“ …… With all due respect “
Draht stared intently at Lugner. He had the arrogant gaze characteristic of a young, powerful demon.
“I don’t understand why you are following Lady Aura. Even if she’s one of the Seven Sages, if she can’t fight, she have no dignity. If you’re afraid of retaliation for defecting, you should just kill her when you get the chance. With the Demon King dead, there’s no one left to punish you.”
Lugner smiled.
“That’s a very demonic opinion.”
Draht, taking Lugner’s response as positive, happily raised the corners of his mouth.
“But you don’t understand anything at all.”
Draht frowned, as if doused with cold water.
“Even if rotten, she is one of the Seven Sages. No matter how arrogant you are, I don’t think assassinating her will succeed.”
“But…!”
“Furthermore, the mind control magic I’ve seen so far is the most powerful. And the only ones who can surpass Lady Aura in magical power are other Seven Sages-class demons or the highest-level human mages…and they are but a handful.”
Lugner stood up from his armchair and looked down at Draht.
“Even those few can be made to submit if their undying army consumes their magical power. Do you understand, Draht? As long as you don’t become arrogant, Lady Aura cannot be defeated. If you want results, just stay obedient.”
“…Understood.”
Reluctantly, Draht nodded.
He still seemed to lack a bit of fear.
“…The mind control magic may also be effective on demons. Lady Aura, sensing your inclination to defect, may completely dominate you. Even now, she’s in a bad mood. She might just take your head on a whim.”
Draht held his breath. Sensing the fear in his eyes, Lugner sat back down in his chair.
This should at least make him abandon his assassination plan. It’s best to nip any troublesome buds in the bud.
Lugner quietly sipped his wine.
The dejected Draht was approached by Linie.
“You got scolded.”
“Shut up.”
A small branch snapped with a “snap” sound as it was stepped on.
Aura was walking along an animal path. Just as the clouds drifted across the sky, she wandered around as the wind blew and her mood dictated.
She climbed a hill, leapt across a small stream, and stepped over tree roots. Eventually, she emerged onto a maintained road. There were wagon tracks on the ground. She knew there was a village nearby, but this was the first time she had seen a road here. Humans were once again trying to expand their living space.
Aura felt a sense of gloom. Humans were beings with utility to Aura, but if their numbers grew too large, they became a nuisance.
“Perhaps I should just destroy the village while I’m out for a walk.”
Even in her current state, destroying a single village would be a trivial matter. But the aftermath would be a hassle, so she decided against it. She’d attack the village once her full power had returned.
Putting the village out of her mind, she continued walking in silence. About an hour later, the sun began to set, its copper glow sinking behind the mountains.
Aura emerged into a clearing in the woods. In the center was a flat rock.
“Ah.”
There was a human on the rock.
He was a young man, still a boy really. Sitting on the rock, he gazed vacantly into the distance. His magical power was barely detectable, so she hadn’t noticed him. He didn’t seem to be an adventurer or mage – most likely just a villager from nearby. Sensing her, he slowly turned his head.
Should she kill him?
Aura approached the young man. Then,
“Is someone there?”
“…?”
That was a strange thing to say.
The young man was facing her direction. Yet he said “Is someone there?” as if he couldn’t see her.
Looking closer, his eyes were milky and clouded.
Could it be that he was blind?
“…I must have been mistaken.”
The young man tilted his head, puzzled.
Yes, it seemed he truly couldn’t see. Since her presence wasn’t revealed, there was no need to kill him. It would be a waste of time to bother with such a weakling anyway. Aura turned on her heel.
…She stopped after walking a bit.
A waste of time.
But it might just make for a pleasant diversion. Since he can’t see that she’s a demon, there’s no risk of being recognized. And if he does find out, she can simply dispose of him.
Besides – Aura was remembering Macht.
It had been a long time ago, but she still recalled it clearly. Back then, though Macht had verbally denied it, it was obvious he had a curious interest in humans. Such a powerful being, why would he be so fixated on a weak race? It was a mystery.
If she conversed with this young man, perhaps she could come to understand Macht’s perspective. Not that she particularly wanted to get closer to Macht, but she disliked remaining ignorant.
She had time to spare. There was no harm in trying something unusual.
Decision made, she spoke.
“Hey.”
“Wah, who’s there?”
The young man startled, his shoulders jumping.
“You can’t see me, can you?”
“Ah, yes…I was injured as a child, so I can’t see anything…”
“And yet you managed to come all the way out here.”
“Well, I have a cane, so…”
The boy moved his hand over the rock as if caressing it. His fingertips touched the staff leaning against the rock.
“Excuse me, who are you?”
“Just a adventurer.”
“An adventurer!”
The boy’s face lit up.
“Wow, that’s amazing. Being an adventurer is my dream.”
“Even though you can’t see?”
“Everyone in the village says that too… but I think if I work hard, it can come true. My father says I shouldn’t give up before even trying.”
“Hmm…”
“I’m called Vil. What’s your name, miss?”
“It doesn’t matter. Call me whatever you like.”
“O-oh, okay then.”
Vil was fidgeting with his hands, perhaps feeling a bit wary.
“What were you doing here?”
“Ah, I was listening to the bird calls.”
“Birds?”
“Yes, there are a lot of wild birds here, so I can hear them well.”
Aura listened closely, and sure enough, she could hear bird songs.
“What do you do that for?”
“Well, nothing really. I just enjoy listening. It soothes my heart.”
This was a sensibility Aura didn’t have. Even with the bird calls, she felt nothing. Vil’s response must have been the result of a kind of sensitivity.
“You know, I really love listening to bird songs. Did you know, their songs are used to show courtship and territory? Since many birds are breeding this time of year, you can hear a lot of singing now.”
Vil began explaining fluently, even though Aura hadn’t asked.
“And it’s not just that their songs are beautiful. Some birds even sing while flying, but that takes a lot of effort and makes them more vulnerable to predators. Even the most beautiful song can be a matter of life and death for a bird.”
He spoke passionately, his breath quickening.
Aura watched Vil with curiosity.
Regardless of the content, she had never encountered anyone who interacted with her this way before. She found herself intrigued.
Typically, humans directed either hostility or fear towards Aura. But this boy was simply talking about something he loved. His earnest manner struck Aura as refreshing and amusing.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I got carried away talking.”
Vil blushed.
“No, it’s fine. I found it quite interesting.”
“Really? I’m glad… Oh! If you don’t mind, I’d love to hear about your adventures too. I really enjoy listening to adventurers’ stories–“
At that moment, a bell rang in the distance, from the direction of the village.
Vil’s face fell.
“Oh no, I have to go…”
“I see, that’s a shame.”
Aura would have liked to observe him longer.
Should she just let him go? For a moment she considered kidnapping him, but that would rob this boy of the “amusement” he provided. So instead, Aura proposed:
“If you come back here tomorrow, I’ll tell you some adventure stories.”
“Eh? But don’t you travel around?”
“It’ll be fine, I have plenty of time.”
At Aura’s words, Vil’s unseeing eyes sparkled.
This way, she could at least dispel her boredom a little.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
From that day on, Aura and Vil would meet in the evenings, sitting on the rocks and talking until the village bell rang, signaling the villagers’ return home. Aura would tell improvised adventure tales, which Vil would listen to, enthralled. He showed no sign of suspecting Aura was a demon.
Still, there were times when he asked curious questions:
“Where do you live?”
“How long will you be here?”
“Are you always alone?”
When this happened, Aura would either tell a white lie or change the subject. Fortunately, if Aura steered the conversation to birds, Vil would eagerly start talking, making it easy to deflect.
“Some birds can even imitate other birds’ calls, you know.”
“Imitate?”
“Yes. They copy the calls of other birds. It’s to attract females or make it harder for predators to find them.”
“That sounds familiar somehow.”
Imitating predator calls to avoid being attacked – that was something demons did. Especially weaker demons often used such tactics.
But even powerful demons might do the same, using language to deceive humans or communicate with other demons, without truly understanding its meaning. For demons, language was probably just complex vocalization, mimicking humans.
“I wonder if there are birds that can speak human language.”
“There are, apparently, but they’re from very distant lands.”
“And you know all this, even though you can’t see?”
Vil rubbed his head sheepishly.
“Actually, my mother taught me all this. She’s very knowledgeable and would tell me all kinds of stories about living things. I’ve never forgotten what she taught me.”
Vil says in a clenched tone. It seems he is fond of his “mother”.
“My mother wasn’t just knowledgeable, but she was also an incredibly powerful mage.”
“Was? Is she different now?”
“Ah… yes.”
Vil’s face darkens. Until just now, he was talking fluently, but suddenly he hesitates.
“…My mother passed away five years ago.”
“How?”
“She was attacked by a demon tribe. My mother and father fought to defend the village. The other adults helped too, but no one could defeat the demons.”
“But you survived.”
“My parents let me escape. But the demon’s attack was fierce… that’s when I lost my eyes.”
Vil touches his eyelids. His expression lacks sadness. He just looks incredibly weary.
“Why did the demons attack the village?”
This question does not seem directed at Aura alone, but rather a lament over the misfortunes of the world.
“I don’t know. Maybe they wanted to eat people, or maybe it was just a test of their strength. They might have attacked for no reason at all, just on a whim. It’s impossible for humans to understand a demon’s way of thinking.”
“Even though we have the same form and use the same language, is there really no way for us to understand each other?”
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