Why is she helping me?

As Zoe followed the strange woman, she pulled the coarse gray blanket tighter around her. It was absolutely frigid. It was obviously below freezing, as rows of icicles hung from the triangular rooftops of the drab wooden and stone buildings. The worn cobblestones were covered in a layer of slick frost, making Zoe’s feet hurt.

At least she had a blanket. One of the two guards had given it to her. It helped to cover her nudity, but honestly that was only a secondary concern. The chill she felt could not be overstated.

I expected some sort of stereotypical forest. Not the fucking Alps.

Icy mountain peaks rose on either side, towering over the small, dreary village. Glancing behind her, Zoe saw that the stone door was set into the side of a sheer cliff face. Why did they have a village guarding an entrance to a cultist lair? That seemed… weird.

She shivered. And then nearly jumped when the cultist tapped her on the shoulder. “Here, put this on,” she said, holding out a strip of similarly gray cloth tied into a bandana.

Somewhat puzzled, Zoe took it and put it on.

“No, over your eyes.”

Zoe squinted. She wants to blindfold me? Once again, Zoe’s fears rose to the surface. She simply didn’t understand what was going on here — why had she helped her? And now why was she giving her a blindfold? It felt super sketchy.

“… why do you want to blindfold me?”

“The red eyes are a little attention-grabbing.”

Zoe blinked. What? Last she had checked, her eyes were as blue as her hair was blonde… Ah shit. Of course becoming a demon would make her eyes turn red. Because of course that was just fucking great. And wouldn’t make her look at all edgy. Just perfect.

With a disgruntled huff, Zoe flipped the cloth down over her eyes. It was thin and well worn, so it let a fair amount of light through. Also, she could just activate her {Manasight}. Which she did.

The world lit up around her. Most of it was a pale blue, but there were splotches of orange here and there. As for the woman facing her…

Her outline flickered almost imperceptibly for a split second before coalescing into green, gold, and the same pale blue, only more concentrated.

Zoe peered closer. While she guessed that the blue was ice mana or something like that, given that it was also everywhere around them, she would definitely have to begin learning what all the colors meant.

Maybe the green was life?

Although, she didn’t have any…

A cough interrupted her thoughts. “Here, take my hand. I’ll guide you.”

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

Taking the hand offered to her, Zoe began following. She did her best to keep track of the route they took and the layout of the town around them. At one point, two splotchy, humanoid forms of green passed by them.

The hand was surprisingly soft and warm. Also pretty small. It made Zoe feel like some kind of mutant giantess in comparison. Although to be fair, the woman was pretty short.

Finally, they approached one of the buildings. Zoe could tell because the mundane light shining through her blindfold darkened. Also, there was a fair amount of green and a smattering of other colors.

A door creaked open. Boisterous, overlapping conversations, wafted out. A split second later, Zoe was blasted by a tide of warmth. It was more welcome than anything else she had experienced so far since she arrived in this world.

Shuffling inside, the door swung close behind them, and the woman wrapped one arm around Zoe’s waist. The conversation died down momentarily before rapidly picking back up, and then Zoe was whisked away towards a darker area.

It turned out to be the stairs.

Her mysterious benefactor helped her up, though Zoe didn’t really need it. Until they hit a really, really sharp angled bend and she stumbled. “Sorry.”

“No worries.”

Upon reaching the second floor, they stopped. The woman — the cultist — shuffled around slight, before releasing her grip. “You can take it off now.”

Ripping the blindfold off, Zoe shook her hair out and looked around with her real eyes. It was pretty much what she expected. An old, creaky wooden hallway lit by a few candles mounted along the walls. They were standing next to a polished, carved wooden railing.

“Right. Our room is the second from the end on the right.”

Zoe blinked. Our room?

The woman didn’t wait for a reply, turning her back and setting off down the hallway. Zoe glanced around and shrugged. What else was she going to do? She had no idea how to navigate this world — it wouldn’t hurt to have someone to help her.

Of course, this was all still super sketchy. She had to admit she had no idea what was going on here — so she would proceed with caution. Prepare to escape. Or fight.

As she moved to follow, Zoe analyzed the strange woman.

{Elemental Summoner (Ice) - 28}

That didn’t sound particularly occult.

In any case, Zoe hurried to catch up to her, and then the door swung open and the woman pocketed a simple iron key. She stepped inside, and Zoe followed her. The room was surprisingly large, furnished with two armchairs, a sprawling — if beaten up — sofa, and several lamps, tables, and shelves.

The central sitting table had been entirely overtaken by a tangle of what appeared to be chemistry equipment. Or alchemy equipment — whatever they called it here. Glassware of all shapes and sizes, rubber tubes, a few burners, assorted metal implements, and things Zoe didn’t even know what to make of sprawled across and towered up in a haphazard heap.

A disheveled young man in cozy looking pajamas looked up. He had sandy blonde hair that looked like it had been combed back but refused to stay slicked down. His face was small and angular. He was decently handsome, in a nerdy sort of way.

Zoe didn’t recognize him as one of the other two cultists.

As soon as his gaze landed on her, he yelped and jumped back. As he did so, he tripped on the sofa and fell back on it. Glaring at the other woman, he leveled his pipette at her and jabbed accusingly.

“What took you so long? And what the hell is the demon doing here? I thought it was supposed to be dead.”

As the door clicked closed behind them, the woman rolled her head back and groaned. “I don’t know dude, she actually survived somehow. I think she might have killed the paladin.”

The young man blinked. “And so you decided to bring it here.”

Zoe glared. She wasn’t an it.

He glared back, and then shifted his ire to his evident companion.

“You have some explaining to do.”

Zoe cleared her throat. “Uh yes, I agree. I’d like a bit of an explanation as well.”

The woman sighed and collapsed against the wall. She stuck out her hand and offered it to Zoe. “Hi. I’m Lily. This is Andric. We’re bounty hunters, not cultists. Our boss sent us to kill you when you arrived. What do you say you help us kill him?”

Zoe stared. What the fuck?