Chapter 122:  Interlude – Dorothy’s Story (3)

Everyone in the room was startled by Sien’s sudden and unexpected action, their eyes wide with surprise.

However, to be precise, not everyone was shocked.

There was one person who gazed at Sien with an expression that seemed to say, “I thought so,” as if they had anticipated this.

That said, even she wrinkled her face slightly, as though unsettled by the act of violence itself.

Meanwhile, the person who had been slapped, evidently not anticipating this kind of development, stammered in confusion.

“Wha… what? What is this—?”

“I’m going to teach you three facts you must engrave deep into your bones from now on. Clear out your ears and listen carefully.”

Sien spoke coldly, looking down at the hatchling with icy eyes.

“First. Out of the four of us gathered here, you are the weakest. Overwhelmingly so.

Second. The protector who could have defended you has just died, and since all your other kin have been annihilated as well, there is no one left to save you. You must survive on your own.

And lastly, third.”

Sien leaned down toward the hatchling and whispered into her ear, his voice chilling and ominous.

“If a weakling wants to survive, they must obey the strong. Grovel like a dog and beg for mercy.

If you cannot accept this truth, bite your tongue and end your life now.

That is the only freedom you are granted at this moment.”

“What the…!?”

The reaction came not from the hatchling but from behind.

Esther, horrified by Sien’s harsh words, shouted out in protest.

“S-Sien! That was too harsh—!”

“Silence.”

Without even turning around, Sien sternly warned.

“You all agreed to leave this hatchling’s education entirely to me for one week, didn’t you?

Then stay out of it. If someone keeps interrupting, it will disrupt the discipline process.”

“But still…!”

Esther, still unable to accept it, raised her voice again.

However, Lier placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her. He shook his head at Esther.

“Let’s wait and see. Sien is smart; he must have something in mind.”

“What? Are you suggesting we just stand by and let such violent behavior continue?”

“I don’t like it either. But we did agree to leave everything to him for one week, didn’t we?

We can question his intentions later. For now, let’s not interfere.”

“…..”

Esther pursed her lips in discontent, glancing repeatedly toward Sien and the hatchling.

However, she eventually sighed deeply and relented.

“Fine. But I still feel uncomfortable, so I’ll wait outside.”

“I’ll come with you. The air in here feels stifling anyway.”

Lier took one last glance at Sien before leading the rest of the group out of the cave.

This left only Sien and the hatchling behind.

“……”

The hatchling, clutching her reddened cheek, glared at Sien with fiery eyes.

Although it was just a slap, the sting lingered painfully.

Sien looked down at her and smirked.

“I told you to bite your tongue if you didn’t like it, but you didn’t.

Do you lack the courage to die? Then I’ll take it as your silent agreement.”

“Ugh…!”

Humiliated, the hatchling bit her lip, grinding her teeth as she raised her voice.

“D-Don’t misunderstand! It’s not because I’m afraid of death, but because I refuse to—”

Slap!

Before she could finish, Sien struck her left cheek this time.

The hatchling reeled silently, unable to scream, as Sien’s voice dripped with menace.

“When addressing your superior, use honorifics. That is the most basic rule of etiquette.”

“Who says you’re my superior—!”

Slap! Slap! Slap!

This time, Sien’s hand moved rapidly, striking her cheeks repeatedly.

The hatchling’s face turned crimson, her scales cracking and blood seeping out.

“Let me be clear. I’ve only been using ‘paper’ in this game of rock-paper-scissors so far.

If you force me to use ‘rock’ or ‘scissors,’ you will regret it. The slap is the mildest punishment you’ll face.”

“…..”

For the first time, fear flickered in the arrogant dragon’s eyes—a primal terror of someone far stronger, capable of harming her at will.

Sien smiled in satisfaction, nodding as he saw the expression he’d been waiting for.

“Good.”

Crouching to meet the hatchling’s eyes, he spoke.

“I am not entirely heartless. I don’t expect you to adapt perfectly from the start.

Let’s begin with something simple. Practice using honorifics. Repeat after me: ‘I apologize for my arrogance. Please forgive me.’”

“…..!”

The hatchling drew in a sharp breath.

Apologizing to a human?

For a dragon, it was an unbearable humiliation. Yet, as Sien began counting down—

“Five, four, three—”

“Eek!”

Startled by the sudden countdown, the hatchling flinched.

No matter how important pride was, it couldn’t outweigh survival.

If she were older and more experienced, perhaps she would have bitten her tongue.

But she was still just a youngling. Her short and insignificant life wasn’t worth sacrificing for pride.

With trembling lips, she finally spoke, her voice filled with tears.

“I-I apologize… for my arrogance. Please… forgive me…!”

The last vestiges of her pride spilled out as hot tears streamed down her cheeks.

Sien grinned at the sight, standing up and brushing himself off.

“Good. See? You can do it when you try. I’ll stop here for now.

It’s not good to push too hard all at once. As a reward, I’ll release your restraints.”

Drawing his sword, Sien cut through the cuffs binding the dragon’s limbs.

Despite being made of steel, the cuffs sliced apart as though they were made of tofu.

“It would be best if you put aside any thoughts of running away just because your body has been freed.

If you’re curious why, go ahead and try. Though I wouldn’t recommend it.”

“….”

“Alright then, see you at mealtime in a little while.”

With that, Sien walked out of the cave, leaving behind a hatchling with eyes as lifeless as a dead fish in the depths of the cave.

As soon as he stepped outside, Lier, who had been leaning against the entrance, spoke as if he had been waiting for him.

“Finished?”

“The first stage is done. The rest will follow later.”

“……”

At Sien’s immediate response, Lier pressed his lips together.

He moved his gaze, observing Sien’s expression closely.

His face was perfectly calm, showing no trace of guilt, as if he felt nothing after unleashing such violence on a child.

“…What? Is there something on my face?”

“No…” Lier sighed.

Sien was reliable, but at moments like this, he felt like an entirely different person, someone distant and detached.

His lack of empathy made him seem more like a demon than a human.

“Did you really have to go that far? Couldn’t you have guided her with kinder words instead?”

“Kind words? How?”

“Well, you could have patiently explained what’s right and wrong, made her understand clearly what her father did—”

“Pfft.”

Sien burst into laughter at Lier’s words, making the warrior scowl at the sudden ridicule.

“What? What’s so funny? Was what I said weird?”

“Yes, it’s weird.”

“What exactly is weird about it? Isn’t that the common sense approach to ‘education’?”

“Hah…”

Sien sighed softly.

This was why he insisted on taking charge of the education himself.

It was just as he’d expected—these people were hopelessly naïve, as if their minds were filled with flowers.

“Listen closely, Lier.”

Sien raised a finger and began explaining.

“The demons we face are unequivocally ‘evil’ by human standards. They are inherently devoid of empathy or consideration for others.

Thus, the Demon Realm, filled with such beings, should logically be a hellscape of chaos, slaughter, and crime.

Yet, contrary to what one might think, the Demon Realm is relatively orderly and well-governed. Do you know why?”

“…?”

Lier tilted his head.

The question itself was strange, but what puzzled her even more was how Sien could know such things about a place he’d never visited.

Was the rumor that he was a demon hybrid actually true?

“What’s the answer?”

“Uh…”

Urged by Sien, Lier scratched his head and shook it lightly.

“I don’t know. What is it?”

“The answer is: because they understand fear.”

“Fear?”

“Yes.”

Sien nodded and elaborated.

“In the Demon Realm, the ability to resist being swept away by one’s desires is a measure of trustworthiness.

Anyone who recklessly harms others or hoards petty gains will never be valued.

It’s proof they’re too foolish to foresee future disadvantages, blinded by short-term pleasure.

Such people inevitably lose self-control at critical moments, ruining everything. There’s no reason to place trust in someone like that.”

As he spoke, Sien recalled a few faces—individuals whose strength was decent but whose lack of intellect led to their downfall.

“What keeps demons abiding by rules isn’t conscience or morality. It’s fear.

Fear of stronger opponents who might arise and knock them down to the position of the weak.

Fear that those they mistreat might rise up in rebellion after enduring too much abuse.

Because they understand this fear, they refrain from stealing subordinates’ wives or disobeying their superiors.

They constantly strive to prove their worth compared to others. Do you understand now?”

“…More or less.”

Lier swallowed his doubt about how Sien knew all this and simply nodded.

Sien, meanwhile, glanced back at the cave before continuing.

“What I want to teach her is that same fear. Specifically:

There are beings stronger than oneself in this world, sometimes, survival requires swallowing one’s pride,

and ultimately,

Not harming others can be more beneficial to one’s survival.

If she understands these three principles, she’ll be less likely to act recklessly and more inclined to tread carefully in the future. Am I wrong?”

“You’re not wrong, but…”

Lier swallowed hard, still unconvinced. He understood the reasoning, but…

“If you handle it that way, what’s stopping her from going berserk later when she’s grown strong enough to not need anyone?

Wouldn’t it be better to instill the idea that bad deeds are inherently wrong for the long term?”

“Do you really think that’s possible?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Oh, for…” Sien shook his head again. He hadn’t realized the gap in their perspectives was this wide.

“Think carefully. We’re the ones who killed her father and took his head as a trophy.

Do you think she’d listen to talk of love, mercy, or forgiveness from such detestable enemies? If you were in her shoes, would those words reach your ears?”

“….”

Now that he thought about it, Lier had to admit Sien was right.

If someone killed his parents and tried to justify it, he wouldn’t listen; he’d cut them down without hesitation.

Dragons were no different.

“Alright, I get it. Looking at it that way, our approach does seem naïve.”

In the end, Lier raised his hands in surrender, fully acknowledging Sien’s logic.

“But that still leaves one problem: what happens if, 500 years from now, she turns on humanity? How will you prevent that?”

“I can’t.”

“What?”

Lier’s voice rose in shock at Sien’s blunt response, while he remained utterly calm.

“There’s no way a week of education can determine her actions 500 years from now.

How could I possibly predict what experiences she’ll have in the future?

From there on, it’s up to our descendants to deal with it. It’s not our responsibility.”

“I see…”

Lier’s expression turned grim.

He understood what Sien was saying, but wasn’t he the one who had just been arguing against leaving behind seeds of tragedy for future generations?

How could he flip his stance so easily?

Wait, speaking of earlier…

Suddenly, Lier recalled something Sien had said during their meeting.

‘I may not look like it, but back in my hometown, I… raised… no, mentored my niece.

She turned out to be a fine, exemplary child. My parenting skills are proven.’

“………….”

“…What’s wrong? Your face just turned pale.”

Seeing Lier’s sudden pallor, Sien tilted his head in confusion. But he simply shook his head and refused to explain.

“It’s nothing…”

One thing was for certain, though—if he ever had children, he would never leave them in Sien’s care.

Lier vowed this to himself over and over again.