Chapter 143: Love Punch
I extended my palm to the rabbit that was nuzzling against me.
It then pressed its head against my hand, seeking affection.
It no longer resembled a fierce monster, but rather looked like a large, obedient dog.
“Whoa… this guy is like this now…”
Jerry couldn’t contain his surprise.
He was the one who captured it, and knowing what happened then, he couldn’t believe the stark contrast with the scene in front of him.
With bated breath, Jerry cautiously extended his hand.
I also reached out to pet it.
“Miki!”
Suddenly, the rabbit got angry and swatted Jerry aside with its temple.
With a loud thud, Jerry’s hand was knocked back.
He rubbed his hand after that.
“Hahaha, it seems like it doesn’t like you.”
“No… it’s amazing. Considering when we captured it, it wouldn’t have been surprising if it had bitten my hand off.”
“Ah, I see.”
I nodded slightly and smiled.
I understood what Jerry wanted to say.
The rabbit had vehemently rejected Jerry, but it was nothing more than pet or livestock-level rejection.
I could clearly see why he wanted to say that the ferocity of a monster was far beyond this.
“Miki!”
The rabbit suddenly changed its demeanor and began nuzzling against me again.
When I petted it, it squinted its eyes in delight.
“Wow… it’s already like a different creature… Oh, right.”
“What is it?”
“Can it fight?”
“Yeah, it should be able to—can you?”
“Miki!”
The rabbit reacted to my question, turning its body around.
Then it bit down on the side of the open cage door and twisted hard.
As a result, the door-like bars buckled and warped.
“Oh.”
I was slightly surprised.
I understood that due to the structure of the door, it would be easier and more prone to breakage when open than when closed, but still, the fact that the rabbit easily distorted the iron bars was quite astonishing.
“This is… about the same as when we captured it.”
“Is that so?”
“Yup… at that time, it was similarly destroying several tanks like this.”
“Hmm.”
Since a tank is tasked with charging the enemy, both the horses pulling it and the vehicle itself are made of iron and robust.
If it could crush something as sturdy as an iron fence like this, I understood why one might say it’s roughly the same.
After completely breaking the iron bars to the point where they couldn’t be returned to their original state, the rabbit returned to me and sat down, looking up.
With glass-like clear eyes, it gazed at me, wearing a “Praise me, praise me” expression.
I reached out and petted the rabbit.
It squirmed as if tickled, enjoying my touch.
“Wow…”
“Now then, do you have a name?”
“Mikik!”
“No name, huh… Let’s see.”
Since it seemed to have no name, I thought I’d give it one and pondered for a bit.
“…Muir.”
“Mikik?”
“The first beast to be adored by all animals.”
[Ahaha.]
“—Miki!”
The rabbit, now renamed Muir, happily jumped at me, playfully expressing its joy all over.
It seemed pleased with the name I came up with.
“My lord.”
“What is it?”
“Can it be sent directly onto the battlefield?”
“Who knows, it’s like this now, but it doesn’t seem like the monster’s temperament has completely left it. It might move freely when I’m not watching.”
“Hmm… Well, that won’t do for the army.”
“There might be some way to handle it.”
I said that, and started to think.
Since Muir had only just become like this, everything else remained in the realm of speculation.
Including this golden light in my left hand.
I felt I needed to know more about the conditions and understand them better.
“—!”
When I looked at my left hand, the status of the Behemoth jumped into my sight.
――――――――――――
Name: Noah Ararart
Emperor of the Empire
Gender: Male
Level: 17 + 1+1 / ∞
| HP | C+A | MP | D+B |
| Strength | C+SS | Stamina | D+B |
| Intelligence | D+S | Spirit | E+A |
| Speed | E+A | Dexterity | E+A |
| Luck | D+B | ||
| Fire | E+S+S | Water | C+SSS |
| Wind | E+C | Earth | E+C |
| Light | E+S | Darkness | E+B |
―――――――――――
[TN: His level went from 17+1 to 17+1+1]
The number of ‘+’ after the level had increased by one.
I was a bit surprised and told Jerry to call the magician again.
When the summoned magician displayed the status again, the level had also risen by one.
“W-What is this…?”
“This is thanks to this child.”
I said this and patted Muir.
Since I patted it differently than before, Muir looked up at me with a puzzled expression.
“Haah… this is even more amazing…”
Jerry exclaimed in admiration.
Because there had been precedent with the ‘+’ in levels, I was happy but not overly surprised.
More than that, I thought.
I considered my left hand, which I had just seen before looking at the status.
I wondered under what conditions the power bestowed by the Behemoth would manifest in this left hand.
“Behemoth, tell me the details.”
[Yes]
The awakened Behemoth began to speak in a tone completely opposite to that of Behomot.
Its voice sounded like a beautiful young boy with rosy cheeks—still a little unusual for me.
[That light is simply a medium, a medium to connect hearts.]
“Hearts?”
[The hearts of those who are cherished and those who cherish. What connects them is their hearts.]
“I see.”
That makes sense, I nodded slightly.
[Connect the hearts and feelings of those whom you should cherish and those whom you wish to cherish. Once that relationship is established, they will open their hearts in return.]
“Hmm, I see?”
Is that really all there is to it—while hesitating over that, Jerry, who had been silently listening, opened his mouth and asked.
“Is there some problem?”
“I was taught how to use this.”
Saying that, I raised my left hand and showed the golden light.
“Is this the rumored Water Demon Sword?”
Jerry asked back. I laughed for a different reason.
It is well-known that I received the Water Demon Sword Leviathan from the former crown prince, Albert. Similarly, I was granted the Luthiya from the late Emperor, but that carried a stronger implication of it being a ‘replacement’ and was not official.
The official item granted was the Water Magic Sword Leviathan, which is the most famous. Many of the vassals know only of Leviathan. Jerry is one of them.
I had no special reason to assert the truth; I brushed that aside and moved the conversation forward.
“In summary, I was told to strike with love.”
“Strike with love?”
“Yeah.”
“Is that an old man’s lecture?”
“That might be one form of it.”
I nodded while laughing, and Jerry also seemed impressed, saying, “I see.”
I had summarized it quite roughly and carelessly, but what I had been told by the Behemoth should not be incorrect.
“Does that mean he hit him with love, and that’s how it turned out?”
“That seems to be the case.”
“I can’t believe it, but that’s quite a story…”
Jerry said this.
I understand his feelings.
If I were an outsider, I would probably think, “What the hell is that?”
It’s that strange of a story.
But.
“Miki?”
The fact that Muir is being so affectionate like this, and that Behemot has become Behemoth, and to begin with, it is said that the original Behemoth is something that all beasts ‘adore’.
I indeed thought that there could be no other interpretation than that.
There is –>discord <— to get update notifications and releases? I am a bit lazy these days.
Click on the image above for my ko-fi page link
I wonder will Noah tamed more monsters in the future.🤔
Thanks for the treat.