"What did you just say?"
Raon widened his eyes as he looked at Wrath, who had suddenly appeared from the sky.
"There's Sia's soul inside this thing?"
"I don't know about Sia, but there's definitely a human soul embedded within that Orc's spirit."
Wrath nodded firmly, his thick chin bobbing.
"If you kill that Orc, the human soul will perish along with it!"
He furrowed his brows, insisting that the creature must not be harmed.
"Is it true?"
Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the Green King.
"..."
The Green King remained silent once again, raising his broken stone sword. His eyes, filled with determination, flashed with a bright red fighting spirit, indicating his resolve to fight to the end.
"Hah..."
Raon gritted his teeth, his hand trembling as he gripped the Heavenly Drive. He couldn't continue fighting, knowing that Wrath wouldn't lie about such a thing.
"What are you thinking?"
"...I'm only trying to protect myself."
The Green King shook his head, saying that was all there was to it.
"You're ultimately..."
Raon's jaw quivered as he gazed into the Green King's noble eyes.
'Wait a minute.'
Is this even possible? Typically, when one wears Eden's helmet, the monster's mental image overlaps with the body owner's, resulting in a battle of willpower. He himself had fought Rokta in the mental world and absorbed his soul.
But the fact that Sia's soul remains within the Green King now means that the absorption wasn't completed. He needed to investigate further.
"What's your name?"
Raon lowered the Heavenly Drive to the ground as he looked at the Green King.
"Murkada."
Unlike his silence about Sia, the Green King readily provided his own name without hesitation.
"Murkada?"
"In human language, it means 'a tree with deep roots.'"
"I thought a king wouldn't need a name. This is unexpected."
Raon shrugged lightly with a faint smile.
"..."
The Green King remained vigilant, enveloping his stone sword with a red fighting spirit.
"My name is Raon Zieghart. I'm the younger sibling of the human you're currently inhabiting."
Raon closed his eyes briefly before opening them as he revealed information about himself.
"Can you tell me what happened now?"
"I refuse."
Murkada tightened his grip on the broken stone sword, once again declining to answer.
"I don't trust humans."
He bared his sharply ground teeth as he looked at the burnt Orc corpses.
"Hmm..."
Raon exhaled softly as he observed Murkada's intensifying anger.
'This won't be easy.'
Murkada had said he and his kind were killed after being deceived by humans, and then he was forced to inhabit this body against his will after death. It was understandable that he couldn't trust humans. Murkada raised his intense fighting spirit again, apparently thinking Raon would resume the fight as his expression hardened.
However, Raon lowered both hands after completely sheathing the Heavenly Drive.
"I've been through something similar, but I suppose I can't truly understand how you feel."
In his past life, he had lived a hellish existence under Derus's control, but after reincarnation, he learned the value of relationships. The magnitude of pain was different from Murkada, who was being manipulated by Eden even after death.
"Please. Until recently, I didn't even know my sister was alive. I don't want to cause any more pain to the family I've struggled to reunite with."
Raon bowed his head to Murkada, revealing his sincere feelings.
"..."
Murkada's hand trembled briefly, but he didn't lower his stone sword, seemingly unchanged in his thoughts.
"Hey! Orc."
Wrath twisted his lips as he looked down at the Green King.
"This king's vessel is speaking to you! Answer him! *cough*"
He furrowed his brow, apparently frustrated with himself.
"If you don't open your mouth right now, I'll turn you into an ice cube..."
"Stop."
Raon shook his head while holding onto Wrath's arms.
"If you get angry, how will we... Ugh."
As he tried to restrain the struggling Wrath, he suddenly lost strength throughout his body and collapsed to the ground. No, in this case, it felt like his soul was losing strength.
"A-Are you alright?"
Wrath hurriedly moved behind him, supporting his back like a sofa. It was softer than a bed, true to his cotton candy-like appearance.
"You're not in your right mind now! *cough*"
"Judging by your cough, you're not in great shape either, are you?"
Raon lightly tapped Wrath's forehead.
"Don't joke around! If you push yourself any further, you'll either die or suffer severe damage to your mental image!"
He shook his head, gesturing for Raon to stop.
"Is it that bad?"
"Even if those weird rings helped you endure, you still contained this king's energy! Your soul must have cracked!"
Wrath waved his hand up and down, insisting that Raon should stop and rest.
"We should also try the new bead ice cream flavor! *cough*"
"So that was your goal."
Raon chuckled and let out a long sigh.
"I do feel quite dizzy. Even during the fight, my vision was shaky."
"The fact that you couldn't sense the human soul within that Orc was problematic from the start. *cough*"
Wrath shook his head, saying that Raon must have been in an abnormal state since entering this mental world.
"I see..."
It seemed that forcing himself to endure and fight wasn't a good choice from the beginning, as Wrath had said. Now he felt too dizzy to bear it any longer.
"Murkada. I'll come back again, and when I do, I hope we can have a proper conversation."
Raon waved his hand at Murkada, who still maintained a stern gaze, and then closed his eyes. Whether it was his soul or body, everything felt exhausted, and he fell asleep unable to open his eyes again.
"..."
Wrath set down Raon, who was disappearing from the mental world, and floated into the air. A blue chill rose like a rippling lake, and Wrath, who had been a giant cotton candy, transformed into the lord of the Devildom with frost-colored hair cascading down.
"You..."
Murkada swallowed dryly as he looked at Wrath, who had transformed.
"You're not human."
"To think you still believed this king to be human even after seeing the blue cloud form earlier, you truly are an Orc without prejudice."
Wrath curled his lips upward, seemingly dumbfounded.
"You. You've been deeply hurt by humans. Your soul is filled with malice and anger. Yet, it's remarkable that you don't show it."
The anger Wrath felt from Murkada was intense enough to reach him. However, Murkada was suppressing his anger without revealing it. It was something even human saints or sages couldn't achieve.
"Because not a single human can be trusted."
Murkada gritted his teeth, saying that even showing anger towards humans was a waste.
"This king doesn't know your past, but there's one thing I do know."
Wrath raised his slender index finger.
"That young human who just disappeared after acting cocky. I know very well who he is."
"..."
"He pretends to be strong but is weak, acts cold but is warm. He's different from the humans who kill you, revive you, and then mock you."
The Green King slowly lowered his stone sword without answering.
"I'm not saying you should accept it right away. If you experience it, you'll understand on your own."
Wrath nodded slightly, telling him to observe.
"Ah, what a shame. Now that that damned fellow has disappeared, this king must leave soon as well... *cough*"
As he coughed, blood splattered from his mouth. It was a wound to his soul that had formed from overexerting himself to help Raon.
"For a demon king, wounds are merely medals."
Wrath chuckled as he wiped away the blood flowing from his mouth.
"Orc. We'll meet again."
After waving his hand lightly, he closed his eyes.
"It would be nice if you liked bead ice cream too."
With those final words, Wrath disappeared from the mental world.
"Hah..."
Only after Wrath vanished did Murkada lower his stone sword. He let out a sigh of relief as he looked at his feet, which hadn't retreated a single step from their original position.
* * *
I had a dream. It wasn't mine, nor was it of the Zieghart ancestor. Instead of the dead forest I had seen in Murkada's mental image as the Green King, a vast forest full of green vitality came into view. It seems I had this dream because I had spent too long in Murkada's mental world.
In my vision as Murkada, I saw a young human child. Judging by his attire and appearance, he seemed to be of noble lineage.
It was rare for lost humans to find their way to the heart of the forest, but it was the first time a child had appeared alone. The torn clothes stained with another human's blood suggested he had been attacked during his journey and fled here.
[It's alright. I won't hurt you.]
Murkada made foolish hand and foot gestures to reassure the child. Although he should have sent the child away immediately, he decided to take him to the tribe first, fearing the attackers might get to him.
[Aaaaaah!]
The child screamed in fear, as expected, but soon realized Murkada's intentions and followed him. The child, named Essian, seemed untainted, unlike one born into nobility. He played with the Orc children, ate with them, and slept alongside them.
Other Orcs were initially worried, but after seeing him happily playing with the children, they accepted Essian as a guest.
Now that I look closely, not only Murkada but the other Orcs' eyes were also clear. They felt like a different species from the Orcs I've known so far. About a month might have passed. Knights and magicians began to appear around the forest, searching. Unlike the attackers, they seemed desperate to find the child.
Realizing they had come for the child, Murkada asked Essian not to speak of this place and sent him back.
[Thank you. I'll definitely repay this kindness. Mister!]
Essian thanked Murkada and the Orcs many times before departing for the human world. As I was watching this heartwarming scene with an involuntary smile, the scene suddenly changed.
[Your Majesty. Humans are destroying the forest.]
An Orc shaman with a flowing white beard knelt before Murkada.
[It's different from before! They're not just cutting down trees or gathering herbs and fruits, they're trying to destroy the entire forest.]
The shaman raised his fist, saying they should fight before the humans ruin the forest.
[Let's observe a bit longer.]
Murkada calmly shook his head. He reassured the Orcs, recalling pure humans like Essian. Time passed once again. The humans destroyed trees and vegetation, slaughtered animals, and disrupted the forest's balance even more than the shaman had warned.
[Your Majesty!]
[Your Majesty!]
The Orcs knelt before Murkada, crying out that they must fight.
[I'll go speak to them directly.]
Murkada went to meet the leader of the humans destroying the forest, trying his best to avoid war. Confident in his command of human language, he waited behind the largest tent when a familiar golden-haired young man caught his eye.
Smelling the young man's scent, he was reminded of the young child who had visited the forest 20 years ago.
[Essian?]
[Is that you, Lord Murkada?]
Essian's surprise was evident, but he bowed his head with an awkward smile.
[Why are you here...]
[...Ah, I'm here to stop this development.]
Essian explained that he was the illegitimate child of a high noble and had been attacked while traveling to become the successor. He said he had come here to stop the royal family's order to develop this forest.
[I see. Thank you.]
Murkada nodded as he looked at Essian. He felt relieved that he hadn't started a war, as the past connection had led to this moment.
[Um, I'd like to see my old friends if that's alright?]
[Of course. Everyone will remember you.]
He took Essian to the tribe. Essian seemed to return to his childhood, enjoying time with the Orcs, eating and sleeping with them before leaving.
[Don't worry. I'll definitely stop the development.]
His final words were so trustworthy that Murkada couldn't help but believe him. Whether Essian had truly done well or not, the human camps disappeared, and not even a shadow of a person was seen for two months. Just as Murkada was about to tell the Orcs to return to their normal lives, thinking everything was fine...
Flames erupted throughout the forest, and the sound of hundreds of horse hooves echoed along the paths known only to Orcs.
It was the humans. They had set fire to the forest and sent knights through routes only Orcs could traverse.
[Kill these filthy Orcs who speak human language!]
At the forefront of the extermination force sent to slaughter the Orcs was Essian, whom Murkada had trusted. He beheaded Orcs with eyes filled with disgust, replacing the pure gaze of his youth. As Murkada would later learn, Essian needed an achievement to become his family's successor, and he aimed to accomplish this through the forest's development and Orc extermination.
The child who had once transcended the boundary between humans and monsters, accepting the goodwill of souls, had become a true monster obsessed with power and money.
[Protect the children!]
[Defend the king!]
The attack was so sudden that Orcs died while protecting their children, trying to stop the flames, and shielding their incompetent king.
[Aaaaargh!]
Murkada charged towards the knights, drawing the stone sword he had never wielded before. After red blood blurred his vision, all he could see were the intertwined corpses of humans and Orcs. Murkada's tribe possessed special powers and wisdom, allowing them to barely repel the attack and drive the humans back to the village outside the forest.
However, there was no time to relax.
Rumors spread that it wasn't humans attacking Orcs, but Orcs raiding human villages, and eventually, the continent's strongest warriors poured into the forest. For every ten humans that died, a hundred Orcs perished. For every hundred humans that fell, a thousand Orcs were slaughtered.
The once lush green forest was now covered in death.
Murkada sent away the young Orcs who had not yet awakened their wisdom through the last hidden path, then remained in the forest with his warriors. They still followed this foolish and ignorant king.
Human heroes broke through the forest's barriers and charged in, not even giving him time to express his regret to his subordinates.
[Raaaargh!]
Murkada roared at the humans and this world as he swung his cracked stone sword.
[My name is Murkada! The most foolish king in this world!]
After that, his vision turned red.
* * *
"Hah!"
Raon raised his upper body and opened his eyes. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead from the vivid dream that felt as if he had experienced it himself.
'So that's what happened...'
He understood why Murkada said he couldn't trust humans. Humans had repaid his warm consideration with a blade. If it were him... No, if it had been him, he would have annihilated all the humans on the continent.
'This won't be easy.'
After seeing Murkada's past, it seemed that drawing out his heart would be extremely difficult. But for Sylvia and Rector's sake, he couldn't give up.
-You're finally awake? *cough*...
Wrath climbed up onto the bracelet, coughing dryly.
-This king is hungry, so get up quickly and eat!
He shook his head, saying his stomach was about to stick to his back.
'Hmm, you still look plump though?'
Raon tilted his head as he stretched Wrath's chubby cheeks.
-Shut up! This king is a noble monarch, so I just don't show it! *cough*
He furrowed his brow, urging Raon to get up quickly.
'Alright, I should get up.'
As Raon was about to rise with a faint smile, suddenly...
[You have drawn out the true power of
[You have achieved victory against an overwhelmingly powerful opponent.]
[You have accomplished an impossible feat.]
[All abilities...]
[Traits...]
Messages about increased abilities and traits appeared, seemingly calculating all that had transpired.
-This damned...!
Wrath trembled as he saw the messages.
-I was already hungry, and now my stomach is starting to hurt! *cough*
He waved his chubby hands in frustration, shouting that it was too much.
-You're really tormenting this king!
'The growth messages are nice, but...'
Raon dismissed the messages and got up from the bed.
'There's something I need to do first.'