“Can you understand me?” I asked the harpy. Considering that she was not exactly human, she might speak in animal speech. Like bird speech. Which was unlikely, but I just wanted to make sure.
She nodded, meaning she could.
“How long have you been captive?”
The harpy seemed hesitant at first, but she answered me in the end. “I counted… twenty-five days.” Her voice sounded sweet, which I didn’t expect. Almost like the adorable chirps you hear in the morning.
“Do they… hurt you?”
“... If I misbehave.” She sounded depressed as she said that.
“How did they catch you?” I didn’t think it would be easy to catch flying creatures like these.
“... I made a mistake…”
“A mistake?”
“I flew far away from home.” She had a face of regret on her.
“Why?”
“... Curiosity. I wondered what was beyond the horizon.”
I slightly tilted my head. Judging from her words, it would seem she was some kind of young harpy. I didn’t know what an adult harpy would look like, but that was what I was getting. Well, she kind of looked like a teenage human.
“I was perched on a tree when they found me.” She lowered her head. “You humans are scary.”
“Is that really a wise thing to say? Didn’t your kind aid in the extermination of thousands of humans?”
Her brow furrowed deeply, she seemed uncomfortable. “... Not like everyone wanted to take part in it.”
“Not everyone, huh?”
The demon king, I heard, was a frightening, powerful being. He subjugated the entire demon land and all the species within it. He might have compelled every one of his subjects to participate in the war. But still, that didn’t excuse them from their actions, it still had consequences. The resentment from humans.
All actions have consequences. Even how innocent or noble one may think it is.
“Did you, yourself, participate?”
“... No.”
Even if their people took part in the war, should we also blame and resent those that didn’t participate in the war? Would it be fair? Would it be reasonable? Or not? But what if those that participated in the war were a majority, should we blame the entire group? Even the minority? Yes.
Because they did nothing. They still sided with the majority by doing nothing. Therefore, all their people were still to blame, still deserved to be resented. This was not too different from a class, where the entire class would suffer the consequences if a few did something bad. The entire class is not free from responsibilities. Because you are a group, you succeed together, you suffer together. Plenty of times our teachers punished the entire class because a couple did something bad.
“I see. If you were to be free, can you return home by yourself?”
She stared at me for a moment. “... I can.”
“Hm. Have you talked to the rest of the demihumans?”
“The beastfolk? No… Why are you here, human?”
“Hm? Is it bad to want to talk?”
“... Humans dislike talking to us. They would rather treat us like… animals.”
I glanced at the cages outside where people were gathered. “I can see that.”
It was at that moment that the ‘warden’ had arrived. “Hey you! What are you doing here?”
He quickly entered the tent and moved in between me and the harpy, directing a stern look at me. But I kept a blank face.
“Apologies. I saw this creature, and I became curious.”
“Oh, yeah? It’s a harpy. But she’s not for public display.”
“Why?”
“She’s a personal possession of mine.”
I narrowed my eyes. “How did you get your hands on her?”
“I bought her recently.”
“She must not be cheap.”
“Yeah. But they’re rare. So I just have to have her.”
“If she’s not for public display, and not for sports, then what is she for?”
He frowned. “Just for possessing her. I’d have her display at my estate. Anyway, you shouldn’t be here, and stop asking questions. Now get out!” He pointed at the outside aggressively.
I held out my hands. “Alright, alright. I’ll leave.”
I left the tent and walked away from the area. To be honest, I didn’t think the heroes would allow something like this. But I suppose they couldn’t control and decide everything. Or maybe they just didn’t care.
Leaving the miserable demihumans behind, I continued onward with my work.
***
I returned to my luxurious hotel around late afternoon. Placed on the table was the map with several marks. I sat down on the chair as I stared at the map, thinking. It was then that someone knocked on the door.
“Mistress, it’s me, Gavin.”
“Come in!”
He entered and approached me. “Mistress.”
Our setup was that if no one was with me during the day, one of them would report to me in the afternoon.
“... I saw some demihumans being kept in cages.”
“Demihumans?”
“Do you have slavery here?”
Gavin shook his head. “No. It is actually illegal.”
“Does the same apply to the demihumans?”
Gavin was silent for a moment, as if searching for the proper words to use. “Demihumans are enemies of humanity. When the law is in mind, they are not… usually considered.”
“So, in a simple term, they do not have rights?”
“It is a tricky line. There are also rules that say prisoners should not be treated inhumanely. However, people don’t always do that for demihumans.”
“And even if they do treat demihumans badly, rules or laws likely won’t be enforced?”
“Yes. Humans resent them intensely, and whenever demihumans are discovered, it’s natural to attack or imprison them. They are not even allowed in any human territories. It is a criminal offense.”
“I see.” At this point, we might as well consider that anything that was not human had no rights here whatsoever. Humans might be free to do whatever they wanted with them, and no one would care. “What surprised me, though, is that they are used for sports.”
“The sports they participate in are not inhumane. So there is no issue with it to anyone. At the most, they are only used for entertainment, with a reward that the demihumans themselves would be absolutely happy to have.”
And that was what they were reduced to. Mere entertainment. They didn’t deserve any good treatment a living being deserved. Even if you were innocent or uninvolved, like that harpy. But then again, their people participated in the war, so no one was innocent.
“That being said, perhaps it is unavoidable that someone out there might take it too far,” Gavin added.
“Betting on who would win… It’s surprising that people would find joy in that.” Especially that they were humanoid beings, with an appearance that was mostly similar to humans. I had thought that at least people would be bothered that someone that almost looked like them was being treated like trash.
Gavin stared at me. “Does it displease you?”
I mildly shook my head. “Not really… I’m just surprised, that is all… Maybe I expected something better from this new era of humanity. To set aside past adversaries and… to make friends.”
“... That may be nigh impossible.”
“They could have at least tried. Growing resentment explodes.” And I meant the demihumans or any non-humans at all.
“The demons cannot do anything. Even if they tried, they will be defeated again. Especially without their demon king.”
“... Are demihumans categorized as demons?”
“Actual demons are different. But demihumans are considered part of the demon’s army. It is simpler to just refer to them as demons as well.”
“I see. Perhaps during the war, they were not so different, anyway.”
“Yes.”
“Is buying demihuman captives legal?”
“... I guess if they bought it from someone that captured them, and not the government. Just like those used for sports that you’ve seen.”
“Is that not slavery?”
“The demihumans here are not exactly used for labor. And even if they did, I don’t think anyone would care.”
“Of course… At least whoever wins gets a chance at freedom. Anyway, what news?” Done with the topic about the demihumans, I switched to the business at hand.
“I have compiled a list of high-ranking individuals. And those that are close to the hero.” He pulled out a sheet of paper and handed it out to me.
I read the contents. There were names and rankings, their stations, and physical description.
I nodded. “I scouted guard stations and posts, marked them on the map. I must say, they are everywhere.”
“... Mistress, do you intend to destroy the city?”
“Why? Are you against it?”
“I go along with whatever you wish. But I just want things to be clear, so I’ll know where we are heading.”
He kept a stoic face, so he must be being honest.
“I intend to destabilize the city. Killing the hero will not be easy. I want as little intervention as possible.”
He nodded. “I understand, mistress.”
“... I plan to attack during the festival.”
“The festival spans for three days, which day would you do it?”
“... Just get ready anytime. To that end, I need their plans.”
“Plans?”
“Their security plans. Where they are sending their guards, where they patrol, and so on. Do you not have those?”
“... The three of us are not included in the security roster.”
“Then have at least one of you to be included. I want someone inside that knows their moves.”
“Very well, mistress.”
I nodded and let out a sigh, staring out at the window. “Anything else to report?”
“... Yes… Uh, would you prefer to have someone tag along with you tomorrow, mistress?”
“... Oh yes, I do. Why? You want to come along?”
He had a troubled look on his face. “Not me… It’s… Avelyn.”
I turned my head at him and raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue.
“She has been… problematic.”
“Huh… What did she do?”
“She picked a fight. She may need time… cool off.”
I chuckled. “Why am I not surprised…? That girl has been a little volatile.”
And I just let her be. That was just how she was. I was sure she had some plenty of bottled up feelings yearning to be let out. She was always pissed, basically. I could see it in her eyes. I let her as she was because she was not bothering me when we were talking.
“Very well. I’ll take her along.”
“Thank you, mistress.”
I stood up. “I need to feed… Those knights we killed filled me well. But I need to feed now, even for just a little. Come with me outside the city.”
“From which do you intend to feed?”
“Let’s give monsters or animals a try. And if there are humans on the road, I’ll think about it.”
“Understood.”