"Haku, I know you can do it. I believe in you," Rosa urged the dragon as they stood in the far corner of the castle yard, away from prying eyes. Three years had passed before she even had time to realize it. Days were always busy with either lessons keeping her mind busy or her caretakers occupying her at all other times. There was rarely a time she was alone.

In a way, it was pleasant, as Rosa didn't have to worry about assassins ever catching her while she was alone. And there certainly were a few attempts to take her life. None of them ever got as close to their goal as the first one, and most never really even made it past her regular guards.

But having lived in the Demon Castle for four years, she had realized that she was trapped inside of it. She couldn't go past the castle walls, Alphegor went absolutely insane if someone even dared to mention the idea. And in a way, she couldn't blame him. She was merely four years old, and the world beyond the castle walls was nothing like Earth.

She couldn't walk outside to stroll through a park or nearby forest without worrying about the repercussions. Even if she were to discount the assassins who jumped at the first opportunity to end her, there were plenty of dangers. Giant monsters and power-hungry demons ready to suck her dry of her magical power, according to Gunna and gossipy maids.

But even if all these things seemed rational, Rosa felt like she was suffocating inside the castle. The gray walls looked like they were about to swallow her whole whenever she walked through them. The people inside always tried to butter up to her in one way or another, asking 'How can I help you, Princess' or 'Do you need anything, Princess?'. But the worst of all was her fear that Alphegor might discover her human soul.

She was afraid to see how his expression would twist in disgust, and how disappointed he would be. She was afraid that he would denounce her just like Mother had. For that reason, she kept her passion for art a secret and only dared to do it during Lady Asdeus's lessons when the demoness gave the supplies to her.

The dragon, now the size of a large dog, flapped his tiny wings and jumped into the air, trying to take flight. But no matter how hard he tried, Haku just couldn't stay in the air. While his wings had certainly grown from the sad, little stumps he had been born with, they were still underdeveloped for his age.

"I guess your wings still need to grow a little bit," Rosa gently patted the dragon's nuzzle, and he let out a soft whine. "It's alright. You'll be able to do it one day, I'm sure."

"Princess Morrigan! Where are you? Please, answer me, Princess!" Rosa heard one of her guards shouting somewhere in the distance and she ducked down behind the hedge, pulling Haku down with her.

"Shh, not a peep," she warned the dragon who went completely still.

"Princess Morrigan!" the guard shouted again, this time closer. Sound of boots could be heard somewhere nearby. "Princess Morrigan!"

The shout came from somewhere further away, and Rosa exhaled in relief.

I do not want to go back to the castle right now.

"Found you," Deziara's face suddenly appeared from behind the bush, and Rosa fell onto her rump from the fright. Haku also jumped up, letting out a small puff of smoke from the fright. "Hahaha!"

"Quiet," Rosa reprimanded her sister, and motioned her to hide as well. The guard that was searching for her, had turned around at the noise and was coming in their direction.

Chuckling, Deziara, went around the hedge to join Rosa in her hiding spot. Nine years old, the demon girl had become more confident than she had been before, although no less of a grumbler and troublemaker. She was the only one of her twenty three sisters that Rosa got along with. Or whom she even saw on a somewhat regular basis.

"Why are you hiding?" Deziara asked, and pulled Rosa up to her feet, brushing off the dust and dirt from her skirt.

"I don't want to go back to the castle," Rosa explained, peering to see the guards movements. He had once again gone past them, the thought that she could have gone to the far side of the garden probably didn't occur to him.

"Why not? We don't have any lessons with Lady Asdeus today," Deziara scrunched her nose when mentioning her teacher's name. Rosa didn't hold any grudges against the woman, but that was mostly due to the fact that she ignored Rosa most of the time and allowed her to play with the coloring supplies.

"I just want to…" Rosa contemplated whether she should get into the philosophical topic of wanting to see more than just the same, gray castle walls with a nine year old when she was in the body of a four year old. The conclusion was a resolute no. With a sigh, she said, "I want to play with Haku."

Deziara smiled and nodded, patting the dragon who effortlessly sunk into her touch. "Yeah, it's fun playing with Haku. I still can't believe that Father gifted you a dragon."

Rosa still vividly remembered how Deziara had completely lost the ability to speak once she found out about Haku. It was fair to say that it was due to the dragon that the two sisters had gotten so close, for Deziara would always come to seek Rosa out just to play with him.

"Princess Morrigan!" the guard shouted from somewhere afar, completely off his mark.

"I don't think he'll find us," Deziara snickered, and Rosa nodded mischievously in reply.

"You two having fun?" Azrael's voice resounded from behind, and the two girls whirled around to stare at the white-haired demon, standing menacingly and glowering down at them. But despite the intimidating first impression, Rosa noticed a hint of a smile forming at the corners of his lips.

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"Run!" Rosa called, and attached herself to Haku. The dragon swiftly threw her onto his back, and leapt over the hedge. Deziara also scampered away, running as fast as her legs could carry her, disappearing somewhere amid the bushes.

"Nice try, you little rats," Azrael called out with a loud laugh, and before Rosa could realize what was going on – she and Deziara both were caught by the scruff of their clothes and held up like some trophy fish.

"Unhand me! I order you as the Princess of the Demon Kingdom," Deziara flailed, trying to break free of his grasp.

"Nice try, Your Laziness, but you two are needed in the Main Hall. The King is about to make an announcement," he said and began walking towards the castle with the two of them in tow.

"Father is?" Deziara asked, and Azrael put her on the ground while keeping a firm hold on Rosa.

I wonder what is so important that Alphegor has decided to announce it in the main hall. He's never done so before.

Rosa wriggled against Azrael's hold, hoping he'd take the hint and let her down on the ground.

"Nuh-uh. I know you. You'll slip into the shadows the moment I put you down. I'm not in the mood to chase after your shadow form," the demon huffed, then pointed at the dragon. "Haku, go home."

The dragon drooped his head low, and went to the other side of the yard, where there was a small area just for him, while dragging his feet behind him. Azrael had constructed him a sort of dog dragon house, where the poor beast had to spend most of his time since he was not allowed inside the castle anymore.

"I'll come by later, Haku," Rosa promised, and the little dragon perked up, his tail wagging ever so slightly.

***

Much to Rosa's surprise, the main hall had been filled to the brim with demons. Concubines, her sisters, servants and even some more dignified looking demons who she assumed worked directly under Alphegor. There was a quiet murmur going through the hall, as everyone wondered what exactly was the big announcement.

Azrael boldly strode right through the middle of crowd with Rosa in his arms and Deziara trailing behind him. Some gave him an annoyed glare, while others scoffed. He didn't have the best reputation. In fact, Rosa had never actually seen anybody be friendly with him.

As he finally reached the end of the hall, Rosa saw how Alphegor was standing there, tall and proud, the perfect picture of a demon king. She felt a bit smug about how good he looked, after all he was her father. Nobody else in this room could even stand close to him. And yet when his eyes spotted Rosa, his expression softened a little bit.

"Had some trouble finding them?" Alphegor asked, and reached out to take Rosa. Deziara quickly ran over to stand by his side. Ever since the two girls had gotten closer, Alphegor also had become more affectionate towards Deziara, who always melted into a joyous puddle under his praise.

"They were in the far corner of the garden," Azrael shrugged and bowed, excusing himself to stand beside Lucius.

"You've been getting out a lot lately," the King noted. Rosa fiddled with the golden button of his suit, not daring to meet his gaze, so he turned to Deziara. "Any idea why Morrigan is doing that?"

"She said she wanted to play with Haku," the girl responded with a bright smile. Alphegor nodded, accepting her answer, but he without a doubt knew that it wasn't the real reason why Rosa was hiding. He always had a knack for picking up whenever something was bothering her.

For a moment, they stood there in the front, Alphegor, Rosa and Deziara, waiting for the rest of the crowd to gather. At some point, Deziara's mother appeared in the front row, and she gave her daughter a small satisfied nod.

Lily had been ecstatic that Alphegor had finally been paying proper attention to their daughter, so her angry glares towards Rosa had grown into those of tolerance, almost gratitude at times. Rosa thought that she probably wouldn't try to poison her food. Or at least she was the least likely out of all concubines to do so.

After a few minutes, Alphegor spoke up in that booming, kingly voice of his, "Thank you all for coming on such short notice. I have an important announcement."

All the chatter instantly died down, everyone focusing their attention on the King. Rosa felt just as uncomfortable being in front of such a large crowd as she did during her first birthday party. But thankfully, she wasn't the center of attention this time.

"I'll be leaving the Demon Castle tomorrow."

Rosa felt like she'd been hit on the head with a hammer. Others seemed equally surprised by this announcement, loud murmurs instantly erupting through the dimly-lit hall.

"Quiet!" Alphegor ordered, and silence returned. "The fallen ones have become far too bold lately, it is necessary that I show them their place."

The demons nodded in agreement, some even cheered at this proclamation while Rosa was left to wonder.

Who are the 'fallen ones'? I've never heard of this term before.

"I don't know how long it'll take. If things go well, then I'll return in a month or two. However, you need to be prepared that it could take longer."

Another wave of quiet murmurs went through the room, while Rosa's heart beat faster and faster in her chest.

A month or two or maybe even longer? But what will happen to me while Alphegor's gone? The only reason why I've been able to live without fear was because I knew he would come the moment I called for him.

"While I am gone, Prime Minister Lucius will be the one to overlook the matters of the Kingdom as well as the Demon Castle itself. I expect you to listen to his words as if they were my own. Is that clear?" These words were not a request but rather an order, his voice low and commanding, and everybody bowed their heads as one.

"Excellent. Dismissed," the King waved his hand, and without any further objections or questions the demons streamed out of the hall. Some of the concubines looked longingly at Alphegor but none dared to approach him. Even Deziara left, urged by her mother. Only Rosa, Lucius and Azrael remained.

"Now this is what I wanted to hear! It's been a while since I've been in a good fight. I'll get ready right away," Azrael rolled his shoulder, clearly itching to go. But before he could get anywhere, Alphegor spoke up.

"You're not going anywhere," the King said in a firm voice, and then looked down on Rosa.

"No… No. NO! I am NOT a babysitter," Azrael whined.

"You will protect Morrigan," Alphegor said with such ferocity, that shiver ran through Rosa's spine and Azrael instantly straightened. "You are the only one strong enough to protect her, and your oath will compel you to do so."

"Why don't you just stay here, and I'll go and clean up the mess the fallen have made?" Azrael suggested.

"You'll only create a bigger mess," Lucius interjected. "Babysitting is a fitting job for you."

Azrael opened his mouth to object, but Alphegor glared at him, effectively shutting him up. Rosa's head was spinning as she was trying to process the fact that for the first time in four years, she'd be left alone without her strongest protector.