I’m a Villain, but I Want to Live a Long Life - Chapter 131

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Estelin covered her mouth with both hands. Rosette continued with a hardened expression.

“So right now, she probably has no power at all. But that damn Anita Solb left such a child in a forest crawling with monsters.”

Rosette’s face turned fierce. Estelin sighed in a crawling voice.

“It’s, it’s all because of me. If I hadn’t stepped forward to help Anita’s group in the first place…”

“…That’s enough. It’s already in the past.”

But tears were already dripping from Estelin’s eyes.

As Rosette sighed, Estelin parted her lips slightly with a trembling voice.

“Rose is right. There’s no way Seleneae would run away for such a trivial reason.”

“…”

“Something definitely happened between Anita and Seleneae. Besides, Anita originally disliked Seleneae, so it wouldn’t be strange whatever she did.”

Rosette looked at Estelin with slightly surprised eyes.

It was unexpected that Estelin, of all people, the one who always acted as if white flower fields were spread before her eyes, had thought this far.

‘…She’s a little admirable, isn’t she?’

As if reading Rosette’s mind, Estelin wiped away the tears hanging from the tips of her eyelashes.

And she murmured lowly.

“If it’s really true that Anita Solb left Seleneae behind, then…”

“…”

“I will never, never let it slide.”

It was a very cold and calm voice, unlike her usual self.

Rosette nodded absently and looked outside again.

“But, the more I think about it, the stranger it gets.”

Beside Rosette, who was narrowing her eyes, Estelin tilted her head slightly.

“What do you mean?”

“Anita Solb. Earlier, she babbled in front of everyone that Seleneae’s ability was fake. As if she already knew everything.”

“Th, that’s right.”

“But why did she completely leave out the story about the necklace? There’s no way the person who exposed everything wouldn’t know what we noticed too.”

A heavy silence settled in the barracks.

It was the moment when Rosette was frowning and pondering.

Estelin suddenly gripped Rosette’s hand tightly.

“…Rose, let’s go. We have to go.”

“Where to?”

“The search party will start searching soon, so we should follow them. And I think…”

At the words that followed, Rosette’s eyes widened and she quickly nodded.

The two soon left the barracks with quick steps.

Meanwhile, inside the cave.

“Your effort is commendable, but I have decided not to trust humans anymore.”

I couldn’t feel even the slightest wavering in Kerus’s eyes as he looked down at me.

But I spoke calmly.

“I’m not asking you to trust me blindly either.”

“…Then.”

“What I mean is, let’s make a deal. Or negotiate.”

Kerus raised his eyebrows.

“Negotiate?”

“Yes, negotiate. Of course, I know that Diermant has suffered irreversible damage because of humans all this time. I won’t deny that fact itself.”

Kerus’s eyes darkened.

“But there was definitely a misunderstanding. Then wouldn’t it be better to avoid war? Not just for humans, but…”

“…”

“Because you also have fellow creatures left to protect.”

I gestured toward the two little ones hiding behind him. Sure enough, a subtle crack appeared in Kerus’s expression.

‘As expected, my guess was right.’

Perhaps because he was the leader of the Diermant? Kerus cared for his fellow creatures more than anyone.

‘I heard he even brought in other groups for the war.’

If war broke out, the newly mobilized Diermant would also get hurt or die again.

In this situation, Kerus’s heart couldn’t be at ease. So he would definitely want to prevent any more sacrifices.

As I carefully observed his reaction, a short groan came from across.

“…We have already lost many of our kind.”

“…”

“The few who barely survived are also dying from injuries right now.”

He was staring at me with a very complicated expression.

“The room for negotiation disappeared long ago.”

I took a short breath. But soon I calmly nodded.

I hadn’t completely failed to anticipate this kind of answer.

However, that didn’t mean I intended to give up on persuasion.

“Would it be negotiable if we returned the magical stones?”

Kerus froze for a moment.

“With those, at least the injured individuals could recover from their wounds.”

The eyes of Kerus standing across from me trembled weakly.

‘Rubel said so. The life force of magical creatures is tremendous.’

And the source of that tremendous life force came from magical stones called ‘magical creature cores.’

‘In other words, the injured Diermant individuals could also recover quickly if they just got back the magical stones that humans took.’

I steadied my trembling gaze and looked directly at Kerus.

“I’ll get a promise from Rishion that they won’t attack Diermant anymore. And I’ll return the stolen magical stones too.”

“…”

“Isn’t this a deal worth trying?”

Cold silence continued for a long time.

Kerus kept his mouth shut and remained silent.

Only after quite some time had passed did he open his lips.

“Human. I am not a fool.”

I stiffened with a start.

“However.”

But Kerus soon continued in a calm voice.

“If the situation really flows as you say, I won’t deny that it’s a deal worth trying. Even while bearing the damage we’ve suffered so far.”

My eyes gradually widened.

“Re, really?”

“Yes, if we get our cores back, we can also accelerate the regeneration of our already dead kin.”

My mouth fell open.

It seemed that if they got the magical stones back, not only would injuries be healed, but even Diermant who had already lost their lives could be revived.

But then, suddenly Kerus tilted his head sideways.

“But before that, there’s something I’d like to address.”

I froze with my eyes wide open.

“You seem to have been calling our cores ‘magical stones’ since a while ago. Is there a particular reason?”

“…What?”

Kerus frowned.

“Isn’t that a name attached to magical creature cores? For someone proposing negotiation, that’s a careless choice of words.”

I froze in place without saying anything.

Kerus added as if asking whether I really didn’t know.

“Our cores are usually called sacred stones. Not magical stones.”

“Sa… sacred stones?”

“That’s right. Don’t modern humans even know the difference between Sacred Sprites and magical creatures?”

I stared at Kerus blankly, at a loss for words. At that moment.

“Why? Who called us demons?”

Calyssia, who had been hiding behind Kerus, suddenly jumped forward.

“Who said that? Then did you also think we were demons all this time?”

I blinked blankly and looked at Calyssia. My mind, which seemed to have stopped for a moment, was filled with complete confusion.

I tried to interpret the meaning behind their words and muttered incoherently.

“What, what do you mean…? Diermant are originally demons, I mean, ancient demons.”

“What?”

Calyssia blinked her large eyes a couple of times. I hurriedly continued speaking.

“That’s a fact that’s even written in the representative books certified by the temple…! It’s so obvious, it’s already a fact that everyone knows, so suddenly what…”

“Wait. The temple?”

Then Rael, who had been standing some distance away, hurriedly approached me.

“Are you saying that damn Frater called us demons?”

I stopped being frozen in bewilderment and tilted my head.

‘Did I hear wrong?’

Just now, it seemed like he said very clearly ‘damn Frater’.

But before I could reflect on those words, an incredulous laugh burst out from the other side.

“Are you crazy?! What demons are we! How could we be the same as those low-intelligence things!”

My mouth closed automatically. I already knew this because I had read several books about sacred sprites and demons.

In this world, Diermant were a species classified as demons, not sacred sprites.

But thinking about it, there was something suspicious.

When I found out the assignment was to obtain a Diermant’s core and asked Adam about it.

‘Did Adam also call Diermant demons?’

I let out a short gasp and covered my mouth.

I didn’t seem to remember hearing the word ‘demon’ specifically from Adam’s mouth.

When I raised my head with trembling eyes, Rael was glaring at the air while disheveling his hair.

“Dirty Frater bastard! How dare you pull something like this!!”

Another gasp almost escaped.

‘I didn’t hear wrong.’

Rael had also called Frater ‘damn Frater’ just a moment ago.

And now he even said ‘dirty Frater’.

‘…Even though they’re sacred sprites.’

I looked at Rael, Calyssia, and Kerus in turn.

‘Why are they hostile toward Frater?’

If they’re sacred sprites, shouldn’t they normally follow Frater well?

In this world, the only existence that could be called a god was naturally Frater alone.

But Rael seemed to hate Frater. Quite a lot, too.

“Why do you hate Frater?”

Everyone’s gaze focused on me.

“Just now, you just said Diermant are sacred sprites. Shouldn’t sacred sprites like gods?”

Rael’s eyes widened, then he slowly frowned. Then he burst out with a short laugh, “Ha!”

He strode toward me.

“Are you stupid? Because we’re sacred sprites, we hate Frater!”

“What?”

“Who’s fault is it that we became this weak? Who’s fault is it that we’re being misunderstood as demons now!”

“…”

“It’s all because of that cowardly traitor bastard Frater! So how could we like Frater?”

Rael turned around and walked toward Kerus.

“Lord Kerus. This is definitely strange somehow.”

“…”

“The reason we couldn’t communicate with humans all this time! This isn’t that humans rejected us, but that bastard Frater pulled some strings, isn’t it?!”

Kerus looked down at Rael quietly without answering.

Rael quickly turned his head again and urgently asked me.

“Since when have humans known us as demons?”

I hesitated before opening my mouth.

“I, I don’t know the details either. But probably…”

The proclamation about sacred sprites and demons had been the temple’s authority since very long ago.

They said that distinguishing between sacred and corrupt things could only be done by priests with divine power.

‘Then there must have been a time when the temple first proclaimed Diermant as demons…’

If that proclamation had gone through countless processes to become established as common knowledge now.

“Even roughly estimating, at least several decades…”

“Damn it!”

Rael fumed.

“Frater must have pulled strings while we were having our three-hundred-year recovery period.”

I looked at Rael then blankly turned my gaze away.

Calyssia was looking down at the ground with a serious expression.

“…Calyssia.”

Calyssia quickly raised her head.

“Who is it?”

“Huh?”

“I mean the god you serve.”

Unless I was an idiot, I could tell.

If Diermant really were sacred sprites as they said,

If being known as demons was wrong information.

The god they serve is probably.

“Not Frater, right?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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