The citizens of the town stared from their windows in fear, while children wanted to get closer. A homeless child wearing raggedy clothes accidentally stumbled onto them from a nearby alley, carrying moldy bread. Her eyes widened as she stared at Adeline and Bihse; two more children appeared and instantly froze. Adeline stared at them and could not help but draw a distinction from her childhood. She kneeled down and stretched her bloody hand out but then retracted it, realizing she was still covered in blood. The child oddly accepted the gesture as she ran towards Bihse and admired her big muscles.

  “I like these small humans! They have no concept of fear.” Bihse lifted up one of the children and started to throw her in the air as she giggled. The other children started to inspect Adeline’s big dark wings and tail. The sight settled some nerves, with Adeline having a rare smile on her face.

  “Make sure they are well fed.” Some trolls took the children away, who were happy to hitch a ride on their shoulders and arms. It was then the sight of merchants quickly closing their shops and boarding expensive-looking carriages, ready to depart. Adeline pointed at the carriages as the trolls rushed and pulled out the merchants and low-level nobles. With the sun behind her, Adeline stared down at the group kneeling before her.

  “Where are they?”

  “What do you mean by that?” one of the merchants answered in a shaky voice.

  “I will not repeat myself; where are they?”

  She was only answered with silence as one of the trolls carrying an axe pced it on the merchant’s neck as blood started to drip down. In a panic, the merchant started to talk once more.

  “Under the Merchant Guild!”

  “Take me there.”

  The trolls took the rest of the group away under the guidance of Bihse’s brother. They made their way to the Merchant Guild as Bihse broke down the doors with a small kick. The entire pce looked abandoned, with chairs and tables flipped; it seemed most of them ran away the previous night. The scared merchant pointed to a secluded pce. Bihse followed and tapped on the ground; a hollow sound could be heard as she ripped the floorboards away. It looked like an underground bank vault of sorts. Bihse and some trolls made their way down as Tymon kept a close eye on both Risin and the prisoner.

  “You might want to see this.” Adeline retracted her wings and made her way down. It was a rge area filled with different things, but what was noticeable were the cages filled with fairies, which the trolls were busy opening. One of them was a fairy which floated towards Adeline.

  “Thank you for freeing us, but I have seen your kind before. Down the hallway, you will find him chained, though I doubt he will be alive. It was long ago when I tried to escape but ended up in that corner.”

  “I see. If you need help, just follow the trolls.”

  The fairy nodded in delight as she flew, leaving behind small dust-like particles. Adeline turned and walked towards the hallway, which grew dimmer and was greeted by a metal door. Tymon and Bihse stepped forward as they knocked on the door three times, and on the fourth time, broke it down with a kick. Tymon entered first with his great axe as he scoured the dark room, which smelled of decay. Only a body was chained to the wall. Tymon kneeled and wanted to inspect the body, but it jerked forward, wanting to bite him. Tymon instinctively evaded, then stared at Adeline.

  “Are you a demon?”

  “They brought a woman in. Are you going to pray like before, hoping I will give up the location of the dragon? I was born before your bloodline even existed; I will not bend.”

  “By any chance, was the woman’s name Catherine?”

  “Why would you care? Aren’t you supposed to know that?”

  “I would, but I killed her with the rest of the human knights and soldiers; I just recimed it. I am a demon, just like you.”

  “Wow, you really know a good joke.”

  Tymon looked for a healing potion in one of his satchels,u then forced the demon’s mouth open and poured it in. The demon tried to spit it out but was unable to; it stopped squirming and remained still. Tymon was not convinced by this act as he stood at attention. Suddenly, the demon broke the chains and tried to attack Tymon, but Bihse held it back. A sharp sp nded on the demon’s cheek as its ravaged eyes darted around the room.

  “Are you blind?”

  “Of course I am; you poured holy water into my eyes. Then poisoned me so I never healed. Now let me go so I can rearrange your guts.”

  Adeline stepped forward; she saw the demon properly. It had tanned skin with white eyes, just like her, and it had two horns, but they were not as big as hers. She took its hands, then pced them on her horns. The demon frowned as it looked the other way.

  “You are pying jokes on me; I haven’t met another demon in centuries.”

  “I am a demon, and we are here to free you. What is your name?”

  “My name? They call me Azazel.”

  “I am Adeline, the man you tried to bite is called Tymon, and the one holding you is called Bihse.”

  “Freedom?”

  Azazel looked confused as they carried him out of the dungeon and into the streets. The bright light pierced his eyes as they regained color and his vision slowly returned. He never thought he would be able to see the light once again. He shielded his eyes as he was taken to a secured house with trolls guarding it. He sat down as he was handed more healing potions and food. After he had calmed down and adjusted himself, the trio stared at him as Adeline took a seat next to him.

  “You mentioned a dragon; can you tell us where it is?”