A Feast Without Meat
A lavish feast with no meat.
A familiar sight one often sees.
Various colorful vegetables were spread across a wide table like a mountain blooming with autumn foliage.
Behind them stood hunters and artisans on guard, while only Kim Hwang-je and Nax were seated.
The only difference was...
"High-piled rice? Are you a Joseon person?"
"Cho...seonwon? No. We are not chosen by any other gods."
The blue-haired elf chieftain answered, her face filled with bewilderment.
"...Haha."
Of course a Joseon person and a chosen one were different, but explaining the distinction felt like admitting defeat.
Just in case, he stirred the food with a spoon. It wasn't rice. White fruit crumbs. It looked like a mountain of pills made from coconut.
What on earth was this?
"The meal is rather modest. I apologize..."
Glancing sideways, Nax was already putting the food in her mouth and chewing without a word.
"Great Prince. Please eat this as well."
"Prince, say ah."
Elf girls clung to him from all sides, trying to feed him various tree fruits. It looked exactly like a great villain surrounded by women. With his massive build and black armor that resembled something straight out of Fist of the North Star, of course it did.
"Ayat!"
"Ah, I'm sorry...! I'm sorry!"
"Oh dear."
See? These elf women were trying to put grapes in his mouth, only to get pricked by the spikes on his armor and end up apologizing instead.
Kim Hwang-je let out a deep sigh.
"Grandpa. This kind of thing doesn't work on me."
Nax looked at Kim Hwang-je with eyes asking what he meant, but the village chief's body trembled. He knew exactly what was being said.
"Forgive us for offending the great Prince's dignity..."
"Your Majesty. May I punish this arrogant elf?"
The artisan's eyes gleamed. The beauties quickly retreated. All the elves around them were terrified and focused on Kim Hwang-je's mouth.
"No. Just stay still."
Kim Hwang-je glared at the artisan.
"Yes, Your Majesty..."
The artisan stepped back. The hunter behind him snickered.
"Foolish artisan. Our Majesty is filled with mercy as vast as the sea. When will you understand?"
"Keung... Shut up. This is before His Majesty. To these lowly elf mongrels..."
"Hey, are you crazy?"
Kim Hwang-je said. The artisan, scolded twice in such a short time, didn't know what to do.
"Ah... Indeed, Your Majesty. You are right! Truly, Your Majesty is the supreme ruler of all races!"
That wasn't the intention, but it was fortunate if he understood it that way. Anyway, in the artisan's era there had been so many wars with elves that his dislike was understandable.
Kim Hwang-je spoke to the village chief again.
"I apologize for my subordinate speaking out of turn. But the honey trap won't work."
If he returned to Earth, the elf girls on either side would be beauties worthy of being cover models for hunter magazines. The problem was that Kim Hwang-je felt nothing at all.
"Come on, let's eat. You must have been startled because of me."
"Y-yes..."
Still, watching the elves pile mountains of rice onto pickled food and eat diligently was oddly cute. He must have become addicted to World Observation. Seeing anyone eat made him feel this good.
"Hoo..."
Nax, sitting beside him, let out a sigh. Due to all sorts of worries, it seemed difficult for her to even lift her chopsticks to her mouth. A dragon girl with long green hair reaching her waist and horns on her head. Of course, while in her polymorphed form, she possessed an unparalleled beauty that humans could never approach. Yet the prison uniform she wore remained unchanged.
Nax set down her chopsticks.
"Prince. Why are you staring like that?"
"No, it's just fascinating. Is that a human form?"
"Precisely an elf..."
Even in elf form, she snorted. Nax fidgeted with her fingertips on the table before speaking.
"Prince, there is something I must say."
"What is it?"
"I didn't expect someone of your caliber to hunt dolls in a rural ruin. If I offer a sincere apology and treasure, won't you withdraw?"
But Kim Hwang-je had no intention of withdrawing. He couldn't just take the treasure and leave when such an interesting story was unfolding.
"Doll hunting?"
"Yes... Don't you know?"
"Explain."
"Dolls can travel between many worlds, so they're often treated as interesting prey. Sometimes you can snatch fun toys..."
Kim Hwang-je rested his chin on his hand.
"Then besides dolls, you can't go to worlds beyond the ruins?"
Nax stroked the horn on her head with her right hand.
"You're stating the obvious. All beings with a true name cannot leave their own world."
"Hmm."
Making a nasal sound when you didn't know was the best approach. And if you wore a confident expression, people usually assumed you knew. Of course, what mattered here was that arrogant, overbearing yet mysterious look. Even as a commoner, Kim Hwang-je was quite good at it.
"Even those beyond the stars had their true names bound to this land after Azazel's seal."
"Then you also know about the various worlds beyond the ruins?"
"I've heard there are unimaginably bizarre worlds. From the hell of fire spirits... to places swarming with specter merchants."
"Of course."
"But to be honest, I have no connection to the Council of Dragons. So I don't know more than that."
Ah, a wild dragon, was it? Kim Hwang-je recalled hearing that the eunuch had only caught one wild dragon.
"But why did you protect these dolls?"
"They came to me first and offered tribute. They asked me to prevent anyone from approaching the ruins in this area... In return, they gave me a great treasure."
Oho. Each dungeon connected to its own world, and this ruin led to Earth. In other words, controlling this ruin was like holding the Howlings' path to Earth.
Nax narrowed her eyes.
"Why do you ask such a thing, Prince? Shouldn't you, as a Prince, know more than a dragon like me?"
"Well, I was just curious how much you know."
Kim Hwang-je quickly changed the subject.
"Don't worry. I'll take the treasure as compensation for attacking me. Don't think of trading with that."
"Keung...!"
As expected, when the topic of treasure came up, Nax's face twisted. Getting beaten, bitten, swung around, and even having money taken away! Her expression, baring sharp fangs and grinding her molars, might sway many men's hearts, but it didn't work on Kim Hwang-je at all.
"But I'm curious. Why would a dragon so obsessed with treasure protect the elves? Are you using these elves to mine or something??"
Usually goblins, orcs, or dwarves took that role, but it wouldn't be strange for elves to work in mines either.
Then the elf village chief spoke.
"Great one. Please calm your anger. Lady Nax is a dragon who promised to protect us. She fled here with us and is guarding the forest."
"Why?"
"...She received a wooden carving."
A figurine. Her taste was certainly firm. Nax's face had turned bright red.
"We lived peacefully here. Our artisans poured their artistic souls into carving wood. But the Demon King Izkaya demanded excessive protection fees from us."
Nax nodded.
"My treasure alone wasn't enough to cover it. I had to gather gold from various places to barely manage. Even this remote region isn't free from the Prince..."
Nax downed the elf liquor in front of her straight from the bottle.
"Now it's all in the past. Even if someone comes in the name of light and takes away our means of survival, what can we say?"
They were saying plenty, actually. By the way, an unexpected name had popped up.
Kim Hwang-je said, "Demon King Izkaya. That guy's reach is quite wide."
Kim Hwang-je smirked. Indeed, it would be ridiculous to just sit and wait for Sinal to be attacked. Since he had to recover the old territories anyway, if that guy invaded...
'Striking first is best!'
Kim Hwang-je said to Nax, "First, give me the treasure. I'll deal with him."
"What?"
Nax's eyes widened.
***
A moment later, Kim Hwang-je arrived at Nax's lair.
"Is it true? If I really give you my treasure, you'll protect us from him?"
"Ah, yes. Don't you believe me?"
"No... I believe you. What would a Prince gain by deceiving us... But... what we can give..."
Kim Hwang-je ignored Nax and strode inside. There was a large path leading to the dragon's lair within the dense bushes. A volcano with lava flowing down like a waterfall. When Nax entered the middle of the lava flowing like a waterfall, a passage appeared. It was a space where an ordinary person would have already died from the sulfur.
"Feels like exploring a jungle. The scenery is killer."
"Indeed it is, Your Majesty."
Kim Hwang-je, Nax, and the residents all entered without any issue. Then a vast cavern appeared, a huge space perfect for a dragon to lie down and rest.
"Warm and nice..."
Nax muttered without confidence. Unfortunately, there was nothing else to boast about.
"What! It's completely empty!"
Kim Hwang-je said. It was called a dragon's lair, but there was almost no treasure in this vast space. Kim Hwang-je picked up one of the few jewel boxes rolling around and opened it.
"Even the box is empty."
"Keung... I've just been struggling to pay the protection fees lately. I can fill it up anytime."
Nax couldn't hide her embarrassment. Most of the jewel boxes were more than half empty. Kim Hwang-je, who had imagined a room full of rubies, felt deflated. Well, being broke wasn't a crime. She hadn't lived extravagantly either.
"Damn. Fine. This isn't cheese, so if it was moved, someone must have it. Tell me. Where did you take the taxes?"
"It's not tax, it's protection fee."
"Same thing, dragon!"
When he shouted, Nax answered.
"There's a fortress to the west. Izkaya built it to collect protection fees from the surrounding area."
"We attack. Prepare."
"What?"
To advance things so hastily! Kim Hwang-je flicked a piece of gold rolling on the floor away with his finger and stood up.
"Gather all the kids! I'll prepare a forest for you to live in."
From now on, this land was his territory! Not a single inch could be taken away.
"Artisan. Can you bring the royal army here right away?"
"Your Majesty. The distance is too far to use large-scale spatial movement spells."
"What about via transit?"
Kim Hwang-je asked casually. Passing through Stronghold would shorten even long distances. But the artisan hesitated.
"That is... It's impossible to bring those who aren't in a special contractual relationship."
The artisan said, "People won't work, but tools will?"
"Yes, that's correct."
Kim Hwang-je said, "Wait. I'll get a helicopter. Tonight's operation name is Black Cobra."
Drop armored knights from helicopters into enemy lines!
"Let's go to Jung Da-yeon. While we're at it, sell some gold, buy rubies... and let's buy a helicopter too."