The Noble Orc was planning to attack a human town. There was fear over whether he would order his large village of Orcs to attack the Ghoul village before doing so.
Vandalieu was to fight them with the Ghouls that were his family, bearing the Title of Ghoul King.
Vandalieu was in the midst of an alchemy lesson.
He crushed the contents of the mortar while pouring a certain amount of Mana into it. Incidentally, the contents were Kobold bones, Magic Stones from Kobolds, dried Poison Toad organs and his own blood.
He used the resulting product to draw a magic circle, and if it functioned as a Magic Item, he had succeeded. If not, then it would be a failure. Regardless of whether it succeeded or failed, he would repeat this process until he obtained the skill.
Though the contents of the mortar varied a little, the contents of his lessons did not.
An individual of a higher race of Orcs, the Noble Orcs, was leading a group of monsters five hundred strong including the Goblins and Kobolds under its command. There was a powerful enemy to face, but was it alright for him to be doing something like this after receiving the Title of Ghoul King?
While he was doing this, the Orcs were treating the captured Ghoul women and female adventurers as their playthings!
But Vandalieu continued crushing the contents of the mortar, not thinking about these things.
「If we panic and rush things now, it’s certain that only bad things will happen.」
The Ghouls and Vandalieu knew this.
Of course, they were gathering information. Vandalieu had distributed Undead bugs to determine the location of the Noble Orc’s village and find other Ghouls, and messengers had been sent to other Ghoul villages whose locations Zadiris and the others still remembered.
There was no need to move until such information had been gathered. The earliest the enemy would make a move would be spring. And it was still the end of December, not even halfway through winter.
Orcs had a gestation period of half a year when they bred and they only took another half year to grow into adults. This was why the Ghouls did plan to move as soon as they got the information they needed, so the enemy numbers wouldn’t be too great.
「Still, this skill is quite hard to obtain.」(Vandalieu)
Vandalieu honestly found it difficult to learn. Several months had already passed since he began his alchemy lessons and he still hadn’t obtained the skill.
「That is to be expected. In fact, you are quicker to learn it than most monsters, boy.」(Zadiris)
However, Zadiris encouraged him.
「Though if you were a human, that may not be the case.」(Zadiris)
The levels of skills generally range from 1 to 10.
Those with a level 1 skill are novices that have just learned the skill. For combat-related skills, this is the level at which the user can just manage to use the skill in real battle. Those with level 1 crafting skills would be at the level of an amateur hobbyist.
The average soldier possesses level 2 combat-related skills, and those with level 2 crafting skills are considered unskilled craftsmen.
Adventurers and mercenaries that possess level 3 combat-related skills are considered fully qualified. Craftsmen with level 3 skills are quite skilled, but not allowed to operate independently.
Those with level 4 combat-related skills are considered competent veterans in their fields. Level 4 crafting skills are the minimum requirement for an independent craftsman.
Those with level 5 combat-related skills are top-class users of those skills, and it is common for C-class adventurers to possess skills at this level.
Those with level 6 combat-related skills are fit to be instructors for nobles, and are close to being B-class adventurers. Those with level 6 crafting skills are able to run stores in large cities.
Those with level 7 combat-related skills are sought after by countries and noblemen; adventurers with skills at this level are B-class unless their behavior is considered greatly problematic. Craftsmen with level 7 skills have multiple people that apply to be their apprentices every year.
Those with level 8 skills are masters whose names are known across the entire country.
Those with level 9 skills leave their names in history. A-class adventurers possess skills at this level.
Level 10 skills are in the realm of superhuman abilities.
And there are rare cases where a skill surpasses level 10, becoming a transcendental skill. Possessing such a skill could make one worshipped by others. One would be called names such as Sword King or Flame Emperor, and be considered a god.
It would perhaps be equivalent to Miyamoto Musashi* on Earth. It is unlikely that Miyamoto Musashi could move faster than sound, fight for a week straight without eating or drinking, or cut through a mountain-sized rock that’s harder than steel, however.
TLN*: A legendary samurai/ronin
These were Vandalieu’s estimations of how skills worked, based on what he had heard from Darcia and Zadiris.
With that in mind, it made sense that obtaining skills like alchemy or magic-related skills took numerous months.
However, in this world, there is a component that didn’t exist on Earth or in Origin.
The bonuses to skills offered by Jobs.
The people of lambda can gain bonuses to learning skills by obtaining Jobs. This increases the rate at which one obtains and levels up skills.
Because of this, an amateur can become a master swordsman or craftsman in just a few years. In the case of swordsmen, though, many die before they can gain the Experience Points they need.
Looking at it another way, acquiring skills and leveling them up in this world without obtaining a Job is difficult. Even with an excellent teacher, the apprentice having an appropriate Job is almost a prerequisite for learning skills.
In that regard, Vandalieu was quite exceptional considering that he had learned skills and leveled them up without a Job.
Because of his curse, Vandalieu’s experience from his previous lives didn’t manifest directly in his skills. But he still remembered the feeling of learning skills and still had the experience which helped him learn them, and his vast Mana pool allowed him to practice magic dozens of times more than the average person.
Also, he received racial bonuses by being a member of the Dhampir race.
As proof of this, he hadn’t learned any martial skills, which he hadn’t experienced using at all on Earth or in Lambda.
「So in short, obtaining a Job would make it easier to acquire new skills.」(Vandalieu)
「Well, that is correct.」(Zadiris)
「… I’ve found another reason to hate this country.」(Vandalieu)
Changing Jobs required special rooms owned by organizations such as Guilds, so it was impossible for Vandalieu to acquire a Job in the Amid Empire where he was treated as a monster.
Even if Vandalieu was able to use such a room, his【Cannot learn existing Jobs】curse would likely make it impossible for him to change Jobs.
「But since pouring my hate on the country won’t help me gain skills, I’ll just have to keep working diligently.」(Vandalieu)
「Indeed. That is wise of you, boy.」(Zadiris)
Zadiris patted Vandalieu’s head, but if she was aware that his【Status Effect Resistance】and【Surpass Limits】skills had increased in level, she would likely have him stop his diligent work.
These skills were increasing in level because of the Status Effect known as “overwork” that Vandalieu was affected by, and because he was pushing past the limits of what an infant’s body could withstand, every day.
However, Vandalieu had no intention to stop pushing himself. This was something that hadn’t changed ever since Darcia had been killed.
The next day, he learned where the other Ghoul villages were. There were ten of them in total. However, they only needed to make the multiple-day journey to visit four of them.
The other six had already been attacked by the Orcs.
『Th-the men were killed and the w-women… GRRRR!』
『GAAAH! My village, it’s been burned down! THOSE PIIIIIGS!』
『It hurts! It hurts! Mother was screaming! It hurts! I can’t breeeeaaaathe!』
『We attacked! The Ghouls! Bugogan-sama’s orders! The Ghouls’ venom, because of Orc-Mage-sama’s magic, no work on us!』
Vandalieu listened to the words of the spirits of the Ghouls and Orcs who had died in battle that had followed his Undead insects back to the village. Many spirits were only capable of howling and crying because too much time had elapsed since their deaths and even those capable of speaking did so in fragmented sentences, but Vandalieu could piece together what had happened.
The Noble Orc Bugogan had apparently been attacking Ghoul villages one after another, starting with the smallest ones. Most Ghoul villages other than Zadiris’s village had between thirty to fifty members. Groups of eighty or so slave Goblins and Kobolds attacked them, with the Noble Orc’s sons in command.
There were apparently some Ghoul villages that didn’t have any strong individuals like Ghoul Mages or Ghoul Barbarians. In those villages, a Rank 4 Ghoul Warrior that might be in a middle-rank position in Zadiris’s village acted as the chief.
It wouldn’t be surprising for them to be annihilated in a one-sided battle when the Rank 6 Noble Orc attacked. And it seemed that the numerous Orc Mages were able to cast spells that granted resistance against the paralyzing venom that Ghouls secreted from their claws.
This magic would be cast on the Orc soldiers and some of the slaves before the battle.
The Ghouls’ resistance had been fierce, killing many of the Goblins and Kobolds. But since the Orcs captured Ghoul females in the process, it was a net gain for them.
And so Bugogan had killed over a hundred Ghoul men and kidnapped over a hundred Ghoul women. Ghoul women had much sturdier bodies than humans, and made excellent mothers.
It seemed that Bugogan had used the Ghoul women in addition to the female Goblins and Kobolds to further increase the number of his Orc soldiers.
The Kobold Shaman hadn’t known these things, likely because it was a Spiritualist who was never sent out onto the frontlines and because it was a slave.
「So it seems that the Orcs increase in number by about a hundred every year. I think a lot of them actually die in the harsh battles that they consider their training, but I think their breeding is accelerating, so let us tear out their entrails while they are still alive and scatter their brains across the ground.」(Vandalieu)
「Boy, I understand that you are angry, but you must calm yourself.」(Zadiris)
「Yeah, calm down. It’s not good for us if even the young ones get heated.」(Vigaro)
「I’m not angry. I’m just empathizing with the spirits.」(Vandalieu)
「Isn’t that even worse?!」(Vigaro)
「Boy, the Mana that has leaked out of you has taken the shape of skulls and is rather terrifying.」(Zadiris)
Zadiris and Vigaro, Vandalieu’s close friends, stepped away from him in fear as countless black skulls swarmed around him.
Ghouls from outside this village were mere strangers to Vandalieu, and not people that he should have any particular feelings for. However, after hearing the words of the spirits, he couldn’t contain his feelings of anger towards the Orcs.
「Since Orcs are a race with only males, I think they cannot help that part of their behavior. If they don’t do what they’re doing, then they cannot maintain their own race. The instinct to reproduce is one of the three main needs*, and it would be cruel to tell them to abstain. In fact, the ones to blame are the Demon King and the evil gods for making creatures that live and reproduce this way. But I also can’t help being angry.」(Vandalieu)
TLN*: The other two are the need to eat and the need to sleep.
「… Vandalieu, I can’t tell if you’re calm or not. Also, what are the three main needs*?」(Vigaro)
TLN*: As a reminder, I’m italicizing words in katakana to indicate that Vigaro doesn’t understand them.
「Even I do not know… Well, I am relieved to see that you do not seem to have lost control over yourself. In any case, there are four surviving villages, correct? Let us hurry and send messengers to them.」(Zadiris)
Tarea gave orders to the men of the village while sitting on a hand-made throne, looking down on those obeying her commands and feeling pleased with herself.
With golden pupils, gray-brown skin and claws stained purple with paralyzing venom, she was clearly a Ghoul woman. However, one could possibly tell from the fact that the letters of her name contains no dakuten*, she was a Ghoul who was originally a human.
TLN*: Dakuten are a pair of dashes that change a hiragana or katakana character’s pronunciation in Japanese. For example, た/ta is pronounced だ/da when those two dashes at the top-right of the character are added. Every single Ghoul name so far (Zadiris, Vigaro, Basdia, Bilde, etc.) contains two characters with dakuten, but Tarea’s name doesn’t have any.
As a human, Tarea was the daughter of a skilled smith. She had inherited his qualities and displayed promising talent at a young age, and people had expected her to one day be an exceptional smith, even more skilled than her father.
However, a large company expanded into the city that she lived in and her parents lost their store. And then they made a mortifying decision. They sold Tarea as a slave.
Tarea was indeed a talented girl, but she also had two younger brothers. In those days, the ones who succeeded the family, whether it was a noble family or a commoner family, was always a son.
Even though Tarea’s younger brothers also had clear talent and ability… No, because they did, her family decided to sell her and take back their store.
Tarea was talented, but she also had a refined physical appearance. As a young girl, she already possessed a body that was highly attractive to men, and so she was sold at a high price.
After being sold, she was forced to work as a prostitute and suffered deep emotional wounds from her family’s betrayal and the circumstances she now found herself in. She was forced to serve arrogant clients countless times, and in the end, she was unable to bear it and decided to escape.
She found an opening to kill her client and escape the brothel, leaving the city. As she fled, she ran into a Devil’s Nest to throw off her pursuers.
And so she managed to escape, but she was then caught by Ghouls.
Tarea despaired as she thought she was going to be eaten alive, but the group of Ghouls that captured her was small and lacked females. What they desired from her was not her meat, but for her breeding function as a woman.
Tarea was transformed from a human into a Ghoul by a ritual. Having already lost her willpower to resist, she opened her body to the Ghoul men and came to spend every day obeying their commands.
Because she had become a Ghoul, even if she escaped, she would be killed if spotted by humans.
And because she was originally a human, she didn’t know any techniques to make use of her newly-gained superhuman strength and paralyzing venom.
For Tarea to survive, she had no choice but to obey the commands of the Ghoul men. But did she have a future if she kept living on like this?
Her eyes were clouded with despair, but her days of living such a life changed when she laid eyes on the fur of a Huge Boar that the men had hunted and brought back.
As Tarea stroked the fur, she remembered her past and whispered about how it would make good armor. Hearing that whisper, the Ghoul men said,「Make it, then.」
She obeyed them, creating Ghoul-fitted leather armor of the same quality that one would find sold in human cities, using the limited materials available.
From that moment on, Tarea’s position in this group of Ghouls changed to the person destined to become the next chief.
Tarea made pieces of equipment one after another out of the materials brought to her by the Ghoul men. Even though she had transformed from a human into a Ghoul, her talent had never stopped shining.
A Giant Scorpion’s carapace would become a shield; an Iron Turtle’s shell would become armor; an Impaler Ox’s horns would become a spear.
The warriors in the group of Ghouls Tarea belonged to were as well-equipped as adventurers and they kept hunting monsters one after another, becoming strong enough to even kill adventurers who attacked them.
Having regained her willpower, she used techniques she had learned during her times as a prostitute to control the men and make them submit to her. She taught the other women who were jealous of her how to make the men submissive, thus gathering them under her.
And a hundred years after she became a Ghoul, Tarea rose to the top position in the group, despite being weaker than everyone else.
And more than a hundred years after that, the group of less than twenty Ghouls that had been on the brink of extermination now numbered over sixty. Other Ghoul villages desired Tarea’s equipment and brought food to trade for it. The influence that Tarea’s group of Ghouls had was even greater than Zadiris’s village that had over a hundred Ghouls.
「Fufu, at this rate, I’ll have control over this Devil’s Nest in another ten years.」
Tarea sat on a comfortable throne carved out of a Treant, her body decorated with jeweled accessories taken from the corpses of adventurers, stroking her rich black hair and hiding her mouth behind a folding fan made from the shell of an Iron Turtle carved thin. With this appearance, it was completely appropriate to call her a Ghoul Queen.
… Though she had made everything herself by hand, strangely enough.
Tarea had no contact with Zadiris’s village and hadn’t learned about the large group of Orcs led by Bugogan, so she had no doubts that her ambitions would become reality.
「For me, who was once a mere commoner and even fell as low as to becoming a slave, to rule this Devil’s Nest full of monsters far more powerful than humans… Fufufu, my heart is dancing.」
「Tarea-sama, please make my shield.」
「Tarea-sama, my armor too, please!」
「Wait a little longer! Even if you do not ask me, I will make it for you!」
Wondering if the chief’s morning work was finished, some Ghouls called out to her. Gloating to herself like this was Tarea’s daily routine.
「Chief! We all worked together to defeat a Metal Slime!」
「What did you say?!」
And in the evenings, when the warriors returned from hunting, she would unconsciously stand up from her throne with her eyes sparkling.
And in front of her was the silvery mucus of a Metal Slime in a leather bag, as heavy as iron, and the Metal Slime’s silver-colored core.
The moment she saw these, Tarea’s cheeks turned red and her body swayed, as if she were a maiden reuniting with her lover after a long time apart.
「Oh my… The materials of a Metal Slime, which possess the properties of both a liquid and metal! What kind of weapon… no, armor? Ah, what should I do, I wonder what kind of lovely equipment I should make~♪」
Though her body was radiating her sex appeal indiscriminately, the words coming from her mouth had no sex appeal at all. But the Ghouls of her village were used to this already, so none of them were surprised. In fact, they were happy.
Tarea was a chief who skillfully created equipment, and perhaps because of the time she had spent as a commoner, she treated those below her well. As she was over two hundred and fifty years old, she had retired from her work as a woman, but even so, she was a popular leader among her people.
Tarea had become somewhat accustomed to the Ghouls as well, and enjoyed a far more fulfilling life than the one she had as a human.
「Chief! There are reports from the lookouts that there is a carriage coming this way!」
A young Ghoul delivered this news in a flustered voice.
「! Adventurers, huh. How many are there?」
There was no way that there would be any monsters using a carriage in this Devil’s Nest. In that case, it must be adventurers.
As if her previous behavior towards the Metal Slime ingredients had never happened, Tarea’s expression became tense and a sharp glint appeared in her eye.
「That is, the carriage is surrounded by Ghouls and the carriage itself apparently looks a bit like an Undead.」
「… How many Ghouls were there? If it is one or two, there is a possibility that they have been tamed by a Tamer.」
Tarea thought that a Tamer may have positioned tamed monsters outside the carriage while concealing himself inside the carriage, but there were five Ghouls outside the carriage.
Ghouls were a race with their roots tracing back to the goddess Vida, but since they shared the same lineage as monsters, it was possible to tame them. However, they were far more difficult to tame than normal monsters. Only a first-class tamer would be able to simultaneously tame five Ghouls and an Undead carriage.
It was difficult to imagine that such a first-rate tamer would need to hide himself inside the carriage.
「The Ghouls from another village might have tamed a strange Undead creature… Any warriors still left in the village, come out. You must protect me.」
It seemed unlikely that five Ghouls and an Undead would come to attack this village, even if half of its warriors were absent at the moment, but Tarea gathered together some Ghouls to escort her and went out to the front of the village.
When she did, she saw exactly what she had heard in the reports – an Undead carriage surrounded by five Ghouls.
「Stop. Do you have some business with my village?」
As Tarea called out to them, surrounded by many of her own Ghouls, the carriage stopped.
「We want to discuss something. A common enemy has appeared, and all of the other villages that have relations with you guys have agreed to cooperate.」
「A common enemy…」
When a common enemy appears, Ghouls set up a system to work together. This is not because of some mere instinct, but because this is the best way to have the highest chance to survive. Though Tarea was originally a human, she understood this well. But because she was originally a human, she had her suspicions.
She suspected that they might be trying to absorb her village for the benefit of their own village.
The Ghouls around her seemed agitated at hearing the words “common enemy”, but she calmed them by snapping her folding fan shut and stared at the unfamiliar Ghouls.
「I don’t suppose that I could hear the details?」
Since becoming a Ghoul, Tarea had learned that most Ghouls had simple personalities. They didn’t possess strong personalities and weren’t suited to using conspiracy.
That was why it was most effective to ask the question directly, in an easy-to-understand way.
「Yes. I will explain the details.」
A small silhouette emerged from beyond the canopy of the carriage. Tarea noticed the small body and voice that could easily be hidden and overlooked among the Ghouls.
No, he couldn’t be overlooked.
He possessed such charisma that he compelled others to kneel before him, just by standing there.
Long white hair, blood-red and mysterious blue-purple pupils, and abnormally white skin. He was clearly not a Ghoul, but there was something that made it clear that he was an important person.
Before Tarea even realized it, the other Ghouls were already kneeling on the ground. Unable to resist, Tarea was about to sink her own two knees into the dirt, but Vandalieu spoke to stop her.
「Err, please be at ease. You’re Tarea-san, correct? My name is Vandalieu, and I have been elected as the Ghoul King for this incident.」
The owner of this charisma felt earnestly ashamed that these Ghouls were kneeling before him.
Individuals possessing the Title of “King”, such as Goblin Kings and Kobold Kings, command unconditional obedience from any members of their own race that they encounter and are able to add them to their ranks of followers.
That is because the weaker members react to the【Strengthen Followers】skill. Their instincts tell them to make themselves and the race as a whole more powerful by following the King’s command.
The same thing… No, something even greater than that happened in the villages that Vandalieu visited. It seemed that the【Strengthen Followers】skill and the【Death-Attribute Charm】skill combined to form an incredible synergy.
「You’re amazing, King.」
「I didn’t think that they’d fall to their knees just by being spoken to.」
As Vandalieu’s escorts said, there were a lot of amazing things about this situation. It was as if he had become an elderly nobleman in a historical play.
But Vandalieu wasn’t happy to see adults with much larger bodies than his own kneeling before him; he felt guilty about it.
He had lived about forty years across his three lives, but he had only lived seventeen, twenty and two years in each of them respectively, so his personality and growth were fragmented. Vandalieu didn’t think of himself as an adult at all and had only thought of his Title of Ghoul King as an honorary position to improve the effectiveness of his skills, so he was greatly disturbed by the Ghouls’ behavior.
He had learned of Tarea in other villages. She was someone who held influence in multiple groups of Ghouls and was even called the Ghoul Queen. Seeing even her almost kneel before him, he even felt guilty.
「These are the circumstances, so I humbly request that your village to lend us its strength as well, Tarea-san. Of course, I don’t know if I can call this a remuneration, but I can prepare some things in compensation.」
As a result, he was speaking extremely politely.
Vandalieu’s poor communication skills already caused him to speak humbly in order to avoid the other person becoming angry, and this only added to that.
「I-I see. So this compensation is…?」
「I cannot create them right now, but I can offer you items that increase the Ghouls’ birth rate and preserve food for a long period of time.」
The things one could offer Ghouls, who didn’t use a monetary system, were limited. The only things that Vandalieu could offer were the Magic Items to increase Ghoul birth rates and cast the【Preservation】spell that he would create in the near future.
「Is that true?!」
But upon hearing that the Ghouls’ birth rate could be increased, Tarea and the other Ghouls let out voices of astonishment. The problem of low birth rates was something that affected not only Zadiris’s village, but the entire Ghoul race.
Vandalieu said that he could solve this, so the Ghouls stared at him as if in worship.
『I think my Status Effect Resistance skill is going to level up again because of this stress…』
But Vandalieu couldn’t say this out loud. Being told to「be friendly, but don’t overreact」was too selfish a request.
「In that case, we will be happy to come under your command, Vandalieu-sama.」
「… You can be more familiar with me; you can drop the honorific, or add -san, or call me “boy”.」
Vandalieu wanted her to stop adding -sama to his name, or at least wait until he was a bit older before doing so.
「Oh my~♪」
Why did she seem so happy?
「Well then, Van-sama. I, Tarea, will carry out your will and serve at your side.」
Vandalieu had no memory of asking for such a thing, but for some reason, Tarea had now become his close aide. He couldn’t understand why.
However, Tarea had discovered a new ambition.
The ambition of raising this Ghoul King to the top, expanding his ruled domain outside this Devil’s Nest and securing glory for herself as his aide.
『To think that such a chance would come for me when I’m over two hundred and sixty years old! Fufu, I was once at the very bottom, and now I will see how high up I can go. Until the moment I die!』
Tarea’s eyes glittered with her ambition. As if defeated by those eyes, Vandalieu turned his gaze towards the Spirit Form of Sam, sitting in the coachman’s seat, but…
『Bocchan, you are popular with the older women as always.』
Vandalieu received this compliment from Sam, but he had the feeling that this popularity wasn’t the kind of popularity he wanted.
『But once you become a nobleman, those kinds of people will often visit, so I think this is perfect practice for you.』
Darcia had seen straight through Tarea’s obvious ulterior motives, but she intended to simply watch as Vandalieu went through this experience.
Vandalieu’s one point of salvation was that the charisma that seemed to be affecting Tarea and her village would weaken, as they were now under the influence of his【Strengthen Followers skill】and their instincts to obey him as monsters should be satisfied.
『The level of the【Strengthen Followers】skill has increased!』
A strange woman moved through the Devil’s Nest alone.
Her being alone was rare, but not unheard of. The Adventurers’ Guild recommended forming parties in order to maintain the safety of the adventurers and the chance of successfully completing requests, but acting solo wasn’t prohibited.
But if one looked carefully, her equipment and behavior was noticeably unusual.
The woman’s equipment looked brand new and unreliable. She was equipped with completely unscratched leather armor that covered only her chest and waist, not protecting even the bare minimum that armor should, and a small shield about the size of her face.
But she showed no signs of fear as she proceeded through the Devil’s Nest, slaughtering with a single swing of her sword the low-level monsters such as Horned Rabbits and Goblins that attacked her.
She didn’t make any attempt to tear off the body parts of the monsters that served as proof of having killed them, or the parts that could be used as materials.
「I guess it’s about time.」
A completely lifeless voice escaped her lips. As she did so, Orcs appeared around her. She was completely surrounded, and among her enemies she could see a Noble Orc with blonde hair and a body larger than those of normal Orcs.
Facing these Orcs who were breathing loudly through their noses, she didn’t resist. Instead, she dropped her short sword to the ground as if throwing her weapon away.
There was no fear or any kind of emotion at all on her face.
TLN*: The translation is really sketchy on this one. This is 枕事/makuraji? (I’m not even sure how it’s read), the two kanji are “pillow” and “thing”. Jisho and Google both give me nothing, so I’m left almost guessing what it means. Since the kanji for “pillow” seems to have a sexual connotation in other words, this is my best guess.
Tarea was formerly a human girl gifted in both smithing skills and skills in the bedroom. She is a special individual who was transformed into a Ghoul via a ceremony. She creates equipment for the Ghoul men while also enticing them into submission. She teaches the other Ghoul women how to make men submissive as well as her smithing techniques, making the hierarchy very clear to them.
However, as she has never properly hunted prey before, her level as a monster hasn’t increased and she is the weakest among all the Ghouls. But as a smith, she possesses more skill than a nobleman’s personal employee or the most skilled smith one might find in a large city.
This is the result of over two hundred years of hard work and experience. But if she had access to the latest tools, proper working environment and variety of available materials that living in a human society would offer as well as changing her Job back from Prostitute to Smith, her skill would likely increase even more.
About forced Job changes:
This is a special treatment for criminals and those who have fallen into slavery. Though it doesn’t cause the loss of already-learned skills, the previous Job no longer has an effect on status and can no longer level up.
This is clearly displayed when one’s status is checked at facilities such as Guilds, so it acts as a way to prevent slaves from escaping.
However, this was a practice used over two hundred years ago. In modern times, it has become more commonplace to put collars on slaves that only the owner is able to remove.