* * *

“Don’t approach recklessly, calmly encircle the area.”

The High Demon, whose upper body was left dangling, was surrounded by the warriors. As Cadel had described, she did not regenerate her body; she simply stared blankly at the ground, her torso only half remaining.

However, Hyron did not let his guard down. The intensely repulsive aura emanating from the demon was palpable. This was not an opponent to be taken lightly.

Hyron ordered the warriors to maintain their distance as he approached the demon. Ignoring the warnings, he got closer, and the demon’s face became clearer.

From a distance, the face had looked like a lifeless doll, emotionless. But now, tears were flowing from that dry, expressionless face. Hyron narrowed his eyes, sensing the sorrow radiating from her.

“Why are you crying?”

At Hyron’s question, the demon’s gaze shifted. Her dark violet eyes focused on him, and her lips, which had never moved before, slowly parted.

“Because my family died.”

Her voice was thin and high-pitched, fragile, as if it could shatter at any moment. Despite her face not changing, tears continuously flowed from her eyes, creating a chilling atmosphere.

“Rodin and Arpa. They fought for the glory of the Solavis family. And then they died. I…… couldn’t protect them.”

“……Solavis. I’ve never heard of that family. What is your name?”

“Cynthi. The eldest daughter of the Solavis family. And you?”

“Hyron. The Fairy King of the Pinhai Tribe.”

As they exchanged words casually, Hyron kept a close watch on the demon named Cynthi. If she showed any signs of gathering demonic energy or attempting to regenerate, he would not hesitate to strike.

Although she appeared fragile, like someone who couldn’t even kill an ant, the power she harbored was not something to be underestimated.

Cynthi mumbled Hyron’s name a few times, then looked him in the eye and said.

“Hyron. I wish for the liberation of the Demon Realm. I want to kill the humans who have oppressed us only for the sake of liberation. If you’re a fairy, you understand that, don’t you?”

“…….”

“Humans took away freedom from both us demons and you fairies. Why are you helping them? If you join me now and we wipe out the humans together, we might make good allies. But do you really think that by helping the humans, you’ll ever regain your freedom?”

“What are you trying to say? Humans, of course, oppressed us, but demons also did that as well. Are you seriously suggesting that a race that brutally hunted and ate fairies is now talking about alliances?”

“Do you really think a race with the power to seal an entire species in the underground world would ever acknowledge the freedom of another race? If you make even the slightest noise, they might just find another sealing stone to lock you up again.”

Cynthi’s voice quickened. As if trying to brainwash Hyron with her argument, the once-whispered words grew increasingly clearer.

“The reason you were sealed was because of your reckless massacres. You didn’t just cause a little disturbance. You looked down on every race, slaughtered them, and even ate them. Who would ever welcome a race like that?”

“But not you.”

Cynthi’s lips twisted grotesquely. It looked like a child who didn’t know how to smile was awkwardly trying to mimic a grin.

“You just existed. With a pair of wings, blessed by the Great Spirit, you merely existed. And yet, humans slaughtered you. After enduring such humiliation, you’re still siding with them? Why? I don’t understand at all.”

Hyron’s expression froze as he was about to immediately refute Cynthi’s words. He closed his mouth and turned around, rolling his eyes.

“If you want freedom, you need to eliminate the humans. If your own strength isn’t enough, why not use the demons’ power to eliminate them? This is the perfect opportunity. If you face the humans, we’ll retreat. Anyone who enters the Demon Realm will meet their death anyway.”

Cynthi’s voice grew louder with such natural ease that Hyron didn’t even notice it right away. She raised her voice enough to reach the warriors surrounding her, who had kept their distance.

Cynthi’s temptation began to shake the warriors’ hearts. The fairy warriors’ expressions darkened, and the excitement and satisfaction they had felt from leaving the forest and defeating the demons quickly faded.

Hyron let out a low sigh as he read the conflict on their faces. Before Cynthi could speak again, he spoke first, his voice clear and loud.

“Yes, maybe demons and fairies share a common experience of living under oppression. But none of you ever stepped forward to help the fairies who lost their freedom.”

“…….”

“Therefore, we will not fight for you. Also, our fighting on the side of humans is not because we like them or wish to help them. We fight for ourselves.”

Hyron paused briefly to take a breath, his gaze directed at some point on the ground. Among the many moving dots, he found one and continued.

“Someone who would fight for us, who have lived like birds in a cage, stripped of freedom. Someone who liberated one bird and proved the weight of the promise. It was beside that person that we decided to fight for the liberation of the fairies.”

They could not let the fate of their race be determined by the victories or defeats of humans while hiding safely in the forest. On the day Lydon had knelt and pleaded, Hyron had once again felt his own weakness.

He had witnessed endless freedom and seen Lydon, who pledged to give everything for the one human who granted it. From him, Hyron saw a strong will and courage that his own father never had. He didn’t even need to think about where that burning passion had come from. He knew it all too well. So, they had to fight.

“We will fight, so that we can proudly say that we earned our freedom. And on the foundation of that, there will be the bodies of you, demons.”

As Hyron spoke, Cynthi’s eyes widened. It wasn’t because of the shock from his words. She didn’t notice the subtle shards of ice that had silently wrapped around her head. The sharp ice shards, like a thorny laurel crown, began to tighten mercilessly around her.

“Ah, ah……”

Blood tears began to flow from her eyes as her head was constricted. Her wide-open eyes trembled, and her upper body jerked painfully. However, Cynthi didn’t look at Hyron, who had attacked her, nor at the fairy warriors surrounding her.

She only gazed at the ground, where the bodies of her family had been abandoned. Beneath the tightening laurel crown, the blood that had flowed down had soaked the ground. Hyron watched her suffer helplessly, without offering any resistance.

He thought Cynthi would make one last desperate attempt. As a High Demon, as Cadel had warned, she would likely do something extraordinary.

“It’s sad……”

However, Cynthi did not retaliate. She simply murmured gloomily as she clutched her face. Then, in the next moment:

“……!”

Her body began to melt into a thin liquid. A dark purplish liquid, mixed with blood, fell to the ground in droplets. Was it another technique to reshape her body? They watched carefully, but the liquid just soaked into the ground, leaving no signs of resurrection or attack.

There was no sign of revival, nor any indication of an incoming attack. The fairies, observing the rapidly dissipating traces of Cynthi, were engulfed in a strange feeling. But it was only for a moment.

Hyron, seeing the fairies faltering, sternly shouted.

“Eliminate the remaining monsters. Our rage should be directed to the right place now.”