In the middle of the night, inside a prison cell under the village town hall, several candles on the hallway were flickering. A twelve year old boy named Adrian was asleep on the bed with his mother and sister. Adrian’s father, mother and sister were all inside the prison cell with him. His ten year old sister, Winnie, was shivering from the cold of the night and her mother was hugging her on the prison bed inside a blanket, trying to keep her warm. The entire family had been handcuffed.

The prison cell was cold. The unpleasant smell of the toilet followed the chilling wind from the window and was pervading every corner. The wooden prison bed was hard and uncomfortable to sleep on, so Adrian had a hard time falling asleep. Still, as the night grew deeper, Adrian gradually nodded off.

At around midnight, the boy heard some footsteps approaching his family's prison cell. He woke up and immediately became alert.

A man wearing a hooded black robe was walking toward them. His faces was hidden under the hood. The flickering candles behind him made his face even harder to see.

After the man arrived outside their prison cell, he handed Adrian's father a piece of paper and said, "Bob, here is the contract. I believe this is everything. Please check it."

"Mom, who is that?" asked Adrian on the bed, next to his mom.

"He claimed to be a demon." His mother said quietly. "It looks like he is willing to save us."

In Adrian’s culture, the Demon Cult was the enemy of Goddess Liliana. The demons would tempt people to commit crimes and betray the Goddess. Those who betray the Goddess would be cast into Hell after death for an eternity. Adrian’s family was caught by the Holy Knights on suspicion of having a connection with the Demon Cult.

"Save us?" Adrian then pondered. "We were arrested because the knight suspected that we were demons. Perhaps Dad is actually a demon?"

"Dad, so it is your fault we’re all here! You’re the one who colluded with the Demon Cult!" Adrian shouted in anger upon reaching his conclusion.

Adrian’s dad looked back at him with an expression not of guilt but of determination. Without saying a word, Bob went back to reading the contract.

Seeing that Bob lost his words, the demon calmly explained, "Boy, if that is the case, I would have saved your father instead of talking about a contract right now."

Adrian took a closer look at the demon. He was hooded and his face could not be seen clearly, but one could tell that he was a man in his twenties or thirties.

"Hey Dad, if so, you should ignore the demon. The Holy Knights would know that we’re innocent and let us go tomorrow." Adrian begged with a sense of urgency.

"You heard the judge and the knights too, Adrian. We will all be executed first thing in the morning." Bob explained to his son.

"But still, Goddess Liliana will know that we’re innocent and welcome us in Heaven." Adrian insisted.

Bob turned his focus away from Adrian and continued reading the contract. After a moment, the demon spoke to Adrian’s father. "So, what is your decision, Bob? I need your answer now because I will need time for the preparation."

"No Dad! Don’t be tempted by the demon!" Adrian shouted to his dad.

Bob, sitting on the prison cell floor, looked at his wife, son and daughter. Then, he looked up to the demon and said, "Looks good. I am looking forward to working with you." The demon handed Bob a pen and he proceeded to sign on the contract.

"No! You coward!" Adrian shouted as he climbed down from the bed and walked toward his father in an attempt to take away the contract. However, it was too late and Bob had already given the signed contract to the demon.

With the contract on hand, the demon nodded at the signature before a glyph manifested to seal the contract.

"Demonic spell!" said Adrian. It was the first time he saw it, and he was surprised by the light from the spell.

In Adrian’s world, it would be an insult to the Goddess to call Divine Spells "Magic" because it also referred to the "petty tricks" used by street performers, as the Church called them. Spell-casting was either called Divine Spells or Demonic Spells.

"We call it Magic." the demon stated without any emotion. The Demon Cult, on the other hand, did not seem to mind sharing the term with street performers.

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"Magic? Demonic Spells are Demonic Spells no matter what you call it; and all demons will go to hell and burn for an eternity. You know that?" Adrian said with frustration as he looked at his father with anger.

"Ha! I am starting to feel hot already." The demon laughed, seemingly enjoying the conversation. Adrian could not tell whether the demon was being sarcastic or if he was simply joking.

"So, what's next?" asked Bob.

"I will leave now and start with the preparations." the demon switched back to a serious tone and answered.

"Why do you call yourself a demon, when you are trying to save us?" Bob inquired seriously.

"You’ll know soon enough." the demon answered, keeping it a secret from Bob’s family.

Seeing that the contract was sealed, Adrian had nothing more to say to his father or the demon. He walked back to the bed and sat there without expression. Bob let out a long, deep breath as if a burden was just lifted off his shoulders.

"Looking forward to working with you Bob. I will be back before dawn." said the demon as he left in a hurry.

The weight of silence again fell upon the prison cells. Before this day, Bob and his wife had always been very devoted to Goddess Liliana; and they taught Adrian and Winnie in the same way. Adrian was especially enticed by the stories behind the holy teachings. Getting arrested by the Holy Knights in their witch hunt was a heavy blow to the family’s faith.

"If you faithfully believe in Goddess Liliana, you and your family will be blessed by the Goddess and happiness will follow." This is what Adrian’s parents and teachers had always taught him. Adrian thought, "it must have been a test given by the Holy Knights; and dad just busted it."

"Adrian…"

"Don’t talk to me!"

Bob tried to talk to Adrian, but Adrian angrily refused.

Adrian closed his eyes and tried to sort out what was happening. He was tired and confused. His parents started talking to each other in quiet voices.

"Do you really think that he will come back?" Tiffany furrowed and questioned. "Because if he doesn't…"

"No one would come into a prison to sign a contract with me if he do not intend to save us." Bob was rather optimistic to confide in someone he just met. However, he was like that from time to time, especially during danger. His wife knew that very well.

"What if he truly intends to save us, but can't make it by dawn?" Tiffany stated another scenario to align with but at the same time convince her husband. "I am fine with dying, but, at the very least, I want to save Adrian and Winnie."

"Me too." Bob then pondered. "Don't worry, I will prepare for that situation." Bob said. "Sleep, get some rest. We might have to fight our way out tomorrow."

Tiffany nodded and laid down on the bed.

Adrian did not pay any attention to his parents. He soon fell asleep again in the warmth of his mother.

After a few hours, sounds of footsteps were heard outside the prison cell again. Adrian was awakened again. He sat up and saw the demon came back with the keys to the prison cell.

Without saying a word, the demon opened the door and released the family from their handcuffs.

"Mom?" Winnie spoke, but her eyes remained closed.

"Shh.. go back to sleep. Everything is fine." Tiffany said. "Divine Spell: Sleep." She cast a spell on Winnie and she fell into slumber again.

Bob nodded to Tiffany and said "Divine spell: Levitate." Bob lifted his left hand and a glyph manifested in front of it. Then, a ball of light made of Divine Power formed and struck Winnie. This spell made their daughter lighter. Tiffany carried the sleeping girl and walked out from the prison cell.

"Adrian, let’s go." Bob called out to Adrian as his son was still standing in the prison cell without moving.

"No! I have faith in Goddess Liliana and her Holy Knights. I will stay here to prove my innocence." said Adrian. "And I don’t trust that demon."

"We have no time," the demon said to Bob with urgency.

Bob moved toward Adrian. "No!" Adrian shouted and pushed his father away.

"Adrian, if you stay here, you will be burnt alive." Bob tried to convince him. "We must go."

"No! I am going to go to Heaven! I am not afraid of pain or death!" Adrian insisted.

Bob then decided to take Adrian by force. Adrian tried to fight back, but it was futile because his father was trained in martial arts and was way stronger. Bob skillfully grabbed Adrian's arm and lifted the boy onto his shoulder without causing any pain to his son.

Adrian continued to struggle. "Let go of me!" He tried to pull his father's hair.

"Ouch! Divine spell: Sleep, Levitate." Bob cast the spells on his son and Adrian fell asleep in no time.

"That was impressive, dual casting," the demon said as Adrian lost consciousness, "as expected from a former Knight Exemplar!"

Bob and the demon left the prison in a hurry. To Bob's surprise, there were no prison guards on their way out.

"Good job." Bob thought as he looked at the demon. "I expected a nasty fight out."