episode_0018

After leaving the workshop, I continued walking along the sidewalk.

My head is complicated.

This is because Ramrat’s words about whether a slave greets someone are not easily forgotten.

I looked at the bracelet padlocked on my arm.

It is heavy and clunky, yet sophisticated.

For the roughly vague request Jules made yesterday, the elaborately engraved text is beautifully written.

I think the content may have been purified a little.

“Jul.”

“Call me Seollang.”

“Seollang.”

“.”

It doesn’t seem like he’s angry enough to laugh at himself.

I smiled and looked up at Jules.

“Seollang. Do you know how to read?”

“Uh.”

Now that I think about it, Jules was a highly educated person.

Judging by his tone and actions, it doesn’t seem like much.

“Which Ain’s writing is this? Is there a separate text that each Ain uses?”

“There are separate local languages and scripts. The most commonly used official language is Elvish, and it is also an Elvish language.”

The official language is also a measure of which country is the strongest. So does that mean elves are stronger than wolves?

“Then, are elves the strongest among demihumans?”

“No. Of course it’s hot.”

Otherwise, why use elven language?

A common problem with hieroglyphs in any country is that they are extremely difficult to learn.

There’s no need to use that language, right?

“Then why do you use Elvish?”

“Elven language is a phonetic alphabet, and Hosot language is an ideogram. Among them, it is a primitive hieroglyph.”

I could understand it right away.

If their script is inferior to that of other countries or regions, they give up their own script and adopt the script of another country.

This happened often.

However, this is a phonetic script like English or Hangul.

‘No matter how you look at it, it looks like Chinese characters.’

“Learn the language of the tribe’s priests or wolves. If possible, learn only the elven language and beat them.”

“Do you know Wolf’s writing?”

“You know. Because I am the next priest.”

It seems like being proud is a great position.

Holding a ancestral rite means believing in something.

What kind of god does the wolf believe in?

I hope you don’t believe in ‘angels’.

“What god does Hosot believe in? Do you believe in the ancestor who blessed you?”

“All demi-humans serve Maal, the only god. My ancestors will also be next to Maal.”

Maal. This is the god that my father recited a prayer to every mealtime.

“My father also believed in Maal.”

“Of course. Maal is a god who believes in everything from goblins to kobolds and harpies. Moreover, unlike other gods, he actually exists.”

The devil’s advice passed through my mind.

‘I told you not to be hostile towards religion.’

I have no intention of being hostile.

However, I couldn’t help but wonder.

I was an atheist.

I have never heard in detail about the origins of the religions of this world.

How can we believe in the same God when we live in different regions and different races? I asked the most basic question.

“How do we know that God exists?”

“Maal foresees great disaster and gives a solution.”

─Solution?

The devil said that the god of this world is directly involved in the world.

But how?

“How? Do you descend in person?”

“No one knows except the servants. When predicting misfortune, Horus’ Dragonia, as his representative, visits each nation and tribe.”

The context continued.

So Dragonia can use magic.

“So Dragonia is Maal’s messenger?”

“That’s right. You were blessed by that dragonia.”

‘You did tell that lie yesterday.’

Only then did the puzzle come together in my mind.

This is what I kept in my heart the day I received the blessing from God’s messenger.

Otherwise, there is no way I would open my heart to someone I only met for one day.

I was finally able to understand Jules’ intentions, which had been floating around.

So, wasn’t Juul… at that time planning to sort me out with that elf and leave?

‘It’s quite possible.’

In other words, the moment you are caught lying.

If the day comes that it is revealed that I have been blessed by the devil, Jules might try to kill me.

“Haa···.”

“What’s wrong? Is there any pain anywhere?”

“No.”

······I stood in the wrong line.

* * * * * *

“There you go!”

Just as Jules said, there were footprints all over the area.

Although it seemed like there was no one in the cave, the sound of quarrying could be heard from inside as if there was no one there.

‘Is this a mine?’

“From now on, call me Seolrang.”

“Yes. What will I be doing here?”

“Nothing. Probably interpreting.”

translate? I am also excited because I feel like I have become a high-quality human resource.

The inside of the cave was dark, but Jules’ steps were unstoppable.

But it wasn’t me.

I couldn’t see the floor so I walked gently dragging my feet on the floor.

However, even after dragging my feet for a while, there were no stones sticking out.

‘Why is the cave floor so clean?’

Soon, unfamiliar footsteps were heard nearby.

Perhaps because I turned my back on the sunlight, I could sometimes see my eyes glowing green and blue in the dark. As it got closer, its eyes disappeared into darkness along with a whining sound.

“Are you afraid of Seolrang?”

“You mean it’s nice to meet you?”

“But why don’t you say anything?”

“Because it’s a wolf.”

“Yes?”

“That’s a wolf.”

Are wolves a creature that can be raised? Although they are said to be the ancestors of dogs, I knew they were animals that could not be tamed.

After much thought, I stuck to Juul.

Because I didn’t want to come here and become food for wolves.

How far did it go that way?

It was backlit from the inside.

It was because the cave ceiling collapsed.

Beneath the highlight where the broken light poured in, a hosot was sitting and resting.

Even though he was male, he was smaller and lighter-armed than Jules.

Nevertheless, he seemed to have the same physique as his father.

He wears a curved sword on his waist, just like Juul.

“You came back safely. Hmm?”

When Hosott found Jool, he stood up and greeted him.

Then, he sniffed and tilted his head, and his eyes fell on the neck of the terub attached to Juul’s waist.

“Isn’t that on your waist a cat?”

“That’s right.”

“···What happened to the kids?”

“Everyone is dead.”

“······Assholes.”

Hosott frowns.

“Hyuseo must be sad.”

“Your father is in the village, right?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll go in first.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Jules enters the cave.

Hosott glanced at me as I passed by.

I couldn’t look at it because I felt like if I made eye contact, they would talk to me and ask me what I was looking at.

“Are you going to eat that human? Or a body servant?”

Fuck! Is this a place like that too?!

“Neither. If you do something strange, you will die.”

“Of course it’s a joke.”

When Jool shows his fangs, Hosott laughs sheepishly.

‘······Is it really okay?’

Hosott chuckled and said no more.

That’s right! Grrr!

How far did it go that way?

I saw Dverg, a dwarf, carving the floor of a cave holding a torch.

The sound that echoed in the cave seemed to be the sound of the floor being flattened.

‘You grinded all this?’

The cave was not small at all.

But when I saw that most of the floor had been cleared, I could see how long they had been doing this.

Dverg trembled slightly as if he was afraid of Jules.

Dverg looks like a human being pushed down from above and pulled out to the side.

Even though he is short, his body is not small at all.

Even though he is shorter than me, I think he weighs 70 to 80 kg because of his splayed body.

Because I had my head down, I couldn’t look at my appearance.

Shoot ───!

The braziers that illuminated the surroundings were spaced out, and the sound of running water could be heard from somewhere. Unusually, it was not dark even though we were going deep into the cave.

‘Is there a water source?’

There is a water source in the cave theme.

Although it was said that there was a brazier in place, even considering that, it was strangely bright. I only found out the reason after going deeper.

A large waterfall was flowing from the ceiling, and a valley was created with rapid water flowing below it.

The current broke the cave ceiling.

The current is so strong that water droplets splash towards me from afar.

Thanks to this, the surrounding area was full of moss soaked in water.

‘If you step on it wrong, it’s perfect for breaking your head.’

“If it rains here, it will be bad.”

When a river flows, it means that the ground is low enough for water to flow. In Korea, too, when it rains, rivers flood.

When heavy rain falls in the southern tropical rainforest, water can pour out like a dam releasing water.

“Minister. Half of the village square was submerged in water.”

‘Minister? We decided to call it flood damage.’

···Anyway, it seems dangerous.

I walked on the moss carefully so as not to slip.

The waterfall was flowing long along a gentle slope.

Looking at the light coming from the direction of the flow, it seems like the water is flowing out of the cave, not underground.

There seemed to be a lot of fish falling from the waterfall, so a net was set up in a narrow area of the current. Even though it is inside a cave, there are many green plants and moss.

I had just crossed the skybridge that passes through the valley.

Only then did Hosott’s residence begin to appear one by one.

‘The village is quite large.’

A hosot washing in the river and a hosot lying down and sleeping like a wolf. Little hosots running around and slaves working.

All slaves were dverg.

Debergs are said to be people who work hard to become masters in a field. If you keep such people as slaves, the net and this bridge will be nothing.

They are also the people I will have to become close to in the future.

“Isn’t it cool?”

“Yes. It’s cool.”

It wasn’t an empty remark made to fit in.

The cave itself was nice, but the village was also well built.

First of all, what catches the eye the most is the watermill and waterway.

The water that flows through the channel connected to the watermill heads to the reservoir on the ceiling of the cave, and the pipes extending from the reservoir flow into the bamboo channel that leads to each house. Overflowing water goes into the fountain, and water overflowing from the fountain goes into the drain.

‘I can’t believe I get to see the capital in a place like this.’

The ground was like a terraced rice field on a mountain ridge, and had a downward structure.

Thanks to this, you can clearly see the village from above.

There were several wide holes in the ceiling.

The hole was not small but let in a lot of light, so the inside of the cave was bright enough without having to turn on the torch.

At the highest point of the cave stood a large leather tent.

The house below is made of wood and stone, making it much stronger and more stable than a tent house.

A tent made of leather was occasionally seen.

But that was only a minority.

Rather than being unable to live, it was a place to live that felt like old-fashioned stubbornness.

Several groups of hosots gathered together and walked around together.

At the same time, it gave the feeling that the village was quite quiet.

‘Is it because it’s still work time?’

Due to Hosott’s diet, hunting is probably his main occupation.

Meat is good, but I was worried that they would recommend raw meat for my meal.

Jules began walking toward the tent at the highest point of the cave.

On the way up, I saw the hieroglyphs Jules had mentioned drawn along the walls of the cave.

I think I understand why Jules said that the Hosot language is a primitive hieroglyph.

Because it was painted with hieroglyphs that resembled Egyptian murals.

As far as language was concerned, there were different levels of civilization.

‘It’s just like the 15th century BC.’

This is why I learn Elvish.

It was clear that Hosot language was probably being treated as Chinese characters.

“Come quickly. I’ll take you on a tour of the village later.”

I was mesmerized.

Before I knew it, I ran towards Jules, who was already a long way ahead.

All the windows were glass, so I could look inside the house, and each house had a couple of thatches.

Having a candle can also mean that you are wealthy.

Because candles were made from animal fat.

Even though the waterfall swept away most of the smell, a faint, pleasant smell wafted from the densely populated area.

It seems Juul is not the only one who is sensitive to smells.

As it is a terraced terrain, you can clearly see the village when looking down from the tent house.

‘This is Jules’ house.’

I followed Jules and entered the huge tent house.

It was a structure where another tent was built within the tent.

If I had to divide it, it would be like the living room and master bedroom.

Although the inside was visible, it was not visible in detail.

The floor was covered with dozens of pieces of rawhide that had only been smoked, and ash was piled up on the dirt floor.

The poles of the tent were made of bone.

It was so long and thick that it was hard to imagine what kind of animal it was.

‘Maybe elephant bones are like this?’

There were interesting decorations and weapons on display on tables and shelves. Additionally, ten candles were lit in broad daylight.

It meant that there were people.

‘It must be Jules’ family!’

The top of the tent is decorated with a huge skull.

The back of the head is slightly elongated, resembling the head of a primate.

However, the size of the head was similar to my torso.

I suddenly realized.

This is the head of an ogre!

Everything here is ogre bones!

─Come in.

I could feel the presence of people inside the tent.

‘It’s probably Jules’ family.’

─First impression is half the battle.

I made up my mind and entered the tent with Jules.