“I’m so going to die,” Piper whispered to herself as she ducked behind a tree. “This is bad. This is really bad.”

  Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she was fighting down a rising tide of panic. As she stood behind the tree trunk, she cast [Veil of Lies], concealing herself from her pursuers. She watched a group of redcaps rush past, hooting with excitement. In the distance, thunder rumbled, the leaden skies threatening to storm.

  Ding! Your spell Veil of Lies has reached Level 6.

  Ding! Your spell Veil of Lies has reached Level 7.

  In hindsight, she’d had more than a few holes in her plan. The first part had worked perfectly. She managed to make the entire raiding party of redcaps chase after her. However, the second part had failed spectacularly. One of the redcaps could move through the shadows and kept popping up in front of her to prevent her from retreating.

  That meant she couldn’t make any progress toward the Crimson Guard’s camp. Every time she tried to lead them there, the redcap with the shadow class appeared in front of her and forced her to change course. Right now, she was headed away from the farmhouse ruins.

  She took a second to catch her breath and tried to think of a new plan. It sounded as if the redcaps were all around her. Some of them were beating the brush with their weapons—what looked like a combination of a sickle and staff—while others held torches. It was clear they were trying to flush her out.

  As the line of redcaps approached, she pressed her lips together. At least one of them would walk straight into her hiding spot, which meant they’d learn about her illusions. She needed to move before then.

  Dropping to all fours, she crawled down the hill. She froze as she dislodged a pebble, and it skittered down the incline. But after a second of holding her breath, it didn’t seem like any of the redcaps had heard; they were too busy making noise themselves.

  Piper continued for a short distance until she reached another path. She didn’t recognize this one, but it seemed to head in the direction of the farm. She set off at a trot, trying to remain as quiet as possible.

  Rounding a hairpin turn, Piper stumbled to a stop. Standing directly in front of her was the Crimson Guard. In the lead was the statuesque woman with dark hair she’d modeled her current [False Face] on.

  But Piper hadn’t done the woman justice with her illusion. The vampire seemed to have almost a supernatural beauty. Her skin was pale as polished marble, and her eyes shone like garnets lit from within. The vampire wore only simple robes but held a longsword that pulsed with an ominous dark light.

  Behind the woman was a mountain of a man who might even have been larger than Alfred. He was clad in full plate mail and held some sort of spear with a blade on top of it. He grumbled at the sight of Piper, but the woman held up her hand to silence him.

  Piper took a step back, her eyes wide with terror. At any second, she expected them to see through her illusion and cut her down where she stood. The power radiating off the vampires was oppressive—far more than what she’d felt from Ransford.

  “Wait,” the woman said, thrusting her hand out toward Piper. “I mean you no harm. My name is Justina, and this is my companion, Augustus. May I ask your name?”

  “Piper,” she replied without thinking. Immediately, she winced at giving her real name. What if they were looking for a Piper? With everything going on, she wasn’t thinking clearly.

  “Did you see anything in the hills?” Justina asked softly, kneeling so she could look Piper directly in the eyes. The woman was ridiculously tall. She was like a beautiful giraffe wielding a sword. “Maybe a monster or a spellcaster?”

  Piper glanced over her shoulder, hearing the sounds of pursuit growing closer. “Some redcaps attacked my family,” she said, thinking quickly. “We tried to hide in the hills, but they found us.” Every fiber of her being was telling her to run, but that would only make the Crimson Guard more suspicious.

  Justina rose to her feet and gazed up the hill. “Do you by chance know what happened to the farm below?”

  “I’m not from around here,” Piper lied. “But maybe it was the redcaps?” As she talked, she broke into a cold sweat. If they found out who she was, they would probably execute her on the spot. No matter what, she couldn’t admit that she used to live on the farm.

  The tall woman took a step closer and gently placed a hand on Piper’s shoulder. “You can tell me the truth. I promise no harm will come to you.”

  Piper pushed off the woman’s hand and took a step back. “I don’t know anything…”

  The woman gave her a look—almost one of sympathy—then lifted her sword with both hands. “We can speak after I’ve dealt with the redcap threat. I promise you that I don’t condone what happened on the farm. If Lord Ransford broke the laws of the Empire, I will see him brought to justice. Do you understand?”

  Piper nodded, feeling suddenly off balance. Apparently, the Crimson Guard weren’t here to execute her after all. But a moment later her fears returned tenfold as she realized they probably thought Ransford was lying. After all, who would believe him that he’d run into a demoness? If she could keep her true nature hidden, she might actually come out of this alive.

  Justina opened her mouth to speak, but a redcap leaping out of the bushes interrupted her. The woman responded with an almost casual swing of her sword, decapitating the redcap with a single blow. A second later, its severed head and body fell to the ground with a wet splat.

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  Another redcap quickly met the same fate as Justina stalked forward, her blade singing through the night air. No redcap could stand against her as she marched up the mountain, leaving a trail of bodies in her wake. It was like she was dispatching vermin and not fae warriors.

  As Piper trailed after the vampire—being pushed along by Augustus when she slowed—she couldn’t help but marvel at the power displayed by the Crimson Guard. Piper had thought she was strong, but she wouldn’t last a second against Justina. This was a level of power she’d never encountered before.

  Piper followed Justina, looking for her chance to slip away. So far, they hadn’t seen through her illusions. But she really didn’t want to test her luck. She had a feeling Justina wouldn’t feel so protective toward her if she found out she was a demoness.

  As they walked, the heavens opened up above them. A peal of thunder shook the hills, followed by a blinding lightning strike. Fat raindrops poured down from the clouds, quickly soaking Piper to the bone.

  In the driving rain, the three of them rounded the bend in the trail and ran smack into the entire force of redcaps arrayed in battle formation. Piper quickly realized that Alfred had been wrong—there were far more that 25 of them. In fact, there looked like there were at least 50 of the creatures.

  At least this will give me a chance to escape.

  Piper doubted even Justina and Augustus could handle so many redcaps. They would quickly be overwhelmed, but hopefully not before they killed most of the raiding party. It looked like her plan was going to work after all.

  “Stay behind me,” Justina ordered. “I promise I will keep you safe. Even if it costs me my life.”

  Piper frowned at Justina’s words. As she did, she felt herself wavering slightly. The memory of a helmeted female vampire stopping Ransford from eating her back in Alderwick came rushing back. Had that been Justina? Did she owe this woman her life?

  She shook her head to clear her thoughts. No matter how Justina was acting toward her now, everything would change the second they discovered she was a demon. Her only goal was to escape and reunite with Ethel and her family.

  Piper reached up and tapped Justina on the shoulder. “I have an archery skill,” Piper said. “I can help.”

  Augustus glanced over as she unslung her bow from her back and then did a double take. “What in the name of Infernus is that thing?”

  “I found it in the ruins?” she said lamely. There probably weren’t a lot of legendary bows with demon faces lying around in this world. But it was the best lie she could come up with at the moment.

  “Found me?” Gorebark sputtered. “I’ll have you know—”

  The demon bow’s words were cut off as she clamped a hand over its mouth. She gave them an uncomfortable smile. “It… does that sometimes. I have no idea why.”

  Justina frowned. “I feel immense power from that bow. If I were you, I would discard it immediately before it corrupts you.” She exchanged a look with Augustus. “Perhaps the bow is the reason for what we found at the farm?”

  Augustus merely nodded in reply.

  There was no more time for conversation as the redcaps advanced on them. The creatures had picked an open space on the hill so they could come at them from three sides at once. She doubted even the Crimson Guard could hold off so many.

  Augustus stepped forward and swung his weapon, sending a scything gust of wind across the hill. It struck the first rank of redcaps and sent them tumbling like leaves caught in a gale.

  Justina immediately followed Augustus’s spell with her own attack. She slammed the hilt of her sword down, and spiky columns of ice erupted from the ground. Nearly a dozen of the redcaps were impaled on the frozen barbs.

  With a deafening cry, the redcaps charged forward in a boiling mass of bodies. They crashed over them in a wave of claws and slashing weapons. The Crimson Guard moved with precise motions, their weapons cleaving through armor and limbs.

  Piper added her own fire to the mix, making sure her arrows never struck the same target more than twice. The last thing she needed was for the Crimson Guard to see her bow’s ability. They already didn’t like her weapon. What would happen if they witnessed the bow’s skill [Demonic Mark]?

  Ding! Your skill Archery has reached Level 8.

  A charging redcap nearly reached her before Justina cut it down. The woman nodded at Piper and then threw herself back into the battle. The Crimson Guard were skilled, but they weren’t untouchable. Both of them were racking up injuries at a staggering pace.

  One of the redcaps leaped onto Augustus’s back, stabbing with its dagger into the space between the helmet and breastplate. The creature plunged its blade into the vampire again and again before Augustus managed to reach back and rip the redcap free. With shocking strength, he hurled his attacker against a nearby tree, where it struck with a sickening crack.

  Piper loosed another arrow and struck a redcap in the knee. Bodies were piling up around them, but none of the redcaps seemed to care. If anything, they were becoming more aggressive. The creature’s eyes had become wild and round, while saliva frothed at their mouths.

  Justina lurched back, with an arrow protruding from her cheek. She thrust a hand toward Augustus. “Take the girl to safety!”

  “I will not leave you, commander,” Augustus grunted, holding a hand against his throat. Already, his wound was visibly healing.

  Is that a vampire racial ability? she wondered. Does it work like [Demonic Blood]?

  “That’s an order!” Justina snapped. “I’m going to cast Crucible of Frost.”

  With another grunt, Augustus grabbed Piper’s shoulder and dragged her away from the fight.

  Piper was pulled down the path, the man’s grip like iron on her shoulder. As Piper rounded the trail corner, she glimpsed Justina one last time. The woman had flows of ice spinning around her, while dozens of frozen spikes formed in the air. Then a flash of lightning illuminated the mob of redcaps rushing toward the vampire before the darkness returned.

  After a few steps, Augustus finally released her and took the lead as they headed down the hill. Though he was only a few metres away, the torrential downpour had almost completely obscured him. This was her chance to escape.

  Piper cast [Veil of Lies] and disappeared from view. With the illusion cloaking her, she plunged into the forest away from Augustus. A second later, she heard the vampire cry out with surprise. But she was already casting another [Veil of Lies] to hide her new position.

  Ding! Your spell Veil of Lies has reached Level 8.

  For a few seconds, she heard Augustus blundering around in the brush, most likely looking for her. But the sounds became fainter until they faded away completely. Just to be safe, she cast [Veil of Lies] again and headed back toward the cave.

  “Nice job,” Gorebark commented. “You gave that do-gooder bloodsucker the slip. Now if only you had managed to kill at least one of those lowly redcaps.”

  Piper didn’t reply and continued on her path. She was shivering with cold by the time she reached the cave entrance, but at least she had succeeded in her mission. At least partially.

  The redcaps had been removed from the mountain pass, but the Crimson Guard were still a threat. Now, all she had to do was sneak back inside and pretend none of this had ever happened.