Aeryth knocked on the door of the smithy. The furnace was cold, the air chilly—the entire district was several degrees colder than weekdays—the streets were empty. A holiday indeed.

After a minute, she rang the bell beside the door. It seemed like a substitute for knocking on the dingy door, which might fall if she struck hard enough.

He must be sleeping, and sleep was important in old age. Aeryth stepped away from the door. Surely, it couldn't be related to the defective clock.

The woods creaked. Aeryth's stopped, her attention shifting back to the present. The door cracked open slightly. A purple orb peeked at her. Bushy white hair, like a squirrel's tail, glowed under the sunlight.

The door opened wider. A little girl—no older than five, stared at her with puffy red eyes, filled with tears. "Help Da!"

Aeryth frowned. She crouched at the little girl's eye level. "Easy... take a breath." The little girl sniffed. "What happened...?"

Aeryth noticed two white horns, barely an inch long, pocking out of the little girl's forehead. She froze in shock.

Demon...

Kill demons on sight. Do not trust a word uttered by them. Do not hear their voice. Do not look into their eyes. Everything they do is to lure you into a trap.

Aeryth fought down the urge to jump back. To scream about the existence of this demon.

"Da... He will not wake up."

"Can I see him?" She asked instead. If this girl was truly the demon story made them ought to be, then Tor had already been killed, perhaps,

But, her tears, the fear and worry in her eyes, were too real. She refused to believe a heartless demon could possess such emotions, or mimic them.

The little girl nodded. The door opened wider. Aeryth stepped inside. There was no scent of blood, and the place was as she last saw it.

Aeryth closed the door behind her but made sure it was not locked—in case she needed to leave. She would not be surprised if Tor turned out to be sick. That would explain the defective clock in the market.

The little girl hurried toward the counter deck. There was a door behind it. She opened the door and rushed inside.

Aeryth peeked in. The massive frame of Tor lay on the bed. He burned like a furnace. She could feel the heat emanating from him even at this distance.

"Mr. Tor?" Aeryth called. What should I do? We need a healer, should I call Sera? Or the church? No, not the church. Assuming the Child is really a demon, calling the church's healer will kill both of them.

His eyes glazed over, and he didn't react to her voice at all.

She looked down at the little girl. "How long has he been like this?" She asked, feeling stupid. Why did that even matter?

"When I came down in the morning, he was like this," She sniffed, eyes bridled with tears. "I tried calling him, but he won't listen to my voice. What should I do?" And then the little girl began crying again. Like a child she was.

Aeryth hesitantly stepped inside and patted the little girl's back. "First, you need to stop crying. Crying makes the fever go higher. You don't that, right?"

She received a nod and a forced ugly smile.

Aeryth smiled back. "What's your name?"

"Fiya."

"Fiya. Your Da is going to be fine," Aeryth said confidently. "Does he get sick like this often?"

"Never," Fiya shook her head vigorously. "He will be fine?"

"Of course. He is going to be fine. He's sleeping because he overworked himself and got a fever. There's nothing to worry about. It happens to all adults," Aeryth glanced around the room, unable to think of anything. "Is there a healer or someone that visits regularly?"

Fiya nodded. She climbed up on one of the trunks, picking up a note. Aeryth couldn't help but notice, that even for a five year, she seemed too small. But her face and the voice weren't like that of a one or two-year-old.

"It's Miss Isa who visits me from time to time," Fiya read from the notes. "She lives in the lower districts."

Lower Districts...

Aeryth didn't like the idea of going down. She turned her gaze at Tor and then at the disheveled little girl, barely putting on a brave face. I need to be brave too.

"Then, I'll go find her. You wait here." Aeryth took the note.

Isa, The Quack Doctor. The handwriting was scribbly and sharp. It had no address or anything. The Quack Doctor didn't sound promising. She considered asking Sera for help. But discarded that thought.

"How did you know she lives in the lower district?" Aeryth asked since the note hadn't mentioned that.

"Da carried me to her house once. She has a clinic," Fiya made a face. "It's not very clean."

Aeryth looked at Tor. Isa knows about the demon child. Why would she accept to help? Well, I am trying to help her as well. So I am no better than her.

Even knowing she lived in the lower district, the search was no different the seeking a needle in a haystack. I cannot waste time like that. I need to break the illusion too. I need the spell book. Since he's down with a fever, if I get the doctor, then he would be compelled to lend me the book. For higher odds, a few-hour round trip does not sound bad.

"Fiya, do you know her address?"

"I think I know where it is..." Fiya sounded unsure. But that was better than nothing.

She looked over at Tor. Taking a Demon with me today does not sound like a good idea.

"Was it around a very big and round building?" Aeryth asked.

Fiya shook her head.

"Anything noticeable you remember around the clinic?"

"There was a black river in front of the clinic. It smelled bad."

"I see..." Aeryth wrote that down in her mind. She could ask people about Isa once she found the black river. "Fiya, you will get me a towel and a bucket of water?"

Fiya pointed at the closed door. "Bucket is in the bathroom. Water, too. I'll get the towel."

Aeryth nodded. Fiya went out of the door. Probably to her own room.

She wasn't knowledgeable about the fevers of dwarves—none reside in her village. She hadn't seen another one in this city as well. Usually in fever, her mother used to put a wet towel on her head to keep the temperature low.

It cannot be because the Miss Isa is cheap. No. There must be other reason. He was cursed, the storeman said. Is this the curse? Does the Quack doctor have a way to heal the curse? Or is Tor going to her because she will not tell anyone else about Fiya's demon origin?

I just need to find her. Don't overthink about it. I only care for the book. This favor only works in my favor to borrow the spell breaker codex.

Fortunately, she had her sword with her. After last night, she had no intention of ever leaving the quarters without it.

She placed the bucket full of water beside the bed. Fiya also returned with a tower, breathless after running.

"Listen Fiya," Aeryth took the towel, dipped it into the water, and after squeezing it dry, placed it on Tor's head. "If the towel gets hot, dip it in the water and place it on his head. It will keep his fever down. Try not to let the water into his hair. That's bad."

Fiya nodded.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"Don't open the door like that again. Strangers will hurt you, may even kill you on sight. Understood?"

"I know. Da warned me... but you're different."

"That means nothing. I would've killed you if..." Aeryth shook her head. "I am tired and exhausted—worried about Tor. Otherwise, my first instinct will also be to hurt you."

"Why?" Fiya asked. "Da also says that. What did I do to you?"

Aeryth fell quiet at the question. "Because that's how I've been raised and taught to do. Just like Tor taught you to hide from strangers, I was told to kill them no sight. Even if you've done nothing wrong, my first instinct, seeing a demon, is to kill it before it kills me."

"That's wrong," Fiya shouted, her fist clenched.

"Perhaps. But stories of demons recounted are different than the you in front of me. What people will see in you is a fable they've heard, not a child that you're. Perhaps, it is wrong. But, it is a fact and if you step away from it, you might get hurt. So don't open the door, no matter how much you believe the person on the other side is good a person."

"I don't understand." Fiya nodded.

Aeryth picked up the little girl. She was light as a feather. "I know. Whoever made this story, we'll beat them to correct it later, okay? I will look for Isa. Stay at your Da's side, and don't worry. I'll be back in a blink." Aeryth smiled. Fiya nodded her head, her mind back to the real worry at hand.

Many a time when a demon was spotted, nothing like Fiya, just a mass with horns and malice. The big city would send an entire platoon of Demon Hunter to hunt them down. Everyone in the village had to gather in one place, surrounded by the demon hunters until the demon was killed.

They were monster hunters. Demons were something they avoided unless they were too close and had to fight in order to survive.

Why is a demon child in this place?

Aeryth borrowed a knife from the counter and put it in her pocket. She hadn't retrieved blood blood-covered knife from Ricker's hand last night.

----------------------------------------

Two entrances led to the Sixth district. Each district was under the control of a clan or noble family. She didn't know what made a clan different from a family. Then, there was also the House of Hearth, was it a clan or a noble family?

The fourth district, where she lived, was under the control of the Regis Rath clan, meaning all the knights and guards in the district were under their control. They had absolute power in this place.

There were two doors on either side of a thick twenty-meter-wide wall—a slanted path going downwards in between. Perhaps different clans controlled either side of the door.

Aeryth was stopped at the door and had to explain that she was not a girl sneaking away. They asked her for the realm traveling commission pass, which she didn't have. Once she told them she was part of the House of Hearth, they permitted her in.

Hearth is allowed free entrance?

Aeryth made her way down. The scent of burnt rubber and oil notched up to twice as repugnant.

She covered her face with the handkerchief and tied it behind her head. She considered going back to the upper district and purchasing a mask. Looking at the shut door behind her, and the guards' behavior, she decided against it.

After walking and cursing herself some more, she shifted her attention to look for the open sewer river of sewer.

Three things stood out about the lower district. First, the massive factory building emitted so much harsh smoke that this place looked like having an evening storm, even in the middle of the day.

Second, the houses climbed on one another like they were built upon one another. Some even spanned over the roofs of two different houses. Still, the tenement was limited to three-story height.

The eyes from the darkness, hidden behind the dirt-drenched curtain lingered on her. Went down her arms and stopped at her wrist. The shiny thing is called a bracelet. Aeryth, after a moment of contemplation, decided she should hide the bracelet first. She took off the handkerchief and wrapped it around her wrist, walking faster.

Will my life power attract more attention than this?

Somehow, she found that hard to imagine, but Light and Tor said otherwise. They were mages after all. Tor was a blacksmith capable of creating magic items. That put him above an average mage.

After walking some more, she smelled the second worst scent of her life—the smell of boiling chemicals mixed with feces, if that made any sense.

Aeryth hurried. Through a narrow passage onto the other side of the road. The black river was an open sewer as wide as the road of upper districts.

The sole of her shoe stuck on the ground as if she stepped on the glue.

She shivered as she pulled up her foot, and strings of black goo stretched from the ground. She continued, ignoring the discomfort.

*A clinic should be easily noticeable. Why is it in this place? People will only get sick here, not heal.

She continued to walk, wondering if there was another sewer just like this one. In that case, she could only imagine taking the whole day to find her. Something might happen to Tor in that time. She shook her head and decided she would ask someone.

She finally noticed a small shop on the side of the road.

She approached it. The old man, missing four of his front teeth, looked at her.

"Uh, do you know a Doctor around her? Her name is Isa."

"I know." He nodded. "Buy something, if you wanna know about it."

Aeryth felt her veins twitch. Bastard! she nodded. She pointed to a wrapped piece of poorly made cake. "How much for this?"

"Twenty Jades." He grinned.

She fought down the bubbling anger. This was faster. She placed the note on the counter.

"Now, where is she?"

"Her clinic is right there," He pointed to the other side of the sewer. A washed white-colored building, it didn't stand out from others in any manner.

"Thanks." Aeryth turned away.

"Miss," The old man called. "You forgot this." He lightly threw the packed cake at her.

Aeryth caught it, nodding.

He could've sold it to someone else. She had no money, but his body said he was in desperate need of some.

There was no way to cross the sewer. She walked the entire lane and looped back around.

The clinic had a rusty metal gate. She knocked on the door handle.

The hushed whispers from inside went completely quiet.

After a moment of waiting, she knocked again.

And Again.

Is this the right place?

Aeryth sighed, looking at the old man. He lied? Of course.

The old man looked her way and made a knocking gesture. Twice, then a pause, then three times.

A signal? He does not know me. Isn't it useless if all it took was twenty jades?

Aeryth tried the way he showed.

"Coming." It was the voice of a small child.

The doctor has a child?

The door cracked open, and a boy peeked out. He was a blonde boy. The left half of his face was ceramic white, along with the hair on that side.

It sent Aeryth's mind reeling into wonder.

He looked at her. His right eye widened in panic. Aeryth hurriedly grabbed the door before he could pull it shut.

"Sister is not here," the boy mumbled.

A younger brother? Aeryth didn't question him. "Relax, I am not here to cause trouble. You mean Isa, right?"

The boy gave a nod.

"Someone she looks after is very ill. Do you know where she is? I need her urgently."

He hesitated. "Really? Are you not here to collect the rent?"

"Rent? No. I am not. I am really looking for her because someone is ill. Their life might be in danger."

He unlocked the door slightly wider, stepped, and hurried shut it. "Hara, lock the door." He said.

Another child came, his hand was white much like this boy's face. Was this Quack Doctor's doing, or was she trying to heal them? Since Tor seemed like a good man, Aeryth leaned toward the latter.

"I know where she is right now." Boy covered his face with a towel around his shoulder.

Aeryth nodded. "Do you want to eat this?" She showed him the cake.

"Is that really, really fine?" He asked, genuinely looking at it like it was a precious thing.

The question didn't sound right to Aeryth. She nodded, extending her hand.

He took it and dropped it inside through a small hole.

"Sister has gone to get us breakfast. Little ones are hungry."

Little ones? Even younger than him? The boy himself was five or six years old, at most.

They walked through myriads of alleys and closed spaces, some so narrow that her back touched the walls, and the grime on it ruined her tunic.

In the middle of the path, she caught sight of a wild rat as big as a dog, dead.

Aeryth grimaced at the sight.

"They were edible once," the boy said, "But sister says, they are the harbinger of misfortune now. Stay three steps away from them."

They circled around it from the far and continued deeper into the mess. This place was an even bigger maze than their path to the library last week. Still, remembering the way out was important this time, so she tried her best to remember small details that would help her run, but at some point, she was lost in the maze. While her memory was sharp, she wouldn't say she was particularly good with directions.

She didn't want to doubt an ill boy, nonetheless, a part of her grew anxious as he led her. He knew this place better than her, and he might be leading her somewhere wrong. It was a possibility.

After a few minutes. The scent of the sewer had another layer of weight to it. Her eyes watered from the scent.

What is this place? Why are humans even living here? Isn't it better to just leave this place, live in a forest, start a small village?

The closed alley exploded into the ground, yellow sun hung in the sky. The heaps upon heaps of toxic mud piled up with hundreds of rubble melting in it.

"This way," The boy said, noticing Aeryth had stopped.

"Yeah," Aeryth followed. "What's your name?"

"Jin."

"What's this place, Jin?" Aeryth watched him intently. His expression was lacking, half his face didn't move at all. She doubted he could see with his left eye. The iris in it didn't move. Don't think. It does not concern me. This is not my village, I am just a civilian with no power to do anything, anyway.

"Dumping ground of Dew Waste. Sister said we should not come here."

"Thank you for leading me here," Aeryth's gaze bounced from one face to another. They all were less human-looking, ugly, distorted, and hungry. Their eyes looked at her like she was food. She might be in their eyes.

They turned around a corner and arrived at a broken shack.

"Doctor," he knocked on the door. The sharp echoes attracted a little more attention.

She heard the clicking sound of a stick clacking against the solid floor. The door opened.

Aeryth had a mental image of a quack doctor. And, it had been utterly and embarrassingly wrong.

Isa's hair was green, damp, and muddy. Dark circles under her eyes rivaled Aeryth's own. She was slightly hunched, cheek sunken in, but beautiful still.

She balanced on the stick, putting her weight from the front.

"Sister..." Jin whispered, tense.

Her sharp eyes lingered on Aeryth for a moment, assessing if she was a danger perhaps, then shifted to the little boy.

"Jin," The doctor said harshly. "Have I not taught to keep distance from people of the upper city?".

"Please don't blame him. I insisted on finding you." Aeryth cut in before the doctor could continue. "I'm Aeryth."

The doctor looked at her. And then back at Jin. "Sit inside, keep your head low."

The little boy nodded and scurried inside.

Aeryth had many questions, but none were something she should ask. There was no reason for her to know about her or the boy. Or this place.

"Aeryth," the doctor scrutinized her. "Ah, the sole survivor of Death Fest."