A Nighttime Chat on the Rooftop

As night deepened, the somber conversation around the campfire about "why warriors fight" came to a temporary end.

Rain's mobility was once again restricted, and he fell silent.

Solitär seemed to have recorded enough "data" and contentedly put away her invisible little notebook.

Lowell stood up, brushed the bits of grass off his clothes, and gestured to Solitär towards the slightly dilapidated roof of the cottage. "Shall we go up and talk?"

Solitär pale green eyes and gave a sweet smile, "Great! It's an honor to be invited by the Demon King."

The two figures flashed and silently landed on the thick, damp thatched roof.

From this vantage point, the distant, layered mountain ranges, bathed in the thin moonlight, resembled lurking giants, while from the small house below came the even breathing of his companions, interspersed with the occasional unconscious, soft whimpers of Frieren, like those of a small animal.

Lowell sat down casually, his arms behind his head, gazing up at the starry sky. Solitär, meanwhile, sat down a short distance away beside him, her knees together, in an elegant yet slightly curious manner.

After a moment of silence, Solitär spoke first, her ethereal voice sounding somewhat ethereal in the night breeze. "So, why choose to let him go?" She was referring to Rain.

Lowell gazed at the starry sky, clicked his tongue, and spoke with obvious weariness:

"It's troublesome. I'm tired of giving grand narratives about good and evil. Simply put, what I want is some kind of 'world peace,' or at least a reduction in unnecessary conflict."

While the "Shadow Warriors" organization sometimes employs underhanded methods, its core principle is to maintain the stability of the empire at all costs. From a results-oriented perspective, it has objectively eliminated some "destabilizing factors" that could have led to greater turmoil, and thus has some connection to "world peace."

He turned his head and glanced at Solitär: "These people have a lot of blood on their hands, so they're definitely not good people in the traditional sense. But to say they're pure, bloodthirsty villains wouldn't be entirely accurate. They're more like tools, tools used by the Empire to handle 'dirty work.' If we can use these people to our advantage and make them 'useful,' rather than simply killing them, it's more in line with 'efficiency.'"

Solitär her head, like a curious student. "Then why not leave this one lying on the ground (referring to the dead Mark) as well? Wouldn't it be better to make use of it all?"

Lowell shook his head, his gaze returning to the starry sky, his tone flat yet carrying a hint of cold realism:

"I've left the battle to Lupa. This is for her to gain experience. I didn't tell her beforehand whether to kill or spare; it's entirely up to her judgment and ability on the spot. Killing the attacker is the obvious course of action; those who kill will be killed in return, and one must be prepared to be killed in return. Not killing also has its advantages. If Lupa feels she can hold back during the battle, she will naturally do so; if she deems someone a threat and there's no room for survival, then she will kill."

Solitär nodded thoughtfully, then posed another question, "Then why, after all these years, haven't you had any subordinates like this by your side? Human warriors with considerable strength and experience, like Rain? Have all your previous attempts failed?"

Lowell chuckled softly, a hint of self-deprecation in his voice. "Well... I wouldn't say there aren't any. Many children in the previous orphanage were rescued by chance. But someone like Lupa, with such exceptional talent and temperament, whom I took as my apprentice, is... well, a very small minority. As for mature warriors like Rain, who already possess considerable strength and a complex background, they are rare to begin with. And..."

He stroked his chin. "At my and Frieren's level, ordinary troubles generally won't bother us. As for the truly influential forces that would send assassins of this caliber to deal with us... to be honest, there aren't many, and they probably don't even know us. It's probably just that in recent years, we've been traveling all over the continent with Himmel and getting involved in some things, which has caught the attention of certain people, who then see us as a certain 'threat' to the Empire."

"I personally dislike fighting and avoid it whenever possible. But now that Lupa is here, this level of assassination can be a good opportunity for her to gain real combat experience. The assassination techniques of the 'Shadow Warriors' are unpredictable and secretive, completely different from the pure brute force she faced against the Demons general, or the flashy attacks of a mage. Experiencing more of these will benefit her growth."

A hint of surprise flashed in Solitär's pale green eyes. "Oh? She's already fought against Demons general? I didn't realize that before." She recalled Lupa's battle; although powerful, she didn't seem to have displayed overwhelming strength to fight against Demons general.

Lowell glanced at her, his tone tinged with a self-satisfied pride. "What do you think? She's the Demon King's apprentice. While not a top-tier Demons general like Rivale, she's definitely Demons general in every sense of the word. That battle was fierce; Lupa was seriously injured, but she ultimately won. That's why I said she has great potential."

Solitär let out a soft "Ah," her face showing a look of realization. "Really? So what you said to Rain earlier about Ransen and Eisen, was all true, right? I thought you just made it up to break him down."

Lowell scoffed, his expression slightly displeased.

"Be more honest, both as a human and a demon. Even if you kill him, you'll be fine, and you won't feel guilty about lying to him. But being more open and honest will always make you feel better."

Why didn't I kill him? Because killing someone like that... would make me feel uncomfortable, like in some impossible 'future' where Frieren once told you, 'It's been a long time since I've killed someone without any burden.' Killing anyone with even a little bit of emotion will always make you uncomfortable.

Guiding such people onto what might be called the 'right' path, allowing them to contribute their remaining energy, and enabling them to find new meaning in life—isn't that a better approach, achieving multiple benefits at once?

Redemption... that's it. Perhaps I might make a mistake and allow someone who could have died by my hand to kill many innocent people afterward, but I don't need to be responsible for those people.

I only 'didn't do a good thing,' not that I did anything bad. I've always been someone who just wants to avoid making mistakes, and I don't subscribe to the idea that 'with great power comes great responsibility.' That's the belief of people like Himmel."

Solitär her head, a slightly mocking yet feignedly sad expression suddenly appearing on her face. "Eh... Solitär so sad. We're clearly of the same race, yet the Demon King Lord seems to trust humans more than me? He'll have to use the 'Dominating Stone Ring' on me."

Lowell rolled her eyes at her, annoyed. "Don't give me that. If you cared about that, I'd set off firecrackers to celebrate. That would prove you're finally starting to have complex emotions like 'jealousy' like humans do. But right now you feel nothing about it, you even take it for granted, you're just Imitation it because you think it's funny and 'humans might do that'."

Solitär, exposed, wasn't embarrassed. Instead, she chuckled, "Heh... you can't fool me." She admitted it readily.

Lowell looked at her, his tone calming. "You still fundamentally see humans as 'outcasts'—objects completely different from yourself, objects to be observed. If I weren't here, if I weren't forcing you to interact and live with humans in the same capacity every day, you would simply revert to being that pure 'observer,' continuing your potentially bloody 'experiments.' But that doesn't matter."

He paused, then uttered a somewhat cold but realistic statement:

"Focus on actions, not intentions. I don't care whether you regard humans as intelligent beings worthy of respect, or as insects or experimental subjects. As long as your behavior conforms to the rules of 'coexistence,' and you outwardly live peacefully with humans without actively harming them, that's enough."

Just like in human society, some capitalists and those in power who consider themselves a different species don't really treat ordinary people as human beings, but merely as a string of data to be observed...

But that doesn't prevent them from outwardly coexisting with ordinary people in the same society, outwardly claiming that 'everyone is equal,' and I can accept this level of 'hypocrisy.'

However, a faint glimmer of expectation still flashed in his eyes. "Of course, I still hope that one day you can truly change from the inside out. Not through Imitation, but by truly understanding and acknowledging the value of 'coexistence'."

Solitär listened quietly, then softly repeated, "Really? That's an interesting remark. Hmm... does this mean you have some 'expectations' for Solitär?"

Lowell readily admitted, "Perhaps. For those I believe have the potential to make a change—whether human or demon—if I happen to come across them, I'm willing to put in the effort to give it a try."

Although the process might be a bit tiring, it's still better than just killing them outright. After all, destruction is always much easier than construction.

Of course, there are some I really dislike and I'll just kill them, like that miracle... what was it again? I forgot, it really annoyed me, but he could actually accept my ideas. And Monet, Himmel hadn't killed her, it would have been the same, but once she was killed, she was killed. Oh, wait, you don't seem to know about this."

Solitär smiled with that perfect, concerned smile, "Really? You've gone to so much trouble for such a slim possibility, my Demon King Lord."

Lowell watched her impeccable performance and couldn't help but smile, his tone carrying a subtle, complex emotion:

"You're quite the actress. To be honest, for a fleeting moment just now, I did feel a tiny bit of happiness at being cared for. As for Frieren, I don't want to talk to her about these things. I'd rather she didn't think as much as I do. I just want her head to be filled with magic books and desserts. That's why I wanted to tell you all this, because I hope that one day, you can say similar things not out of 'simulation' or 'observation,' but out of genuine 'sincere feeling.'"

"Really? Solitär will try her best."