Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: From the Bottom
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“And this one received my ‘Core.’ That’s why everything feels close to me. But you’re just a typical, creepy human with none of that.”
“Core?”
“Yeah. Do you know what a Core is?”
“I heard about it from Didi. Actually, I came here hoping to get one... Could you give me one, by any chance?”
Since it had come up, I cut straight to the chase. Regal immediately narrowed his eyes and started bristling his fur.
“You want a Core? Why?”
“Someone I know got poisoned. A really vicious poison. Elixirs don’t work, and neither does holy magic. Didi said the Cores you make can detoxify any poison.”
“That’s true. So? Why should I give it to you?”
Regal lifted his chin with an arrogant expression.
Why?
Because if you don’t, I’ll have to kill you right here, gut you, and shove the Emperor inside!
Sigh...
Of course, I couldn’t threaten him like that.
Of course, I’d prepared a negotiation plan ahead of time, knowing this might happen. I might not have been close to any Ancient Wolves, but I knew their ecology inside and out.
“Give me a Core, and I’ll grant one of your wishes.”
“A wish?”
“For example, I could have large quantities of deer meat delivered here regularly.”
“Deer meat...”
“Deer from the Eternal Forest, that is.”
“...!”
Look at that—the guy’s eyes went wide, and drool started pooling at the corner of his mouth.
Deer are the staple food for Ancient Wolves. Having been stuck in this sewer for decades, he must miss the taste of deer from his homeland something fierce.
“Such a sneaky condition... Grr! I don’t need it! A wish? My wish is for you to get out of my territory right now!”
The wolf’s face, which had started to relax, suddenly hardened with pride as he bared his teeth.
Tch, playing hard to get.
But for someone shouting so boldly, his expression wasn’t convincing. I quickly figured out why and shrugged my shoulders exaggeratedly.
“Your territory? This sewer packed full of monsters? No matter how I look at it, it seems more like monster territory than yours.”
“...”
“Come on, let’s talk. When did Emperlord’s sewers turn into this monster-infested hellhole? It wasn’t always like this, right?”
“...Of course not.”
Regal hung his head with a deflated look.
“It started ten days ago. Nothing like this had ever happened before.”
Ten days ago.
Something was nagging at the back of my mind, but I couldn’t quite place it. After a moment’s thought, I boldly proposed a new exchange.
“Alright. Then I’ll clean up all the monsters in the sewers. In return, give me a Core.”
“You?”
“Yeah. Me.”
“...Are you planning to send the Empire’s army into the sewers? A massive force?”
“I don’t have that kind of authority. I’ll do it alone.”
A scoffing laugh spread across Regal’s long snout.
“You alone? What gives you that confidence? After running for your life just now?”
“I couldn’t fight properly earlier because Didi was there. Don’t worry. If I go all out, I can wipe them all out.”
“His Highness is right. You couldn’t use your full power earlier because you were protecting me.”
Right on cue, Didi scratched under Regal’s chin to back me up. Regal shook his snout with a puzzled expression.
“I don’t get it. How can such a frail human...”
“His Highness is strong. Stronger than anyone in the Empire. So you can trust him.”
“Stronger than anyone in the Empire? How do you prove that?”
“He took down the necromancer legion all by himself. Isn’t that enough?”
“Necromancer legion? You mean the one from the Necropolis?”
The wolf’s eyes went wide in an instant. He began scrutinizing my body with clearly cautious eyes.
“As expected, your physical abilities are... pathetic. So you plan to handle everything with magic, then. You look young. Are you what humans call an ‘Arch Wizard’ level?”
“No, I’m at least twice as strong as that Arch Wizard.”
It wasn’t bragging—it was the truth. Thanks to the lich’s mana crystal, my mana limit had more than doubled.
Regal thrust his nose right up to me and started sniffing intently.
“Sniff... Hmm. There’s definitely a mana scent. It’s condensed inside, but very strong.”
“You can tell mana by smell?”
“Those who handle high-level mana give off a unique scent in their sweat. Though in this sewer, my nose isn’t as reliable as it used to be. Still, this much isn’t a lie.”
The wolf stared at my face with quiet eyes for a while. Then, suddenly, he flopped onto the ground belly-first into a relaxed position.
“This might take a while. Didi?”
“Yeah, Regal.”
Didi quickly hugged Regal’s neck in response. Regal closed his mouth, mumbled something, and then spoke.
“Is this guy you serve a good human?”
“Yeah. He’s a good person. Despite his high status, he treats me well. He doesn’t boss me around like the people at the old officer academy or exploit me openly. On top of that, he’s even giving me opportunities to learn.”
“Opportunities to learn?”
“Lately, I’ve been taking knight lessons. From a Knight Master, no less. And he always makes sure I eat well to grow big and strong. He takes me along on important missions so I can gain experience. I’m truly grateful to him.”
Hmm. Hearing this praise relay right in front of me was making my face heat up a bit.
But it was highly effective. The wolf’s expression toward me had clearly softened compared to before.
“Didi hates humans as much as I do. It’s surprising she speaks so highly of you. Fine. I’ll trust you. If Didi didn’t trust you, she wouldn’t have brought you this far in the first place.”
“Yeah. I’m a decent guy, so give me a shot.”
I nodded with a smile. Regal let out a groan like something still bothered him.
“But our vibes still don’t match. The smell too. No matter how good things sound, I can’t warm up to you. So take my Core first.”
“What?”
At that moment, Regal writhed greatly and vomited something up.
“Ptooey!”
It was a green-glowing orb encased in mucus. Regal looked at the orb he’d vomited and said,
“This is the Core. Only Ancient Wolves who’ve survived over 300 years can produce one from their bodies.”
“Oh...”
“Prince Claude. You need to accept this and become close to me first. Then our deal can begin.”
The wolf nudged the orb with his front paw. I picked up the orb that rolled toward me, frowning.
“No, my goal is to give this Core to someone else, deal or no deal...”
I could just run off with this and accomplish my immediate goal. Of course, I had no intention of leaving otherworldly monsters infesting Emperlord’s underground.
“You weren’t planning to run off with it, were you?”
Regal’s eyes flashed with blue light in that instant.
“If so, our relationship ends here. I won’t let Didi hang around a sneaky human like you anymore!”
He suddenly gaped his jaws wide and playfully chomped Didi, rising to his feet. I flinched and reached up.
“Didi! You okay?”
“I’m fine, Your Highness! Regal would never hurt me!”
Didi flailed her limbs as if to prove her safety. I finally gave a wry smile and extended the orb in my hand.
“I won’t run, so let her go. So, how do I do this?”
“Eat it.”
The wolf carefully set Didi back down. I widened my eyes and shook the orb up and down.
“Eat it? This? You just puked it up?”
“Just put it in your mouth, and it’ll absorb naturally.”
“But just now...”
“No need to think it’s dirty. Even an Ancient Wolf’s bodily fluids have detoxifying and healing effects. Everything that comes from my body is medicine, start to finish.”
That much was true.
Still, wasn’t it a waste for me to use this precious Core myself? If I played it right, I could save not just the Emperor, but the Crown Prince too.
“You’re giving this to me now, which means you can make another one later, right?”
“Of course. I have three more stockpiled inside me.”
“Three? Then could you give me two instead of one? I actually need to save two people.”
“Greedy, aren’t you.”
The wolf furrowed his brow, thought for a while, and said,
“If you really purify the sewers, I’ll give you all three, not just two. They’re useless to me anyway.”
“Deal. You’ll keep your promise?”
I immediately brought the Core to my mouth and asked,
“But if a healthy person eats this, any side effects?”
“Side effects?”
“I’m not poisoned or anything—I’m perfectly fine. Is it okay for someone healthy to eat it?”
“No side effects. Instead, your fragile body—that’d shatter if poked—will become slightly closer to an Ancient Wolf’s.”
“Huh?”
“I can see it. Every muscle and bone in your body, everything that makes you up, is screaming.”
Regal sniffed and narrowed his eyes.
“It’s amazing you manage to function like a person in that state. I can barely look at it.”
“Hey, I’m weak, but not that bad.”
“Is that so? Anyway, eating the Core won’t cause side effects—it’ll make you healthier, even if just a little. This one was so frail she couldn’t even grab a single hair at first, but after absorbing a Core, she started hunting and eating rats and snakes on her own.”
The wolf closed his eyes and rubbed his face against Didi. Didi nodded seriously as she looked at me.
“It’s true, Your Highness. Even the things the Captain praised me for—I think most of them come from absorbing the Core.”
“So if I eat this, I’ll get flexible joints and stamina like you?”
“I believe so.”
“And movements like a wild animal?”
“That... might be a habit from spending years with Regal, but the Core probably has some influence too.”
Anyway, eating it was a sure win? Expecting unexpected gains, I popped the green orb into my mouth.
“Ugh... You said just hold it in my mouth without swallowing?”
“Yeah. Wait a bit, and it’ll absorb into your body. You’ll finally be somewhat presentable as a human. It’ll take some time, though.”
Regal yawned and lay belly-up again like it was no big deal. I felt the orb in my mouth shrinking and frowned.
“Feels like it’s giving off some kind of gas... But it takes time?”
“Absorption and integration take about 30 minutes. Longer if you’re poisoned by something.”
“Poisoned? I had issues, but I pretty much fixed them with elixirs.”
These days, even drinking Rania’s Detoxification Elixirs didn’t change much.
The chronic pain and foggy haze in my head had been gone for ages. The wolf nodded knowingly and pointed at my body with his chin.
“But didn’t you just get injured? I smelled it.”
“Oh, my shoulder a bit. Healed it roughly with recovery magic. It’s fine now.”
“Pain might come to the injured area during absorption. Now you won’t be surprised.”
“Yeah? Come to think of it, my shoulder’s throbbing... Gah.”
Before I could finish, I collapsed in place.
Shoulder pain?
That was nothing.
Suddenly, my muscles went slack, and pain dozens of times worse flooded in.
“Ugh... Urk...”
Even my neck muscles seized—I couldn’t scream.
Unable to do anything, I toppled forward and slowly closed my eyes.
What the hell? Why is this happening all of a sudden? What’s going on in my body?