A week after the Terras and I shook off the Shellmounts chasing us, we finally arrived at the goblin’s homeland.
[Terras have returned to their homeland.]
[The quest has been cleared!]
[You have safely escorted your species from Slimepolis.]
[Species points have been awarded for completing the quest...]
As it was a reward for the main quest on the thirty-second floor, I received quite a generous amount of points. Like I had done throughout this floor, I invested most of those species points and kept only one hundred points for myself.
I need them for something else.
Only then did I look up at Goru, the goblins’ homeland. The place that the goblins had been longing for so long wasn’t... very nice. To be honest, it resembled ruins.
The Guardian shrugged.
—Well, of course. Without anyone living here, weeds and bushes spread all over the village in no time. When I returned to my homeland, it was just a jungle after some bandits of the Demonic Path ransacked it.
Huh? You went through something like that?
—Of course. I experienced many things in my life. If I were to write my biography, it would be a masterpiece with thirty-nine volumes in the first half, twenty-two volumes in the second half, and thirteen volumes of side stories.
I really don’t like that the numbers are strangely specific...
—I even became a ghost after I died, so Part Three is serializing right now amidst the highest of praises. After you die, I’m going to continue Part Two of the side stories by possessing someone else.
Isn’t it about time it’s completed?
We looked back at the old homeland. Goru was dominated by greenery, mostly weeds and small trees. Any traces of anyone ever living here had already disappeared. Only the goblins’ stone pillars and statues, which they had made long ago, remained, covered in mosses, as if they had compromised with time.
Among them, there was a strangely familiar statue made from white marble. I wasn’t familiar with the statue itself because I had not seen it before, but I still recognized it. Despite the crudeness, the creature’s mane and large teeth had been carved with great care...
—They even made a sculpture of you? Since you’re their precious White Lion, they even got their hands on marble to make a sculpture of you. Man, they put in some effort, that’s for sure. That’s true devotion.
I slowly looked around, wondering what was so good about this green jungle. The goblins were laughing as they unpacked their bags.
Some goblins struck trees using the stone hammers brought from Slimepolis to make shelters as quickly as possible.
But I’m not their master.
Parents were neither master nor friend, but something in between. To their children, they felt both very distant and very close. Parents could act as masters or friends, but it was probably up to the parents, not the children, to decide that.
Before I leave this stage, I should talk to Gorke about this.
That night, I used the remaining one hundred species points to purchase an item.
[You have purchased Dream Appearance]
[You have used 100 species points!]
[You now have 995 species points.]
[You have invested the rest of your species points, so they are currently unavailable.]
I entered Gorke’s dream and waved at him, receiving an enthusiastic welcome in return.
“Hi, kid. It’s been a while.”
“Kirrrrr?! Th-the devil!”
“Your warm welcome makes me feel fuzzy all over. Have you been feeling lonely because we haven’t seen each other in a few days? I’m sorry for being inconsiderate of your feelings.”
Gorke jumped up. “If you’re truly sorry, then stop appearing in my dreams! I thought I was going to die fighting those snails last time!”
“Well, you aren’t dead, so you’re fine. What can’t kill you will make you braver, Gorke. Don’t let the world kick your ass. Live a life where you kick the world’s ass.”
“Y-your mouth is still foul. Out of all the ways you can say that, how can you make it sound so crude? Ker. I don’t really care if you’re a god or a devil anymore, I wish you sounded nicer when you spoke... When you’re a lion, you’re cool, but in my dreams you’re nothing like the cool lion I know...” Gorke muttered. He looked like all of his dreams had been shattered.
Instead of denying what he said, I agreed with him. “Kid, that’s it!”
“You guys are under the innocent illusion that I’m your perfect, wonderful savior that will take care of you no matter what difficulties you may encounter. But I’m actually a bit evil, as you said.”
“A bit...?” Gorke asked, scratching his chin with a frown on his face, as if pondering a philosophical dilemma.
Perhaps the first philosopher in the history of Terras was about to be born, but I paid it no mind. If he had left behind a saying like “Everything in the universe is made of keruk!”, future generations of students would suffer.
“You’re the only one who knows my true self. I am not the god you think of, but a mere helper and advisor. Gorke, you have a duty to spread the truth to your family, friends, and fellow kin.”
“Ke! I don’t like that. It sounds like a lot of work!”
“Based on the last fight, it seems you haven’t mastered aura yet. Let’s stay here for a while and focus on that. A year will do the trick.”
“I love spreading the truth! I’ll tell everyone!”
Gorke’s passion was ignited. It was nice to see him like that. Still, he fidgeted with his hands.
“B-but I have a question.”
“If you aren’t a god, why do you take care of us, Kekerukker? Why did you save us from the Primordial Disaster and rescue us from the Shellmounts’ reign? I don’t get why you would do all that.”
“First of all, you guys are cute—”
“Ker? Is something wrong with your eyes?”
“Actually, I’m not that different from you. If I were to give a reason for taking care of you... Well, you guys are a bit like me.”
“Like you? Weird. You look nothing like us.”
I scratched my head. “I’m not talking about appearances. People get attached to what they think resembles them. I see myself in you guys. I’m just as greedy as you are, and our lives are similar. By looking at you, I’m rediscovering myself.”
I stroked Gorke’s head. “If I care about you, it’s only because I care about myself. But if you still want to serve me, think of me as a close friend rather than a god. That is what I would rather be than be idolized. Trust is much better than faith.”
“Friendship over idolatry, trust over faith...”
“Yeah, I’m just a close friend who visits from time to time and stays by your side for short periods of time. Wouldn’t it be cooler to say ‘We are friends with our god’ than ‘We are loved by our God?’”
Gorke looked up at me.
[The religion of the Terras is undergoing some changes!]
[The possibility of the primordial religion White Lion Faith gaining new doctrines has increased.]
I grinned. “Live well. I have to leave your side for a while, so you go ahead and teach others how to use aura. Let them know that I want to remain in their memories as a friend.”
“A-are you going to leave?”
“Yeah, I brought you guys to Goru, so I did my job. I’ll be angry if I see the Shellmounts bullying you again when I return.”
I rubbed Gorke’s cheeks hard. He kept letting out funny sounds, like gor and ker.
“Teach them about my true self too. Oh, yeah. I forgot to mention something. Good job during the duels. You were pretty cool. Have a good life,” I said, lightly tapping Gorke on the shoulder.
Gorke opened his mouth to try to say something, but I immediately left the dream. The longer it took to say goodbye, the longer the regret would last, so it was better to leave as if we would meet again tomorrow.
[The item’s duration is over.]
The dream ended. As soon as I got up, I rushed out of Goru. It was midnight, and the goblins had been marching toward their homeland for several weeks, so they were exhausted and deep asleep. The chances of someone following me were very slim, but I sensed someone desperately trying to trail me.
He had called me a devil and all, but it seemed he got attached to me.
I was afraid this would happen, so that’s why I was rough when interacting with him...
Feeling the weight of friendship on my shoulders, I sprinted a little faster. My pursuer followed persistently, but couldn’t keep up with my speed. The distance between us grew bigger and bigger. After I ran through the forest for a while, the person following me gave up.
I swung my lion mane to the side. The other Hunters are probably thinking about the same thing as me right now.
The Inquisitor showed a crazy precedent by staying on the previous stage to make his species rule the world. The others are probably thinking it’s better not to leave as soon as possible.
They would be waiting for the others to leave first.
The problem is that only the Inquisitor can pull off such a crazy stunt.
He had stayed behind for hundreds of years, but the next stage could be thousands of years in the future.
Only the Inquisitor with his 130% pure psychopathy can do it.
However, the Inquisitor’s elimination had been confirmed during this stage since he failed to stop the slaves’ exodus.
In the end, everyone will have no choice but to give up and say they’ll clear the stage. They’re hesitating now just because they feel like they’ll be missing out if they are the first to declare the stage being cleared.
—I guess so. What are you going to do?
What do you think? In this case, someone has to yield first even if it means missing out on something, just so others will follow.
I was far enough away from Goru now.
White light enveloped me.
[The stage has been cleared!]
[The quest is still in progress.]
[You will be immediately teleported to the thirty-third floor]
[Your reward will be given after you enter the thirty-third floor.]
The next moment, I was standing in a white space. It was the waiting room where I would stay briefly before moving on to the thirty-third floor. One Hunter was already there.
It was the Inquisitor, the only colleague who had failed to complete his quest, so he also failed the stage.
He waved at me. “I was waiting for you, Mr. Death King! Except for Slimepolis, the empire of Shellmounts is still standing, but it seems that if I fail the quest, I’m automatically disqualified. What a pity!”
I sighed. “I had a hard time on this stage because of you. No, if I think about it, it seems like the overwhelming majority of my suffering is your fault, just like when we were in The Story of Sormwin Academy.”
“Huh? I remember being pretty quiet at Sormwin Academy.”
“You may say that, but for me, it wasn't like that at all...”
He had lost himself to Lady Goldencup and smiled from ear to ear. The image was still vividly etched in my mind.
The Inquisitor clasped his hands behind his back. His short blond hair fluttered slightly. “Hmm. It was so long ago that I may be misremembering. I worked feverishly hard for two hundred years. I did my best! I assure you that even if I reach the top of the Tower, I won’t be able to put in any more effort than when I built the Slime Empire. Do you get it, Mr. Death King? I have shown you everything I was capable of, yet you still defeated me!”
“I didn’t defeat you,” I said. “We all did.”
The Inquisitor shook his head firmly. “It’s the same thing! You’re the one who united the Hunters from Rank 1 to 7. I couldn’t withstand even one strike, dare I say it!”
A bright smile appeared on his face. “I don’t consider my personal feelings when I evaluate myself. This is my limit, after all! My judgment, ethics, and competence are worse than yours! I’m relatively more incompetent than you.”
“The arbitrariness and actions of an incompetent person lead to destruction. I don’t want to become someone who pushes the button for ruin and destruction! It would be better to leave judgments to someone more capable than me.”
“What are you talking about?”
The Inquisitor smiled. “My logic is simple, Mr. Death King. From now on, you are my master. I will serve you.”