Chapter 155 – Black Sun
The white wolf, Baekrang, quietly watched the lizard as it slept.
The lizard was sleeping soundly, even snoring a little.
Baekrang wondered how this lizard had become the companion of the Snake Queen.
She, too, was well aware of the situation in the jungle.
The long-standing rivalry between the Snake Queen and the Bird King.
And finally, news of their clash had reached her through the parrots.
As far as Baekrang knew, the Snake Queen couldn’t defeat Gaetsalgoadal.
But Gaetsalgoadal couldn’t easily defeat the Snake Queen either, which was why their standoff had continued.
There was no reason to get involved in a war that couldn’t be won.
If the Snake Queen lost, Baekrang could at least ensure her survival.
That had been her thinking.
Not out of loyalty, but because sparing such a creature could incur a valuable debt.
However, the outcome of the war was different from what Baekrang had expected.
The Snake Queen had defeated Gaetsalgoadal.
That meant another force, one she wasn’t aware of, had joined the battle.
The black lizard, whom the parrots kept referring to as the Snake Queen’s “lover.”
It was clear that this creature had played a significant role.
For one, it wore the Snake Queen’s emblem proudly around its neck, and its large build was impressive.
Moreover, its internal energy was so profound that even Baekrang couldn’t fully gauge it.
It was impossible to tell how many cores and elixirs had been absorbed into its body.
In short, this lizard was stronger than her.
Of course, being stronger didn’t necessarily mean it could defeat her.
Baekrang led a pack, and her abilities were focused on strengthening her pack.
But the pack was precious to her.
Even if she won in a fight against the lizard, it would mean nothing if her pack was harmed.
Therefore, even if the lizard ignored her requests and threatened her with force, there wasn’t much she could do.
She could retreat and face it alone, or simply flee with her pack.
She had tried to intimidate it, but that hadn’t worked either.
Considering its strength, it could have easily been offended by her attitude, but the lizard had accepted her request.
Both had a connection to the Snake Queen, so it wasn’t entirely strange.
However, something was odd about the lizard.
No matter how you looked at it, wasn’t it strange for a creature to sleep so peacefully in front of someone it had just met?
What would it do if it were attacked while it slept?
Should she call it naive, or just plain stupid?
Of course, Baekrang had no intention of harming the lizard.
But it was hard to understand how it could trust her so completely.
In the wild, those who didn’t doubt others could not survive.
Baekrang and her wolf pack knew that better than anyone.
They had to remain suspicious even of their own kind.
That was also why there were no males in the pack.
Even if it wasn’t them, anyone who lived in the wild knew this truth.
Not knowing it meant that the creature wasn’t yet experienced.
Baekrang thought that perhaps the lizard was younger than she had originally assumed.
Maybe even younger than the Snake Queen’s heir, whom she used to boast about.
Baekrang snorted, amused by her own thoughts.
Look at this lizard’s taste in females.
There’s no way a lizard less than a year old could be acting like this.
Seducing the Snake Queen, then the bird, and even the spider.
It was impossible to accomplish all that in such a short time.
Especially since all three belonged to different species.
It would be more believable if someone told her that this lizard was a disciple of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
She laughed again, entertained by her baseless thoughts.
“Look at that.”
Even now, the lizard was absentmindedly petting the belly of a wolf while it slept.
“…Hey!”
How could it touch a wolf while she had been distracted?
This lizard was definitely a sly old snake.
An old, female-chasing snake.
Baekrang knew that different species couldn’t be serious, so she assumed it was just fooling around. But considering the lizard’s history, she couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy.
Still, she and her pack wouldn’t fall for the tricks of this wicked lizard.
She was ready to scold the wolves that had fallen under the lizard’s spell.
*
Ugh, I was sleeping so well. Why’d this happen?
Baekrang was glaring at me.
Next to me was a wolf, rolling over and wagging its tongue.
“Chillang, snap out of it and come here.”
“Hek?”
Chillang, the wolf whose belly I had been absentmindedly petting, lifted its head.
“Illang, Iryang. Are you just going to sit there and watch?”
“Kiing….”
The two larger wolves glanced nervously at each other.
Illang and Iryang.
Could it be that she had named them in order of age?
What a strange naming sense.
She still had a long way to go before she could compare to my legendary naming skills, like Shikshik and Jjaekjjaeki.
“Hekhekhek.”
Chillang seemed to have regained its senses under its older sister’s scolding and stood up.
“Why is a lizard naturally petting a wolf’s belly anyway?”
It’s a bit disappointing.
Though they were called wolves, their behavior made them seem like oversized puppies.
A puppy curled up and sleeping in my arms.
How soothing it was to stroke that puppy’s belly.
“Gek-gek.”
“And Chillang, you too. Why are you wagging your tail?”
“Hek…”
Don’t scold them too much.
Puppies are like that, after all.
“You’re wolves, wolves. Even tamed wolves are mocked by humans, so how can you let a lizard do this to you?”
Baekrang started lecturing, gathering Illang, Chillang, and the others.
“Awoo…”
“…You’re saying it felt amazing? Chillang, where did you even learn to say that?”
“Awoo…”
It seemed like the relationships among these wolves were a bit unique.
Although Baekrang was the leader, it felt more like watching a capable eldest sister manage her household.
They were a bit different from a typical wolf pack.
Of course, I knew that wolf packs were families, bound closely together.
But this pack felt even more tightly knit.
Maybe that’s just how it seemed, but I had a feeling there was something more I didn’t know.
It was suspicious that there wasn’t a single male in the pack.
“Look at those claws. What if you get cut?”
“Awooo…”
“What? You say you’re fine because I’m only touching you with my tail?”
“Awoo…”
“How can you be so comfortable with him in less than a day? Especially with our youngest?”
Baekrang spoke, exasperated.
Who was the one that first brought up the issue of maintaining body temperature, anyway?
I was just giving them a pat since they were right in front of me.
The others I knew didn’t care much about it, but Baekrang was unusually persistent.
…
…Wait, could it be that the others are the strange ones, and Baekrang is the normal one?
Come to think of it, that might be the case.
“Sigh, this won’t do. Hey, lizard. You come over here and sit down too.”
“Gek-gek?”
Why is the fire suddenly directed at me?
*
After listening to Baekrang’s nagging for a while, the day finally dawned.
Daybreak meant the start of the operation.
“Well, I’ll just be watching from a distance. For some reason, they go crazy whenever they see me. Even if I stay close, I’ll just be in the way.”
“Gek-gek.”
Baekrang stood beside me while the rest of the wolves waited in the cave.
“One more thing: don’t touch my pack. I thought I could relax since you’re a different species, but you couldn’t even hold back for a day?”
She made it sound like something scandalous.
When there’s a fluffy puppy in front of you, petting it is only natural, isn’t it?
“…Just finish your job well. I’ll help if things get dangerous.”
Baekrang stopped walking.
That must’ve meant she would wait here.
The location of the bicorns…
There they were.
**50
【Arsinoitherium lv50】**
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【Arsinoitherium】
The Arsinoitherium is a giant rhinoceros, approximately 4 meters in length and weighing up to 4 tons. Its two sharp horns, growing up to 80 cm, serve as formidable weapons that deter most predators from even considering attacking it.
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Since the unicorn looked like that, the bicorn would probably look similar.
I had some small hopes, but I didn’t expect too much.
The main difference was that these creatures were in a herd.
About ten of them from what I could see.
I could see why they had outsourced this job to me.
If those beasts charged all at once, most animals would be flattened into jerky.
“Onebuooo…”
They spotted me.
A familiar cry.
“Dachooooo!”
But the tone at the end was different.
There was an overwhelming sense of spirit.
It was clear they were ready to give everything for their cause.
*Dududududu!*
The bicorns charged toward me at full speed.
They were so large that a cloud of dust rose as they moved.
“Onebudachooooo!”
So, I couldn’t avoid the fight, huh?
Well, I did need to test how strong I had become, so this wasn’t a bad thing.
“…Onebu?”
*Chiik!*
The lead bicorns slowed their pace.
Were they intimidated by my aura?
I guess they could sense I wasn’t an easy target to ram into.
“Onebudacho! Onebudacho!”
…
The fierce energy of the bicorns faded.
They slowed down and started making strange sounds.
“Japsiiik! Japsiiik!”
They circled around me slowly, their tails swishing. It didn’t seem like they intended to attack.
Their expressions even seemed softer.
Hmm, Baekrang’s words don’t seem to match up.
“Onebudacho! Onebudacho!”
They were much tamer than I expected.
Were the wolves just exaggerating?
If they were reacting this gently to someone as pure as me, they must be even tamer toward regular animals.
“Japsiiik! Japsiiik!”
“Heueuktaeyaaanng!”
“Onebudachoooo!”
The bicorns wagged their tails vigorously, cheering in excitement.
They were large, but kind of cute.
I didn’t know what their cries meant, though.
[A feat that even an Allosaurus would be astonished by!]
A message suddenly appeared.
It had been a long time since I’d seen one of these achievements.
An achievement at this timing?
And an Allosaurus-level one?
[You have earned the recognition of the bicorns.]
Jeez, what did I even do?
[You have acquired the title, 「Black Sun」.]
It had been a while since I’d earned a title.
But Black Sun?
I wasn’t sure what it meant, but since “sun” was in it, it had to be good, right?
「Black Sun」
A legendary figure among the bicorns, akin to an infinite source of yang energy, like a sun. It is a mythical being that can endlessly gather companions without ever engaging in mating rituals. Strength is greatly enhanced.
The effect was impressive.
It said strength would greatly increase.
The description was short, but the effect was destructive.
…But I didn’t feel any different?
It didn’t seem like my physical strength had increased…
What kind of strength had grown, exactly?