The King's True Form
Granbipra’s body seemed to be enveloped in light, and his massive form—large enough to wrap around an entire tree—began to shrink. The enormous serpent gradually transformed within that radiance, and when the light faded, a handsome man with reddish-brown hair and sharp eyes stood before us.
His clothing was unlike anything I had ever seen, layered in an unfamiliar style, yet the mysterious and alien aura suited his overall presence perfectly.
“It has been a long time since I took this form. Does it look strange?”
“No. Not strange at all.”
Honestly, it suited him far better than I had expected. I had assumed he would simply shrink his body, but I never imagined he could assume a human shape. And to be such a striking man at that—whether it was his personal preference or a manifestation of his soul and consciousness, I couldn’t tell, but it was remarkable nonetheless.
It seemed I wasn’t the only one surprised. Geil and Duran simply stared in awe, while Elena watched him in silence. Yet her gaze wasn’t mere astonishment; she looked as though she were facing a fearsome beast, every nerve on edge.
Suddenly, his body glowed with a blue flash and rose into the air. Elena flinched at the abrupt movement, and even I had to close my eyes for a moment.
“So, where shall we go now?”
The man hovering halfway in the air asked us. It seemed he intended to fly us there himself.
“Please wait a moment.”
I turned to Elena. I knew Geil had no summoned beast faster than a griffon, but if Elena’s only option was a pegasus, that could be a problem.
“Is something the matter, Anak?”
“Do you have any summoned beast capable of carrying people that flies faster than a pegasus?”
“No. Among the beasts that can carry people and fly, the pegasus is the only one I have.”
That made sense. Elves generally moved fast enough on the ground that they rarely needed to take to the skies, and from what I had seen last time, Elena used her pegasus more for combat support than travel.
I extended my hand and summoned Jequirak.
“Oh? What is that?”
—……!
The moment Jequirak appeared, he reacted to Granbipra’s presence and instinctively launched himself upward. Seeing even the battle-crazed Jequirak retreat in alarm made me realize once again just how extraordinary Granbipra truly was. Even without exerting any particular power, Jequirak’s wild instincts had already recognized that the being before him was overwhelmingly superior.
“So it wasn’t Eril. Who is this little serpent?”
Granbipra showed interest in Jequirak regardless. Considering he had paid no attention to Duran, it seemed the similar serpentine appearance had caught his eye.
“His name is Jequirak. He is a creature from the demon realm called a Kutlkeus.”
“Is that so? He has quite a sturdy tail.”
—Contractor, who is that? What kind of existence is he to make me feel this…!
The emotions flowing through our link were fear, awe, and urgency. Before I could answer, Granbipra shot upward and appeared right in front of Jequirak’s face.
“My, my. Even if you are young, you lack manners. How long do you intend to look down on me from above?”
When Granbipra’s eyes flashed blue, the emotions pouring from Jequirak became pure, absolute terror. Like prey facing its natural predator, he lowered himself to the ground without a shred of resistance and pressed his chin flat against the earth.
“Good. That’s more like it.”
Granbipra smiled in satisfaction at the sight. Elena, Geil, Duran, and I exchanged glances. Though no one spoke, the look in our eyes clearly asked whether we, too, should be bowing our heads.
I approached the trembling Jequirak, still crouched on the ground.
“…This is Lord Granbipra. The true ruler of the Ancient Forest, and also……”
Granbipra had never shown displeasure at my attitude and had even offered courtesy first, but I still added several honorifics just in case.
Of course, regardless of how I introduced him, Jequirak already understood with his entire body that the being before him was far beyond his reach.
I explained that Granbipra would be accompanying us to our destination and that we would need to carry Geil and Elena as well. Normally, Jequirak would have complained about being treated as a mere mount, but now not even the slightest hint of rebellion or displeasure could be felt through our link. To be precise, he probably lacked the mental capacity for it at the moment. In any case, we departed right after Granbipra urged us onward.
—Th-then I shall return.
Jequirak said this and fled back to the demon realm, though not before offering a proper farewell to Granbipra.
“Is this the place? The rendezvous point?”
We arrived in front of a cave. It was an ordinary, unremarkable cave—neither particularly large nor special—but this was definitely the spot.
“Yes. We were quite fortunate.”
Luckily, this was a place I knew well. During my last journey, there had been a rare incident where orcs, trolls, and goblins had banded together to raid nearby villages. Their hideout had been right here. Because such cases were so uncommon, I remembered part of the location name, and when the images showed the name along with the surrounding cave, I recognized it immediately.
Anywhere else, those images alone might not have been enough to find it.
“Can you confirm whether there are people inside?”
At my question, Granbipra nodded as if wondering why I even needed to ask, then lightly extended his hand toward the cave. A black serpent slithered out from his palm and disappeared into the darkness.
“There are two people. They do not seem particularly skilled, but summoning circles are drawn throughout the cave, though none have been activated.”
Summoners who required a long time to complete their summons often prepared circles or runes in advance and infused them with mana when needed. As Granbipra said, they did not appear very capable, and at the very least, whoever had subdued Kainaknus was not here.
“There is also a teleportation spell inscribed at the far end of the cave. Furthermore, an explosion spell has been added to the coordinate section of the teleportation circle.”
It was a safeguard to hide the coordinates in an emergency. The activation scroll or incantation was almost certainly with the two inside.
“Can you read the coordinates for me?”
Of course, that no longer mattered now. Granbipra recited the coordinates, and as I was about to write them on the ground, Elena grabbed my hand.
“It is fine. I have memorized them.”
I had only intended to write them down in case I forgot, but if she was that confident, I could trust her.
“What should we do about the ones inside?”
Geil looked ready to charge in at any moment. Since Kainaknus was not here, we could simply head straight to the location indicated by the coordinates. There was no need to go inside and fight the two. Though we could not be certain the coordinates led to Kainaknus, it was unlikely these two knew anything useful either.
Judging by the atmosphere, this was not an important location. Whether it had been prepared with only Cliven in mind or if there were others, it had clearly been hastily constructed, and the people inside were obviously at the very bottom of the hierarchy.
They were unlikely to possess any real information, and if we needed any, we could obtain it at the destination. Besides, even if we subdued them now, where would we keep them afterward? Taking them to the nearest village or city would be troublesome in many ways.
“For now……”
“I have already subdued them.”
It happened before I could finish speaking. We all stared at Granbipra. He had not made any obvious movement. Yet he claimed they were subdued—how?
“I simply had the serpent inject a mild paralysis venom. The effect will wear off in a few minutes, so we can question them then.”
It seemed the serpent from earlier had not been limited to reconnaissance.
“…Well, I suppose we should go inside then.”
Though it had not been my intention, there was no avoiding it now. We began walking. Geil took the lead, and we followed the light coming from deeper within the cave. As I remembered, the floor was dirt and easy to walk on, but the ceiling was lower than I recalled, making it somewhat uncomfortable for Granbipra.
After going a little farther, the surroundings brightened, and we saw two people standing frozen in place. They were clearly flustered by our appearance, desperately rolling their eyes—the only parts they could still move—and glancing between us and each other.
“Do not think of resisting needlessly.”
First, we erased the summoning circles and runes drawn on the walls and floor, then confiscated the scrolls from their robes. Even without doing so, there would not have been any real danger, but caution never hurt. Then we introduced ourselves.
They would not be able to answer questions properly until the paralysis wore off, but this was to save time. Knowing who stood before them would also discourage any pointless resistance.
The true ruler of the Ancient Forest, the Summoner of Deception who was the hero’s companion, the half-elf Elena, and Kainaknus’s top disciple. Anyone who tried to resist this group in their current situation was either a fool or possessed courage worthy of the history books.
“Wh-what do you want to know?”
His pronunciation was still slurred, but he could at least manage a conversation.
“First, where does that coordinate lead? Is it an intermediate base, or the main headquarters?”
Even as I asked, I did not expect it to be the main base.
“W-we do not know either. We only send our comrades there. If we wait at that location, a guide……”
“Do not lie. If you do, you will be buried underground in this paralyzed state forever.”
Granbipra’s low threat was not particularly special in content or tone, nor did it feel overtly menacing, but the sincerity in his voice and eyes made both Elena and me swallow dryly.
“I-it is true! We have not even been here a week!”
“Yes! Please believe us!”