Chapter 5

Faguru Garguzu Shemuru is the daughter of the Zoan, a race that follows the god of beasts. The Zoan are divided into twelve clans of various sizes, and Shemuru belongs to the "Clan of Fangs," which lived on the plains in this area. However, about a dozen years ago, the "Clan of Fangs" was driven from the plains by humans and has since been living in the northern hills.

Since being driven from the plains, the Zoan, who sought to reclaim their ancestral land, and the humans, who repelled them and even tried to drive the Zoan out of the hills, have repeatedly engaged in battles centered around this fortress. Shemuru, despite being a girl, fought as a warrior against the humans, but in the last battle, she was hit by a stray arrow in her leg, which left her unable to move, and she was captured by the fortress soldiers.

Thinking about what happened afterward fills her with a rage that makes her blood boil. She had braced herself to be beheaded along with her fellow Zoan, with their bodies left on the plains to be devoured by wolves. However, the most powerful man in the fortress took her alone from the other captured Zoan, led her to an empty room, and with a lustful gleam in his eyes, attacked her.

She had heard rumors that some humans took pleasure in violating other races, but she never imagined that she would be the target. She didn't know the human standard of beauty, but she had always been praised for having the most beautiful fur and body among her clan. The thought that she was targeted as prey made her hate her own body.

When she was pinned to the bed, her hands tied, and her clothes torn, she felt more revulsion than fear. However, when she thinks about what happened next, Shemuru almost bursts into laughter.

Shemuru was the chosen child of the great god of beasts. When she was chosen as the god's child and granted his favor, the proud Shemuru wished for her pride to be protected rather than receiving power. As a result, she was given a favor that prevented her from acting against her pride, and anyone who unjustly harmed her pride would be struck by a terrible curse.

The unjust treatment of a warrior, the act of violating a Zoan despite being of a different race, and the brutal attempt to take a maiden's purity by force—these acts deeply wounded the three aspects of Shemuru's pride as a warrior, a Zoan, and a maiden. The man's actions brought a terrible curse upon him, and he died a humiliating death, writhing in agony with his pants halfway down.

Later, she learned that the man was the most powerful squad leader in the fortress. The thought of his final moments, dying with his pants half down and blood spewing from his mouth, made Shemuru laugh again.

Even though it was his own fault, the humans, having lost their most powerful squad leader, were enraged, their faces turning red like apes. However, no one dared to kill Shemuru, fearing they would suffer the same fate. In reality, simply killing her in battle would not have wounded her pride, but the humans didn't know this, and Shemuru had no obligation to enlighten them.

Unable to deal with her, the humans could only lock her in the basement. About twenty days had passed, and it seemed the humans were trying to starve her to death, as they had stopped bringing her food and water for several days. While the Zoan were more resilient to hunger than humans, she was reaching her limit.

She couldn't die in battle, but bringing a curse upon the most powerful man in the fortress wasn't so bad. She was thinking about this one day when someone finally came to the basement where she was locked up. From the sound of footsteps, there were two people, and something was being dragged.

As Shemuru listened, they started to move the iron bars of the cell where she was kept. Had they grown impatient with her not dying of starvation and come to take her life directly? Shemuru smiled, thinking that even if she was starving, she still had the strength to pounce and bite their throats. She was grateful that they had brought another person to die with her.

However, contrary to her expectations, the soldiers didn't try to kill her. Instead, they dropped a human child into the cell.

"Kill the Zoan! If you do, we'll give you food!"

Shemuru gritted her teeth at the soldiers' words. The child, who had been dropped, didn't seem capable of fighting. His thin limbs were too weak to wield a sword or wear armor, let alone run on a battlefield. Moreover, he seemed to be ill and couldn't even stand properly.

"Kill! Kill the Zoan!"

The soldiers shouted and left, leaving the child and Shemuru in the basement. The human child, seemingly unaware of Shemuru's presence, was slowly searching the area.

This made Shemuru even angrier. Was she, the "Noble Fang," to be killed by such a feeble creature? Her anger turned into a growl.

Finally, the child, who had been startled, backed against the wall and held a dropped spear with both hands, pointing it at her. It was a completely amateurish stance. In her village, even a child younger than this human would have a better stance.

"Are you going to kill me? You disgusting human!"

She bared her fangs in a threatening manner, and the child's cowardice made her even angrier.

"You disgusting human! Come on! I'll tear your throat out!"

She was frustrated by the armlets and chains that bound her arms to the wall. Without them, she could have easily dispatched such a weak opponent! She would survive, even if it meant breaking the taboo of eating human flesh, and she would live to take revenge on the humans who had insulted her!

Shemuru, filled with volcanic rage, was taken aback by the child's unexpected action. He had thrown away the spear, his only means of defense.

Shemuru was genuinely surprised. What was this child thinking?

Did he think he could kill her with his bare hands?

As she thought this, the child suddenly spread his empty hands.

"It's okay. I won't do anything to you."

The words that came from the child's mouth were incomprehensible to Shemuru.

Could this be a magic spell from the stories of the bards?

So, he threw away the spear to use magic to kill me!

Shemuru bared her fangs, ready to attack if the child cast a spell. However, nothing happened.

Feeling anticlimactic, Shemuru watched as the child leaned against the wall and started to eat the bread dropped by the soldiers.

Shemuru was confused. Who was this child? Why was he eating bread so calmly in front of her? Was this a trap to make her let her guard down?

No way! I won't let my guard down! If you make even the slightest suspicious move, I'll see through it!

Despite her resolve, her eyes were drawn to the bread the child was eating. It looked hard and unappetizing, and she didn't want to eat it. But it had been days since she had eaten anything. No, I don't want to eat that bread!

As she thought this, her eyes involuntarily followed the bread as the child moved it.

The child lowered the bread.

Is he done eating?

Then, he brought it back to his mouth.

You're eating again?

Their eyes met.

Don't look at me!

The child's warm gaze irritated her, so she bared her fangs to threaten him.

The child looked at the bread in his hand, deep in thought. His expression changed from a bitter smile to a serious one, then to a sad one.

Finally, he seemed to make a decision and extended his right hand holding the bread toward her.

What? What are you doing?

"Here, do you want to eat?"

He spoke in the same incomprehensible language.

However, after a while, Shemuru understood his intention.

Is he offering me the bread?

A wave of shame washed over Shemuru's heart.

To be pitied by such a weakling? The "Noble Fang"? No way! This is ridiculous!

"Stay back! You disgusting monster!"

She shouted in anger, and the child looked sad.

The child, giving up on handing the bread to her, threw it toward her side of the cell. He also threw a water skin in the same direction. Then, he turned his back to her and lay down against the wall.

Shemuru was on guard, thinking he might try to stab her with a spear as she approached to take the bread and water. However, after a while, she heard regular breathing, indicating that the child was truly asleep.

What is this child?

Shemuru's next thought was about the sleeping child.

How could he fall asleep in front of a Zoan, even if the distance was out of reach? He should at least keep the spear close and be on guard. It seemed he had forgotten about the spear, which was lying around carelessly.

More importantly, she couldn't understand why he would share his meager food with a Zoan. It was incomprehensible! How kind could this child be?

In this world, people would kill and sell their families for a single piece of bread or a copper coin. It was a harsh world where one had to do such things to survive. She was a Zoan, an enemy of the humans. Why would he hesitate to kill her?

Despite being told by the soldiers that he would get food if he killed her, the child showed no intention of doing so. Even if he didn't understand the words, he should have understood the soldiers' gestures.

Is he suicidal? Does he not want to live?

Shemuru felt an urge to scream and grab her head.

"Mom, Dad..."

Suddenly, the child's voice was heard, but it was just a mumble in his sleep, and regular breathing resumed.

The lonely sound of his sleep made Shemuru's shoulders sag. She felt silly for being so stubborn and reached out to pick up the bread and water.

As expected, the bread was hard and damp, and the water was moldy and had a slimy, decaying taste. However, after not eating for so long, it tasted surprisingly good.

If you are interested in the language of the other world, I should explain that the word "Genobanda" used by Shemuru is translated as "disgusting human" or "disgusting monster" in different contexts, which might be confusing.

Genobanda refers to a hideous creature that scavenges for feces at the bottom of a place similar to hell in the world's legends.

"Genobanda Hyumeiha" translates to "Humans are Genobanda."

"Genobanda Noiha" translates to "You are Genobanda."

For clarity, these are translated as:

"Disgusting human!"

"You are a disgusting monster!"

It's just a bit of wordplay.