Conditions for coexistence

The tip of Himmel's sword trembled slightly.

He looked at Mina's vacant purple eyes, then at the Village Chief, curled up on the ground in agony and despair, and at the fear and anger that seemed ready to burst from the villagers' eyes. He understood what the Village Chief meant: it was a tolerance that transcended the divide between races, one bordering on compassion.

After all, in appearance, the demon before them really was only a child.

"Demons," Frieren said in a calm voice, breaking the tense silence.

At some point, she had stepped forward. Her green eyes watched Mina calmly, as though she were examining a specimen. "Most are abandoned at birth and left to fend for themselves. So they have no concept of 'parents' at all. They imitate human speech and behavior, even imitating cries for help and admissions of wrongdoing, but those are only tools they acquire through observation and learning, to deceive and hunt. In essence, they're no different from beasts acting on instinct."

Her gaze swept over the Village Chief's face, which had grown even paler at her words.

"She's different from a human child. She can't understand right and wrong, and she can't form genuine emotional bonds. Don't expect to teach her to truly become human." Frieren's statement was cold and objective, shattering the last shred of hope.

Lowell sighed softly, walked to Frieren's side, and continued, "That's right. To demons, humans are no different from the pigs, dogs, deer and sheep in the mountains and forests. Although they can communicate through language, humans are essentially just another form of 'prey' or 'resource' that can talk."

He paused, then offered an even more alarming fact.

"You may not know this, but the current Demon King... he genuinely hopes to coexist with humans. His philosophy could even be called 'idealistic.'"

The Village Chief froze and opened his mouth, cold sweat beading on his forehead from the searing pain of his wound.

Under everyone's astonished gazes, Lowell slowly continued, his words in cruel contrast to his peaceful tone.

"However, even while holding to that ideal of 'coexistence,' the wars he has led over the past thousand years have still destroyed nearly two-thirds of the human world's population and civilization. Ideals are one thing; the nature of a race and reality are another."

The Village Chief's lips trembled. "That..." He seemed to want to argue, but found that any words would ring hollow in the face of such facts.

The last glimmer of hope in his eyes went out. He slowly lowered his head and looked at his severed arm, which Heiter had enveloped in a gentle healing light. Flesh was slowly reconnecting the arm—after all, the severed arm was still there, and Heiter was capable of restoring it.

"Coexistence with demons isn't entirely impossible." Lowell changed tack, drawing everyone's attention. "But first, you have to be strong enough. Strong enough to suppress her attacks and withstand the consequences of any possible backlash."

"Himmel has his journey, and I have my own life to live. We can't stay here as guards forever. If we leave her with you, who can guarantee that next time, it won't be your daughter or another villager who gets taken as 'compensation'? When that happens, it won't be just an arm that's lost. I don't mind either way, but from the look of things, the villagers... won't be willing to take that risk again, will they?"

The Village Chief followed his gaze and looked around. The villagers held torches, their faces full of lingering fear, anger and resolve. They might sympathize with the Village Chief's plight, but there was no way they would accept Mina staying in the village again. The facts had already shown that a moment of compassion could bring utter disaster. He closed his eyes in anguish, and when he opened them again, only a bleak clarity remained.

As Heiter focused on the treatment, he said softly, "Hahaha, I'm here this time, so your arm can be reattached. If I weren't here, though, you'd be in trouble, Mr. Village Chief."

The Village Chief shuddered violently. He raised his head, his gaze passing over one familiar, frightened face after another, before he closed his eyes heavily. When he opened them again, only weariness and resignation remained.

"Thank you... I'm sorry," he said, his voice hoarse and weak, full of endless remorse. "I... was a fool for a moment, deceived by appearances. I've caused you heroes trouble and put the villagers at risk... The facts have shown that I was wrong."

He took a deep breath, as though using the last of his strength, and said resolutely:

"Then... please... deal with her... with Mina."

The words "deal with her," cold and cruel, brought this brief "coexistence experiment" to an end.

Himmel did not act immediately. Instead, he looked at the Village Chief's reattached arm, then turned to Lowell with a questioning look. He had caught the opening in Lowell's words: that coexistence was "not entirely impossible."

Lowell caught his gaze and seemed to have expected the question. He spread his hands.

"It's simple. No one has ever properly and systematically tested whether a demon's nature can be changed by the environment they grow up in. Since the Village Chief isn't strong enough, he can't conduct the experiment. So if there's a question, why not have someone strong enough, someone who isn't afraid of a backlash, take her along and observe her over the long term?"

Everyone looked at him, seemingly asking who that person was.

His gaze drifted into the distance, as though it could pierce the night and see the magic tower soaring into the clouds.

"Serie, for example. That woman has lived long enough, and she's more than strong enough to crush a minor character like this. The Magic Association headquarters has plenty of empty rooms and barriers. Hand her over to Serie, and whether she lives or dies, whether she turns into a good little girl or gets killed, will be up to her luck. Besides, she's always had an extraordinary interest in the 'abnormal' and the 'unknown.' Give her this case of 'educational neglect,' and it might be just what she wants."

The suggestion stunned everyone present.

Ruby instinctively shrank back and muttered, "Lady Serie... would she agree? It feels like it would be a lot of trouble for her..." Her tone held a complicated mix of awe toward her master and a touch of "this idea seems like it might work, but it's also kind of scary."

Hearing this, Frieren blinked, seemed to think it over, then looked at Lowell and nodded.

Himmel was silent for a moment, seemingly weighing the proposal. At last, he slowly sheathed his sword, his movements regaining their usual composure, though deep in his eyes there still lingered a trace of grave contemplation over the complicated intertwining of human and demonic nature.

In the light of the flames, Mina still stood quietly, showing no reaction to the discussion about her fate.