Chapter 5

Aura (33 years old)

Two years have passed since Freiren stayed in the demon-inhabited village.

Frieren had mixed feelings about Aura, but for the time being, she decided to hold off on making any decisions regarding her.

From the beginning, Aura had not exhibited the typical antagonism that demons often held towards humans. In fact, she had contributed positively to the village, earning the acceptance of the villagers, establishing a home, and carving out a modest role as the village's resident horned mage. This was unusual for a demon, but Aura seemed content with her small, unassuming life.

"A mentally ill person with combat power shouldn't be allowed to have excessive authority anyway—it's bound to lead to trouble."

Frieren had heard Aura speak on more than one occasion about her lack of interest in rising to a more prominent position in a larger city. Aura even appeared to be actively avoiding such an outcome.

As long as Aura remained quiet and didn't cause any upheaval, Frieren saw no reason to take any drastic measures. This unspoken truce between them allowed Frieren to settle into a routine, where she could continue her own studies without unnecessary distractions.

On this particular day, like many others, Frieren was doing nothing of great importance—simply reading through one of Aura's grimoires.

Since her devastating loss to Macht, one of the Seven Sages of Destruction, Frieren had been reluctant to face demons in battle. The very thought of it left her feeling hollow. Yet, keeping Aura, a demon of an entirely different nature, under observation offered her a peculiar sense of comfort. In a way, this arrangement was perfect for Frieren.

"Aura," Frieren called out, breaking the silence that had settled in the room.

"What is it? If you're looking for a snack, it's in the cupboard on the right," Aura replied, her tone indifferent as she remained engrossed in her own magical studies.

"I'll take that, but that's not why I called you." Frieren's voice held a note of curiosity as she showed the title of the grimoire she was reading to Aura—the very one Aura had written herself.

The title, The Magic for Allowing Female Demons to Bear Human Children, was scrawled across the cover in Aura's unmistakable handwriting. This was the spell that had ultimately led to Aura's deep involvement in child-rearing—a role that was as surprising as it was ironic for a demon.

"This timeline doesn't make sense, does it? You learned about yourself as a demon at least after this magic was created, right?"

"Ah, yes, that's true."

It was a valid point. If Aura had given the spell its current title from the beginning, it would imply that she had already known she was a demon. This would mean that she had lied about her identity. However, Frieren knew that Aura could no longer hide anything from her. The truth was inevitable.

"It was originally a spell designed to allow women to give birth to human children," Aura admitted without hesitation.

With a fluid motion, Aura took the grimoire from Frieren and, without a moment's pause, tore off half of the title page.

Sure enough, the original title was revealed: The Magic for Allowing Female Humans to Bear Children.

"But I thought of myself as a race like elves and dwarves, a race whose bodies are made of mana, so I later added the 'demon' descriptor."

"Not that I was entirely wrong," she mumbled, handing the grimoire back to Frieren. Her words hung in the air, their significance slowly sinking in as Frieren took the book and examined it with a thoughtful expression.

For a moment, silence filled the room. Frieren stared at the title, feeling the weight of what it represented. This wasn't just a spellbook; it was a reflection of Aura's struggle with her identity, a complex tapestry woven from threads of self-discovery and denial.

"So, does this mean..." Frieren began, her voice trailing off as she tried to piece together her thoughts.

Incidentally, Frieren had only begun to scratch the surface of decoding the grimoire titled The Magic for Allowing Female Demons to Bear Human Children.

The book in her hand was as thick as a national history book, yet it was only the first volume in a staggering series of thirty-two. The sheer density of its content was overwhelming, each volume packed with intricate theories and detailed magical formulas. Together, they filled an entire row of shelves, a testament to the monumental effort that had gone into its creation.

According to Aura, she had spent four years working on it. Despite her considerable magical prowess, Frieren found herself frequently at a loss, wishing she could consult with the author—Aura herself—to make sense of the grimoire's enigmatic contents. This wasn't just any spell; it was one of the most complex pieces of magic she had ever encountered.

"If the theories in this book are correct, wouldn't this spell work on any being whose body is composed of mana? Like, say, a monster?"

Aura's response was immediate and nonchalant, "Want to try it?"

Frieren's reaction was just as swift. "I'll kill you if you do."

"Isn't that a bit harsh when you're the one who asked?"

Aura shrugged her shoulders, her expression as blank as ever. But the fact that she could joke about it at all showed just how much she understood humans—far more than most demons could. Then again, there was also the possibility that she wasn't joking at all.

"Well, since you have to maintain the spell continuously, it really only works for the caster, so it's not a very practical spell."

"Specifically?"

"During pregnancy, your mana drops to about one-fifth of what it normally is."

"Normal demons would never use this."

To most demons, magic was everything. They dedicated their entire lives to the pursuit of a single form of magic, honing it to perfection. In their society, the most powerful mages—the ones with the greatest reserves of mana—were the most revered. Mana wasn't just a resource; it was a status symbol, a reflection of a demon's worth.

Even Aura, for the most part, lived her life according to the Spell of Obedience: Auserlese, a powerful and complex magic that governed her actions. The spell was a cornerstone of her identity, something that defined her place in the world.

Even so, she had used it three times without any qualms about the temporary decrease in her mana, which shows just how mentally ill this demon was.

This was madness—pure and simple. But in this madness, there was also a twisted kind of logic. What was insanity for a demon could, in a strange way, be beneficial for humans. The very traits that made Aura a pariah among her own kind were the same ones that allowed her to coexist, however tenuously, with humans.

Yet this realization also underscored a harsh truth: the fundamental differences between demons and humans were irreconcilable. Aura's existence was an anomaly, a fragile bridge between two worlds that were never meant to coexist. And no matter how much Aura understood humans, or how much she deviated from the norm, she would always be a demon—an outsider in both worlds.