-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Reunion with the Kolon Lord
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Chwarrrrrrk!
As Geon-woo spread his palm, the circular medallion attached to the golden chain dropped with a clink and dangled in midair.
"Wh-what? Huh?"
"N-no way, really?"
"The Gold Bear's medallion?"
"D-Demon Eater!!!"
"The real one's here!!!"
The soldiers panicked at the sight of the medallion.
They fixed their eyes on it, their gazes shifting left and right with its sway.
Yet they were so shocked they froze, unsure what to do.
"Hey, you lot! Snap out of it!"
Geon-woo bellowed at the soldiers.
They flinched and glanced nervously at Geon-woo and the jiangshi.
"Good, now it's quiet. Anyway, as you can see, we're the real Demon Eaters. So, could you guide us to Kolon?"
"K-Kolon? How dare you speak of the lord so disrespectfully..."
"Don't you know how close Kolon and I are? We're the kind of buddies who can just—hey? You know, no big deal?"
"E-even so..."
"Shut it! Just guide us! You've been out on recon this far, so it's about time to head back anyway. And with this, I can even requisition you guys on the spot, right?"
Chwarrrrrrk!
Geon-woo spun his finger again, floating the golden medallion in the air before grabbing it and thrusting it forward like a command tablet.
The medallion engraved with a golden bear held authority just below that of the Bears domain's lord.
No one but Kolon himself could block or refuse the golden bear's orders.
"That's true, but..."
The senior soldier nodded obediently, clearly aware of that fact.
"Alright, let's go. Gotta feed my kids, so I'm in a hurry."
Tap, tap.
Geon-woo approached the stiff senior soldier, patted his shoulder, and walked past him.
He could already guess where Kolon's domain army fortress would be.
These soldiers were just escorts to handle any annoying encounters with others on the way.
* * *
"You bastard!"
Kwa-gwang!
The moment they passed through the fortress's main gate, a massive warhammer came flying.
Geon-woo blocked it with a quick draw of his sword, but the shockwave from the clash rippled outward in concentric circles.
"Urk!"
"Uwaaaah!"
"Evacuate!"
"M'lord! P-please calm down!"
"Let go! Let me go!"
The woman who had swung the warhammer at Geon-woo thrashed in midair, held aloft by knights grabbing her limbs.
Kolon, lord of the Bears domain.
Nicknamed the ferocious bear, yet she appeared as a beautiful middle-aged woman.
With her voluptuous figure and a deceptively youthful, subtly cute face, she was a captivating character.
A blonde female knight whose scarred, murderous bear reputation didn't match her looks.
"Jeez. What's with attacking the second we meet?"
Geon-woo grumbled as he eyed the female knight wriggling in her subordinates' grasp.
"Let go! Let me go, you idiots!"
In the meantime, she shook off her subordinates' hands and finally planted her feet on the ground.
She gripped the shaft of her beloved warhammer once more, tension building.
Her expression clearly showed she was debating another swing, putting Geon-woo on guard again.
But soon, she sighed, releasing the tension from her body.
"You rotten bastard! You weren't dead, but you didn't show your face for years!"
She glared at Geon-woo, spilling out her resentful grumbling.
"Ah, didn't I tell you before I left that might happen? I wanted to come back, but I just couldn't."
Only then did Geon-woo relax, sheathing the sword that had blocked the warhammer and rubbing his wrist.
His wrist throbbed from parrying the heavy warhammer with a light sword moments ago.
"Tch, gotten weaker than before? Couldn't even properly block that one hit?"
The female knight teased him.
"And what did you eat to get even more spirited than before, my lord?"
Geon-woo shot back with a sly grin.
"What a cheeky mouth you've got! Come inside, you punk."
Satisfied that was enough for a reunion greeting, she dropped her aggression completely and beckoned Geon-woo into the fortress.
Grinning broadly, Geon-woo followed her toward the main building.
"Ah, Lord Kolon, got any demon corpses left over by chance?"
Trailing behind, Geon-woo suddenly asked Kolon about demon corpses.
Kolon stopped in her tracks, turned, and scanned the jiangshi following Geon-woo.
"They at that stage already?"
She asked as if guessing why he needed demon corpses.
At her words, the surrounding knights and soldiers flinched.
They recalled why they remembered "Demon Eater" more vividly than "Dark Phoenix."
Demon Eaters ate demons.
That's how they got the name, and those who'd seen it or even heard tales felt awe and fear in equal measure.
Demons and creatures were inedible due to their unique aura and toxicity, yet Demon Eaters devoured them.
Demons, impossible to coexist with, were clearly targets for extermination by all humankind.
Still, an instinctive fear toward Demon Eaters who ate even humanoid demons was unavoidable.
Part of it stemmed from not knowing the jiangshi were refined from corpses—they seemed like living humans.
It evoked the horror of people eating people.
"Haven't you heard the rumors? We had a feast right after arriving. But they were users, not demons, so these guys went hungry."
"Tch, got it. There's an incinerator behind the keep. Should be some there."
"Ah, still in the same spot? Understood."
Taking Kolon's words as permission, Geon-woo immediately ordered Illyeong.
'Go handle it. You can take the kids and leave them there. Distance is plenty.'
= Understood, my lord.
At Geon-woo's command, Illyeong flew to Sullyeong's—the Ninth Spirit's—shoulder and led the jiangshi away.
Geon-woo watched the departing jiangshi under Illyeong's lead for a moment, then turned back to Kolon.
"Shall we go?"
"Yeah. Let's."
Kolon didn't hide her uneasy expression.
Even she felt queasy just imagining humans eating demons.
"Why the sudden fuss? Come on."
"Urgh."
Geon-woo urged the female knight Kolon, giving her back a push.
Moments later, Geon-woo sat facing Kolon in the main building's reception room.
"You're awfully late."
Kolon chided him again as soon as they sat.
"I had my reasons, but what about you, my lord?"
"What do you mean?"
"Heard you've been getting pushed back by demons lately?"
Rather than take the scolding, Geon-woo went on the offensive.
"Pushed back? Hah, just aligning lines with the others. It's because we took down Helparis and got greedy. Stuck out too far."
Seven years ago, Helparis—one of the demons' vanguard leaders—had been here.
This land was seized after killing him, forming a wedge deep into demon territory.
That protrusion had drawn concentrated demon attacks, and now Kolon was cornered to the point of barely holding on.
But pride wouldn't let her admit it outright, so she brushed it off—Geon-woo could guess that much.
No need to poke at her pride unnecessarily, though.
So.
"What's the biggest problem? Now that I'm here, just say the word."
Better to scratch where she itched—it benefited them both.
"Hmm. You sure you can handle it? Not sure if you know, but the demons have changed a lot."
"Changed?"
"Well, bug and beast creatures are issues, but humanoid shed-skins are increasing too, along with higher specimens."
Kolon meant the situation had shifted greatly from seven years ago—the demons had grown stronger.
"Bipedal walkers on the rise, huh?"
Demons' lowest minions were mostly bug types, followed by quadrupedal beasts.
Beasts evolving further became bipedal humanoid creatures.
Geon-woo's "bipedal" referred to that humanoid stage.
Those humanoids were sometimes called shed-skins, as the final evolution for creatures.
"Not just that. Leader types are up too. Tribe chiefs, great warriors, shamans, that sort."
Kolon was talking about ones that shed even further beyond shed-skins.
"Second shed from humanoid, right? Headaches. And beyond that, they become true demons—plenty of those evolved too?"
Humanoid first shed, then second shed.
Shedding again from there made them proper demons.
Demons ultimately hatched from bug creatures through multiple growth stages.
Some said demons birthed demons, but that was unconfirmed.
Creature-to-demon evolutions had been witnessed, at least.
"Demon numbers only up a bit? They rarely step forward anyway."
"So you don't know up to that level?"
"Since Helparis died, demons have been scarce here. Glimpses from afar at most."
"Not elsewhere?"
If only here, there'd be a reason.
"Yeah. Word is, demons are especially cautious just around here."
"And you're still getting pushed?"
The issue: even without demons leading, things were bad enough to consider retreat.
Geon-woo pressed Kolon, baffled.
He knew Kolon could fight Helparis solo.
"Wh-what good's me holding alone when my men keep dying?"
"Ah! That..."
Geon-woo had to concede that point.
He knew surviving solo like a lone general wasn't the goal.
Especially as a domain lord.
"Whew. Creatures' average level rose, so my underlings are struggling more."
Kolon sighed deeply.
"So you're thinking retreat? Fine. I get the situation. What'll it be first?"
Geon-woo beamed at her.
"You punk, talking like you'll do anything I ask?"
Kolon glared, incredulous.
"Seen me fail? I took down Helparis."
Thump, thump.
Geon-woo thumped his chest, gilding his own lily.
"You alone? No way without me!"
"Huh? Don't ride my coattails on old history. You fought outside, I fought inside! Claiming Helparis credit? Not fair."
"Why'd you fight him so easy then? We stripped his minions..."
"Anyway, that's settled. So, what? What do you need? Oh, obviously not free. You know."
"Urgh. I know, punk!"
"Payment in souls, of course. And..."
"I know! I said I know!"
"Yes, yes. Thank you, Lord Kolon. Hahaha! Trust me one more time. Just supply the soulstones proper..."
In front of the long-unseen Lord Kolon, Geon-woo kicked off a cheerful negotiation just like old times.