It Is a Tool of Humanity

I was disappointed.  

Is this all there is?  

They slightly fractured my leg to keep me from moving.  

That’s the most basic of basics.  

The only novel part was this mask.  

A plain white mask.  

It was shaped to cover the entire upper part of the face.  

At least the eye area had slight openings, allowing some visibility.  

The mask seemed to have a silence spell cast on it, preventing speech when worn.  

"......"  

Yes.  

I could open and close my mouth, but no words came out.  

It was a device crafted by humanity’s great technology.  

To be made to wear such a thing—what an honor.  

I had returned to that underground prison.  

It was the place where I was most useful.  

"......"  

Not even a groan came out.  

Thanks to the mask.  

My leg hurt.  

Another difference was the cloth gag that was kept on me at all times.  

I could no longer speak.  

Still, I was satisfied.  

It was nice to know the name of the person who would cut off my horn.  

Richard.  

This time, he had brought someone with him.  

A figure I had never seen before appeared behind him.  

"...You'll be imprisoned together from now on. They're your kin. Get along."  

Unbelievable.  

A new prisoner?  

And one with horns, just like me.  

A young boy with short blond hair.  

Hmm, he seemed to have more human blood than I did.  

His horns were rather small.  

Was it because he was still young?  

At best, I was around fifteen.  

This kid looked about ten.  

"Let me go."  

He had a rebellious spirit.  

How arrogant for an inferior species.  

Something like that needed to be educated early.  

"Ugh—!"  

Richard was stronger.  

Clank.  

He secured the handcuffs and even attached the shackles connected to the wall.  

Not family, but still kin.  

In the end, he was captured.  

What a delightful sight.  

The underground prison had felt too spacious with only me in it.  

There were shackles prepared for others, yet I had always wondered why I was the only one imprisoned.  

Richard picked up the saw and approached me.  

The specially crafted blade gleamed sharply.  

"W-what are you doing?!"  

Scrape, scrape, scrape.  

He was cutting.  

Ah, was this the first time he had seen this?  

Probably.  

Because cutting off horns was a taboo among my kind.  

They said it was the source of magic and life.  

Something like that.  

Crunch.  

The saw blade occasionally got caught.  

That meant it had sunk in quite deeply.  

This was when the real pain began.  

I had to be careful not to struggle.  

Not that I could once I lost consciousness from the pain.  

The newly arrived boy trembled in fear.  

Was he afraid he’d end up like me?  

There was no need to fear—it was all in service of humanity.  

Crackle.  

Pain surged through my nervous system, and my consciousness faded.  

Again, horns were not meant to be cut.  

But if it benefited humanity, then it had to be done.  

When I came to, I realized today had been rougher than usual.  

My head still throbbed.  

Richard seemed angry.  

The usual consideration to avoid causing pain to an inferior species was gone.  

That was something worth celebrating.  

Staggering, I leaned against the cold wall.  

"...Are you okay?"  

Ah, I had a guest today.  

That child’s horns were still intact.  

Well, he was probably too young.  

It would make sense to let him grow more before cutting them.  

Then why had they locked him up with me in this place?  

Perhaps for education.  

They wanted him to learn from me.  

To learn from an exemplary inferior being.  

His face was a mess of fear.  

That was because he did not yet understand the joy of serving humanity.  

I was happy.  

"W-wait just a little longer. My brother will come to save me."  

Brother?  

"Yeah. If he finds out I'm imprisoned here, he'll definitely—"  

A girl?  

Her hair was short, so I hadn’t noticed.  

The mask also made it hard to see clearly.  

"I’ll save you too, sister!"  

What was she talking about?  

Save? Who?  

Her entire family should be locked up here as well.  

How naive.  

"Yeah. We'll escape together. And we’ll kill every human here. How could they do this?"  

"......"  

She was hopeless.  

Killing humans?

How arrogant.  

This was just how the average inferior species thought.  

I had no expectations in the first place.  

"For us, our horns are... practically a part of our lives..."  

A part of life?  

Ugh.  

I wished she wouldn’t say such disgusting things.  

The idea that these things were a part of life—it repulsed me.  

How could she say something so horrifying?  

I wished my horns were cut off as soon as possible.  

Maybe the culture of inferior species valued them, but I followed human culture.  

I didn’t want to be reduced to the level of an animal.  

Ah, I couldn’t deny that horns were valuable.  

But only because they were useful materials for humans.  

The culture of these wretches meant nothing.  

That child needed to be re-educated.  

She needed to understand humanity’s superiority.  

She might be an inferior species, but she was still an intelligent being.  

She could learn.  

They were being lenient.  

If she were a fully grown adult with no potential for reformation, I wouldn’t even have these thoughts.  

She had to be taught that she existed to serve humanity.  

If I could still manage to speak, I would slowly explain the beauty of humanity to her.  

"Ugh..."  

She was trembling.  

She was afraid she would end up like me.  

That shouldn’t be the case.

You should fear not becoming like me.  

"Asking for your name… but you're unable to speak, right? I've seen someone wearing that mask before…"  

So they say.  

"I'm Ratna. You can call me Leti."  

If I were to consider whether a name was necessary, I wouldn't know the answer.  

Do people name each chicken they slaughter and eat?  

They don’t name the eggs they eat without a second thought.  

There’s simply no need.  

If you call it something like ‘the second egg from the left row,’ you still understand what it refers to.  

"...That must have been terrifying."  

Was she talking about me?  

Her gaze, filled with pity and sympathy, was irritating.  

It felt like someone looking at a zoo monkey with sadness—so ridiculous it was almost amusing.  

This was troublesome.  

I wanted to speak, but my voice was blocked by the mask.  

I wanted to tell her she was mistaken.  

This was exactly where we were meant to be.  

Only inferior beings who could not harm humanity and were simply useful had any right to exist.  

Become a tool for humanity.  

Or become livestock or raw materials.  

A tool is something acknowledged for its usefulness.  

Inferior beings only have meaning when touched by human hands.  

Their lives must be dedicated to humanity.  

I was also contemplating.  

Rather than staying here, having my horns slowly sawed off, wouldn't it be better to capture inferior beings outside or convert them to humanity’s side?  

Wouldn’t that be a more efficient way to utilize my existence?  

Once all my horns were gone, I wanted to request they consider other ways to use me.  

Clank.  

A bowl was set down.  

My half-closed eyes opened.  

It was mealtime before I knew it.  

Richard had brought food.  

Not for me, but for Ratna.  

"...W-what is this?"  

"It's your meal."  

"Why only me?"  

How arrogant.  

He gave it to you because he wanted to.  

Instead of being grateful, she was being rude.  

"......"  

Richard seemed to think the same.  

"Don’t give it to me, give it to her."  

She wasn’t in a position to make demands.  

Richard hesitated for a moment, then retrieved the bowl.  

And he walked toward me.  

It seemed he intended to grant Ratna’s request.  

But that would only spoil her.  

He stopped in front of me, holding the bowl.  

Ah, my hair was grabbed.  

My head was lifted, and my jaw was forced downward.  

I started to taste the soup.  

Mmph.  

Urgh.  

He was putting it directly into my mouth.  

Mmmph.  

It was hard to breathe.  

"Stop it!"  

Cough.  

Even when I tried to swallow the soup, there was too much of it.  

I felt like I would choke.  

"S-sto..."  

Who was the one who told him to give her meal to me?  

Feeding me this way wasn’t a bad idea.  

It would be strange to wait patiently until I finished eating on my own.  

At this rate, the meal was over in less than twenty seconds.  

Though quite a lot of it had spilled.  

My expression was not clearly visible.  

That was probably why the Count had given me this mask.  

It would be troublesome if Richard felt any pity when looking at my face.  

I felt dizzy.  

It was hard to breathe.  

"S-stop."  

I thought it was over, but it wasn’t.  

He pressed my head down toward the floor as if telling me to eat what had spilled.  

The soup had gone cold.  

The floor was cold, after all.  

"Stop it. Please, stop..."  

The hand pressing my head down loosened its grip.  

Ratna seemed to have become a bit more humble.  

I was honored to have contributed to her education.  

"I-I'm sorry. Please stop."  

It seemed Ratna had some affection for her own kind.  

How wonderful that my status as an inferior being could be used like this.  

Richard, the Count will be proud of you.  

I was sure of it.  

The Count and I shared similar beliefs, after all.  

"...I'm sorry."  

Excuse me?  

What did I just hear?  

Richard whispered into my ear.  

As if he were doing something he didn’t want to do.  

Ah, this was troubling.  

I didn’t sense hostility.  

The Count’s blatant disgust toward me wasn’t there.  

Did Richard not hate me?  

I understood.  

The Count was watching right now.  

Richard was being tested.  

To see whether he could properly manage these lowly creatures.  

How disappointing.  

He still hadn’t erased that strange sympathy.  

I was truly disappointed.  

How could he be like this?  

Did he really want to become a traitor to humanity?  

That must not happen, Richard.  

"I-I'm sorry… Please don’t do this to her."  

You’re interfering with Ratna’s reeducation.  

Ah, but why does she keep calling me ‘sister’?  

Anyone would think we were close.  

How absurd, coming from an inferior being.