CH 395

A herd of ten thousand pigs dashed forward under Beanie’s command. He deliberately hid his golden crown, armor, and weapon, blending among the pigs and looking exactly like he was one among the thousands of pigs rushing forward.

“Aaaaaaaaaah…! The pigs are going to fight(?) with us to protect our kingdom!!!”

“Pi…pigssssss!!! Thank you! Sob, sob, sob!”

The farmers of Rocard Kingdom were moved to tears by the pigs' sudden appearance, not knowing that the pigs were moving just because they were being threatened by Beanie.

Even Marquis Roleid felt his heart shake after hearing the people’s cries. He thought, ‘Even the pigs… are trying to protect this kingdom?!’

However, his dumbfounded expression was soon replaced with a layer of frost. This was the reason why Roleid hated this kingdom. He hated that he was given the fate of raising pigs in the capital and having to farm every single day.

‘Pigs won’t have that much strength anyway!’

In a blink of an eye, the 10,000-strong herd of pigs arrived near the soldiers and clashed against the undead, effectively pushing them out of the gates.

“Hwiiiiiiiik!”

“Hwiiiik!”

“Hweeeeeeek!”

The shrill and loud cries of the pigs covered the entire battlefield. And then…

“…?!”

“Oiiink…”

Marquis Roleid watched the situation and judged that the pigs would be of no help at all. However, right below him was a small baby piggy. The baby piggy looked up at him with moist and sparkling eyes. The pig then climbed up his white horse and sat in front of Roleid. The baby piggy looked strangely similar to a puppy, as it stared at Roleid with sparkling eyes once again.

“What, what the hell?”

The baby piggy was very strange. What kind of a pig could climb up on a horse and sit in front of him like some kind of human? But, even though Roleid thought that the pig was strange…

‘So, so cute…!’

…it was so cute to the point that Roleid wanted to poke and play with its plump and chubby belly all day. The most shocking part was the reason why the baby piggy was sullen!

“Oink, oink…”

Roleid’s body was littered with injuries and the baby piggy showed a heartbroken look as it looked at his wounds. Seeing this, Roleid felt his heart flutter.

“P… piggy, are you worried about me?”

“Oink…!” The baby piggy nodded furiously.

Right then and there, Marquis Roleid thought, ‘Right, everyone might curse at me. But they will still come to cherish and respect me as much as this pig.’

This baby piggy in front of him might just be a pig, but Roleid vowed that he would let this pig survive and let it enjoy wealth and glory with him!

“Come here,” Roleid said as he reached out to the pig to try and pet it. But at that moment…

“Oiiink! (It’s all fake! Oink!)”

Stab—

Beanie swiftly stole the dagger hanging on Marquis Roleid’s body and used ‘Sword of Frenzy’ on him. The powerful blow threw Roleid off of his seat. His eyes even started to close slowly! Then, the horse shrieked and threw off Beanie. However, the place where Beanie landed was none other than Marquis Roleid. In fact, Beanie’s butt landed straight on Roleid’s face!

Fwoot, fwoot, fwoot—

Beanie’s fart was both strong and smelly.

“Keuhoooook!”

The foul stench permeated deeply in Marquis Roleid’s nose. In fact, Roleid felt that the terrible stench brought far greater anguish than the injuries that littered his body. The terrible smell was something that he had never experienced in his entire life!

Then, the baby piggy, Beanie, stood up with twitching hips!

Grin—

Beanie looked back as he smiled viciously at Marquis Roleid, before running on all fours again to hunt the other nobles. And Marquis Roleid, who was on the brink of death, thought, ‘I, I can’t believe that I died at the hands of a pig…!’

It was a disgrace! The worst part was that there was a chance that this would go down in history as: ‘Rocard Kingdom’s Marquis Roleid, brought to eternal rest by a pig.’

***

Minhyuk stood in front of the gates as he fought and pushed back the undead with the citizens and the soldiers.

“I don’t know who you are but I’m very grateful to you!”

“Who the hell are you?!”

“I’m just someone that doesn’t want this beautiful kingdom to be destroyed!”

“…!”

“…!”

“…!”

The citizens of Rocard Kingdom were thrilled as they looked back at him. This was the truth. According to Minhyuk’s standards, Rocard Kingdom was truly a very beautiful and amazing place. The kingdom raised delicious and excellent pigs. The greatest part about this was that they were all farmers that could breed and harvest great crops. Simply put, this kingdom was a paradise of ingredients in and of itself.

“Hwiiiik!”

“Oink, oink, oink, oink, oink, oink!”

“Pigs!!!”

“Sob, sob, sob, sob, sob! Thank you, pigs!”

The 10,000-strong herd of pigs jumped through the gaps bravely and would occasionally make the undead stumble and fall from the impact of their attacks! The pigs were covered in blood as they died one after the other! The Rocard Kingdom troops were deeply moved as they watched the pigs jump up to stop the undead. The moment this war ended, they would make sure to build statues for them.

At this point, Minhyuk could tell that his plans were working smoothly. He could see Beanie through the gaps of the ten thousand pigs. From what he could see, Beanie was using the honey trap tactic to lure and hunt the nobles that had been clamoring for the gates to remain open.

Beanie had awakened and became the Supreme Divine Beast. This meant that he was not weak. In fact, he was strong enough to rival a decent high ranker in terms of strength and power. None of them would be able to beat Beanie, especially if Beanie caught them by surprise. And just like Minhyuk expected, Beanie had finished hunting all of the remaining nobles that had turned to the other side. No one was clamoring to keep the gates open anymore. And then…

“Mar… Marquis Roleid!”

“Count Cainos!”

“Count Arnai!”

“Did they get attacked by the undead? They took advantage of our distraction and killed these nobles!!!”

The people started to shout one after the other! The troops of Rocard Kingdom once again grieved for the loss of their people.

“I… I can’t believe that you’re laid to rest with such a bitter look on your face…!”

“Tears? Did you die crying for our collapsing kingdom?!! Sob, sob, sob!”

“What, what’s this… Why do the bodies of our nobles reek?!”

The people that grieved for the death of their nobles did not know that they died under the hands of a baby piggy.

“Close the gates!!!”

Finally, the huge and magnificent gates began to close.

Thuuuuuud—

The troops began to work to dispose of the remaining undead from inside the walls the moment the gates closed. Minhyuk also secretly sent Beanie back to the summoning room amidst the chaos. Meanwhile, Deputy Commander Beth hurriedly approached Ali and Minhyuk.

“I’m very grateful for your help. But you…”

Beth looked at them warily. It was only natural since they were a very different race from the people of Rocard Kingdom. In fact, their interactions with humans could only be counted with one hand. Minhyuk and Ali were both at a loss. They did not know how to explain their identities. They did not want to tell them that they were helping them because of a quest and for the Ingredient Heaven.

Minhyuk could tell that Beth was very skilled and talented. He thought, ‘I think he wouldn’t lose against Grandpa Ben.’

But not long after, Yvero, the farmer that Minhyuk and Ali gave potion near the entrance, approached Beth and whispered in his ears. It seemed like the farmer had already recovered to some extent.

“What, what did you say?! They’re the heroes that hunted Vormon?!”

“…?!”

“…?!”

“…?!”

His words brought a huge impact to everyone present. It was to the point that all the remaining troops in the kingdom roared. It was only natural since they knew what kind of existence Vormon was after seeing him all this time. Beth believed Yvero’s words completely. He did not have any doubts. After all, that was the only requirement for these humans to enter this place.

“Ho… Did the two of you come to save us after hunting Vormon after knowing the fact that we were being persecuted?!”

“That…”

That was not the case either. Minhyuk came to Vormon’s Lair to find valuable rewards and more delicious ingredients! But Beth…

“Sob, sob, sob, sob, sob. Thank you. Thank you for coming to our rescue even though we’re from different races.”

“That’s…”

Beth grabbed Minhyuk’s hand and declared, “We will remember you forever!”

“That’s right!”

“Thank you for fighting together with us!!!”

“Uwaaaaaaaah!”

“…”

“…”

Ali and Minhyuk made eye contact.

Since this was already the case, then…

“After learning about the race that the vicious and cruel Black Dragon Vormon had persecuted, we came running as fast as we could to save you!!!”

And Ali…

“Aaaaaaah! Meeting you has made me feel deeply regretful! I’m very sorry. We came too late!!!”

…was so deep into his play that tears started to well up in his eyes!

“Don’t cry, dear friend. We’re grateful that you came here even if you were late!”

“B… but… Sob, sob, sob!”

Minhyuk gently hugged Ali, who finally shed a tear, and patted him on his back. Ali’s acting was perfect! It was the best! The two of them truly had the perfect chemistry! It was to the point that some of the troops shed tears with them. However, it was only for a moment. They still needed to deal with the undead outside of their walls.

“Can you explain to us your exact situation?”

“Of course.”

Beth started explaining, “The ones leading the undead are the ‘Death Guides’. They’re foreigners.”

Ali and Minhyuk were very shocked. However, they both quickly came to a conclusion.

‘Those people must have received some sort of quest after Vormon’s death.’

‘But there is no information about someone that can control the undead on that scale?’

‘Are they unofficial rankers?’

Minhyuk and Ali were both certain that they were a group of unofficial rankers.

“As you can see, the undead could wield the same power that they had when they were alive. They are still proficient in swordsmanship, archery, and even magic.”

This was a problem. The undead were originally beings that had gone into a frenzy after losing their reasoning. It was very easy to deal with these beings, since they were not capable of thought. But, the problem now was that their enemies could now use their heads.

“The biggest problem is the Death Knights that they have summoned. They were once beings that have led and commanded in their past lives. There’s the first Mage Tower Master, the man hailed as the founder of spearmanship, and even a summoner that could summon a being like the hydra.”

Minhyuk could not help but shake his head after hearing Beth’s words. Sometimes it was better to have one powerful knight than to have a hundred soldiers. The worst part was that the Death Knights on the other side were doing the work of 10,000 soldiers.

“I’ll call for my troops first. But I don’t know how long it would take for them to get here.”

“Troops?”

“Yes. I’m also someone that holds a title. I’m a lord of my own territory.”

“Y… you’re a noble!” Beth shouted in surprise. However, he quickly calmed down and said, “You don’t have to worry about your troops.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“One of our kingdom’s specialties is the ‘Almond of Subordinates’. It has the power that can allow you to call and bring in your subordinates the moment you eat it.”

“…!”

“…!”

Minhyuk and Ali were both shocked. Could crops really exert a power like that? To put it simply, the almond could temporarily help them teleport their troops.

‘We must protect this kingdom and take the opportunity to have Let’s Eat Sect engage in diplomatic discussions with them.’

The benefits that they would reap if they could gain diplomatic ties with the Rocard Kingdom would be beyond their imagination. They should definitely discuss diplomacy with this kingdom that had a very special power.

Meanwhile, Minhyuk said, “Almonds are delicious.”

“Ah, yes. Of course…” Beth answered in doubt as he sent his orders to his own troops. Not long after, the troops rushed back with almonds in hand.

The almonds had a slight golden sheen on its skin, something that was completely different from ordinary almonds.

“This Almond of Subordinates does not give us much harvest.”

However, they still brought more than 200 pieces of almonds in front of Minhyuk and Ali. When they checked the information, they saw that the almonds truly had the power to summon their allies.

Crunch—

A savory flavor spread out in Minhyuk’s mouth the moment he bit on it. The Almond of Subordinates was quite hard compared to its ordinary peers, but the more he chewed on it, the more he could taste the savory flavor in his mouth.

Crunch, crunch, crunch—

“Pl… please take your time and eat it slowly.”

Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch—

But Minhyuk’s mouth moved even faster. The almonds tasted very delicious! He even forgot that he was eating the Almonds of Subordinates to call for his troops for a moment, completely entranced by the taste of these almonds!

***

Beth and the people of Rocard Kingdom had high expectations for the people that hunted Black Dragon Vormon! They wondered what kind of subordinates he would summon? Were they the best and strongest existences in the entire continent?

‘That must definitely be the case!’

After all, they were the ones that hunted Vormon. Just when a strange sense of excitement had started to bubble in them, a presence started to walk out from the huge light created by the Almonds of Subordinates. The person that walked out of the light was none other than the Ramyeon Boy, Conir.

“Sluuurp, nyam nyam. Sluuuurp, nyam nyam. Delicious ramyeon!”

Conir appeared while eating ramyeon from the lid of a nickel silver ramyeon pot! Even though he suddenly appeared in a strange place, all he said was, “Mister farmers! Have some ramyeon!”

“…?”

“…?”

“…?”

All of them tilted their heads in confusion. Beth even had a small smile on his lips.

‘He’s a very kind and generous man. He must have taken in this kid that has become a war orphan.’

That was what he thought. When his anticipation rose again, an old man appeared. It was Old Man Ben with a head full of black hair, just like Terrius! Grandpa Ben appeared just when he was about to check underneath the cat’s tail for Luwak coffee. Unexpectedly, the cat was teleported with him.

“Sniff, sniff. I can smell the coffee’s aroma wafting from underneath your tail. Teehee~”

“…?”

“…?”

“…?”

Beth tried very hard to remain calm and composed. Then, another man appeared.

“Everyone can grow their hair again! Do you trust me?! Put your faith in me and I will help you grow each and every strand of your hair!!! You can avail my service for a cheap price of five million gold!!! Ah! It’s very cheap and affordable!!!” The strange knight shouted as he raised his hands high up in the skies.

“…?”

“…?”

“…?”

Then, a black-skinned member of the demon race appeared.

‘N… no… there’s a member of the demon race among the people that he summoned?!’

‘My goodness! As expected, he won’t let us down!!!’

However, the member of the demon race that appeared was trying to write his new work these days. The title of his book was ‘The Prince’s Magic Tool’.

Thwack, thwack—

A whip suddenly appeared in his hands.

“So it sounds like this! If I write it down like this, then…”

The man sat down on the ground, whip in one hand and pen in the other, as he began to write.

“Waaaaah! My inspiration has bloomed! Inspiration!!! Erden, the maid, fell in love with the prince’s magic tools and ended up stealing them!!!”

“…?”

“…?”

“…?”

And finally…

“Hek, hek, hek!”

“Grrrr, grrr.”

“Hek, hek—“

A gigantic three-headed dog suddenly appeared. The dog appeared lying on the ground. They looked confused after suddenly being transported while still being petted by Locke. However, their tails were still wagging vigorously.

“…?”

“…?”

“…?”

“…?”

Everyone from Rocard Kingdom looked at the scene in silence as Beth murmured to himself, “We’re doomed…”