On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

Chapter 167 Before The Storm (End)

After finishing my training with Kruff, I immediately leave the Training Field, and head to the place where I have promised to meet Valeria at—Profound Night Garden.

I am not running, but I still arrive in front of the door connecting to the garden in less than a minute. I am more excited than I think it seems.

"Halt! Tell us your business!" Like always, the moment I am about to pass the arbor, the Gargoyles stop me.

"The usual," I answer curtly.

"... What a bland answer! I am disappointed."

"Just let me through." I roll my eyes in slight exasperation.

"Ah, I see... Are we, perhaps, interrupting your date?"

"..."

"Aha! So, that is the case." Cackling in excitement, the two Gargoyles retract their spears. "You may through, outstanding Demon. May you have a great time with your date!"

"Have a nice day you two."

As I pass through the arbor, I notice the surprised look on the two Gargoyles' face. I think they have never heard that before, which is why they are surprised.

I can't blame them; I would do the same if I were them. Most of the people here treat Gargoyles as mere statues with a consciousness, so people will rarely treat them like living beings.

"Thank you!" I hear them shout to me.

"I guess they, too, sometimes have a bad day," I mutter bittersweetly.

Valeria is waiting for me at the lake near the Path of Reminder. I can already see her the moment I cross the bridge, but she is not alone; Haletha, Arieda, Vibiane, Millonia, and Winerva are also there with her.

Seeing the two Dark Elves, I wonder where they have been for the past two days. I didn't roam around much during those two days, but I am pretty sure, unless they cooped themselves in their room, I should have encountered them once or twice.

"Ah, Layland! Come, join us!" Arieda shouts.

I say nothing as I turn to Valeria. She is wearing her blind mask, so she is currently assuming her Darth Valeria persona; which in other words, she is not in the mood for having a date.

I am slightly disappointed, but I can tell that she is too. Haletha and the others being there must have been a coincidence that she didn't expect.

"Fancy meeting you guys here," I say the moment I arrive there. "What brings all of you here?"

"To clear our minds!" Arieda answers enthusiastically. "You know, we have been training really hard for the past two days to prepare for the war. Having some time to relax before the war is a must!"

"Ah, training your agility so you can be ready to escape in any situation must have been hard for you." I nod my head lightly as I pat Arieda's head.

"I was practicing the Elven Secret Arts too, you know." Arieda pouts. "Though, I can't deny that I spent most of my time training my finesse in escaping," she mutters lowly.

Turning to Valeria, I tilt my head slightly, "Do you happen to have a time to spare, Lady Valeria?"

"... Yes?" Valeria seems surprised that I reached out to her. "Is there something you need of me, Layland?"

"I want to look around the cities nearby. I am wondering if you can be my guide today."

'Smooth, Layland. That was smooth,' I praise myself inwardly.

Slowly, a smile decorates Valeria's face. "I happen to have some time I can spare."

"That is lovely."

Just as Valeria walks toward me—just as I am about to say my farewell to Haletha and the others and go on our date, Arieda lightly tugs on my pants.

"Can we join you too? I mean, like you, we also haven't explored any city nearby, so..."

Arieda doesn't seem to be aware of what she is actually doing, so I can't blame her for asking that valid question. Vibiane and Millonia look at me awkwardly—they seem to know what Valeria and I are actually going to do.

"Of course, you may," Valeria answers before I can think of a way to reject Arieda. "The more the merrier."

I turn my head to her as my way to ask if she is sure with how things are going, and she merely smiles softly. What a kind soul.

"Can I ride on your shoulders then?" Arieda asks with glittering eyes.

"I believe you said it was embarrassing for you to do that because it made you look like a child last time. Why the sudden change of mind?"

"I won't be able to ride on your shoulders in two years—maybe less—so while I still can, it's better to not waste the chance," Arieda answers with a light shrug.

"... Hop on." I have nothing more to say—the kid is witty.

After putting Arieda on my shoulders, I hold Valeria's hand. She extends the other hand toward my face, then takes off my mask.

She then hands me my mask, prompting me to store it, before taking off hers. Ignoring Arieda, who is gasping in surprise for how pretty Valeria is, I quirk an eyebrow in curiosity.

"I will put a concealing Spell on us, so nobody will be able to see us except everyone here," Valeria simply explains. "Besides, I prefer looking at your face to the scenes of the cities I have visited many times."

'Very smooth, Valeria. Very smooth.' She almost made me blush. Well, almost. "Kuhum! Let's look around, shall we?"

Snap!

Snapping her fingers once, all of us disappear from the garden and reappear in one of the cities near the Demon King's Castle.

...

Since it is my first time visiting the city, I am slightly baffled by how sophisticated it is. Niles Dukedom is simply incomparable to it—even comparing it to the Dukedom is insulting.

The city is worthy of being the capital of any Kingdom in this world. It is so developed, it is slightly unbelievable to think that a Demon King is the one who governs the territory—it is too civilized.

"Layland, I think you were lying when you said Lysimork looked sophisticated," Arieda remarks.

"I wasn't lying. I just didn't know we had cities like this in our Kingdom."

The architecture is simple yet elegant—I like it better than the Dwarves'. Whoever built the buildings in this city really has a good architectural sense.

"Why don't we look around?" Valeria suggests. Immediately nodding our head, we follow her to wherever she takes us.

The Demons filling the street look no different from humans aside from their horns. All of them are dressed in good clothes—they don't show any sign of poverty.

Despite Ilschevar claiming our financial situation is in a pinch, our people are clearly in a good life condition. The city also doesn't have a slum area, which is very normal in any human's territory, so it is clearly better than any area governed by humans.

"They are kind to each other," I remark as I see an obnoxious looking Demon giving a candy to a little Demon boy with a small smile. "Is it because of the living condition or their nature?"

"Even human Nobles stab each other despite their living condition. Demons are just better at treating their kin," Valeria answers.

"Heh, doesn't it sound unfair that we are depicted as this bunch of savage, mindless creatures?"

"Many of us also think the same about humans. It's just a matter of perspective."

Perspective—the thing that determines how we see things. Two people will have two different understandings because of it, even though they are looking at the same thing.

Humans see us as a threat because their God tells them so. They try to eradicate us, but call us savage when we fight back.

We view humans as the bad guy, and vice versa. None of us, unfortunately, can understand each other's perspective, so the conflict can never be settled by a discussion and peaceful talk.

Conquering the world was the solution that the first generation of Nine Demon Kings came up with. The war has been ongoing for thousands of years, and there has been no sign of either side winning despite the amount of lives that have been sacrificed.

What a useless conflict. None of them seem to realize they are dancing in the palm of the so-called God of this world for so long.

? "Do you like this fruit, Layland?!"

"There is no need to look at me that intensely, Vibiane."

"Do you like it?!"

"Stop shoving it into my face."

The possibility of me ever going back to Earth is slim; even if it is not, when I return, I won't know what to do. I am not as ambitious as wanting to make this world a better place, but I do want to make it a place that I can proudly call my home.

That will be impossible considering how the other races treat Cursed Creations, I know. Because of that, I am willing to be a Demon King.

"Are you thinking about something, Layland?"

"No." I smile faintly at Valeria. "I am just amazed by how peaceful the city is."

Peace is what everyone desires, but it can never be achieved without bloodshed; power makes peace achievable, and tyranny maintains it. This is the conclusion I have reached.

I don't want to just rule over Verniculos Kingdom, but every land this world has. I will create peace with force, and maintain it with force.

This world better be prepared, for I will take it by storm.