Isekai Lizardman Survival Log

As the azure moon revealed itself and the sky turned dark blue, smoke began to escape from Kart’s body.

Hiss―

Kart’s body rapidly shrank like a deflating balloon, and he staggered before collapsing.

“Kart!”

Together with the startled Lulu, I crossed the chaotic forest to approach Kart. As Lulu supported the limp Kart to sit up, he smiled at us.

“…Did you― see? I… did it―.”
“Yes―! Well done―!”

Karakt shouted and hugged Kart tightly as he proudly boasted with a smile full of accomplishment on his face, which was covered in bruises and wounds.

-Ow!

I raised the corners of my mouth as I watched Kart whining in pain, as if some bone had broken.

“Kart, good job.”
“Hmm!”

Despite his body being covered in wounds, Kart smiled widely, showing his gums, clearly in a good mood. Then his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed.

“Kart?!”
“Calm down. He’s just fainted.”

After calming down the startled Lulu, I hoisted Kart onto my back. The bear, the trophy, would be taken care of by the other orcs. I headed towards the village, seeing the orcs who had been watching from afar now slowly approaching.

I moved forward, vowing that if those so-called ancestors said it wasn’t good enough this time, I’d tear them apart regardless of any consequences.

“―Great ancestors―! Here we prove the qualification―!”

Korba uttered the mantra in a resounding voice. The ceremony was the same as before, except for two things: the scale of the ceremony itself was significantly larger, and the bear’s corpse was placed in the center like an offering.

The previous ceremony was also conducted by a group of shamans including Korba, but this time, it seemed like every shaman in the village had been gathered, making the scale at least three times larger.

Moreover, they placed the huge bear next to Kart in the center and conducted the ceremony around it. This time, it clearly felt like the Red Claw tribe was staking their survival on this, which was palpable.

“…I hope the ancestors are satisfied this time.”
“If they do it again this time, I’ll really interrupt the ceremony.”

I had refrained from intervening during the ceremony because the burden would fall on Kart, but if all that burden could be shifted to me, there was nothing preventing me from intervening.

Moreover, while normally incorporeal beings cannot be physically interfered with, under the conditions of a ceremony, physical interference becomes possible. So as long as the ceremony is maintained, they can be beaten to death as much as needed.

Karakt, seemingly agreeing with my opinion, nodded with a complicated expression. As this was a matter of life and death for both him and the Red Claw tribe, he showed the will to intervene somehow this time.

“I have a good magical item here, coincidentally.”

Boom

Karakt planted the axe he always carried on his back into the ground.

“This is a magical item that has been used by the chiefs of our tribe for generations. With this, we can bear the consequences of interrupting the ceremony instead. Of course, it would lose all its power as a magical item in that moment… but if necessary, we must do it.”
“That was a magical item?”

Somehow, I thought it seemed special. If it’s a magical item that has been passed down through generations, inheriting power, its conditions might be strict, but its performance would be certain.

“Yes, although it might be inferior compared to your magical item.”
“I don’t have a magical item, what are you talking about?”
“…?”

Karakt looked at me with a puzzled expression. I carefully retraced my memories at that suspicious gaze, but I couldn’t find any recollection of carrying a magical item.

“Then, what about the spear you were holding when we sparred last time?”
“Ah, that. It’s just a wooden spear.”
“…?”

Karakt stared at me with a suspicious gaze, but no matter how he looked, it wasn’t what he thought. There’s no point in lying about it being a magical item when saying so wouldn’t actually make it one.

“It’s just a big, sturdy spear.”
“…”

Karakt seemed at a loss for words and froze. It wasn’t a magical item, just a large and sturdy wooden spear made to fit my size.

It was just a sturdy piece of wood from a tree harvested deep in the forest, with no relation to magic. It wasn’t a magical item with any lineage or origin.

Ignoring the bewildered gaze I felt from the side, I focused on the ceremony.

The ceremony was reaching its climax. The meaningless dance that more than half of the Red Claw tribe was engaged in had power imbued in each movement, and the shamans’ shouts resonated with the soul.

Soon, something like white mist gathered around Kart and the bear, eventually completely surrounding them.

I clicked my tongue at the barrier that was so hazy the inside couldn’t be seen, and watched the ceremony closely. If they were going to be stubborn and say it wasn’t enough, there would be some sign, so I focused all my attention on the ceremony to not miss anything.

-…!―!!

Inside the mist, Kart seemed to be explaining something earnestly, waving his arms vigorously as he desperately explained.

This wasn’t a particularly good situation. Since they had asked him to hunt a bear, they should have reached a conclusion immediately upon seeing the bear. The fact that Kart had to explain to this extent, even using his body…

“Karakt.”
“…Yes.”

It probably meant that some old-fashioned spirit was being stubborn, saying it was unacceptable. I carefully moved towards the barrier.

It would be troublesome if they noticed and ran away. As they were spirits, the means to hit them were limited, and if they escaped from the ceremony, there would be no way to catch them. I approached carefully while they were distracted by the ceremony.

“―ka! …go!”

As I approached the barrier, I could hear Kart’s desperate shouting from inside. I saw him gesturing as if beating his chest in frustration and sighing deeply.

Exchanging glances with Karakt, I took a stance. Just as Karakt shouldered his axe and was about to strike down to break the barrier.

The barrier collapsed.

《What?! What is this!》
“Rex? Uncle?”

Before we could be surprised by the suddenly collapsed barrier, I readjusted my posture, and Kart’s gaze turned to us. Drawn by that sound, the gaze of the spirits―probably the past chiefs of the Red Claw tribe―turned to us.

While experiencing the strange sensation of being glared at by spirits with indistinct features, I quickly assessed the situation.

The axe Karakt was carrying remained on his shoulder, exerting no power. Kart looking at us with surprised eyes seemed unrelated.

Judging by Korba’s surprised face caught in the corner of my vision, it wasn’t a problem with the ceremony either. Then, it must mean that one of those spirits had done something…

《Karakt! Did you do this?! How dare you damage the magical item imbued with the power of our clan like this?!》
“No, I haven’t done anything yet.”
《Yet? Y―et?! You’ve truly gone mad―!》

As the spirit roared, Karakt spoke as if wronged, but upon hearing Karakt’s explanation that wasn’t really an explanation, the spirit shouted in a rage.

‘Yet, he says…’

I wasn’t sure whether to call it honesty or inability to act. A bitter smile formed at Karakt’s action of specifically saying “yet,” but it wasn’t wrong.

The attempt to break the barrier had failed as it collapsed before we could break it, but depending on their response, we planned to send them back to eternal rest again.

《Oh―! It was my mistake to acknowledge someone like you―!》
“No. It’s my fault. If the ancestor had gone senile, I should have sent them off peacefully, but I failed to do so.”
《You―bastard―!》

The verbal battle with no sign of backing down ended in the defeat of the ancestor, who was furious to the point of exploding at Karakt’s declaration of abandoning the elderly.

《Oh―! I’ll tear you apart alive―!》

With a declaration that made one wonder if it was appropriate for an ancestor to say to their own bloodline, the spirit’s fist swung.

The fist, which looked like it couldn’t do any damage due to its hazy mist-like form, struck the air and hit Karakt.

“…!”

Bang!

As Karakt, sensing danger, hurriedly rolled on the ground to dodge, the ground where he had been shattered and scattered. Karakt was drenched in cold sweat, his spine chilled by the force that would have left him unable to even gather his bones if he had been hit.

Soon, as if having made up his mind, Karakt shouldered his axe and was about to charge forward, risking death.

《Enough.》

A somewhat deep yet gentle voice resonated. Not only Karakt, who was about to charge, but also Kart, Korba, and most of the orcs, as well as the spirits surrounding them, seemed shocked and froze.

《That’s enough.》
《But… but….》
《Don’t make me repeat myself.》

The spirit who had been about to swing its fist hesitated when it heard the deep resonance, then gave up and quietly retreated. In the silence that engulfed the area as if time had stopped, the largest spirit spoke again.

《A child’s fault is the parent’s fault. It’s right for you to step forward.》

The giant spirit said this and forcibly brought forward one spirit. The spirit that was forcibly dragged out looked around at the other spirits and then spoke with difficulty.

《It’s been a long time… Kart..》
“Grandfather?” “Father?”
《It’s been a long time since I’ve met you like this too, Karakt.》

The spirit, smaller than the other spirits―probably the previous chief of the Red Claw tribe―carefully opened its mouth.

《You’re amazing, Kart. To hunt a bear at an age when you’ve just come of age, even with the help of magical items and elixirs.》
“Then, are you acknowledging Kart as the successor?”

When Karakt asked with a hopeful voice, the previous chief nodded in affirmation.

《Of course. Until now, the elders have been leading the opposition, but now that the founder has allowed me to step forward, it’s as good as them acknowledging it.》

Whether that was true or not, the spirit that had been raging now had a pale complexion and was crumpled in a corner with a clearer form.

The other spirits pretended not to notice, suggesting that most were neutral, and the minority opposition seemed to have lost their power with this.

“Then…!”
《Yes. Congratulations, Kart. From today, you are the successor of the Red Claw tribe.》
“Thank you―!”

-Woooah―!

Perhaps because all their hard work had finally paid off, not only Kart and Karakt but all the orcs in the village cheered.

As I raised the corners of my mouth watching the people cheering at the long-awaited result, the previous chief quietly approached my side.

《Young hero.》
“…?”
《The founder has called for you.》

At those words, I turned my head to look at the giant spirit. The enormous spirit, far larger than the others, was staring at me intently, surrounded by an aura of intimidation.

I felt an illusion of cold sweat flowing under the gaze of the spirit that seemed capable of crushing a person with just a look. I hadn’t sweated since being reincarnated.

Feeling the illusion of my spine becoming damp, I approached the giant spirit―the founder of the Red Claw tribe.