Zachariah says "Sure. No problem. With the demons gone do you really think anyone else would attack your people?"

"The criminals weren't the only ones who had people following the elves. So yes, I think there are others who would make a move if they could."

Zachariah says "You have a point. Maybe if I was more paranoid a demon wouldn't have managed to infiltrate my staff."

"Oh, is that why I was scanned when I walked through the door?"

Zachariah says "Yes. Sorry about that. Things have been so hectic that I forgot to have you excluded from that."

"No worries. I don't mind. If you want, I can enchant the doors of the building to remove the disguises of anyone who walks through."

Zachariah says "I would love that! What materials would you need?"

"Just a small amount of mana rich silver to embed into the door frames."

Zachariah says "I will have it brought over immediately."

In less than a minute I am provided with the silver, so I go around and enchant the doors. It only takes me a few minutes to enchant each door and once I am done I return to the castle. I doubt there are any demons left to try and infiltrate the merchant group, but I don't mind doing Zachariah a favor.

He has done a lot for me already and we are making a lot of profit together. A little work to make sure we keep a good relationship is not a big deal at all. Besides, I am sure that eventually the demons will attempt to infiltrate the city again.

Although, it should take them a while to figure out how to beat the new detection spell. At least, I hope it will, if not and they figure it out quickly, I would feel bad. Even though I didn't put a lot of work into the detection spell, I still would feel bad if they beat it easily.

Of course, I could easily make an even better detection spell for them, or even give them mine. However, I really don't want to have to spend any time on that right now. I want to be able to finish the things I am already working on, rather than dealing with new things.

In particular, I really want to finish the new spell and upgrade the castle. In fact, I plan to work on the spell once I get back to the castle, but when I get there I have company. Almort is there waiting for me just inside the castle gates, but he is alone this time.

"Hello, Almort. How are things going?"

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Almort says "They could be better. We raided the merchant group and captured all of them, but the council really didn't like what we found. The reason they tried attacking your ship was because they wanted it. The ship in the harbor that had demons on the crew belonged to them as well. It turns out they have been working and trading with the demons for years. They have even helped the demons infiltrate our city and many others."

"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that. Is it just the local branch? Or is the entire group working with the demons?"

Almort sighs and says "The entire merchant group. The local branch members have all been sentenced to death and the council is sending word to every kingdom we have contact with. Who knows how far the demons have managed to spread by now?"

"I would think that they would have focused their infiltration on the two empires. Beyond that, they probably only sent a few demons out with specific tasks. They still have limited numbers and not all demons are capable of disguising themselves that well."

Almort says "Even if that is true, it is still a major problem. We are supposed to be the front line against the demons. The fact that we failed and allowed them to infiltrate the empires is a huge disgrace. When I left the council was even discussing ways that we can strike back and punish the demons."

"How likely is that to happen?"

Almort says "Actually, I think it is pretty likely. Things have been peaceful for too long. This event has shaken up everyone. If the council doesn't do something, people will lose faith in them."

"So, they will definitely do something then. Not only to vent their anger, but also to secure their power."

Almort says "Exactly. Oh, when you want to bring your elves into town again things will be a little different. The council has ordered that the top level adventurers will be the ones protecting them this time."

"I was planning to wait until tomorrow before letting my people into the city again. That way things in the city can calm down a bit."

Almort says "That's wise. Alright, I will make sure everything is prepared for tomorrow morning. We will make sure there is no repeat of last time."

"Thank you."

Almort takes his leave, but just as he is leaving Zachariah's man arrives. He is actually using one of the rings I made for them and is carrying tons of stone. He also has crates of weapons and several hundred pounds of wood for me.

For now, I leave the stone where it is and move the wood and weapons to the tower roof. I work on the weapons first while keeping an eye on Lin and the kids using mana. Just because I believe she can take care of herself doesn't mean I can stop worrying.

While I am at it I also take a look around the city to see how things are going. People are acting paranoid and a lot of them won't even talk to others until they have used the detection spell. It looks like Almort was right about the people being shaken up by the demons.

As promised, Lin and the kids return just in time to eat lunch with me and then Lin heads to the library. After they are done eating, the kids want to return to the ship instead of staying in the castle. When I ask why Mulan and Mushu say they want to play with their friends and Nala and Albion want to train so I gate them back to the ship.

After they are gone I spend some time working on the spell until I get stuck. Then I take a break and work on the weapons some more until they are finished. I work on the spell some more and when I get stuck again I work on the wands for a while.

Taking a break whenever I get stuck actually works well for me, after a break I get past where I was stuck. Even though I am not working on the spell constantly I manage to fix several errors before dinnertime. However, since Lin hasn't come back yet I don't stop working to eat yet.