Ch.79Chapter 79

Yuria and Rosemila began talking with each other while leaving Ourr sitting alone within their sight.

“Is that child the one you mentioned? Ourr.”

The Demon God Ourr. Yuria had already caused a stir by bringing a Demon God around to the upper management, academic societies, and the Academy, so Rosemila remembered the name. Not being directly involved, she hadn’t been able to see what Ourr looked like, but now that they’d met, Ourr was completely different from what she had imagined.

From what Yuria had said, Rosemila expected someone who would look fierce with just a slight frown, but that wasn’t the case at all.

Ourr just had an innocent expression and behaved as if her mental age was quite young. Rosemila’s gaze drifted to where Ourr was sitting at a distance.

Sitting on a bench inside the Academy, Ourr was bobbing her head from side to side. Her legs were also swinging back and forth alternately, making it look like she was keeping time.

Ourr’s head moved like the pendulum of a grandfather clock, matching the ticking sound.

Even without being a professor researching Demon Gods, Rosemila knew some things about them.

Demon Gods had to learn everything on their own, and unless it was knowledge acquired at birth, it took time for them to understand things directly.

Beyond socialization, morality, and ethics, just establishing a sense of self was a lengthy process. Even after living for over a hundred years, many Demon Gods were less developed than humans who had lived in society for just thirty years.

They were beings who lived and ate as they pleased, believing the world should revolve around their desires. They were selfish creatures who only thought about themselves.

But to Rosemila, Ourr seemed different.

Even with a year of education, it seemed doubtful that someone could overcome beliefs built over decades or centuries, yet Ourr had done it. This was both fascinating and puzzling.

Could this being actually be quite young? she wondered.

If Ourr had multiple personalities as Yuria claimed, at least this personality seemed to have been educated before establishing itself. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be so compliant.

What Rosemila was thinking about were things Yuria had already considered. Knowing this, Rosemila avoided stating the obvious.

“Yes, that’s Ourr.”

“She’s different from how you described her before. She seemed more gloomy back then.”

Rosemila had caught a glimpse of Ourr before. Back then, Ourr wasn’t even considered Academy property, so she was difficult to spot, but now it was different. Seeing a Demon God who was now officially allowed to attend the Academy brought a subtle expression to Rosemila’s face.

After staring for a while, Rosemila quietly continued.

“She doesn’t look that dangerous, but I suppose it’s still traumatic.”

“That’s part of it, but the problem is that her aura could spread as she grows.”

Yuria leaned against the wall. She sighed, seemingly relieved by the reduced strain on her legs.

After that deep sigh, Yuria made eye contact with Ourr. She had told Ourr to sit on the bench while she talked with the professor, but Ourr was staring directly at her, making Yuria feel a bit awkward as she smiled wryly.

When Yuria waved her hand as if nothing was wrong, Ourr, who couldn’t hear anything, smiled and waved back.

Rosemila watched this with sparkling eyes, amazed.

“That’s fascinating.”

It truly was fascinating.

Even Rosemila, who usually maintained a casual demeanor, could only express admiration at this moment.

To think such a thing was possible. It made her wonder if communication might be possible with other Demon Gods too.

Bringing in Demon Gods, teaching them socialization along with morality and ethics, and then using their immense power to deal with other Demon Gods—this possibility now presented itself.

Considering the time and money that would be required, it would be enormous, but for the safety of humans, elves, dwarves, and all other races, perhaps it was worth considering.

Starting with this casual thought, she tilted her head, pondering until a good idea might emerge. Seeing Rosemila like this, Yuria spoke up.

“Rose.”

“Yes?”

“I told you that Ourr gets younger when she dies.”

“You did.”

“I want to use that to prevent Ourr from emitting her aura, but I don’t know how to do it. I’m grateful you texted me to meet, but I also feel bad that I’m just asking for favors.”

When Yuria smiled bitterly, Rosemila nudged her with an elbow.

“Yuri, why are you like this over something like this? That’s what friends are for. Being able to help each other like this is a good thing.”

“But I’m only receiving. Anyway, do you have any good ideas?”

“…If Ourr gets younger when she dies, can’t you just ask for her understanding and kill her?”

Yuria had asked for good ideas, but Rosemila’s suggestion was just a primitive method.

What was needed was a way to kill the Demon God once without causing pain, but doing it that way would obviously make Ourr cry and suffer.

Methods involving nitrogen or oxygen concentration might not work.

Killing her through physical means would be simple, but that wouldn’t avoid the pain. Yuria wanted to avoid that, so her shoulders drooped when she heard Rosemila’s suggestion.

“I want to use a different method than that.”

“But she’s a Demon God, shouldn’t she be able to endure that much? …Yuria, regardless of how you feel or how your thoughts change, listen to me.”

Rosemila spoke to Yuria with a serious expression and tone, all playfulness gone.

“You probably know better, but Demon Gods each have their own way of living eternally, right? Some just live a long time, others have to steal someone’s lifespan to live long, things like that.”

Rosemila’s gaze briefly turned toward Ourr.

“I think she’s the type that lives eternally through suicide. If she doesn’t do that, she’ll age and die, so she repeatedly kills herself to somehow live longer. That way she gets younger and doesn’t reach natural death.”

It was fascinating that she couldn’t die no matter how many times she was killed. She just got younger and younger without disappearing. What one might easily imagine didn’t happen. This cycling pattern was unprecedented, unseen anywhere else.

Therefore, while it might be difficult to discuss other aspects, at least this part could be addressed well.

“I think it’s strange to avoid doing something because a Demon God’s chosen method of living eternally might be painful. …I don’t know what the current Ourr thinks, but I wonder if she would still feel the same if she heard she couldn’t live with you once her aura spreads.”

Rosemila wished Ourr would be given a choice.

Either choose death herself or wish to be thrown back into the forest.

This wasn’t something Yuria should worry about.

“Yuri, all that’s fine, but… maybe your head hurts because you’re trying to research too many things at once.”

“You think so?”

Rosemila casually put her arm around Yuria’s shoulders. Since no one was watching, Yuria just made a glum expression.

She pondered what Rosemila had said. She certainly didn’t want to see Ourr suffering, but considering the time and money needed for euthanasia research, it was definitely burdensome.

Moreover, the test subjects would have to be Demon Gods, and even if she did this research, it was questionable where she could prove it. It didn’t seem right to conduct such experiments on Ourr.

Other people, other researchers would weep at this story, but the current Yuria was hesitant.

Kill Ourr? Directly? She could do it. But what if Ourr became afraid of her afterward? Even now, Ourr was actually scared but stayed close for other reasons—what then?

Many thoughts crossed her mind.

If she did that, and someday when Ourr was finally recognized as safe and allowed to enter society like others, what if Ourr said, “I hate you, Professor,” and distanced herself? The thought was painful.

Fear was one thing, but she wanted the current Ourr to stay by her side.

“I’ll think about it carefully. It’s not that urgent since her aura isn’t suddenly emerging yet.”

“How much time is left?”

“I’m not sure. It seems like it might explode out at some point.”

Since she wasn’t certain, she shook her head, deciding not to give a definite answer.

Yuria looked at Ourr lying on the bench and smiled bitterly.

“I wonder if Ourr will resent me.”

“You’ve already killed her many times, and this time there’s a reason, so maybe she’ll understand.”

“I guess. But isn’t it too selfish to hope for that?”

Hesitation.

That made her thoughts chaotic.

“People naturally think selfishly. Even if it’s not selfish, it’s still for Ourr’s sake, right? She probably doesn’t want to live thrown into the forest and under surveillance.”

The general perception of Demon Gods.

Yuria nodded, deciding to seriously consider it.

Though what scared her most was how Ourr would react.