“...These were the most humiliating days of my life.”
Sapien’s words were understated rather than exaggerated. Grull scoffed and asked,
“Because you lost to a beastman?”
“Because the beastman who defeated is now destroying this city.”
Ende was a city founded where Saint Enger planted his flag. Over the years, it had gone by many nas—Dawn Fortress, Pioneer Settlent, Frontier County, Free City—each marking a period of change.
A descendant of the Frontier Count and the officially recognized ruler of Ende, Obelisk Sapien suppressed his disgrace and spoke.
“This city was nad by Saint Enger himself. And now, not only has it been stolen by beastn and savages, but its very pride and duty have been discarded. I was so ashad I could have bitten my tongue.”
“That’s a lot of fancy words for soone so humiliated. Guess your tongue was a little too tough, huh?”
“If I don’t restore this ruined city, I won’t be able to rest in peace.”
“You talk like soone who’s died before. I’ve only seen one dead man who couldn’t close his eyes—because his eyelids were eaten first.”
Their exchange was a duel in all but weapons. They stared each other down sharply, but the first to back down was Sapien. Not because he lacked courage, but because he had already lost once.
“Don’t act like you’re so king just because you beat , Grull. I’m just another diocre warrior, one of many in the Principality. As a qi master, you wouldn’t even rank in the top five there. If you count mages, you’d rank even lower. If you don’t want to be branded by your nationality, you’d better work harder.”
Grull remained unbothered by Sapien’s warning and responded leisurely.
“You know, in our tribe, once you turn ten, you have to call your parents by their nas. You’re not allowed to use words like ‘mother’ or ‘father.’”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“It ans even a ten-year-old doesn’t whine to their parents. You get it now?”
Sapien’s face flushed at the blatant insult, but he soon delivered a sharp counterattack.
“My apologies. I assud that was because your parents died young. My condolences.”
“...Tch.”
Grull let out a sound that was sowhere between a laugh and a groan. Sapien might not have known it, but that tradition did stem from the fact that many in Grull’s tribe lost their parents early.
‘No, the fact that he doesn’t know just makes it worse. It just ans death is much rarer in the Principality.’
As their verbal sparring reached a lull, the deadlock between them was broken by the sound of hooves. A horse beastman galloped in with the wind, cheerfully waving at Sapien.
“Sapien! You’ve been through a lot! But hey, at least you’re still in one piece!”
“Teia.”
A mber of Obeli and the honorary director of the Pawball Clan’s Postal Bureau, Teia approached Sapien ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) without hesitation. While Grull was caught off guard by how casually she treated him, Sapien answered as if it were normal.
“Did you catch the horse beastn who raided Ende?”
“Yep! I’m no good at guarding stables, but I sure can bring back a runaway horse!”
“Apologies. You should be resting.”
“If you know that, then praise !”
“...Thank you. You did well.”
“What, just words?”
“...How about a race later? I’m sure I’ll lose, though.”
“Hehehe! Sounds great! No take-backs!”
With a playful wink, Teia bounced away. She seed to be walking lightly, but by the ti they noticed, she had already disappeared into the distance.
Her speed left Grull genuinely impressed.
‘Fast.’
It was common sense that horse beastn were fast, but she was faster than any he had ever seen. He asked,
“What is she?”
Sapien furrowed his brow and replied,
“Watch your words. She’s a racehorse from the Empire.”
“A racehorse?”
“A majin. A horse beastman.”
Realizing more explanation was needed, Sapien clarified before Grull could ask further.
“Majin horseracing is a sport where qi-trained horse beastn compete. It’s still popular in the Empire today. And she was once one of the greatest majins of her ti. She retired due to an injury, but...”
“And you’re saying an imperial racehorse is on par with an official ruler?”
“Of course not.”
Sapien cut in quickly, as if desperate to avoid any misunderstanding.
“I’m the one who should be treating her with respect. She’s just laid-back enough that we talk informally.”
Grull looked incredulous.
“What? A horse beastman? I’ve heard the Empire is just as discriminatory, if not worse.”
“That’s how it is, Grull. No one in the Empire considers majins equal to humans. But if soone had to choose whether to kill a majin or a human, there are countless people who wouldn’t hesitate to choose the latter. So would even make that choice a hundred tis over.”
Obelisk Sapien had spent enough ti in the wild. He had seen survival of the fittest, where creatures ard with horns, fangs, and claws spread the law of the jungle through brute force.
But when he turned his gaze toward civilization’s pinnacle—the Empire—was it truly the opposite of savagery?
Sapien knew the answer all too well.
This was why, despite ruling as an official, he neither ignored nor persecuted beastn.
After all, even humans weren’t treated equally among themselves. If that was the case, then why would beastn be an exception?
Discrimination was only natural.
“If they weren’t even imperial citizens but lowborns from a principality, then there wouldn’t be any need to think twice. Grull, you should be grateful I was imprisoned. If you’d attacked her, the Empire would’ve probably started a new sport: hunting beastkin. Not that she’d ever let herself get caught.”
“...There’s no end to this, huh?”
“You have to know everything if you want to rule a city. The downfall of the pig beastn was inevitable. They never knew how to govern a city in the first place.”
Since the Obelisks returned, the city had been slowly stabilizing, despite its struggles. Not because the Obelisks were particularly competent, but simply because they were more accustod to governance.
And the difference was vast. It wasn’t just Grull, an outsider— even the pig beastn who had lived in the city had no idea where to go for resources or how to access them.
If not for the unwavering support of Mayor Treavor, the city would have collapsed within a day.
Having observed the city for several days, Grull understood that much.
And he understood sothing else as well.
"But it doesn't seem impossible."
"What?"
"All the mighty Obelisks seem to do is borrow strength from other clans. The sheep beastn are the ones producing military supplies. The ox beastn are tilling the land and setting traps. The horse beastn are the ones gathering people and mobilizing them. What exactly do you do? Growl? Oh, wait—that’s what dog beastn do."
"As the official rulers of Ende, we coordinate everyone and demonstrate our power—"
"The one doing all the coordination is Mayor Treavor. And power?"
The reason Sapien's Obelisks had been able to rule was, of course, partly due to their authority as recognized officials. But more than anything, it was power that mattered. If words alone were enough to persuade the wild and unruly beastn, sayings like reading sutras to a cow wouldn't exist.
But now, when a greater power had undeniably erged, that authority had naturally lost much of its weight. Especially after suffering defeat.
"Isn’t it too much for you to handle alone? That’s why you’re borrowing our hands."
Grull shrugged as he pointed out the reality of the situation.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
No matter how strong the Obelisks were, they were short on manpower and too slow to respond. And now, with their authority diminished and their forces weakened, they alone couldn’t handle the chaos erupting across Ende or prepare for war.
Having fully taken control of the pig beastn and seized the city, Grull was now a power that Ende needed.
"If we just had the Obelisks' knowledge, the pig beastn could probably run this city on their own."
It was a thought easy to dismiss as nonsense.
And yet... the city's most critical administrative work was being handled by Mayor Treavor, a dog beastman.
Had Grull taken charge of Ende from the beginning instead of Orcma, would things have turned out differently?
Sapien fell into deep thought.
"It’s already fortunate enough that the pig beastn aren’t causing trouble. But the fact that they follow orders so perfectly... it’s almost unnerving how efficient they are. I have to admit it—pig beastn are far more cohesive and organized than I expected. Right now, that’s helpful... but later, it could beco a threat to Ende itself."
But in the face of the King of Wolves, a potential future threat was a trivial concern.
After so hesitation, Sapien replied.
"...If we hadn't had to fight the wolves, we wouldn’t have needed to borrow help."
"Like it or not, you're fated to fight the wolves. So you had to borrow help."
"And so did you."
Of course, the Beast Faction, which was in direct competition with the wolves, was in an even more desperate situation than Ende.
Grull nodded without hesitation.
"For now, let’s help the King of Dogs get rid of the wolves. Until then, keep your complaints to yourself."
"...Fine. We'll take down the King of Wolves first."
In the end, it all ca down to one thing.
The King of Wolves.
Everything else would co after defeating the great scourge that threatened humans.
Suddenly, Grull glanced around and asked,
"By the way, where’s the magician?"
"Why do you ask?"
"He said he had a plan."
Asking about an outsider in front of Ende’s supre military authority was an overreach.
Sapien openly displayed his displeasure as he responded.
"If it’s a plan, we have our own."
"If it’s just about setting up a bunch of traps, even my people thought of that. And I know from experience—that won’t work. The wolves will either evade the traps or dismantle them entirely."
Having been imprisoned and cut off from updates, Sapien’s expression hardened in shock.
"Dismantle? Wolves?"
Sapien prided himself on his rationality and ability to accept the circumstances he was given.
But at his core, he was still an official burdened with deep-rooted prejudices.
The mont Grull realized that, he felt like throwing up his hands and giving up on the conversation.
"...Hah. You and both—we don’t know anything. You probably don’t even know that the wolves are using qi techniques."
"What nonsense. There’s no way re beasts could mimic the refined techniques developed by humans."
"If they gain enough experience, even pig beastn can govern a city."
Grull had only thrown those words out half-seriously earlier.
But now, he was genuinely starting to think it might be possible.
There really wasn’t much difference between humans and pig beastn.
Just like the magician had said.
Grull asked again,
"So, where is the magician?"
***
"...Huh? What did you just say?"
By sheer luck, I had run into Teia.
Since she was destined to play a key role in this war, I relayed my plan to her.
"Exactly what I said, Miss Teia. You need to be the bait to lure out the King of Wolves."
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