Chapter 50
Ren Karatengu is a moronic fool who has no idea what he is doing.
Such was the conclusion that Shaula Tengu reached pertaining to Ren Karatengu, the de-facto leader of Karatengu and Tengu clans due to being the only heir of Karatengu clan. He may be the leader by default, but to Shaula, he was a simpleton with no long term plans, yet none else seemed to have realized this.
Shaula Tengu, the succubus type demon, descended from Karatengu clan's branch family's daughter, marrying a member of Palak clan of bat demons, five generations ago, as such she was a distantly related to Karatengu clan.
Yet as partially a bat demon, otherwise known as succubus type demon, she did not inherit any features of crow demons, instead all five generations before her had been succubus demons, all inherited from female side of the family. She was one of the only Tengu clan members who actually had blood ties to Karatengu clan, even if it was a very distant.
Before Ren arrived, because of her lineage, she was a possible candidate for Master Korgan to entrust the Tengu clan to before his pa.s.sing. However, arrival of a certain weirdo demon had drastically changed everything.
She could not believe the situation her clan ended up in currently, just a single day before the Second Trial, but the so called leader was still fooling around without a care in the world.
Does he even think about what could happen? Any preparations or provisions? He does realize he might not come back alive, right?
How in the world did this happen? Our clan is in the hands of this imbecile who has absolutely no idea what he is doing~!
Shaula's frustration was not completely obvious; she made sure not to show it on her facial expression but the more things young master Ren does, the less patience she had. It took a lot of effort to keep smiling and talk calmly as she witnessed daily tomfoolery of her designated leader.
Does he even know he is the leader of this clan? Because I sincerely doubt so!
To begin with, he is not half the demon his father, Ymit Karatengu was. The contrast between Ymit Karatengu who she saw as an unreachable mountain peak and Ren the shallow swamp was too great.
She remembered Ymit Karatengu, the clan's leader before Ren, twenty one years ago, before he 'disappeared'. Back then, he led the Tengu clan, as the second son of the Korgan Karatengu, he was entrusted with the leaders.h.i.+p of the clan after death of his elder brother.
She was three years old back then, but as a succubus type demon, her body had already developed comparable to that of six year old. Succubus type demons age much faster than regular demons, and when they reach their prime, their aging process seemingly halts, thus maintaining the same appearance for most of their lifespan.
Her appearance had looked the same since the age of seventeen, not changing at all as years pa.s.sed. Succubus demons retain their youth throughout their lifespan, aiding in their natural ability to seduce others.
With six ears, each pair located in different locations, bat-like wings on her back, and the tail she generally keeps tucked away, her appearance had stayed the same for some time now. Though, in contrast to other demons, succubus demons do develop far quicker, by age of ten they are practically adults.
Likewise, succubus's awareness of the world develops much faster as well. Even as a three year old, she comprehended everything around her perfectly.
As a child, she saw Ymit Karatengu for what he was, the fearless leader who knew exactly what he was up against but he did not back down, nay, he stood up and faced his enemies with the resolve worthy of a Demon Lord.
Training harder than anyone else, he had achieved great strength and wisdom. Back then, she knew that if anyone could lead them to glory, it was Ymit Karatengu. He was the s.h.i.+ning beacon of light that seemed to illuminate Karatengu clan from the darkness that seemed to consume it.
As a leader he was impeccable, and as a demon, he attracted many demons to him, with his natural charm touching many of female demons' hearts.
In fact, the first male demon Shaula had a one-sided crush on was Ymit Karatengu, any male demon she met after him, she judged by setting him as her ideal.
As expected, she never met a demon who reached such standards. There simply was none who could equal him. To her, he was the definition of ideal demon.
She never met Omir Karatengu, Korgan's first born son, by the time she was born; Omir Karatengu had already been killed, with Ymit Karatengu taking over his clan's leaders.h.i.+p.
Unlike many demons that depended on raw strength or mana alone, he was the type who thought ahead of his enemies, and when confronting them, he defeated them swiftly and gracefully. His immense strength and powerful resolve to protect his clan made Tengu clan feel safe and secure, many, including her, could sleep peacefully at night, knowing Ymit was there to protect them.
Able to use his own mana, transform into his true demon form of a gigantic crow demon, and awakened demon eyes, he was the paragon of what Shaula came to consider a perfect demon. Even if she came to over idealize him over time after he was gone, it was not too far of stretch that he was a prodigy.
Compared to that, his son is far inferior.
Unable to use mana, lacking horns, incapable of using any complex demon techniques….he was the definition of a weakling. Instead of compensating for his physical lacking with his intelligence, his mind was even worse.
Sometimes, she did not know whether he was just joking or if he truly was as dumb as he seemed.
However, from a perspective of other Tengu clan members, Ren's leaders.h.i.+p skills seemed impeccable; Shaula could not deny that if they did not know any better, they might a.s.sume he has some kind of a plan. Coincidences and strange events made it look like all the actions he had taken so far were planned out, even if they were just a stroke of luck.
When he just joined the Tengu clan and none was aware of his true ident.i.ty, there were only nine members in Tengu clan, Shaula and Aijasyl included. Not long after that he recruited Orin out of nowhere. Shaula was concerned
But Ren did not stop there, for some reason he kept bringing more and more demons. He brought Akjan with him on the day he was punished with exterminating Jilan snakes from the fields.
How did pest extermination turn into something like that?
When Shaula went to investigate, she found a dead body of a Saber tooth type demon lying in the field. He was killed by a scythe to the back. She suspected that Ren could have hidden some information. She went back to the mansion to grab a cart to dispose of the body, but by the time she came back the body had disappeared. Most likely scenario is that this demon's allies came back to take back the corpse.
Of course, after meeting Akjan in person, she managed to befriend her, she seemed to be very kind and reasonable demon, and it was nice to have a new female demon to chat with.
According to her, Ren killed the demon who tried to capture and mutilate her. From what she said, Ren rushed in and killed the demon in one blow while covered head to toe in blood.
But Shaula knew that Ren did not have the capacity to kill someone, at least not intentionally, he was too much of a coward and weakling to do that. He simply did not have the guts to do something like that.
It must have been an accident of some sort, but Akjan was speaking such high praises of him, describing him as some kind of hero, that Shaula couldn't bring herself to refute Akjan's good impression of Ren.
What does she see in that fool? He does not have anything likable about him, in fact, I can list so many things that I dislike about him!
He even invited over fifty lizard demons to join the Tengu clan right after he met them! What the h.e.l.l was that idiot thinking? Letting so many strangers join, does he ever think of possible consequences of his actions?
Master Korgan told her that it was ultimately the right choice considering their numbers and having them as allies who earn their keep instead of enemies was a far safer option. It might have been a spur of the moment decision, but Shaula was content with the fact that it all worked out in the end. Maybe she was being too harsh on Ren. Maybe, just maybe, he could be relied upon.
So, she sent him to fetch wood, but at the same time, when Master Korgan had left for a short while to visit his family's grave, the Tengu clan was attacked by humans.
They kidnapped Aijasyl and intended to use her for their savage purposes.
With Akjan's help, Shaula and Orin managed to find their hideout, and when they raided it, what do you know, Ren was there as well, wearing the same robes as humans. That was the last place she expected to find him, but somehow due to his reckless, even mindless actions, they managed to rescue Aijasyl.
At first she thought he wore their robes as disguise and he somehow was smart enough to find out what happened and come first to rescue Aijasyl. However, when she later asked him the full story, she was left speechless by his stupidity.
Instead of procuring wood from Karatengu territory, he got lost and ended up sneaking into another clan's domain and judging by the type of wood he brought, he entered Aiu clan's territory. Is he a complete fool, bear type demons are one of the most ferocious demons in Kalkan kingdom, he is lucky to be alive, much less in one piece.
How bad is his sense of direction to get lost so badly that he ended up in another clan's territory?!
And then, he ended up encountering humans who mistook him for one of them and took him to their base, I understand it ultimately worked out in our favor and he saved our lives, but the way he ended up there is stupid beyond belief!
But that was nothing compared to the surprise she received after they got back to Karatengu territory.
When Master Korgan announced Ren is his grandson, Ymit Karatengu's son, Shaula couldn't believe her six ears.
Nay, she was not willing to believe it, he might have had pa.s.sive resemblance to Ymit, but personality and ability-wise, he was far inferior.
How someone as weak and pathetic as Ren can come from someone as great and majestic as Ymit? If Master Korgan had not verified that to be true, she would have refuted such statement without any hesitation.
Many demons started joining Tengu clan after that, numbers rising with each day, much to Shaula's disbelief.
Master Korgan seemed to genuinely believe in Ren, and the demons that started to join did specifically because he represented strength and protection for them.
I thought I might have been wrong about him, maybe he does possess what it takes to lead the Tengu clan…Until I found out otherwise.
Much to her disappointment, Ren was not powerful; he could not even use his own mana much less demon eyes, true demon form, or even spiritual form.
If judged by strength alone, he was below earth rank, the lowest ranked demon by power in the entire Tengu clan. Physically, he is weaker than a female demon, which is humiliating in itself. In a one on one combat, he will lose to even a child.
When the first trial started, instead of making plans or watching out for enemies, he proceeded to climb a tree and take a leak…Who does that in a situation like that? How vulgar….
And then we got attacked by a Frost Wolf demon and almost lost our lives, we even had several casualties. We got separated and he foolishly told us to go on without him. When our groups finally reunited, he did something crazy and somehow recruited a Demon Lord, I don't know what he did, but the situation could have turned ugly if that Demon Lord had judged us as his enemies. Yet, instead of taking caution, Ren welcomed him with open arms. Just how naïve can you get?! Don't invite every demon you meet to your clan, are you trying to invite enemy to your home so that they can kill you easier?
After we returned home, he unleashed a multi-headed monstrosity upon the fields, that thing scared me half to death. Many Tengu clan members were traumatized after it went on an eating spree across the fields.
Then, he managed to get himself kidnapped by Kas clan, leading all of the Tengu clan come to rescue him. I am glad we had Akjan on our side, without her, we never would have made it one time.
Akjan almost ended up losing everything all over again because of him, but then he shows up, with loony expression, swinging the frying pan at his enemy's head.
From the look of his eyes, I could tell he did not understand what he had done; he simply acted at the right time. Had he aimed his frying pan any lower and he would have been killed, but as luck would have it, he triumphed.
But even then, he did not seem to understand what he was doing, much less where he was. I am willing to bet he ended up in that place because he got lost again.
At that moment, my suspicions were confirmed, he was a complete moron.
I am sure he had no idea what he was doing, he was simply acting recklessly, but ironically that recklessness of his managed to secure us a victory, as ridiculous as it sounds…
But instead of getting rid of his enemy, he chose to let him go, how much of an idiot do you have to be to do that? Nar Kas took everything Akjan cherished and he just lets someone like that walk free? Does he not even have an ounce of justice in him?
Yet, no matter what kind of action he takes, everyone, including Master Korgan, believes that Ren has great ambition and some kind of a master plan for becoming the Demon King.
Great ambition?! This demon knows nothing other than gardening and cooking barely edible dishes! I can tell for certain he has no plan or any desire to rise to become stronger, whenever something dangerous happens, he is either too ignorant to notice or too dumb to understand he is in danger.
Why does everyone believe someone as weak willed and simple minded as him could become Demon King? I have met many weak demons, many foolish demons, but never did I meet someone who was both foolish and weak as him.
If I didn't tell him to call himself by fake name during the Banquet, without a doubt he would have exposed himself on the spot. How did someone as wonderful as Master Ymit have a child as disappointing as Ren? Apple sure has fallen so far from the tree and rotted away….
But everyone else seems to think he is leading them, without even realizing that it is 'blind leading the blind' situation.
Even Aijasyl who was initially very critical of him, now frequently calls him 'amazing' after some kind of a market incident. What could have happened to change her mind so drastically? I thought she, like myself, found him incompetent, but now, she only has praises for him when he is not nearby.
I cannot believe how far this fool has taken us; our clan now has more than two hundred members, numbers increasing each day.
I know he doesn't have a plan, but Tengu clan members believe in him to the point of wors.h.i.+p. It is absurd…but as things as they are right now, our clan needs a leader.
He is not he leader Tengu clan deserves, but he is the leader Tengu clan needs right now…
…As frustrating as it is, for the Tengu clan to survive and prosper, Ren Karatengu must be safe.
He is weak in both mind and body with no redeeming traits. As far as being a leader goes, he is a fake, but as long as there is an illusion of protection, then Tengu clan can survive and grow strong.
As far as leading the clan, I do not believe he is up to the job, he does not have the strength or character to be able to accomplish such a feat.
In order to keep Tengu clan safe, I must make sure Ren Karatengu does not put himself in peril with his thoughtless actions.
Even if she was the only demon who recognized that Ren was an idiot, the others saw him as their leader and savior. She did not want to ruin their hopes, and even if she did tell them the truth, they are not likely to believe her.
Looking at Ren fooling around with Akjin Tang, Akjan's younger brother, while playing with kites they just set on fire, Shaula could only sigh.
"You have no idea what you are doing, do you, Ren?"
Her exasperated words fell harmlessly upon her idiot leader's deaf ears.
Ren Karatengu can never live up to his father's example….If only it was Master Ymit leading us instead….
Shaula could only lament that instead of the great leader his father was, the clan now was led by the incompetent son.
Why great demons pa.s.s away and only fools remain?