episode_0119

Dorga, the Village in the Misty Wilderness

“Beep! Bleep-bloop!! Beep!!”

“Ugh! This rascal!”

“How dare you knock Zeke-nim down!”

“Whoa! Aria, wait!”

As the baby dragon knocked me down with its paw, Aria, who had been constantly complaining that the baby dragon monopolized my attention, seized the opportunity and tried to punch the baby dragon. I quickly got up and stood between Aria and the baby dragon, stopping Aria. However, the baby dragon, perhaps not understanding my intention to protect it, laughed brightly and clung to my back. Seeing me flustered by the baby dragon and Aria, Bivi chuckled and spoke.

“Oh my~ It seems Darune likes Zeke-nim too~”

“That won’t do…. I’ll educate Darune…!!”

“I told you not to do that!!!”

When Bivi said that her child, Darune, truly liked me, Aria raised her fist to scold Darune. Protega then placed Darune on his hand, preventing Aria from touching Darune. Once Darune disappeared from my side, Aria finally seemed to relax and let out a deep breath.

“Sigh…. That persistent clingy thing finally dropped off… Phew…”

“Was Darune bothering you that much…? Sigh….”

Realizing that Darune had annoyed Aria to the point of her sighing in relief, I collapsed on the spot, exhausted from trying to stop Aria and Darune. Protega then leaned his head towards me and spoke.

“More importantly, are you really going to that underground facility, Zeke? Even with Aria, it could be dangerous.”

“Well… what can I do…? Exploring this entire world is my goal. I’ve been prepared to die for a long time now. I’m just desperately trying to survive for the sake of my dream.”

“…. If that’s your will, I won’t stop you any further. However….”

“Yes?”

Protega, realizing my stubbornness once again, pulled his head back and, as if deciding something, pulled off a scale from his right arm with his left hand and handed it to me. As I, dumbfounded, received his scale, Protega explained to me.

“Dragons can recognize the scales of their own kind. So as long as you have that, dragons in other regions will not show hostile reactions towards you. If they do show such a reaction, show them that scale.”

“…. Are you…. really giving this to me…?”

“Of course~ Zeke-nim and Aria-nim saved our family, after all. In that sense, I too…”

“….?”

Bivi said that we were worthy enough to possess a scale, then she too plucked a scale from her arm and handed it to Aria. Aria, as if she had never imagined receiving something, took the scale from Bivi, dumbfounded, and asked Bivi.

“Why are you giving this to me?”

“Hehehe…. If you cherish that… I will help Aria-nim connect with Zeke-nim later….!!”

When Aria asked why she had given her the scale, Bivi leaned her head close to Aria and whispered into Aria’s ear that she would help her later. Aria, finding the words tempting, put the scale into a pocket inside her clothes and grinned.

“Hehehe…. If that’s the case, I won’t refuse. Somehow, I feel like you’ll be a great help… Hehehehehe…”

“…. Those two… why are they laughing like that?”

“…. I have a bad feeling about this.”

As Aria and Bivi started laughing ominously, imagining something, Protega and I instantly felt a chill. I don’t know what that laughter means… but I have a bad feeling about it…. Well… anyway, it’s time to really go, isn’t it?

“Anyway…. Thank you for your kindness, Protega-ssi, Bivi-nim. I’ll cherish it.”

“Yes. While you are gone, we will remember what you’ve done for us and tell others. Everyone will be surprised… A young dragon hatched from an egg, slowly dying from lack of energy, is a sign that there’s no more hope… yet you, whom we were so hostile towards, solved it so simply.”

“Indeed. Meeting all of you was a tremendous stroke of luck for us. Well then…. Take care, and please come visit again.”

“Yes, Bivi-nim. And…. you haven’t forgotten your promise, have you? Ohohoho….”

“Of course~ Aria-nim~ Hohoho….”

When Aria asked if she had forgotten the promise, Bivi said “of course” and, along with Aria, laughed conspiratorially at me once more. What kind of promise did they make to be laughing like that…? Even as Protega and Bivi saw me off, I felt an ominous presence, and with that uncomfortable feeling, I left Roar. I then unfolded the map to check our next destination.

“Hmm…. There really is a wilderness next… The terrain reminds me of the Ogphorzlia region.”

“Ah…. that cursed succubus…”

When I said that the next village was in a wilderness and that its terrain resembled Ogphorzlia, Aria, who still hadn’t forgotten what Cecilia had done to her, gnashed her teeth. Well, at that time, she was controlled by a vengeful Cecilia and had killed Raskal-ssi, who had saved me…

“Hahaha… Well, I have nothing to say about that…. Anyway, it says there’s a village in the wilderness. It’s a village called Dorga…. I didn’t expect there to be a village in such a wilderness.”

“Hmm…. But looking at this wilderness… it reminds me of the village on that plain last time.”

….. Come to think of it, something always happened when we visited isolated villages like Dorga’s… Cecilia in Arjel, the World Tree in Proserpina, and Eli in Sabra…. And all those incidents were dangerous for me, which had shaken Aria’s mind…

“Still, let’s hope nothing happens this time. Although a lot *has* happened in isolated villages, this time….”

“Kroooaaarrr!!”

No sooner had I finished saying I hoped nothing would happen this time, a monstrous roar echoed from among the trees. Then, four high-level monsters—a Crash Boar, a Toxin Salamander, an Adra Wolf, and a Wood Nepenthes—came crashing through the trees and charged at us. I gave an awkward laugh and thought.

‘Wow…. You guys are pathetic….’

“Hmm…. Come to think of it, it’s almost evening. We might have to spend a night in the wilderness later, so we should gather some food first, shouldn’t we?”

“Right…. I’ll just get out of the way…”

Aria placed her staff beside a tree, loosened her fists, and said it was a good idea to gather food. I gave a wry laugh and moved out of the way so Aria could fight freely. After 20 minutes passed…. I tore into the Crash Boar ribs Aria had cooked on the spot, and we set off again together. Hmm…. But it tastes good…. No, that’s not the point right now…

“Damn it… I’m going to get used to this taste at this rate…”

“Hehehe… Then even if I have to drive the Crash Boars to extinction, I’ll always make sure Zeke-nim…”

“I’m declining that, alright…? And eating the same food every day gets tiresome…. But why did you only kill the Crash Boar and leave the other monsters alive for a change?”

Remembering that Aria had only knocked out the other high-level monsters besides the Crash Boar, I asked Aria. Normally, even if she didn’t eat them, she would have killed all the monsters that attacked me… Why did Aria spare them this time?

“Hmm…. Adra Wolf meat seems tough, Wood Nepenthes probably isn’t edible in the first place…. and Toxin Salamanders take too long to prepare?”

“Realistic reasons. Oh? Aria, look over there. The forest ends.”

The moment Aria explained that the reason she didn’t kill the three high-level monsters was very practical, my eyes caught sight of the forest ending and a wilderness appearing. I pointed my finger at the distant wilderness and spoke. Soon after reaching the point where the forest ended, we saw a landscape truly similar to Ogphorzlia and were reminded of the previous Krypton region.

“If such a demon lives here too, I’ll catch it with my own hands and strike first.”

“I told you to hope that doesn’t happen…. Well…. If we keep going straight, a village should appear.”

“I am ready for anything. Whether it’s Cecilia, or that fairy…. I will prevent them from laying a hand on Zeke-nim ever again….!!”

…. Didn’t Cecilia lay a hand on *you*…? Anyway, seeing Aria vow to protect me no matter what, I chuckled at the unexpected sense of security and stepped into the wilderness with Aria. As I continued through the wilderness, I finished the ribs Aria had grilled, tossed the remaining bones into the wilderness, and looked around.

“By the way, it’s completely empty here, so how does the village procure supplies?”

“Perhaps there are other villages nearby?”

“Well…. The Herlos region is divided into east and west. The west is where humans live, and the east is where humans don’t live much. Actually, what puzzled me most while looking at the map was that people were living in an area where very few people reside… and what’s more, in the middle of a wilderness. Are skilled individuals living there, or something?”

“Hmm…. Whatever the case, rest assured! I will definitely protect Zeke-nim!!”

“Hahaha… I’m going to get a callus on my ear [an idiom for hearing something so often it becomes annoying]. Alright, let’s go. The sun seems to be setting soon….?”

As Aria vowed to protect me again, I chuckled and said we should hurry to the village before the sun set. However, at that moment, when mist appeared in the distance, Protega’s words came to mind.

“…. There really is mist in the middle of the wilderness… meaning the village is in that mist…”

“Should we just pass by?”

“We can’t do that. Let’s hurry and enter the mist. I’m curious what’s inside… and I also want to find out why there’s mist in the middle of the wilderness.”

“Understood~”

Thinking that Dorga might be in the mist, I finally decided to enter the mist. As I entered the mist with Aria, I listened carefully. Hmm… I don’t hear any sounds of people being active…

“That’s strange… Is it because of the mist? Usually, if people live in a wilderness like this, there wouldn’t only be the sound of wind….”

“Oh? Zeke-nim, look over there.”

The moment I was puzzled by only hearing the sound of wind, Aria discovered something and pointed to it, so I turned my head in that direction. Then, the sight of people began to appear, and at the same time, the sounds of people being active started to be heard, making me realize that people lived within this mist. After walking for about three more minutes, I arrived at Dorga, a village made entirely of wooden houses.

“Wow…. Just as Protega-ssi said, there really is a village in the mist… And what’s more….”

I felt a sense of wonder at the village being in the mist, and I felt relieved seeing the people of Dorga outside, farming and talking on the streets. Phew…. It’s a relief it’s peaceful here….. Ah.

“….? Zeke-nim? What’s wrong?”

“Come to think of it, I felt relieved by a peaceful atmosphere like this in Sabra too…. Then I remembered Eli was plotting something huge….”

“Ah…. But don’t worry. Whatever happens here, I will definitely protect Zeke-nim.”

“…? Oh, it’s a stranger!”

The moment Aria was assuring me not to worry, seeing I couldn’t relax, the villagers were startled upon seeing us, the strangers. Then everyone started murmuring and looking at me, and as many people looked at me, Aria pulled me and subtly moved me behind her.

“…..? Let me talk too…”

“No. The women are looking at Zeke-nim too.”

‘….. Her jealousy truly is something else…’

“Ohh…. To think there are adventurers who would visit such a remote place…. It’s truly surprising.”

The moment Aria subtly moved me behind her, an old man approached us, leaning on a staff. Hmm… If he’s that old, could he be the village chief…? As the old man, who appeared to be the chief, approached us, Aria asked him.

“Are you perhaps the village chief?”

“Yes, that’s right. I am the village chief of this village. I never dreamed someone would come to such an insignificant village…. Anyway, welcome to Dorga. You must have had a hard time because of the mist… Since the sun is setting soon, why don’t you rest at the inn first? We were just about to finish our day’s work and head home.”

“Let’s do that, Aria. We’ll be even busier later, so it might be good to rest beforehand.”

Sensing that we would be extremely busy in the underground facility later, I advised Aria to rest at the inn first, as the village chief suggested. Aria thought for a moment, then nodded, agreeing with my suggestion. Guided by the village chief, we arrived at the inn, went up to the second floor, entered our room, and unpacked our luggage. Then, lying down on the bed, I let out a deep sigh and spoke.

“Phew….. What do you think will be in the underground facility, Aria?”

“Hmm…. Since Dio V Runner-nim and Protega-nim said it was a facility beyond its time, surely there must be incredibly dangerous things lurking there, right?”

“Hahaha…. I just hope no monsters appear… Yawn…. I’m tired today, so I should sleep early… You worked hard today, Aria.”

“Hehehe… It’s only natural. Good night, Zeke-nim.”

Whether it was from walking for a long time, or from screaming while hanging onto Protega’s back, I was accumulated with fatigue and immediately fell asleep. Night fell upon Dorga, and as darkness settled over the village, someone in a certain building began to cackle.

“Hmm~ For a pretty unnie and a cool oppa to come here…. This is lucky. I didn’t think they’d bother coming to such a remote village…. Well… it doesn’t matter… I wonder if they know that the moment they stepped foot here, their lives were already over~? Alright, alright… then….. Shall we begin?”

A girl, so excited that she was swinging her feet while sitting on a chair, murmured. Then, the people in the inn simultaneously came out of their rooms and headed towards the room on the second floor where Aria and Zeke were staying. As if seeing this, the girl, who had been laughing ominously, trembled, a shiver running through her body, and murmured with a blush.

“You should have suspected a village existed in a place like this first…. Otherwise, you might get attacked like this, you know? Well then….”

“….”

The innkeeper, who had arrived in front of the door to Aria and Zeke’s room, slowly reached for the doorknob. At that moment, a golden staff pierced through the door and struck the innkeeper’s head directly. The girl, whose heart had been pounding at the thought of doing something, was greatly bewildered.

“Huh…? Wh-what?!”

“Oh my…. Did you think I wouldn’t expect such an attack?”

“….!!”

When a woman’s voice was heard, the girl was greatly startled. Meanwhile, inside the inn, Aria began to slowly pull out the staff she had thrust through the door. As the staff went back inside the room, the innkeeper, whose head had been impaled, collapsed on the spot as the staff was pulled out of his head. Then Aria opened the door, stepped out with a smile, and spoke.

“I won’t allow anyone to disturb Zeke-nim’s peaceful sleep.”