On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

“Traitor!” One of the imprisoned people scream at me.

Although he looks ragged, I am sure the middle-aged man was a warrior of some sort; his eyes don’t belong to just anyone. ‘Well, no matter how intimidating he looks, he can’t beat Ilschevar’s aura.’ I am not intimidated in the slightest; I feel weirdly ecstatic.

“Layland, I will give you the chance to prove your loyalty to King Ilschevar.”

Turning my head to Valeria, I am met with her expectant gaze. ‘Do I have to utter my pledge of loyalty here or what?’ At my puzzled expression, Valeria motions her hand towards the cell.

“Pick one of them, and show me your resolve.”

“Do I have to kill whoever I choose?”

“Yes.”

Valeria’s answer was brief, and absolute; there was no hesitation in her tone. ‘Well, I’ve killed people once; I can do it over and over again.’ Shrugging, I point my finger to the blond haired girl with a round, attractive face.𝚘𝑣𝔩xt.𝒸𝑜𝚖

“I will take this girl,” I say without hesitation. Hearing no response from Valeria, I turn my head to her; I am immediately met with her slightly frowning face. ‘Is she expecting me to choose a man? Jokes on her, I know my limit!’

After years of being bullied, I like to play safe. The person I choose to kill will definitely resist; if it was a man, I wouldn’t be able to hold him back. I don’t really care about how to look cool. I don’t have that manly pride to maintain … Yet.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Valeria gestures her chin at the cell, as if urging me to do the deed.

‘What the fuck? Do you want me to take the bitch myself? I’ll just get killed!’ Everyone in the cell is boring hole in my head with their gaze. If I were just to enter the cell just to take the girl I want to kill, I will be the one who get killed.

“I don’t want these maggots to taint me with their touch, Miss Valeria,” is my witty rejection.

I know we have to look dignified in front of these people just by the way she calls my name right. Therefore, I also save her dignity by not speaking my cowardly concern.

“I get your concern, Layland. However, none of them will be able to touch you,” she points to the strange symbol on the people’s forehead, “as long as they still have a Geas on them.”

Since I have read enough fiction, I don’t need her to explain to me what a Geas is. The function makes it clear: Geas is a seal that is put on someone to prohibit them from doing a certain action.

Judging by the helplessness the people in the cell are showing, they must’ve had their Magic sealed by Geas. That means, my safety is guaranteed.

“Very well. Allow me to show you my resolve, Miss Valeria.” I step closer to the cell, and Valeria snaps her finger once.

Creak.

The cell is opened, but none of the people inside dare to step out. Even when I enter, none of them step forward; they are only glaring at me with utmost hatred, especially the girl I am going to kill.

‘These people are blinded by hatred; they can’t even notice how out of the world my clothing are. They think I am really one of them.’ I can’t stop a condescending smirk from appearing on my face.

The situation is quite amusing; I am still a human, but I don’t consider myself one anymore. I know they are my kin, but I don’t feel any compassion towards them. ‘Maybe, I am not fit to be a human in the very first place.’

I have tried my best to fit in, but people are too stupid; none of them but a few can accept me. It would’ve been better if they had treated me like air—if they had left me alone. However, they decided to toy with me.

I know I am overly generalizing humanity, but I am aware that society is not ready to accept me yet; until then, I will never be able to live in peace. Maybe the world doesn’t really hate me; it is trying to warn me, ‘You are not fit to be a human.’

Therefore, I am done with humanity.

“Come!” I glare at the blond girl coldly, and extend my hand. I don’t know why I did that, but it feels just right.

“N-N-No! Please, not me! I—I want to meet my father! Please!” Although the girl is crying profusely while looking at me in horror, her feet move by themselves towards me. ‘As I expected, Geas makes anyone who has it subservient.’

When she is just a few steps in front of me, I motion her to stop. “Kneel before me!” The girl stares at me in horror, and does what I said. I look around, and I can see the other eight people in the cell are ready to jump at me. But as Valeria has said, they can’t.

Stepping forward once, I eliminate the distance between me and the kneeling blonde. “Blame your fate, woman.” Smirking coldly, I put my hands around her neck. She tries to resist, but it is futile.

‘Although I would be glad if Valeria gave me a knife, my hands will still do.’ I muster power, and choke the blonde.

She groans, and flails her arm helplessly. “P-Please, stop! I don’t… Want to die!” She is really genuine in expressing herself, and it excites me even more.

‘Damn, this girl really looks like that bitch, Brianna—it’s satisfying!’ That is the reason why I picked her in the very first place.

An unknown power suddenly enters my hand when I think about the betrayal—about the game. My choke on her becomes even stronger, and I become even more excited.

The room has a very bad lighting, but I can see my reflection in the blonde’s eyes; I have a manic grin that is unbefitting of my effeminate face.

“You fiend! You will definitely rot in hell for what you have done!”

“May our God condemn your soul for eternity!”

“Curse you lowly traitor of humanity!”

The other eight people in the cell are cursing at me. ‘Loud … They are too loud.’

Turning my glare at them, a command unconsciously comes out of my mouth. “Kill yourself!” As if possessed, all of the eight people immediately bang their head to the wall; the Geas has taken effect.

“Ku-ku-ku. Idiots.” Staring back at the girl I am chocking, I notice that her resistance is getting weaker—not that it was strong in the very first place. Her face gets darker in every second, and her eyes are slowly rolling to the back.

Before long, she stops moving entirely, and I can say she’s dead. My manic grin slowly disappears, before my expression turns completely neutral. Letting go of the now dead girl, I look around once again.

The other eight people in the cell are also dead; all of them broke their head. ‘I feel … Nothing.’

“I asked you to kill one, but you ended up killing all of them.”

“I am sure my command would’ve born no effect, if you didn’t give me the authority over the Geas.” I turn my head to Valeria, and she smiles at me—beautifully if I may add.

“I didn’t give you any privilege to control the Geas, Layland.” She motions me to get out of the cell, and I do as her command. “However you, as a Demon King Candidate, have every right to control all of the Geas Lord Ilschevar has made.”

“I see…” I am not that surprised surprisingly.

Valeria smirks lightly. “You act differently from the way you look. I thought you would ask me for a knife before doing it.”

“I didn’t know I could … Just ask.”

Valeria shrugs lightly, then turns her body graciously. “Come on, there are still some places we need to explore. Furthermore,” she briefly glances at the now dead bodies filled cell, “I need to report about the unexpected event soon.”

She starts walking, slower this time, and I can easily keep up with her. “Is that a problem?” I am asking about the unexpected event.

“Actually, yes. The girl you have just killed was the daughter of Duke Niles Brontes of Eschian Kingdom—the human Kingdom where your friends were summoned as Heroes.”

My eyebrow twitches at that irritating trivia. “So, what is the problem?”

“We have promised to give her back tomorrow in return of a Holy Sword.” That is undoubtedly a problem; not only will the Demons not get the Holy Sword, but the girl’s death will also exacerbate the situation between the two races.

‘Then, why the heck didn’t you tell me in advance?! What are you trying to achieve? To make me feel guilty? Ptooi! I have resolved myself to stop having a sense of guilt!’ With a smirk, I show her how unperturbed I am with the information.

“Well, you don’t have to feel guilty. You are bound to deal with them nonetheless; you just have to take responsibility for today’s deed in the future.”

Valeria stops walking, and I follow suit. “Ah, I almost forgot about it.” Smiling softly, she continues. “You have shown me your resolve; welcome to Demon society, Laylow.”

Though she calls my name wrong again, at least she makes it clear that I am welcomed.