The Soul Keeper

It took a while before I lowered my gaze. I could smell blood – both mine and the two demons'. Exhausted and wounded, I collapsed on my knees. I couldn't move my left wing without feeling agonising pain. Soul's Respite had run out of mana before it could do any amount of worthwhile healing. 

I glanced at the sky. How long had this battle taken? Five minutes? Ten? How long could I waste here?

I forced myself back on my feet and approached the two corpses. I felt sick, a little. I had killed two people – well, they weren't actual people, but they behaved like them. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't shake this feeling of guilt.

I knelt besides the woman and gently closed her eyelids. "Sorry." I said, my voice but a whisper. I checked if she carried anything worthwhile – such as a healing potion, but I couldn't find anything on her.

Next, it was the man's turn. I motioned to close his eyes too but flinched and looked away as soon as I saw the state of his face. His eyelids were burnt, they had melted into the face – I wasn't even sure if he had eyes anymore. Feeling even more sick, I covered his body with his cloak. 

I finally turned my back on the corpses and glanced to the direction Lucius went. I had to catch up to them.

But before that, there was another matter that needed my attention. I closed my eyes and listened to the wind. I could hear faint voices, coming from the southwest. I couldn't quite tell, but I think there were three women. 

I glanced at the bodies on the ground and this section of the grassy field, reduced to ashes. I wondered if they'd attack me on sight. I knew they weren't demons, I felt none of that dark type of magic. They had to be players or Ereth. Since the Ereth never left their cities and villages, I decided on players.

"There's someone there!" One of them shouted as soon as they entered my view.

There were, indeed, three of them. One of them was short and petite. She had short black hair and carried a bow. She was the one who shouted. The one walking next to her was taller, she wore her blonde hair in a long ponytail. I could see a pair of horns on her head, as well as the unnatural red glow in her eyes.

The last one was more eye catching than the rest. Her braided crimson hair was almost as long as mine. She wore simple clothes and carried a simple wooden spear in her hand. Her eyes let out a green shine as they approached me.

Their steps slowed down and eventually; they came to halt not too far away from me. 

"What the hell?" The black haired one asked, staring at me and the burnt field around me. 

"Who are you?" The spear wielding woman stepped up. Her gaze fell on the two lifeless bodies behind me. "My god." She said as her eyes widened. "Laura, light."

The blonde woman immediately raised her hand. A sphere of light appeared, illuminating all of our surroundings. I narrowed my eyes and raised my hand to shield my eyes from the bright light.

"I'd like to ask you the same." I said, making sure to keep some distance between us. Could I trust them? Would they believe me?

"Oh!" The crimson haired woman suddenly exclaimed. "I know you! You're the Pale Demon!"

I flinched. That nickname stung, but more than that, I was somewhat relieved that I wouldn't have to prove that I'm a player. "Right," I said with a nod. "And who are you?"

"I'm Mona. She's Laura," She said, gesturing towards the blonde woman. "And she's Theresa." The black-haired archer nodded.

"Kai." I said, then glanced behind me. They were sure to be curious about what had happened here. And naturally, Mona did take a deep breath. I braced myself for the barrage of questions that was surely coming.

"You're wounded." She said suddenly. She took a few steps towards me. "I can see it, your, uh, wings." She explained. 

I glanced at my wounded wing. I was wounded, she wasn't wrong about that, but I was just a little surprised that she had focused on this instead of the two corpses behind me.

"It was a tough fight." I said, averting my eyes. "I'll be fine as soon as my mana replenishes." I glanced at her allies, who also approached me.

"What happened here?" Laura asked after a moment's hesitation. "Why don't you tell us about it while Mona heals you?"

I raised my brows, Mona had struck me as a fighter, not a magic user. "Sure," I said. "Me and two friends of mine were spotted by these demons," I began to explain. Naturally, I left out everything about the primal cores and that castle. As I talked, Mona gently touched my wings. 

Her hand was cool to the touch. I shivered as her magic spread throughout my body. It was just as cold as her skin. By the time I finished talking, she had already healed me fully.

"You're not a priest." I said, glancing at her. She pushed the few loose stands of hair behind her ear and smiled. "Nope, I'm a druid." She glanced at my wings. "And you, are not." She stated. "Which makes me wonder, how come do you have wings?"

I shrugged. "The result of being very unlucky." I said, forcing a smile. Then, my expression darkened. "I saw more demons yesterday. We shouldn't waste too much time here." Glanced at the two demons' bodies. "They will surely come looking for them."

Laura nodded. "We should be on our way indeed." Her light slowly faded until nothing but starlight remained. "You said you were here with two more people." She glanced around. "Where are they?"

I explained what happened, then glanced at Mona. "I know it's a lot to ask, since you've already helped me so much," I motioned at my wings. "But do you think you could try and heal my friend? I'm afraid he will die if we don't find a way to cure him."

Mona smiled. "Of course, I'll help." Both her friends nodded too. "Let's go then, Kai." She said, her smile as bright as the dawning sun. "This place reeks of death, but it will heal itself soon enough. And I'm glad you survived this battle."

"Let's hurry." Theresa glanced at the sky. "I'd rather not fight any demons right now."

They all nodded, and we set off. 

"Thank you." I said, looking at Mona. 

She smiled. "Don't thank me until I cure your friend." She lightly punched my shoulder. "And don't look at me like that!" Was it just me, or had her face reddened a little?

"Sorry." I chuckled. I couldn't help it, she reminded me of my own people. Her hair was almost the same colour as mine, back in the real word. "So, why were you out here?" I asked, hoping to change the subject.

"We were camping not too far away from here when we saw the sky light up." She glanced at my wings. "I assume that was you?"

I looked away. "Uh, well." She giggled. "I thought so!" She said with a cheerful voice. "Anyways, we wanted to check what was going on. Honestly, I didn't expect to find two dead demons and the Matriarch's Champion here."

I chuckled, though I still hated that name. It made me seem like her property. 

"Oh," She suddenly said as her eyes lit up with curiosity. "I was wondering, why did your party split up?"

At first, I didn't quite understand what she meant. Was she talking about Asher and Lucius? I had already told them what had happened.

"I mean the group you fought with in the tournament." She clarified, seeing my confusion. Understanding dawned on me. "Ah." I said. She chuckled. "So?" She asked.

"I temporarily separated from them because I wanted to check on something." I replied. 

She pondered a moment. "That's weird. All sorts of rumours are circulating back in the city." She raised her fingers as she counted. "The two girls are doing some grinding on their own, the one guy with the sword left the group completely and some say you've set off to kill the Demon Lord."

I stopped in my tracks and stared at her. "I did what now?"

She laughed. "My thoughts exactly!" She sighed. "You know how people are, they love gossip." 

"Look at who's speaking." Laura chimed in. She pulled Mona's braid. "Stop worrying him with your rumours." She turned her attention towards me as Mona tried to free her hair from the blond woman's tight grasp. "The two men in your group, the paladin and rogue, are on a drinking and feasting spree. The fighter left the group and went solo, though he spends some time with the girls."

My eyes widened. "Wait really?" I clenched my fists. "Damn it." I mumbled. I was glad that Vincent, Alina, and Samantha weren't following Erik and Joshua with their shenanigans, but I was still somewhat pissed off at those two. Had they not learned their lesson at all?

"We actually saw Vincent a couple of days ago." Theresa chimed in. "He was quite strong, he helped us out with a quest then went on his way. He said he'd meet two friends who had helped a friend of him in the past." She sighed. "He didn't seem very happy though."

I nodded. Of course he wasn't. 

"Someone's up ahead." Laura said quietly. She readied her spells, but I stopped her before she lit the whole place up. "Let me." 

We were still in the seemingly endless fields, yet now they were a bit hillier. I glanced at the top of the hill before us, then whistled. Soon after, I spotted Lucius as he climbed up.

"You're alive!"