Master (1)
Gu poison.
You take every venomous creature you can find, seal them all in one vessel, and force them to devour one another until only a single survivor remains—the purest, deadliest toxin of them all.
The world itself was that vessel.
Trapped inside with no way out, every race locked in endless, savage war until the others were dead.
The Age of Chaos.
We existed in that age, and we clawed our way through it with everything we had.
The demonkin fought for the descent of their evil god.
The celestial kin for the descent of their heavenly god.
Humans for the descent of the Sun God.
Elves for the descent of their homeland.
Dwarves for the preservation of the craft heaven had granted them.
Spirits for the World Tree.
And we—for survival.
In a war woven from every race’s ambitions and greed, we seized victory after victory and carved out our territory. By the time I became Grand General, we ruled the Central Continent.
But the war never ended.
If anything, it was as though the world itself wanted the bloodshed to continue. A new storm rose.
Unique Abilities began to awaken—powers that let each bearer manifest their inner image upon the world.
No one knew why.
Whether it was the will of a world that thrived on war, the fruit of our own greed and purpose, or simply a sign that the age was reaching its end… no one could say.
What we did know, with absolute clarity, was what that power had to be used for.
An end to the war. Survival.
And so the Great War erupted once more.
Demonkin magic grew sharper still. Celestial wings soared higher. Dwarven cannons burned hotter. Elven sorcery blanketed the earth. Spirit magic howled like a storm. Humans advanced so swiftly no one could keep pace. And our fangs grew keener than ever.
It began with the celestial kin.
They scattered pure white feathers and set the dwarven batteries ablaze. The demonkin joined next and broke the celestial wings. The elves erased the demonkin’s magic. The spirits swallowed the elven lands whole. We too took the field, tearing out throats and ripping hides from every race that stood against us.
When every cannon had been smashed, when torn feathers carpeted the ground, when the magic that had choked the sky finally scattered, when every forest burned and the spirits returned to the World Tree’s embrace—
the dragons awoke.
Magic fouler than any demonkin’s. Wings sturdier than any celestial’s. Breath hotter than any dwarven cannon. Words of power harsher than any elven spell. Ancient magic more intricate than any spirit’s. Bodies far more indestructible than ours.
With those absurd gifts they set every continent aflame and silenced the heavens.
And we fought them.
We tore scales free and carved through muscle. We leapt into the sky, chewed their magic, resisted their words of power, and left scars across those massive frames. The blood of our fallen kin became my armor. The blood of our enemies became my weapon.
But we could not kill them.
We simply lacked the strength.
One by one we began to fall. And then the humans—who had been quietly gathering power all this time—rose as one around the Sword of Victory.
They erased dragon magic. Deflected breath. Shattered words of power and ancient spells alike, and pressed forward.
Yet humans crawled upon the earth. They could never reach dragons that ruled the sky.
We could.
With our superior bodies, we could reach them.
So we forged a pact with the humans.
When the war ended and peace returned to the world, they would grant our remaining kin the right to live—and, as much as possible, leave us in peace.
A modest, simple, utterly disposable little pact that could be erased at any moment.
But I trusted them.
And I leapt toward the sky.
To rip the wings from those arrogant bastards. To smash their smug faces into the dirt. For the survival of my proud kin.
Smiling brightly, I offered my body to the Gu poison.
Slip— slither—
A soft, enveloping touch wrapped my entire body, and my waking mind turned soft and fuzzy.
“Mmmnh…”
Rustle— rustle—
“H-hey, stop that…”
Slither— rustle—
“Ahhhehe… that tickles…”
Sway— sway—
“Eek…! Hah! I said it tickles…!”
Something soft and busy was scrabbling along my back, prodding me to get up already.
What is that…?
[Sleep well?]
“Uuuhn…?”
[I told you to take a short nap, and you sleep for a whole damn week? What the hell.]
Cartia’s voice rang inside my head, laced with an uncharacteristic worry.
“…A-a week…?”
[Yeah. A week. Didn’t wake up once. Not that I blame you. After all that shit you went through, that massive… shock, and fighting like a rabid dog—yeah, you earned it.]
“…Huh?”
[Tch. This isn’t working. Hey, mutt. Smack her cheek for me. Wake the kid up.]
Rustle— slip—
“Uweh?”
Rustle-rustle— smack—!
“Eek…! W-what was that…!”
[What do you think? The puppy you tamed.]
“A-a puppy…?”
Ah… Carpeng?
Twitch— twitch—
A tail flicked back and forth, tickling my left thigh, then my right.
[This little shit was so on edge while you slept she wouldn’t let anyone near you except Rubia.]
The busy tail suddenly popped free, then slowly stroked the side of my neck.
Strangely soft, fluffy, and warm…
“F-fur…?”
Rustle— rustle—
“Uuhn…? No?”
Slip—
“Then… you just made it feel like that with blood qi…?”
Carpeng’s blood qi trembled at my words, then began to shake with violent enthusiasm.
Slip— slip— slip—
An overwhelming expression of agreement…
[Well I’ll be damned. You two can talk?]
“I-it’s not like that… I just get the feeling, that’s all… Anyway… do you know where my greatsword—”
Shove— clatter-clatter—
Thump—
“Uh… th-thank… you?”
Rustle—
As if it were nothing, the blood qi gave itself a vigorous shake and then melted away with a soft slither.
[Huh. So what was that just now?]
“Uum… I-I think she said ‘no big deal’…”
[Yeah? Hmm… kinda felt like that, yeah…]
Swallowing the odd feeling, I wrapped my hand around the greatsword Carpeng had brought me.
At once the room painted itself around me.
A luxurious inn chamber, a massive bed. A fireplace crackled pleasantly against the wide wall. On the small side table sat a plate of apples carved into cute little rabbits. In the corner, my clothes lay neatly folded.
“Uh…”
Clothes…? Neatly folded?
“Hiiik…! Why am I… why am I not wearing any— h-how come…?”
[They got shredded, filthy, and full of holes while you were fighting, so someone mended them. What the hell were you imagining to turn that red?]
“Ah… ahem… r-right, of course…”
I buried my suddenly burning face in the blankets and rolled myself into a tight little burrito.
“But… um… w-where did Rubia go?”
[Ah, about that. Right now—]
“I-I was sure that when I opened my eyes there’d be… paradise…”
Not that the blanket wrapped around my bare skin felt bad. The scent drifting from the table in the corner was nice too. The quiet crackle of the fireplace was soothing. It was a perfectly pleasant environment.
But the feeling of Rubia’s arms was softer than any blanket. The scent that rose from her was sweeter. Her calm, sometimes rough breathing and the quiet beat of her heart were far more comforting.
…I had expected her to be holding me the way she always did when I woke.
“Uum…”
I considered expanding my Qi Sensing, then gave up. If I accidentally pictured her chatting away somewhere like usual, my mood would plummet straight into the dirt.
[Sh-she was right beside you until just a bit ago.]
“D-don’t lie… the blanket barely smells like Rubia at all…”
[Whoa… you can even tell that? Did Carpeng recognize her own kind or something?]
“N-no, that’s not it…”
I tossed the greatsword carelessly onto the floor and yanked the blanket all the way over my head.
A faint trace of Rubia’s scent still clung to the fabric.
She’s been gone about three hours, maybe…
[Anyway, about Rubia—]
“I-I’m fine… never mind.”
[No, listen to me.]
“I don’t wanna…”
[You sulking?]
“No…”
[Tch, you petty little brat. You’ll regret it if you don’t hear me out.]
“E-even so, I won’t listen.”
I curled into a ball and hugged my knees.
But something still felt empty. I wanted something soft to hold.
There was only one pillow, and the greatsword was cold… uum…
Rustle—
“…Huh?”
Rustle— rustle—
“A tail…?”
Slip—
“…Y-you want me to hug it?”
Twitch— twitch—
A tail suddenly popped into existence, coiled itself between my legs, and wagged enthusiastically, tickling my arms.
“…C-can you make it a little warmer…?”
The tip tilted, then straightened, and the temperature of the tail steadily rose.
“O-ooh…”
I poked it with a fingertip, stroked it with my palm, then finally wrapped my arms around it.
Holding it like this, it definitely felt a little different from real fur. A bit of a shame, but still cozy.
Yeah.
Rubia can go play by herself.
I’m going to play with the tail and Cartia.
[I’m not playing with you.]
…I’m going to play with the tail.
Cartia snorted in pure disbelief.
[Anyway. That artifact you commissioned from Ser is under the bed.]
“Ah? Really…?”
[Yeah. You asked her to keep it secret, so she even layered magic on it and hid it real carefully.]
“Ooooh…!”
I immediately flung the tail aside and threw the blanket off. The dejected tail drooped, then vanished with a soft shloop.
I paid it no mind, slid down beside the bed, and grabbed the greatsword.
Just as Cartia had said, a box sealed with suspicious magic appeared in my senses—so faint I had to focus my Qi Sensing hard just to make it out.
“F-finally…!”
[You stuck a Tyrant fragment in that?]
“Yeees…!”
[What is it? Another bracelet? Or a ring or something.]
“Heheh… want me to show youuu…?”
[…Hearing you ask in that tone makes me want to refuse on principle.]
“H-how rude…”
I stuck my tongue out at Cartia’s ghostly form, then turned back to the box.
The structure looked like it needed both hands to open—one hand wouldn’t cut it.
I had no choice but to set the greatsword down and grip the box with both hands.
“Okay… I’ll show you… drumroll…”
My wrist itched; Carpeng must have popped out again out of curiosity.
I kept muttering “drumroll” to build the tension until Cartia, thoroughly fed up, let out an irritated sigh—and at that exact moment!
Click— click—
[Huh? Hey, wait… holy shit.]
“T-ta-daaa…! It’s a necklace…!”
I lifted the necklace with both hands and showed it off proudly.
But… hadn’t I just heard another opening sound besides the box?
Nah, I must have imagined it.
[No, Noah. First grab the greatsw—]
“S-so? Look, right here… R-Rubia’s name is written on it… W-well, usually you’d put the owner’s name here, but um, maybe this one doesn’t have that…? Anyway, I designed it myself… Ah, right. The greatsword… greatsword greatsword.”
I had told Ser exactly the design I wanted, so it should be right, but still—real life could always be different!
I immediately grabbed the greatsword lying beside me.
And then—
“Eh… R-Rubia…? Uh… when did you come in…”
Rubia stood right in front of me, wearing a blank expression.
She stared at me for a long moment, then suddenly lifted my wrist.
Clink—
“What… is this…?”
[Ah, we’re fucked.]
It wasn’t a soft, fur-lined bracelet.
“…H-handcuffs…?”
She had locked handcuffs around my wrist.
And in that same instant, strength drained from my entire body.
Cartia’s bracelet slipped free with a soft clink and tumbled across the floor.