Why would humans proactively break the peace treaty to invade a werewolf village? It seemed because the werewolves’ village was built on a mountain rich in coal mines. In reality, the coal mine was merely a fuse. Even if the werewolves’ village had not been built on a mountain rich in coal, humans would later invade for other reasons, such as developing tourist resorts.
The saying went, “Those not of our race are bound to have different intentions.” Humans did not believe that beings different from themselves could share the same thoughts, so humans rejected existences different from their own.
Even a slight difference could spark civil wars among humans. To this day, humans still tore each other apart over differences in race, skin color, language, religion, cultural habits, and civilizational origins. How much more so for werewolves, who differed vastly from humans in appearance.
Werewolves were tall, with naturally sturdy and robust bodies, and they possessed fangs and claws capable of easily tearing human flesh. In the face of werewolves, humans first felt an existential threat to their race.
Once they sensed a threat from outsiders to their racial survival, humans immediately entered an attack state. Ye Tang was no exception—upon learning that Little Red Riding Hood Angeline might be eaten by the Big Gray Wolf, her first reaction was to eliminate the Big Gray Wolf, that fatal threat, preemptively.
Moreover, werewolves possessed wisdom comparable to humans, something ordinary wild beasts lacked. This meant that humanity’s superiority in using weapons and intellectual dominance over other creatures completely collapsed against werewolves.
Negotiating with such werewolves to resolve issues took too much time, and no one could predict what exchange conditions the werewolves might demand. The negotiators might even lose their heads… Most importantly, killing resistant werewolves and destroying their village cost humans only a few dozen bullets and a few bottles of kerosene to seize the mine. Negotiating with werewolves put humans at a disadvantage as the ones begging, and they would have to pay extra fees and supplies to the werewolves and their village.
So, from another perspective, why would the humans invading and destroying the werewolf village think that killing werewolves came without cost?
“Simple, because werewolves are not regarded as ‘citizens.’ Citizens protected by human laws.”
Ye Tang removed the obstructive hood and lifted her skirt hem.
Today, she wore a skirt for no other reason: her customer base consisted of the mine workers. In this era when women were generally not allowed to work outside, the coal miners were all men. Most men liked to see women in skirts, so Ye Tang catered to their tastes to attract customers.
“I’m not asking you to betray your companions or imitate humans by ceasing to be beastmen. Joining humanity and becoming one of them does not mean you have to turn into humans.”
“You know, Lang, even if those living on that mountain were not beastmen but indigenous people of a different race from the humans invading your village, your village would still be burned down, and your elders would still be killed by those people.”
“—”
It felt as if a bone was stuck in his throat; Xiu could not make a sound.
“Because indigenous people are likewise not considered ‘citizens’ protected by human laws.”
“Rip—” With a sound, she tore a large strip of clean lining from her skirt. Ye Tang had gone out to do business, not to save lives, so she naturally did not carry bandages or antiseptic medicine.
However, the waterskin at her waist contained boiled and cooled plain water from the morning. Rinsing Lang’s wound with the cooled boiled water and bandaging it with the clean lining was better than leaving the wound exposed.
“Only by being recognized as ‘human citizens’ can you obtain the rights of ‘citizens’ and receive legal protection.”
“You beastmen might find it strange to submit to human rules and laws. But at this stage, becoming ‘citizens’ is the only way for you beastmen to gain protection and live openly in the human world going forward.”
Lang’s throat bobbed.
His parents had said similar things to him. Only they had told him to try becoming a “human,” to become a “human.”
But both his parents and he knew deep down that a werewolf without fangs or fur was still a werewolf. A werewolf in human clothes speaking human language would not be treated as one of their kind by humans.
Ye Tang was different. She told him he did not need to become human. What he needed to fight for was recognition as a “citizen,” and thereby obtain “citizen” rights.
“Your parents likely foresaw long ago that werewolves had no chance of winning a direct confrontation with humans, so they hoped you could get closer to humans and thus have a chance to integrate into human society.”
Ye Tang lifted Lang’s arm; the action of rinsing his wound made him unconsciously flinch. He could not tell whether the reaction came from the warmth of Ye Tang’s hands or the slight stinging pain from the cool water touching the wound.
“Your parents are truly good parents.”
The tips of Lang’s and Xiu’s ears twitched simultaneously. Ye Tang, sincerely praising Lang’s parents while busy cleaning his wound, did not see the scene.
——Not every parent could put their child’s life and future first. Nor could every pair of parents cast aside racial notions, racial faith, and racial pride for their child’s sake.
Teaching their own children to learn human ways and trying to make werewolves adapt to human society—Ye Tang could imagine that Lang’s parents were inevitably seen as “traitors” and unwelcome “heretics” in werewolf society, where pride ran high.
But if no werewolf was willing to set aside their pride as noble werewolves, to make changes, to attempt coexistence with humans, then the opposing werewolves and humans would eventually face only a path of mutual destruction.
“All done.”
The last strip of torn lining was tied into a neat bow on Lang’s arm. Ye Tang tucked the bow’s tails into the bandage to prevent it from loosening easily under external force.
“…Hm? Lang, why are your eyes so red?”
As she spoke, Ye Tang pressed Lang’s face, wanting to check his eyes properly.
Lang quickly turned his head away and deliberately laughed in a frivolous tone: “I’m fine. Just some dust got in my eyes. …Earlier, you saw that stinking little child Xiu—he actually kicked dirt at me!”
Was that how it was?
But since Lang said so, then that was how it was.
Ye Tang, whose dynamic vision could not keep up and thus could not see the details of the brothers’ fight, decided to set aside this matter that was fine however one looked at it.
“Hurry up and go. The mine bell for lunch break will ring soon.”
……
“Mine chief, today you must give us an explanation!”
A tense atmosphere ready to erupt hung over the Lem Coal Mine. After the lunch break bell rang, the young miners stood in a group, demanding an answer from the mine chief.
“What do I need to explain to you?”
Mine Chief Francis twirled the tip of his mustache with a face full of disdain.
His younger brother, Francois, the overseer of the Lem Coal Mine, waved the long whip in his hand menacingly and cracked it at the young miners’ feet, scaring several into falling to the ground.
“The mine chief already told you, didn’t he!? We can’t control Lem Town’s affairs! Nor do we have the authority! If you think Lem Town’s prices are too high and you can’t afford food, go complain to the people of Lem Town! The Lem Mine can only pay you the amount stipulated in your contracts!—Or do you lot, greedy as snakes swallowing elephants, want to go back on your word and violate the contracts you personally signed?”
Francois coiled up the long whip and looked down contemptuously at the miners sprawled on the ground. The thugs behind him also bared their yellow teeth in cold smirks.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you. The contracts you signed are legally binding. If you breach them or try to force the mine chief to alter the contract unilaterally, not only can the Lem Mine sue you unfaithful lot in court, but we can also have Earl Ulysses Grant send troops to suppress you! You’ve heard the rumors, haven’t you? That Earl Ulysses Grant is a favorite before Her Majesty the Queen! Defy that lord’s will, and do you think you can leave the Lem Mine alive?”
“Guh…!”
The miners paled at Francois’s words and retreated one by one. The leading young miner did not retreat but could only grit his molars, his eyes glaring at the Francis and Francois brothers as if sparks would fly.
An old miner watching the confrontation from a distance shook his head listlessly. He knew it would be like this.
Young people always harbored unrealistic fantasies, thinking that as long as they struggled, fought, and spoke out, they could change the world and the future. Old trash like him knew clearly: in the face of power, a commoner’s sense of justice was more useless than weeds. This mess was their own fault for being blind to the tricks; they deserved their misfortune.
He sighed, pulled back from his thoughts by the “gurgle” in his stomach. The old miner rubbed his belly, planning to scrounge some leaves or mushrooms nearby to get through this hungry noon.
Lem Town’s prices had more than quadrupled in just these few days? Now, the pennies in his pocket could not even buy half a loaf of bread.
There were other towns besides Lem Town nearby. The problem was that the other villages were too far from the Lem Mine. No one could make a round trip from a village in the lunch break time; missing the afternoon shift would result in three or four days’ wages being deducted to nothing. After work in the evening, it was already pitch black. Even if someone had the energy to trek over mountains, the dark, unlit forest at night hid who knew what…
On the way to the Lem Mine, the mine chief and his wicked brother had already warned them: beastmen lurked in the surrounding forests—fierce and cruel werewolves.
Though he suspected it was a lie fabricated by the mine chief and his brother to scare the miners into obedience, he truly lacked the guts to enter the forest after sunset.
“If only elves or fairies existed in the world. Maybe seeing a pitiful old miner like me, an elf or fairy would suddenly drop a package of food from the sky…”
The famished old miner muttered to himself as he eagerly headed to the spot where he had seen mushrooms the day before.
However, when the old miner reached the place that should have had mushrooms, he disappointedly found not even a single stem left. Apparently, other hungry miners like him had picked them.
The old miner let out a wail, at a loss for a moment. He could only remove his duckbill cap and wipe his tears with his coal-dusted sleeve.
God was truly too cruel.
A spring breeze “whooshed” by, carrying a hint of fragrance to the old miner’s nose. Smelling the aroma of meat wafting from the woods, the old miner incredulously widened his eyes.
Before he could think, his legs started jogging. As if invited into the forest by an elf or forest fairy, the old miner soon spotted a simple, clean handcart stall following the scent.
“Oh, a customer has arrived.”
The blonde, blue-eyed, graceful beauty turned her head. Seeing the old miner, she flashed him a friendly, brilliant smile: “Customer, what would you like? Our signature items are sandwiches, hamburgers, and dandelion coffee!”