CH 126

Chapter 126 – Dragonkin King

“―Ze’ev?!”

…A human?

A non-garbel being suddenly appeared in front of us, and I couldn’t help but give him a good look over.

“Yo, Julaf! It’s been a while!” (Ze’ev)

“You freaking idiot!” (Julaf)

The man called Julaf approached Ze’ev with large strides and punched him upside the head.

“OWW!! What was that for all of a sudden?!” (Ze’ev)

“Shut up! Where the hell have you been all this time?! I’ve been looking all over for you!” (Julaf)

“Ugh… M-My bad. But there wasn’t anything I could do ‘bout it. I was transported to another world against my wishes.” (Ze’ev)

“…Another world? This… isn’t the world we know?” (Julaf)

“…Yeah, it’s not. Believe it or not.” (Ze’ev)

After that, Ze’ev proceeded to explain that he had come to this world a bit over a month ago, and he spoke about the information he had obtained from his travels in Japan during that time. As a result, the people in the room found out that this wasn’t the world they had originally been in.

“I see… I never would have thought that everyone…, no, the entire Empire would encounter a light pocket. As King Dragia says, this… might have been the work of that guy.” (Julaf)

Julaf’s face was grim as he spoke.

“Well, it’s good to be able to see you again, Julaf.” (Ze’ev)

“By the way, who’s that person over there?” (Julaf)

Finally, the conversation was steered in my direction.

“About that, huh? You and King Dragia don’t know much about this world, do you? This guy knows more about this world than I do.” (Ze’ev)

“What? You mean he also ran into a light pocket?” (Julaf)

“Way before me, though.” (Ze’ev)

“I see. I’d like any information you could give us right now. Come inside, both of you. I will introduce you to King Dragia.” (Julaf)

Who is this King Dragia person who keeps popping up in their conversation? I could guess that he was probably a central figure in their participation in this war, but…

…Whoa, now. That appearance… Could he be a… dragon?

There was a being that looked like an anthropomorphized dragon sitting there, a mass of intimidating aura.

He was clad in red scales and had sharp golden eyes, a large crocodile-like snout, and horns sprouting out of the top of his head. I had seen quite a few different types of garbels so far, but I had never seen one whose features leaned so much more towards its beast side than its human side.

Just standing before him like this made my body tremble, perhaps from the sheer difference in our species. If I wasn’t careful, it felt like the intimidating pressure would swallow me up.

“Milord, be careful. This dragonkin… is most likely at the same rank as me,” Shiki said, urging caution.

That meant that he possessed a level of strength equivalent to Shiki, who was A-Rank. He was an opponent that I wouldn’t be able to win against. I mean, he was a dragonkin after all.

Then, Ze’ev bowed before the man that I had been observing.

“It has been a while, King Dragia.” (Ze’ev)

So he really is the king.

“Yes, we heard your report. You seem to be well, but that may be expected of the man known as the War Wolf, we suppose. We warmly welcome your return with open arms.” (King Dragia)

Immediately after that, King Dragia’s gaze turned towards me, and his eyes narrowed.

“So… who are you? That spirit of yours is not ordinary.” (King Dragia)

It wasn’t just him. Everyone in the room seemed to be wary of the indomitable spirit given off by my cloak. I wasn’t going to lose out to King Dragia, so I kept a poker face as I spoke.

“I believe this is our first meeting. My name is Hakumen. I am a merchant of this world.”

“A merchant? …We will hear what you have to say.” (King Dragia)

Relieved that I wouldn’t be turned away at the door, I began explaining what I was doing as Hakumen in this world.

All of the leaders in the room, King Dragia included, froze when they heard the unbelievable information entered their ears. Some of them thought I was merely jesting, but with Ze’ev’s word, they were compelled to believe it.

“Another world… Earth, huh?” King Dragia muttered amidst the silence, gazing up at the ceiling.

“Frankly, I can assure you that these circumstances are not ordinary in the slightest.” (Hakumen)

“As we thought—the Curseweaver must have been involved.” (Julaf)

The Curseweaver… To them, he was a bitter enemy who allowed the Empire’s Chancellor to flee.

“It would be hard to explain otherwise. I have never heard of light pockets occurring on this scale. Moreover, if the inhabitants of our world are being transported one after another to this world called Earth, then this can truly be considered a catastrophe of global proportions.” (Julaf)

Everyone fell silent at Julaf’s words, seeming to agree with him.

At that point, King Dragia turned to address me.

“Then it would be thanks to you that our brethren have managed to safely establish a lifestyle in this world, is that right?” (King Dragia)

“Yes, but it’s nothing worth mentioning. Of course, I am running a business here, so it wasn’t like I was doing it free of charge.” (Hakumen)

“Then it would be safe to assume that your purpose in coming here was for business negotiations, correct?” (King Dragia)

I nodded, then a middle-aged man slammed his hand on the table with a loud bang and stood up, outraged.

“I’ve been quietly listening to you for a while now, but I’m not convinced! You… you said your name was Hakumen, yes? What kind of idea is this, greedily taking advantage of your fellow brethren like this?!”

“What kind of idea, you say?” (Hakumen)

“It’s only natural to help your fellow brethren, who encountered misfortune and ended up in this situation! For you to take advantage of the chaos for your own benefit is despicable beyond comparison! It’s no less vile an act than looting corpses!”

…There he goes. However, I’ve received such complaints before.

“Hoh, then what? You want me to provide information and provisions free of charge?” (Hakumen)

“Of course! Do you want us to rot away in this world that we know absolutely nothing about?! If you are truly one of our brethren, it is your duty to do everything in your power to help us survive!”

“…Duty? That is a regulation you arbitrarily decided on yourselves. It has nothing to do with me.” (Hakumen)

“What did you just say?!”

“To begin with, you seem to have a misunderstanding of the people called merchants. Merchants only move for profits. I am not so simple a soul as to rescue a compatriot without getting something in return.” (Hakumen)

“…Who cares, just tell us everything you know! And what supplies you have in your possession! It’s only natural to provide help freely to those in need!”

Good grief, this guy just doesn’t seem to understand people. It’s natural to provide help freely to those in need? Then back then… Why did no one help me out, huh?

The reason was simple. Because everyone always put their own interests first. After considering the advantages and disadvantages of taking action, if the disadvantages even slightly outweighed the other side, they would only choose to defend themselves.

Then, under the impression that someone else would take action for them, they would turn a blind eye to the tragedy playing out right before their eyes.

That was how humans worked. They were pathetic creatures, ruled by their own emotions.

“That won’t do. Your assertions are contradictory to the very existence of merchants as a whole. Surely, there may be virtuous incarnations of benevolence in this world who wouldn’t hesitate to cut into their own reserves for the sake of charity, in helping others free of charge. But I am no such hypocrite. I am a self-serving being who is cognizant of reality and lives in reality.” (Hakumen)

After hearing the unwavering conviction in my voice, he seemed to realize that it would be pointless, no matter how much he argued back. He gritted his teeth in frustration, saying nothing in return. He simply glared at me as if he opposed my very existence.

“That’s enough, Yosen.” (King Dragia)

“Y-Your Majesty?! B-But…” (Yosen)

“What is it that we seek at the moment? Information. If this is really another world, then our best course of action is to gather as much information as we can and prepare ourselves for contact with the beings of this world, all so we may protect our people as best we can.” (King Dragia)

“…I agree with Your Majesty.” (Yosen)

Under the admonishing gaze of King Dragia, the man quietly took his seat.