Chapter 5: Arrival in the Nation of the Beast King
Near the royal capital of the Nation of the Beast King existed a volcanic mountain called Mt. Ulawoon. The hot springs that flowed because of the volcano’s tidings contributed to a large part of the Nation of the Beast King’s tourism industry and became paramount to its existence. But that wasn’t the half of it. Since locations like volcanoes produced immense natural power, they were comfortable places for spirits to inhabit, so spirits naturally flocked to it.
For the spirit-religious Nation of the Beast King, Mt. Ulawoon was managed by the kingdom as sacred ground; no one was allowed to enter without permission. However, deep in the mountain walked one man. He had long, crimson hair and gold-colored eyes.
The man furrowed his determined and neatly-trimmed brows, stopping in his tracks. His eyes fell upon a manner of being that appeared humanoid but was devoid of any trace of humanity—a mangled shell of its former self.
“Unghhh, aaaaaargh...”
“How disgusting...” the man said as he glanced at the inhuman life-form and turned around. That was when the inhuman life-form let out an unearthly bellow and pounced at the man’s back.
It seemed that the creature would land its strike, but almost as soon as it jumped, it was doused in fire. Erupting into a ball of flames, it was less than a blink of an eye before the ashen remains of the creature lay motionless on the ground. Without so much as a glance back at the thing, the man walked on.
“This place is getting a lot of unwanted activity as well. Maybe it’s about time to go. Still, I can’t just leave this mess as is...”
The man looked off into the distance—toward the Nation of the Beast King’s capital.
“The castle it is, then...”
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Ruri’s party was currently flying through a seemingly endless desert wasteland. They had entered the boundaries of the Nation of the Beast King some time ago, and once they did, the land started to get dry. Once they got closer to the royal capital, the land became more and more arid. It was a world of difference from the Nation of the Dragon King, which was abounding with greenery and rich in bountiful soil.
Since the Nation of the Beast King was a veritable desert, the nation itself wasn’t very self-sufficient. They regularly imported their food supplies from the Nation of the Dragon King. In exchange, they exported rural crafts and minerals back.
As they flew overhead, looking over the desolate earth, a gigantic oasis came into view right in the middle of the desert.
“Wow, it’s amazing!” Ruri exclaimed.
A huge palace sat right in the middle of the oasis, and an entire town lay around it. White smoke-like clouds billowed up all over, but it wasn’t smoke from fires; it was steam. A scent evocative of hot springs wafted through the air.
The phrase “land of hot springs” flashed in Ruri’s mind, and her excitement shot through the roof.
“Hot springs! Hot spri~ngs♪” Ruri said in a gleeful, singsong tone as the party descended upon the royal castle’s garden.
Unlike the Nation of the Dragon King’s European-styled castle structure, the Nation of the Beast King’s construction mimicked an Indian palace. There was even a giant fountain in the garden.
Once they landed, Joshua and the other dragonkin morphed back into their human forms.
“Woo boy, finally made it,” Joshua said, twirling around his arms to relieve the fatigue.
He said “finally,” but thanks to Kotaro’s wind powers, they made it to the kingdom shockingly early. They had originally scheduled the trip to take an entire day.
A short distance away, Arman was talking to his vassals who had assembled for their king’s return.
“Is everything ready?” he asked.
“Indeed, Sire. Per your instructions, we have made preparations to welcome the honorable Beloved from the Nation of the Dragon King.”
“Ruri, come here,” Arman called.
All eyes fell upon Ruri as she walked over, and it made her feel incredibly uncomfortable. They weren’t staring at her out of spite or malice, though. It was just the opposite—they were all looking at her with worship and adoration.
“This is the Beloved of the Nation of the Dragon King, Ruri.”
“Hi, nice to meet you all,” Ruri greeted with a slight nod of her head.
The people before her all dropped to their knees and bowed so deep that it looked like their foreheads would scrape the ground. “It is but our honor to make your acquaintance. We shall dedicate all our efforts into ensuring you remain as comfortable as can be,” one of them greeted.
“P-Pleased to meet you too...” Ruri stammered, feeling a little weirded out. She’d never received such extremely courteous treatment before. She looked over to Joshua and Ewan as a cry for help, but they simply met her gaze with awkward smirks. There was no way out for her.
As they all lifted their heads, one of them stared at Kotaro, who was standing behind Ruri, in wonderment. “Might I ask, Your Majesty, that white beast over there seems to be the sacred beast of the Nation of the Spirit King, but what brings it here of all places?”
“That’s not the Nation of the Spirit King’s sacred beast. It’s the supreme-level spirit of the winds inhabiting its body. We are also joined by the supreme-level spirits of earth and water as well. You are to treat them with respect just as the Beloved.”
Chi lifted up his front paw and greeted, “Yo!”
They all looked at Chi, Kotaro, and Rin one after another with swelling excitement.
“Goodness, spirits with physical bodies...and supreme-level spirits on top of that. To think we’d be so blessed by good fortune—living to see the day in which we are graced by such noble presences. We shall provide you with the utmost hospitality the Nation of the Beast King has to offer.” The vassals bowed deeply, their bows filled with such reverence that any of them seemed likely to break down in tears at any moment.
This display started to make Ruri a trifle worried for the rest of her stay. She was told that the nation was incredibly spirit-religious, but their love for the spirits seemed far more than what she bargained for.
“I understand your elation,” started Arman, “but just how long do you intend to make the Beloved stand around? Show her to her quarters.”
The people trembling in joy at the prospect of meeting the supreme-level spirits came back to their senses upon hearing Arman’s command.
“Ah, a thousand apologies. You must be quite tired from your long journey. Allow us to show you to your quarters right away,” said the vassal. He clapped his hands and summoned several women. They were clad in a completely different manner than anyone in the Nation of the Dragon King. They sported dresses less exposing than Celestine’s outfit and more akin to indigenous garb than textbook garments. They proceeded to show Ruri to where she would be staying.
As Ruri walked around and looked at her new surroundings, they came to a halt in front of a door.
“This will be your quarters, Lady Beloved,” the woman said. She explained that the room, which was in the back of the castle, was the safest and most well-secured area in the entire place. Perhaps it was the incomplete resolution of the Church of God’s Light incident playing a part, but Ruri felt an odd sense of tension crackling through the air—or maybe it was just her imagination.
The woman slowly opened the door and showed her inside.
The scenery that popped out at Ruri as soon as she entered the room made her want to turn tail and run away. The room was large and expansive—hard to believe it was meant for just one person. An Arabian motif ran throughout the entire room, including its sophisticated, custom-made furniture and goods. It was apparent that this room was made for high-class guests of royalty.
However, that wasn’t the problem. Lined up in a row within the room were several women, both knees on the floor in prostration.
The women heard Ruri open the door and all greeted her in unison. “Hello and welcome, Lady Beloved!”
That perfectly coordinated greeting scared the daylights out of Ruri. She felt a mix of confusion over their actions and fear of not knowing what was happening.
“U-Um, who are these people...?”
“These people will be taking care of you during your stay in our kingdom, Lady Beloved. Our humblest apologies for there being so few in number. We attempted to choose only those who we could proudly present to your esteemed presence, but this is all we could gather... However, they are all capable of suiting your needs. They shall not inconvenience you in any way, shape, or form, so please rest at ease,” the woman explained.
She was apologetic over the small number of girls, but there seemed to be at least twenty present. This many people acting as caretakers was far from small—it was huge.
“Oh, don’t give it any worry. I’m your guest here, so one or two people will be plenty,” Ruri said. She was actually baffled. What was she supposed to do with twenty caretakers?
“What are you saying, milady? This is paltry service when we have almost fifty caretakers assigned to our nation’s Beloved.”
“F-Fifty...” Ruri stammered, unable to contain her shock. She had maids acting as caretakers for her back at the Nation of the Dragon King, but only two or three who alternated shifts. Considering that she was perfectly capable of taking care of her own needs, the most she needed others to handle was cleaning her room and setting the table. She felt no sort of inconvenience at that.
Jade, being king, had a little more staff attending to his needs, but even then it was only about ten servants. Yet she was quoted fifty. It was an obscene number. What in the world would she even be doing to require that many people? Most of the servants would be left bored with nothing to do.
“Please, do not feel reserved; utilize our services however you please. We are all honored to serve you for what short time you shall be staying in our humble kingdom, Lady Beloved,” said one of the servants.
The women all lifted their heads, looking at Ruri with glittering sparkles in their eyes. The mixture of reverence and adoration in their expressions proved that the woman’s words were as honest as honest could be.
The difference in treatment between this nation and the Nation of the Dragon King was so extreme that it simply left Ruri feeling shocked and uneasy.
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