Escape. (8)
Life in the hut, yes.
It was absolutely wretched.
Even if I ignored the fox beastman who was either the village chief or a shaman, the actions of the other beastkin serving her were too excessive.
"Oh my, sorry? I spilled the water by mistake, didn't I?"
No matter how much resentment they had accumulated against demons, this was a bit much, wasn't it?
I screamed and writhed on the floor as they poured hot water over my head.
How many times was this already?
The only thing I had going for me was my face, but now it was completely covered in burn marks.
"...Hmph."
"Crying? Crying? How delightful~ But my younger sibling, who burned to death, must have cried much louder than that, right?"
That wasn't something I did.
That was something those other bastards did?!
After the heat faded, only coldness remained.
The other rooms were well-heated, but this room alone was particularly cold.
My body quickly grew cold, and my hands and feet trembled uncontrollably.
"Wanna bet who screams first?"
"Deal!"
If I didn't react, they'd poke me a few times, then giggle among themselves and disappear.
I shed tears of unspeakable misery, but there was no one to comfort me.
I hate this.
Do I have to live trapped in a place like this forever?
"If it's like this, I'd rather—"
Rather, it was better when I was with the Hero.
I pulled my knees up and buried my face in them.
After a long time of swallowing my sobs, I lifted my head, and my utterly disfigured reflection stared back from the mirror.
"Truly, I've become a mess."
My face was blotchy, and my limbs were covered in bruises.
It felt like only a few days had passed, yet I was in such a state.
Malicious torment had an excellent effect on breaking a person's spirit.
It's funny how just looking in the mirror makes me recall those times.
"Elli, Hallibel, Rin..."
Perhaps, they were waiting for me to break.
Indeed, if they let attendants act like that, there could be no other reason.
And the fact that I was almost completely broken was proof of that.
"If I stab my neck, will it hurt a lot?"
Didn't they say if I tried anything foolish, my neck would be cleanly severed?
The talisman wrapped around my neck gave no sensation other than a slight foreign feeling.
All I heard was that if I tried anything foolish, it would gradually tighten and eventually sever my neck.
Would attempting suicide also fall under the category of foolish acts?
As I chuckled and touched the mirror, the talisman around my neck glowed faintly.
"Hmph, Ke, Kek, Kek-kek?!"
...Fuck.
I struggled desperately to tear off the talisman that was choking me, but my strength was nowhere near enough.
No, can this even be removed by force in the first place?
As I thrashed about, my windpipe severely constricted, I saw round eyes through the slightly open crack in the door.
"Sa, save... Kek, huff..."
I reached out my hand, but it didn't budge.
It just stayed there, as if merely watching me was the best it could do.
Get lost.
If you're just going to watch, then just get the hell out.
But despite my feelings, the eyes in the crack of the door showed no sign of disappearing.
"Ah, ah-huff, Kek, Kek..."
I'm scared, I'm scared, I'm scared.
Don't just watch like that, show yourself and at least mock me.
Or disappear.
Why? Did you want to engrave my pathetic state into those eyes?
"Haa, haa..."
After a long time of shedding tears and snot.
I could finally breathe as the talisman stopped glowing.
I never knew breathing could be such a happy thing.
I chuckled and let my limbs relax haphazardly.
Seeing them hang limply, it seemed my arms and legs were exhausted to death.
"You've become a complete mess in just a few days."
It smelled of fox.
A smell I truly hated.
The moment I resolved to slap them if they came closer, the other person's face suddenly popped out.
"But what can be done? It's your demons' fault for committing so many acts that earned such deep resentment."
She stroked my hair as if pitying me, but her eyes never lied.
You, you're despising me.
Yet, you manage to put on such an expression.
...Disgustingly so.
"Seeing the irreverent look in your eyes, it seems you still haven't come to your senses."
"...Ugh."
As the other person lightly gripped my shoulder, my joints began to creak.
I turned my head away from the pain that felt like my arm would be torn off any moment.
"You're doing the same thing as the god you serve... Khuk."
"...What did you say?"
If I had known this would happen, I would have just killed her.
I thought she was some benevolent shaman serving an animal god, but she was a psycho shaman serving the same god as me.
I snickered at her glaring, and veins popped out on her face.
"I asked what you just said!!"
Nine tails swayed wildly.
At first, I thought it was amazing that she had nine fluffy tails, but now it was just annoying.
If I had the strength, I would have ripped those tails to shreds...
"Kya, h-huk..."
Yes, no matter how I think about it, it's the same.
This power.
This Divine Power.
It was a sense of déjà vu that only someone who had experienced it firsthand would recognize.
The god the shaman before me served was clearly the Goddess.
It must have been the Goddess who told her I would be passing by this area.
Perhaps, even the Heretic Inquisitors coming to the village was her doing.
"No, no..."
I was waiting to see what pain would come next, when she suddenly fell into her own world.
As I thought about wanting to rip off those tails, a sly smile spread across her face.
"Since you seem accustomed to pain, perhaps I should try a different method."
Tok, the touched area flared red.
No, it flared with heat.
A strange heat flowed through my abdomen, and it felt as if my brain was slowly melting.
This feeling. And this sensation.
I curled my body at a sensation similar to when I drank Hallibel's bodily fluid.
For now, this is the best I can do.
"Huk, h-huff... huff..."
Can I endure it?
No, how long can I truly endure?
The pleasure forcibly bestowed upon my body was no different from a curse.
Even more so, in that it sought to break not just my body, but my mind as well.
"This, this is the same..."
It seemed she knew that her actions weren't particularly pleasant.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have gotten angry upon hearing that she and her god were the same.
I couldn't stop my bitter laughter at her appearance, as if she was trying to hit me but held back.
She didn't stop because of her own fault, but because her actions would disgrace her god.
'No matter what you do, you won't be able to reach the Goddess's level.'
I don't know how she ended up serving such trash, but I didn't particularly feel like pitying her.
What can you do? That's just fate.
Whether it's her, or me.
"Kyaaaaaaak?!?!!!"
A scream echoed.
Not mine, but someone else's.
To be precise, it was the fox beastman in front of me.
Fortunately, it seemed I wasn't destined to be abandoned.
***
I learned tracking skills from the village hunters.
Tracking the traces of beastkin rather than mere animals was a bit tricky, but not entirely impossible.
'It seems this entire area is the territory of beastkin.'
Not even just one type, but several.
From Cat Beastkin fur to wolves, dogs, rabbits, and foxes.
It seemed the beastkin who had lost their kin to demons had gathered their strength together.
Perhaps because of that, finding the village's location was difficult.
No, it *had* been difficult.
"Eup, Eueueup, Eueup?!"
"...I won't harm you. If you just tell me the village's location, I'll release you safely."
I covered its mouth and pointed a sword at its neck, lest the others rush over.
If you understand, nod your head.
At that one phrase, it shook its head wildly, seemingly quite desperate.
"You, you... you've come to save a demon named Ariel, nya?"
"...Is she there?"
Even though I had only said that one phrase, the atmosphere suddenly turned hostile.
'This, this human trying to save a demon, they're out of their mind, nya!'
It wasn't that I hated humans.
If you were to pick the race that lost the most lives to demons, they'd be among the top, so I felt pity for them, if anything.
Therefore, from Ryanyori's perspective, this crazy human was literally a crazy human.
A human saving a demon, of all things.
It was a crazy story on the same level as the Demon King giving birth to beastkin.
"Um, excuse me... could you perhaps put away your sword, nya? I won't run away—"
"How can I trust that?"
"My tail! You can grab my tail, nya!"
If he could see through my stealth, he must be a human who knows a lot about beastkin.
Then he must also know what it means for a Cat Beastkin to offer their tail.
Unconditional surrender.
A Cat Beastkin without a tail cannot balance properly and thus cannot walk, so offering one's tail meant complete surrender.
"Hunya?! P-please hold it a little gently, nya..."
I won't run away even if you don't hold it that tightly!
As I walked with a tearful expression, he slowly followed my pace.
It looked like a young beastkin holding its mother's tail, but in reality, it was a brutal relationship of holding onto and being held by a lifeline.
'If the village chief-nim finds out, I'm really, truly dead, nya...'
Still, if I say a human threatened me and I had no choice but to tell them the location, maybe it'll be okay?
...In truth, it wouldn't be okay at all, but there was no putting spilled water back into the cup.
How did it come to this, nya.
I recalled the face of the demon I last saw.
It was all because of that bastard.
Yes, if only her personality had been nasty.
If she had been a cold-blooded person who never even smiled.
If she hadn't been a weakling.
Even if she had horns!
'That demon, even thinking about her again, I still don't like her, nya.'
Ryanyori grumbled inwardly.