I'm Not an Earthworm, I'm an Earth Dragon

The alleys of the city are dark. Goods that would never be seen in the light of day are traded openly, and anything can be bought for the right price.

Anything, even bodies. Altera frowned at the sight. She made no attempt to hide her displeasure, even swatting away people who approached her to solicit their services.

“Get away, you old hag! Are you so old you’ve forgotten how to count? Do you want me to tell you how old you are? Hey, get away! I have no intention of working at your store!”

The little Akash was accustomed to such scenery, keeping up a steady stream of banter as she shook off the persistent people. Ah, if only she could shake off the person next to me.

It wasn’t so much that her outfit was revealing, but rather that it was repulsive. The Akash quickly called the employee an old lady and chased her away.

“Lady, even an incubus would run away from that outfit, don’t you think? Go away, before I tell the whole neighborhood how old you are and how many people you’ve been with.”

It wasn’t a joke, it was a serious remark. People couldn’t stand the Akash’s antics and quickly dispersed. An Akash, even a small one, was still an Akash. Once again, I questioned whether I was safe.

“…Are you sure it’s safe?”

“At least as long as you’re near me. I don’t know about far away. But if that liar naga’s words were true, you’re probably safe. But you won’t get a nice cloak of invisibility!”

I had enough with my current core, so I wondered if I really needed a cloak. Despite my doubts, I was honestly curious, so I followed along.

I also wanted to give Altera some equipment, even if it was just a little. Every time we did something, her cloak would get torn, and I felt a little sorry for her, so I wanted to get her a new one, preferably a sturdy one.

“…Yes, if it’s a place where humans live. There’s no way there wouldn’t be something disgusting like this. Prostitution, drugs…”

Altera seemed to have a renewed sense of misanthropy. It was inevitable that the underworld would emerge wherever humans lived, but it would be difficult to make her understand that.

…But how did she know about such things? The darkness of the city is usually so thoroughly hidden that there is no way to know about it unless you go looking for it.

And she was the kind of… being that couldn’t hide her identity. The moment she appeared, everyone would be too busy trying to save their own lives to care about the darkness of the city. That’s why no one approached her to solicit their services.

Goldsmett was a place that had dealt her a great blow.

How did she know about the goods and places of the underworld? Did the village force her to buy drugs, or at least try to do something stupid…

I was going to ask, but I didn’t. I was afraid it might be related to a bad memory.

I just thought I should be a little more careful in the future and followed the little Akash. I guess the workshop where her master was is pretty deep.

It was indeed deep. It was in a dark and gloomy place, under the shade of buildings that were randomly patched together like a canopy, a place where you could kill someone and leave them there and no one would know.

…Was it really safe? Altera seemed a little uneasy, and the tip of her horn glowed slightly golden as if she had already circulated her magic.

“Hey! You senile old man! Get up! Today I’m going to prove my skills, so watch closely with those dull eyes of yours!”

It was a girl’s voice, but the words were something only an Akash could say.

“Prove what, you’ll probably screw it up again… Oh. A customer? Then go back. I’m not in the mood to do business today.”

He was an old man who looked like a dwarf, with a severely bent back. On closer inspection, he was a little too skinny to be a dwarf, and his beard wasn’t that long.

“…A gnome? But he’s too… strange. What is that thing?”

Even Altera was confused about whether he was a human or a dwarf.

“Old man, he’s not your customer, he’s my customer! And watch closely, I’m going to make a Cloak of Invisibility with the core of a Dalokos! You’ll have to spill all the techniques you didn’t teach me because I was young!”

“You little brat, are you crazy? Do you even know how much that’s worth? Hey, young man. I don’t know what sweet talk you fell for, but you’ll regret it if you let that goblin-like girl handle that. Come back later. If I’m in the mood to do business then, I’ll make you a proper one.”

“Ha, it’s too late! And my client is this way! Come on, translator! Relay this client’s requests! I can do anything!”

That didn’t mean she could actually do everything. The little Akash said this and pulled out a piece of paper and a quill pen as if to take down Altera’s requests.

The old man was looking at the little Akash as if he was dumbfounded.

“…She wants to know how you’re going to make the Cloak of Invisibility. Do you have any specific requests or anything in mind?”

“Make it look nice… and sturdy. So that it won’t break easily.”

Her request was simple. Make it look good, and make it sturdy. I relayed it to the Akash, and she held out her hands as if to say that it was a piece of cake and asked for the core.

Altera hesitantly handed her the core.

“Are you really going to break her wrist?”

According to the old man, this Akash was clearly a bit lacking, and it was obvious that she would fail.

“If she doesn’t reflect, then yes.”

I hope she succeeds. I said that and prayed that this Akash would be a little more polite.

Akash was one thing, but Altera never backed down once she said she would do something.

– – – –

“It’s done! Now, you can admire it! It’s the work of an archmage… well, a fragment of one. But still, it’s the work of an archmage!”

The light was dim, so I didn’t know how much time had passed, but the cloak was finished not long after the old man and Myungho stopped talking.

I didn’t know about anything else, but it was certainly cool. The exterior, with its not-too-excessive decorations and patterns reminiscent of insect wings, was quite appealing.

Now it was time to check the durability. I sharpened my claws and slashed at the Akash, who was holding the cloak with a confident look, as if to cut her body in half.

It happened so quickly that neither the Akash nor Myungho had time to react. Fortunately, the Akash didn’t split diagonally or anything like that.

The cloak remained intact, not a single thread out of place.

“Oh, I’m alive…? R-right! It’s the work… of an archmage… hic.”

The Akash was so surprised that she was sweating profusely and hiccuping. Well, if it was this sturdy, it wouldn’t break easily.

“…It’s nice, and sturdy. Now we need to see if the invisibility works. Myungho, ask her how to use this.”

Myungho was also staring blankly, as if trying to figure out what had happened, and mechanically asked the Akash how to use it.

“Y-you just need to pour… magic into it. Y-you’re not really going to kill me… are you? Just because I’m a kid…?”

“She says you just need to pour magic into it… Altera. Are you really going to do it?”

So I just need to pour magic into it. I’ll know when I try it. I took off the original cloak, attached the new cloak under my fur, and poured magic into it.

Just like the day I raided the royal palace, the invisibility flowed from the cloak and covered my body. The way the haze enveloped me and made it difficult to see my surroundings clearly, it was the same invisibility I knew.

So, was I invisible to them? To confirm, I approached the bewildered Akash from behind.

And I grabbed her by the neck and lifted her up.

“Gasp… Cough, wait… it worked… why…!”

She hadn’t noticed me until I grabbed her, so I was definitely invisible. I stopped pouring magic and revealed myself, then put the Akash down.

She might look like a girl, but they said what was inside was an Akash, so it was hard to be nice to her. If she wanted to blame someone, she should blame the Akash around me, not me.

I let go of the Akash and stroked the cloak once.

“…This should be good enough. Don’t worry, your wrist is safe now.”

Come to think of it, maybe I was being too harsh. Even if she was an Akash, she seemed sincere. Maybe I should have been a little nicer.

“B-but… it’s a failure… it can only hide one person… sob.”

“Just let it go, if she says she’ll spare you. Anyway, thank you. Altera seems to really like it.”

Myungho pushed me out of the place in a hurry. After a few alleys, we could hear a girl crying and an old man making a fuss in the distance, but oh well.

I got the cloak, so there was no need to see them again.

After wandering around for a while, it took quite some time before we could come out to a place where the sun was shining again. Finally, I never thought I’d be so glad to see humans.

Well, not the humans of the underworld. The humans of the upper world.

And that damp atmosphere. I knew this world wasn’t all beautiful, but wasn’t it too soon to encounter the darkness of society?

When I returned to the inn, the drunkards weren’t so welcome. They were still stupid, and I wanted to throw them all out.

Turning away from them, I went back to my room, where the big Akash was alone, looking intently at a map.

“Where have you been? You said you were going to settle the accounts, did you have a formal meal or something? Well, thanks to you, I was stuck here like an old man in a tiny room, just looking at the map and trying to find our way. Come here. I’ll tell you where we’re going next.”