The room is enveloped in a heavy silence, broken only by the soft crackling of burning wood in the fireplace. The dim light flickers off the walls, casting long, wavering shadows that dance across the quiet space. Ryua lies on her stomach on the couch, her head tilted slightly to the side, her expression a hollow reflection of the flames. The fire's orange glow mirrors in her eyes, but the warmth does nothing to melt the icy numbness within her. Images flash through her mind—visions of blood, chaos, and despair—each more vivid and haunting than the last. A mother, clutching her newborn, pleading desperately for mercy.
"W-Why are you doing this!? Why us?" the woman's voice echoes in Ryua's mind, a tortured cry that rises above the distant roar of flames. The town is ablaze, rivers of blood winding through the streets, bodies strewn like discarded dolls. Half of a body slides off a roof with a sickening thud; an elder's corpse is impaled on a candlelight pole, the flickering flame casting grotesque shadows on his face. The fire consumes everything in its path, reducing homes and lives to ash. "W-WHY, WHY, WHY!?" The woman's voice is raw with anguish, her arms wrapped protectively around her newborn.
Ryua stands before her, eyes cold, expression void of any emotion. "You're all criminals," she says, her voice as flat as the blade she holds. Her gaze locks onto the woman's, unfeeling. "For your crimes, you are sentenced to death."
"T-THAT MAKES NO SENSE!" the woman screams, her voice cracking under the weight of her despair. "J-Just because we didn't pay this month's taxes? We promised to pay in 4 days!" Tears stream down her face as she looks at her baby, desperation clawing at her heart. "P-Please don't kill him, h-he's my baby... p-please," she begs, her voice breaking as she gives her child one last, trembling embrace.
"No," Ryua replies, her tone as cold as the steel in her hand. "Everyone in this village will die today."
"ARE YOU A MONSTER!?" The mother's scream is filled with all the fury and sorrow she can muster, her body hurling itself at Ryua with a hidden knife.
Ryua blinks, her expression unchanged. "If you had used the baby as a shield, you would've had a higher chance of success," she says, almost as if giving advice, before bringing her sword down on both of them.
The firewood's light reflects off Ryua's trembling hand as she lifts it. She stares at it, watching as it quivers ever so slightly. "I've never denied it," she murmurs, closing her eyes. "I... don't know..."
Kael, sitting across from her, stirs the fire absently with a long metal poker. The warmth radiates from the flames, but it does nothing to dispel the cold atmosphere hanging over them. 'The fireplace isn't half bad,' he thinks to himself, 'but where does the smoke go? There are no windows or exits.' He turns his head slightly, smirking as he retrieves a bag of marshmallows from his pack.
"What do you gain from telling me this?" Kael asks, his tone light as he begins roasting the marshmallows. "You said I don't understand."
Ryua slowly exhales, her gaze fixed on the fire. "Every day, I see a different face," she murmurs, her voice barely above a whisper. She looks down at her palm again, "No matter how many times I wash my hands, I see the blood dripping down my palm." She closes her eyes as the fire crackles, the sound filling the silence between them. "You must have your reasons for hiding your identity and tricking us all."
"Does that anger you?" Kael asks, his voice calm as he turns the marshmallows over the fire, watching as they start to char.
"Hmm... Does it matter?" Ryua responds with a heavy sigh, her eyes following the marshmallows as they darken and burn. "Maybe because I saw your memories but... I... I don't know what to do."
Kael walks over, offering a marshmallow with an almost casual air. Seeing her slow nod, he shrugs and sits down beside her, taking a bite out of his own marshmallow. The fire crackles softly in the background, its warmth a stark contrast to the coldness that had seeped into Ryua's heart.
"What do you expect from someone who 'doesn't understand'?" Kael asks, his tone neutral, almost detached, as he chews.
"I'm sorry," she murmurs, her voice barely audible, as if the weight of her words was too heavy to lift. "If I had known you were a powerful man, I... I would have asked. You've probably lived longer than anyone I know, so you must know..." She grits her teeth, her hand clenching so tightly that blood begins to drip from her palm, the physical pain a mere echo of the turmoil within her. "Can I become human? I... I-I don't want to be a monster," she stutters, her voice breaking as a tear slips down her face, tracing a path of sorrow.
Kael exhales, looking at her with a blank, almost indifferent expression. "You're stupid," he states flatly, pointing the marshmallow at her as if it were a pointer in a lecture. "Delusional, there's no better word to describe you."
Ryua's eyes tremble, her gaze shifting back to the fire as a bitter smile tugs at her lips. "Haha... true. How can a monster become human? So stupid," she laughs lightly, the sound hollow and devoid of joy.
"Hey," Kael interrupts, his voice carrying a weight that makes her pause. He stands up, his smile widening as he looks into the flames. "Monster... I've always hated that word. It's a vague term, overused and misunderstood." He extends his hand toward the fire, and as if responding to his touch, the flames slowly darken, shifting from their warm orange to a deep, ominous red. "What defines a 'monster'?" he asks, his voice softer now, almost introspective.
Ryua looks up, her confusion evident. "A monster is something... a being that kills humans without a second thought..."
"Even you become unsure when the question arises," Kael points out, sitting back down and offering her a smile that holds no malice. "Pfff, you've been calling yourself a monster without even knowing what one is."
"I know—" she begins, but he cuts her off with a raised hand.
"You don't," Kael says firmly, his gloved hand moving with a fluid grace as it conjures a small sculpture from the air. The figure of an egg forms first, then cracks open to reveal a tiny, delicate sculpture of a girl inside. "To some, monsters are different races. To others, monsters are big and hideous," he continues as the sculpture shifts, transforming into a large, hairy creature that roars silently in his palm. "But in truth, neither of these are monsters."
Kael sighs, leaning back as if to let his words sink in. "A monster is not a killer. A monster is not a different race or species. So what is a monster? Is it a dumb, ugly creature that hunts humanoids for sport? An emotionless killer?"
Silence stretches between them, the only sound the soft crackle of the fire. Kael lifts his arm, looking at his hand with a contemplative expression. "Neither. Humans, along with all other species, give the title 'monster' to whatever scares them, to creatures they do not understand, to species they have never seen... Fear."
"Fear?" Ryua echoes, sitting up a little straighter, her curiosity piqued.
Kael nods, meeting her gaze. "People label what they fear as 'monsters.' This doesn't mean that monsters aren't real—anything that hunts and kills without understanding its actions is not a monster. A monster is someone conscious, someone aware of how morally wrong, how inhumane their actions are, and who carries on with them anyway. So, Ryua, you're no monster. You didn't know any better. Being an unknown species doesn't make you a monster. The fact that you changed once you realized the truth proves that."
Tears begin to well up in Ryua's eyes, blurring her vision as she processes his words. "T-Thank you... thank you," she whispers, her voice breaking as the tears finally spill over. She covers her face with her hands, her shoulders shaking with the release of emotions she had kept bottled up for so long.