Ronan didn't press him on what exactly that distinction meant. He figured that demonic creatures were probably more like "animals," while demons were more like people. Naturally, animals and people shouldn't be lumped together.
He simply asked, "Are you looking for something right now?"
"My friend, Vlad."
"Didn't you say demons don't like meeting or living together?"
"Yes, but with everything that's happened in the Black Forest, I want to make sure he's safe."
Ronan gave a grunt of acknowledgment, realizing that demons weren't completely devoid of feelings after all.
They continued wandering through the forest together. As a demonic creature now, Ronan was learning how to survive. One evening, as Kael was trying to find a safe place for them to rest, Ronan noticed something unusual. After being stuck in the demon dog's body, he had regained his need for sleep, but before they could find a spot to rest, Kael's mood suddenly shifted.
Ronan saw him crouching on the ground, growling angrily.
Curious, Ronan sniffed around and noticed fresh blood dripping onto the grass.
"It's Vlad," Kael growled through gritted teeth.
"Your friend?" Ronan quickly caught on.
"It's Vlad's blood!" Kael's eyes turned an even deeper shade of red.
Ronan's ears twitched, and suddenly, he looked behind them.
Kael noticed it too. Without waiting for Ronan, he vanished into the darkness.
Since transforming into a demon dog, Ronan couldn't match Kael's speed. By the time he caught up, Kael was already hidden behind a few large trees, staring intently ahead.
In the dark forest, a campfire flickered, casting light on a group of more than ten strong men, some sitting, others standing as they rested. From afar, the night wind carried the mouth-watering aroma of cooked food.
Behind them were several hastily erected tents, and next to them, iron cages hung in the air. In one of the cages was a demon with green skin and three eyes. The demon appeared to have fiercely resisted before being captured; now, he was barely clinging to life, blood oozing from his body and seeping out of the cage to drip onto the ground.
The horrific scene didn't faze the resting humans in the slightest. The men grabbed jugs of wine and gnawed on roasted bread. On a wooden table, pieces of roasted meat were laid out, and a woman emerged from one of the tents to sprinkle some spices on them.
Ronan's keen sense of smell kicked in, and his mouth started watering uncontrollably.
Around the camp, scattered were discarded bits of human food. Ronan's sharp eyes immediately caught sight of half a sausage in the trash.
Sausage... a sausage! At this moment, he wasn't sure if it was the sight of the sausage that excited him or the presence of humans.
Kael's body trembled, his fists clenched tightly. Unlike Ronan, he ignored the food entirely, focusing only on the cages.
"Wasting food like that deserves punishment!" Ronan thought, wondering if he could approach and beg for a bite. But then he remembered his current state—a demon beast. Approaching another species without caution, especially with a boss-like demon status, could easily cost him his life on the spot.
He forced his gaze away from the food and soon noticed the suspended cages as well as the hatred burning in the demon's eyes beside him.
"That half..." Ronan was about to say "half-dead" but corrected himself last minute. He whispered, "That green demon—is that your friend?"
Kael was entirely lost in his own world, his voice hoarse as he repeated, "I'm going to kill them... kill them all!"
Ronan instinctively frowned. Besides the men in the camp, there were more people resting inside the tents behind them, and patrols had been stationed around the perimeter.
Kael clearly wasn't calming down. Meanwhile, Ronan's thoughts were tangled. He knew he had become a demon beast, but deep down, he still couldn't fully see himself as part of the demon race. There was always a sense of familiarity and warmth when he saw humans.
These past few days, surviving on raw meat and wild berries in the forest had been tough. Now, smelling the aroma of human food, he felt like he could almost cry.
"Are you going to save Vlad?"
Kael didn't respond. His claws dug deep into the mud.
Ronan sighed lightly, "Can you really take them on?"
These humans weren't defenseless. They were all armed with swords and wearing armor, some even had bows in hand.
"They're the ones who invaded our homeland and slaughtered us!"
Since they had met, the yellow-haired demon had always seemed kind, but now, speaking through gritted teeth, Ronan finally sensed the fierce, beast-like aura emanating from him.
"What do they want with your friend?" Ronan had seen mountains of corpses before, but most of them were creatures. When it came to beings that looked similar to humans, the sight of them injured or dead always left him with a different feeling.
"They sell us, force us to fight each other to the death," Kael had heard many stories about humans capturing demons, "or they sell us to blacksmiths to turn our bodies into weapons."
Ronan let out a surprised "Huh?"
Kael gritted his teeth. "They could also sell us to alchemists, using us for their experiments."
Ronan, now more shocked than ever, instinctively shrank down, and the thought of trying to talk to the humans quickly faded from his mind.
"These people are capable of anything."
The two of them—one demon and one demonic beast—hid in the shadows, a hundred meters away from the human camp. The men were still talking and laughing, probably celebrating their successful haul. Two of them even threw their arms around each other's shoulders and began dancing.
Because of the commotion, a few more people emerged from the tents. Most of them stood with their arms crossed or holding food in one hand, smiling as they watched, the atmosphere peaceful and cheerful.
"They invaded our homeland, stole our food, and shouted for our blood," Kael said, his eyes hardening as he seemed to recall the massacre not long ago.