"…."
"…."
Perk...
Perk...
I couldn't tear my eyes away from the two perky dog ears twitching atop the head of the black-haired Dogkin girl—Dinara—who had suddenly proposed to me. It was strangely fascinating.
Perk...
Perk...
"…."
'I'd only ever heard stories or seen photos in the gallery of other races—elves, beastkin, mermaids. Seeing one up close like this is just… unreal'
I glanced around.
The checkpoint at the grand gate I'd conjured with my construction magic. Captain Luciana and the soldiers stood guard sternly at my side, while in the corner, the miscellaneous goods the Dogkin had brought were neatly sorted.
Next to that huddled about a hundred wandering Dogkin folk dressed in nomadic garb... no, around a hundred of them, all clustered together. They displayed varying degrees of fur coverage.
'Males at 100% fur level, females around 50%?'
The 100% fur levels were mostly burly male Dogkin. With faces truly resembling dogs, they whispered among themselves.
-Whoa, humans really have those smooth ears right by their jaws.
-It's so weird...
-Can they hear with ears that tiny?
-They look like baby ears. Kinda cute.
'I can hear every word, you idiots.'
-But do humans do marriage alliances?
-No idea. But a king owning land this vast? He'd probably take multiple wives. Gotta have at least a hundred kids to satisfy him.
-That's bad. Princess Dinara's hips are too small for a hundred. She might get pushed out quick, and the tribe exiled...
-Shh, don't jinx it, Rahim.
Perk perk
Wag wag
'These guys. Shaking their fluffy ears and tails with those innocent faces, saying crap like that.'
Next, I looked at the 50% fur group. Slender female Dogkin of various ages, adorned with flashy jewelry and embroidered fabrics.
'Handy with crafts, huh.'
The women watched their princess— who had proposed to me— with fingers interlocked, eyes half hopeful, half worried... Of course, I could tell from their ear and tail twitches.
Perk perk
Wag wag
'It's like a border collie cafe exploded here.'
"…."
I tore my gaze away,
and looked back at Dinara right in front of me.
Then I spoke to her.
"There's one thing I'd like to ask."
"!"
Dinara's face flushed as she clenched her fists tight and answered boldly. Her white-and-black tail was curled tightly against her groin from tension.
"N-No childbirth experience! Pure body! B-But—! Ten kids, twenty, I'll bear them healthy and strong and raise them right! Th-Thirty... I'll give it my all!"
"…."
Uh.
Um...
Okay.
Thanks for the family planning rundown.
'Didn't wanna know.'
Not keen to dwell on that topic, I deployed my lordly secret technique—'Pretend I didn't hear that'—and repeated myself.
"I see. More importantly, there's one thing I'd like to ask. What strata did you all come from, and how?"
"Eek…!"
Sag—
Dinara's self-intro skipped over, she flushed beet-red with shame at her pointless virginity proof. Head and ears drooping slightly, tail limp, she replied.
"W-We came from floor 49—'Misty Plains.' After the Famine Demon King was slain, the land withered fast, so we fled."
"!"
Astonishing.
A regular NPC, not a ruler, aware of her own floor. Even discussing climbers' subjugation and its aftermath— enough to prompt migration.
'Key to floor exploration—once the main quest ends, NPCs can climb too?'
Dinara quickly answered my inner question.
"When the Famine Demon King cursed us— grass withered, food crumbled to dust. That's when we felt a 'Guiding Light' beyond the mist, unseen till then. But we were too scared to go for ages."
"Scared?"
"W-Well..."
Dinara's ears plastered flat to her head. Her face, half-hidden by fluffy ears, was near tears.
"...Our Dogkin have weaker physiques than other beastkin. We lacked confidence to leave our safe village by the stream and cross vast plains. So we scraped by hunting monsters nearby for a long time."
"…."
'Even clearing the main quest, bad terrain keeps low-spec NPCs from moving.'
And then.
Their savior appeared.
"Until a climber in black robes, big sword on his back, guided us."
"Climber...?"
"He told us to call him 'Nameless One.' Said he owed us no favors. Then he cleaved through every monster swarming our path and pushed straight ahead."
"!"
Sword,
climber,
black attire...
'Hundred Swords Society member.'
I asked,
"Did he come with you?"
Dinara shook her head.
"No. When we reached floor 50, 'Mist Boundary,' amid monster corpses, he pointed to the Guiding Light and gestured."
-Enter that light, go straight, find the 'White City.' Your noses won't let you get lost.
"...That's what he said, then Nameless One vanished back into the mist. To the place we'd fled in panic."
"Nothing else?"
"Well. He said 'A warrior keeps distance from women,' avoided talking to our females. But taught our males some fighting basics. I only spoke to him that first time."
"…."
'Off to save another beastkin village.'
That 'Nameless One' probably valued his beliefs and Hundred Swords Society code like Sword Ghost. I felt fondness for this unseen man's deeds.
'When Hundred Swords Society arrives someday, I'd like to see his face.'
As I pondered Nameless One, Dinara suddenly knelt. Face bowed deep, tail trembling, she spoke.
"Lord Lucius! I beseech this land's ruler!"
"Princess Dinara...?!"
"No..."
She shook her head.
"Frankly, 'princess' is just a relic of the long-fallen 'Beastman Empire.' I'm merely a chief's daughter, returned to the plains' winds. We're but a small nomadic Dogkin tribe."
With those words,
all Dogkin knelt.
Dinara pleaded earnestly.
"Lord Lucius! All we offer is this body—last thread of noble blood—and our starving villagers."
"…."
"Yet still—please, accept us on this land."
"…."
All Dogkin bowed their heads.
-Lord!
-Mercy, please...
-We beg you.
A pungent scent rose from the scene, drawing a wry smile. I needed more population for revival plans anyway. Their actions seemed endearing.
"Haha..."
'Now I can't just turn down the adoption.'
In the end.
First after climbers.
I accepted NPCs who fled their floor.
Moments later.
I shouted in the open square.
"Construction—!"
Practicing my skill too, I built their village right away. Rectangular buildings sprouted in the city corner visible from the lord's manor.
Rumble rumble—!
'Copied a desert village from a past-life docu... but it's vague. Unlike walls, details lack.'
Whatever, they'd decorate if picky.
'Their embroidered clothes and art in junk show crafty hands.'
So thinking.
As townsfolk carted pots, water jars, wheat sacks, fruits. I addressed stunned Dinara and Dogkin.
"Live here now. Plenty of food stocked for recovery. Worry about other things later."
"…."
"…."
"…."
After brief silence.
Dogkin howled skyward in unison. A mix of wolf and dog howls.
-Awoooo—!!
"?"
They reached innocently toward the sky, tails wagging wildly.
"Great Lord Lucius welcomes us—!"
"Gave us land, a village!"
"Hospitality fit for the Beastman Empire's 'Khan'..."
"We're welcomed by the 'Khan'—!"
"First consort clan...! Like a dream!"
"...?!"
Their intense reaction flustered me. I asked nearby Dinara.
"Princess Dinara, what is this...?"
"Please, no titles."
She grabbed my sleeve, shook her head. Looking back, her eyes glistened, but lips smiled bright.
"Just Dinara. Call me 'Dinara.' We're all your people now."
I scratched my cheek.
"Yeah, Dinara."
Weakest beastkin.
Just cute puppies.
But their joy swelled my chest with pride.
*
Dogkin unpacked in their village, rested. Three days later, they timidly explored Baran's streets.
Occasionally bumping into locals.
"!"
"!"
They muttered.
"H-Human."
"D-Dogkin."
"…."
"…."
The people of Baran were wary of the dogkin at first—but not for long. Cuter than goblins or other races, they quickly warmed to them.
-If the Lord invited them, they're not strangers.
A fruit vendor handed an apple to a Dogkin girl staring slack-jawed at his stall. She'd been drooling over the scent.
"Eat this."
"!"
The girl bowed, taking it.
"Th-Thank you."
"No biggie. Invited by the Lord, you're one of us."
"Yes, hehe."
Her tail wagged. Munching the apple, she pointed a tiny finger at a cart by the stall.
"That cart looks broken."
"Ah... Yeah. Creaks but still usable."
"Want me to fix it?"
"!"
Similar chats popped up everywhere. Dogkin poked at mechanical or mana-tech devices.
-Swap parts, good as new.
-Really...?
-Oil it, work the gears...
-Whoa, whoa—?! It moves!
-This one's toast though.
-Darn. Needs mana-tech.
-Our big bro can fix it. Fetch him!
-For real?!
Dogkin dexterity was unreal.
*
👤 PROFILE 👤📛 Name: Dinara (19)🎭 Title: Dogkin Princess / Magic Engineer✨ [Special] Enchant: Can imbue magic.🛠️ [Special] Dexterity: Boosts production.🎯 [Common] Precision: Boosts concentration.
Quiet lord's manor front garden.
Dinara and I held a private audience.
Dinara swung a dagger before me. The once-plain blade now bore 'rune letters' she'd ground mana stones into.
"Hiya!"
Whoosh—
Red flames trailed the dagger's arc,
roaring fiercely.
Like wielding a blade of fire.
Fwoosh!
I marveled.
"!"
'Just carved letters on a plain dagger, and it packs basic spell power?'
Dinara swung more. No flames this time. She turned sheepishly.
"Hehe, sorry. My skill's lacking. Only once per minute..."
"No, that's impressive. Works on other weapons too?"
"Yes! Spears, swords, daggers—any gear, as long as there's space to carve runes!"
"Incredible."
Versatile too.
Soldiers rarely swing spears in frenzy. Formation and timing matter.
"…."
'So one-minute cooldown's fine. Use for decisive group strikes.'
Then Dinara wagged her tail, rummaged her bundle. Pulled a crossbow, aimed at a manor tree.
"This too!"
She fired repeatedly.
Click!
Twang—!
Click!
Twang—!
Click!
Twang—!
...A whopping three-shot burst.
'Holy crap.'
Dinara ended with an embarrassed grin, ears perking nonstop.
"Hehe, needs long reload after one use. But staying here, I'll develop better weapons!"
"...Impressive."
"Really?"
"Yeah, Dogkin tech is... top-tier."
"!"
Dinara's tail thrashed wildly.
I thought,
"…."
'Early game, dozens blasting bursts then ditching crossbows works. Secures high-rank magic attack power.'
I envisioned.
Lord's army unleashing hundreds of bolts from burst crossbows, then drawing flame- or wind-enchanted spears, charging monsters in unison—.
-For Walled City Baran's glory—!!
"!"
Whoa.
Damn.
Legs nearly buckled. Glancing at the giggling Dogkin girl, I recalled the gallery's long-missing fur fanatic.
Okay, no more constant spotlights.
'Let this slide once. Beastkin are awesome.'
But.
One issue.
Dinara fidgeted.
"Enchant and engineering both need processed mana stones... These demos worked 'cause smiths got interested. Full production? Way more mana stones than imagined."
"…."
Mana stones,
needed heaps more.
'Basic supply's set. Climber quest rewards cover extras fine.'
For more, clear more forest.
'Time to start the 'Road Cleanup Project.'
*
Next day.
Bow Ghost, Luciana, and I strolled atop walls. Not Baran's—fresh ones rising underfoot.
"Construction, construction, construction—."
Rumble...!
Bow Ghost gawked at 10m walls sprouting like rope bridges along the path. Shooting wriggling goblins below, he said.
"Whoa, amazing. Even legendary archmages max three high-rank spells before tiring. Not exhausted?"
"Fine. Reaches climber spawn easy."
"Insane. Tiny walls, but 'Earth Fortress' straight 2km...? Elf high priest couldn't."
Luciana swung her massive axe, 'Steel Eater.' A hobgoblin's head split clean. Sludgy corpse fell; she shrugged.
"Of course! Our Lord's invincible!"
"Haha, true."
Bow Ghost laughed heartily, drew again. Goblins below, pelted by catapult fire, heads exploded in sync.
Mana stones not tripling?
Massacre tenfold then.
I nodded.
"Mm."
'Pave safe road to climber respawn, goblin farm with high-rank spam. Elegant two-birds-one-stone.'
And finally.
Bow Ghost pointed to the plain ahead.
"Beacon-like glow there."
"!"
As he said,
lighthouse light shone in the plain's corner.
"Marks climber entrance. We call it 'Guiding Light.'"