Chapter 2: Colonial Demon World (2)

From the moment the eight children caught Mitai’s eye,

it was clear to everyone that their fate would be dark.

What happened in front of the scales spread quickly among the demons and became known throughout the entire prison,

but none of those people could help the children.

“I didn’t do it. It’s not my magic. I don’t even know how to use magic.”

The eight children, dragged into the prison’s torture room,

had to endure ‘interrogation’ from the officers in their solitary cells.

“I know, I know. Of course, it wasn’t you.”

In the room of one child, a beast-blooded child, Mitai smiled and patted the child’s head.

“I don’t think a beast would have used magic either. But you know,

I believe you know who the owner of that magic is.”

Mitai showed the various tools at the corner of the torture room, deliberately flaunting them to the beast-child.

“Maybe if you tell me, I’ll let it go quietly?”

“I… I don’t know. I don’t know anything about magic, or who used it.”

“Do you think I’ll believe that lie?”

“Well, I guess it can’t be helped.”

This is going to hurt a lot.

The beast-child tightly closed their eyes.

But seeing this, Mitai chuckled and patted the child’s head again.

“…Huh?”

“Go to the next room and tell them.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Instead of torturing the child, Mitai gave an order to one of the officers nearby.

The officer nodded and briefly left the room.

What is going on?

While the child imagined various reasons alone,

a small window on one side of the torture room opened.

Originally, it was a small steel window that was not visible from the opposite side, but even fully opened, only one

eye could barely be seen.

From there, an eye appeared and stared at Mitai.

“Yeah, start.”

With Mitai’s response, the eye disappeared, leaving the window open.

The first sense to be activated among the child’s five senses was hearing.

From beyond that window, the desperate screams of a friend were heard.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I won’t use magic again. It hurts so much, please save me, please.”

“Then just tell me who used that magic.”

“…That… I don’t know…”

“Wow, you guys are amazing.”

“Wait a minute… please, please stop..!”

Mitai smiled and walked past the beast-child, who was losing focus.

Mitai started to play with the child’s large ears.

The sensitive part trembled uncontrollably.

“You’re a beast, aren’t you? With that excellent hearing of yours,

you can hear your friend’s screams so clearly, right?”

Mitai spoke to the child as though it were a casual remark.

“What should we do? If just one of you is honest, maybe the friend next to you will be relieved.”

The pounding heartbeat, the lost focus,

the lungs struggling to breathe, and the brain only imagining the worst.

“Not going to say anything?”

All of these fears were sharply pierced by Mitai’s voice.

“…What? The children are taken to the torture room?”

The rumor spreading throughout the prison reached the grandmother as well.

“Why? Why, exactly, what did those children do wrong?”

Unlike her usual calm self, the grandmother asked sternly, and the other demons were taken aback.

However, they calmly explained the reason.

“They used magic, Grandma.”

…O?

Did Leraje get caught?

And it just so happens that a guard is here?

The grandmother was instantly enveloped in guilt.

She looked at the guards, and even though she saw them, she quickly dismissed the matter as trivial.

She should have warned the children. Told them to be cautious today because it was dangerous.

“…No! Not those children!”

“What are you doing, Grandma! You’re going to get caught up in this too! In times like this, just stay still!”

Despite the strong objections around her, the grandmother kicked the ground and ran out, her body unable to keep up.

“Mitai, Sir. Someone among the demons says they taught the children magic.”

“Who reported that nonsense?”

“One of the supervisors in this prison.”

“Are the fools really believing that nonsense?”

Mitai, disgusted by the supervisors, was about to respond when he suddenly realized something and smiled again,

asking his subordinate.

“Ah… of course, our officer must have already figured out who it is, right?”

“Yes, their name is…”

“No, no, no. That’s not what I mean.”

“Then, I would appreciate some guidance.”

“Just tell me their age.”

“127 years old, according to the records.”

“Ah~ Now I get it. That’s why these little brats are so tough.”

If someone is bold enough to claim they taught the children magic, it must mean they have a deep connection with these children.

However, a demon who has lived for over 100 years in a colony is no ordinary person.

They must have experienced all sorts of hardships, yet seeing them take this step makes sense.

It’s understandable why the children under such a person would have heavy mouths.

“Tell everyone to stop the torture.”

“Eh? Is that okay?”

“Didn’t you see? Who are they going to tell?”

“They’re still just kids. Give it a few days, and they’ll…”

“That’s all~. It’ll reflect on my performance review.”

Once the performance review was mentioned, the guards fell silent.

No matter what they said about such a sensitive issue, it was clear they’d only get scolded.

“I’d be grateful if they tell me right away. But I think we can last a day, right? There’s no point torturing them

unnecessarily. It’ll be bad for their mental health. Let’s finish it tomorrow, for sure.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Ask for a magic stone to be sent to the center.”

Masuk. A special stone that reacts whenever a sorcerer touches it in the demon realm language, or a wizard touches it in the human realm language.

With that, I could have easily tracked down the culprit by tomorrow.

According to Mitae, the chaos had all been for the purpose of leaving tomorrow—just for the sake of a performance review.

“Then what about the demon claiming to have taught magic?”

“Hmm… I’ll scratch it myself and if they don’t respond, we can use the Masuk tomorrow to confirm.”

“What about the rest of the children?”

“We’ll lock them all in one room so they can’t escape, and you guys keep watch. Don’t even give them food.”

“Yes!”

The grandmother dragged into the torture room remained calm, unlike the children.

She had lived through it all her life. Now, it had become so familiar it was almost tiresome.

She would surely be in pain, but her body was already broken.

If it was for the children, she could endure it.

And Mitae knew this confidence all too well.

“Wow, as expected, you’re calm.”

“You know, do you? Our lives span over three times as much as yours.”

“Isn’t that the Demon King’s achievement? The four factions of the demon realm must be equal for survival, meaning even the difference in lifespan should be gone.”

“Really envy you. To live forever and remain beautiful… I envy you so much.”

Mitae said this while genuinely admiring and stroking the grandmother’s clean face.

“But still, I believe in the hero. Why? Because the hero won.”

Mitae seemed to want a twist, suddenly changing the atmosphere.

“You can bind someone who’s lived three times as long as I have, and torture a child who awakened magic all alone in this place. Who’s responsible for all of this? It’s thanks to the hero, isn’t it?”

“What do you want to say?”

“Why do you work so hard? You’re 127 years old, right? In the demon realm? I just committed suicide. Is that what you meant, like the fanatics say?”

“If you wanted to come, you should’ve come earlier. How could a Demon King turn a blind eye to his children being tortured? Is he a god? Or is he just a corpse?”

“Then stop resisting and speak. Tell me, which of the children below you is the wizard?”

“I taught them magic.”

“Do you think I’ll believe that? The Masuk will be here tomorrow. The truth will come out in a day. Just speak honestly, your body’s already failing you, why don’t you rest?”

The grandmother stared at Mitae with cold eyes.

And with a voice free of fear, she replied.

“You’re one crazy woman. I suppose it’s impossible to stay sane while doing something like this.”

“…What?”

“Even though I’ve lived as a s*ave under you and my body’s been broken and dirtied, I’ve never given up being a human.”

“…Huh…”

“Do you think I’ll speak just because I have only one day left? You’re wrong.”

Mitae bit her lower lip and nodded.

It seemed her pride had been deeply hurt, and she kicked over the desk in the corner of the torture room.

“A crazy woman… Yeah, you’re right.”

As Mitae picked up the tools that had fallen from the desk, she spoke.

“You don’t have to say it. What I’m doing now is just the rampage of a crazy woman. Got it?”

Thus, LeRazier’s secret was postponed for one more day.

The eight children and the grandmother were temporarily imprisoned in the same room.

None of them were unharmed.

Some of the children silently cried due to deep trauma.

Others remained silent, hanging their heads.

But among them, the one in the worst mental state was LeRazier.

“…It’s my fault.”

Because I awakened magic.

Because I developed a talent that wasn’t even chosen by the Demon King.

Because of me, all my friends and grandmother ended up like this.

I’m sorry. I should’ve said something, but I was too scared.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No.”

But it was one of the children who denied that.

“I’m glad you didn’t tell us.”

“If you had kept silent, it would’ve ended there. But… you trusted us, so you didn’t say anything, right?”

“…That’s…”

“Thank you. For trusting us.”

Starting with that, one by one, the other children spoke up.

“I like LeRazier.”

“I’m not someone who sells out my friends to bad people.”

“Ah… it didn’t hurt! I’m immortal! Even if my body breaks, I can heal…”

“LeRazier has done so much for us.”

Amidst the warm words, LeRazier lowered her head as tears flowed.

Then, as always at the end of the day, they gathered around her.

“We can get through this. Right? We’ve done well so far.”

Seeing this, the grandmother fell into deep thought.

The spark in those children’s hearts still hadn’t gone out.

They were trying to revive it by sharing the embers they held in their hearts.

But that future didn’t seem hopeful.

If time passed like this, it was likely that it would all burn out, just like it had happened to her.

“Good job… children…”

The grandmother, too, gathered herself into the warm fire, briefly lighting a spark in her heart, which had turned to ashes.

Then, memories of her childhood, when she had been beside the priestess, surfaced.

When she still had a flame in her heart, not someone else’s flame.

If the priestess had been here instead of her, she would have prayed for these children.

But the priestess was only someone who would pass on her story.

The grandmother recalled Mitae’s words.

The Demon King had not returned, even though 300 years had passed, witnessing the suffering of the demon realm.

Hearing that, would the priestess have prayed for these children?

She would have, if she were still alive.

But the woman, following the priestess’s prayers, had already left decades ago.

The Demon King did not listen to her voice.

However, now, in the warmth of the children, the grandmother briefly returned to her past self.

Remembering the prayers she always whispered at night, she quietly muttered.

“Demon King, hero of the demon realm who left this land,

I know the eyes that have not yet warmed cannot see the world.

Though I could never be a priestess, I wish to paint this picture for you.

Here is the red color.

It is the color of the children’s suffering.

If these children do not help the Demon King’s great plan, it is fine if you do not use them in your scheme.

But I know their screams are not something the Demon King would want to hear.

Here is the blue color.

It is the color of the dreams these children hold.

These children are nurturing their dreams together, centered around the child who wants to become a sorcerer.

That dream is the very color the Demon King would wish to see.

Here is the orange color.

It is the flame these children are nurturing.

Look at the beautiful dance of this ever-growing flame.

No dancer could possibly create such a dazzling line.

And lastly, there is the black.

It is the color of an old demon who, holding onto the ashes of a burned heart, still cannot give up on life.

Holding onto her broken body and soul, she has protected these children.

I pray, please…

Do not abandon these children.”

It was a deep night.

The children and the grandmother were all struggling in physical pain, sleeping uneasily.

The grandmother always dreamed nightmares.

It was because, in her subconscious, there was nothing but nightmares, as her life was filled with sorrow.

But that day was different.

The grandmother had a strange dream that made her mutter in her sleep, unlike her usual self.

“…Demon King?”

As the day broke, the grandmother was the first to open her eyes.

Her body, ruined by torture, screamed in pain, but her consciousness was not there.

She woke each of the children one by one.

However, she did not wake Lerazie.

When the children asked why, she replied,

“I have something to tell you.”

After the children gathered, as always, the grandmother told them a story.
*
“Gather all the demonkin in the center? Why…?”

“Because it will serve as an example. Do you understand?”

Mitae answered sharply to the camp warden.

However, the police officer, who had been listening to the conversation, disagreed.

He probably wanted to add a line to the report.

Above all, people who care about their performance reviews needed an explanation for why the delay happened.

“…Ah, I understand.”

Even if the warden knew his true intentions, he couldn’t oppose Mitae.

As they gathered all the demonkin, thousands of them formed a huge crowd.

In the center of it all, eight children were sitting, their hands bound.

A few steps away, the grandmother was bound as well.

Most of the people from the present world could not feel at ease in such an environment.

The warden and even the police officers were all heavily armed, preparing for any possible situation.

In this situation, the only person who appeared calm was Mitae.

“Welcome, devoted demonkin serving the Empire. You must have heard of what happened in this camp.”

Mitae began his speech from the center of the stage.

“These eight children, although knowing how to use magic, dared to deceive the camp warden and try to benefit only themselves.

Even though our officers gave them a chance to confess, they kept their foolish loyalty and said nothing.

The reason you all are gathered here is to learn what happens to those who betray the Empire.

For the Empire, lies and loyalty do not matter. Only unquestionable devotion is required.”

Mitae looked at the children with a smile.

Then, he took a stone from his pocket.

It appeared to be an ordinary stone, about the size of a person’s fist.

“Now, I will show you the greatness of the legacy left by the hero.”

Mitae threw the stone into the air, catching it repeatedly as he approached the children.

He expected them to be terrified, but when the children showed unexpected resolve, he suddenly stopped.

“Strange? Where did the ones who were crying yesterday go?”

No, it doesn’t matter. After all, once I find a mage with this magic stone, it’s over.

Mitae regained his composure and placed the stone on each child’s body.

He deliberately checked the non-demon, undead, and beast children first, then lastly moved to the two demons.

The first demon showed a faint reaction to the magic stone.

But no, this kind of talent couldn’t possibly awaken magic in a camp like this.

He was already certain of the culprit as he stood in front of Lerazie.

“Little dog, hand.”

Lerazie, who had only shown madness towards him, instinctively sensed his future.

Lerazie tried to resist, hesitating to stretch out his hand, but the gaze of the police officers surrounding Mitae

pressured him, and he reluctantly extended both hands.

When the magic stone was placed on Lerazie’s hands, it reacted violently, shining brightly.

“I found it.”

Mitae laughed with a crazed look on his face.

He left the stone on Lerazie’s hands and resumed his speech.

“Lies against the Empire are this light. Even enduring all the torture, a mere stone reveals the truth. Now, demonkin,

do you feel your positions?”

Despite such provocative words, the demonkin remained silent.

“Then, shall we execute the traitor?”

Mitae motioned to the police officer, who nodded and stood Lerazie up.

Mitae deliberately exaggerated his movements as he drew his sword.

Meanwhile, Lerazie, with regret on his beautiful face, realized he was going to die.

It had been a secret that would eventually be exposed.

He had put his friends through so much for this insignificant secret.

Perhaps, after his death, his friends and grandmother would follow him.

Lerazie tearfully looked back at his friends, but they were watching him with remarkable calmness.

Perhaps they trusted him, but Lerazie, confused by their expressions, couldn’t understand.

Before he could make sense of their expressions, Mitae, seemingly done with his little show, aimed the sword at Lerazie’s neck.

But in that moment, Mitae felt something unusual happening.

The light pouring out of the magic stone grew stronger, much stronger than before.

This phenomenon was so intense that even the demonkin around him had to shield their eyes.

“Eh…?”

Instinctively, Mitae searched for the reason.

The magic stone responded to the mage’s talent, and the intensity of the reaction was proportional to the talent.
And…

“Could it be…?”

As Mitae contemplated, he suddenly realized something.

In the brief moment of contemplation, the magic stone on Lerazie’s hands began to glow violently, vibrating uncontrollably.

The tremors were so strong that Lerazie could no longer hold onto the stone.

The moment he released it, Mitae instinctively reacted, catching the falling stone and throwing it as hard as he could in any direction.

As the stone flew, it soared far, a distance worthy of a police officer.

But this wasn’t a calm response—it was a desperate attempt to survive.

In the chaos, there was no way to avoid mistakes.

When the stone crashed into the magic barrier, it exploded, destroying the barrier entirely.

The explosion was so powerful that some of the supervisors, waiting nearby, were thrown to the ground.

But at that moment, the one thing that controlled the minds of everyone present, excluding Mitae, was not the injured supervisors.

It was the barrier.

And everyone present witnessed it.

As if entranced, all the demonkin began to move slowly.

The sound of a bell, foretelling the coming chaos, rang out—loud and unrelenting.

It was the warden’s voice, who had been suppressed by Mitae until now, signaling the alarm.

“All officers, assemble and prepare for battle! Force is authorized! I repeat! All officers, assemble and prepare for battle! Force is authorized!”

And in response, a voice from among the demonkin gave a command to all.

“The barrier has fallen!”

“We can leave! We can escape!”

With a thunderous roar, the tide of demonkin surged toward the broken barrier, unstoppable by the weak human

forces armed only with swords and bows.

“Officer! It’s an emergency! Please give orders!”

“No, no. Was there such a talent here? Here? Why now, in front of me?”

But Mitae couldn’t focus on the crisis.

In the meantime, it was Lerazie’s friends who moved first.

“Ha-a-a-a!”

With a battle cry, the beast child attacked first, charging toward the police officers.

The child pushed the bodyguard aside with a headbutt.

Other children also rushed forward, pushing the other guards aside.

Despite their bodies being severely damaged by torture, they still did this.

“Ch-children?”

While Le Ra Ji Ae was in a daze,

a familiar voice from somewhere snapped her out of her stupor.

“Go, Le Ra Ji Ae!”

“…Grandmother?”

“The Demon King needs you! Hurry, go!”

The Demon King?

At that moment, a flood of memories and scenes overlapped in Le Ra Ji Ae’s mind.

The prophecy that the Demon King would come for her when the time was right.

Her grandmother’s words that there would be a way to cross the barrier when the time came.

Her grandmother’s voice calling for the genius magician the Demon King needed.

Her friends who helped her…

“Le Ra Ji Ae! You’ll bring the Demon King and save us, right?”

“I’ll trust you! Don’t forget about us!”

Amid the overwhelming flood of words and information, Le Ra Ji Ae couldn’t even catch her breath properly.

The overbreathing in her confused state made her lose her composure.

“…Commander Mitae orders! All guards, ignore the demons escaping and capture the girl! You must not let her get away! She will become the enemy who terrorized the human realm 300 years ago!”

Commander Mitae’s threatening command pressured Le Ra Ji Ae.

Guards in white uniforms drew their swords and charged from all directions.

Le Ra Ji Ae was overwhelmed by the obsession to escape in that brief moment.

The Demon King needs me? Why would someone like me be needed?

I… I have to get out! My friends are sacrificing for me.

But what about my friends? No…

But how do I get out? The barrier is…

Calm down.

This isn’t the time to worry about that. It’s a battlefield, remember?

No… How do I break through this encirclement…

At that moment, a voice calmed Le Ra Ji Ae.

Whether it was the voice of a trapped genius or the voice of the Demon King who needed her, Le Ra Ji Ae didn’t

know.

But instinctively, she knew that following the voice was the right thing to do.

Concentrate your magic into your hands.

Stretch your hands forward and tear open the air.

This may be your first time using this magic, but you can do it.

Le Ra Ji Ae followed the advice, and a dimensional door opened in front of her.

The magic flowing from the dimensional door pierced through the shattered magic barrier.

Le Ra Ji Ae shouted to her friends,

“Thank you… I’ll be back for sure!”

With those words, she threw herself into the dimensional door.

The moment she passed through, the door closed instantly, as if to prevent any pursuit.

“No! No! No!”

Commander Mitae screamed in despair.

From Mitae’s perspective, there was only one instance where a magic stone explosion had occurred.

It was said that even the Empire’s grand mage, advising the emperor, had caused a magic stone to explode, but the

mage only suffered minor injuries.

But look— the barrier has fallen.

The Empire’s grand mage is a position passed down through generations, a seat for the talent of each era.

But the potential Le Ra Ji Ae showed was not just of her generation, but of an entire era’s worth of talent.

Even Mitae, who didn’t know magic, couldn’t doubt the proof of her power.

“Commander Mitae orders! All guards, immediately mount your horses! Do not let her escape! We must capture her!

She’s just an inexperienced magician, she couldn’t have gone far!”

All the guards, who had been approaching the children to kill them, turned at that command.

The chaos of the camp was entirely abandoned under Mitae’s direction.

Le Ra Ji Ae was lying in a field when she woke up.

In front of her, a white rabbit was hopping across the field.

As she raised herself, what appeared before her was an endless, blue field.

“…Wow…”

At the beautiful sight she had never seen before, Le Ra Ji Ae couldn’t help but instinctively gasp in awe.

A white rabbit had jumped over a fence.