Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Demon King Qlus, Descends! #14
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"Grrr!"
Early in the morning. Right after waking up, I ran an experiment on having the imp carry out orders.
"Hmm... This little guy's not half bad, all things considered."
From the results of the experiment, this imp seemed to have lower intelligence than Buril no matter how I looked at it. Dumber than a goblin. That much was clear.
It could carry out simple commands, but it forgot them almost immediately no matter what I told it to do. If I sent it somewhere to fetch something, it'd zone out halfway and come wandering back.
With constant training, it might improve a bit, but right now, I judged it incapable of handling anything properly. As Buril's assistant? That seemed tricky too, given its low IQ.
"Still, looks like it can make fire at least."
—Crackle, crackle.
The bonfire roared to life.
"Grrr."
This was the imp's handiwork.
The little guy had the ability to hurl fireballs from the Demon Realm. A black magic spell where purple flames bloomed in its palm before being thrown.
But the projectiles were so slow that hitting anything with them seemed unlikely. Other than lighting a bonfire like this, it didn't seem all that useful... Though I guess it could chuck one and run away.
"Keruk keruk."
"Grrr."
I kept mulling over the imp.
It was pretty much at the bottom of the food chain. It survived by catching fruit or insects. Its physical stats were below a kobold's, but it had that fireball ability. Roughly twice a day.
The flame power was decent enough. If it lit fires for me, I wouldn't have to waste my own demonic power. That was a plus.
So how should I use this thing?
"Ranged dealer."
One alone was useless, but if I gathered about ten and trained them properly... If I could train them to hurl fireballs on my command in unison...
That sounded pretty good.
Even if they were slow, a barrage could still land effective hits. It'd definitely work. For example, in a narrow space, it'd be perfect. Demon Realm flames stuck like glue, so as long as they hit, it'd be great.
"Alright."
I'd have to dominate a bunch more imps from now on. Put trained goblins up front as the vanguard, and have the imps lob fireballs from behind. Perfect.
"Keruk keruk! Keruk!"
"Gr... grrr..."
For some reason, Buril just couldn't stand the sight of this imp and kept scolding it every time it saw it. The imp shrank back like a scolded pup.
Watching them was heartwarming.
"Oh, right. Hey, imp. I'm gonna give you a name."
"Grrk?"
"Your name is Chimp."
This thing jumped around at the drop of a hat, just like a monkey. I'd call it Chimp from now on.
"Gr... grrr?"
"Buril. You hear that? This guy's name is Chimp from now on. Chimp. Fucking call it Chimp, you hear?"
"Keruk keruk."
Buril nodded as if it understood.
"Aww, our Buril's such a smart boy. Anyway, Buril. You've gotta train Chimp properly from now on, got it?"
"Keruk!"
—Thump thump!
Buril pounded its chest like it was volunteering for the job!
I couldn't ask for a more capable minion. Was this how a squad leader felt watching his troops excel? I wanted to give it a rice cake as a reward, but we didn't even have rice.
"Alright, time to start the day! Scouting time, let's go!"
"Keruk!"
"Grrk?"
Buril responded with gusto, while Chimp tilted its head.
"Keruk! Kerukring!"
"Gr... grrrk?! Grrr!"
Instant discipline...!
"That's right! Respond properly! Chimp!"
"Grrk!"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ —Bounce bounce.
My shoulders bounced on their own.
"Heh heh heh."
Of course they did. I was walking around with two minions in tow now. Power surged through me naturally.
"Keruk keruk."
"Grrk."
Buril strode along nicely beside me, with Chimp toddling right behind. Life was good. If I hustled a bit more, I could assemble a full squad of underlings.
"Nice weather."
"Keruk."
Today's scouting was pretty uneventful. We'd gone in the complete opposite direction from where we'd met the dryad. Just thinking of that woman still made my heart race.
"Better not run into her."
"Keruk?"
As we walked along like that.
"Grrruk!"
"Hm?"
"Grrk grrrk!"
Suddenly Chimp started hopping around and pointing somewhere. What the hell? Buril wasn't reacting?
"Keruk? Kerruk?"
Buril shot it a dirty look and raised its fist.
"Grrk! Grrk!"
But Chimp's reaction was intense regardless. Had it spotted something? I held Buril back from hitting it and said,
"Buril, hold up. Looks like Chimp found something."
"Keruk?"
"Chimp, what'd you find? Let's go check it out."
"Grrk grrrk!"
Chimp nodded vigorously and plunged into the underbrush without hesitation. Following it led us to something I could see too.
—Hop!
—Hop!
A swarm of locust-like insects about the size of Chimp's arm were hopping around in the bushes.
"Grrruk!"
Chimp gleefully snatched one up.
"Insects?"
Ah, so it got excited because it wanted to eat them? Chimp hopped around with a blissful look, drooling nonstop.
"Heh heh heh, nice. Our Chimp's a bug-finding pro."
"Grrk grrrk!"
"Yeah, eat up. You found 'em, so chow down."
"Grrk!"
—Crunch!
Chimp opened its mouth wide and tore into the locust's head. Damn, it ate with gusto. Tasty?
"Eat your fill. You're the only one of us who eats bugs."
Buril went for fruit, entrails, and the meat I roasted. Never seen it eat bugs. I'd let this guy have its meal here, then get moving again.
"Keruk..."
But Buril looked kinda down.
It stood there arms crossed, glaring at Chimp as it messily chomped away. Was it jealous? Upset that Chimp was eating without sharing?
Exactly!
Buril really was smart!
"Buril, it's fine. We'll eat other stuff."
"Keruk keruk."
I needed to make some proper minions instead of idiots like that one... First try with a goblin failed. Monster Domination wasn't 100% successful. It had an element of luck.
I wanted to catch a few more and test it out.
"Gruk gruk."
"All done? Let's move."
"Grrk!"
It scarfed them down in seconds.
We set off again right away.
"Let's see."
Whenever I went looking, nothing turned up. Just how big was this wilderness? Were there any settlements nearby? Questions galore, but no answers for now.
That's why scouting mattered.
"Keruk."
"Hm?"
Then Buril signaled us to halt.
"Chimp, quiet. Get low."
"Grrk."
"Buril, where?"
"Kerruk."
Buril pointed ahead.
We dropped low and crept forward. This was Buril's sign that it'd spotted something. Its reaction suggested no immediate danger.
—Rustle rustle.
We advanced, parting the bushes.
"Kyusat. Kyusasat."
"Kyurrururing, kyusat."
"Kyukyukyusat."
Kobold cries reached our ears.
—Thud thud.
—Thud thud.
—Thud thud.
Sure enough, three kobolds were trudging along in a group, arms full of fruit, root vegetables, a mushroom as big as their torsos, piles of plants, and insect corpses.
"..."
"..."
"..."
We all clamped our mouths shut and watched.
What the hell? Were those kobolds... gathering food and hauling it away? Hauling it where?
No way.
Back to their kobold den?
Stockpiling it inside to eat later?
"Kyukyukyusat."
The kobolds passed by.
"Not even ants do that. Hey, let's tail them."
"Keruk!"
"Grrring."
This was worth checking out. A kobold den? Interest piqued. And stockpiling food? Maybe a chance to loot the whole stash.
We shadowed the kobolds immediately. They didn't notice us. In doing so, they led us right to their home.
"Kyusat kyusat."
"Kyusat sat."
The kobolds ducked into a den about a meter high.
"Whoa. Guess they live there."
"Keruk."
How many were inside? Did they dig it themselves? Whatever.
Seeing the den sparked an idea.
"That cave... Buril."
"Keruk?"
"Wouldn't it be great if we took it over?"
That kobold den.
It looked way better than our cramped pit at a glance.
I didn't know how many were inside... but if we could win a fight, relocating here wouldn't be bad.
The pit was fine, but it was just a hole. As my minions grew, it'd get crowded for sure. We needed bigger digs.
"Dungeon."
I needed my own dungeon.
And that kobold den fit the bill.
"We're taking it."
Kill them, dominate them, seize the den. The impulse gripped my mind. Quick decision. Good. Let's take it. Make it our home.
"Guys. We're stealing their house."
"Keruk...!"
Buril caught on and burned with battle spirit.
"But we need intel first."
I didn't know how many kobolds were inside. If I didn't know, I'd find out.
"Hold position here."
Recon. Observation. Assassination. Plans clicked into place in my head. We'd wait, monitor their movements, learn their patterns.
When a straggler showed up... we'd jump it, subdue it. Dominate or kill.
Whittle down their numbers, exploit their instability to gauge their full count.
A bit brutal, but no choice. For me, Buril, and even Chimp to survive together, we needed better conditions.