Chapter 4: Disqualified as Human, Passed as Demon(4)
Soliter was fun. Cheerful. Lively. At least, that’s how she seemed to me.
She watched me pack my bags at home, smiling brightly, completely unfazed.
“Aura, what’s this?”
In Soliter’s hand was a small wooden carving I’d made for fun. My attempt to carve a Mobile Suit Gundam with a dull kitchen knife.
“Oh. It’s a doll.”
Soliter’s face looked almost hurt.
“…It’s not a demon beast sculpture?”
Of course, like Soliter said, it was a mess. I knew it, but it still stung.
“Actually, it’s a demon beast,” I said, neatly stacking folded clothes at the bottom of my bag.
Clothes first, then books and sentimental trinkets on top.
I had no idea what Soliter’s place was like, but since she always wore nice clothes, it had to be better than here.
“Aura. Really?”
Soliter, who’d been sitting on the bed, swinging her legs, came over and poked my cheek. It was a playful question, so I laughed.
“Well, what do you think?”
“Umm… I don’t know.”
Soliter tilted her head, muttering. Then her face changed. Like a porcelain mask, it went blank, stripped of emotion or joy.
Her thin, raspy voice, flat and toneless, filled the room.
“Teach me, Aura. How do humans act in moments like this?”
The room felt like it dropped below freezing. No, absolute zero. It couldn’t get colder—or scarier.
“Sob.”
A hiccup slipped out. Frieren’s story wasn’t supposed to be horror. Wasn’t it fantasy? A thriller?
I was seriously thinking about running again when Soliter’s smile returned. The air warmed. Her hand gently rubbed my back.
“Just kidding. Yeah, just kidding. Scary, right?”
God, it felt like I aged ten years. A joke’s a joke, but with Soliter, it didn’t feel like one. I didn’t have the guts to say it.
“Haha… Look at the goosebumps on my arm. That was terrifying.”
Soliter’s laugh deepened.
“You think I don’t get jokes. Most demons live dull lives, just killing humans. But humans? They’re fascinating. Each has their own goals.”
“There was this man whose life’s mission was to make people smile. Called himself a preacher of happiness. I asked him to make me smile, and he taught me how to joke.”
“It was a pleasant experience,” Soliter said, her eyes hazy, like she was lost in a dream.
I checked my luggage one last time and zipped my bag.
“He was a good person.”
“Yeah. Shame he couldn’t make me laugh, but he wasn’t bad. Wonder if he’s spreading happiness in Aureol now.”
“Will we meet him someday?”
“Of course. We’ll definitely meet.”
I clapped my hands as we talked. My overstuffed suitcase sat at my feet.
“Okay, Soliter. I’m ready to move. Let’s go to your place.”
As I reached for my bag, Soliter flicked her fingers. The bag floated into the air.
“You haven’t learned flight magic, Aura. You’re so inexperienced for your age.”
I felt my inexperience deeply. No arguing that. I kept quiet.
“When we get to my place, I’ll teach you magic first. Demons, masters of magic, can’t just be hunted by humans if they don’t know spells.”
I wasn’t completely clueless. I had one spell, born from a life-or-death crisis.
I grinned boldly.
“Soliter, you’re wrong. I’ve got a trump card—a spell I can use.”
Despite my timid defiance, Soliter didn’t seem annoyed. She looked curious.
“What kind of magic? Can you show me?”
Seeing is believing. I opened the window, pointed at the mountain, and shouted cheerfully,
“Zoltrak!”
A black ray shimmered from my fingertips, shooting out in a straight line.
Soliter’s faint gasp echoed in my ear.
“An incredible spell. Simple, crude, but highly effective. With its piercing power and speed, it’s top-tier combat magic.”
Soliter and I thought the same: Zoltrak was unbeatable, practically divine.
“Hehe, Soliter. What do you think of my power?”
I struck a dramatic pose and looked at her. Soliter’s face twisted oddly, then she waved her hand.
Boom!* A terrifying wave of magic surged like a tsunami, obliterating the roof. Debris flew everywhere.
“So weak?”
“…”
I screamed inside. ‘This is unfair!’ She brought a tank to a kid’s game. Soliter was on another level.
Embarrassed, I tapped my foot twice. Soliter calmly advised,
“Aura, don’t rely on Zoltrak too much. Complacency leads to defeat.”
I nodded. Soliter nodded back.
“Shall we go? It’s close, so we can fly.”
“…Fly?”
My first time flying without a plane. A first for any Earthling. Honestly, I was terrified. Wasn’t this just skydiving on steroids?
Soliter rose silently into the sky. I pushed against the air and followed.
Gliding slowly, my eyes reached the horizon’s edge. It wasn’t just reaching—it pulled me in endlessly.
As I looked closer, the sky’s edge retreated, carrying clouds, wind, and stars. It felt less like this world and more like a paradise beyond.
The sky embracing me and Soliter was beautiful.