To leave an ally in such a state, you needed a certain level of shamelessness. That selfish nature of royalty prepared them to continue to rule. That’s what humans called it, those moral-driven species.

Selfish? It wasn’t a foreign concept to me. The word didn’t exist in Hellion. You were just born like it if you wanted to survive. Demons were selfish in their upbringing, opting to stomp on each other for personal gain. As a Morningstar, I was raised to kill lower ranks for pure demonstration.

Where this may seem like brutal mistreatment of power, there was a reason for this. To keep power over Demons, whose nature is keen on violence, you had to be the devil among demons.

After all, Power talked. Still… I guess, I couldn’t be too surprised that Edwin had refused to leave that night till convinced by Leon himself. But part of me was.

Once again, I was reminded of the morals of humanity. Morals that caused them to run into death zones or stay in kingdoms that were breaking into war. They were creatures that listened to their heart more than pure logical reason. It was the lack of this reason that contributed to their feeble lifespans, on top of their weak bodies.

“Go home, Edwin. I’ll be able to focus more on foreign royals outside and safely return to their kingdoms,” Leon had assured him, despite the sadness in his eyes at the time.

He knew. We all did. Still, the condition went without saying. It wasn’t a matter of “What if they win?”

“They”, not referring to Leton, but my brothers. No. It was a matter of “When would they?”

How long would Leton last? When would they fall to the same fate as Florence? And when a kingdom fell, all you can do is blame the monarch.

It was easier to do that than succumb to despair. Hate authority, hate the royals, and hate the ones who felt the weight of thousands of lives at once. Hate your King. That’s their job. Hell, it was their purpose.

But there was nothing that we could do about it. You had to accept it, move on, and start preparing for death. If they were to die at the hands of demons, then they should with honor.

Die fighting? Or die cowering? Soldiers, kings, and fighters only understood one way of life. We were all murderers at the end of the day. Our hands are covered in blood, having destroyed families and futures.

We were rushed out without proper farewells. In that situation, Leon had more important things to tend to. Even the statue guards moved, rushing to the meetings.

This night inside the castle would be chaotic, but tomorrow everything would fall to disaster. The grim reaper would soon cast a shadow on Leton.

And all we would do is watch. I think that’s what killed the troops, all of them trained to rush into battles, and save civilians. Now they were doing the opposite.

The carriage was silent. When Trent had pulled it around, he hadn’t needed to ask to know something had gone wrong. And he didn’t ask, never said a word.

Besides my own beliefs, the others wore their disdain on their faces on the way to Leton’s gates. Rain pelted down on us, stinging uncovered skin and drenching our hair.

Time for chatter had passed, as the trip back would be vital for both kingdoms. Plus, the storm would only get worse. We had passed the gates to Leton easily, slipping under the stormy night’s hassle. Everyone wore the rain covers given by Leon, despite not doing much against the storm.

Attire didn’t matter at this point. With the rising tension at Leton, it was easy to dismiss the demonic energy surrounding the capital. But now, as we ventured further into the woods, my eyes darted around the tree lines.

The presence felt higher than when we first came to Leton. If anything, this only solidified the danger that Leton was in.

We’ve been walking for hours. I don’t know, maybe hours? All I knew was that Leton was no longer visible for miles. It was hard to focus on that stuff while adhering to the problem at hand.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Between each rustle in the woods, the rain made it hard to differentiate the sounds of the heavy storm and possible demons lurking. Lars and Daniel’s absence left a major hole in the defense of the carriage, everyone taking a side while Trent guided the mules forward.

Surrounded by the darkened forest, their whinnies accompanied the sound of rain pounding against the trees. Flashes of lightning illuminated the path ahead, setting the gloomy mood.

The only other light source because of the rain was the lanterns barely holding their embers. We seemed to be trekking ahead on the pure reliance on the trail.

Serlon walked ahead of us, giving the mules extra pull to push them forward. Eran walked behind us, with Gunnar and I at the sides. Senses were dialed up to a hundred, as we fought against the storm. Between the roar of rain and wind, it became impossible to recollect the situation at Leton.

No one talked, mostly switching into work mode and carrying on without thought. Once the storm had settled, we’d be able to send a warning to Trane. Till then, we fought against the elements. Thunderstruck in the distance, causing the mules to rear.

“Easy! Easy!” Trent yelled from the front, his voice barely audible from the weather.

The carriage sped up briefly before being reined to a halt. I looked ahead, watching as Trent pulled against the reins. Further up, Serlon walked along one of the mules, holding the reins.

Serlon shook his head, holding his arm in front of his face to shed himself from the wind.

“-Too Strong!” He called back to Trent, who struggled to calm the mules, “The storm is getting bad.”

He looked up to the tree line, his mouth morphing into a frown. Serlon peered back at me, now calling me over.

“Asta,” He yelled over the rain, “We need to take shelter.”

I understood what he was asking, as we both looked into the tree lines, which seemed to be our best form of cover at the moment.

If we were lucky, we’d find a cave deeper into the canopy of the forest. Still, the demonic energy was present within these woods. And that’s where we’d run into problems.

“Are you thinking about retreating into the woods?” I asked, “We’ll have problems.” My tone was clear, hinting at what the man wanted to know.

“We don’t have a choice,” He pulled me closer, “If we stay on this open path, we’ll be put into more trouble.” Lighting struck, the flash casting over Serlon’s troubled expression.

I sighed, looking back at the carriage that shook against the wind. If Edwin was sleeping, it’d be a miracle considering the condition outside. Everyone was on edge.

But the guard was right. If we were to trek blindly on the path, we’d run into more problems than some lower-level demons.

“Fine. What do you want to do, old man?” I scoffed, walking over to take the guiding rein of the other mule.

“You lead us away from danger. We’ll have to stay there till the storm settles down more.” He responded, taking the other mule.

“And you trust me that much?” I jested, wearing a smirk unsuitable in such a severe storm, “Risky of you.”

“Of course not,” He snapped, flashing a toothy grin. He pointed to the sword on his belt, “Just do your job.”

I shook my head.

Serlon turned around to the others, raising his voice to be heard against the rain, “We’ll be seeking cover in the forest. Asta will help me lead the mules in, and Gunnar and Eran will flank the rear. Trent, make sure the carriage is stable in the uneven terrain.”

He sighed, lowering his voice towards me, “Use what you need to. You’re in front, so they won’t see you.”

I nodded, my eyes glowing a light red. I looked towards the forest, my eyes tracing against the different sections of the forest.

It was faint, but the demonic energy was there. By taking some of the transmutation magic off my eyes, I was able to focus more with less magical burden.

I pulled the mules toward an opening on our left, Serlon following suit. The carriage moved slowly, creaking against the wind. The mules whinnied, hooves sinking into the mud as they struggled up the incline. Serlon and I pulled the animals up, starting our entrance into the tree line.

Once the carriage was up the incline, I led us to the area with the less demonic energy. It was pitch dark in the woods, the only light being the small lantern. Its dim flicker only illuminated the dense vegetation of the forest. Exposed roots and bushes caused the carriage to bounce with each step into cover.

But the idea paid off, as the intensity of the rain diminished, finally allowing us to hear the panting of our breaths. I stopped the mules at a small clearing that seemed to be covered by the trees above. The only energy around us would be low enough to manage if needed.

With the only magic user being aware of my identity, I allowed my demonic energy to seep out to deter other demons. I could only hope that the small amounts would hold for long enough. My authority in Hellion was questionable. Still, it was better than nothing.

Rain trickled through the leaves above, hitting us with less force than outside the forest. My eyes returned to normal, as I turned back to face Serlon with a nod.

To this, he sighed, “We’ll stay here for a little till the storm calms. Be on alert, demon activity has been reported in the area. Stay on guard.”

“Yes sir,” The others acknowledged from the rear, opting to sit on the ground with their focus towards the surrounding forest.

Trent hopped down from the driving seat, and walked up to us, “I’m sorry for not being able to handle the mules in the storm.”

Serlon placed his hand on his shoulder, “No need. You did the best that you could. We should still be on schedule anyway.”

“Thank you for your words, Sir.” Trent bowed, peering over at me, “Asta.”

“Huh?” I raised my brow, despite him not being able to see that anyway.

The normally stoic man drew closer, pulling me into an unexpected hug. Because he was shorter, he had pulled me down into an awkward hunch.

“…We’ll be okay.” He whispered to my horror. A cracking fit of laughter erupted from Serlon, who couldn’t help his amusement. I had half my mind to launch him across the clearing. I shoved him away, Serlon catching his body that fell from my own.

“What the fuck?” I snapped, the disgust in my tone evident, “Old man, check him for a fever. He must have caught something.”

“…Man,” Trent groaned, rubbing his back, “It’s hard to forget that you’re only sixteen. Chill, kid.”

“Kid? Pull that shit again and it’ll be the last thing you’ll do.” I warned him.

“Chief,” Trent turned towards Serlon, pointing to me, “He threatened me. Can I punch him?”

“Haven’t you done enough to the poor boy?” Serlon sighed, “Plus, I doubt you’d be able to land one on him…”

“Ttch. Whatever,” Trent jumped up, tending to check the harnesses on the mules, “Anyway, let me know when we’re to leave.”

“Gotcha. Thanks.” Serlon nodded.

“What the hell is his problem?” I muttered under my breath.

Serlon walked to my side, hitting my back, “He’s just worried. That’s all.”

“Worried? About me? That’s hilarious.” I scoffed.

“Yeah. Funny, isn’t it?” He sighed, “But it’s understandable.” Was it?

“…Oh,” He started, walking back over to his station, “And thank you for leading us to safety, Asta. Really.”

I was just performing my duty. That’s all.