Ch.171Answer (2)

First wasn’t considered a monster from the beginning.

For demons, having great power is actually considered a blessing.

Even if that power is outside the norm, it’s still viewed positively. Demons have significant individual differences to begin with. People would rejoice at finding someone with the potential to become a Demon King, not immediately treat them as a monster.

Within the same race, there are typically two reasons someone might be treated as a monster.

First is when their abilities differ fundamentally from the characteristics of their race.

It’s natural to feel uncomfortable around beings different from oneself.

Lacrima, who possessed the absurd power to turn illusions into reality, fell into this category. The trickster’s strategy is to use falsehoods to overcome truth.

But the ability to turn falsehoods into reality inherently deviates from the race’s characteristics.

What about First?

He was simply powerful, with abilities that were quite ordinary.

His powers were the common vampire abilities of blood manipulation and mist transformation.

Even the transcendent power of Blood Sky was something he acquired long after being labeled a monster.

Yes, First’s reason for being considered a monster was different from Lacrima’s.

“You could definitely become a Demon King someday! Don’t pretend you don’t know me later, okay? We’re friends, right?”

“Yes, I got it already.”

First was considered a promising successor within his race.

He was seen as someone who would elevate the glory of vampires.

He was beloved by many. Of course, some were jealous of him, and others disliked him for no reason.

But those who liked him vastly outnumbered the others.

There was even someone who particularly adored him.

“Ah, today’s hunt was unsuccessful.”

“Indeed.”

“Well, I suppose we can’t succeed every time.”

There was a cute girl who followed First everywhere. To everyone around them, it was obvious she liked him.

She was in no way inferior to First. Because of this, their race looked fondly upon the two spending time together.

“I’m hungry.”

“Me too.”

The incident happened unexpectedly.

There was a day when First and the girl, both considered special within their race, failed at hunting.

It’s impossible to succeed every day, and failure is common.

In such situations, one would normally just consume stored blood for sustenance.

But First didn’t do that.

Chomp!

Simply because he was hungry, he bit into the neck of the cute girl who had been following him.

Without hesitation, he bit someone he had been conversing with just moments before, someone he had spent years with.

And he didn’t do it out of desperate hunger, but as casually as having a normal meal.

That was the beginning of all the problems.

***

The incident was treated as a serious matter within the race.

Even though vampires drink blood, they never drink the blood of their own kind.

It’s like how humans eat meat but don’t eat other humans.

The problem was that First wasn’t even starving enough to commit such a horrible act.

Naturally, after “hunting” the girl, First was confined to his home.

They wanted to prevent him from escaping before deciding on a proper punishment.

But that wasn’t enough. They had underestimated First’s strength.

That day, First slaughtered his parents for the same reason he had killed the girl.

After quenching his thirst with his parents’ blood, First didn’t flee but remained in place as if everything was normal.

Seeing his attitude that suggested nothing was wrong, people finally realized:

“This creature… is a monster. He’s not the same race as us, but no different from a demonic beast…!”

Naturally, this time they didn’t stop at mere confinement.

They bound his limbs, gagged him, and threw him deep underground. Of course, this wasn’t mercy. They had no intention of letting him live.

They planned to let this monster, who committed atrocities because he couldn’t control his hunger, starve to death.

The process was extremely long.

They didn’t completely withhold blood but gave him minimal amounts, keeping him constantly hungry and in pain.

But perhaps the process was too lengthy?

“Isn’t this punishment too severe for such a young child? Noble vampires of the night.”

“Y-Your Majesty…”

The rumors reached the ears of Leviathan, the Demon King at that time.

He was considered a wise ruler. The vampires never imagined he would come looking for First as a powerful military asset.

And they still didn’t realize it even when he met First.

He scolded the vampires as if pointing out moral issues.

It was like human culture, something that would only work among high-ranking demons who retained their human tendencies, but fortunately, vampires were closer to humans than most demons.

“If his power is the problem, I will keep him close and teach him. From what I’ve heard, this child’s crime occurred due to ignorance, was it not an unfortunate incident?”

“That’s… correct. If it’s Your Majesty, we can trust you.”

And so it worked well.

He knew what he was doing.

Leviathan was thus able to get his hands on the monster called First.

When they were alone in the returning carriage, Leviathan decided to teach First common sense as promised.

However, the form of this teaching was different from what the vampires had imagined.

“You probably don’t understand emotions yet. You were simply hunting food as usual because you were hungry, and then received such treatment. You must have been perplexed.”

“…”

First nodded.

He didn’t fully understand the meaning of “perplexed,” but he didn’t understand why everyone had become so angry.

“Emotions are infinitely complex and difficult to understand. How could one learn them even if they tried?”

And the cunning Leviathan knew how to teach such a First.

First always acted within the bounds of common sense. The only difference was that his common sense excluded emotions.

It was impossible to impose intangible morality on First, who was born a monster from the beginning.

Could a wolf ever be raised like a dog?

So he didn’t try.

“So for now, you only need to remember one thing.”

The simplest rule.

The common law of all demons.

“The strong exploit the weak. So you did nothing wrong. You never needed to be swayed by the words of those far weaker than you.”

“…”

The simple rule of power that the strong take everything.

Silence with force all those who point fingers and claim you’re strange. Isn’t it simple?

That’s what Leviathan said.

However, the reason he brought up the rule of power was because Leviathan was stronger than First at that time.

Leviathan simply wanted to create a useful banner bearer.

Something that the still immature First couldn’t understand.

Eventually, he came to naturally follow Leviathan’s will according to the rule of power.

“With power, you can obtain everything. Why listen to the complaints of inferiors?”

The cunning Leviathan’s method of training a monster. He knew well.

What it means to be different from others. What those who worry about being different desire.

“There was once someone like you. How could you be the only one in the world?”

“…”

A sense of kinship.

“He was a Demon King and a great ruler who left a significant mark on this world.”

There was once a notorious tyrant who made the demons’ position even more precarious due to his oppressive attitude.

Like many failed Demon Kings before him, he invaded the human realm and was defeated.

He died with his heart pierced by the sword of a hero allied with the dragon race, self-proclaimed guardians of balance.

But facts don’t matter. Whether he was a tyrant or a wise ruler, it could be packaged either way.

“His name is Beelzebub. In my view, you might one day succeed me and become an excellent Demon King like him.”

Beelzebub, the Demon King of Gluttony.

The notorious tyrant who once brought Tanha to her death.

“So I’ll give you a name that honors him.”

Leviathan gave a name to First, the previously nameless vampire.

A name no longer used, an invisible shackle he placed on the boy to make him his banner bearer.

“From today, you shall be called ‘Bhaal’.”

“…”

First nodded.

Leviathan’s smooth words had clearly touched his heart.

His life had been full of questions, and he felt like he had finally found answers.

Yes, First was saved.

But that salvation…

“Yes.”

Was found not in Leviathan as an individual, but in the law of the rule of power.

***

Yes, Leviathan didn’t realize.

He thought he had made the boy a loyal subordinate, but he couldn’t notice.

That the boy had never once given him true loyalty.

He underestimated him.

He took lightly the fact that he was a monster incapable of understanding emotions.

“Fir…st. How could you… how could you do this…”

Did he appear human?

Did he still look like a loyal subordinate?

“What is the problem?”

If so, that’s fortunate.

First, who had killed his former mentor, was thinking this at the time.

That he, once considered a monster, had blended in so well. That he could live by simply following the rules.

“I merely faithfully carried out what you taught me.”

First values rules.

After all, they were the fine clothes that allowed him, a monster, to blend into the world.