Darkness Wolves & Lollipop

Someone teleported into their midst—it was Moloch. He was humming happily before he saw the scene in front of him.

The children were crying and frightened, while Lombard tried to calm them down, looking frustrated and glaring at Ashtarot as if asking him to take responsibility for terrifying the kids.

Moloch, confused by the situation, looked between the children and Ashtarot. It wasn't until he noticed the darkness wolves behind him that he began to piece things together.

He hurried over to Ashtarot and whispered, "Oi! Apologize to them, you asshole! Why did you even summon those dogs?" He pointed at it, who looked back at him with innocent confusion.

"I just gave them a little shock therapy. Don't worry, I'll take responsibility," Ashtarot shrugged and walked toward the children, the wolves happily following him.

He actually felt bad for scaring the kids so much; they were genuinely terrified of him and his wolves.

Even though the darkness wolves were good boys that loved to be petted, their fearsome appearance didn't help.

Seeing him, the children's cries erupted even more loudly, and they hid behind their teacher, especially with the darkness wolves trailing behind him.

Realizing this, Ashtarot stopped midway and knelt to their level, trying to be less intimidating.

"I apologize for scaring you," he began gently.

"But you need to understand that being disrespectful toward your elders will cause problems in the future." As he spoke, he summoned something into his hand—large, colorful lollipops that every child loves.

"If you come over and repeat what I say, I'll give you one of these," he offered, holding out the lollipops.

The children stopped crying, their eyes widening at the sight of the treats that were as big as their heads.

Their fear started to fade, though the presence of the menacing wolves still made them hesitant.

"I... I'm scared of them!" one of the children shouted, genuinely afraid.

The wolves, indeed, were intimidating—three times the size of a normal wolf, with menacing red eyes and a black aura surrounding them.

They reminded the children of Ashtarot himself, though at least they knew he wouldn't harm them. They, on the other hand, were an unknown threat.

Noticing, the wolves looking at each other before their ears and tails flopped down sadly, Ashtarot sighed. He petted one of them, and it wagged its tail happily in response.

"See? They're just like normal dogs when they're not working. You can pet them safely," he assured, trying to convince the children.

Nara and Nano were the first to approach him, their hands intertwined. Nano declared, "I'm not scared of the wolves! I'm a werewolf! My race is much more powerful!"

They cautiously eyed them. When one of the wolves moved, the twins were startled and almost fell.

"Yes, your race is much more formidable," Ashtarot acknowledged.

"Now, repeat after me: 'I will be a good child and respect my elders. In the future, I will be a good part of monster society, working hard until I die!'" He held the lollipops right in front of their faces.

The twins, clearly not understanding half of what Ashtarot said, drooled at the sight of the lollipops and repeated in unison, "I will be a good child and respect my elders. In the future, I will be a good part of monster society, working hard until I die!"

"Good! You said it with full spirit!" Ashtarot nodded proudly, convinced that they wouldn't become lazy burdens to their coworkers.

Moloch, watching this, murmured, "What the hell is he saying?" looking devastated and covering his face in frustration.

But it was important for Ashtarot. If the children became couch potatoes at home, he wouldn't mind.

Laziness might be a sin among humans, but for monsters, it was unforgivable during working hours.

He gave both Nara and Nano their lollipops, and they immediately started licking and eating them, looking happy and joyful.

Seeing this, the other children gulped and exchanged glances before lining up in front of Ashtarot. They repeated his words and received their big lollipops in return, finding it a good barter.

The children even asked to pet the wolves, and he complied. The wolves were delighted to be petted, and the children looked satisfied.

The only one feeling annoyed was Sarissa, who had been ignored by him. She clenched her fists and bit her lower lip. Now, the children had become her rivals!

Ashtarot, having finished with the children, stood up normally. Suddenly, he heard heavy footsteps behind him, and Sarissa hugged him from behind.

She peeked over his shoulder at the children, glaring menacingly, though the children were too busy licking their lollipops to notice.

'They are lucky they are children,' she thought, a menacing aura emanating from her, making Ashtarot feel a chill. 'If not, I'd shred them apart!'

He knew it was futile to make her stop clinging to him, so he addressed the children instead.

"Now let's continue with our lesson. One of you asked why the dwarves are here. It all started with the great war between humans and monsters."

"Some beings we consider 'monsters,' like elves, dwarves, half-beasts, and fairies, have come to terms with humans and now live side by side."

"But the dwarves' case is different. Their kingdom was attacked by humans and destroyed completely. But after that, humans initially offered a peace treaty."

"Most dwarves agreed to the treaty, but the rest disagreed and joined the monsters' side to create a new settlement," Ashtarot explained, gesturing animatedly.

He clapped his hands. "The dwarves here are those who disagreed and joined us instead."

The children nodded, their curiosity piqued. As they moved to the dungeon props section, they saw dwarves making treasure chests.

One of the ogre children raised his hand and asked, "Isn't that treasure chest going to be filled with human gold and jewelry? How does the dungeon get them?"

"From the humans themselves, of course!" Moloch chimed in, walking towards the child.

"There are several resting places, restaurants, and even toilets on most of the floors. We use human currency if they want to use these facilities."

"Also, there's a cost for humans or parties to use the teleportation gate and other services provided by the dungeon, so the money just circulates like that," he explained in simple terms, making it easy for the children to understand.

Meanwhile, Ashtarot was busy dealing with Sarissa, who wouldn't let go and started pouting.

He sighed. "Now, let me go, Lady Sarissa."

"NOOO!!! You don't give me enough attention! I don't want to let goooo!" she whined like a child, hugging his waist tightly.

He could easily break free, but he knew she would just try something more bizarre. Instead, he showed her a lollipop. "If you let go, I'll give you one."

Sarissa's eyes sparkled. Nothing was more valuable than one of Ashtarot's items! She grabbed the lollipop without hesitation, releasing her embrace temporarily.

He turned to her, placed his hand on her head, and started to twist it gently, making her body spin and her hair become disheveled.

"Don't scare the children ever again!" he said, clearly annoyed, his face contorted with anger.

Sarissa just enjoyed having her head petted, and screamed internally, 'AHHH!!! I WILL NEVER WASH MY HAIR AGAINNN!!!!'