Melora stared at Monza as he tried to catch his breath. Adeline, from the side, simply watched.

  “The noble’s name was Julius Von Forgather. He commissioned us and gave us the map with those instructions.”

  “Julius Von Forgather, are you sure of that?”

  “Yes, he sent us a falcon all the way from the Grand Duchy; it is in one of my things, just look, I promise.”

  Melora got up and left the room, leaving them with Adeline. She simply stood and watched them.

  “You demon, how dare you seduce the daughter of the Grand Duke to do your bidding.”

  “So you do know who she is, then what made you think you could win the fight to begin with? Unless you know something we don’t.”

  Monza’s face lost all its color as he turned to one of the adventurers who had lost an arm, who avoided his gaze. Melora returned holding a parchment; she handed it to Adeline, who started to read.

  “Monza, head into the forest from the northeast, follow the path until you reach an area with sparse trees. Elves commonly visit this area, kidnap as many as you can and head to the port city of Joma. Someone will be waiting for you with your payment; leave them there, they will take care of the rest. The more elves you get, the more money you will receive. Once you’re done reading, burn this letter.”

  Melora crouched and stared at Monza with indifference; she grabbed his middle finger then snapped it. Monza screamed in pain as he tried to break free, but her grip was strong.

  “I was not lying, like I told you, it was him.”

  “Now I want to know how you got in contact with him to begin with.”

  “I am more of a mercenary than an adventurer; I just use this guise to complete my contracts.”

  Adeline stepped forward and dragged the man he was staring at by the neck and pced him in front of Melora.

  “They know who you are and possibly the fact you were injured.”

  “Were you lying to me, Monza?”

  She snapped the fourth finger as she left the screaming Monza; her attention was turned to the one-handed man.

  “Who are you and what do you know?”

  “I am like his bookkeeper, call me Kirby.”

  “Tell me, Kirby, do you have anything to share?”

  “There was a rumor that you had died in the recent orc subjugation; the empire held a mourning memorial in your name. The Grand Duke even attended as he id to rest some of the recovered knights.”

  “What happened after that?”

  “The Grand Duchy and the Empire have been on better terms as some of the nobles started to move between the two, but the Grand Duchy peasants and traders refused, in your memory.”

  Melora spped Kirby to the side as she stared down at him.

  “Do not call my people peasants; disrespect them once more, and you will lose your tongue.”

  “I am sorry, please forgive me.”

  “Is there anything else I need to know?”

  “That’s all I know; if you let me go, I will be diligent and make sure I rey all the information.”

  “I am not convinced that’s all you know.”

  Melora once again revealed her rusted dagger and plunged it into the man’s shoulder bde. The man screamed in pain; he wriggled on the floor in pain as blood spttered all over the floor. Adeline stepped in and slowly pced her hand on her shoulder.

  “Leave them here for the night; maybe tomorrow they will be more talkative.”

  “Do you think so? Shouldn’t we go a bit further?”

  “Don’t worry, I have a pn.”

  Adeline then tied their arms to the ceiling with their feet barely touching the ground. Melora was not aware of such a torture method but did not question her. They left the dungeon and passed by a group of elven guards who slightly nodded at them; they made their way to the hall where the duo silently ate their dinner.

  “There is no need to worry about me; I have done this before.” Melora broke the silence as her calm voice filled the empty hall.

  “I am not worried about you.”

  “What was your trial?”

  “It’s none of your business.”

  Her answer was cold and short as the two continued to eat in silence. Adeline gnced at Melora, who still had her stone face. Her eyes looked dim, and her lips barely moved as she ate. Her heart felt heavy and had a hint of regret.

  “I saw my father, he stood in front of me. His familiar cold and uncaring gaze, always busy with his papers, nothing else. This man who supposedly conspired with the empire.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I killed him.”

  “I saw my past, the people I killed and harmed. They wanted to drag me down for my sins.”

  “Did you let them?”

  “At first, I did, but I still have the mission handed down to me by the goddess.”

  “I don’t really know you well, but so far, you’re the kindest demon I have met.”

  “That’s a very low bar.”

  “Don’t be silly, you know what I mean.”

  “I am not a good person, Melora.”

  “Neither am I. I am quite fttered by how highly you think of me, even after I told you that I killed my father in a trial of sorts.”

  “I have done worse, but…”

  “Yes, but?”

  “I don’t think you should kill him.”

  “Why shouldn’t I? His crimes, under our w, deem so.”

  “Let the w and the executioner do it then.”

  “Who exactly will believe my story and execute my father? That alone is enough to destroy the entire Duchy; people will choose sides and argue over who is right.”

  “They have you.”

  Adeline spoke in a low voice, leaving Melora stunned. Did she lose faith in her people or herself? Was this truly too much of a task?

  “What if I am not enough?”

  “I believe you are more than enough. I just don’t want you to do something you would regret down the line, you are a sword master after all.”

  “Thank you.”

  Melora smiled as they finished their dinner and went to sleep. The next day, they woke up early, and as promised, Melora started to teach Adeline how to wield the sword. The first thing she did was jog around the city, coupled with light stretching. After that, she was told to hold a stance, with Melora adjusting it over time. Satisfied, they ate their breakfast and went to the dungeon. As they entered the room, the smell of rotting flesh assaulted their nose. Melora walked over to Kirby and confirmed he was dead. She pulled out her rusty dagger and cleaned the blood with his clothes.

  “You killed him, you are a murderer.”

  Monza started to scream like a madman but was met with a sp from Adeline. Oddly enough, they did not remove the body and simply left him there. Adeline walked over to the other adventurers, who either had a missing hand or leg, and randomly chose one of them. She untied him and pulled him to the center of the room, took one of the cold buckets, and forced his head inside. The man tried to fight back but was too weak; she pulled the man away as he gasped for air and started to cough.

  “Have you ever wondered how someone dies of drowning? Lie to me, and I will let you find out.”

  Retrothewise