Hard Work Will Never Betray Me (WN) - Chapter 122

“And now, I give you the task of taking down Jabberwock!”

“The Jabberwock?”

“It’s a name we don’t hear very often. What kind of monster is it?”

“The Jabberwock is the final form of the …… monster”.

“The final form ?”

“Mm-hmm. The particular Jabberwock is a very good example of this. The Jabberwock is neither of these. Or perhaps I should say that he is either one or the other.”

　I’m not quite getting the point. The content of the talk is abstract or …… somewhat old-fashioned.

“Hey, Eberhard, “you’ve got something on your mind. Did you just think of something incredibly rude?:

“No, nothing.”

I don’t know why, but Marie has a very keen intuition. When a person becomes as strong as Marie, they may pay attention to a lot of things on a regular basis. It is said that professionals notice things that amateurs don’t notice, and I guess Marie’s ability to observe people is no joke.

“Let’s get back to the topic at hand. But in rare instances, a small percentage of them may undergo further transformation and evolve into a superior species.”

“A superior species.”

“Mm.”

　Lily said so as if to confirm, and Marie nodded. Lily nodded in agreement, and Marie continued.

“However, the trend of evolution is not always in a positive direction. Just as in the case of biological evolution, there are times when the state of a creature is transformed into a state that is better expressed as degeneration.”

　After that, Marie continued to tell us various things about the Jabberwock. We listened attentively

Let me summarize what Marie told us in my view.

Evolution happens because natural selection takes place among creatures that have changed little by little in various ways, and those individuals that happen to be suited to their environments survive. Among the creatures that have changed little by little, there are naturally a certain number of individuals that cannot adjust to the surrounding environment. It is not known whether the speed of evolution is related to their strong magical power, but in general, monsters evolve much faster than ordinary animals.

Jabberwock is a general term for such degenerate monsters. It does not seem to refer to any specific race. The appearance of the Jabberwock naturally varies depending on the type of the original monster. The strength of the Jabberwock also varies greatly from one species to another, with some being sickly and weak, while others are just as stubborn and strong. And they generally have a short life span.

However, the Jabberwocks have a fierce temperament and high level of aggression that burns away their short life span, and they are said to have a habit of attacking any creature they see other than themselves.

They are said to have a bizarre and brutal nature, slaughtering their prey in amounts they can never finish eating for pleasure or fatally wounding them for no reason at all. They are apparently harmful to the local ecosystem and to the people living around the area, so it is recommended that adventurers take them down as much as possible when they come across them. Requests are constantly sent out from the government through the Adventurers’ Guild.

When I heard this, I felt a little depressed. What a sad creature the Jabberwock are. They must instinctively realize that they will not live long. And so, in order to live frantically in the present, to feel alive, they may dare to commit brutal acts.

　It is pitiful that they can only confirm themselves by toying with the lives of others. But even so, if they still bring harm to those around them, we have no choice but to eliminate them by force. This is a line that cannot be compromised as a soldier defending his country, as an adventurer hunting monsters, and above all, as a human being.

:If they come in all different shapes and sizes, how can we tell them apart?”

　Claudia, tilting her head, asks. She is ladylike and elegant, but she seems to have a clear and strong heart. She has a kindness to sympathize with others, but at the same time, she seems ready to fight to protect others.

“The Jabberwock has a horribly disfigured appearance that goes against the rules of life. It is obviously out of the ordinary.:

“Disfigured ……”

　Are they chimaeras, forcibly synthesized by scientists, or something like that? It is a pity that they were not born in such a deformed form by choice.

“They attack living creatures without regard. They do not do it to eat or to protect themselves. They are made that way. It’s the only way they can survive.”

　A somber air drifted around them. But this was true of monsters in general. Even though not as bad as the Jabberwock, most monsters that have had their will distorted by negative magic have an aggressive streak that can be extremely harsh.

　The same is true of demons. There is no scientific basis for this, but perhaps demons are also the end form of humans who have been distorted by the evil negative magic power.

I”‘m not going to say anything about that. What is the point of such talk after all? Are you trying to evoke sympathy or pity for them?　They have no will of their own. Then just kill them without worrying about it.:”

“Hey, Christophe!

　Werner, a fellow member of the group, admonished Christophe as he spat out the words. But Christophe would not listen to him.

“What if you say something like that and then when the time comes your resolve to kill the monster weakens? It is a mistake to try to understand them. Rather than sympathizing with them, we have a better chance of surviving if we incite hostility.”

　Everyone was silent in response to this line. Christophe is certainly right. If you can have a certain degree of communication with your opponent, it is necessary to put yourself in their shoes and show your understanding. However, the other party is a monster without reason. Dialogue is impossible. If this is the case, it is better not to try to understand them from the beginning, but to incite hostility toward them as enemies who kill humans and animals, so that they are less likely to hesitate to kill them when the time comes.

In a sense, Christoph is right when he says: “…… If we are weak-minded people, then we should do what we do.

“Then why?”

“But is it a weak man here?”

“Oh, …….”

　Marie says sternly.

“The people here are strong enough to carry the country on your shoulders in the future. If you are here, you must be able to understand your opponents, think for yourself, and choose to fight to protect your fellow humans. They must be able to do so. If you just decide that they are the enemy and go out to kill them, you are no better than a monster”.

　I think I understand why Marie is called the “strongest in the Empire”. It is not only physically strong. She is the “strongest in the empire” because she also possesses mental strength. It is because Marie is a person whom everyone looks up to, relies on, and wants to entrust with their backs that she is allowed to bear the name of “the strongest”. If evil is only strong, it is no different from the worst.

“Christophe. You are indeed strong. You may not be as strong as Eberhard, but you have more talent. If you don’t change, you will never be as good as Eberhard. The time to change is now. If you don’t change now, you have no future.”

…………”

　Christophe’s expression became blank. I don’t know what he is thinking in his mind. Maybe he is struggling to change his mind, maybe he is growing in hatred. That’s all that even Marie, who is an excellent observer, didn’t seem to be able to get a read on.

“Well, both of you are still young, just twelve years old. Even Eberhard has no chance of becoming an evil person in the future. If he does turn evil, it is doubtful that even I will be able to stop him. ……”

“Hey, Marie. You were just now exuding a nice air of authority, and now you’re saying that you don’t think that’s a good idea?　There’s no way …… I’m going to turn evil, right?

I looked back at Lily and Iris, who were looking at me with a glazed look. Why are you looking at me like that ……?”

“I don’t know, Hal, you get along so well with girls so easily. You may become a womanizer that will go down in history.”

“I don’t know, Hal. He might even seduce Marie someday.”

“No, !It’s can’t be 　Marie is a great teacher!　I can’t even get her to talk to me right now.’

“Iris, did you hear that?　”　”I don’t deny the possibility of that in the future, Hult This is a tricky one.”　Marie is a great teacher!　I can’t even get her to talk to me right now.

“Iris, did you hear that?　Not yet.

“I don’t deny the possibility of the future, Hurt. This is a tricky one.

“……, I have good defence . I have not been beaten it for 200 years.”

　”Wow. ……. Marie, you were a 200 year old . …… Well, Marie, that might make sense. ……”

“…… Eberhard?

I’m sorry.”

　Apparently, she knew about what I was thinking of . Oh , I’m scared, !

　Anyway, this is how we were given the task of defeating the Jabberwock
from Marie. I hope it will end without incident, but I really wonder what the outcome will be.

　With a slightly disturbing atmosphere, we started our first exercise. By the way, people call this a flag!