Chapter 226: Real Name
At the top of the Itimo Trade Company, Bulko Pallet, the head of the Pallet family, tucked the generator patent right into their inner pocket and said, "Has everyone escaped?"
Another Orc replied, "Yes. There's no one hiding."
Bulko looked at the Orcs of the family. The sight of them holding weapons seemed out of place. Though they had been secretly trained within the family, many had never held a gun in their lives before. A good number of them had been injured or killed during the counterattack by the Itimo family. While orcs were suited for military roles, the Pallet family had always kept a distance from such affairs. But now, they held weapons and saw bloodshed.
Their ancestors would have deplored this, but Bulko didn’t think there was another way.
'Perhaps this is the fate of following the Angry one.'
Given how things have turned out, the Pallet family found it difficult to continue their activities in Pollivia.
'The Angry One will not abandon us, and we’ve made preparations to operate outside Pollivia, but...'
Even though that was the case, the sacrifices made to obtain just one patent right seemed too great. If it hadn't been a religious war, the profit-driven Bulko would never have taken these steps.
'But now we must look toward the profits again.'
Bulko said, "The war is not over yet."
The Orcs of the Pallet family calmly accepted Bulko’s words.
"To gain greater benefits from the patent rights we possess, we must deal with the inventor of the Itimo family. Hurry."
"...Yes!"
The Orcs from the Pallet family quickly went down.
It was already known that the Itimo family had started moving towards the west gate of Pollivia. While they knew about a mysterious mercenary within the Itimo family, mortals died when they were shot no matter how skilled they were. The Union Kingdom had even managed to kill several dragons in their war with the Empire.
‘How great can he be? If we exterminate the Itimo family like this, the Pallet family can surely recover no matter what.’
More than anything, having abandoned everything to follow the Angry One's wishes ensured that they wouldn’t face punishment in the afterlife.
'We need to prepare to escape once the Itimo family is dealt with... Huh?'
Bulko Pallet, from the top of the tower, noticed a massive shadow casting over their face.
"...H…how can this be?"
***
"They keep chasing after us."
Philina Itimo replied to Owen, "We're not far from the carriage. If we continue this way..."
Owen shook his head. "They already know we're heading for the western gate. There aren't many of them, but we need time to break through."
"We can combine our strengths."
"Hmm... Maybe it's time we split up."
"What?"
Owen, who had been looking down the alley, turned to face the Elves of the Itimo family and the Xolotl Simo. "Little inventor, follow these kind Elves."
"What about you, teacher?"
"If we fight at the western gate, it'll only give the pursuers more time to surround us. Someone needs to buy time."
"But..."
"Think rationally," Owen said. "Fighting our way out together might be an option, but it might not save us much time. On the other hand, this alley is narrow. If we can block and fend off those coming this way, they'll either be trapped here or have to take a detour, giving us more time. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Philina replied, "You're logical like a scientist and savvy about profit like a merchant."
"I guess I've learned a thing or two from being around you all."
Philina grabbed Simo's wrist and said, "We'll take Simo with us. We wish you luck, Wandering Lizardman."
Owen, surprised by the unexpected title, raised an eyebrow.
"Who wouldn’t think of the legends when by your side?" Simo added, "Teacher, please be careful!"
Owen laughed, "See you again."
After ensuring that Simo and Philina’s group had left safely, Owen felt a moment of relief.
As Owen waited while lighting a cigar, he soon spotted Orcs from the Pallet family. There were only six in sight, but Owen sensed a lot more hiding in the shadows. They knew Owen was there and were aiming to attack him from afar.
‘Individually, they're nothing special.’
Owen believed that if he were to fight the Orcs with only cold weapons, he could easily face all of them. None of them were proficient with a sword or spear. However, he did not let his guard down.
'Now, those firearms are dangerous. Even the weakest soldier with poor skills could face the best warrior.'
The Orc leader leading the chase recognized Owen. "Lizardman! Finally, I see your face!"
Owen flicked the ash from his cigar with his finger.
"Huh... You’ve all come pouring out because you lack confidence in your skills. If you value your lives, turn back now. There’s no need to say thank you for sparing your lives."
The leader retained an Orc-like quality and got angry in an instant.
"This time, I'll get that lizardman... Huh?"
The Orc's gaze shifted to the sky. And Owen, who was about to wield his sword, did the same. A massive shadow covered them from above.
The Orc leader murmured, "An airship?"
The airship floated much lower than its usual altitude, almost grazing the tall buildings of Pollivia. It seemed as if it would have crashed if it hadn't stopped.
Owen thought.
'... It stopped?'
Then a gunshot echoed.
Bang!
The sound of the gunshot came from above. Owen saw an Orc fall.
The Orc leader quickly realized what was happening. "An...airship! The airship is attacking us!"
The Orc group tried to find cover, but there wasn't much to shield them from the sky.
Owen carefully observed the railing of the airship, but no one was aiming a gun at him.
The Orc leader quickly made a decision.
"Take out that lizardman first! Pass through this alley to get out of the airship's range!"
"Charge!"
Dodging a hail of bullets, the Orcs screamed in unison.
Owen dodged the shots the Orcs made at him and waited for the Orcs to charge at him.
"...Teacher!”
"Hm?" Someone shouted as they jumped from the airship.
The airship was still roughly thirty meters in the sky even though it was flying low, yet the jump was unmistakably intentional.
The figure landed directly on the Orc leader's back, then rolled back and got up. The startled Orcs aimed and fired, but the figure drew a sword and deflected the bullets. Then with a half-turn, they slashed the throats of the Orcs armed with guns. Soldiers then descended from the airship on ropes, shooting at the Orcs.
The Orcs, who were neither soldiers nor warriors in the first place, belatedly realized the seriousness of their situation and ran away.
The person who had jumped from the airship walked toward Owen and pulled back their hood as they entered the dark alley.
"Teacher!"
It was the Vampire, Ramin Solost Muel.
Owen said, "Huh, it seems I've been caught up to."
***
At the outdoor training ground of the pantheon, with the tall, tower-like building in view, was where the countless souls of mortals underwent physical training after reaching the pantheon.
There weren't specific guidelines, but the trainees varied depending on the division. Even though they all followed the teachings of the Pantheon, they were divided based on which god they worshiped, which region they followed, their species, and most importantly, when they started believing in the god.
For example, many believed it made little sense for modern-trained soldiers to undergo the same training as the ancient warriors of Black Scale. Of course, through cross-training, they could measure each other's skills, familiarize themselves with each other's weapons, or learn new combat methods, but typically, they were divided into several groups.
Among them, the highest spot in the outdoor training ground undoubtedly belonged to the Lizardman warriors with black scales.
The Cockatoo warriors, who could be summoned by Apostle Lakrak, weren't just regular fighters. They were a unit meant to counter creations or apostles and potentially face Hierophanies in the future.
Despite their reputation for continuous self-training, they clearly had moments of rest.
A Lizardman warrior said, "...The real names of the gods?"
"Yes," another lizardman warrior replied, "The real names that the gods possess."
After the mention of the true names of the gods, the gathered Lizardmen who were sitting down looked puzzled. Then, the Lizardman warriors began sharing what they knew.
"Oh, Night Sky was originally called the Blue Insect God."
"Doesn't everyone know that?"
"I heard that kids these days don't."
"Really?"
"That's not his real name."
"Before that, he was called the Nameless Beetle God."
"Don't all the warriors here know that?"
"That's also not his true name."
"Then what exactly is his real name?"
The Lizardman who brought up the topic cleared their throat and said, "I don't know the real name of Night Sky yet, but I found out the real name of Bountiful Harvest."
"What is it?"
"It’s Lunda," the Lizardman claimed with dramatic aplomb, but the other Lizardmen's reactions were lukewarm. It was just a 'I guess so' kind of response.
"That's hard to pronounce."
"I think I've heard it before too. I remember Limitless God calling Bountiful Harvest that name last time."
"Oh, so...real names refer to the names the gods call each other?"
The Cockatoo warriors were among the individuals who had been in the pantheon the longest, giving them numerous opportunities to interact with the gods. Although it didn't hold significant meaning in the pantheon, these warriors often acted as guards.
From their conversation, it was evident that they knew quite a bit about these real names. Then, a shadow approached from behind.
"What are you folks discussing?"
"Oh, Tatar. We were talking about real names."
"Real names?"
As the Lizardmen explained, Tatar nodded.
"Ah, the names the gods use for each other. I think I roughly know all of them."
"Oh, then do you, by any chance, know the real name of Night Sky?"
"Indeed, I do."
"Then..."
Tatar laughed and replied, "However, the gods don't seem to appreciate being called by those names in front of us, so do you really need to know those names?"
"...Oh."
"It's fine if you happened to overhear it, but if we keep this up, the gods might feel uncomfortable."
As Tatar said this, the other Lizardmen warriors agreed. They blamed the warrior who first brought up the topic of real names, and the warrior protested that it was just out of curiosity.
As they departed to resume their training, Tatar watched them with content.
Then a familiar person came up to Tatar.
"Lakrak?"
Unlike the other Lizardmen, Lakrak wore simple attire and was unarmed.
"What were you discussing?"
"They were talking about the real names of the gods."
"Oh… What's that?"
Tatar explained again.
"So, for Night Sky, Nebula is his real name?"
"According to them, yes."
Lakrak chuckled as if he found something about it funny.
"Why do you laugh?"
"Well, that god has a different real name."
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