Harpies were a race of beastmen with the wings and talons of a bird, but the face and torso of a human. However, they could no longer be called beastmen. This was due to a condition set forth by the mainstream beastmen who had opposed the Empire in the past when they declared their independence.
[Those without fur, scales, or feathers on their faces are not our brethren.]
For the reason that they too closely resembled humans, save for their limbs, the Harpies were exiled even from beastman society. After that, the Harpies lived in hiding, moving from one precarious mountain peak to another within the Empire. The memory of being abandoned by the beastmen made it difficult for them to befriend humans as well.
Of course, they sometimes came down to the human world when they needed daily necessities. They did so shrouded in thick robes, their identities concealed. Occasionally, they would reveal their identities.
A small number of humans, especially Wind Mages, treated the Harpies quite favorably. Thanks to them, the Harpies were able to eke out a living. But about ten years ago, the situation began to take a strange turn.
A young Harpy named Pluma remembered that day clearly. She had gone to sell a hunted griffin hide to a human merchant, just as usual.
“I’ve brought the goods, as promised...”