As the sound of people screaming outside the bar reached a fever pitch, Carmine turned to look at Chase.

  “So,” she said, “What should we do?”

  “I don’t know,” Chase said. “Currently, this doesn’t involve us at all. On top of that, we’re teenagers – we could get out of this by just saying we’re too young to intervene without great risk to ourselves.”

  “Wise move,” Charon said with a nod. “Any of you going out there now would just lead to you getting yourselves killed. Believe me, I know – the Demons I traveled here with are way too high-Leveled for any of you to deal with.”

  The Paladin woman seemed to snap out of whatever trance had overtaken her, and had whipped around to face Chase and Carmine, glaring at them.

  “I am going outside,” she declared. “To help fight off the Demons. I don’t care about the consequences.”

  Carmine raised an eyebrow. “Are you serious? Because you damn near pissed yourself when encountering him.”

  She motioned to Charon for emphasis, and he frowned.

  “I have a name, you know,” he offered.

  “I don’t care.”

  “Ignore her, she’s only got 8 CHA,” Chase said. He looked towards the Paladin, who was still standing there, gritting her teeth as she tried to wrestle her warhammer out of Charon’s grasp, but to no avail. “Hey, lady – what’s your name?”

  “What’s it to you, kid?” she growled.

  “Believe me, I’m far from a kid,” Chase said. “And besides that, you only look like you’re about eighteen. That’s not that much older than Carmine and I. But anyway… I’m asking because I’m trying to talk you out of getting yourself killed.”

  “Those people out there need my help!”

  “We have no idea what’s going on out there right now,” Melanie reminded everyone. “For all we know, a bunch of Demons just showed up and stood around doing nothing, but everyone panicked because they’re afraid of Demons.”

  At that exact moment, a nearby window shattered as a blood-covered body was thrown through it. They all turned to find the upper half of a guardsman lying on the floor of the tavern. Slowly, Melanie turned towards the others.

  “This proves nothing,” she said.

  Carmine was stunned. “What do you mean, it proves nothing?! That proves everything!”

  “No, it doesn’t. That guy could have tripped and fallen.”

  “And that was enough to cut him in half?!”

  “He could have fallen on something very sharp.”

  “Melanie, stop trying to cope about this,” Chase said with a sigh. “Alright, so whatever is going on out there is pretty bad, obviously. But I’d rather not get involved, because if those Demons are anywhere near Charon’s Level, we’re all screwed six ways from Sunday.”

  “Maybe you and the Paladin are,” Melanie told him. “Charon, Carmine, and I will be completely fine. Sucks to suck, Chase, doesn’t it?”

  “Enough!” the Paladin announced, silencing them. She turned towards Charon. “Release my weapon at once.”

  “No,” Charon answered.

  “I demand you let go!”

  “Not happening.”

  “I am ordering you to release your grip!”

  “Try asking nicely, maybe you’ll get somewhere.”

  Once again, the Paladin grit her teeth. “Please let go of my hammer.”

  Charon thought for a bit before turning back to her. “No.”

  “Are all Demons truly this insufferable?!”

  “Yeah, actually,” Chase explained. “I mean… look at Carmine and Melanie. Maybe it’s a hidden racial trait of theirs or something.” He shook his head again. “Look, Charon – I know we don’t know each other at all or like each other or anything like that, but Melanie has been under our care for the past few days. I think Carmine and I have earned a bit of latitude.”

  “Where are you going with this?” Charon asked.

  “Yeah, where are you going with this?” Melanie demanded, placing a hand on her hip. “Because last I checked, in those few days, I’ve already died twice, and been bullied more times than I can count.”

  Charon listened to her intently before turning back to Chase. “That sounds very funny, to the point where I’m willing to grant you one simple request.”

  Melanie’s jaw dropped. “Charon!”

  “Great,” Chase said with a nod. “I want you to let go of the Paladin’s warhammer, but on one condition.”

  “Name it.”

  “She tells us her name first.”

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  Charon shrugged, then locked eyes with the Paladin, who was still hopelessly tugging on her warhammer, locked within his grasp. “You heard the man. What’s your name, girl?”

  She looked like she wanted to argue at first, but finally heaved a sigh of resignation. “...Victoria Firelight.”

  Chase nodded. “There, was that so-” He paused, his eyes widening. “...You can’t be serious.”

  “What?” she asked.

  “That’s really your name?”

  Victoria bristled. “It’s a fine name!”

  “It’s the most Paladin name I’ve ever heard,” Chase deadpanned. “Carmine, back me up on this.”

  “Normally, I’d tell you to pound sand, but in this case, I have to agree,” Carmine said. “Is that actually your name, or did you pick it because it sounded cool?”

  “It’s my real name, damn it!” Victoria hissed. “I’ve upheld my end of the deal, now let go of my hammer!”

  Charon shrugged, then did exactly that right as Victoria again tried to pull her hammer free. The result was that she accidentally fell backwards, landing flat on her ass as her warhammer came clattering to the floor. She looked up at him in disbelief for a moment before collecting herself, reaching for her hammer, and leaping to her feet, whereupon she immediately assumed a fighting stance.

  “You can’t be serious,” Charon deadpanned.

  “I’m not trying to fight you,” Victoria growled. “I’m trying to fight them.”

  Melanie blinked, then exchanged a glance with Carmine, who shrugged. “...Why?”

  “Because by your own admission, you are an Arch-Lich, and therefore a danger to every living creature in the vicinity. You also said that you are that girl’s Familiar, so I can only assume she is, in a sense, your phylactery, and that you will not die until she does.”

  “You’re half-right,” Melanie admitted.

  “You don’t seem very concerned about this,” Carmine noted.

  “Because Charon is right there.”

  “I don’t know about that, Melanie,” Chase interjected. “Because from the sound of things, he’d absolutely let Victoria kill you if he thought it’d be funny.”

  “Damn it, are we going to fight or not?!” Victoria shouted. “There are people dying out there, and you two are in the way!”

  “We really have no reason to fight you or get involved in this in any way, shape, or form,” Carmine pointed out. “Especially given those Demons are high-Leveled. We wouldn’t stand a chance against them.”

  “Which reminds me,” Melanie said, as she turned towards Charon. “Can’t you call them off? Or is that not funny enough for you?”

  “Oh, don’t get me wrong, I find this entire situation to be uproariously funny,” Charon answered. “But I also think we’re past the point where me intervening to call them off would accomplish much.”

  “What makes you say that?”

  Another body suddenly came crashing through the door, this one missing its head. It landed on the floor of the tavern, the same as the first one, and for the first time since the pandemonium had started, the bartender let out a tired sigh.

  “Damn it, I just renovated this place…” he muttered.

  Melanie stared at the headless body, then turned her gaze back to Charon. “...Okay, so you may have a point,” she conceded.

  Chase peered past her, looking through the doorway and out into the streets. He couldn’t help but let out a low whistle at what he saw.

  “Well, this looks dangerous,” he commented.

  “How bad is it?” Carmine asked.

  “You ever been inside a slaughterhouse?”

  “No.”

  “Well, if you ever wanted to, you can always just step outside. There are dead people and Demons everywhere.”

  Melanie’s brow furrowed. “The way you phrased that was weird.”

  “How so?”

  “Are Demons not people to you?”

  “No, they’re Demons.”

  “So Charon and I aren’t people?”

  “Charon scares me, so I’ll concede he’s a person, but you’re a Familiar, so no.”

  Melanie stared at him, then looked back over to Charon. “You know, nobody would miss another kid in all this confusion.”

  “I would,” Charon replied. “This one’s growing on me.”

  Victoria suddenly slammed the pommel of her warhammer on the tavern floor, which both got their attention and left a large dent in the wood. The bartender let out another pained groan, but everyone ignored him, instead focusing on Victoria once more.

  “If it’s all the same to you,” she said, “I would very much like an explanation as to why you all insist on keeping me here. You don’t even know me. It is my duty as a Paladin to smite evil, and yet I am being kept from it by a bunch of unruly children. So, I would just like to ask… may I please go out and do my assigned duties?”

  “You know, that’s a good question,” Chase said. “Carmine, do you actually care if she gets herself killed?”

  “Not particularly,” Carmine answered.

  “Then we’re in agreement. I say we let her get herself killed. All in favor?”

  Everyone’s hand went up, including the bartender’s. After a moment, Chase turned to Victoria and gave her a nod.

  “Go get ‘em, tiger.”

  A manic grin split Victoria’s face, and she radiated with sheer joy. That wasn’t an exaggeration, either – Chase could have sworn he saw a bright light emanating from her as she grinned. She hurried out of the tavern, her warhammer in tow, eager to extract her pound of flesh from the Demons that had invaded the city.

  As soon as she crossed the threshold leading out to the city, she was stopped by an armor-clad leg reaching out to trip her up. For the second time in about five minutes, Victoria fell on her ass, only this time, she was pinned to the ground by a familiar face. Chase and Carmine could only watch, mouth agape, as all of this unfolded.

  Across from them, Leon looked up from his position pinning Victoria to the ground, then leveled them both with the harshest glare he could possibly muster.

  “What in the actual fuck did you idiot children do?” he growled.

  XXX

  Name: Chase Ironheart

  Level: 5

  Race: Human

  Class: Warrior

  Subclass: Swordmaster

  Strength: 20 (MAX)

  Dexterity: 15

  Intelligence: 10

  Wisdom: 13

  Constitution: 18

  Charisma: 16

  Skills: Master Swordsmanship (Level 10); Booby Trap Mastery (Level 8); Archery (Level 4)

  Spells: Rush (Level 7); Muscle (Level 4); Stone Flesh (Level 6); Defying The Odds (Level 1)

  Traits: Blessed

  Name: Carmine Nolastname

  Level: 5

  Race: Greater Demon

  Class: Arcane Witch

  Subclass: Archmage

  Strength: 10

  Dexterity: 13

  Intelligence: 19

  Wisdom: 19

  Constitution: 12

  Charisma: 8

  Skills: Master Spellcasting (Level 10); Summon Familiar (Level 10)

  Spells: Magic Dart (Level 7); Magic Scattershot (Level 5); Fire Magic (Level 5)

  Traits: Blessed

  Name: Melanie Vhaeries

  Level: 5

  Race: Ascended Human

  Class: Necromancer

  Subclass: Arch-Lich

  Strength: 8

  Dexterity: 13

  Intelligence: 18

  Wisdom: 16

  Constitution: 15

  Charisma: 12

  Skills: Raise Lesser Undead (Level 10); Raise Greater Undead (Level 3); Unorthodox Weapon User (Level 8)

  Spells: Touch of Death (Level 5); Gravesinger (Level 7); Armor of Bone (Level 3)

  Traits: None