Donovan, with Charla in hand, pushed past the crowd of the working demons denizens of Oar's. Each one passing along estranged stares at the two as they weaved through the crowd.
Now, in the center of the large market, Donovan scanned the area, using the stone towers and landmarks to gauge their location.
Examining the direction, Donovan began to mutter. "A-alright. So that tower leads back the way we came… That one on the right is supposed to lead down? Into the, whatever this says…" His gaze then fixed on a uniquely pointed tower. "So that's the way we have to go."
Donovan glanced back at the newly content Charla, who was savoring the moment of handholding.
"At least she's not acting lewd." Donovan thought. "For once, she actually looks a little normal."
Feeling his gaze. Charla opened her eyes. And looked at Donovan with a smile.
A shiver instinctively ran down Donovan's spine. "L-lets go this way." He whispered. He then turned and pulled Charla into the empty alley.
Excitement bounced through Charla's heart as she felt Donovan's pull. ""
Unknown to either Charla or Donovan, a group of demon thugs with torn tunics and pants followed with ill intention.
Unaware of this threat, Donovan continued to press forward into the maze of alleys to reach their destination. They turned down paths that looked otherwise unremarkable, looking for a way through. Eventually, they struck a dead end.
Donovan, with some mild irritation, stared at the distant tan wall. "Of course…"
Seeing that Charla was in a rush, he sighed and turned to press on. But, to his shock, his eyes met with a small group of demons that stood with a menacing confidence.
A cold sweat ran down his face. It was hard not to see that they were looking for trouble. It was the same kind of mug his stepsister would give to him when her intentions turned sinister.
Charla shook, realizing that her joyous occasion with Donovan was now ruined. Slowly, she released Donovan's hand and from the bag on her, she pulled her knife.
The demons only chuckled at her resolve.
"
"
"
Donovan instantly stepped in front of Charla.
"
Donovan narrowed his eyes at the demon, knowing that the demon was likely spewing some insult at him. He glanced at Charla, who seemed to be boiling with trembling hands.
"Damn it. I can't believe I completely forgot my sword at the Inn. Even if I can't use it, they probably wouldn't be here if they saw us carrying it." He turned a glare to the thugs. "I have to use my magic now-"
Charla suddenly darted past Donovan, clashing her knife with the short, blue demon's bloody red dagger.
"Crap!"
Donovan pulled forth from his energy, conjuring a ball of fire. Before he could react, Charla was punched in the gut by another of the demon thugs, then slammed to the ground hard.
There was an unsettling silence from Charla as two of the demons laughed.
"
"
Donovan clenched his teeth, seeing this. And with a building fire, he whipped his hands at the demons spewing flames. "Get away from her, you bastards!"
"
To his shock, a hole ripped through the walls of flames he spewed. "What the-!" Seeing the demons' smug expressions, He prepared a new set of fireballs and launched them one after another at the group. Unexpectedly, the magic. The fire washed over the demon.
Suddenly, Donovan was face-to-face with the skinny leader of the band of demon thugs. The demon punched deep into his stomach, stunning him. "Cr-crap!!!"
Donovan grasped the shoulder of the demon, gritting through the pain. "I can't let them win!"
Provoked, the attacking demon dug his fist deeper into Donovan's gut, bringing a new world of pain he was unaware of. Donovan's grip loosened, and using the opportunity, the skinny demon grabbed him by the neck and pushed him against the wall.
The remaining demons watching approached and chuckled, their interest keenly focused on Charla.
Slowly, the demon pinning Donovan pulled his mask off. "
The skinny demon froze in shock, seeing Donovan's face. He looked at the foreign face, unsure what to make of Donovan.
"
"Another… human?"
The gang of demons turned their gaze to the source of the unfamiliar voice, finding a tailless and hornless blue demon standing with a bundle of black flowers in his arms. The demon had a beard and short white hair with a crystal monocle in his left eye. His attire was loose and baggy, giving the impression that he was either a merchant or a scholar as he carried a bag at his side.
Seeing this, some of the thugs glared at the old demon..
"
"Human?' Their skinny leader questioned.
"H-hey bastard!" Donovan wheezed out.
Confused, the demon looked back at Donovan, only to get blasted in the face with fire so intense, it burnt part of Donovan's disguise.
The demon reeled back, releasing Donovan from his iron grip as he screamed in agony as he attempted to put the flames out in vain.
Not relenting for a bit, Donovan prepared another ball of fire just under his palm and, with gritted teeth, launched several fireballs after fireballs at the assailants. Each is evaded and blocked by the remaining demons.
Eventually, a steam explosion erupted. Slowly, a barrier of water emerged from the fog.
"Tch!" Donovan scowled and switched to conjure rocks of earth magic. Unexpectedly, the largest of the four remaining demons broke past the barrier and punched at Donovan.
Unfortunately for the demon, his fist only broke the stone of the alley wall. His eyes turned to Donovan, who dodged and prepared a new attack.
Desperate Donovan conjured fire atop the stone earth within his palm and shot it in the demon's face. The stones shattered, and the demon's face erupted into fire.
Donovan smirked at the small victory, but to his shock, the large demon grabbed Donovan by the shoulder, then the neck. "What the hell!"
The demon, with a burning head, laughed menacingly. "
"
The thugs doused their flame ally with water magic. With his vision clear, the large demon prepared to wring Donovan's neck.
Suddenly, the sound of a drop of water echoed in the air, and everyone around froze in an instant. Even Donovan lingered, unable to move. It was as if a curse was cast upon them.
Not long after the sound and blade entering flesh became audible, followed by the dropping of the body.
Perplexed by the situation, Donovan attempts to move his unblinking eye in a vain attempt to grasp this new situation.
Another body dropped. Followed by another, bringing a deathly silence soon after.
"Wh-what's going on!?"
Unexpectedly, the blue hornless demon leaned into Donovan's vision—his red eye, wide and filled with awe.
The demon laughed, blood gushing on his face as the large demon fell straight to the ground.
"An actual human!" He shouted.
"Huh?" Donovan, even more perplexed, noticed the lack of horns on the old demon.
In pure excitement, the demon grasped Donovan's shoulder and practically pulled him up into the air. "Ha ha HAA! An actual human in Oar's!! O- Wait!" The demon sniffed Donovan, irking him. "You're not an incubus either! Ah ha haa!!"
"W-why would I be!?" Donovan retorted. "Rrr… Let go!"
"AH." Donovan was released. "I'm sorry, I got a little too excited. Where are my manners? I'm Cyrus, Alchemist of this… 'demon city'."
"Cy-Cyrus!?" Donovan looked the demon up and down, unsure whether to believe him. He watched as the demon circled past him and then ripped the mask from the burning demon.
"Imagine my surprise when I saw you actually burn this demon alive. I thought I had to step in for certain then." Cyrus dusted the soot from the mask and held it out for Donovan. "After that, I overestimated your ability. But you still put on a good fight.
Although confused, Donovan took the mask in hand. "Thank you? Uh... You wouldn't happen to be an alchemist, would you?"
"Oh? So you know me?"
"Yeah. I... wasn't expecting to meet so quickly"
Cyrus picked up his bundle of black flowers from the ground. "Then you must be fortunate today. Had a friend once who told me, 'The greater the luck, the bigger the miracle,' but let's save the chit chat for later. Let's talk in private at my residence."
"H-hold on!" Donovan slung his mask back on. "Let me get Charla."
Cyrus watched curiously as Donovan picked Charla off the ground, along with her bag. "Charla? Hmm…That name… It sounds vaguely familiar," he quietly noted.
With Donovan prepared, the two made their escape back down the alley from whence they came. In place of the dead bodies that were left, sprawled on the floor, several black flowers bloomed from the stone ground. An impossible feat, made reality.
********
Donovan and Cyrus continued moving silently through the city's empty alleys and streets. Staying down low, Cyrus peeked around the corner of the street. Seeing no visible life, he waved to Donovan. "This way. This way. Let's hurry before anyone sees us," Cyrus whispered.
Donovan nodded, following through another series of alleys and empty roads. The eerie streets unsettled Donovan. It was like all life was non-existent, but the eyes that peered from the corners of the streets and alleys told him otherwise. "Jeez, He must know the city inside and out..."
"Turn here. Don't look out that alley." Cyrus instructed. "The karnals there don't take too kindly to outlanders."
Donovan listened, following and executing each order to its specification. The more he gazed around, the more it seemed like they were heading down, with even the pillared castle no longer in sight.
The air grew cooler, and the smell of fresh water seemed to permeate the air. Slowly, they entered into what seemed like a new cavern with homes worse off than the ones before. The darkness slowly consumed the light, with the only sources coming from small crystals that barely qualified as decorative lights.
Getting closer to the crude stone buildings, Donovan noticed that many of them were covered with textiles and other cloths, while others offered some semblance of security with wooden doors fixed into the stone doorways. The street reminded him of Bona and its many security problems.
"Over here," Cyrus said. He opened an old wooden door reinforced with rusted iron—a stark contrast to the other building presented thus far.
Donovan entered without complaint and found the area to be better-kept and more organized than he anticipated. Shelves of scrolls sat available, while other utensils and glass-like equipment lay ready for use.
He glanced back at Cyrus, curious about the demon. The evidence of his horn being sawed through still lingered on his forehead, and the tail he was familiar with seeing from the demons around was nowhere to be seen.
"Hmm… Is your succubus mate still unconscious?" Cyrus asked.
"W-we're not mates. But yeah. She's still not waking up."
Cyrus took a look at Charla. he examined her sleeping face and noticed a crack on her horn. "She should be fine. She just needs some rest by the looks of it." He glanced back and pointed to a room to their left. "I have a guest bed in there. Just lay her there for the time being."
Although reluctant, Donovan entered the room and laid Charla down. He sighed, looking at her unconscious face. "This is my fault, this happened to her… It's a good thing that… Cyrus helped."
Donovan stared into space, unsure what to think.
"I have tea and alcohol! What would you like!?" Cyrus questioned.
Donovan stood. "Do you have ale?" he stepped out in time to see Cyrus pouring a strange, boiling water into cups.
"Tea it is!"
Donovan watched as Cyrus prepared a chair and gestured for him to sit. He awkwardly approached and slowly sat on the creaking wooden chair.
Looking at Cyrus, he seemed to continue fidgeting and forced a smile on his face. It was all too evident that this demon was the most excited he's been in a long time.
"You're erm... a little stranger than I... Expected."
"What were you expecting? A clone of these abominations?" Cyrus quickly took a sip of his tea.
"Abominations?"
"That's what they are!" Cyrus whirled his hands, as if pondering his following words. "W- ww-wwell, I suppose it is complicated. B-but you seemed to know me. Or my name at least."
Cyrus suddenly leaned close. "Have the Heroes of Prophecy come looking for Me!?"
Donovan raised his hands defensively. "H-heroes of prophecy!? N-no, no. I don't know… I don't think so, at least. I… think they're already… Dead?"
Cyrus stared at Donovan, stunned. "Ah~ Y-yes, of course. How can I forget?" He leaned back on his chair and rubbed his hand across his face.
"I came because my friend and I needed to fix an ogre. We made a contract stating that we would get him healed by you, and in return, he would get us out of the Pit."
"A contract, eh? And who exactly is this ogre?"
"Well... His name is Bjorn. he recommended bringing him to you."
Cyrus looked at the ceiling and stared into space. "Bjorn, huh? I haven't heard his name in a long time…"
"He can't walk. And He says you're the only demon here that could fix him," Donovan said.
Without another word, Cyrus stood opening a cabinet filled with an assortment of glowing green vials. Donovan gazed at them with astonishment, expecting Cyrus to pick any vial from the array. However, to his surprise, Cyrus slammed the cabinet.
"Not this one." He said.
Cyrus looked through another cabinet with another set of vials, then another and another, until he finally found it. "Here it is…"
Cyrus pulled out a vial of glowing yellow liquid, wrapped in a cloth, and handed it to Donovan.
"I don't know what Bjorn is up to, but if he wants to see me. Tell him to stay away. Everything is already complicated enough. And I don't need more trouble."
"Those green Vials. They heal, too. Don't they?"
"Used those before, did you?" Cyrus chuckled lightly. "They are effective for flesh wounds. Not so much when it comes to bone or our senses… Assuming that Bjorn can't heal his injury himself, he'll need to use this yellow vial. It'll only take a couple of days for it to take full effect."
"A couple of days?"
"Yes. Unlike the vitality potion, it takes more time to heal the body fully. And let me tell you! Fully heal the body, it does! Mark my words, as an alchemist!"
"Ah-hehe… Thanks, Cyrus. It's appreciated. Where did you learn to make these-..." Donovan's gaze slowly drifted and fixed on a strange-looking shield with a vaguely familiar insignia and a bundle of weapons and robes. "What's that?"
"Hmm…?" Cyrus picked up the shield and instantly turned it into an axe. The sight amazed Donovan, who blushed at the thought of such an action.
"Ah! That's amazing! How did you do that!?"
"The King of Demon handed it to me. He wanted me to study the human technology along with... Some other topics of interest, and gather my findings on them… I was going to turn these over to the council, but at this time… There's no need for that…"
"I think Bjorn told me about them. A group of old demon generals."
Cyrus's moos instantly soured. "Yes. They often make the laws and choose the successors to the crown."
Donovan could hear an apparent bitterness in Cyrus. Not wanting to sour the mood any further, he pointed to the bag. "So is there anything else in there that's interesting?"
"Hmm… I suppose a handwritten book labeled, but I don't know how useful it actually is since I haven't tested out its theories myself."
"Could I see?"
"I see no reason to refuse." Cyrus placed the axe down with a loud thunk. The reverberated through the home and rummaged through the bag. He pulled a brown leather book and handed it to Donovan, who flipped through its pages. He then flipped back to the starting page and read its contents. "'SpellCraft'. Written by Sylph Mana."
He looked at the first page. And despite the language being human, the author's crosses and scribbles were almost illegible. It was like an enigma that had to be cracked.
"If you wish, you can keep the book and the axe."
"The axe, I'm not sure about, but I don't mind keeping the book. I could always use another means to pass the time. And it's been a while since I read any kind of book."
Slowly, the light all around Donovan and Cyrus dimmed. "Huh?"
"Ah. It's nightfall already?" Cyrus looked around, surprised.
Donovan, startled, stood in a hurry. "Nightfall! Me and Charla, need to go. We have to get back to our Inn!"
"I wouldn't go if I were you. It gets even more dangerous at night… more Thugs and the like will be roaming the streets. I suggest staying here the night, and when morning comes, I can help you two to the city center."
Conflicted, Donovan glanced from Cyrus to the room where Charla slept.
"I insist," Cyrus said. "Anything to help a fellow human. Besides, I have another room with my own bed, so if you want, you two can sleep together in the same room."
Donovan sighed, relenting. 'Fine… I guess it can't be helped. Thanks, Cyrus."
Cyrus smiled. "Of course."
********
Under the cover of darkness, Kalika roamed the dark, stony streets of Oar's.
"So which way is the demon?" She asked.
Suddenly, a hand grasped her shoulder. "
With an icy glare, Kalika turned, finding several demons of all sizes smiling at her.
"