Chapter 125

“Bets? A bet all of a sudden.”

At the sudden proposal, the teacher asked again as if he had not expected it.

“Since I freed myself from the teacher’s protection, the River Serpent that had been watching for a chance would never sit still.”

“Hm, that is true. So what are you planning to do?”

“If I defeat it and return. I figured that should be enough qualification for me to hear the teacher’s story.”

“I fail to see what that has to do with me. Why should I do that?”

“Well. It would depend on what the teacher wishes to gain from the bet.”

At Yuwon’s words, the teacher fell into a brief moment of contemplation.

“What I want… well. I want you to leave the Great Jungle.”

At the unexpected answer, Yuwon smirked faintly.

“So I look like I’m planning to settle down here, do I?”

“That’s right. You obviously won’t. Which is exactly why I have no reason to accept your bet.”

“Hm, so that’s where the conversation leads. Well, it can’t be helped. I’d love to beat you half to death if that would make you tell me why you helped me, but that is impossible, so I’ll give up.”

“What would you do, listening to an old man’s story?”

“That old man happened to look like the strongest person I’ve ever met, and you helped me while talking about Aphahiel’s past, so wouldn’t I be curious? Just in case you forgot, I am the emperor of Aphahiel.”

At Yuwon’s brazen answer that went beyond boldness, the teacher wore a faint, unreadable smile.

‘Indeed, that is true. Perhaps because he is a descendant of Aphahiel… he looks just like that fellow.’

After briefly recalling old memories, the teacher changed his mind and instead offered a bet himself.

“The strongest person… yes, that is how I must look to you now. Fine. If you truly wish to hear my old stories, I’ll accept your bet.”

At that, Yuwon’s eyes gleamed as if he had been waiting.

“What are the conditions?”

“If you become the strongest in the Great Jungle and stand before me again, I shall tell you. The name I abandoned long ago, and the person who, in my knowledge, was the strongest.”

“Teacher. Don’t take back your words later. If I say I’ll do something, I do it.”

At Yuwon’s reply, the teacher smiled lightly.

“Good. There will be no such thing, so try not to die before then.”

Perhaps because of Gion’s icy warning, or because Ipalim, who had been resting after the fierce battle, finally rejoined them.

At last, after having made no progress whatsoever, there came a small breakthrough in the search for the Fifth Prince.

“Heh, who would have thought that an unused underground space existed beneath the Imperial Library….?”

Visitors who were intruders rather than those permitted.

Under the underground cavity where a huge hole had been torn in the ceiling, stood the traitor Ipalim, who had played the greatest role in the usurpation of the throne.

But something about Ipalim’s shadow looked empty after returning to the front line in a long while.

The result of the brutal bloodshed in the Grave of Swords. Where his left arm should have been, nothing remained.

“So that’s why the Fifth Prince and his remnants were nowhere to be seen. To think they would hide inside the palace in such chaos… slipped in well like rats, didn’t they. Still, who in the world built something like this….”

“Lord Ipalim! We found it! There is a faint trace of magic here!”

His subordinates, combing through every corner of the underground chamber, seemed to have discovered something.

“…As expected. A trace of teleportation magic?”

“Yes! Perhaps because it was the work of the Third Prince, the cleanup was immaculate, so finding the traces was difficult, but we made some progress. They went south. The coordinates point south.”

“South, huh… So the only place the Fifth Prince could seek refuge is indeed there. Strange though. The eyes we planted near Count Valaris detected nothing suspicious.”

“Well… we still need a little more time to be certain….”

“Don’t stall. Speak already.”

At Ipalim’s urging, the nameless subordinate answered cautiously.

“The coordinates point far below the Valaris County.”

“Far below Valaris County…? You mean the Great Jungle?”

“Yes, sir. I do not know how they discovered the coordinates and went there… but that is what it seems.”

At that answer, Godfrey, the captain of the extermination force who stood beside Ipalim, burst into loud laughter.

“Heh, hahaha! The Great Jungle? That lunatic. He truly went to the Great Jungle? I must have completely misjudged him. I thought the Fifth Prince was clever, but he’s just an idiot who thinks he’s clever. To willingly walk into the Great Jungle.”

But Ipalim was different. His expression darkened at the news that Yuwon had headed to the Great Jungle.

‘The only one who would orchestrate something like this is Marcellus. So Marcellus opened the path for him.’

Whether he knew Ipalim’s thoughts or not, the foolish Godfrey grinned as if he had already captured the Fifth Prince. Ipalim opened his heavy mouth, cutting that smile short.

“What do you find so amusing?”

“…Pardon? Lord Ipalim, what did you say?”

“I asked if all this feels like a joke to you.”

At Ipalim’s cold rage, Godfrey flinched and answered timidly.

“Well… if the Fifth Prince has walked into death by himself, then the pursuit is practically over, so… that is why I—”

“Nonsense. The Fifth Prince deceived the entire world for ten whole years. Did the one chosen by the late Emperor Yulaios as his successor look so easy to you?”

At this point, even Godfrey felt wronged. Yet Ipalim insulted him openly before his subordinates, not only belittling him but shaming him.

“No… then do you truly believe the Fifth Prince can return alive from that accursed land? Isn’t that the Great Jungle that devoured countless adventurers and heroes?”

Ipalim’s reply was unexpectedly abrupt.

“I killed the Emperor with my own hands.”

“…?”

At the incomprehensible statement, Godfrey fell silent and waited for Ipalim’s continuation.

“The Emperor, and the ravens as well—every single one of them believed in the Fifth Prince as if it were absolute truth. Do you even know what expressions they wore when they died?”

“W-what… kind of expression?”

“As if they had wished only for death. They smiled, even as their limbs were severed, their heads cut, and their hearts pierced.”

The bloody weight of Ipalim’s calm words made the air heavy. Godfrey shuddered quietly.

‘Ugh… this murderous demon.’

“Tch, right. How could you understand? You are the one who was given an undeserved position simply because His Majesty recognized you when he still had no power. I should not have bothered speaking. If you want to live, step back from this matter and grant me full authority. And once this is over, know your place and resign to some quiet post. You lack the ability to stand at His Majesty’s side.”

Crushed under Ipalim’s chilling bloodlust, Godfrey nodded stiffly in terror. Interpreting that nod as agreement, Ipalim immediately seized full control of the extermination force and gave orders to his subordinates.

“Listen. We pursue the Fifth Prince into the Great Jungle.”

Ipalim, the traitor who had killed the Emperor and the ravens. The loyal hound of the new dynasty had now caught Yuwon’s scent.

After proposing the bet, the teacher quietly left, and Yuwon, alone for the first time in a while, walked slowly along the riverside of the Great Jungle. His steps were unhurried, as if he were simply enjoying the scenery.

‘This place has become quite familiar now….’

Having opened his sixth sense, Yuwon immediately released the suppression the teacher had placed on it, letting his presence spread fully across the surroundings. Yet even so, nothing like what had happened when he first visited the Great Jungle occurred.

‘I expected this to some degree, but the reactions are weaker than I thought. Even if the others stay quiet, I figured the serpent and the orcs would definitely move….’

If, before opening his sixth sense, Yuwon had been a tasty baby beast, now he had grown into a mature predator they would need to risk their lives to hunt.

‘The natives and the orcs have been noisy lately, maybe that’s why. Terrien and Hastings seem busy with that matter too….’

After awakening his sixth sense, Yuwon could perceive most major events happening in the jungle, though not every detail.

‘Well… at least one of them is the same.’

That “one” he meant was the River Serpent.

Despite Yuwon’s rapid growth in just over a month, it did not show the slightest fear and attacked him as if it had been waiting.

And while Yuwon relaxed for a moment, the creature finally appeared right beside him.

Slaaaash—!

The deep, wide river of the Great Jungle split, and the River Serpent surged out, scattering violent waves.

The first thing that entered Yuwon’s sight was its right eye—the one into which he had once driven his dagger deep.

The other eye, its intact left eye, stretched sharply as it glared at him.

That murderous gaze glimmered with a terrifying shine.

Tsk— tsst—!

Was it trying to avenge the right eye it and its mother had lost to Yuwon’s hands?

The River Serpent flicked its tongue threateningly, creating an oppressive atmosphere. Yuwon, who had been waiting for it, responded with a relaxed smile.

“It has been a while. Considering how potent my venom is, I’m impressed you did not rot away but survived with only one eye lost.”

Kieeeeek—!

The serpent screamed as if it perfectly understood Yuwon’s words.

A cry so fierce that weaker beasts would faint just from hearing it. But Yuwon merely smiled quietly.

“Right, I did kill your mother, so your hatred must run deep. But I had my reasons as well. Sorry, but I cannot be sorry.”

His memories of the southern subjugation mission reminded him once more of where he belonged. Meeting an old rival again, Yuwon drew from his arms the pair of daggers forged by Rohan.

The tyrant of the wide, deep river of the Great Jungle—the River Serpent—and the lone outsider, Yuwon.

Every living being in the Great Jungle sharpened its senses to witness the clash of the two predators.

Orc Chieftain Mukwiam, the chieftain of the Thunderbird Clan Herran, and among the shamans, Kahaad—called the Great Eye—all the intelligent beasts focused on this battle.

And Yuwon aimed his blades at his foe.

“Come. Let’s end this here today.”

At that moment, none in the Great Jungle realized it yet.

That this pale outsider—Yurion Aphahiel, the rightful Emperor of Aphahiel—would become the new king of the accursed land known as the Great Jungle.

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