She Who Became Immortal

Serena, a fox person, appeared mostly human but sported six fluffy tails and ears. She was a Kitsune, a member of an elite group of revered fox people capable of using magic among the beastfolk, or so I had heard. Seeing her felt like déjà vu from a past cosplay.

However, encountering a pig-like orc blew my mind.

This creature stood tall at three meters, with a face resembling a pig's, pink skin, and bristly hair covering its entire body. Its hefty limbs seemed capable of crushing someone like me with a single blow.

But, let's set that aside for now.

On that day, I trained with Katarina from dawn. She arrived at my hut eager to learn swordsmanship, desiring to be of use to Lady Euphemia. Thus, I summoned Junos to teach her.

Katarina, despite appearing eleven, belonged to a demon race that aged slower, resembling twenty-year-olds. They were warriors by nature, tough and formidable.

Despite Katarina having helped with chores, combat skills had been off-limits until now. However, she insisted, not wanting to burden me.

She was stubborn, perhaps a bit foolish, but I admired her determination.

Thus, Junos took charge of her training. Meanwhile, I, being more delicate, focused on magic. Demons like Katarina naturally infused magic into their actions, and she showed remarkable talent.

"Back in my day, I was much clumsier," Junos admitted.

His compliments were awkward, so I praised Katarina profusely. It was too easy, given how her eyes sparkled at even the slightest praise.

Amidst this, Jainos, the imposing ax wielder, interrupted, announcing the arrival of an orc looking for Lady Euphemia.

"An orc?" I frowned. Euphemia knew little of beastmen, often associating orcs with fictional enemies.

Yet, in my memory, orcs were villainous characters. Had they invaded? It seemed unlikely.

---

Firstly, only Serena the fox, Kirina whom she cared for, and the dwarf blacksmith Dubil Ganon were aware of our presence here—me and Yunofeliza demons. Serena and Dubil kept to themselves, ensuring our location remained undisclosed. Therefore, there were no armies gathering to attack us here.

What did this mean? Well, we'd figure it out when we met.

And when we did meet, it was quite the surprise.

There stood a three-meter-tall beastman with a pig-like face, bowing apologetically. I was taken aback on many levels.

"Hello there, nice to meet you. You called for me, right? I'm Euphemia Grimwood. And you, big guy, who might you be?"

"Uh... um, I'm Montego. I'm from a village of orcs called Sutin... Lady Serena asked me to seek help from you, Miss... Are you Miss Euphemia Grimwood? You're quite a lovely young lady."

"Well, yes. I am indeed lovely. But let's focus for now. When you mention Lady Serena, you mean the fox Serena?"

"Yes. The other day, a group of werewolf beastmen attacked our village. They were after our fields, and soon, the village fell. Then, a few days later, they kidnapped a little fox child and brought her over."

"I see..."

That little fox child must be Kirina.

The story wasn't entirely clear.

I crossed my arms, signaling for Montego to continue.

Montego nodded, his pig-like nose puffing.

"And then, the next day, Lady Serena arrived. She negotiated with the werewolves, but in the end, she was captured too. Despite that, she used her magic to deceive the guards and let us escape. She instructed us to seek help from a human girl named Euphemia Grimwood across the river, where demons and she live."

"Serena said that?"

"Y-yes."

"I see... Montego, right? I have a few questions."

Firstly, why was Montego's village attacked? It appears it was because it was a "convenient orc farming village," or so it seems. Apparently, the werewolf tribe attacking the village had another motive, and to achieve it, they targeted the farming village as an interim solution.

In essence, it was about resource requisitioning.

---

"Orcs are considered among the weaker beastmen... but we were just delivering wheat to the Lion King and living peacefully. The werewolves, on the other hand, are plotting against the Lion King."

"A coup?"

"A coup?"

"A coup usually involves a violent overthrow of a government... but hold on. The Lion King doesn't exactly rule over the beastmen, does he?"

That's right, isn't it?

Beastmen have a more primitive social structure compared to demons. While they have kings, there's no unified nation... or something like that, at least. Of course, they hold power. They can command obedience.

That's why Serena's group of fox people disbanded, and Montego's village paid tribute to the Lion King, in a sense.

But there are others who don't follow that pattern.

"Well, I don't know much about the werewolf tribe... and um, with everyone gathering like this... I-I'm not lying or anything."

Montego's fear seeped into his words as he noticed a group of demons quietly assembling behind me.

Initially, it was just Junos, Jainos, and Katarina, but soon, almost all the demons from our settlement had gathered behind me.

"What's happening? Are you all planning to gang up on a pig?"

""...""

"This gives us our next move." I said mockingly, prompting Junos to speak.

"What do you mean by 'next move'...? Are you referring to me?"

"Yeah, exactly. I've heard the story. Well, truth be told, I haven't pieced it all together yet, but essentially, Lady Serena asked for help, right?"

"If Montego's telling the truth."

"Do you doubt him?," I asked.

Junos snorted, casting a glance at the pig beastman.

I couldn't imagine Montego lying. Without Serena or Kirina revealing our location, there's no way they'd know about this place. And even if they did, they wouldn't come alone unless they were desperate.

After all, this is a demon settlement.

"Hmph. Then let me ask you, Junos. What do you think? What's the plan of the most amazing and charming-ee cute Lady Euphemia Grimwood?"

"It's settled. You're going to save Lady Serena and others."

Junos asserted without hesitation.

His certainty was oddly reassuring, and I couldn't help but smile.

"In that case, let me ask again. If I'm helping Serena, what about all of you? It's fine if you choose to stay behind and chill."

"Don't be ridiculous. We're all in."

"Why?"

"There are two reasons."

"Let's hear them."

"Firstly, we and Lady Serena want to be good neighbors. She allowed us to live in the border. If she asks for help, it's only right to lend a hand. It's about our character."

"I see. And the second reason?"

"Because you're going."

Junos replied without hesitation.

The demons behind me nodded in agreement.

"Where Lady Euphemia Grimwood goes, we go. It's only natural."

That seemed to be the consensus.

Truly, they're an odd bunch.