It Is a Tool of Humanity

Doing the dishes is not my job.  

This maid uniform is not suitable for dishwashing.  

I just need to bring the glasses and plates to the kitchen.  

However, before handing them over,  

"......"  

I stare blankly at the glass used by the nobles.  

How did they process my horn?  

It looks like they spread it thinly and inserted it, as if plating it with gold.  

When I do this, there are times when some look at me with pity.  

I don’t know why.  

I am simply admiring a work of art.  

I don’t want inferior species to recklessly touch it.  

"-That kid is a beastkin, but since her horn was cut off, she’s lost it..."  

Are they talking about me?  

I tilt the silver-glowing glass.  

I check the faint reflection on its surface.  

So, the one talking about me is that dog beastkin woman.  

It seems she is introducing me to the new inferior species.  

Do they think that whispering means I won’t hear them?  

They must assume that because I don't speak well, I also don’t hear well.  

"Ah, so..."  

The new inferior species is also a dog beastkin.  

He looks like a boy.  

They're flocking together.  

"No, no, don’t take what she says seriously. She just spouts nonsense about human superiority and all that. It’s because her mind is broken."  

I am not broken.  

I can’t communicate with inferior species.  

"That’s..."  

"She was probably brainwashed by her previous master or something."  

Brainwashing?

What an absurd lie.  

More than that, isn’t it obvious?  

Humanity is the greatest race of all.  

The fact that this isn’t instinctively clear is what’s truly strange.  

"Brainwashing..."  

"And I heard that cup was made from her horn... Maybe that’s why she’s acting like that."  

That’s not entirely wrong.  

"That’s so sad..."  

Sad?  

It’s laughable that these mongrels pity me.  

Why do they consider me, someone in a place of honor, to be pitiful?  

I don’t understand at all.  

I have no intention of trying to understand.  

"That’s why no one bothers her. Oh, she’s coming."  

Yes, I am coming.  

Talk behind my back all you want, but say it to my face.  

"...Wash it properly."  

Instead of chatting, they should just do their job.  

"Ah, okay."  

For some reason, their gaze shifts to one of even greater pity.  

I try to figure out what the problem is.  

I think I understand.  

Even if my horn wasn’t used in it, it still means to wash it properly.  

Honestly, I don’t care if something already processed into an ornament gets dirty or breaks.  

But it’s not theirs, is it?  

Since it belongs to someone else, they should clean it properly.  

Besides, I still have things to serve.  

I need to go.  

The ones who cook the food are humans.  

I can't trust the cooking of inferior species.  

Aren't they just a bunch of thieves who would steal food if they got hungry?  

"The main event will start soon."  

I overhear a conversation from a passing table.  

"I heard the prince is bringing a famous guest..."  

"A famous guest, huh..."  

A famous guest.  

I wonder who it could be.  

Though, I doubt I’ll recognize them.  

I just need to focus on my own work.  

***  

I couldn’t focus.  

It was fine until the prince appeared.  

"-Warrior, Arhen Crate!"  

When they announced the arrival of a warrior, I had no choice but to turn my head.  

A boy with fiery red hair, wearing a bright, cheerful smile.  

So, this famous guest is the Empire’s warrior.  

It’s unlikely that he’s Ratna’s brother.  

Ah, but there isn’t just one warrior.  

Other countries have warriors as well.  

I wonder what kind of warrior this one is.  

I deliberately moved closer to the warrior.  

"This place is fascinating."  

A warrior exists for the protection of humanity.  

A being that exists for the eternal prosperity of mankind.  

I wonder what he will say upon seeing this place.  

"It’s almost like a zoo. I like it."  

I started to like this warrior.  

A zoo, huh?

Yes.  

That’s an appropriate description.  

The warrior looks around and notices something.  

Something staring at him intently.  

Of course, all eyes were on the warrior, but he noticed the one gaze that stood out.  

"Hey, you there, wolf. Got a problem?"  

The warrior points at someone.  

All attention shifts to the wolf beastkin.  

His long gray hair resembles a wolf’s fur.  

Aside from his animal ears, he doesn’t look much different from a human.  

But the real issue is his nature.  

I can see it.  

I can see that inferior creature’s aggression.  

He looks like he’s about to pounce on the warrior.  

I have no idea why he's so angry.  

Perhaps he feels he’s being treated unfairly.  

"Warrior...!"  

Or maybe he had a bad experience in the past.  

That might be why he hates warriors.  

That must be why he’s glaring so intensely.  

"So, wolf, what’s your problem?"  

The warrior speaks without losing his smile.  

He walks toward the wolf beastkin.  

"Shut up, I’ll kill you!"  

The wolf beastkin erupts in rage.  

With his brute strength, he hurls a nearby table at the warrior.  

Since everyone else had already distanced themselves from the wolf beastkin, no one else was hurt.  

He has no idea that this is a place of honor and is acting recklessly.  

I despise such behavior.  

How dare he commit such an insolent act?  

A dog that bites its master should be put down.  

The same goes for a wolf that refuses to be tamed.  

"Go ahead. This is getting fun."  

The warrior remains unscathed.  

He catches the table with one hand and calmly sets it down beside him.  

Cutting down beasts like that must be nothing to a warrior.  

Normally, guards would rush in.  

Bringing weapons designed to subdue non-humans.  

But not this time.  

Even the guards, like everyone else in the banquet hall, have become spectators.  

"Why are you so angry?"  

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!"  

He keeps throwing things—it’s truly pathetic.  

I don’t understand.  

Is he doing this just because he’s angry?  

Over what?  

"I want to know the reason."  

"You... You destroyed my family for fun... and you don't even remember me?"  

Ah, so his family was ruined.  

Does he even have the nerve to call it a family?  

Impressive.  

A member of a family trampled underfoot by a warrior for fun.  

So that's why he's angry.  

"For fun? When?"  

"Remember! It was two years ago! Because of you! Because of what you did to us...!"  

The wolf beastkin rages.  

The warrior looks as if he's trying to recall what happened two years ago.  

The wolf beastkin throws another table, but this time, the warrior draws his sword.  

In an instant, the table shatters into pieces and falls to the ground.  

Only the rampaging wolf beastkin is struggling.  

"You, you all help me! If we join forces, surely—! You too— You—!"  

He shouts while looking at me.  

I'm just smirking, so it's troublesome that he's asking why I won't help.  

Judging by the faces of the other inferior species, they all look miserable.  

I'm the only one among them who seems to be enjoying this.  

"Ah! I remember now. So it was you!"  

The warrior claps his hands together as he speaks.  

"I brought a lost puppy back home, and what happened...? Oh right, you guys attacked me, yelling about how I trespassed on your land. Weren't you the ones who launched the first strike?"  

By 'puppy,' does he mean the child of the wolf beastkin?  

"Shut up! How dare you—!"  

"I was just trying to help. Anyway, it seems like a misunderstanding, so why don't we end it here?"  

How merciful.  

"Hah, what—!"  

"If you die too, won't your entire family be completely erased? That's amusing. Thank you, Your Highness, for arranging such a delightful meeting."  

The nobles are simply enjoying the spectacle.  

As if watching a stage play.  

The roles: the warrior and the demon king's minion.  

A fitting performance for the banquet hall.  

The wolf beastkin wears a cornered expression.  

It seems he has only now realized what he has done.  

Did he really dream of rebellion?  

This is the Imperial Palace.  

The banquet hall in the very heart of the palace.  

The prince is here, and so is the warrior.  

What did he think he could accomplish in the Empire’s heart?  

"I shall die here with honor! For my family and my kin!"  

What a grand speech.  

"Oh, if you kneel and apologize even now, I'll forgive you. I'll even free you as a commoner. How about it?"  

A statement that crushes the wolf beastkin's spirit.  

Everyone knows there's no winning this fight.  

"Shut up... I won't be deceived."  

"I'm not lying. Think logically. Isn't it better for both of us? We get an entertaining show, and you get your freedom."  

The warrior speaks with a grin.  

It doesn't seem like he intends to kill the wolf beastkin.  

"Afraid I'll attack after being freed? Don't worry. I swear on the name of Arhen Crate that it won’t happen."  

An oath carries great weight.  

Especially for someone of the warrior’s status.  

"......"  

The wolf beastkin hesitates.  

"Hurry up and choose. Three, two..."  

One.  

"Fine! I’ll apologize!"  

The warrior smiles as if he expected that answer.  

"Good, good."  

The wolf beastkin kneels.  

He looks at me with a pleading expression.  

Why does he keep looking at me?  

It's extremely unpleasant.  

I wish he wouldn’t expect help so naturally.  

I don't want to accept the fact that I'm also an inferior species.  

But in their eyes, I am also something other than human.  

Ah, I wish I had received an invitation to this banquet as a guest.  

Instead, I am here as a maid.  

Hmm.  

This is all because of the Demon King.  

Who would have thought that using magic to steal from the Demon King would lead to this?  

The Demon King?  

Maybe that wolf beastkin wasn’t looking at me.  

Maybe he was seeing a fragment of the Demon King.  

Because if things had gone as they should, this body would have been reborn as the new Demon King.  

It wouldn’t be strange if other inferior species sensed traces of the Demon King in me.  

But unfortunately for them, the one looking down at them and laughing isn’t the Demon King—it's me.  

I am not their ruler.  

I am not the king who will lead them into battle.  

"Good boy."  

So even if the wolf beastkin lowers himself in humiliation, I have no reason to help.  

Even when the warrior pets his head like a tamed dog.  

The audience is laughing.  

Since I am also part of the audience, of course, I am laughing too.  

The inferior species was far too arrogant.  

A clown suits him better than a warrior.  

His noble resolve to die in battle crumbled under a few words from the warrior.  

Perhaps deep inside, he is already vowing to survive and take revenge.  

Now, it's time to stop watching and return to work.  

I got too absorbed in this amusing spectacle.  

I'll take one last look at the warrior before I leave.  

Oh, the warrior and I made eye contact.  

Even from this distance, he seems to have noticed me.  

Since I’m buried among the crowd, maybe he wasn't actually looking at me.  

The warrior smiles in this direction.  

The face of a child who just found a new toy.  

"Wow, there's an animal here I haven’t seen before."  

Is he talking about me?  

Yes, he is.