Chapter 121 - 122

Chapter 121 – I was known!?

Just as the dragon with the dumb expression came into view, we were assaulted by a wave of heat.

On the other side of the red dragon, a boiling, red sea spread out into the distance.

So this was the melted rock that was called magma, that I had heard about.

The wind was pushing that heated air towards us.

Then the red dragon opened its mouth.

"Y-you broke it!? The wall that would not break, though I did my best for thousands of years!? Wha-what did you do!?"

I could hear the voice coming from behind me as well. That was the double. The red dragon was likely the real king of the underground.

However, I hadn't done anything special…

No, this wall that I just broke. It wasn't an ordinary rock wall. When I checked what my Inventory had automatically gathered, I saw that there was something called a 'Sealing Stone.'

According to the Encyclopedia, it was a stone that only a 'Cave King' could break.

I see. The reason that the underground king could not break it, was because it didn't have the right crest.

In any case, I showed the king my pickaxe.

"I opened it with this."

"Wh-what is that?"

"It's called a pickaxe. It's a tool used for mining."

"Mining…?"

"I use it to break rocks."

"It-it's not a weapon?"

"Yes. You usually wouldn't use it to fight."

Usually. However, it was a weapon to me, when I used it to fight the Golems.

But it wasn't anything special. Well, aside from being made of Mithril.

"You did it with something like that… What are you?"

"I'm not sure how to answer that. I'm the lord up on the surface."

"I am not asking you for your title! What is your crest?!"

The king of the underground shouted as he looked at my right hand.

"My crest? My crest is 'Cave King'…"

"Ca-cave King!?"

The moment that he said 'Cave King,' the underground king jumped into the lava and melted away.

At the same time, the fire dragon that was behind me also disappeared.

I could sense magic coming from the magma. So, the magma itself was the true form of the underground king.

"What happened?"

I asked. And then the magma opened its mouth.

"You came here to kill me, didn't you!? Because I dared to call myself the king of the 'underground'!"

"Wa-wait! Why do you say that!? That's not why I am here. I just heard that you were trapped down here, and thought I might be able to free you!"

I said. But the magma was shaking. The king of the underground was terribly frightened.

"Re-really? You are not angry with me?"

"Do I look angry to you? Besides, I'm not sure why I should be angry."

"Because I called myself the king of the 'underground.'"

"So you thought I'd be angry because you encroached on my territory as the 'Cave King.' Well, I'm not mad. Besides, the underground isn't really the same thing as a cave."

"Yo-you really mean it? Hmm. This does not fit with the reputation of the Cave King…"

"Reputation?"

He had been trapped here for thousands of years. There was no way that he could have heard about the reputation of someone like me, who was only fifteen years old.

Then the underground king seemed to have come to a realization.

"Hmm? So you must be a successor?"

"I'm not sure. But I've only been alive for fifteen years. I'm not the Cave King that you're thinking of."

"I see. I see… Hehehe. Hahahaha!!"

The king of the underground let out a great laugh, which caused waves of magma to rise. Eventually, he turned back into a dragon made of fire.

"What great fortune! Not only is the seal broken, but I am blessed with the opportunity to make a Cave King my servant!"

This guy. Was he an enemy then…?

In that case…

I quickly took out the Sealing Stone from my Inventory and filled up the wall again.

After a brief silence, I heard the king's voice echo.

"Huh? The wall is back!? He-hey!? What!?"

I turned away from the wall and said to Borthion,

"Alright, let's go back! Borthion, this place is safe now, isn't it?"

"Ye-yes… I did not know you had so much power, Lord Heal. And I am quite sure that the underground king was not just making an empty threat."

"Well, after seeing that fire dragon, I think most people would realize that he was dangerous. Shiel. I guess there will be no problem with switching the control device back on?"

Shiel nodded.

"I'm very curious about that other place. I want to start digging!"

I said, and we started to walk away.

Then the fire dragon…the king of the underground, appeared in front of us again.

The king curled up his body into a ball and bowed its head.

"I-I'm sorry!! I should not have said something so insolent! Please. Please let me out!!"

The king said as he burst into tears.

"Sorry. You already tried to pull the trigger on us once. And we don't know how dangerous you are. It is impossible."

"I'll do anything! Please! I will become your faithful servant, Cave King!"

The king of the underground shouted. Just then, a voice rang in my head.

<<There is a tamable monster. Will you tame it?>>

Apparently, I could tame him now.

Hadn't he said that he was once called the Demon King of Hellfire…? What happened to his pride?

In Sanfaris legends, Demon Kings were the leaders who ruled over the monsters. And the Demon Kings from those old stories were once so powerful, that they nearly drove humanity to extinction.

If this Demon King had been sealed away for thousands of years, it was possible that he was from that age.

"Are you sure…?"

"I can't stand it anymore! I can't! Being sealed away like this!"

"Fi-fine… By the way, what's your name?"

"Elto! Elto, the Demon King of Hellfire!"

"Elto, huh… Very well. I will let you out if you agree to be tamed."

And so I tamed Elto.

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Chapter 122 – He was the former king!

"Finally…I am finally out!"

Elto said happily.

Once I was able to see him up close, I felt that he was rather small for a dragon. He was really just about two heads taller than me. He was close to Erevan in height.

Previously, an earth dragon merchant called Roydon had visited this island.

He had been very big, as you would expect from a dragon. He had been taller than an elephant was and as long as a sailboat.

However, Elto almost looked cute in comparison.

However, Elto… There was something about that name which was familiar.

It was as I pondered on such things, that Elto opened his mouth.

"Phew… Still, to think that someone could tame me… You really are the 'Cave King.'"

"About that, can you tell me about this other 'Cave King' that you knew?"

"I do not know much, as I have only heard of him from others. What I do know, is that he was a king that ruled everything under the ground. Also, many Demon Kings were afraid of his power, and so they never attempted to invade his domain."

"I see… So that's why you were afraid about calling yourself the 'king of the underground'?"

"I-I know that I shouldn't have done that. However, I hated the 'Cave King' for giving the Hero the Sealing Stone! Of course, you are a successor, and I don't hold a grudge against you!"

"I…see…"

I didn't know the details, but apparently this other Cave King was feared by many. And judging by the fact he had given the Hero a Sealing Stone, he was likely very passionate about digging, just like me.

"By the way, what's all this about successors?"

"It's just as it sounds. With certain crests, when the owner dies, someone else who is newly born will inherit their crest."

"Huh. I didn't know crests could do that…"

In the first place, there wasn't a whole lot that humans understood about crests.

The only thing they knew was what effects crests had, and that your blood affected what kind of crest you received.

Elto questioned me with a worried expression.

"So…what do you intend on doing with me?"

"Indeed… Well, what do you want to do?"

"Me? I would very much like to return to being a Demon King and dominate my old lands as a dictator."

"…That's not really possible."

"Oh, I see."

Elto's shoulders dropped in disappointment.

I didn't know how things were in the past. But I'm sure his homeland was populated and already being ruled by someone else now.

If he returned, it would likely result in bloodshed.

"I'm sorry, but I don't like war."

"I am not fond of it myself. However, it is as you say. If I return, it will likely result in it."

"Do any humans live in your homelands?"

"No, they are creatures that look just like me. Dragons. I used to be their king."

"Dragons… Ah."

Elto's words reminded me of something.

When Roydon had visited this island.

His homeland was the Elto Continent.

Elto looked puzzled when he saw a look of realization cross my face.

"What? What happened?"

"Elto. What's the name of your homeland?"

"Well, it was my land, so of course it would be called the Elto Continent."

"I knew it."

"Hmm? Do you know about my homeland?"

"I do. An earth dragon merchant from there visited us. And that's when I heard about it."

"What! So it still bears my name!? And what is it like now?"

Elto's eyes shone as he asked me.

I didn't know how to reply.

According to Roydon, the Elto Continent was currently ravaged by warring dragons, and there were hardly any plants to be seen.

That being said, Roydon would probably return… And it didn't seem right to keep this information from him.

"The Elto Continent… Is currently in a state of war among different dragons. It's a barren wasteland."

"Wh-what!? My people…the dragons are fighting each other?"

"Yes. The different tribes are at war."

I nodded and Elto sat down weakly.

"I had ordered them to stay in the continent if I should lose to the Hero. That was the promise I had made with the Hero, after all. Of course, I knew that the dragons would not like it, but I didn't expect them to start fighting each other…"

Then Elto looked up at me.

"Heal! I'm begging you! Allow me to return to the continent! I need to stop this fighting!"

"I don't mind, but…"

"Of course, I am still your subject. I promise to avoid any unnecessary fighting. And once we are united again, we will be subservient puppets! I'll do anything!"

So saying, Elto transformed into the shape of a human woman.

She had long red hair and brown skin… The clothes left little to the imagination while also accentuating the chest

"P-L-E-A-S-E! Bah!"

Elto bounced off of my Shield. I usually kept it up in case of emergencies.

"Uh, Elto. I'm also for stopping the wars. But if you just stormed in without a plan, who knows what will happen?"

"Tha-that's true. But…"

"About that earth dragon I was talking about. He should return to this island eventually. Why don't you wait until you can talk to him? Then you can start planning?"

Thousands of years had passed. They would wonder who the hell she was and what she was talking about. It would just lead to more fighting.

"…You're right. I was getting ahead of myself…"

"I understand how you feel. In any case, you should stay here for a while."

"Well, if you insist, I will accept. And I will do what I can to help you in the meantime."

"I see. In that case, I do have one request."

"Hmm? What is it?"

"If you can use magic, can you teach it to us?"

I assumed that dragons would be able to use advanced magic.

After all, Roydon had used magic to speak to us. Surely Elto was also capable of powerful magic. She had so much magic energy.

Elto nodded immediately and agreed.

"Oh! Of course, I will! That being said, I am mainly good with fire magic."

"That's fine. The thing is, we don't have enough people who can teach magic."

"If that's the case, you can count on me! It's the order of my master, after all!"

Elto said proudly.

She seemed very enthusiastic. Perhaps it was because it had been so long since she last talked to someone.

And like that, it was decided that Elto would teach us magic.