What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?

Page 6

His figure, swaying in the afterglow of the setting sun, had been lying in wait for this opportunity for a long time, and appeared behind Maynard like a ghost.

He pulled the armor-piercing spike from his neck, sending up a spray of blood, and then, without hesitation, as Maynard sensed something was wrong, he plunged the spike deep into the gap in the neck of the armor.

"—Gah?!!"

Maynard's eyes widened suddenly, finally revealing terror and despair, but he was already unable to turn around.

As blood gushed from his neck like a fountain, his body went limp, and he collapsed to his knees, followed by whispers that seemed to come from hell:

"...Your understanding of the demon race and me is still not thorough enough. This level of injury is not enough to kill me."

"Varied--?!"

"—Team leader?!"

The two cavalrymen, who were still planning to at least kill the demon at the last moment, turned around in surprise.

At that moment, Ash stepped on Maynard's shoulder, using the momentum to pull out the armor-piercing spike, causing Maynard to collapse to the ground, powerless.

"How dare you...!"

"—You bastard!!"

The two grieving cavalrymen cursed and raised their swords to kill him in revenge for their captain, but... Ash merely glanced at them silently and raised his hand slightly.

An abnormal gravity once again dominated their bodies, causing the two, already exhausted both physically and mentally, to kneel down in unison under the weight of their armor and an even greater pressure than before.

Next, it was simply a matter of repeating the same task, ignoring their curses and pleas, piercing the armor-piercing spikes into the gaps in the armor, and then it was all over.

After completing everything simply, Ash sat on the cavalryman's back and let out a long sigh amidst the pool of blood:

"Seriously, why did I have to go to such lengths for the sake of human infighting..."

"But you know, this world is really interesting, isn't it? You think so too?" Aura stepped out from the crowd, squatted down in front of him, rested her chin on her hands, looked up at him with a mischievous smile.

"...Maybe."

He ignored Aura, simply lowering his head and staring at his blood-stained hands, letting his thoughts drift away from the place.

Today was his first time killing someone, but for some reason, he felt no fear or hesitation. Was it due to his demonic instincts, or because he had killed so many people over the years? He couldn't figure it out.

Although the village had won, no one on the scene could be happy; a deep sorrow filled the entire village.

Almost every household had dead bodies, but they could only brace themselves and, under the village chief's command, deal with the corpses on the ground, and prepare to sell the cavalrymen's armor and weapons in a couple of days.

Ash watched the busy villagers, but touched the bandage on his neck, already thinking about when to leave.

Aura stood nearby, watching him with an ambiguous smile, toying with the scales in her hand, and slowly said, "Tell me, what effect would it have if I used a submissive spell on you right now?"

"...Your magic is far from perfect; there are still quite a few problems, aren't there? For example, it involves the strong dominating the weak, so the probability of being controlled is also very high. Are you sure I've run out of magic power?"

"Hmm~ that is a problem?" Aura shook the scales in her hand with an innocent smile, looking troubled: "Although the problem of control has been improved, fair betting is really disadvantageous for a young demon like me."

"...Your magic has too many drawbacks. You should switch to another kind of magic as soon as possible." Ash, pale from blood loss, shook his head and gave his advice.

"Thanks for your concern, but if we scale up, we simply can't lose to anyone of the same level. So, are you jealous?"

"...Think what you want."

Even if his neck was pierced, it wouldn't be a big problem for a demon unless his neck was severed. But he was still quite tired and didn't want to waste time chatting with this guy.

So he shakily stood up and headed towards the village, intending to rest for a while before considering what to do next.

Meanwhile, Aura, who was bored, hopped and skipped behind him, chattering incessantly, making him feel that Aura's annoyance level had increased dramatically.

.........................

After resting in the village for a while, Ash ignored the villagers' attempts to persuade him to stay, and left the village with food, most of the village's cash, and the cavalry captain's sword, amidst everyone's reluctant farewells.

After all, the fact that these enemy cavalrymen died here would surely be known to outsiders, and the village would definitely attract a lot of attention. Naturally, they could not stay here any longer.

Of course, taking all the money might sound cruel, but the remaining cavalry weapons and armor are actually more valuable, enough to provide the villagers with sufficient funds to rebuild their homes.

However, six months later...

When the two led their new herd of animals past the vicinity, driven by curiosity, they came to the outskirts of the village only to find that the situation there was completely different from the restored prosperity they had imagined.

The Burial of Frilian: A Thousand Years Later: Chapter Nine - Heading North to the Demon Clan's Stronghold

The morning sun failed to pierce through the clouds and shine on the earth. A terrifying atmosphere permeated the village. Compared to its former prosperity, the village was now filled with scattered tragedies.

The air was thick with the stench of blood, and the villagers lying haphazardly on both sides of the road were mostly dead with their eyes wide open in shock.

The expression showed no trace of pain, indicating he was killed instantly. The only evidence on the ground was the corpse of a civilian and dried blood. And judging from the method used…

“It was done by the demons.” Aura came to this conclusion after a brief observation of the scene.

Whether children or adults, none were spared. It was a typical demonic act, ruthless, cruel, and thorough—trampling and crushing lives to death.

Looking at the two familiar stone statues in the center of the village, Ash remained silent, a complex emotion that was hard to describe passing through the depths of his dark pupils.

The village was protected by demons and was not destroyed by humans. Although more than half of the villagers were killed or injured, they were working hard to rebuild. However, not long after, the village was completely destroyed by passing demons... Is this the fate of the village or what?

“…How pitiful.” Ash murmured as he crouched down, his fingertips gently stroking the cold cheek of a young child. “If only the goddess you worship truly existed.”

Aura was completely baffled: "What are you doing?"

"I was just thinking... I absolutely don't want to die like this."

"I guess I'll just have to work harder at training."

"...We need to think of a way."

"Method?"

"The biggest difference between demons and humans in magic lies in the issue of inheritance. We have no teachers and can only learn by ourselves, which is why we're still only third-rate... So why not just find a teacher?"

Ash slowly stood up and turned to look at the girl who always followed him on his wanderings.

But these words made Aura laugh so hard she almost fell over: "Just find a teacher, right? Haha! Hahahaha! Ash! You're really funny! We're demons! How could anyone possibly teach us?? Are you serious??"

"...Of course, demons won't teach, so we'll just find another target." Ignoring Aura's sneer, he walked ahead without turning his head and said, "But for now... let's leave here first."

"Yes, yes~" Aura wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes without interest and followed them out of the village.

Before leaving, Ash casually set fire to the houses, plunging the village into flames, and then turned and left the village where he had once lived.

But... before they'd walked very far, Aura, looking annoyed, poked his stomach with her elbow:

"Speaking of which, where are we going next? I heard there's some kind of demon king in the north, should we go and hang out with him?"

"...I'm also thinking about this question."

"So what happens now?"

"They said they were thinking about it."

"About what is it like?"

"You're so annoying, tone it down."

"No, I'm fine... Waaah???"

Aura straightened her chest and refused without thinking, but before she could finish speaking, he slapped her across the face, silencing her.

He then pushed aside the inconvenient Awula, walked quickly ahead, and frowned in worry, wondering what he should do next.

If possible, he didn't want to wander anymore, so perhaps it would be better for him to seek refuge with the Demon King?

.........................

Ash didn't know if the villagers had told anyone that the demons had lived there after they left, but with the demons massacring the village, the area would become even more dangerous for them.

This annoyed him repeatedly, and he glanced again at Aura, who was sulking not far away but had already sat back on the back of the demon bull.

Although she didn't really want to talk to him, Aura couldn't help but ask when she noticed his gaze: "What's wrong? Have you thought it through?"

"...Let's go back first, and talk as we walk."

He then mounted the wolf's back and, standing a short distance from Awula, continued to ponder their next steps.

Back in his simple wooden cabin, he sat on the crudely made wooden sofa, looked at the still nonchalant girl opposite him, and sighed:

"After serious consideration, we really should leave this place. If we stay here, we might be surrounded and wiped out sooner or later."

"You have to protect me well, otherwise I'll be in trouble."

"That's what I wanted to say too... but isn't this the time to discuss this?" He sighed deeply and shook his head, saying, "But our relationship is really deep, and you truly are my sister."

"Instead of this, where would be a better place to go after leaving here?"

"The north, that's the demon race's stronghold."

"So it's still the North after all~ Well, I don't really care."

Since Ash had already made his decision, Aura naturally didn't intend to waste any more time thinking about it and immediately stood up to pack her luggage.

It's not that demons don't procrastinate, but when it comes to matters of life and death, they are all incredibly diligent... Aura's performance in this regard is quite obvious.

Therefore, after making the decision, the two began packing their luggage together and prepared to cross the continent to the north that very day, heading to the gathering place of the demons.

It's not that they like other demons, or that they have any loyalty to the Demon King. After all, demons are only loyal to themselves, and right now they are just trying to avoid being killed.