I Opened an Inn Next to a Dragon’s Lair - Chapter 172



Only Noblemtl

Episode 172

Eugene sat at the table in the annex and stared blankly at the window. Raindrops were constantly tapping against the window. It had been raining since morning, and it hadn’t stopped even once until noon. It seemed like it would continue to rain for a while.

At that moment, the door to the annex opened wide and two men came in. They were guests staying at the inn.

“Ugh, why is it raining so much?”

“That’s right. Is there a hole in the sky?”

They shook off their clothes in front of the door and came over to wave at Eugene.

“Oh, sir. So this is where you are. Can I sit next to you?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Haha. Thank you. That place looks nice. The air conditioning blows the strongest wind.”

“That’s true. This is a good place.”

“Ha, that feels good.”

The two guests sat down at the table and sighed in satisfaction, their expressions almost melting.

A cool breeze from the air conditioner was blowing, taking away their stuffiness and heat.

It was already hot, but the rain added to the humidity and the heat was no joke. In this situation, the new product called air conditioning was like a ray of light sent from the sky.

“Did you hear that? I heard a monster wave hit Thalassie this time.”

“Oh, that. Of course I heard that. It really wasn’t a big deal.”

“Ha, this world is so scary, how can I even go up? What are these monster waves?”

“That’s right.”

It was a conversation between guests as they dried their bodies in the air conditioning. Eugene became curious.

“I’m sorry for interrupting, but you mean Monster Wave?”

“Yes. They say that over 100 Willow Penguins swarmed in. Fortunately, the damage wasn’t that severe. They say that about 5 people died?”

“Ugh.”

Willow Penguin is a wild dog-like monster that boasts sharp teeth. It may not be that strong by the standards of strength, but it is dangerous as it is clearly classified as a monster. It is hard to believe that 100 of them came rushing in.

“Still, it’s not worthy of being called a wave.”

“Well, that’s true. But it’s not a small number to ignore. Five people would be a pretty good defense.”

“That is true, but.”

“Thank goodness that’s not the direction we’re going. If that were our destination… … Ugh. I don’t even want to think about it.”

The man shut his eyes tightly and shook his head violently. Eugene was lost in thought.

‘Something feels off.’

* * *

Continentalers often dislike monsters, saying that they are uncompetitive creatures, but in fact, monsters are also animals. They eat, sleep, and excrete to continue living.

Why on earth would monsters who lived quietly in their own territory, eating, sleeping, and pooping without causing any trouble, come out in groups into the human territory?

Monster scholars have come up with an answer to that question:

-Because life is hard.

For whatever reason, they have found it difficult to live in their own territory, and the most common reason is ‘hunger’.

There is nothing to eat. It is too difficult to get enough food in the periphery of the continent.

So, is the recent appearance of monsters in swarms everywhere because they are very hungry?

Normally you would think that way.

But Eugene thought differently.

‘They said it was the same on Earth too.’

Something similar has happened on Earth.

The time was long before Eugene was summoned.

One peaceful day, news was reported around the world that a herd of animals suddenly swarmed the city center and caused enormous damage.

Regardless of whether they were carnivores or herbivores, they swarmed together and charged into the city center.

In the case of Korea, the damage was minimal because there were almost no wild animals, but the problem was in other countries.

Countries with abundant wildlife, such as Africa and South America, suffered enormous damage.

People were talking about it as the wrath of nature, the wrath of animals, and so on, but the real cause lay elsewhere.

It’s a monster.

As monsters began to take root in the wild, wild animals naturally began to lose their habitats.

Wild animals that did not want to die had no choice but to escape, even if it meant abandoning their habitat.

‘You said that after that the monsters started to appear in earnest.’

That was the beginning of a bloody battle between humanity and the monsters of Earth.

Eugene somehow felt that the situation on Earth overlapped with his current situation.

‘If demons have already taken root in the wilderness, it is not surprising that the monsters living there are being driven out.’

Monsters are animals after all. Any animal is bound to have fear, and monsters would have no choice but to leave their home to avoid death.

If that’s true, then the monster wave phenomenon that is occurring everywhere now is a precursor symptom of a monster invasion.

Eugene narrowed his eyes.

‘Never let that happen.’

The Earthlings didn’t know that.

I was so distracted by the herd of animals advancing into the city that I failed to properly understand the true nature of the monsters, and so I was struck down.

After many twists and turns, the monsters were driven out, but the Earth had to make a great sacrifice.

The continent of Karnis should not be like that.

Should we lock the barn door after the horse has bolted?

How can you do such a dog-like thing to me after having the peace and rest I have earned?

Eugene absolutely did not want to do that.

Fortunately, things are not like that now.

You’ve already experienced it.

It’s stupid to get hit by the same thing twice.

And Eugene had no intention of being a fool.

* * *

The rain that had been pouring down for several days had stopped. After the rain stopped, the sun shone even brighter. It was truly the height of summer.

While both the staff and the customers were suffering from the heat, Eugene went out.

The place he moved to after repeatedly teleporting was the Dark Fortress.

Eugene walked around the city center for a while.

I feel this way every time I come here, but it feels really good to see this unique sight of people of all different races mingling together.

The goblin merchant soliciting customers at his stall, the dark elf arguing with the goblin merchant, and the hominids patrolling the streets with spears, all treated each other without showing any sign of displeasure.

Eugene admired them for a moment, then went into the inner sanctuary.

Let’s stop playing and get to the point.

I entered Kun’s office as usual. Kun was wrestling with a stack of documents. I approached him and lifted the invisibility spell, and Kun was startled.

“Huh, hul! Who, who… …Lord Carnius?”

“It’s been a while.”

“How could you have sent me this message without any warning… …! How have you been doing?”

“Yeah. You… … look quite tired.”

“Yes. I have so much work to do… …, no, no, come here and sit down! Would you like some tea? Coffee?”

“Water will do.”

“yes!”

Kun’s confusion was only temporary. It wasn’t the first or second time that Eugene suddenly appeared like this. He was used to it now. However, Kun still knew Eugene as Carnius.

‘I have to say it sometime… … When will I say it?’

That was a bit of a concern. When would I reveal that I was really Carnius? Should I just not reveal it?

“How have you been?”

“Well, I’m always busy with work. But Lord Carnius… … You’re really very smart.”

“I’m always the same. By the way, I have something to ask you.”

“Yes! Go ahead!”

“Has anything unusual happened in your union recently?”

“A peculiar incident? What does that mean… … .”

“Like, a monster or something.”

“Ah! If it’s a monster, I’ve seen some recently. Not that many though. Hmm. Wait a minute. Where did I put that?”

After searching through the drawer for a while, Kun took out a thick document. Flipping through the document, Kun looked for something and then pointed to an item.

“You found it. The number of monsters that used to appear in our border area was about ten a month. But recently, it’s been around thirty.”

“From ten to thirty… … It’s roughly a three-fold increase.”

“Yes. There are quite a few more, but it’s not that hard to block them, so it’s not a big problem.”

Kun looked indifferent. That was understandable, since monsters were quite common in the Dark Zone. The Union’s territory bordered the monsters’ territory.

‘Yeah. I guess this is normal.’

Would you feel anything strange just because there are a few more monsters? It would be natural for even the most intelligent person to not be able to escape from such thoughts.

“I… … is something wrong? May I ask why you’re asking that?”

“It seems that the situation on the continent is not good.”

Kun’s expression became serious.

If someone else had said that, I would have laughed, but it was a dragon.

The words of the strong carry weight, so what more so when it comes to the words of the most powerful being, the dragon? There is no need to even spit it out.

“I don’t know if you know, but monsters are appearing more frequently all over the continent. In some areas, they’re so large that they’re called waves.”

“Yes, I heard that.”

“Soon the same thing will happen all over the continent.”

“Huh!”

Kun shut his mouth. His expression became serious.

“That, that kind of thing.”

“Please prepare your defenses well. They might come in on a scale that would be reminiscent of war.”

“Yes! Is there any possibility?”

“Good. That’s what this body has to say.”

“Oh, great being. Thank you so much. For caring so much for me… … .”

Kun nodded. Eugene waved his hand as if he was annoyed.

“Okay. I didn’t say that to see if you were grateful.”

“but…….”

“This body simply wants to avoid troublesome situations. If your country is destroyed by monsters, the next place to go is Delphi Forest.”

Eugene sat up.

“Are you leaving? Isn’t there more?”

“I’m done talking, so I’ll be going now.”

“Yes. Take a look!”

Eugene quickly left. Kun smiled as he watched her back as she left.

‘He’s a nice person.’

Kun knew that even though his tone was blunt, his feelings were not like that. Even though he spoke like that, deep down, he was worried about them.

‘You told us to be on guard.’

Kun soon sat down in his office chair. He had a lot of work to do.

* * *

‘I think you understand by now.’

Kun is a capable ruler. If I just say this much, you will understand what I mean. He will take his own approach, such as increasing military training and increasing the deployment of troops.

I don’t expect much. I just hope they defend their territory well.

‘Once the Dark Zone is breached, the next thing that comes is Delphi Forest.’

Eugene returned to the forest.

I don’t plan on being away for long. In any case, an inn needs a manager.

“Eugene! Where have you been?”

“I just went out to get some fresh air.”

“Oh, really? I’m jealous. I want to go and play too.”

Chloe grumbled. Eugene snickered.

“If you’re going out to play, then you can go.”

“I’d like to go out, but I have to work.”

“You can just use your vacation time.”

“Huh? On vacation?”

“Yeah. It’s hot, so you can use your vacation days and rest for a few days.”

“Oh, right. There was something like that! Wow! Then I’ll take a vacation!”

“Okay. Tell that to Irina.”

“Yes! Yay!”

Chloe’s grumbling expression brightened. She ran into the inn like an excited child.

Eugene smiled as he looked at her back.

I have no intention of passing on my concerns to my employees and neighbors.

Being a monster or something is my own business. It has to be that way. Eugene kept repeating to himself.