There was a reason why the beast shop was so massive.
As I stepped inside, I was greeted by enormous metal cages lining the area.
Twin-headed ogres, deokshi-nee, gargoyles, jackalopes, dark shinis, chupacabras, wyverns.
In a gigantic aquarium, I spotted marine monstrosities like leviathans and krakens.
These two seemed to be artificially created subspecies and were smaller than expected.
If they were real, they wouldn’t even fit in there, and even subspecies would easily be over 10 meters long.
It’s a strange world with all sorts of monsters, but no horned horses. Seriously?
“If you need an explanation, just call me.”
The shopkeeper was polishing his glasses with a cloth.
I actually preferred him ignoring me completely.
After the traumatic incident of being stuck at Dongdaemun, any staff attention became a trigger.
Whether it was aggressive selling or overly friendly explanations, I was better off alone.
I strolled leisurely through the cages, checking them out one by one.
-Squeak!
[Lv. 51]
A horned jackalope.
It just had horns; it was a cute little bunny, but its level was seriously high. Should I call it a max-level rabbit?
It might not be a powerful monster fit for dungeons, but I wanted one as a pet.
It was adorable, and on top of that, being weak was a plus. At level 51, I could easily control it.
“How much for the jackalope?”
“Just 1.1 million cells.”
Isn’t that a bit too pricey?
Even with a discount, it wouldn’t drop below a million. Buying a pet for a million? That was a no-brainer.
[Lv. 56]
Next up was a monster that looked a bit like Slenderman.
It was the dark shini, thriving in the shadows.
A fitting monster for a maze dungeon.
“How much for the dark shini?”
“80 thousand. It’s tricky to handle, though.”
80 thousand for a dark shini? Not bad.
Since it was difficult to manage, I decided to hold off for now.
Finishing my window shopping, I started trying out my evolution skills one by one.
[Target conditions only met 0/3.]
[Target conditions only met 0/3.]
[Target conditions only met 0/3.]
With proper management, not a single beast was dying in this place.
When an alert pops up saying 1/3, it signifies immense potential.
Contrary to my expectations, I didn’t see any beasts with potential at all.
‘What a letdown.’
High expectations often lead to great disappointments.
I guess I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up.
“By the way, shopkeeper. How does delivery work if I buy a beast?”
“Is the delivery address a dungeon? Or a mansion?”
“Why is the mansion an option?”
“Nobles buy beasts as luxury items, you know. Anyway, if it’s a dungeon, we have a trade portal for direct shipping. If it’s a private property like a mansion, you’ll have to take care of it yourself.”
“Since there’s a merchant portal, we can transport it right away. If it’s a private property like a mansion, you should just take it yourself.”
“Now that I see it, this beast shop is a subcontract of the merchant guild.”
“Talk about a dungeon merchant! Even the dungeons, our main target, had benefits that weren’t really benefits.”
“They say they’ll handle the transport, and just when I was deeply contemplating whether to buy a two-headed beast…”
“What’s that room over there?”
A large room caught my eye in one corner of my vision. For some reason, it didn’t look like a logistics warehouse.
The shopkeeper snorted and shrugged.
“What do you care? You won’t find anything good anyway.”
“I really want to know.”
“It’s the slaughterhouse. It’s where the ones that don’t sell and are to be discarded go. Beast corpses can be profitable, you know. Also, the ones that killed the owner or inflicted serious injuries also end up slaughtered.”
Not euthanasia, but slaughter?
After a moment, it didn’t surprise me anymore. Back before the magic age, it was clear there was no euthanasia in a medieval empire.
‘It’s a bit awkward, but… should I buy a corpse from over there?’
I’m a human too. I don’t have a hobby of buying corpses, nor do I want to see one.
The reason I’m considering this is that if Charlotte resurrects them as Undead, it would be a bargain. Being a corpse, it’s probably cheap, and who knows, they might just give it to me.
If it’s a small but strong beast corpse, it could be quite useful.
…Am I really starting to feel like a Death Knight?
No, my heart is human. I think being self-aware makes me human enough.
“Can I go in?”
“The slaughterhouse? You don’t have an aversion to corpses since you’re Undead, huh? Or are you some kind of necromancer?”
“If it’s both?”
“Well, that’s fine by me. I was already pondering how to deal with it anyway.”
Realizing my intention, the shopkeeper readily agreed.
He seemed so pleased he removed his stone-like feet and approached me.
“I’ll give you a discount. Just take a good look and think carefully.”
As soon as I opened the door, the stench of blood and rotten decay hit me.
Undead might lack taste but have a keen sense of smell, and it was torture.
The corpses didn’t have visible levels.
I had no choice but to distinguish the species as I looked around and listened to the shopkeeper’s explanations.
‘Ah. I think I’m losing my mind.’
Suddenly, regret washed over me like a tidal wave.
Feeling intensely gloomy as I stared at the monster corpses.
While I was scanning them one by one, my mind was filled with a desire to escape.
If I were to leave now, it would put the shopkeeper in an awkward position.
“Look at this one! This guy is a Chupacabra, a vampiric beast…”
Before I knew it, I couldn’t hear the shopkeeper’s words.
As my sight became highly activated, my hearing faded into the background.
[Lv. 58]
There was still a living beast. An impressive Level 58 beast, no less.
Unlike the corpses sprawled everywhere, it was trapped in a transparent capsule.
– Kiiih….
Overall, it had a Doberman-like appearance mixed with a hellish vibe.
It feels like this.
Inferior breed of the hellhound Cerberus.
Among the guards of The Seven Lairs, there’s Cerberus. Even being an inferior breed, it’s still level 58.
The opposite capsule was filled with blood, which I assume is the blood of the hellhound.
“What’s going on in that capsule?”
“Hellhound you say? Just a little bloodletting. That thing will bleed out and die at this rate.”
“Why?”
“Because the blood of hellhounds sells for a high price to vampires, you know? Gotta make a living somehow.”
“No, I mean, why does it have to die?”
“This guy was sold as a pet to the Duke of Sanjiba. But he bit his owner, the young lord. I heard that the young lord was bedridden for ten days because of it.”
I felt a twinge of compassion, but it quickly disappeared with the last remark.
In reality, dogs that bite people deserve to be put down. Harsh, but what can you do? If I leave it, more victims might come up.
I’m not just overly sentimental; I’m realistically sentimental.
“See those wounds on its body? It looks like it couldn’t take it anymore after being abused by the young lord… so sad.”
“….”
Looking again, the hellhound’s body was riddled with wounds.
There were marks from blunt objects, whips, and blades.
“The young lord of Sanjiba is really young, right? The demon clan thinks it’s normal to abuse and kill beasts in their childhood. No need to guess; it’s obvious.”
-Keck! Kiiing…
The hellhound’s body went limp.
Its watery eyes turned towards me.
It definitely looked like it was pleading for its life.
“Hey! What are you doing!”
Without much thought, I opened the capsule.
I cautiously reached out to the hellhound.
[Evolving the hellhound.]
[Two conditions are met, so there’s a 50% chance of success.]
I was surprised it succeeded. I took a chance, and the two conditions were indeed met.
One was obvious since it’s dying, and the other couldn’t possibly be a sacrifice, so it must have been its potential.
-Kiiing…
Fifty percent chance. The odds of flipping a coin.
[Evolution successful! The hellhound has successfully evolved.]
A sigh of relief-like chill escaped its mouth.
As expected, light gathered around the hellhound’s body.
The hellhound’s small, glazed eyes gradually grew larger until they opened wide.
Finally, the hellhound regained its vitality and sprang up.
-Hek hek! Woof!
It barreled into me, wagging its whole body like a puppy that just found its owner.
It must really know I saved it.
[Lv. 65]
Of course, looking purely at the level, I wouldn’t be able to control this thing.
But checking the deep green color of its level, it seemed manageable.
‘How can I handle a puppy choosing me?’
As I gently stroked its nape, it stuck out its tongue and panted.
No matter how you look at it, it had a joyful face.
“What the heck…?”
The shopkeeper next to me stood there with his mouth hanging open.
I guess it’s surprising when a dying creature suddenly comes back to life.
“I’m taking this one.”
“Excuse me? You can’t just take him because you want to! Didn’t you hear? The prince of Sanjiba got bitten! You could get bitten too!”
“I’ll handle that myself.”
“No, seriously, you can’t!”
The booming voice made my ears start to ring.
Reluctantly, I pulled out a summoning letter from my pocket and handed it over.
“What is this?”
“Read it.”
The shopkeeper took the summoning letter and started to read.
As his eyes widened while reading the first line, he slowly grew more shocked.
“Oh right, this ‘The Seven Lairs’… Death Knight…?”
His eyes trembled at me like there was an earthquake.
BAM! The shopkeeper dropped to his knees with a thud.
Seeing this cliché unfold made me sick, so I jumped the gun.
“That’ll do for show. Can I take the Hellhound?”
“Is there even a question? If there’s anything else you need, I’ll sacrifice anything!”
“No need for that. Just this guy will do.”
– RUL!
This little guy is cuter than a puppy.
I walked out of the slaughterhouse with the Hellhound trotting beside me, panting. It seems he picked me as his master too.
“What should I name him?”
I clearly have no talent for naming.
But I figured it would be way better than Charlotte.
Thinking about the nightmares of Golgol, I suddenly felt a surge of confidence.
“How about Hellboki? Sounds good?”
His signature eye-smile looked as happy as a retriever, and the name mixed “hell” with joy.
– HUFF HUFF.
Hellboki grinned broadly.
It puts a smile on anyone who sees him.
In my previous life, I just satisfied my longing to own a dog through YouTube, but now I get to raise one here. Looks like I lived so long that I died and became undead!
Thanks to Hellboki, I might have a pleasant day today.
*
Suddenly, my festive mood crashed.
My eyes couldn’t believe what I saw as soon as the door opened.
In the middle of the street, someone was being held by the hair, getting slapped in the face.
There’s only one person in Mangyeong Sanjiba.
SLAP! SLAP!
A werewolf I didn’t recognize kept slapping Charlotte across the face.
Staggering and almost losing balance, Charlotte managed to stand straight again.
Even with a split lip and blood flowing, she didn’t resist; she just kept getting hit.
‘Who the hell is this guy messing with my subordinate?’
Am I really caring for Charlotte more than I thought I would?
I didn’t even feel like hearing how it ended up like this.
Only impulsive and sharp thoughts raced through my mind.
That bastard is dead.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
