Chapter 11
Demonkin (魔族).
A race with horns—the symbol and legacy of demons—as well as red eyes and black mana.
Three thousand years ago, when demons were driving the entire world toward destruction, they committed evil indiscriminately against all races to satisfy their own desires.
Through all manner of horrific acts—including murder, rape, and human experimentation—they struck terror into people across the world.
Some became pregnant after receiving a demon's seed, while others transformed into mutants through mana absorbed during human experiments, and so on. The demonkin were born through these horrific circumstances, and strangely enough, only humans transformed into demonkin.
Countless theories circulated as to why it affected only humans, not elves, dwarves, or beastmen, but the most compelling hypothesis was the peculiar nature of "humans."
Humans had shorter lifespans than other races and were innately inferior in physical ability, but in exchange they possessed tremendous "capacity to learn." That capacity had simply worked in an evil direction. Moreover, humans were beings in whom "light" and "darkness" were far more distinct than in other races, allowing them to accept the demons' seeds more deeply.
[Beings who will one day turn into demons.]
[They pretend to be human, but demon blood flows through their veins.]
[They must be eradicated.]
Yet the other races, humans included, refused to recognize demonkin as victims—in other words, as "humans"—and instead branded them "demons." Since they would actually become demons if they grew so enraged they could no longer control their reason or failed to restrain their desires, it was all too easy to ostracize them.
The Holy Theocracy of Savior even carried out an unprecedented massacre, slaughtering demonkin indiscriminately under the pretext of exterminating every last seed of the demons. From Savior's perspective, demons were beings who had not only denied God but even tried to drag Him down, so the hardliners and moderates alike joined forces to act.
After this madness-fueled catastrophe, the demonkin split into two factions.
One faction truly wished to become "demons" and take revenge on the world, while the other pursued restraint and lived as "humans." However, the faction that became demons was eradicated in its entirety before long, vanishing from the world without a trace.
Then what became of the remaining faction—the demonkin who pursued "restraint" and wished to become human?
While the other great powers, including Savior, waged wars over ideological differences, the demonkin who pursued restraint seized the opportunity to establish Helium. Naturally, most nations refused to recognize Helium, but the demonkin who had honed their strength through restraint were truly formidable.
They were so powerful that invading them would mean suffering attacks from other countries as well, making it impossible to act recklessly. In the end, people began saying they should deal with them gradually when the opportunity arose.
The funny thing was that more than a thousand years passed after that.
Yet discrimination against demonkin never disappeared throughout that time. Humans were not the only race that hated them, after all.
At this rate, the demonkin's wish seemed destined never to come true.
That is, until a certain book appeared in the world.
*******
Born as the princess of Helium and the daughter of its Demon King, I suddenly found myself wondering about something.
Why were we demonkin discriminated against by the other races? Why did we, who looked no different from humans on the outside, have to live under such harsh treatment?
More than anything, why did we have to live as "humans" rather than as another race?
Most demonkin are born in Helium, and most of them also spend their entire lives there. One might call us frogs in a well, but demonkin who ventured outside generally suffered terrible fates.
Losing someone precious, or being betrayed by someone precious and turning into a demon, was commonplace; they also endured discrimination too terrible to put into words before returning to Helium.
The worst cases were those who were treated as demons and murdered without question. Outside Helium, demonkin were frequently killed for no reason other than being demonkin.
"Dad. Dad."
"Hmm? Why are you calling me?"
"Why do we have to live like humans?"
The year I turned twenty.
I asked the king of Helium—in other words, my dad—why we had to live like humans. Did we really need to?
Dad looked momentarily surprised by my question, then soon wore a smile closer to a bitter one. He gently stroked my head with his sturdy, rough hand.
"Cecily. Do you know how our demonkin came to appear in the world?"
"I understand that the demons did terrible things to people, and that's how the demonkin of today were born. And only humans became demonkin among them."
"That's right. Our ancestors were originally human. Even now, we're closer to humans than to the other races. So we have to live like humans if we want to be treated as people ourselves."
"But we don't necessarily have to live like humans now, do we? Can't we just live as demonkin?"
At my doubtful question, Dad smiled even more deeply. Then he bent his knees slightly until our eyes were level.
My face was reflected like a mirror in his blood-red eyes, which marked him as demonkin. Dad looked me in the face for a while, then gently took hold of my shoulders and gave me an answer I couldn't understand.
"That's what makes us demonkin, Cecily."
... ...
"You may not understand it now, but someday you'll come to understand what your father means. That realization will surely help you greatly in your 'life,' so don't ever forget it—listen carefully and engrave it in your heart. Understand?"
"...I understand."
Even after eighty years had passed, I still couldn't understand what Dad had meant. I thought I would continue not to understand it forever.
That is, until a book came out that completely changed the lives of the demonkin. I was certain that the lesson contained in that book was the realization Dad had mentioned.
But Dad shook his head firmly and said that wasn't it.
"Cecily. That book certainly revealed the tragedy of our demonkin and changed our lives. But it isn't the identity of demonkin that I'm talking about."
Then what on earth was it? How did Dad define us?
I carried that question in my heart even when I enrolled at Halo Academy. I prayed that I might find the answer in the human society I was entering for the first time.
And yet...
"No."
Why would you, who aren't even demonkin,
"Demonkin cannot become human."
—dare say something like that?
I stopped dead on my way to the dining hall and stared at the human man in front of me: the one with striking red hair and golden eyes that stood out even from a distance.
His features were fine and delicate, making him look more pretty than handsome, and his slender build gave him a distinctly androgynous image. He was so beautiful that I could have believed without question that a female student had disguised herself as a man.
'...Why?'
My mouth tasted bitter, as though I had swallowed medicine. But first and foremost, a question took over my mind.
He was the human I'd been interested in ever since the Professor Megner incident. The man who had argued that it wasn't demonkin who were dangerous, but mages themselves—the people who wielded magic.
As it happened, Rina, the First Imperial Princess of the Minerva Empire and the first human I'd ever befriended, also showed deep interest in him, so we naturally grew closer. But opportunities for the two of us to talk were few and far between.
So now, after talking with him about various things, I learned that he was an exceptionally considerate human. I'd felt it before, but every word he spoke lingered in my mind.
It was the same now.
"...Mr. Isaac."
"Yes, Lady Cecily."
"Do you realize that there is a contradiction in your answer, Mr. Isaac?"
The red-haired man—in other words, Isaac—had said just moments ago that I looked human. That I didn't look like a demon at all.
Yet he had just said that demonkin could not become human. It was impossible for that not to be a contradiction.
As I struggled to understand the meaning behind his words, Isaac blinked several times, then opened his mouth.
"Lady Cecily."
"Go ahead."
"Have you ever heard a human say that they want to become human?"
"Pardon?"
What kind of absurd thing was that supposed to mean? I made a puzzled expression, then slowly shook my head.
I didn't know what Isaac was trying to say, but it seemed best to listen carefully in silence. So many of his words had given me food for thought and stayed with me.
When I shook my head, Isaac pressed his lips together for a moment, then spoke in an impassive voice.
"You probably haven't, and you never will. Because humans have been human since birth. Demonkin are born as demonkin, so they must live as demonkin."
"Then let me ask you again. What exactly do you mean by living like demonkin? We have made endless efforts to live like humans. And we will continue to do so."
Like Sakran, who sacrificed himself in The Chronicle of Xenon, most demonkin longed to live as humans. They wanted to mingle with people, laugh, chat, and enjoy themselves like ordinary humans.
That was the wish of demonkin who pursued restraint, and their most exalted destiny. That was what I had believed until now.
Until a year ago, I had only thought that way and never put it into practice, but thanks to The Chronicle of Xenon, I seized an opportunity. I never wanted to throw that opportunity away.
But perhaps unaware of how I felt, Isaac maintained his carefree attitude and answered.
"Yes. That is what I believe demonkin are, Princess of Helium."
"...Then what exactly is that supposed to mean? Every one of your words is riddled with contradictions."
I was starting to get irritated. I wondered if this man was making fun of me.
I didn't know why the eloquence he'd used to humiliate Professor Megner was showing itself here, but right now, I was so frustrated I felt as though my insides might burst.
I waited for a while for Isaac to open his mouth. But his lips showed no sign of moving.
I was just about to turn away, unable to endure it any longer.
"A being that can become the brightest light, but can also become the most hideous darkness."
"...What?"
His heavily closed lips parted, and words too weighty to brush aside slipped out.
I was still dumbfounded by his words when Isaac's mouth opened once more.
"A race that knows it cannot become human, yet desperately wishes to become human—a race more human than anyone else."
... ...
Ah. I see.
"That is what I believe demonkin are, and how I believe demonkin can live as 'people,' Lady Cecily."
So that's what Dad had meant.
Demonkin know full well that they themselves cannot become human. And yet they desperately long to become human more than anyone else.
Therefore, unless they became demons, demonkin had no choice but to be more human than humans. Humans were born human to begin with, so they would never possess the desire to become human in the first place.
Demonkin could truly become demons, but conversely, they could become a race more human than anyone else.
While I was lost in thought, Isaac shrugged with a sly expression and continued in his usual composed voice.
"Well... It's not just demonkin; the other races probably don't know what they themselves are, either. In the end, only people can judge people. Just understand that what I said was entirely my own opinion."
... ...
"Lady Cecily?"
"Huh? Oh, yes, yes. I heard you clearly. Thank you."
I hurriedly came to my senses at Isaac's call. Once I did, he gave me a bright smile. I stared at his smile with dazed eyes.
That smile truly sparkled as brilliantly as the sun in a clear blue sky. It also seemed more beautiful than any jewel.
Beautiful enough that I wanted to reach out, take it in my hands, and treasure it.
"Shall we go eat now?"
I answered his question with a smile born of genuine feeling rather than a playful one.
"All right. Let's go."
"Huh? Why are you suddenly speaking informally..."
"Don't worry about it. I'm older than you anyway, aren't I? Rina speaks informally to you too, so it doesn't matter, right?"
"Uh... I suppose it doesn't."
It certainly wasn't my imagination that dinner tasted even better that day.
******
After my cozy dinner with Cecily, I returned to the dormitory without incident. Cecily had gone back ahead of me, saying she had something to think about on her own for a while.
'Come to think of it, I'd definitely heard that somewhere before...'
No matter how hard I thought about it, I felt as though I'd heard the words I'd said to Cecily somewhere before. If it wasn't my imagination, I'd heard them recently, but my memory of where was hazy.
It was later, after I returned to the dormitory and was checking my manuscript for revision.
"Fuck..."
The moment I checked the manuscript, I couldn't help swearing aloud. My face twisted into a scowl for good measure.
Because...
"So those were my own words."
The advice I'd given Cecily was written word for word in my manuscript.