novelBirth of "Courier Demons"
| ← Ch.36 | Ch.38 → |
Sigh, that girl seems to be under a misconception.
But I'll leave it be, it is probably inevitable.
A lone girl crouching down in her backyard mumbled as she watered the flowers. Flowers of every possible colour bloomed in the flower-bed, and sometimes, honeybees could be seen zigzagging around. The girl returned the small spade in her hands to the bucket and stood up to dust the dirt stuck to her clothes off.
The demons she had seen were indeed herbivores and omnivores. However, carnivorous demons existed as well, although they rarely ever did eat meat. This might sound contradictory but it was the truth.
In order to explain this habit, we must start from before animals had mutated into demons. In the first place, demons were a result of the polluted magic remnants infecting the animals. The fate of these animals back then was determined by whether they were herbivores or carnivores. Most animals would have needed to take in a large amount of pollution into their bodies from the air to turn into demons, the density of magic remnants inside their bodies would then determine the physique of the demons.
In the case of animals with plant based diets, they would intake this pollution from the grass they normally eat which would hardly amount to anything. The density of the magic remnants inside their body would remain low, resulting in a mid-sized demon at the most. There were also occasionally cases where the pollution would rapidly in a short time span, allowing these herbivores to turn into larger demons. For example, during the two weeks of war or when the Magic State used their grand magic. As long as these certain requirements are not met, herbivores would rarely ever become large sized demons.
On the other hand, animals with meat based diets were a whole different set of issues. Carnivores mostly feast on other polluted animals. The density of magic remnants inside the bodies of animals are comparatively much higher than the plants they eat meaning that carnivores would have an overwhelmingly larger amount of pollution inside their bodies. This in turn meant that it was much easier for them to become larger demons.
The problem came afterwards. Once demons finish purifying the magic remnants both inside their bodies and in their surroundings, they would begin to eat food again like they did when they were still animals. Demons that were originally herbivores or smaller sized omnivores would have no problems with food. Thanks to new humanity holing up inside their walls, the environment had been left mostly untouched. Forests were overflowing with lush greenery which left plenty of food for the demons.
Things were slightly more complicated when it came to carnivorous demons. They would need an unbelievable amount of meat every day in order to maintain their large frames or they'd die of starvation. Back when they were still animals, they could probably get away with not eating for one to two weeks, but this was no longer an option now that they had become demons. Carnivores had a high energy consumption rate, meaning that they would starve to death if they didn't eat every few days. Of course they would hunt animals to stave off hunger, but a few rabbits or deer would probably only serve as a small snack. Even if they chased after other demons, those demons would run away at full speed.
In the end by giving chase to the demons, they would only sap away at their own stamina, and finally starve to death. The only way they could survive was by "living right next to humans". On average, there would always be a constant supply of magic remnants in a 100 km radius of a country so they would never die from starvation there. Due to this, the carnivorous demons made their habitats near human civilization and hardly ever wandered outside this range. These demons most likely understood on an instinctual level that "they too would perish along with the country should they ever make an attack". Herbivores and omnivores would actively attack the city walls but the other demons would almost never do so.
That woman is currently standing in an area that has been mostly purified of magic remnants. Carnivorous demons would not approach there and could not exist there either, so there was no chance for her to meet a demon which fed off meat much less witness it during its meal time.
The girl stretched her limbs out and picked up her bucket but her face had a trace of disappointment.
That woman would probably never realise this truth. The demon tagging along with her was originally a military horse. A truly magnificent horse from the distant past when a knight rode it to battle. On a certain day, the horse and its rider left to subjugate a demon but the knight was killed by a demon halfway through. The horse refused to leave the knight's corpse at first but eventually it left and met up with wild horses. It became a demon shortly afterwards. That was why the demon ate grass or fruits, or to be precise - it could only eat those.
The girl sighed again and then placed her bucket inside a shed.
Just like always, the demon was still following after me. A single idea came to mind as I watched. This brilliant thought was "wouldn't this demon be able to carry my luggage?". I tried placing something small on its back as a test but the demon didn't show any obvious signs of displeasure. Well, something this small probably didn't mean anything to a demon as big as an elephant. From there, we formed a give and take relationship where I would provide the demon food and it would carry my luggage for me. Even so, there was more than enough of a chance for the demon to leave me because of this or that. I would carry the wand with me 24/7 whereas the demon would carry the pot and other miscellaneous items that weren't crucial to survival in case I lose them. And so today, I have taken another step forward.
It was lunch time now and the scholar gathered fruits and placed them into the boiling pot of water as per usual.
The demon was watching from the sidelines as it drooled. The female scholar also gave a brief glance at the demon's back. On its back were large pieces of luggage already tied down but despite so, there was still plenty of space for more. It was quite obvious if one thought about how she had to be able to carry it all around herself.
Today, she planned to fully utilise that empty space on its back. While they were walking, she had gathered any vines that looked usable. She gingerly tiptoed to the demon which was busily gouging on the fruits and secured a seat made from the vines onto its back. The demon swung its head back in shock of having something suddenly tied onto itself and gazed fixedly on the mysterious tool but soon lost interest and returned to enjoying its meal.
This is it.
With this, I don't need to walk anymore.
Even if I don't have any experience riding on demons, I feel like everything will work out.
I could also just get off if it doesn't turn out right.
It's already served as a wonderful luggage courier so I'll just treat it as a bonus if I can ride on it.
The female scholar was becoming increasingly excited as it looked at the satisfied demon chomping down on more fruits.
After eating, she got onto the back of the demon. The demon too, was slightly surprised at her actions but showed no signs of rampaging. No, it even made an expression which could be taken as "I've fulfilled my purpose".
I don't really get it but oh well, I'll take it as everything's good since it's not going berserk.
Now then, how should I get it to move?
Should I just go for it and dangle a piece of fruit in front of its eyes?
No, that should be my last resort.
In the worst case scenario, it might go full dash on me if it tries to chase after the fruit in front of its eyes.
I won't be able to control it then.
It wouldn't be a story of just being shaken off and trampled on.
...How should I do this then?
The female scholar tried shaking her body around or pointing in the direction she wished to go towards but the demon refused to budge. After some time, the demon even began to munch on the grass by the side.
I'm over here struggling to think of something...
And this guy has the guts to be so carefree.
This is becoming increasingly... irritating.
The female scholar whose mood was sinking lightly dug her heels into the sides of the demon. Although she was simply venting her anger, it served its purpose. The demon which had been feasting up till now raised its head and slowly marched forwards.
This surprised the woman.
She never would have thought that the demon would move from her kick to its sides. Thinking rationally, the demon may have retaliated as well. She reflected on her reckless behaviour and also thanked her good luck.
From there on out, she travelled on the back of the demon. She gradually learnt how to control the demon and finally even made reins out of thick vines. As a result, she managed to move around at a pace much faster than initially planned. At first glance, the demon may seem to be moving slowly but each stride was wide enough for them to be moving at a fast speed. Moreover, they were also able to cross the less than ideal terrain with little interference.
The female scholar made a simple calculation as she rode on the demon's back and it turned out that the speed at which the demon was walking at was already several times faster than her walking pace. The demon had probably slowed down to match her pacing previously. Of course this was a wonderful miscalculation on her side. Never had she thought that they would be able to move this quickly, meaning that she had a few extra hours to spare now. With this freed up time, she chose to give the demon a little present.
| ← Ch. 36 | Ch. 38 → |