Chapter 122: Long’s Human Form

"Can you actually do that?"

[ Well, it is not something I cannot do. ]

As soon as Long said that, his body began to shrink smoothly. For some reason, standing before Qiu Nuoya a moment later was a slender handsome young man who looked to be around twenty with darkly tanned skin.

"Huh? Huh?"

[ Is this better? ]

"Are you Long?"

[ Of course. ]

Long’s eyes remained red and reptilian, but the rest of his appearance was now similar to that of a human. However, two horns protruded from his forehead, scales that were remnants of his dragon form could be seen on his hands and feet, and his powerful tail was still intact. He was clearly an inhuman creature despite his humanoid appearance.

"Wow, amazing! You look really cool!"

[ Do I? ]

Perhaps pleased by the compliment, Long’s lips curled into a slight smile.

Meanwhile, Igor looked Long up and down without any hesitation. "I didn’t know dragons could take the form of demi-humans..."

"Demi-human?" Qiu Nuoya tilted his head at the unfamiliar term, and Igor explained, "There are monsters that sometimes take on human-like forms like this and blend into human society. They’re called demi-humans."

"Beastmen and demi-humans are quite similar in some ways. Beastmen learned human language and assimilated into society, while demi-humans do not integrate with humans. Because of that, they are sometimes persecuted or even enslaved, depending on the region."

So this world had slavery too?

Qiu Nuoya had lived in this world for three years, yet he had never seen a slave before. Apparently, such an abhorrent practice still existed in certain places.

"Then, even if they take human form, are demi-humans still hunted just like monsters?"

"Well, since they are originally monsters, that is what happens. Goblins and orcs are humanoid in appearance too, but they are still monsters, right? In other words, it is basically the same thing."

[ Don’t lump me together with lowly monsters like goblins and orcs! ]

Long was clearly furious, but when Qiu Nuoya thought about how goblins and Long were treated the same simply because they were both considered abnormal beings, he began to see just how twisted this world was.

They were all intelligent lifeforms, yet simply being unable to communicate with one another was enough for them to be treated as outsiders. Certainly, low-intelligence monsters like goblins probably could not communicate at all, but demi-humans intelligent enough to blend into human society should surely be capable of coexistence. Yet all of them were being lumped together and treated as slaves.

"Though this isn’t unlike what Viktor said earlier, if you’re going to stay in that form, you might want to wear a collar. Someone might mistake you for an escaped slave and drag you away."

[ What!? You really think someone could capture me, a great dragon, with nothing more than a human’s strength? If anyone tries, I’ll send every last one of them packing! ]

No matter how loudly Long shouted, only Qiu Nuoya could hear what he was saying. Qiu Nuoya knew that Long, as a dragon, was incredibly powerful, but he really did not want him causing a commotion in town.

"At least for the next year, Long is my tamed monster, so I think you should wear a collar."

[ What!? ]

"Or it doesn’t have to be a collar. You just need something that shows you’re my tamed monster. That’s why Mochi wears a crown like this."

Qiu Nuoya placed Mochi on the palm of his hand. Mochi then proudly puffed out its chest, or whatever could be considered its chest, as if showing off its crown to Long.

[ A mere Slime wearing a crown... Wait, wasn’t that Slime an old friend of the old man? ]

Yes, the Elder Dragon had certainly said something like that. Qiu Nuoya did not know how old the Elder Dragon was, but he could easily imagine that the dragon was at least several hundred years old. Maybe even several thousand. He decided not to think too deeply about it.

[ I’m good friends with Grandpa~ We used to play together a lot a long time ago. ]

Mochi’s words sounded completely unaffected by age. However, the Elder Dragon had said that if he was an old man, then Mochi was an old man too, so perhaps Mochi and the Elder Dragon really were around the same age.

[ No matter how old a Slime gets, it is still a Slime... ]

Long picked Mochi up and stretched its squishy body sideways with a long elastic pull.

Qiu Nuoya felt that treating the Elder Dragon’s old friend so roughly was a little questionable, but Mochi itself seemed to be having fun.

"Well, I suppose that solves the problem of where you’ll sleep. For now, let’s head home. Also, Mochi is technically my senior as a tamed monster, so try not to be too rough with it."

[ Hmph. A Slime being my senior is laughable. ]

Even so, Long gently returned Mochi to Qiu Nuoya. Just as the Elder Dragon had said, Long was probably a good person at heart.

"So, once again, let me properly introduce my new tamed monster, Long!"

After returning home, they resumed their introductions over dinner while getting to know one another better.

"This is Viktor, my teacher in magic. Over there is Igor, a martial artist. And this is Warren, a swordsman. Finally, this is my tamed monster, Mochi, a Slime." After Qiu Nuoya finished introducing everyone while standing between Long and the others, Igor grinned and extended one hand. "Nice to meet you, Long."

Long merely glanced at the offered hand before silently turning away.

"Long, that’s rude. You should not treat people like that."

[ I became your tamed monster, but I have no intention of becoming friendly with the rest of you. ]

Seriously...

[ You said you needed my strength, so I followed you. In that case, you should simply put me to work. You wanted to ride on my back and travel somewhere far away, did you not? Then show me where to go. I will take you anywhere you want. ]