Chapter 49

White Is Beautiful

It’s common knowledge that I’m an orphan with no parents.
That said, I’m not stupid enough to accept an adoption proposal from a gorilla.
I’m not that starved for affection.

Well… sometimes, I do feel like meeting the father I’ve never even seen.
After seeing that Deshnan’s journal had information about him, that feeling only grew stronger.

—“A serpent of such a rare species… If I get the chance, I’d like to see it myself. And unlike a Medusa Serpent, it’s said to be docile, so it should be fine.”

Even Pelerian said something like that.

But if I became part of the gorilla’s family… what would that even make our relationship?

‘Are you female or male?’

I tried asking that.
Of course, I couldn’t speak, so asking the gorilla was a painful process.
Only after drawing all sorts of bizarre and obscene pictures did the gorilla finally answer.

She was female. So… would that make her my older sister?
Her build was so massive I assumed she was male—honestly, that was a shock.

“Your mom… if she… becomes… that… would that… be nice…? Then… I’ll… let you go…?”

No, damn it!

Anyway, after a long period of deliberation, I made my decision.

“Thank you… really, thank you.”

I released the talking gorilla from the cage.

Up close, she was surprisingly thin.
Inside the cage where she had been trapped, dried corpses of various monsters were stuck to the floor.
They must have been creatures locked in with her, but there were no signs that she had eaten them.

“I eat… fruit… like fruit… also bugs…”

Hearing that, her diet was gentler than I expected.
How does she build muscles like that eating only those things?

I lightly tightened my grip around the back of her neck.
It wasn’t affection—it was a threat.

If what she said wasn’t true, I would kill her. A cold warning.

“I keep promises… big, cool Serpent… I’ve seen it. The Sage knows… where it is… The Sage knows everything.”

Reason number one for freeing the gorilla:
She had seen my father. And she was certain someone from her kind knew where he was.

“Festival… I’ll teach… how to pick fruit… if it’s along the way…”

She also said she would tell me about the “festival” happening here.

—“I know that in the Great Forest, ‘Fruit Week’ takes place. Flowers bloom on the branches of the World Tree, and fruits form on the exposed roots. During that time, monsters grow stronger, and named monsters are born.”

Even Pell-wiki didn’t know everything.

—“However, it’s difficult to determine exactly how the monsters gathered at the roots behave. Entry is restricted once Fruit Week begins.”

When it comes to monster behavior and ecology, Deshnan’s knowledge might actually be more detailed.
But even after searching his room, anything about the festival was vague speculation.

“For the fruit… monsters… form alliances… we too… even the bugs…”

Normally, monsters of different species rarely form groups.
Even among the same species, killing each other is common.
That’s the instinct of creatures born with the categorical imperative to “grow stronger.”

But the monsters in this Shadow Forest formed groups.

According to Deshnan’s records, there were currently two factions:
Primates with hands… and a swarm of insect-type monsters.

Could it be that the giant centipede I got separated from joined the insect faction?

‘Why are monsters forming groups?’

With that question in mind, I tapped the gorilla’s forehead twice.
That meant: spill everything you know.

The gorilla was more intelligent than I expected.
According to Pelerian, only a few high-ranking monsters could speak.
This gorilla didn’t seem that high-tier.

The reason she could speak, even clumsily, was probably because she was an intelligent primate.
If it had been a skill, I could’ve borrowed it using Billy’s horn.

Surprisingly, the language she used resembled human speech.
The pronunciation and vocabulary were quite different, but similar enough for even Pelerian to understand.

Pelerian explained that this language—the human language—was a “common tongue.”
An ancient language passed down since the distant past.
Even monsters that learned language on their own—and even dragons that no longer exist—used it.

“Eat fruit… get stronger… but when you eat… you stop. Someone… must protect you…”

Stop?
Does that mean your body stiffens?

If so, you’d need a trustworthy companion to guard you.

I turned my head slightly and looked at the spotted one following behind me.
When our eyes met, it wagged its tail wildly.

…Yeah, trusting that thing alone while eating the “fruit” seemed risky.

That didn’t mean I was going to become part of the gorilla’s family.
Honestly, the giant centipede was more reliable.

Still, I needed to find out what kind of group the gorilla belonged to.
Looks like I’d be staying here for a while.

Come to think of it… then what about my father?
Doesn’t he belong to any group?

“There used to be… one more group… now gone. The leader… died…”

So that’s the situation.
Each group has a leader.

“Our leader… silver monkey… very strong…”

A primate leader? What is he, some kind of Monkey King Sun Wukong?
Might be dangerous.

I followed the gorilla into the forest where her kind lived.
They called it the Monkey Forest.

To get there, we had to cross a hilly region.
And there—something caught my eye.

‘Is that… a tree?’

…No. A root.

Something smooth and enormous, like a baobab tree, stood out.
A massive pillar-like structure rose from the middle of the hills.

—“That is an exposed root of the World Tree.”

What kind of root is that huge?
Its many branching offshoots looked like tree limbs. But since there were no leaves, it must really be a root.

As we headed toward the forest beyond the hills, I saw several more of those roots.
So that’s where the fruits grow.

Even though Fruit Week hadn’t fully begun, a few unripe fruits had already fallen.

“There… that’s our forest…”

A dark forest loomed ahead.
A forest ruled by primates.

“Spotted!”

I stopped the gorilla and had Spotted wait here.
On the way back, I’d ride it.

Its sprinting ability was impressive—fast enough that primates couldn’t chase it.
The real problem was getting back here.

To prepare for that, I had already borrowed a skill from a monster at the zoo.

[Magic: Transparent Hand Lv.3 activated.]

I drew my sword.
This was the “secret” behind receiving that adoption offer.

Even if invisible, I definitely had hands.

‘Try anything funny and I’ll kill you. You and your entire kind.’

I raised my scales, letting them clatter sharply.
Monsters seemed to find that sound quite threatening.

When I pointed my blade at her, the gorilla nodded as if she understood.

We entered the forest.

Sure enough, several monkeys climbed the trees, watching us.
They looked so small and weak it was hard to tell if they were monsters or just animals.

Maybe they were scouts.
Chattering loudly, they rushed deeper into the forest.

“They… will welcome us…”

There was joy in the gorilla’s voice.

I tightened my body slightly around her neck.
Just try something.

At that moment, someone appeared ahead.

Unlike the gorilla, it walked on two legs.

More precisely—

‘A chimpanzee!’

It was unmistakably the chimpanzee I knew.
But clearly not a normal animal.

Its fingernails were long—perfect for slashing.

【Iron Claw Chimpanzee Lv.28】

“Uu! Uu!”

The chimpanzee jumped in place, greeting the gorilla.
It kept its distance, wary of me.

“Serpent… saved me… thank you. Want to meet… the Sage…”

The chimpanzee didn’t seem particularly happy about the gorilla’s return.
It spat on the ground.

What a rude bastard.

“Uu!”

It shouted and went ahead, as if telling us to follow.

Where it led us, countless primates had already gathered.

Bonobos, gorillas, tarsier-like creatures, and a pot-bellied orangutan.
I’d seen something like this before.

This is basically Planet of the Apes.

Well… it wasn’t just primates.
There were also bear-like creatures walking on two legs, and even an owlbear.

It seemed like only monsters with hands had gathered here.

I immediately knew who the “Sage” was.

An old orangutan with an imposing presence held a staff like a shaman’s.

“Lady Gorilla…”

Lady Gorilla?
The gorilla I was riding shyly lowered her head.

“First… welcome… back alive.”

“Thank… you…”

The orangutan seemed more intelligent than the gorilla.
It spoke much more clearly.

Then suddenly—

The orangutan pointed his staff at me.

“Serpents are evil… bad. Why… are you together?”
“This Serpent… has hands. A good Serpent… saved… me.”

I waved my sword to show that I had hands.
Judging by how some of the monkeys recoiled in fear, I wasn’t sure if that was the right move.
But the orangutan understood.

“Invisible hand… magic!”
“That’s right… good Serpent.”

The gorilla explained the situation as best as she could in her clumsy speech.
She spoke well of me—said I saved her, even that I was very strong.

“Make… him… our new family…”

An offer to recruit me.
Though I had no intention of accepting it yet.

“…...”

The orangutan didn’t nod in agreement.
Instead, it suddenly spoke in a mocking tone.

“Lady Gorilla… was caught by a fairy. Weak.”
“Fairy… is strong. Now dead. This Serpent killed it.”
“Lies. And weak. Not family.”

So much for family and love.
This was clearly a dysfunctional bunch.

The gorilla flew into a rage and slammed her fist into the ground.

BOOM!

Even though she had been starving for a long time, the earth burst upward.

“I am strong—! Grrraah!”

As the gorilla roared in agitation, the chimpanzee that had guided us earlier began to growl.
It looked ready to fight.
Good. Go, gorilla.

“If you want… I’ll prove it!”

The gorilla glared between the chimpanzee and the orangutan.
The situation was escalating.

The orangutan pointed at me.

“Magic hand. Not a real hand…!”

Fair point.
Guess the Sage really is smart.

“Cannot accept. And… weak gorilla too!”
“Grrrraaaah!”
“If you truly wish to return… kill that Serpent!”

I’d already gotten a bad feeling from my encounter with that long-legged monkey—maybe primates just weren’t my thing.
The orangutan declared that the gorilla had to kill me to be accepted back.

At that moment—

—Attack first, now.

The Mage of Reversal whispered in starlight.

—My disci… no, my companion… no, my fellow traveler… isn’t scared of monkeys, is he?

Pelerian corrected himself several times before settling on the awkward term “fellow traveler.”

‘Of course not.’

The companion of an evil mage was already prepared to be a bad Serpent.
My blade was already humming.

I looked around.
There were no enemies strong enough that I couldn’t see their status windows.
And the so-called silver-haired monkey leader wasn’t here either.

Besides, I had borrowed a special skill from a monster in the indoor zoo.
This was doable.

First, pierce a hole in the gorilla’s neck, then immediately take out the orangutan—

“It can’t be done.”

At that moment, the gorilla spoke firmly.

“The Serpent… saved me. I am a good gorilla… I won’t betray.”

…Wait.
I thought only centipedes and goblins could be good monsters.

I gently patted the gorilla’s head.

The orangutan sneered.
Like declaring a public enemy of the martial world, it shouted loudly:

“Then—die!”

The first to react was the chimpanzee glaring at us.
It leapt into the air, slashing with claws as sharp as blades.
A brutal killing strike aimed even at the gorilla.

Swoosh!

I recognized that move—it’s from martial arts novels.
The forbidden technique, the Nine Yin White Bone Claw.

I responded with a basic Three Talents Sword Technique.

Clang!

The fairy-forged blade sliced clean through the chimpanzee’s claws.
Good thing I had maintained it well.

The chimpanzee stared dumbfounded at its own hand.
I didn’t miss the opening.

[Using Devouring Leap Lv.1.]

The combo of leap—acceleration—bite was already fast before.
Now it was practically like a streak of light.

“Guaaah!”

The chimpanzee collapsed with a scream.
There was a gaping hole in its chest.

The surrounding monsters were horrified as they saw me holding its still-beating red heart in my jaws.

“Kill—him!”

The orangutan shouted again.
I swallowed what was in my mouth and prepared to fight.

[Level up.]

A good start.

Just as I was about to go on a rampage—

“Uuaaah, Sa—ge!”

A large bonobo came running frantically and shouted:

“The bugs—the bugs are attacking—ugh!”

It ended in a scream.
A fist-sized spider clung to its neck.

Then a loud buzzing filled the air.

BZZZZZZZZ—

It was the kind of chilling sound you’d hear if a giant hornet flew right by your ear.
And indeed, several enormous bees appeared.

One, as big as a wild boar, snatched up a fleeing tarsier.
Then it chewed the monkey apart with its powerful jaws.

Crunch, crunch, crunch.

The severed monkey’s head dropped to the ground.

“Invasion—an invasion!”

The orangutan roared in fury.
This wasn’t how I expected things to go.

“Kke—kke—kke—kke!”

A familiar cry echoed from somewhere.

Crushing through the monkeys came a gigantic centipede.
Our eyes met.

“Kkee?”

So I’d be reunited with Centipede Mom this soon.

“Kke kke.”
“Kke.”

Only a few days had passed, but Kkubbaek, Big Eyes, and Big Head had already grown quite a bit, riding on their mother’s back.
Good to see you, kids.

I killed a long-legged monkey that charged at me and wagged my tail.

An excited Kkubbaek leapt down and rushed into my arms.
If it had a tail like a puppy, it would’ve been spinning like a propeller.

I stroked it vigorously.

‘It’s dangerous right now, go back to your mom—ugh?!’

I was stunned.

All three centipede siblings had grown larger.
Since they were larvae, they must have evolved in the meantime.

The second and third, riding on their mother:

【Little King Centipede Big Eyes Lv.1】
【Little King Centipede Big Head Lv.1】

They had evolved like that—fine specimens in the centipede’s natural reddish-brown color.

But the one in my arms—
The eldest, whose bond with me had deepened, who had begun to be influenced by me—

Kkubbaek was different.

It had become pure white.

【Little White King Centipede Kkubbaek Lv.1】

The lineage of White.

The will of W… carried on here.