After a full day of rest and preparation, we leave for the territory that requires our help—Aftlachtine County, the territory that previously belonged to Sziera Aftlachtine. Abigail, Gabriela, Neroel, and Celia go there by the Magic Carriage I bought for them, meanwhile, the rest of the girls fly with me and Genelos.
I was honestly surprised when I heard that territory as peaceful as Aftlachtine wanted its ruler dead. It turns out, there is cancer in the territory, who is no other than the ruler's uncle.
Sziera was a good leader but his uncle did some horrible things without his nephew knowing it. The people wanted to protest but his uncle knows how to prevent words from coming out. His uncle has been secretly controlling the territory, which is why they want him dead. They don't want Sziera to die, though, which was the reason why I had been putting it aside.
Now that Sziera is dead, his uncle inherits the territory. He can now do his things openly and no one can say a thing. It has been only two days but the suffering that the people have to endure is unbearable. It has come to the point where they are willing to do anything for me as long as they don't have to live under Sziera's detestable uncle's rule.
"The territory has been closed off, hasn't it? Are we going to attack it directly?"
"Do you think it is hard to sneak into a mere County?"
"Ah, I thought you were going to be frontal about it."
"No. I want to let our new members see what they have been missing—the ugly truth of life."
Lunea joins in my conversation with Millonia. "How bad is it, this time?"
"I think you should see it for yourself."
"I am sure we won't like what we will see," Winerva chimes in.
I merely smile lightly and say nothing. We then change the topic and talk about trivial things until we reach the closest forest to our destination. I cast a Gravity Spell on Abigail and Gabriela's carriage to reduce its weight, tie it to Genelos, and then let him lift it. Covered by a Concealing Spell, we enter the County together airborne.
The County is not completely closed off like what many people say. There are still people entering and leaving the County but all of them are merchants. No ordinary citizen is allowed to visit, so, in a way, it is indeed closed off. The reason why merchants are even allowed entrance and exit is to keep the economy moving.
This proves that Sziera's uncle is not only detestable but also a smart person. He is quite a rare breed of detestable person since most of them normally don't have enough brain cells to think about a safe way to satisfy their vile urge.
Crack!
"Ah!"
As we land in an alley where no one can see us, we can immediately hear a whip cracking and a painful moan of a young girl. Neroel and Celia are tense as they get down from the carriage; their hands are twitching as their impatience grows.
They have seen a glimpse of what is happening in this territory while we are still in the air and they can barely hold themselves from running and saving whoever is being whipped. The girls, seeing that, smirk faintly and quirk their eyebrows as if saying, "First time?"
Neroel turns to me, looking at me with eager eyes. He badly wants me to give him the green light but I hold him back, much to his frustration and disappointment. He wants to run but the Geas I put on him immediately shines, stopping him in his tracks. The pain brings some of his clarity back.
"It is not the time," I say as Genelos, who has assumed his small lizard from, perches on my shoulder. "We need to coordinate with the people in the territory, so we can prevent unnecessary deaths. We will liberate it afterward."
"But, Master…! These people—they are suffering even now!"
"I know. They just have to endure it for a little bit longer. We can't risk everyone's safety because of them, no?"
"Taking this place down is a piece of cake, Master. You and I are strong. No one will be able to stop us in this County!"
I keep quiet for a few seconds before walking toward Neroel. He seems to think that I am angry as he takes a step back in horror. He grits his teeth and does his best to look me straight in the eyes as I extend my hand. When it lands on his shoulder, his power leaves his body.
"Our priority is to liberate the people, not kill the bad guy as soon as we can. A territory still needs people to prosper. You can't have a territory without people to fill it. The bastard who rules this territory knows it well, so he will kill as many people as he can while we fight his men."
Taking my hand off his shoulder, I conclude, "Therefore, let's move the people to safety first."
I don't care about humans, so I don't do and believe what I said. I said it because there is a need to make Neroel even more sure that I care for humans more than him despite being a former human who became a Demon after humans disappointed him.
Asking Teanosvera to cover us with his shadow, we get out of the alley and enter the street. We soon hear the same cracking whip and the painful moan of a young girl.
Our heads turn in the direction where the sound comes from. There, we find five Guards standing before a girl no older than fourteen, meanwhile, a crying middle-aged man stands behind her while holding a whip with his trembling hand.
All of the guards have their pants down and their members erected. The girl, while crying, bobs her head up and down and moves her hands in a stroking motion, following the command of the Guards to keep her life.
"Hey, old man, she doesn't do it properly. Give her some encouragement!"
"N-No…, sir, please. She—"
"Do you want to see us fuck her head literally?"
"No, sir. Yes, I will encourage her."
Crack!
"Ah!"
"Ha-Ha-Ha! Look at this loser—he cries like a mute baby!"
I can hear Neroel's gloves squelch as he clenches his fist tightly loud and clear. His eagerness to immediately jump and shed blood is extremely palpable.
I smile softly before solemnly saying, "We are all evil. What makes us different is our ability to control our evilness. I am not going to say that Demons are better at controlling our evilness. We have an extreme amount of it. When you think about it, though, given that humans are less evil, it is amusing that they still lose control of their evilness most of the time."
Dash!
Neroel charges at the five guards without saying anything. His Geas doesn't shine because I have stopped willing him to stay. Teanosvera's shadow stops covering him, allowing them to see him. They are extremely baffled by his appearance but, before they can do anything, their heads fall to the ground.
"Ah…ah…we are saved. We are saved…"
The middle-aged man who is about to whip the girl drops the whip and his knees to the ground. he weeps as he inches closer toward the cowering girl.
"We are saved, my daughter. We are saved. Lord Shadow has answered our call." He turns to Neroel and emotionally says, "Thank you, Sir Neroel. I knew you would join Lord Shadow the moment the Kingdom accused your father of being a traitor."
"That is…" Neroel looks like he wants to correct the middle-aged man but shakes his head in the end. "Yes. Can you tell me where the people who are waiting for us are?"
Before the middle-aged man says anything, I ask Teanosvera to lift his shadow, revealing ourselves. The middle-aged man immediately feels my presence. He turns around and widens his eyes in shock as he looks at me. I stop before him and look down at him silently, meanwhile, Lunea and Celia drape a cloth over his daughter before treating her.
"L-L-Lord—"
"Tell me where they are."
"At the barn near the County Bank."
I nod my head and turn to Neroel. I tilt my head slightly to the back as if challenging him. He contemplates for a few seconds before nodding in determination. He bumps his chest gallantly as he says, "I will take Sziera's uncle's head myself."
Smiling softly, I say, "Go gather the people. Celia, Lunea, and I will roam the County and save those that we can before the liberation starts." Turning to Millonia and the rest of the girls, I add, "Girls, destroy the Temple before anyone can run."
"Understood."
Millonia, Winerva, Abigail, and Gabriel immediately leave. Millonia is in the lead as she is eager to "atone for her sin." She has been itching to kill people to vent her frustration, so it is a great opportunity for her. I am absolute she will excel; no one can stop her when she commits to it.
Neroel storms off a second late. I am left with Lunea, Celia, the middle-aged man, and his mentally scarred daughter. We escort the father and daughter to their house before leaving for our quest. We get to witness a lot of horrid scenes that even make me question if the actors are not Demons in disguise.
I am amused, still, but Celia is quiet the entire time.
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