Ch.195The Emperor’s Triumphant Return

After defeating the resurrected werewolf once more, I safely retrieved my revolver and obtained the Emperor’s Token from the inner chamber of the temple.

The “Emperor’s Token,” which had been securely stored in a treasure chest, turned out to be a yellow stone that emitted a foul odor. Even with the lid closed and carrying the entire box, the smell was so intense that I nearly retched several times.

Somehow, I managed to carry the box back to the cave entrance, where Chief Cyrus and Marg were waiting for me.

They congratulated me on successfully passing the test and explained the cause of the werewolf’s resurrection.

Apparently, a skill called “Walking Dead” that the werewolf possessed was the key to its revival.

“What’s this Walking Dead thing?”

“It’s a special skill possessed by certain draconic species or beastkin monsters. Creatures with this skill can resurrect as undead monsters after death, and if they survive for another year in that state, they return to their original form.”

“This may sound like an excuse, but as far as I know, this is the first time a lycanthrope has awakened to Walking Dead. You handled the situation remarkably well under those circumstances.”

“It was thanks to the knife Phyllis prepared for me. It was the perfect counter against an undead lycanthrope.”

The “Spiritual Arrow Head” enchantment that Phyllis had placed on the knife was originally a powerful exorcism spell created by elves to defeat ghost-type monsters.

Since it was applied to a silver weapon—the only weakness of lycanthropes—it must have been doubly effective against the werewolf that had turned undead.

“Managing monsters for tests, knowing about monster skills… you Silver Wolves seem to be keeping many secrets.”

“I won’t deny it. The fact that the Silver Wolves, who were fewer in number compared to other tribes, could reign supreme was largely because we monopolized information and know-how about skills.”

“Would you consider sharing that information with the settlers now? It could be very helpful.”

“That matter requires more time. It’s been only about ten years since we first met the settlers… we have many concerns about laying down everything we hold.”

“I see… I understand. I’ll keep what I’ve seen and experienced today as confidential as possible.”

I don’t know how many secrets the Silver Wolves are hiding, but as long as they don’t harm the settlers, I have no intention of digging them up.

Besides, it would be ridiculous for me, who monopolizes the secret of Arcane Word, to complain about the Silver Wolves’ policies.

Upon returning to the Silver Wolf village on horseback, I followed Chief Cyrus’s instructions and placed the Emperor’s Token on a large rock in the village square.

The Emperor’s Token, placed on a dish-shaped rock, emitted a stench like a ten-year-old toilet in all directions, but the Silver Wolf villagers gathered in the square were chatting casually as if nothing was amiss.

Aren’t they bothered by this smell, considering Silver Wolves supposedly have the keenest sense of smell among beastkin?

Perhaps they’ve become accustomed to it through their long tradition and no longer feel aversion.

“Now, to celebrate the birth of a new emperor, pour the liquor!”

“Wooooo~”

At the chief’s command, two slender Silver Wolf women brought large bottles of liquor and began pouring it onto the rock.

As the strong alcohol filled the dish-like depression in the rock, the foul odor from the Emperor’s Token subsided slightly. Then Marg came forward with a large hammer, took off his upper garments, and performed a slow swinging ritual.

As young Silver Wolf men stomped their feet to heighten the atmosphere, Chief Cyrus approached me and spoke quietly.

“Watch carefully. See what this Emperor’s Token you so desired truly is. Heh heh heh.”

“I’m getting an ominous feeling…”

“Now, Marg! Split it with one magnificent strike!”

“OHHH! HAAAAAAA!”

As Marg’s powerfully swung hammer struck the Emperor’s Token precisely, a loud “CRACK” resonated, and the token shattered into dozens of pieces.

Green fluid burst from inside the shattered token, mixing with the alcohol pooled on the rock, and in the middle of it all, a white larva the size of a banana was disgustingly wriggling.

“Ugh…!?”

“Surprised? That larva is the young of a monster called the Emperor Crawler. The cultivation fluid from its egg sac, distilled liquor, and the finely mashed larva are boiled down to create the Emperor’s Token.”

“You eat that? A monster larva!?”

“The Emperor Crawler has characteristics of wild animals, so magic stones don’t form in its body until after its first metamorphosis. As for the taste… I can’t honestly say it’s good, but the effect is certain, so don’t worry.”

“No, but still…”

As I was speechless at the shocking scene unfolding before me, Chief Cyrus smiled meaningfully and whispered so only I could hear.

‘What does it matter? It’s not like you’ll be the one eating it, right?’

‘!!’

That’s right. The person who would “use” the Emperor’s Token wasn’t me.

Recalling this important truth I had momentarily forgotten, I quietly shook hands with Chief Cyrus and watched as the Emperor’s Token was being completed.

Regarding the specific details… I’ll omit them.

~ ~ ~ Moon Lake, Will’s Party Lodging ~ ~ ~

After receiving the completed Emperor’s Token, I hurried back to Moon Lake, stopped by the marketplace to buy some ingredients, and headed to our lodging.

This was to keep my promise to make something delicious after completing the test.

*Knock knock*

“I’m back.”

As soon as I knocked on the door, I heard hurried footsteps, and the door swung open with four women warmly welcoming me.

*Door opens*

“Welcome back, Will!”

“We’ve been waiting for you forever!”

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“As you can see, I’m fine. I successfully obtained the Emperor’s Token too. It’s all thanks to everyone’s help.”

The women gathered around me, offering welcomes and concerns.

I embraced each of them in turn and showed a V-sign, but the perceptive Seti and Phyllis found evidence that the Emperor’s Test was no easy feat.

“You used up all the potions Jessica procured. Must have been a tough fight.”

“The Spiritual Arrow Head is gone too. Seems the battle situation was dire enough to require close combat with the werewolf. Did you sustain any serious injuries?”

“It wasn’t that bad, really. If I explain what happened step by step…”

I maintained my composure as best I could while explaining in detail about the monsters I encountered at the test site.

What the monsters looked like, what attacks they used, and how I dealt with them to overcome the crisis.

And also what happened in the fight with the werewolf, the final opponent.

“…That’s how I delivered the finishing blow to the resurrected werewolf with the knife Phyllis enhanced. I judged it was much safer than running away until Wolfsbane could be reloaded.”

“A monster that died once resurrecting as undead… I didn’t know such a skill existed.”

“The theory that lycanthropes could possess skills was still an unproven hypothesis, but judging from the Silver Wolves’ reaction, it seems to be true.”

“Yeah, the Silver Wolves seem to have done quite a bit of research on monster abilities, but they’re still considering whether to share that information with the settlers. I plan to keep quiet about it until they decide to disclose it first.”

“Huh~ The Silver Wolves are actually quite cautious. I thought they were open with settlers like us.”

“Beastkin are inherently conservative. The White Rabbits at Cotton Tail Trading Post are the exception.”

The White Rabbits of Cotton Tail are special… that’s certainly true.

Even the White Rabbits who lived west of the Grand Workshop of Paracelsus basically lived somewhat closed off in their own village.

“Oh right, show us the Emperor’s Token! There’s no rule against showing it to women, is there?”

“Ah, well… there’s no such rule. But…”

“?”

“It’s… visually quite horrific? If you really want to see it, you should be mentally prepared, and it’s best not to look before or after meals.”

The completed Emperor’s Token is contained in a transparent glass bottle, well-packaged in an antique wooden box.

I could take it out of my bag and open the lid right now, revealing its terrible and despairing appearance to everyone… but honestly, I don’t recommend it.

Having witnessed the manufacturing process firsthand, I ended up vomiting all the bread I had eaten for lunch.

“Hmm~ I’m curious, but after hearing that, I’m not sure I want to see it…”

“I’ll pass. Will said he’d make something delicious, and I don’t want to regret looking at it.”

“I don’t want to see it either.”

“Curiosity killed the cat, they say. I’ll refrain as well.”

In the end, it was decided that the Emperor’s Token would remain securely stored in its wooden box until it was handed over to Gerald Fork.

My sincere condolences to Gerald, who will have to down it in one shot, chunks and all.

“Well, let’s set aside talk of the test… None of you have had dinner yet, right? I’ll make the dish I promised, so please wait a bit. I bought all the ingredients on my way here.”

“What are you cooking today?”

“A dish from my ‘real’ homeland. The foods I’ve made so far were from the world I lived in, but this time it’s a traditional dish from the country where I was born and raised.”

“Ooh~”

Under the expectant gazes of the four women, I began taking out the ingredients from my bag.

Beef and pork, green onions, chives, garlic, beans.

Plus the remaining flour and cooking oil, and the soy sauce I had extracted earlier to test Glory Toast.

Today’s menu is… tteok-mandu-guk (rice cake and dumpling soup).