Ch.68Chapter 68

The absurd thing was that the heirs felt the same way.

No, actually, their sense of absurdity was even worse than Shir and Freya’s, since the chieftain was determined by Wendigo’s mood.

Who would have thought one could lose their qualification as chieftain simply because they smelled bad?

“Let go, let go of me! Surely the Djin must have made some mistake… Aagh!”

“Shut up! The Djin said you’re disgusting, what mistake could there be?!”

“Let go before I break your wrist!”

Yakof, who had been expelled from the tribe, was causing a commotion while denying reality, but the warriors showed no mercy for such disrespect.

For a moment, the sounds of flesh tearing and bones breaking could be heard.

When the sound of something being dragged away reached them, the heirs broke into a cold sweat and tensed up.

They nervously watched the Djin while sniffing to check their own scent.

‘Damn, I think I might smell a bit sweaty.’

‘Good thing I brought a scent pouch.’

Some had brought scent pouches or perfumes to mask their odor, but most had not.

Why on earth would warriors who lived with blood and sweat carry such things?

A red fox beastkin tapped the scent pouch hanging at his waist and sneered at his siblings.

“Tsk, tsk, do my half-siblings not know anything about manners? You should have prepared like me.”

“Kiamen!”

His brother glared at him, baring his teeth, but Kiamen smiled slyly, confident that his siblings would be expelled.

Beastkin naturally had strong body odors due to their beast bloodline.

‘Heaven is helping me!’

If the Djin was disgusted by mere human smell, it would surely be repulsed by his siblings’ scents and drive them away.

Then naturally, he would become the chieftain of the Lefrune tribe!

“You there. Beastkin, step forward.”

The Lefrune heirs frowned as they stepped forward. They were the only beastkin present.

Kiamen watched his siblings step forward pathetically while wearing a victorious smile…

“You there. You too, step forward.”

“What? Me, sir?”

“Are you not a beastkin but a human wearing animal skin? Don’t be troublesome and come forward quickly.”

Wendigo ordered Kiamen with an incredulous tone. Not expecting to be included, Kiamen bit his lip and stepped forward.

As Kiamen approached, one of his brothers mocked him.

“You were so smug about having a scent pouch, but look at you now. How strong must your stench be if even a scent pouch is useless?”

Grind.

Kiamen glared at his brother while grinding his teeth. Naturally, his brother ignored Kiamen’s gaze.

Just as Kiamen was about to raise his fist, unable to overcome his humiliation, Geron stepped between them.

“Have you forgotten you’re in front of the Djin? I hope you understand that unlike the Djin, we have poor patience.”

Geron warned them with a fierce glare. Behind him stood warriors ready to draw their swords at any moment.

“I-I’m sorry!”

“Please forgive us!”

Kiamen and his brother lowered their eyes and begged for forgiveness.

Geron accepted their apology by patting their shoulders.

Watching this, Wendigo whispered to Geron when he returned to his side.

“Aren’t you scaring them too much?”

“This is because you suddenly expelled someone, Djin. I don’t like playing this role either.”

Geron glared at Wendigo and grumbled.

As if he enjoyed intimidating people he’d just met?

“I don’t know which of these guys will be chosen by you, but you should at least show some authority.”

“If they’re not idiots, they wouldn’t think of attacking me, would they?”

Wendigo thought it unlikely that such fools existed.

Not even multiple tribes united in attack had managed to inflict proper damage on him.

Even Gelmir, the leader of the alliance, had lost his head…

But Geron shook his head and said firmly.

“The world is wide, and idiots are plentiful. Wasn’t it those very idiots who ignored your warning and started a fight?”

‘Sad that it’s so convincing.’

Wendigo couldn’t refute Geron’s words. Indeed, considering they had ignored his warnings even when he used corpses, the people of this world were extraordinary.

They were the kind who would do anything given the opportunity.

“Well, fine. It doesn’t matter since I was going to expel them anyway.”

Wendigo dismissed Geron and stared intently at the Lefrune heirs.

As the massive monster—no, Djin—looked down at them, the heirs felt fear creeping up from the depths of their hearts.

The lights that could hardly be called eyes seemed to peer into their souls, making them extremely uncomfortable.

‘It feels like it’s gotten colder.’

‘Damn. With no expression, I can’t tell what it’s thinking.’

Wendigo examined the heirs and sniffed. What he discovered was quite surprising.

“Hmm, you all resemble your father a lot.”

“Our father… you say?”

Miloshi recalled his father and asked with a sour expression. It wasn’t a comparison he appreciated.

He didn’t want to admit resembling his father, who was notorious as a swindler among many.

Wendigo nodded in confirmation.

“Yes. He must have left quite an impression, because I’m certain of it.”

Flinch.

The other heirs, except Miloshi, perked up their ears, sensing an opportunity.

‘Could it be that father deceived the Djin?’

It was quite possible. The Lefrune tribe had always been skilled at deception, and their father was the most vicious swindler among them.

For the first time in their lives, feeling respect for their father, they decided to actively sell him out.

“Our father was certainly an impressive man, wasn’t he?”

“Was he famous from the beginning?”

“Of course! There’s no one in the north who doesn’t know his name!”

“I see…”

Wendigo nodded.

Indeed, if he was the kind of man who could lie even while being beaten, his record must be impressive.

If these people resembled such a man, he wouldn’t regret expelling them.

‘No need to think further.’

Wendigo pointed at Miloshi and said.

“From now on, this one will be the chieftain of the Lefrune tribe.”

“Uh… me?”

Miloshi pointed at himself and asked. It was something he hadn’t expected at all.

Naturally, his brothers who had been actively appealing to Wendigo were greatly shocked and glared at Miloshi.

What on earth had the Djin liked about him!

“May I ask why you chose me?”

“Because you’re the only one who smells clean.”

“Djin…”

Geron grabbed the back of his neck and tapped Wendigo’s leg with his sword. It was a signal to please give a proper explanation.

Wendigo decided to explain more properly for Geron’s sake.

“And unlike the others, you don’t resemble your father at all.”

“…Did my father, Valken, offend you in some way?”

“Hmm… I don’t think it was that serious.”

When Wendigo denied it, Miloshi inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

Indeed, who would dare swindle a Djin in a life-or-death situation…

“He just tried to hide a few heirs, ignoring the conditions I demanded. Deceiving an enemy isn’t that strange, I suppose.”

“Ah, shit.”

Miloshi expressed his amazement at his father’s remarkable judgment.

* * *

Miloshi’s rude response was graciously overlooked thanks to Wendigo’s generous tolerance.

Geron also didn’t severely reprimand Miloshi, considering that his father had tried to deceive the Djin.

He blamed Wendigo for sharing such information in the first place.

“You used to explain things well in the past, but these days…”

“I can’t just tell him about my abilities. And being talkative isn’t dignified… How many calming berries have you eaten today?”

Thanks to this, Geron once again swallowed his anger by eating calming berries.

Fearing he might give Geron a stress-induced illness, Wendigo changed the subject.

“At least we’ve filtered out quite a few, which is fortunate.”

“Crunch. Were they really all bad people?”

“That’s too harsh. What do you take me for? I told you to expel them because they were truly all garbage.”

To others, it might have seemed like he expelled people for the outlandish reason that they smelled bad, but Wendigo had very seriously screened the candidates.

Who could have known that half of the heirs who had rushed in would reek of rot?

As a result, the matter he had planned to decide in a day had to be postponed.

“By the way, have you noticed anything strange about that Summoner, Shir?”

“That young Summoner lady has been behaving herself. In fact, I heard she’s been greeting people and trying to make friends.”

“Really? That’s strange.”

Wendigo stroked his chin, recalling his first impression of Shir.

Her beauty, comparable to Skadi’s, was surprising, but Wendigo had focused on the scent emanating from her body.

‘Her smell was quite fragrant… but it was definitely mixed with the scent of a Djin.’

It was certain that she was a woman connected to Djin. Although her purpose for visiting the forest remained unknown…

“Call Skadi for me. And that Summoner, Shir, as well.”

“Are you planning to meet them directly?”

“Yes. I’ve become quite curious.”

That was something he would find out soon.

If she had come with friendly intentions, they could become friends depending on the conditions.

If not, she would experience quite a painful time.

* * *

While the heirs were washing themselves and trying to eliminate their odors, Shir walked around the village gathering information.

From her perspective, the forest Djin was an incredibly eccentric spirit.

At least the Djin she had encountered before, even if they insulted and tormented others, never expelled them.

However, Shir returned to her lodging without any useful information.

Throwing herself onto the bed, Shir frowned and muttered.

“Are they all under some kind of taboo? Why is everyone so eager to praise such a Djin?”

Protecting people, managing the land and forest by paying Summoners…

Why on earth would a Djin do such things!

Shir ruffled her hair in frustration. Freya appeared beside her and cackled.

[Kyahaha! You overthink things too much. You should just accept that such Djin exist and move on.]

“You were also taken aback at first!”

[Well, that was because I was genuinely perplexed. And I think I roughly know why he did that.]

Shir glared at Freya’s sparkling eyes and crossed her arms.

“Surely you’re not going to say he really expelled them because they smelled bad?”

[Oh my. Do you think I’m such a tactless Djin? I wouldn’t joke like that when I know it would upset you.]

‘I’m dealing with a Djin. I’m dealing with a damn Djin. I’m dealing with an annoyingly unlucky Djin…’

Shir swallowed her irritation while mentally cursing Freya.

Freya fixed Shir’s disheveled hair and whispered in her ear.

[I think he must have the power to judge people by their smell.]

“That’s impossible. Djin can’t wield powers unrelated to their source.”

An inexperienced Summoner might have agreed, but Shir was no novice.

If such a thing were possible, why would Freya, who had lived for countless ages, be limited to powers related to beauty?

Despite Shir’s objection, Freya maintained her assertion.

[Mutations don’t only happen to beasts and humans, my dear.]

Just as extreme cold becomes indistinguishable from heat, sometimes Djin were born based on something that seemed completely unrelated.

This world always flowed based on endless possibilities.

“But in all the history books and information I’ve found, such Djin…”

[How long do you think your kind has been recording history? In ancient times, such things were quite common. These days, fewer Djin are born, so it’s hard to find examples.]

Unlike her usual self, Freya responded with a serious attitude, making it impossible for Shir not to believe her.

Freya sincerely advised the Summoner she genuinely cared for.

[My dear, why don’t you leave the forest instead of being greedy? Regardless of his powers, mutant Djin are rarely…]

“Lady Shir, are you there? The Djin is looking for you!”

[Oh my.]

Freya, who had been giving advice with a serious face until just now, was startled by the voice from outside and looked at the door.

Then she looked back at Shir, pretending to wipe away tears.

[Sob, sob. I will never forget you!]

“Stop saying unlucky things and come with me!”

Just as I suspected, this is why Djin are…!

Shir opened the door with a huff. The warrior looked confused and peered inside to check.

Contrary to her words about someone coming with her, there was no one else in her room.

The warrior looked at Shir with pitying eyes. He recalled the superstition that Summoners who mishandled magic sometimes went insane.

‘Has she gone mad at such a young age…’

Grind.

Of course, Shir wasn’t crazy. In her bloodline, there was a bad-tempered Djin…

Knowing he wouldn’t believe her explanation, Shir sighed and asked the warrior.

“…Just guide me quickly.”

“Yes. I didn’t hear anything.”

“……”

Shir was infuriated by the tactless warrior’s response.

Sometimes, heavy silence was more appreciated than foolish consolation.