Chapter 223
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 223
Even after that, Gio had to spend quite a while pleading his case.
"Do I still look like a ghost to you? I don’t smell like a corpse, my heart is beating, and I’ll bleed if you prick me. Do I really not look human?"
"Honestly? Not really."
"Blunt, aren’t you?"
The wolf refused to believe him until the very end.
"...Fine. If it’s really that hard to believe, then so be it."
Gio was a sensible adult who respected diversity in all its forms. Judging by the wolf’s reaction, the human race had been extinct for some time, so he could understand the skepticism.
In exchange, he wanted an explanation.
"I’m curious about what happened to this place, how it fell into ruin. Could you tell me? If you keep me company, I’ll make sure you’re well compensated. Out of curiosity, do you like to eat?"
"The compensation… is food?"
"I’m quite familiar with this Black Forest—it was once called the Abilas Rainforest. A few things seem to have changed, but having a steady supply of food would be a big help to you, wouldn’t it? What do you say?"
"My level of cooperation might vary depending on what you offer…"
"I thought you were just a pup, but you certainly know how to drive a bargain. How admirable."
Gio grabbed the wolf’s massive head with both hands and began to scratch it vigorously. The wolf, who had flinched and stiffened at the initial touch, quickly grew docile, marveling at Gio’s masterful technique.
"Oh, right there. That’s the spot. Ah, that feels amazing."
"This, my friend, is the magic of a human touch."
"How do you find the itchy spots so perfectly? Is it some kind of magic?"
"Let’s just say I have a talent for it."
Despite his current form, Arjio had grown up with his animal family. He was an expert on exactly where and how to scratch to hit the sweet spot.
And since this one can talk, it’s even easier.
After enjoying the scratches for a while longer, the wolf pulled back with a look of deep satisfaction.
"I’m not counting this as part of the compensation, since you started it."
"Trying to sound firm with a face that relaxed isn’t very convincing."
"Ahem. Regardless, business is business."
"Sure, go ahead. Try to bleed me dry."
Arjio was quite fond of clever beasts.
"Now, about that explanation?"
"You mean the story of how everything went extinct?"
Perhaps because the conversation and the head scratches had eased his fear of Gio being a ghost, the wolf sat down with a much more relaxed expression. Despite his massive weight settling onto the ground, the Black Forest remained utterly silent.
This place was never this quiet.
Unaware of Gio’s silent musings, the wolf began to speak.
"To keep this trade fair, I should warn you that I don’t know the whole story myself. I only know what was passed down from my ancestors. Strictly speaking, I don’t even know when 'the fall' truly began."
"There was more than one?"
"The first fall was likely around the time beast races like ours were born."
He was probably referring to the era after Arjio’s death as a human, when beasts gained intelligence and reason on par with humanity.
I feel like the heroes who used to visit me mentioned something similar…
But those memories were hazy for the current Arjio. He had been out of his mind back then, consumed by wrath and hatred. Or perhaps it was because his assimilation with his past self was still incomplete.
More than anything, I have no idea what happened after I was sealed. Just a vague notion that they all fought among themselves until everything was ruined…
This seemed like the perfect opportunity to learn the details. He was curious to hear history from a descendant’s perspective. With growing interest, Gio listened as the wolf continued.
"They say the Wolf Tribe branched off back then, but it’s hard to imagine. Even in my ancestor’s ancestor’s ancestor’s time, we were still the Wolf Tribe, not much different from how we are now."
"So you distinguish between ordinary wolves and the Wolf Tribe?"
"Yes. For you, I suppose it would be like the difference between humans and monkeys. Of course, there was a Monkey Tribe as well, but they’re just a footnote in history now. I heard they went extinct after waging constant wars against humans."
"How tragic. How many tribes are left now?"
"Those still surviving…"
The wolf paused briefly.
"…Are only three."
The Wolf Tribe, the Crow Tribe, and the Fox Tribe.
"My mother used to say that the Wolf Tribe survived because we value family, the Crow Tribe because they are wise, and the Fox Tribe because they are excellent swindlers."
"That last one sounds a bit off."
"If you ever meet one of them, watch your back. They’re nothing but a bunch of dirty swindlers."
"You’re baring your teeth. Your language has gotten awfully colorful all of a sudden."
If nothing else, it was crystal clear that the Wolf Tribe despised the Fox Tribe. Judging by his tone, the two tribes clashed constantly, while the crows likely maintained a careful neutrality.
The wolf snorted.
"We wouldn’t have to bare our teeth if those bastards didn’t provoke us first. Arrogant pricks, thinking they’re the smartest creatures in the world. Shameless beasts who don’t know the first thing about honor…"
"I told you, watch your language."
"I suppose the next fall was caused by the birth of the Evil God?"
"Hmm."
"They say he was the god of wrath and war, but almost no records of him remain. The tales of the chaos he unleashed were apparently too horrific and cruel to be written down."
Gio recalled that the Evil God Arjio had a very distinct appearance: braided red hair, a body adorned with treasures and bone ornaments, and draped in beast pelts. With such striking features, it should have been impossible to mistake him.
Yet, despite looking right at Arjio, the wolf had only babbled about ghosts.
Ah, so the records about me were erased.
It was a wise decision. If word got out that humans had brought the catastrophe upon themselves, it would have thrown the world into even greater turmoil. They ended up self-destructing anyway, but still.
"I know the stories of the Evil God," Gio said. "A monster who spread plagues, abducted the innocent, and ate people alive. He supposedly threw the world into chaos by granting mindless beasts power on par with humans."
"That last part is actually something we’re grateful for, since it gave birth to our kind," the wolf replied. "That’s why we never held much of a grudge against the Evil God’s divinity. In a way, he is our parent god."
"A parent god… That’s a unique perspective."
A sudden surge of paternal affection welled up inside Gio.
The birth of these three tribes might have been a mere alignment of coincidence and necessity, but hearing them call me their parent… it actually feels quite nice. That’s right, I am their father, in a way…
Arjio offered a gentle smile.
"Do you still feel no aversion toward the Evil God?"
"If we had to face that catastrophe ourselves, it might be a different story. But now… it’s just an old legend."
"I see."
The tale of the Evil God Arjio had truly faded into myth. The wolf clearly knew it was historical fact, yet it felt entirely detached from his reality.
"But I heard the Evil God was sealed."
"There was another fall associated with that."
As the conversation stretched on, the wolf seemed to tire of sitting upright and slowly lowered himself to the ground, resting his massive head on the forest floor. Arjio sat beside him, gently stroking his fur.
Closing his eyes in contentment, the wolf continued.
"Even after the Evil God was sealed, the wisdom and power granted to the beasts didn’t vanish. The humans had poured all their resources into the sealing, assuming everything would go back to normal. They were left completely bewildered when it didn’t."
"How foolish."
"Exactly. Who in their right mind told them, 'Just seal the Evil God and all our problems will be solved'?"
The wolf wrinkled his snout, clearly finding the extinct humans pathetic. Amused by the soft, rippling fur, Arjio gently massaged the wolf’s snout until the tension melted away.
"The strongest and most virtuous humans had already died sealing the Evil God. Those who survived were branded as monsters and ostracized by the weaker humans left behind. The heroes scattered, only to be found dead or vanish without a trace."
"How tragic, don’t you think?"
"I think they were fools."
He meant both the heroes who sacrificed everything only to be abandoned, and the foolish humans who drove away their strongest protectors instead of rallying behind them.
"Furthermore, even with the Evil God gone, the plague leaking from the Black Forest didn’t dissipate; it spread even faster. All life was slowly poisoned, withering away… until the world became a desolate wasteland with nothing left to eat."
While this environment was normal to the wolf, it must have been a catastrophic nightmare for the creatures of that era. Eventually, the simmering friction between humans and beasts boiled over into a massive war.
"A war?"
"They say it was a war to devour each other."
"Hmm. Even though they spoke the same language?"
"Yes."
"Well… how fascinating."
It was the story of beasts who had once fancied themselves human finally embracing their true nature. He lamented not being there to witness such an adorable spectacle in person. It sounded like he had missed out on a lot of entertainment.
"And what happened next?"
"The war dragged on. After countless conflicts, too many to even record, humans and beasts alike finally came to a realization: 'We can no longer survive here.'"
"Because the environment was too devastated? No doubt from the poison seeping from the Black Forest, compounded by the resources depleted during the war."
"Yes. And so…"
The wolf opened his eyes and looked up at the canopy.
"They killed God."
"…God? You mean the Evil God?"
"No. The Creator. The primordial god who fashioned this land and sky."
"I never would have imagined such a thing was possible."
"I don’t know the details. I only know the history that was passed down."
"Why on earth would they kill God? They should have been on their knees begging for salvation."
"They begged and begged, but salvation never came. It seems they decided that if they couldn’t receive salvation, they would take it by force—even if it meant slaughtering God. They say the earth and sky were severed as a result."
The humans sought to rebuild the world using the divine authority they plundered from God’s corpse.
"Because He was the god of life and creation."
They truly believed they could pull it off.
"So, they decided to bury the ruined, corrupted world underground and build a brand-new one on top of it. If they completely erased the existing dimension, humanity would have nowhere to stand while the new world was being constructed. It was a desperate, unavoidable choice."
"So instead of erasing it, they hid it beneath the earth?"
"That’s what they say."
But they failed.
"And as you can see, the world above is incomplete."
Even the wolf didn’t know how the humans had managed to slay God, steal His authority, or wield such immense power to forge a new world.
He only knew that it had happened, that they had failed, and that this failure had shaped their current reality.
"With the Creator dead, the true sun and moon vanished. The humans tried to fashion new ones with their stolen power, but they failed. They couldn’t even manage to form the shape of a moon, leaving only a solitary sun in the sky."
"So that’s what you meant when you said the sun was fake."
"The sun up there is nothing like the 'sun' before the fall. Unlike the original, which nurtured life simply by existing, this one is a hollow imitation. It shines, but it offers no warmth. Sometimes it’s freezing, other times it’s scorching. It’s no environment for living things."
"No wonder I didn’t see a single blade of grass out there."
"They either froze to death or burned to a crisp long ago."
The wolf snorted.
"Perhaps touching divine authority without the right to do so brought a curse upon them, because the world began to shrink and decay. My mother said the only 'surface' left now is this Black Forest."
Gio knew exactly what that meant.
It seems dungeonization has begun.
The world was slowly transforming into a massive game board.
"Has everywhere else besides this forest vanished?"
"Yes. It’s gotten to the point where this place feels like the world below, and the space above feels like the surface."
"So there are absolutely no other living creatures left besides your three tribes?"
"Well, there are the beasts that originally inhabited the Black Forest."
The wolf closed his eyes again.
"We had no choice."
"..."
Gio finally understood why the creatures of the Ruined Abilas Rainforest had been invading his frame. To survive, the three remaining tribes had driven out or slaughtered all the other native beasts.
So the exiled and fleeing beasts just happened to stumble into my cabin. That explains why they were in such an extreme frenzy, even for creatures of the Black Forest.
Having lost their homes and been hunted, they were bound to be highly agitated. On top of that, the fake sun above would have slowly withered and driven them mad. It would have been stranger if any beast that managed to find the frame and cross over was in a sane state.
"...Hmm…"
Well, at least I put them out of their misery quickly and painlessly.
That is simply the law of nature, you poor beasts.
For a brief moment, the gentle sensibilities of Seo Gio and Giovanni flared up, prompting a pang of guilt: Wait, does that mean I slaughtered and ate creatures that had lost their homes, wandered a hostile wasteland, and finally found a peaceful sanctuary? But what was done was done. He had already eaten them.
Besides, that’s just how life is in the Black Forest. Why start feeling sorry now?
The beasts that had breached his cabin were far too gone, completely consumed by madness. Perhaps they could have been saved if Gio had nursed them back to health with the utmost care, but…
Why bother?
They weren’t his family, nor were they his friends.
"...Haha."
"...Why are you laughing?"
"Just making excuses to myself."
"All of a sudden…?"
His mind raced to justify his actions, a sure sign of a guilty conscience. While the Arjio persona thought, Why should I care?, the human side of him couldn’t help but think, Still, they were quite pitiful.
I wonder if this internal conflict will only get worse from here.
He could only hope that the various 'Gios' residing within him would learn to get along.
"..."
Still, one question remained.
Who on earth summoned me?
It had to be one of two possibilities. Either one of the beasts who now shared the gift of speech had summoned him, or a tiny, surviving remnant of humanity—so small they were practically considered extinct—was responsible.
"…Well, anyway. Do you have nothing you wish to ask me?"
"..."
"Silence is a wise answer in its own right."
Gio nodded, then suddenly remembered something. "Ah," he said, turning back to the wolf. "There is one more thing I’m curious about."
"What?"
"Have you ever seen a deer?"
"...A deer?"
The wolf blinked.
"I’ve certainly never seen one."
"It was just an ordinary deer, one that only made normal animal sounds."
"Then I have even less of an idea. I’ve heard tales of a Deer Tribe, but they went extinct ages ago. I’ve never seen a deer in my life, let alone one in this Black Forest."
"Are there members of your tribe, or the other tribes, who cannot speak?"
The wolf pondered for a moment before replying.
"...It’s not impossible. Language is ultimately a learned skill. If no one teaches them, then no matter how intelligent they are, they won’t know how to speak."
"So the young ones wouldn’t be able to speak."
"Isn’t that the same for human cubs?"
The wolf pushed himself up from the ground.
"Now, give me my food. I know I’m not in a position to demand much just for reciting old legends, but my pups need to eat too. I hope you’ll be generous."
"Oh my goodness, you have pups?"
"I don’t know why you look so thrilled… but of course I do. If we don’t reproduce, our tribe will die out. Protecting the pups from the poison in this environment is a constant struggle, but breeding is a vital duty for our survival."
"If that’s the case, you have absolutely nothing to worry about, my friend. I happen to be incredibly generous. To think you’re a young breadwinner… it truly warms my heart."
"Who are you calling a young breadwinner?!"
"So, how old are you?"
"..."
The wolf mumbled under his breath.
"…Seven…"
"Oh, my goodness!"
Gio was deeply moved.