I wanted to verify Bond Summoning.
That was why I came to Ydeonyr Great Sea of Trees, but before I knew it, I was steadily expanding my influence.
By making a contract with Colène (a golem or automaton), I got a base (a hill) and even built a house to shelter from the night dew.
After that, I made Urshiva (the wolf) surrender and turned it into a Bond Summon beast, but I was stunned when it suddenly changed from a demonic beast into a beautiful woman.
Furthermore, since Urshiva was the leader of the wolf pack, it was inevitable that if she followed me, the other wolves would follow me as well. So, the hill where our base was located became infested with wolves and turned into an animal kingdom!
"Ahh, your belly is so fluffy, I could stroke it forever...!!" I continued to stroke the wolves for about an hour, as they had become completely submissive and even showed me their bellies. Of course, the regular wolves were under Urshiva, but...
"My Lord, don't just pay attention to my subordinates, please stroke my belly too. I am the leader of the pack, so I should be the first to receive the honor of being stroked by you!" said Urshiva.
"If I touch you in that state, it will cause trouble!!" I rejected her.
If she wanted to be petted freely, why did she turn into a girl? If I were to stroke her belly or back, it would have a different meaning!
"They are very cunning beasts. In the end, they ended up staying," said Colène.
"Indeed," I responded.
Colène had also purged her reinforced exterior and regained her original female automaton form.
That being said, the wolves had attacked to claim this hill as their territory, but by being defeated by us and surrendering, they were able to safely live on the hill they had been targeting, so they were not to be underestimated.
Is this what it means to lose the match but win the game?
Our group had suddenly become quite large, but for now the old timers and new faces seemed to be blending well together. Over there, the wolves were happily bathing in the water that the slime Slappy was scattering with his Bond Summon.
"Squeaeaeaeak!!"
"Woof woof woof!!"
A group of wolves gathered around Slappy. They seemed satisfied as they took sips of the spring water to quench their thirst and wash their bodies.
"We originally wanted this land as a base to gain an advantage in our turf wars with other races... and now we've even secured water...! It's amazing! But that's not because the land is in such a good condition, it's because of my master's strength!" (Urshiva)
"O-yeah, that's right...!?" (Idhir)
As Urshiva kept coming at me, I ended up being pushed around more.
"So now I understand! My Lord is truly the one worthy of becoming the king of this Sea of Trees! We, who were the first to pledge our loyalty to such a person, are truly the winners!" Urshiva exclaimed.
"What is this newbie talking about?" said Colène.
"If My Lord is to conquer the entire land of Sea of Trees, thousands or tens of thousands of followers will not be enough! So, the third or fourth most senior will be enough to be considered the most senior!" Urshiva responded.
What kind of king is she planning to make me into?
"I... I don't really get it, but are the turf wars in the Great Sea of Trees that fierce? As a human, I don't really understand the conflicts between monsters...!?" I said.
"In that case, let me explain! If you are the one who will one day become the king of the Sea of Trees, I'm sure this knowledge will be useful to you in knowing what enemies you must defeat in order to expand your territory!" Urshiva said excitedly. It brought to mind the image of a dog who was incredibly happy when its owner pays attention to it.
"The Great Sea of Trees is a vast area inhabited by countless species. Each one is a formidable creature that can survive in a harsh environment," Urshiva added.
Of course, they were monsters beyond human understanding.
"The great demi-human tribe of orcs and goblins, the great insect tribe that has split into countless smaller tribes, and the group of wild beasts including us, the Hellwolf... the great beast tribe are the main forces," Urshiva added.
These races were constantly battling each other, trying to gain more advantageous terrain for their turf.
Even within the larger races there were many smaller races that had split off — for example, goblins and orcs within the larger demi-human tribe sometimes fight over land and kill each other, so it seemed that the Sea of Trees was a place of many warlords vying for power.
"Even among us, the great tribe of magical beasts, there are smaller tribes such as the hateful King Tiger Tribe, the Fierce Bull Tribe, and the Raptor Tribe, who are fighting day and night. They may attack us in order to take control of our territory, so please be careful, my lord...!" said Urshiva.
"Ours...?!" I exclaimed in surprise.
Until then, people had only wandered around the entrance, unable to even get a glimpse of the Ydeonyr Great Sea of Trees. The whole picture was revealed in an unexpected place, and my whole body trembled in amazement.
"Hmph, the rookie is talking like she's all high and mighty...!" The goblin Goblina snorted in disgust.
"If you really want to make your master stronger, I have a good idea. Why don't you get the other wolves to make a pact with him too?" Goblina started saying some completely unexpected things.
"That's not happening!!" And for some reason, Urshiva completely refused. "As the leader of the group, it is my privilege to have a direct bond with my master! I cannot easily give this to my subordinates!"
"I have a contract too. So you and I are on the same level. You should respect me," said Goblina.
"A mere goblin?!" (Urshiva)
No, if you make contracts with everyone, it's not like you'll become stronger. Before that, the number of possible contracts is still limited by magic level, so I must choose my new contract partners carefully.
I felt like up until now I had just been choosing things on impulse.
"More importantly, let's get something more important done!" (Goblina)
"The important thing?" (Urshiva)
What's with all this sudden excitement?
"If you have a new minion, it's essential to try out what you can summon with it! Let's see what you can summon with the bond you have with this little dog! I don't think you can summon anything as useful as me though!!" (Goblina)
Don't provoke her to the max. However, it seemed that Goblina had come to understand the pattern quite well. Certainly, it was exciting to see what kind of summons I could do every time I gained a new bond, and for the future, there was no choice but to try them out.
"Let's try it, Bond Summon!" I exclaimed.
"Yeaahhh?!" everyone cheered in unison.
"Sqeaeak?!"
Bond Summoning Lv18
> Bond: Urshiva (Hellwolf)
> Summonable: Dog Food (Crunchy)
…….
Something else came up that I didn't quite understand.
It was just countless brown, dry, granular things.
As soon as I summoned it, a mountain of it appeared. When I stared at it intently, wondering what it was...
"...Huh? Whaaat?!" I exclaimed.
The wolves rushed past my side?! And then they gobbled down the mountain of brown grains!
"Gow gow gow gow!!"
"Caw, caw!"
"Ugawowwawowwaw!!"
They seemed to be eating ferociously!
Eh?! Is that okay to eat?! It looks so delicious, but is it really that tasty?
"If it's that delicious, I'll have a bite too...!?" I said curiously.
"No, Master, it undermines human dignity," for some reason, Colène stopped me.
Why?
"That's amazing, my lord! Wonderful!" And Urshiva got very excited. "What a solid land! Not only does it have endless water, but it also provides delicious food to fill us up! We, Hellwolves, will fight for our master until our very last breath!"
A safe home. Food that never runs out.
With all these things in place, the wolves must feel very comfortable and safe, without starving or freezing.
It was literally heaven. Like Urshiva said, if this happened, the other beasts in the Great Sea of Trees might all come after us.
You have to be careful not to take up a comfortable spot.
"Meowhuhu...! It seems like a really nice place!"
Just as I was thinking this, a new intruder appeared. It was a big cat...or rather a tiger.
"We are the free beasts of the King Tiger tribe! And I am the leader of the King Tiger tribe, Nyanfu! From now on, this hill is our territory, meow!" (Nyanfu)
It really turned out just as Urshiva said. After the wolves, a pack of powerful tiger-like monsters arrived!
"Felines love high places and warm places! That's why they like this land! It's too good for wolves and humans! Hurry up and hand it over, meow!" (Nyanfu)
Just like with the wolf army, only the leader of the pack of tigers could understand human language and declared war. So, is it true that even among that tiger army, only the leader of the pack is a superior species?
Well, I was a bit concerned about the small details, but since they had challenged me anyway, I had Colène, who had turned into a golem, sweep them away, just like in the previous case. The matter was settled in an instant.