Chapter 27: Justification
Time passed.
Laura’s anger, though slow to die, eventually simmered down.
A long silence fell between them as the thick, putrid air of rotting monster carcasses settled. She finally exhaled, her voice heavy with lingering discontent.
"...Even if they were monsters, I can’t help but feel pity for them."
Einar sighed, rolling his shoulders as he casually tossed another creature into a spatial pouch. "Why, though? Aren’t you people taught from birth that these creatures are nothing but walking resources? You kill them, strip their corpses for parts, and profit from it. What did I do that was any different?"
Laura turned sharply, glaring at him. "Because you crossed a line. There’s a difference between survival and slaughter for sport. You didn’t just kill them—you massacred them, used their own kin’s blood to lure them, and slaughtered even more. It was sadistic."
Einar chuckled, amused by her moral compass. "And yet the same people who’ll condemn me for this are the ones buying monster cores, hide, and venom. Hypocritical, don’t you think?"
Laura opened her mouth to retort—but nothing came.
He wasn’t wrong. Society thrived off the exploitation of these creatures. The kingdom’s economy was built upon the back of monster hunting. To kill them en masse was normal. Yet somehow...
Her stomach churned at his actions.
"...Still," she stubbornly muttered, "that doesn’t make what you did right."