Team Seven reached the outskirts of the village as dusk began to settle.

  They moved quietly, blending into the shadows of the trees, each member taking a position without a word. From their hideout above the village path, they had a clear view of the scattered homes, the dim lantern lights, and the uneasy stillness hanging in the air.

  Something was wrong.

  Nexil felt it immediately.

  The air was heavy—thick, as if something unseen was pressing down on his chest. Even the wind seemed hesitant to move.

  Amber narrowed her eyes.

  “Stay hidden. We observe only.”

  No one argued.

  Moments later, a figure emerged from between the houses.

  It was not human.

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  The creature wore dark, battered armor, its surface scorched and cracked. Black flames crawled along its limbs like living shadows, flickering without heat or light. Each step it took left the ground faintly scorched.

  A demon.

  It stopped before a small house.

  A woman stood in its path, clutching a basket of food to her chest. Behind her, a small child peeked out, fear wide in his eyes.

  “Please,” the woman said, her voice trembling but firm.

  “This is all I have. It’s for my son.”

  The demon laughed, a low, hollow sound.

  “Food,” it growled. “Or blood. Either feeds me.”

  Nexil’s jaw tightened.

  The woman stepped forward, shielding her child with her body.

  “If you want it,” she said, her voice breaking, “then kill me. But I won’t give it to you.”

  The demon raised a hand.

  Dark power surged.

  The woman cried out as invisible force struck her, sending her to her knees. The basket slipped from her hands, rolling across the dirt.

  The child screamed.

  Nexil moved instinctively—

  —but a hand grabbed his wrist.

  “Don’t.”

  Elyon’s voice was low, controlled.

  “We have a task,” Elyon said. “We observe. We report. We do not intervene.”

  Nexil clenched his teeth, eyes locked on the scene below.

  The demon lifted its weapon.

  A blade wreathed in black flame.

  The woman wrapped herself around her child, her back exposed.

  The blade rose.

  Nexil’s breathing grew sharp.

  His vision narrowed.

  Something inside him screamed.

  Author Note

  The task is clear.

  The rules are simple.

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