Alice Pov
After I severed the head of the old man in front of me, his body fell to the side. In the meantime, his head flew and landed close to the run-down tent, where the people were becoming increasingly terrified.
I have this strange urge to finish him off with my own hands. Why don't I just use a sword? because I am a 'Great Magus.'
I just finished performing very powerful wind magic and wrapping it around my hands in order to make it capable of penetrating even the toughest metal.
What emotions do I experience when I sever his head from his body?
There is none to be found.
Even my hands are not showing any signs of shaking at all.
Perhaps it's because I don't have any emotional attachment to other people besides my family.
It's possible that...
Now, for some reason, I feel the need to relax in my brother's arms.
Yes, as soon as all of this is finished, I'll be able to do it in a little while.
After conversing with myself inside my head, I slowly walked toward the tent where these people congregated.
"how dare you."
"I will kill you."
"Why did it have to happen that the chief of the tribe had to pass away?"
"You... you evil creature, ought to be the one to perish."
"..."
There were some idiots who occasionally would scream at me with anger written all over their faces as if they considered me to be their mortal foe. However, I could also see desperation written all over their faces.
I went from one to the next and cut each of their bodies in half with relative ease while keeping my forward momentum unaffected.
Even though their hostile energy, insults, and hatred were directed toward me, I was in no way affected by any of it.
Perhaps I have become different since the confession in the castle's garden some time ago, where my brother said something.
"He doesn't give a damn about the end of the world as long as mother, Emilia, and I are safe."
Yes, I do still remember it, and to this day, whenever I think about it, a warm feeling floods my chest.
"That's why, it doesn't matter to me if the entire world despises me as long as I still have my brother, sister Emilia, and mother by my side."
I said it in a low, reassuring tone while beaming with contentment.
People who saw me were frightened, and there was a chance that they would misunderstand because they believed that my smile indicated that I take pleasure in murdering their loved ones.
After that, I could see these people starting to retreat little by little, and it was obvious that the death of this old geezer and what I did after that had a huge impact on their morale at this point.
During this time, those individuals who were still inside the tent but chose not to participate in the conflict had at least of them already fled.
Whether it be because they are trying to protect their children or simply because they want to protect themselves.
The fact that the majority of the people who fought alongside the old man had already died gave an advantage to my troops.
Therefore, several soldiers who were not actively engaged in the battle ran after the people in the tent as they made their escape deeper into the forest.
Because those who fled included elderly people, children, and sick people, some of these people did not even have families.
Therefore, without giving it much thought, these individuals wish to preserve their lives, which they value more highly.
The majority of these individuals have a level that is below 10, which is already considered to be quite low.
Making it easier for my soldiers to capture them while they are still alive.
As soon as everybody was crowded together close to the worn-out tent, I unexpectedly heard the sound of someone clapping.
When I heard that, the only thing I did was raise my eyebrows.
I have the impression that I have been through something very similar to this, where all of a sudden, I heard clapping sounds.
I could see a woman emerging from behind the tree. She was dressed in armor with a peculiar pattern, and a red-eye symbol was engraved on the breastplate of her armor.
Since this individual was not wearing a helmet, I was able to see her lovely face along with her long, dark hair that was falling down.
"I thought who was peeking from earlier, but it turned out to be you, Sascha."
I said it in a soft voice while giving a very slight smile.
Yes, Sascha was the one clapping her hands in the background. She seems to have been paying attention to what's happening around here for quite some time.
"Hey, princess Alice, what are you talking about, I just arrived, and the timing is perfect because it looks like you're done."
As Sascha came closer to me, she said something while maintaining an expression that suggested she was surprised by what I had just said.
I went to one of the women currently restrained by a rope close to the run-down tent.
"Is this the same woman who visited your tribe back then?"
I inquired while directing my finger toward Sascha, who appeared to be completely taken aback and had her eyebrows raised.
"I... I don't know... all I know is that the mysterious person is a woman, and only the elders talk to her."
"For no apparent reason, the elders instructed us to relocate to this forest. However, you guys arrived here, and now all of the elders have sadly died."
The woman went into great detail while at the same time attempting to hide her fear.
However, she suddenly started crying while maintaining an angry tone of voice while she was speaking.
"sob...sob...my husband, he died trying to protect me from you demons...sob...sob," the woman cried out.
"I can see your smile when you slaughter my people... sob... it's not wrong if you are a demon that resides in a young woman's body."
After hearing what the woman had to say, one of my soldiers began repeatedly kicking her body until she was bruised all over and bleeding from her mouth.
"argh"
"argh"
"huergh."
"stop"
When the soldier heard my order, he stopped what he was doing and took a few steps back from the woman, who had become still and was lying limply with her head lowered.
I had come to terms with the fact that in addition to being a commander in this temporary troop, I also held the position of one of the princesses in the Zeitgeist empire, so the soldier's behavior did not bother me.
Therefore, the words that this woman hurled at me were sufficient grounds for her execution as a sentence.
"set fire to this place with these individuals in it."
As I made my way away towards the forest's entrance., I said it with a clinical tone and a neutral expression.
"Wait a minute, Princess Alice, but there are children among these people, and I don't think it's necessary for us to go to that extreme."
After taking only a few steps, I came to a stop when I overheard someone say something that completely took me by surprise.
I turned around because I was curious as to who had said it, and I noticed that one of the soldiers appeared to be experiencing some anxiety.
He was a soldier who always encouraged his friends to discuss strategy during group gatherings and, at the time, appeared to exude an air of self-assurance.
The atmosphere became tense, and no one dared to utter a sound because they were afraid of what might happen.
But then the soldier's head flew off and landed not too far from his body, and suddenly his body fell limp while blood gushed copiously down his neck.
When other people began to freak out and appear confused, I turned my attention to Sascha, who was now wearing a solemn expression.
"Now I really hope that you guys finish it before the sun goes down,"
I said this time in a more assertive tone while maintaining a small smile. My red eyes could be seen currently emitting a slightly odd glow, but only for a moment, and after that, they returned to their normal appearance.
I continued walking regardless of what transpired next, and I was able to see Sascha following quickly from behind.