys, his armor was made of refined metal rather than rock, and he wore a golden ring-shaped crown on his head.

His aura seemed to be at least Hyalbaer-level, which certainly qualified him to claim the title of king.

Still below a demigod. Not my match, of course.

“…You should be afraid. Because I’m not a naga.”

I smiled slightly as I waved my arm to disperse the thick smoke, then stepped forward to face them.

“Not snake person…?”

“That, that couldn’t be…!”

The rock monkeys burst into confusion as they finally realized I was human, not naga.

“This can’t be, not a naga…? And that appearance…”

Even their king pointed at me with wide eyes, as if he’d seen something he shouldn’t have.

Why are they so surprised? Are they underground natives who don’t know what humans are?

“What’s the matter? Never seen a human before? This is why underground hicks—”

“A hairless primate!!”

…….

…A hairless what?

I was momentarily speechless at the unexpected designation.

Hairless primate? Did he just call me a hairless primate?

What kind of crazy term is that?

“Wait, what did you just…”

“It’s a hairless primate! A hairless primate! Goodness, to think these pitifully wretched creatures still exist!”

The rock monkey king exclaimed in utter shock, practically jumping up and down. It was almost like the reaction Lincoln might have had upon seeing a mutilated Black slave.

“Hairless? Why hairless?!”

“Keeeeee…!!”

“None! Really no hair! That’s fake hair!”

“Can’t look! Too horrible!”

Not just him, but all the other rock monkeys lined up around him backed away in shock, nearly falling over.

“I can’t believe it. How can such a… such a curse exist! Terrible, terrible! That bare, naked appearance with not a single hair except on the head!”

The rock monkey king covered his eyes with his hands and shook his head as if in distress. Is being hairless really that strange? This was practically treating it as a curse.

“…It’s not a curse?”

I mean, we do treat balding people as somewhat cursed, but this is different.

Balding people are cursed because something that should be there isn’t, but this situation is just a misunderstanding caused by racial differences.

So there’s no need to get upset or annoyed about it.

“So enough with the nonsense, first let’s…”

“Poor thing, so pitiful. As if covering yourself with animal fur could hide that bare appearance! What a crude and pathetic notion!”

“Listen to me for a moment…”

“But even such a pitiful being deserves care—that is the duty of a king. I, Turankai, do not discriminate against fellow primates just because of unsightly hairlessness!”

“Fellow primates, what—”

“You must have allied with those snake creatures believing they would understand your pain, being equally hairless? There’s no need for that anymore. I am here now!”

“……Hah.”

…This bastard isn’t listening to me.

He’s arbitrarily decided I’m a monkey with a complex about being hairless, which is honestly so ridiculous I can’t even get angry.

“Come! Return to where you belong. Take our hands and together let us destroy those abominable thieves!”

“Turankai! Turankai!”

“Primates! United! Strong!”

“Kill all thieves! Help poor variant!”

“Though your appearance may be unsightly, you possess remarkably powerful strength. If you join our forces, I shall make you my right hand and cherish you!”

Crazy monkey bastards.

The spectacle of them applauding and cheering as if this were some touching scene while Turankai extended his hand toward me was nothing short of a farce.

Poor and unsightly variant? This is truly absurd. These guys who could be annihilated in less than ten minutes if I felt like it are pitying me?

Let me show you what true pity is.

“If you hesitate to join, you may leave! Primates never harm their brethren, so I guarantee your safe passage in the name of Turankai!”

…No, no. Get a grip, Haschal.

Looking at him, while his manner of speaking is irritating, his character itself seems kind and benevolent, so it wouldn’t be right to annihilate them just because I’m annoyed.

Hersella wouldn’t do that either. Probably.

So, suppressing my rising irritation, I released my divine power—which I had been reluctant to use due to its excessive energy consumption—to calm them down.

– Whoooosh…!

Brilliant starlight burning with white heat. The ground trembling and shaking under the pressure of the released divine power.

The cheering rock monkeys fell silent at once, and Turankai, who had been smiling benevolently, stiffened his expression.

Such is divine authority. The moment it manifests, it overwhelms everything around it, invoking worship, awe, and fear.

From the beginning, except for ancient dragons who are equal to demigods, it’s nearly impossible for mere mortals to not be intimidated by this pressure unless they possess at least a fragment of divinity.

The rock monkey king before me was no exception; Turankai’s face, as he stared at me hesitantly, no longer showed any trace of his previous cheerfulness.

“A demigod…?! This is unexpected…”

“Now are you willing to listen? Good.”

The emotions in his gaze were disbelief, confusion, and wariness rather than hostility—there wasn’t enough fighting spirit for that. It was the look of a frightened dog.

“Then listen.”

I swung Durandal, which was emitting a golden radiance, creating a narrow but infinitely deep ravine between him and me as I declared:

“I am not here to become your kinsman or subordinate. Nor have I descended to end your lineage as your enemy.”

“Neither kinsman nor enemy?”

Turankai twitched his eyebrows as if to ask what that meant.

“Then for what purpose…?”

Purpose? That’s obvious, isn’t it? When a third party who is neither enemy nor ally intervenes in a fight, there’s usually only one reason.

“I’ve come to stop this war. This is nothing but foolish nonsense that benefits neither you nor the nagas.”

“…Foolish nonsense?”

“Was that expression uncomfortable? But what else should I call this farce that has caused thousands or tens of thousands to bleed due to ignorance and misunderstanding?”

“Misunderstanding? What do you mean by that?”

Turankai, who had momentarily bristled at the term “foolish nonsense,” hesitated at my mention of misunderstanding and demanded a detailed explanation.

“Are you curious? Then I’ll tell you. The truth behind this incident.”

Thanks to his rational approach, I was able to gain time to explain the nagas’ position to them without causing a horrific bloodbath.

After that, everything proceeded smoothly.