49 chapter
49 chapter
"......"
"......"
Oh, what should I do?
‘I’ve already acted impulsively, but...’
Chara's legs were trembling like a newborn deer.
‘Damn it.’
In front of a strong opponent, Chara's knees, ready to kneel, were trembling in defeat. But, in a situation where life and death hung in the balance, the knees of most humans were not valuable enough # Nоvеlight # to ensure their master’s survival.
‘Especially when the opponent isn’t human, it’s even more so.’
At least I know now that the opponent isn’t human. No, it couldn’t have been anything else.
Even though the face was obscured by darkness, the feeling of it being as if it didn’t exist at all was overwhelming. How could I not notice this strange sense of discomfort?
‘...Shit, shit, what should I do? But, since we’re talking, doesn't that mean the monster is willing to converse? Of course, if it doesn't like me, it could just kill me in an instant… but still, for now...’
Chara was not what you would call a "learned hunter." She had only received the basic training provided by the association and didn’t know much about the exact ecology of monsters or how to handle them.
However, even Chara knew how dangerous humanoid monsters could be.
‘If I meet a humanoid monster, I’d usually pray for a painless death if I were below grade C...’
At home, there was her pig-like older brother and her rabbit-like younger sibling waiting for her. Chara, unable to die easily, decided to give it a try.
‘At least we share a language, and the fact that it’s willing to communicate... I mean, it must be... right? It must be, right?’
Shivering, Chara opened her mouth.
"Um, I’m... I’m a porter. I was wondering if you might need a slave...?”
"...Porter?"
"Ah."
Not all humanoid monsters were knowledgeable about human culture. Chara realized that late, but the fact that the monster showed interest in her words was good news.
Chara, delighted, answered. There was a faint glimmer of hope for survival.
"I’m someone who can carry things. I... I can do many things other than that. I’m good at cleaning, cooking, and running errands. If you just spare me once, I’ll... I’ll give it my all..."
"I’m good at those too."
"...Pardon?"
"I’m good at cooking and cleaning."
"......"
What was it like to say to a human, desperate to assert their worth in hopes of survival, “I’m good at it too”? Chara felt like vomiting blood.
‘What the hell does this tone mean? Is it saying it won’t spare me? That I’m useless? Or... or...’
In her long life as a porter, Chara had thought she was somewhat skilled at appeasing others, but that didn't work in front of a monster.
‘...No, no, it’s too early to give up. Since we share the same language and the monster seems willing to communicate, surely I’ll be able to interpret what it wants or what it’s saying. I can do this... Humans will win...’
Then something occurred to Chara.
‘...Is it trying to find common ground with me?’
From the introduction earlier to now, it was obvious the monster was trying to make her feel some kind of closeness or goodwill.
"......"
That only made the discomfort grow even more.
"Uh, that..."
Suppressing the urge to throw a counter, Chara resigned herself to bow before the powerful presence.
"...I see! You’re amazing!"
"Thank you."
"Cooking and cleaning aren't things just anyone can do! You must be really good at it! That’s so impressive!"
"You're the same, Chara."
"......"
She was at a loss for words.
‘In front of a humanoid monster that’s so prideful, I ended up praising it instead.’
She desperately needed a return stone.
‘Older brother, younger sibling, I’m going first.’
As Chara braced herself for a painful death, she heard a rustling sound from the opposite side. Given the black cloak, it seemed the monster tilted its head.
‘It does have a head.’
A strange sense of relief mixed with fear overwhelmed her. Then the monster spoke.
"I’m sorry, but I don’t need a slave."
"......"
Sorry, little sibling. Older brother, I love you. Chara once again prepared herself for a gruesome death.
‘Please, let the ones who abandoned me show up on the 9 o’clock news and get pelted by the whole nation... and never show their faces in this industry again.’
‘When you go to the convenience store to buy snacks, don’t forget to cover your face or you’ll get eggs thrown at you for becoming so famous...!’
While she cursed them in her mind and sweated cold beads like tears, the monster continued.
"Is your job being a slave?"
"...No...?"
It was meant as a polite request for her to just be used like a servant—“please just let me live, I can carry things for you, please.” In these law-abiding times, who would be a slave?
"Ah, of course, I’ve heard rumors that rich people secretly... secretly buy and sell slaves..."
"That’s terrible."
"Yes, it’s terrible. Awful people, really."
"It’s frightening."
"......"
The monster’s response, a polite and high-sounding "frightening," without any hint of emotion, left Chara speechless.
But something clicked.
‘...Is it trying to mimic a human now? Trying to act scary?’
It was something Chara hadn’t imagined, but she realized it late.
‘The greeting earlier, the introduction, and now trying to relate to me...’
It was so formulaic that it was hard to tell what it meant and felt strange.
‘Maybe it's trying to act like a human?’
No, wait.
‘This is frustrating??’
If it’s going to imitate humans, at least it should do it convincingly so I can pretend to be fooled...!
‘This isn’t even a twist of the original. If you’re going to imitate, at least follow the creator’s intentions. Who would fall for this?’
Even the leader who abandoned her made easier-to-interpret jokes than this.
‘If it’s proud of its imitation of a human, that’s absurd.’
Chara opened her mouth in frustration.
"Yes, right. It’s scary."
Having realized that the monster was trying to imitate a human, she got the general idea.
‘When I didn’t respond to the greeting, maybe it was trying to figure out what to say, just like learning how to use a machine...’
Humans would reciprocate greetings, but since Chara didn’t, maybe it was trying to adapt like an AI answering the same question repeatedly.
‘It feels like a malfunctioning TV trying to make sense of things...?’
Upon thinking through it, the monster seemed to have tried really hard to imitate humans, but Chara still couldn’t understand any of it.
Whether or not the monster knew what Chara was thinking, it continued while gently stroking an anti-cat in its arms.
"I won’t kill you, Chara."
"......"
"I won’t hurt you, and I won’t make you sad."
"Uh..."
"I didn’t want to scare you."
The monster in the black cloak spoke again.
"I wanted to make a friend."
"...A friend?"
What was this?
‘Is it looking for a sacrifice to drag to the afterlife?’
The word "friend" sounded very mild, but the monster’s atmosphere didn’t match at all, and Chara immediately became suspicious.
Even though the words seemed neutral, the heavy presence around it made her think it was unlikely that "friend" meant ordinary companionship.
‘It looks like a funeral director or a grim reaper... Could it... be looking for an afterlife companion?’
Before Chara could finish her suspicions, the monster spoke again.
"You're too young to be my friend, Chara."
"......"
Too young? Was it really looking for a companion to the afterlife?
‘...No, more importantly...’
The monster seemed to equate youth with weakness, and Chara slightly furrowed her brow.
‘I’m not that young... but maybe monsters don’t understand such things.’
At 18, Chara was considered of age and capable of being treated as an adult. But this monster treated her like a child, and she felt once again out of place.
‘...But it said it won’t hurt me...’
Though trusting a monster was foolish, it did bring her some comfort.
"Are you alone here?"
"...Ah, yes. I’m alone."
It wouldn’t just kill me because I’m alone, right? Chara tensed up.
Monsters having their own set of rules was common knowledge among hunters. Many rules seemed odd and cruel from a human perspective.
‘Especially humanoid monsters, their rules are even more rigid...’
Could it be one of those monsters that only kills lone hunters?
"Ah."
Luckily, it didn’t seem like that was the case.
"I thought people in dungeons usually act in groups. Did I misunderstand?"
"Uh..."
The monster described people like a pack of dogs. It was a bit too rough, but Chara, being quick-witted, noticed a faint kindness hidden in its overly polite tone.
It seemed that this kindness wasn’t aimed at her personally, but rather toward humans as a whole.
‘So, it’s not completely emotionless.’
Chara felt a little more at ease. Dealing with a monster that had emotions was far less terrifying than one that didn’t.
"...No, you’re right. I wasn’t alone at first, but... my group left me, so now I’m stuck alone in the dungeon... I couldn’t get out...”
"......"
"...Then I saw the anti-cat..."
Ah, I see now.
‘So that black cloak wanted the anti-cat to bring me here, to see if I was a friend or a sacrifice.’
Could this humanoid monster be the hidden boss of this dungeon?
‘Monsters cooperating is common, but direct command is rare...’
I have no idea what to call it since I wasn’t taught about it in class. Didn’t expect to see a humanoid monster... oh, I just want to go home.
Just when her mood dipped, there was a loud noise.
Grrrr—!
"......"
That was an incredibly loud stomach growl.
"...I’m sorry."
"It sounds like you’re hungry."
"I’m sorry...!!"
Chara realized for the first time that she could feel both embarrassment and fear at the same time. The monster was trying so hard to fit into human standards that she almost forgot how scary it was, feeling a bit awkward.
"I haven’t eaten in three days..."
"Three days?"
"Yes, I’ve been abandoned for about 13 hours now, but I haven’t eaten since then..."
"Three days?"
"......"
What...?
‘What did I say wrong?’
Humanoid monsters weren’t your run-of-the-mill creatures.
Each had its own set of rules, so nobody knew what this unseen monster’s strange rules were.
Luckily, the monster didn’t seem angry.
"Bad people."
"Grumble."
Chara was startled by the new voice.
"Ugh, what, what...?"
"My son."
"...Huh?"
"......"
The monster fell silent for a moment, then raised the anti-cat in one hand and moved the other behind its head. Though it was hard to see in the darkness...
Chara quickly realized where the sound had come from.
"Honey."
What? What?
"Say hello."
"Grunt."
"Good boy."
"......"
Before the nonsensical words like "good" and "boy," what caught Chara’s attention was the little bird resting on the monster’s pale hand, filled with colorful gems.
"......"
...So cute.
"Is your name... Honey?"
"Yes, that’s it."
"Does it bite?!"
It didn’t look like it, but did it?
"But I don’t want to bite you."
"Ah, I see..."
"Honey, let’s go home now."
And that was when it happened.
Wham—!
"......!"
The small bird’s body glowed brightly and illuminated the entire cave.
"...Wow, wow..."
The jewel cave, now fully revealed.
‘It’s beautiful.’
It was fantastical.
Chara forgot her fear and admired the breathtaking sight she had rarely seen in her life.
‘So this is how a vein of gemstones looks like.’
Various large and small gems clustered together, and the cave paths twisted like an ant tunnel. It was both beautiful and chaotic, a dreamlike confusion.
Chara saw the true form of the gemstone veins for the first time.
"......"
It made Chara realize how monstrous "Honey" really was.
‘It pushed all the dark worms out of the gemstone veins.’
Dark worms, which couldn’t be eradicated without a high-level priest, could only absorb all light except the glow from certain gems, but the small bird revealed them all in an instant.
It felt like a giant sun had just descended.
"......"
"Chara."
"...Uh."
That was when Chara finally saw the monster’s face.
"We’ve met before."
"...Uh, uh...!"
Just as it said, Chara recognized the creature.
"That time, the jewel... the portrait...!"
"I’m glad you remember."
"...You were a monster?!"
"I’m human."
"Th-then, what...?"
Chara didn’t want to offend the monster’s mood, so she quickly agreed. It clearly wanted to appear human, and she didn’t want to die by saying, "Don’t lie, you’re not human."
"......"
After hesitating, Chara asked.
"...Am I going to die now?"
"You won’t die."
"......"
"Good people should be rewarded."
"Th-then..."
Chara suddenly realized.
‘That monster... it wants to treat good humans well.’
It had called her "good student" and referred to her team as "bad people." Even without much knowledge, Chara understood that the monster was sensitive to good and evil.
"I’m sorry for surprising you last time."
"...Uh."
"It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a good student like you. I couldn’t help but follow you, and I’m sorry if it made you uncomfortable. I apologize for causing any confusion."
"Ah, no, you don’t need to...?"
"I didn’t mean to surprise you again. But people are strangely afraid of me, and I’ve never met anyone like you who’s afraid of me. I’ll apologize for the inconvenience I caused with my confusion."
"......"
Such a terribly polite monster.
‘If it’s this polite, I almost feel sorry for refusing.’
It was a strange feeling.
The monster, who introduced itself as "Sergio," looked just like an ordinary human.
‘No.’
It looked like a very handsome human.
But that didn’t matter at all due to the imposing and distant aura wrapped around it.
How could a mouse compliment the appearance of a giant? No matter how fragrant the smell was, a mere creature had no mind to judge it.
"......"
It was very gentlemanly.
At the same time, because of its overwhelming presence, it felt like an alien being.
‘It’s like the universe is trying to mimic humans...’
Chara couldn’t figure out how to approach it.
That was when "Sergio" spoke again, cradling the small monsters in its arms.
"I’m going home now."
"...Ah, yes, you’re going home..."
Huh?
‘Does it have a home?’
Wasn’t this cave its home?
‘The gift it gave me last time was also made of gems... and with the anti-cat following it, maybe this monster is the real owner of the dungeon?’
Or was there another habitat deep within this ant tunnel?
"......"
"If it’s okay, Chara."
"Yes?"
"Would you accept my invitation?"
Invitation?
"What do you mean by invitation?"
"You’re young. This place is dark, and there’s nothing to eat. You look tired and hungry. I don’t want to just leave you here. If you allow me to treat you to a meal, I would be grateful."
"...I... I..."
"I swear I won’t harm you, and after one meal, I’ll send you back to Seoul. I promise this on my son, Honey, so I hope you don’t doubt me."
"Ah."
"Will that make you feel a little more at ease?"
Chara didn’t trust the monster.
"......"
But rejecting the kindness blatantly felt foolish. As "Sergio" said, Chara was still young and weak.
"...Please."
She was exhausted from being alone.