Mila was so small and light. Isabel barely felt the weight of her girl. She stumbled away from the pyre she had made. Silinth’s warped body continued to burn with increasingly bright flame.

A moment later, Isabel faced a ruined wall that bared her way. After pulling Mila closer, she tried to gather strength in her legs, but it came slow. There was exhaustion that hindered her body deeper than what physical exertion could bring.

It felt like something vital had been burned away and would take time before it returned. Isabel held back her tears. It wouldn’t do to cry now, even if Mila wouldn’t see.

Of course, Isabel’s little troublemaker had lost consciousness right after dealing the killing blow. Mila was like that. She overreached and hurt herself.

This was why Isabel tried so hard to support her girl. Mila was terrible at keeping herself safe. She looked down at the beautiful but dirty face and sighed sorrowfully. The pained expression on her girlfriend's face did not paint a good picture.

At least they were in one piece. That was the one thing going for them. Isabel finally raised her eyes and used some of the remaining mana to jump.

Once on the wall, Isabel looked around. Now that Silinth’s spell had ended and the fog cleared, it was simply replaced by low-hanging thick smoke.

Still, it was easier to see now as a crimson light held the night's darkness at bay.

The city of Ocheon was burning. The fighting was still ongoing. There was death everywhere, and Isabel had helped to bring it here. Her fingers dug into Mila’s clothes. There were desperate shouts in the distance, proclaiming more death.

Isabel had actually taken lives. Her lips trembled, and she bit down on the lower one. This was not a can of worms Isabel wanted to open now. She took a deep breath and looked back.

The old Inquisitor had started to burn as the fire from Silinth’s body spread, together with black smoke. There was shouting somewhere further in the Temple’s territory.

These voices were survivors. They were screaming and cursing, calling for revenge and punishment. Those would be the people who would soon come to seek out their enemies. Isabel jumped down, landing in dry blood. Her knees barely held without buckling under the weight.

Isabel felt so weak. The night had been so long. She rubbed her eyes with a sleeve to clear her foggy vision. It did let her see better, but on the downside, the corpses were now even more detailed and nauseating.

And the smell didn’t help either. The disgusting smell clung to Isabel’s nostrils, making her feel sick. Without a doubt, anything on her would have to be burned, and she would have to spend hours washing away the testaments of this night.

After suppressing the urge to gag, Isabel once more forced herself to move. The shouting behind her grew more incessant. There were now tones of alarm and also surprise.

But Isabel couldn’t linger. She scrambled together the last remaining motes of mana and activated her barrier.

With a shield and her girl in hand, Isabel gathered her courage. The path ahead was covered in flames. The bright, deadly blanket consumed the once charming temple.

The only things that still stood were some walls and statutes engulfed in flames that stared at Isabel with contempt, judging her deeds.

Isabel felt the urge to level these tasteless, well-made sculptures, but her reserves were too low. She needed to sit down and take a breath.

The twitch of Mila in her hands brought back Isabel’s wavering attention. She could rest later. For now, she had to get away. The last remains of her mana pool were depleting fast.

After a quick breath, Isabel did something she thought impossible just a few months ago. She closed her eyes and ran into the raging fire.

The deadly flames licked the barrier, trying to find a weakness and bring Isabel the same death so many here had already received but found no holes to worm through.

Isabel forced her eyes open and squinted as the bright surroundings refused to end. She bit the inside of her cheek to feel pain and use it to fuel her sprint.

And to her relief, Isabel found the fire's end just a moment later. She stepped out of the flames and collapsed while protecting Mila just far enough from them to not get burned.

“You look terrible.”

Isabel’s body jerked in response to the sudden voice so close. She turned towards it, expecting an enemy, but… “Andrew,” Her body relaxed before she grew vigilant once again. “Why are you here?”

Andrew’s face twisted in regret. “I-” He began but stopped once Mr Crow’s call reached them. “We have to go.”

Isabel knew they had to, but when she tried to get up, she found her strength wanting. “Just-” Her muscles spasmed. “Give me a moment.” Whatever the experience with that thing had been, it had left her so empty.

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“We don’t have that.” Andrew hissed. “Get on Terminator and let him carry you.” He let out a whistle.

It took too long for Isabel to realise Andrew meant his wolf. “What?” She blinked and just now noticed the large animal lurking in the rubble just a bit further away. “How?” She was sure that the wolf had been hiding in the woods. How did it get here?

Terminator seemingly nodded. With just a couple jumps, it arrived in front of Isabel and lay down to let her crawl on his back.

Isabel could not help but notice the wolf’s muzzle was red with still slick blood. She shuddered from the picture it painted. And… Her eyes shot towards Andrew and studied him once more.

There was… Gauntness to his features. Andrew looked tired in a very similar way to how Isabel felt. It seemed something was lost inside the young man’s eyes. Almost as if he had sacrificed his innocence.

“Get on.” Andrew urged.

Despite the questions Isabel had, she knew it wasn’t the time. Just as it wasn’t the time to face her own demons. But still, there was one burning question she had.

“Why are you here?” Isabel questioned as she stumbled forward to support herself against the beast.

“I-” Andrew faltered. Another impatient crow hurried them. “I needed-” He shook his head. “I wanted to help.”

Isabel pushed Mila on the wolf’s back and then joined her girl. She wrapped her hands around Mila’s waist and propped her up. While doing so, she considered Andrew’s words.

Frankly, they felt… Unsatisfying. Isabel focused her gaze on Andrew and tried to figure him out. He had left them alone to face overwhelming odds.

Of course, Mila’s plan had worked… Or at least for the most part, but with Andrew’s assistance…

“Don’t look at me like that,” Andrew whispered while his body wilted. “Come.” He motioned to his wolf. “We have to get out.”

The majestic and brutal wolf beneath Isabel stirred. Her arms around Mila twitch. This wasn’t a pleasant sensation. She didn’t want to ride something that had most likely slaughtered people on the way here.

Not that Isabel was much better…

And the wolf… It likely had followed Andrew’s orders.

They had now properly joined Mila’s little club of murderers. Isabel allowed a bleak smile. It wasn’t like she minded it overly much. For the longest time, she had prepared for the moment she would have to take another life.

But despite her resolve, Isabel still felt dirty. She wondered if the feeling would fade with time or grow more powerful.

Isabel pressed her face against Mila’s crown. She nuzzled against the black hair, trying to find a semblance of tranquillity. It did help, so she did it some more.

And then they started to move. Despite Isabel’s fears, the Wolf moved with deceptive grace and care. It was strange how such a savage-looking creature could be so thoughtful.

The destruction had grown worse since the moment they had entered the Temple. Only now, there was a lack of anything living in the vicinity.

Well, that wasn’t strictly true. Back in the temple, there was a pocket of activity. Isabel glanced back while ignoring the floor of flesh and blood they were running over.

Despite Isabel’s fears, there were no pursuers. She glanced at Andrew again, who was now running along them, while Mr Crow guided their way. “Where are we going?”

Andrew looked at Isabel as if she was not all there. “To the passage. We have to get out of the town.”

“We need a healer,” Isabel added. “Mila is hurt. We need to find Hanna.”

There was a moment of silence between them. Which meant the sounds of fighting in the distance grew more pronounced.

“You are right.” Andrew finally spoke. “It’s just…” He hesitated. “She won’t be happy.”

Isabel nodded. She knew Hanna would not be. But… There was no one else they knew who could help.

With Silinth dead and…

“Andrew,” Isabel did not know how to tell him. She had only heard snippets and wasn’t entirely sure what had happened, but…

Isabel realised Andrew was looking at her. After a deep breath of Mila’s hair, she composed herself enough to continue. “About Tiff and Kefo…” It was still hard. They were her friends, too. “Do you-”

“They left earlier. Silinth gave them a task, I think.” Andrew nodded. But when he noticed the look Isabel was giving, he palled. “W-what?”

“Silinth, he…” Isabel gulped. Her breathing grew ragged. They were almost entirely alone. After getting the favour out of Hanna, they would have to leave. Without Silinth, the healer would likely not tolerate them. And if she did, her family wouldn’t. They had done so much damage to their home.

But Isabel had to finish. Andrew had to know. Even if she questioned what he had done, he had returned to help them. It had to count for something. “Silinth gave something to Kefo and Tiff. Something that will kill them.”

“No…” Another something inside Andrew seemingly broke. “W-wait, what about Silinth?” He seemed to realise. “We-we can ask him!”

As they passed through a half-collapsed building, Isabel noticed torn bodies thrown about. Clearly, it had been done by a beast. This path had been cleared beforehand. It was why they didn’t even hesitate to move forward.

But that was just a distraction Isabel had chosen. She gathered strength from Mila’s presence and continued. “Silinth is dead.”

“H-how?” Andrew looked at Isabel in disbelief. “He is unbeatable!”

“Andrew,” Isabel also was not clear on the situation. Just that something had happened with Silinth’s mind. “He changed. Something happened to him. I- I am not sure. Maybe something that those Inquisitors did to him, but-” She gulped, remembering the twisted caricature of a human he had become at the end. “He tried to kill us. He became a monster.”

“I can’t believe that,” Andrew muttered. “That’s impossible.” More life seemed to drain from the man.

Despite Isabel knowing of Mila’s plan to get rid of Silinth, she wasn’t too clear about why. Not until she had seen what happened to him. And with the man sending his two pupils, no children, to death…

“Neither can I.” Isabel mirrored Andrew's disbelief.

The rest of the way back to the Obron’s residence was spent listening to the continued chaos in the distance. They sometimes encountered some survived stragglers but didn’t interact with them.

Consumed by bleak thoughts, the trio and Andrew’s bonds entered the dark passage, hoping for the possibility of a better life waiting for them at the other end.