Without a sense of smell, my brain has time to think. That...what was that smell. It was like burning meat but ten times worse. I think it's coming from the base.

Making my way closer to Manbun's area, I start to hear noises. The close I get, the more p.r.o.nounced they are."

"STOP OH G.o.d STOOOOOP"

"AGHHHHHHH AHHHHHHHHH"

"PLEASE I BEG OFFGHAAAAHHHH"

The crackling sound of fire mixes in with the screams of men. This...what's going on?!

Not caring if I get spotted or not, I quickly make my way towards the base. What meets my eyes when I enter.....terrify me frozen.

Men in nonflammable vine cages being burned alive... the comrades still unharmed spouting either vulgarities, pleads, or a combination of both. Some of the men are completely silent while all staring at a specific person. I follow their line of sight so see someone very familiar, a cold chill runs down my back.

Manbun looks on with cold eyes," I will repeat myself, surrender and die as painlessly as possible or..." He looks at the unrecognizable chunk of charred meat in a cage.

A cold feeling covers me from head to toe. My face pales.

One of the quiet captives speak up at this moment," Ha! Surrender and what? Betray our leader. We are a proud people." He stares with ferocious eyes right into Manbun's frosty ones," Then let us burn." He provokes Manbun and unites the rest of the caged.

"THATS RIGHT! WE WILL NEVER BETRAY OR LEADER!"

"BURN US YOU COWARD!"

"WE'LL SEE YOU IN THE UNDERWORLD, TRAs.h.!.+"

Manbun looks at the group with a slight frown. Sighing and shaking his head, he looks towards one of his men,"Do it."

The man holding some kind of magic flamethrower, is someone I just noticed now, a solemn-faced Nars. Nars, who received Manbun's order, pointed the flamethrower towards the quiet man who spoke first.

Realizing what's about to happen, I rush out without thinking,"STOP! OH MY G.o.d STOP! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!?!"

Nars seemed surprised by my entrance, because he actually did stop to look in my direction. He looks at me worriedly and turns to look at Manbun. I follow and look at Manbun, as well, waiting for an explanation.

"...Why did you come."

...That's it? THATS IT?!? You're murdering people right in front of my eyes and that's all you have to say?!? I grind my teeth," DO YOU THINK THIS IS WHY I PUT THEM IN CAGES, UNHARMED?! SO IT WOULD BE EASIER TO KILL THEM!?! SO YOU COULD BURN THEM ALIVE?!? HAVE YOU NO HUMANITY?!?"

Manbun just stares at me coldly and Nars is staying quiet. Blaze-kun, hearing the noise, rushes over,"What happened." He sees me and a pained expression sweeps over his face.

Your puppy dog expression won't work, not this time, "WHY DIDNT YOU DO SOMETHING TO STOP HIM?!? ARE YOU OKAY WITH THIS HAPPENING?!?" I angrily yell at Blaze-Kun and Nars, a hint of expectation and fear at their future answers.

My fear was not unfounded, Nars' answer completely broke my trust in both of them. "Fairy... They're enemies. You may not understand, but this is a necessary evil that we need to commit as an example for the enemies. This is normal."

.....

Ha...haha... d.a.m.n, exactly what I didn't want to hear. My eyes starting to blur, I look down so they don't notice. "You're right. I don't understand." I look up one last time, manage to give a half-hearted smile full of bitterness and fly away, feeling a sense of betrayal. I know they didn't do anything wrong...this was how they were raised, this is how they learned to survive. I just...can't agree with this kind of unethical cruelty.