Arthur's words struck Muschika like thunder echoing through her mind. Demons had spent centuries imitating human civilization, building cities, hierarchies, and customs that resembled those of mankind. But imitation was still imitation. It was not something their race had forged through its own history or carved into its soul through generations of struggle.
Some things that belonged to others could never truly become part of oneself.
And at this moment, Arthur was displaying something unmistakably human.
A will that refused to bow before an unjust fate. A restless spirit that would rather fight endlessly than quietly accept the rules imposed upon it.
For a brief moment, Muschika had to admit it... she was persuaded.
Not completely, not rationally… but emotionally, the words of this tiny human had reached her.
Yet reality was not shaped by the dreams of children. If hope could not be placed in [God], then the obstacles to changing this world were far greater than anything he seemed to imagine.
"The biggest problem is this," Muschika finally said, her voice steady as she looked directly into his confident eyes.
"I am already the last of the Evil Blood Maidens. My entire clan is gone."
She lowered her gaze slightly.
"My blood is limited. Even if I wished to help, it would be impossible to transform all demons with it."
"No," Arthur replied without hesitation. "It's possible."
The confidence in his expression never wavered, not even for a moment.
"I will make this idea possible. What I need from you is simple—answer me one question."
His eyes burned with unwavering determination.
"Do you want to join my plan?"
"Together… we will overturn the rules of this world."
His words were grand, so grand that Muschika almost laughed in disbelief. She wanted to tell him how impossible it was. Even demons with long lifespans could struggle for centuries without changing the world, and he was only human. At best, he might live less than a hundred years.
How could her blood alone reshape an entire civilization within such a short time?
But despite all the logic telling her it was foolish… there was still a faint stirring in her heart.
A desire she had suppressed for centuries.
"…I need evidence," Muschika finally said quietly.
In the end, she could not completely suppress that small, dangerous hope—the hope that she might personally change the very world that had persecuted her and her kind.
As for resentment… did she hold any?
Probably.
However, in the past, Muschika knew very well that even if her blood could transform the bodies of other demons, it could not change their minds. Those who were meant to eat humans would continue to do so. She could only change a demon's constitution, but she could not change their thoughts. Blake was the only exception.
Yet the person standing before her now was merely an Edible Child who had just escaped from a farm. And this very child dared to shamelessly declare that he would overturn the entire world of demons. It was simply unbelievable. She felt that this human was indulging in nothing more than empty fantasies. However, deep in her heart, she still hoped that the human race could truly create a miracle.
If he could provide proof that convinced her, then even if she had to drain every drop of blood in her body and sacrifice her life… she would have no regrets.
"You won't regret it. Well then, first of all—"
Arthur opened his backpack and took out a set of rather exquisite-looking blood-drawing syringes along with several small blood containers. The tools looked far too professional for someone who had just escaped from captivity. After picking up one of the syringes, a spine-chilling smile appeared on his face, like a doctor about to give a child an injection.
"Let me draw a tube of blood first."
Muschika and Blake stared at him blankly. Why on earth did you have blood-drawing tools prepared in advance? Did you seriously bring medical equipment with you while escaping? This was way too strange.
Fortunately, Muschika didn't dwell on it for long. Her attention had already been captured by the ideal Arthur described—of them personally changing this world with their own hands. In the end, Arthur successfully drew a small bottle of her blood.
Of course, he had no intention of using this blood directly to alter the constitutions of the demons outside. The blood of the Evil Blood Maiden could only change a demon's biological structure; it could not change their thoughts. A demon that wanted to kill him would still want to kill him. A demon that wanted to eat humans would still do so.
Even after being injected with the blood of the Evil Blood Maiden, demons could still consume human flesh normally. For them, it had already become a habit—almost a survival instinct. Even if they wouldn't die without eating humans, they would not deliberately avoid humans as a food source. After all, to demons, humans were quite delicious. Especially the human brain, which they regarded as the most exquisite delicacy in the world.
But Arthur's goal was something entirely different. What he wanted to do… was to modify the blood of the Evil Blood Maiden.
As mentioned before, demons were essentially a species formed through genetic mutation, much like zombies. The fact that they constantly degenerated without human flesh proved that their genetic structure was incomplete. That was precisely why they were so easily affected by the mutated blood of an Evil Blood Maiden.
In truth, it was not that her blood influenced them. Rather, it contained the fragment their incomplete genes were missing—an important supplementary component capable of replacing the lifelong behavior of consuming humans. That was why their bodies could not resist her blood. In other words, they possessed absolutely no resistance to it.
For example, if the blood of the Evil Blood Maiden were enhanced with a powerful infectious ability similar to a zombie virus and then combined with a lethal pathogen… wouldn't that mean the entire demon race could be exterminated with terrifying efficiency?
Of course, this was merely a hypothesis. Arthur neither planned to do such a thing nor possessed the means to accomplish it. He had no ability to merge those characteristics with Muschika's blood, nor did he have the necessary materials for such research.
However, making small modifications to the properties of the Evil Blood Maiden's blood… that might actually be possible.
After securing the small bottle of blood, Arthur walked toward a nearby cave chamber beside the one where the children were resting. Liza and Saeko Busujima were already there. They had been waiting for him to finish speaking with the two demons so he could explain the next steps.
Ever since escaping the farm, Arthur had been the only one in the entire group who seemed to know what to do next and how to do it. At this moment, the others were no different from ordinary children. After all, the demon world was completely foreign to them. The knowledge and experience they had accumulated in normal human society were almost useless here.
But Arthur ignored such limitations. Even in the world of demons, he acted like an all-knowing prophet. He always seemed to know what the next move should be.
Sophia, on the other hand, had almost no presence throughout this dungeon from the very beginning. Even though she had turned into a child, her frail constitution remained. Despite being eleven years old, her physical stamina was worse than that of a six- or seven-year-old child.
Several times along the journey, Yako and Liza had to help take care of her. During the escape from the orphanage, she had barely been able to help at all. Aside from occasionally pretending to faint to distract Mom, she had contributed almost nothing to the team.
Even Liza, who had originally infiltrated them as an undercover agent before being pulled into their camp by Blank, had made several important contributions later on.
Yet she herself had been so useless. The more she thought about it, the heavier the guilt in her heart became.
Toward the person she admired the most...
"…Coco."
Coco was her pseudonym in this world. She hadn't expected Blank to suddenly call out her name at such a moment, so she stared at him with wide, bewildered eyes.
"What are you spacing out for?"
Arthur reached out and tapped her forehead, clearly speechless at her reaction.
"I told you before, didn't I? Once we're out of the orphanage, it's your show. Don't mess up now."
Huh?
Was there really something she could do?
Because of her low self-esteem, she had always considered herself an outsider. She hadn't paid much attention to the battle recollections before, believing they had little to do with her. Yet the moment that thought crossed her mind, a stack of papers suddenly appeared in Arthur's hand.
The pages were densely covered in writing, and each sheet also contained a highly detailed drawing of a plant.
"Coco, you are very meticulous and have strong observational skills," Arthur said calmly.
"I need you to collect all the plants listed here as quickly as possible. Most of them can be found in this forest. During this time, have Liza and Mujika accompany you. If you encounter danger, prioritize avoiding conflict."
"I will go with Yako and that demon named Blake to hunt other demons. We'll attract their attention and buy you time."
Arthur placed the papers into her hands and looked at her seriously.
"Remember, what you do will be a crucial cornerstone for us to overturn the rules of this world."
"For those children."
"Let's change this world together."