Chapter 24
“...Will you become a member of the forest?”
The forest spoke.
Dohyun fell silent and, for a moment, could not move.
Heat surged through his head.
Fortunately, the change did not show on the dragon’s face.
It felt as though his brain had stopped working.
The forest was watching.
Their red gazes met.
A chill crawled over his scalp.
“Will you become a member of the forest?”
Gwiyeongmabok’s voice was still gentle.
And yet—
The more he listened, the more it carried a force he could not refuse.
Dohyun’s thoughts would not settle.
A member of the forest?
Why?
Everyone here was stronger than he was.
His thoughts failed to continue.
His fevered mind refused any judgment beyond that.
“...Yes.”
A brief answer.
At that moment—
The forest trembled ever so slightly.
“So it was... was I too harsh on the child?”
A soft voice, heavy with apology.
One of Gwiyeongmabok’s branches stirred, extending a small fruit.
“This is a gift to celebrate your becoming a member of the forest. Young dragon.”
Benevolence.
And then—
A hint of expectation, somewhere beneath it.
“Your Majesty, that fruit is—”
Gwiwolrang sprang up and shouted.
“It’s fine.”
Gwiyeongmabok answered with gentle warmth.
Gwiwolrang fell silent.
He glared at Dohyun for a moment longer, then snapped his head away.
...
Dohyun took the red fruit in his forepaw.
It was shaped like an apple.
A fragrant scent spread through the air.
...It’s a treasure.
He knew it instinctively.
The moment he ate it—
His body would grow stronger.
But—
Dohyun’s gaze did not linger on the fruit.
Gwiyeongmabok.
This forest.
And—
This situation.
There was no reason.
He still could not see it.
No price.
No intention.
Nothing could be calculated.
Then—
Heok-o whispered from the side.
“Wow, dragon. You wouldn’t hand that over to me, would you? It’s really good for the body, you know.”
“...No.”
Dohyun pulled the fruit closer.
He had no intention of letting it go.
...
Meanwhile, the air settled once more.
The meeting was about to begin.
“Then—”
Gwiyeongmabok’s voice rang out.
“Let us begin the meeting.”
By the time the words ended, Gwiwolrang, the monkey, the bird, and the bear had taken their places before Gwiyeongmabok.
“I shall speak first, Your Majesty. Must we allow that being into this council chamber?”
First, Gwiwolrang turned and looked at Dohyun again.
It was not exactly hostility.
More like a judgment that something unqualified had been admitted.
Pop—!
The cork of a wine bottle flew off.
“Ha! Our damn mutt really starts off by killing the mood.”
The monkey laughed as he tilted his gourd.
Glug, glug...
“Chiryongwon.”
The bird seated nearby frowned.
“Drinking in the middle of a meeting is rude.”
He spoke sharply.
“Oh, this? Lord Gwiyeongmabok herself allowed it.”
The wine in Chiryongwon’s finely crafted jade flask sloshed in his hand.
“This is a fine vintage. Besides, it helps my cultivation. Rude? This is my training.”
Geumyangjo’s voice came out in a tone close to a curse.
“Lowborn bastard.”
The monkey raised his brows playfully, lifted the bottle from his lips, and said,
“Kuhah~ Geumyangjo, are you more out of touch than even that bird over there these days?”
He pointed at Heok-o.
“Hmph! Are you comparing me to that shabby black thing?”
Unable to listen any longer, Gwiwolrang let his pressure rise.
“All of you, quiet! There’s too much useless noise in this meeting. We are discussing whether to recognize that dragon in this council.”
“Now, now, don’t be like that.”
The old bear spoke up mildly.
“Ahem, well... the number of spiders that used to run wild in summer and autumn has gone down. I hear the green yokai hunted them. That dragon may be young, but he has rather capable underlings.”
Hearing what was plainly praise for the dragon, Gwiwolrang looked openly baffled, as if asking why the bear would not side with him.
“Cheol-ung...”
The bear replied with easy amusement.
“Hoho, just call me Uncle Cheol-ung, will you? And why do you call this old fellow with such force? It was all decided by Lord Maimok anyway.”
“...Grr...”
At the mention of the name referring to Gwiyeongmabok, even Gwiwolrang fell silent.
“Gwiwolrang—”
“...Your Majesty, you called.”
“The young dragon is certainly weak. But he is of the holy race. He is qualified.”
“...Yes.”
Gwiwolrang seemed to concede only out of force.
Before long, Dohyun was forgotten as the meeting moved on.
“Hic... the liquor’s hitting me. Humans have been coming to the forest a lot lately.”
At Chiryongwon’s words, Cheol-ung replied,
“...I tore them all apart.”
“Hic... Grandpa, you still have that much strength? But if there’s alcohol, give me some.”
“Hoho, alcohol, is it... Very well. But it seems rather similar to the liquor you already drink.”
Cheol-ung’s old eyes glittered with wisdom as he asked.
When Chiryongwon met his gaze, the monkey lifted his red lips in a grin and said,
“Hic... humans know a good thing when they see it. Hic.”
For a moment, the two stared at each other in awkward silence, and then Gwiwolrang spoke again.
“This recent increase in human intrusions into the forest was thankfully held in check because I strengthened the patrols. But there have been a lot of filthy insectoids roaming inside.”
Then he looked toward Geumyangjo.
The bird yokai race was an utter nemesis to insectoid beings.
“Do you take us for beetle catchers? Old bear, such petty work is... left to others. The elegant Geumyangjo clan is not meant for such things.”
Geumyangjo proudly spread his golden wings and flaunted their brilliant feathers.
His neat plumage only proved he had not gone hunting recently.
“Not even as good as the chicken yokai...”
At Cheol-ung’s muttered remark, Geumyangjo reacted as though he had not heard it at all.
Gwiyeongmabok never once intervened.
At that, Gwiwolrang’s eyes rose.
“This is madness. You refuse to carry out Lord Gwiyeongmabok’s orders?”
“Orders? I am carrying them out. Before that, don’t these feathers look brighter?”
“What?!”
Watching their meeting, Dohyun realized something.
Geumyangjo... his heart isn’t here.
The leadership was not unified.
Each held different thoughts.
That was not a good sign.
And yet Gwiyeongmabok remained almost entirely silent, listening patiently.
The answer became clear.
If everything could be solved through goodwill alone, the world would not be this cruel.
Gwiyeongmabok is the forest’s ruler, but not its leader.
While that judgment formed, the meeting reached no real decision.
“...Will you do nothing in this forest?”
With a voice half-saturated in murder, Gwiwolrang threatened Chiryongwon and Geumyangjo.
“Hic... nothin’... hic... not doing anything. You young ones just have terrible tempers.”
“Gwiwolrang, take that back. Have you forgotten that the forest where our Geumyangjo clan lives is special?”
The old bear sighed and did not answer.
His eyes looked tired.
And so the meeting dissolved into chaos and ended.
But.
Gwiyeongmabok still did not intervene.
Lord Gwiyeongmabok, I would like to speak with you.
Dohyun rose from his seat and said.
“Dragon!”
Gwiwolrang shot to his feet and shouted, but Dohyun remained still.
It had already been confirmed that Gwiwolrang could never refuse Gwiyeongmabok’s words.
“Very well.”
The answer came quickly.
“Your Majesty!”
Gwiwolrang exclaimed in alarm.
“Let us talk.”
Soon after, Gwiwolrang lowered his tail and withdrew, glancing over with obvious frustration before finally stepping back.
The monkey grabbed his wine flask and disappeared up into the trees, the bird flashed his wings and flew off, and the old bear rumbled as he slowly departed.
The clearing where the council had been held fell quiet.
“What would you like to speak about?”
When Gwiyeongmabok asked that, Dohyun let a slight smile touch his mouth and answered in a calm voice.
The forest seems rather disordered.
“There has always been chaos, and all things follow the flow.”
Dohyun did not exactly deny it.
Order is hard to find in a forest. But reducing chaos is still better, isn’t it?
“Young dragon, what are you saying?”
As he listened to Gwiyeongmabok’s words, he had the strange feeling that the ancient being understood but was pretending not to.
There seem to be many problems in the forest, so I will lend a hand.
“Lend a hand? There is no need for that.”
The voice now carried a trace of hesitation.
I have strength, and I have forces.
“Young dragon, you need not concern yourself. You should think first of your own growth.”
I will concern myself only with growth. I won’t even take direct action myself.
Gwiyeongmabok fell into thought for a moment.
During that pause, Dohyun said calmly,
There are those who follow me.
For an instant, his subordinates flashed through his mind.
I’ll handle it through them. In return, I’d like you to share a little of what I can use for cultivation.
The fragrance of spirit fruit still lingered at the tip of his nose.
Just eating one would likely be equivalent to one or two months of cultivation.
“Very well.”
As I thought. In that case, the human intruders and their importance—
“But I will not entrust humans to you.”
Gwiyeongmabok cut him off decisively and said to Dohyun,
“It exceeds the range your power can handle.”
The thought flashed through him that humans were that strong after all.
The humans he had met in the forest were formidable.
But after seeing Geoung and the goblin leader, he had raised his estimate of his chances.
As he thought he would need to reassess them later, Gwiyeongmabok spoke again.
“I will tell Gwiwolrang.”
Thank you.
He had not heard what the cost would be, but considering Gwiyeongmabok’s scale, it was worth expecting something.
Dohyun said no more.
He turned his body.
Now, it was time to hunt.
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