Chapter 179: The Truth of the Voice
“Geggegek….”
Why did it suddenly collapse?
It doesn’t seem severely injured.
I stared silently at the Terror Bird I had taken down.
Something felt off, and I noticed the aura of Taese was faint.
It was strange that three humans, who seemed to be first-rate martial artists, were struggling. This was the reason.
“Grrrr….”
Even though the Terror Bird was dead, the aura of Taese lingered.
Crunch!
I stomped on its eerie red eyes, and the aura of Taese finally dissipated.
There were remnants of the Evil God’s power left, just like last time.
I wish this was the end, but chances are, it’s not.
Seeing members of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult gathered here, they’re likely trying to deal with the remaining remnants.
But these kids look young and don’t seem particularly strong. Why were they fighting a creature like this?
…Could it be they acted without knowing the full situation?
I can find out by asking the fallen humans here.
Just as I approached the unconscious woman—
“W-Wait!”
Turning my head, I saw a man with a chest wound staggering to his feet.
It seemed like he had bled a lot, but he didn’t seem hindered in his movements.
For a regular person, it might’ve been dangerous, but being a martial artist, I guess this is manageable.
“Grrrr….”
The short-haired man flinched slightly at my growl.
Was he frightened of me?
I wouldn’t have understood that in the past, but now I get it to some extent.
With a size like this, even a hamster would be scary.
“P-Please spare Wol-ah!”
Even while trembling, he managed to say that.
It was such an unexpected reaction that I became a little intrigued.
He was clearly terrified, yet he acted like this.
Wol-ah.
Judging by how his gaze went to the woman, it wasn’t hard to deduce that her name was Wol-ah.
But asking to spare her?
She’s just unconscious for a bit.
You’re the one in more danger.
Blood’s dripping everywhere.
And the person collapsed behind you—couldn’t you at least help them?
“You can eat us, but please spare Wol-ah…!”
I’m usually not a teary-eyed lizard.
Maybe that’s why? Tears didn’t come out.
“Gekgek.”
Why would I eat you?
Even though I’ve become a lizard, my mind is still human.
…Although I can’t say I’m entirely the same as before.
It feels like my values have shifted a bit.
Especially when I see large pouches—I lose focus. That must be the lizard body affecting my mind.
Even if my values have changed a little, eating creatures capable of talking still feels repulsive.
Of course, if it were an enemy like the Beihj Bird or a Monstrous Bird, I’d eat them without much thought, but it’s hard to harm someone with no grudge against me.
It’s not hypocrisy; it’s just common sense.
Think about a perfectly roasted pork belly talking to you.
Just imagining it would kill your appetite, wouldn’t it?
No matter how delicious it looks, eating it would be difficult.
…If I were starving, it’d be a different story, but that’s not the case now.
Moreover, these humans don’t even look appetizing.
They’re not particularly powerful either.
They give off the vibe of poorly prepared eggplants, at best.
At least eggplants are nutritious, so they’re even less appealing than that.
In other words, even if offered, I wouldn’t eat them.
“Geggegek.”
“Th-Thank you….”
Did he understand me?
Fine.
Since there’s someone conscious here, I don’t need to go through the trouble.
“Gek, geggegek!”
I let out the cry of a mighty lizard and explained enthusiastically.
“Ah, I-I see!”
Did he really understand what I said?
I also used gestures to clarify, so he should’ve gotten it.
Seo Wol-ah was dreaming.
A dream where white fur enveloped her.
And a dream where she touched sleek, smooth scales.
“…What a strange dream.”
She muttered to herself.
“Are you okay?”
A short-haired man was shaking her shoulder.
Jang Cheong.
And a man with dark brown hair was kneeling, massaging her knees.
Jo Am.
Both were orphans taken in by Baek Yeonyeong into the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult and had lived like siblings. They were also fairly talented in martial arts, reaching first-rate status before they were even of age.
“…Did I doze off?”
Seo Wol-ah yawned as she looked at them.
She couldn’t believe she made such a mistake.
The herbs they had used contained sleep-inducing components, so it made sense she felt drowsy, but failing to resist was embarrassing.
Especially since she had such a bizarre dream.
As she thought this, her eyes caught sight of the herbs plastered all over Jang Cheong and Jo Am’s bodies.
“…Are you hurt?”
Her round eyes widened.
Jang Cheong tilted his head at Wol-ah’s reaction.
“Why, don’t you remember? We fought that Monstrous Bird. …Did you hit your head?”
It wasn’t a dream.
“No. I do remember... but does that mean it wasn’t a dream?”
“Yes. We all nearly died, but the sacred beast saved us.”
“A sacred beast?”
“You know, the lizard that looked like a dragon. …Though calling it a lizard feels disrespectful.”
A sacred beast appeared dramatically at the call of the Heavenly Demon’s name.
I thought it was just a dream, but it was real.
That being had saved her from the brink of death.
Seo Wol-ah looked around, but the lizard was nowhere to be seen.
“It didn’t just deal with the Monstrous Bird—it even stuck herbs on our bodies.”
“Exactly. I thought Jang Cheong here was going to be split in half at one point.”
“How can you doubt that sacred being? It didn’t eat the Monstrous Bird but even gave it to us.”
“…And you were trembling at first, too.”
This was something Seo Wol-ah couldn’t understand with her common sense.
Even if it was a sacred beast, it had no particular connection to her.
Some sacred beasts were said to be benevolent toward humans, but saving their lives would usually be enough.
Yet, it had even given up its prey to them.
“Did the sacred beast leave right after that?”
“Yes. It licked us a few times and then quickly left.”
“…It licked you?”
She ran her hands over herself.
The dampness she felt earlier—it must have been the lizard’s saliva.
“Maybe its saliva has a healing effect?”
“…That must be it. There’s no other reason for it to put its tongue on my chest.”
Even so, she began to feel a little suspicious of the lizard.
But what did it matter?
Despite minor issues, that lizard had saved their lives.
And it had left them the Monstrous Bird’s corpse.
It was a favor they could never repay.
“The Hundred Thousand Great Mountains is such an unpredictable place. To think we’d encounter a sacred beast like that.”
“Exactly. At first, I thought I was seeing a dragon. What should I say—it had a presence that moved a man’s heart.”
Jang Cheong couldn’t hide his excitement.
A giant, dragon-like lizard that was benevolent to humans.
As a man, it was a creature that inspired admiration.
Not to mention its incomprehensible power.
“And its voice was unique, too.”
“Yeah, its voice was amazing.”
“Yes. Despite its appearance, the sound it made was rather cute….”
“That deep, resonant sound that seemed to echo from deep within a cave… huh?”
Jang Cheong and Seo Wol-ah exchanged puzzled looks.
“Jang Cheong, what are you talking about?”
“Wol-ah, what are you talking about? A cute sound?”
At Jang Cheong’s question, Seo Wol-ah could only ask back in confusion.
“What?”
“Did you hit your head? Let me take a look.”
“What are you talking about? Maybe you’re the one who hit your head, Jang Cheong.”
It was a situation where neither could understand the other.
“It sounded like something soft and squishy would make.”
“Soft and squishy? What are you even saying….”
Unable to stand it any longer, Jo Am interjected.
“Wol-ah, what we heard was a bit different.”
Jang Cheong cleared his throat as if he had been waiting for this moment.
“‘Why have you come to this deep place?’”
Jo Am added in a tone of mild annoyance.
“…It wasn’t quite like that, but it said something along those lines, in a very low and heavy voice.”
“It spoke?”
Had they been possessed by a ghost?
Wol-ah couldn’t comprehend it.
The lizard spoke?
Didn’t it just make screeching sounds?
Even if it could speak, shouldn’t its voice be consistent?
A deep, heavy voice?
The sound she had heard still lingered vividly in her ears.
“…Fine. Let’s assume so. So, the sacred beast spoke? Could you tell me what it said?”
Perhaps Jang Cheong and Jo Am were just teasing her.
But they wouldn’t distort what the sacred beast had said.
“…I’m not sure if I should say this.”
“What’s with that reaction?”
Were they hiding something from her?
Regardless of anything else, she felt compelled to hear everything about that lizard.
“You’re hiding something, aren’t you?”
“Hmm, it’s just that it’s not quite appropriate to say aloud.”
“…You’re just relaying what the sacred beast said, right? Just say it.”
After much hesitation, Jang Cheong finally spoke.
“‘Take the Monstrous Bird’s corpse. However, do not touch the core inside.’”
Jang Cheong tried to lower his voice as much as possible, but he couldn’t replicate the lizard’s tone. Wol-ah set aside her curiosity about the voice and focused on the lizard’s message.
“And then it said, ‘Tell her this.’”
Jang Cheong paused, glancing around nervously before continuing.
“‘Baek Yeonyeong.’”
Baek Yeonyeong.
The leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Seo Wol-ah now understood why Jang Cheong had hesitated.
Saying the cult leader’s name aloud was considered disrespectful for a follower of the cult.
But this was an exception.
He was merely passing along the words.
“‘This core contains the remnants of its energy.’”
That was why they were told not to touch the core.
The cult leader had to inspect it directly.
Seo Wol-ah nodded.
That lizard clearly had a connection to the cult leader.
That was why it had helped them.
She finally understood the situation.
“And then.”
Jang Cheong wasn’t finished yet.
Seo Wol-ah listened attentively.
“‘I will visit your chambers….’”
Srrrk.
Before Jang Cheong could finish, Wol-ah unsheathed a broken sword.
“Are you insane?”
“I told you, it wasn’t me. The lizard said that.”
“And you expect me to believe that?”
Swinging her broken sword furiously, she charged at Jang Cheong with a fierce aura.
“How could a lizard possibly enter the cult leader’s chambers?”
“That’s why I didn’t want to say it! I was just repeating what it said!”
A commotion ensued for some time.
Seo Wol-ah dismissed it as a prank by Jang Cheong and Jo Am.
How could any lizard dare to think about entering the cult leader’s chambers?
If anything, the baseless rumor about a small lizard stealing the shrine maiden’s hidden snacks sounded more plausible.
“…Wait, a lizard?”
Mid-swing, Seo Wol-ah paused as the word “lizard” crossed her mind.
No, it couldn’t be.
She briefly wondered if the lizard she had seen before was the same sacred beast she had just encountered, but quickly dismissed the idea.
“That’s ridiculous!”
“Wol-ah! I think you broke my bones!”