Chapter 35: Hwion

He secretly hid in the school in the small town, learned the human language, studied human behavior and speech, and learned the alphabet to acquire necessary knowledge.

To live here, he needed money.

Gorgon begged on the streets and sold medicinal herbs he had gathered from the mountains.

Distinguishing medicinal herbs was a piece of cake for Gorgon.

Soon, money began to accumulate in his hands.

A loaf of bread and a bowl of soup that the humans ate were truly delicious.

With the leftover money, he bought books from the bookstore and accumulated new knowledge again.

When he had read all the books in the small bookstore, he was allowed to enter the great library of Balona with the recommendation of the bookstore owner.

And there, he happened to learn about alchemy.

‘Ah, this is it. This was it.’

At that moment, Gorgon felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

The years he had passed, it all felt like it was for this day.

After that, he became engrossed in alchemy.

Gorgon was truly dedicated.

Herb gathering and sorcery, which were so easy for him, were also a good match for alchemy.

Afterward, Gorgon began to sell items made through alchemy instead of medicinal herbs.

They didn’t sell well at first, but gradually, more and more people started buying them.

Many humans came to him.

Gorgon was especially good at making bombs.

The bombs he made would later make a great contribution to the war between Ritsen and Hwion.

The business he started by laying out a mat on the street spread by word of mouth, reaching far and wide.

He even received requests from outside Batols.

But he was a goblin.

Unlike the many other races that interacted with humans, he was a monster that was a target for extermination upon encounter.

It was fine until he first gained fame, but after the story about him reached the ears of nobles and the leaders of several kingdoms, Gorgon had no choice but to be on edge.

If he were to be caught, that would be the end.

‘How did I get this far?’

‘I ran away from that village and barely made it here.’

‘I finally learned the human language, learned knowledge, and finally got to do what I wanted to do.’

‘It can’t end here!’

So he became even more cautious.

He closed the business he had been running on the street and hid in an abandoned, deserted city.

It was an area he had discovered a long time ago while following a stray cat.

He renovated a relatively intact house to his liking and made it a comfortable place for him to live.

It was during that time that he met Paul.

He was a strange elf.

Their first meeting was a knife slash.

He thought about throwing a bomb, but this was an underground house where he lived, so he had no choice but to throw a dagger with a chipped blade.

But Paul was a good-hearted elf.

Although he suspected him of being a ruffian at first because he was wearing a strange mask.

Somehow, Paul found out his identity, and in exchange for keeping his secret, he decided to live with him.

It was the beginning of a strange cohabitation between a strange elf and a goblin.

In fact, Gorgon had tried to kill his housemate several times.

He failed every time, though.

As time passed, the elf and the goblin, who were thought to be unlikely to ever become friends, gradually grew closer.

And as they did, their relationship gradually changed into one of helping each other.

Besides, Paul was a good delivery boy.

He loved to travel and to see things, so he was very happy to grant Gorgon’s requests.

He would attend events in Gorgon’s name in places where Gorgon had to go, and he would also make deliveries for him, thus helping to raise his reputation.

So, although Gorgon grumbled, he no longer disliked living with Paul.

Paul was a bit eccentric and sometimes strange, but he was a fun person.

He had received a lot of help while living with Paul, but…

“…I hope not, but you’re not planning on living here with him, are you?”

“Why not? This is my house.”

At those words, Gorgon, who had been sitting on Paul’s lap, jumped up and shouted.

“It’s my house!”

“It’s our house~ No, is it three of us now?”

“You rascal!”

Seeing Paul say that with a carefree smile, Gorgon finally pulled his long hair with both hands.

At times like this, the urge to kill him surged, thinking, ‘I really should have killed him back then!’

“Ouch, ouch! Calm down, calm down. That’s just how the world works, isn’t it?”

“You brat!”

Seeing Paul feign pain with a voice full of laughter, Gorgon pulled his hair even harder.

At that moment, a chilling voice was heard from behind Gorgon.

“Let go of that hand, Gorgon.”

At that voice, Gorgon instinctively let go of his hand with a ‘thud’ and stepped back.

‘…As expected, I just can’t get used to it no matter how many times I hear it.’

Gorgon sighed inwardly.

He forced his stiff neck to turn and looked at the owner of the voice.

He had stripped off the shabby robe, washed him clean, and dressed him in some decent clothes from the pile of clothes Paul had brought from time to time, and even though he was wearing a mask, he was shining.

The first thing Paul exclaimed when he saw Khan, who was learning to write after he woke up, was “Wow.”

‘They’re so sickeningly in love, these two.’

Gorgon grimaced and lamented inwardly.

“…Alright, alright. I’ll give up. Haa, that’s enough, just take this.”

“What is it?”

Waddle, waddle, waddle.

Gorgon, who had approached the table far away, came back with two letters that were on it and held them out to Paul.

Paul tilted his head and took the letters.

The letters were of completely contrasting colors.

One had a white background with a gorgeous pattern drawn in gold, and the other had a red background with a pattern drawn in black.

“One is a letter from the Temple of Light, and the other is an invitation from Ritsen. The temple one is for you, Paul, and the invitation is for me… Ritsen is calling for me. But how can I go there?”

“Is there something from the temple…? The Ritsen one is from the castle. Are they holding some kind of party?”

“Something like that. They said a banquet is being held. You like that kind of thing, right? Go and have a look.”

“Hmm, let’s go together this time, Gor. You’re small, so I can just put you in my bag.”

“It’s uncomfortable!”

“Or I can wrap you up tight so your robe doesn’t come off… and you can wear a mask like me. I’ll pick a pretty one for you. Or how about a mascot costume?”

“S-Should I? Ahem! I was actually quite curious myself, and I was a little worried about always sending you alone…”

Saying that, Gorgon’s eyes sparkled.

Paul, who found that cute, stroked Gorgon’s head.

“Alright, then Khan.”

“What is it?”

“Has your curiosity been resolved?”

Khan paused for a moment, looking at the two in front of him, and then opened his mouth.

“…Ah, yes. I’ve heard a good story, thanks to you.”

“Did I tell the story in an interesting way? I hope so… And I’m so happy that we can have a conversation like this!”

“I feel the same.”

At those words, Paul grinned and then put his arm around the shoulder of Gorgon, who was standing next to him, pulled him in, and turned his body around.

Then he whispered quickly in a very small voice so that Khan couldn’t hear.

“But why does he talk like that?”

“Paul, you don’t know. A man like that suits that kind of speech.”

“…Really?”

Paul, who was looking at Gorgon with a strange face as he whispered back confidently, turned back to Khan and thought.

‘It does suit him, though…’

Well, it wasn’t the first or second time he had seen someone with a strange way of speaking in Arcana, so he decided to just let it be.

***

[System: The content of the [King of the Forgotten] quest is updated!]

As Paul opened the white letter from the temple, a notification that the quest had been updated appeared.

Paul glanced at it and then continued to read the letter.

『to. Paul

The God of Light wishes to see you in secret.

Please visit the Temple of Light secretly with your ‘companion’.

P.S. It would be even better if you could come to the Great Temple of Hwion.

from. Cardinal Eclie of the Temple of Light』

That was all there was to the letter.

The newly updated chain quest content in the quest window was also the same as the letter.

It only added a mention that the next chain quest would be updated upon visiting the Temple of Light.

“Hwion…”

Seeing that word, Paul felt like he had forgotten something.

‘What was it?’ he wondered, tapping his cheek with his finger as he tried to remember.

Come to think of it, he remembered that when he was in Flora, the guild master Kian had contacted him to come to Hwion.

He had been busy for the past few days, and since there was no further contact from Kian, he had forgotten about it until now.

“…As expected, since there was no further contact, it must not have been urgent!”

Of course, that’s right.

If it had been, she would have contacted him a long time ago.

Paul decided to put this issue aside for now.

He had to go to Hwion anyway because of the quest.

It wouldn’t be too late to contact her after he arrived.

Paul then looked at the letter from Ritsen.

Inside the red envelope were two things: a letter and an invitation.

[System: A quest has arrived!]

□ [Invitation from Ritsen Castle] (NEW!)

He dismissed the quest notification window and looked at the letter again.

『to. Gorgon.

My dear Gorgon, I hope you have been well.

Thanks to you, I am always well. Today, I saw a beautiful lily that resembles you…』

Paul frowned slightly and skimmed through the letter, which was full of useless flowery language, and then checked the last paragraph.

『…So this time, everyone will attend the banquet wearing a mask. I hope you will like it.

P.S. Lan, who wants to see you. (Lipstick mark)

from. Badran Ritsen』