The silence of the courtyard was abruptly torn apart by a voice shouting, “ZACK!” It was Tony, his figure racing across the cobblestones with incredible speed. Behind him, Lizzy came storming around the corner. “WHAT HAPPENED?!” Tony cried, his eyes wide with fear when he saw Remy’s lifeless body lying in the middle of the square.

  Lizzy stopped abruptly and screamed. “REMY! NOOO!” Her voice was raw with grief. She fell to her knees, her hand reaching out to gently touch that of her fallen teammate. For a brief, painful moment, there was only mourning. Her shoulders trembled, and tears rolled softly down her cheeks. But then she clenched her teeth, her fists tightening against the filthy cobblestones. Anger replaced her sorrow, a blazing fire igniting in her eyes. “That damn A-rank!” she shouted. Without another thought, she sprang to her feet and ran into the dark alley.

  “Lizzy! No!” Tony called after her, but it was useless. She had already disappeared into the shadows.

  James and Lori had just arrived in the courtyard, and their eyes immediately fell upon Remy’s body. “Remy? No… how is this possible?!” James slammed his fist against the stone wall. The impact echoed through the silent courtyard like a thunderous crack. “I’m going after Lizzy,” he said, and vanished into the dark alley.

  Lori covered her mouth with her hand as a dreadful silence washed over her. Her eyes filled with tears, and she slowly sank to her knees. She looked at Remy’s body. “Why?” she whispered.

  Tony, the only one who seemed to retain his composure, took the smoke flare from Remy’s lifeless hand. His gaze swept across the courtyard—and then he saw it. Between two crumbling buildings, exactly where the purple demon had disappeared, stood a small, unremarkable wooden house. This had to be it. Remy had found it. He had fired the signal, knowing he himself was in danger.

  Tony immediately launched the second flare into the air, the bright orange smoke twisting into Remy’s pink cloud. This is my fault, he thought. I split them up. I left them unprotected. He was ready now, determined to avenge his friend’s death.

  Zack’s broken voice interrupted his thoughts. “I’m sorry…” he said, his voice barely audible. “I wasn’t strong enough to protect him.”

  Tony’s gaze was unyielding, his face a mask of steel. The words he spoke were cold and cutting. “No, Zack,” he said. “You couldn’t have protected him. Not yet.”

  The words struck Lori. She looked up, her eyes moving between Tony and Zack. A cold, uneasy feeling crept down her spine. If Tony says Zack didn’t stand a chance… why does it feel like something isn’t right? She remembered their training, how hard and evenly they had both worked. If Tony could handle an A-rank, then logically, Zack should have been able to as well.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  The smoke from the flares, which had once been a sign of hope, now curled ominously through the air. Lori felt that something was wrong—but she didn’t yet know whether it was the demon, Zack… or something far deeper.

  While smoke and suspicion filled the air in Brittania, something far beyond the Hellfire Walls was unfolding that would change everything.

  Somewhere far beyond the Hellfire Walls, where the night was cold and unforgiving, Eli descended a creaking wooden staircase. The steps groaned beneath his weight, and he felt the deep chill of the earth rising through the walls. He could hear voices—a soft but lively murmur of several people in the room below.

  When he opened the heavy wooden door, the conversation stopped instantly. Every head turned in his direction. The room was lit by a flickering fire, and the faces of those he did not know were indistinct in the dim light. But the two he recognized stood in the center: Natasha, her face a mixture of relief and impatience, and Benny.

  Eli’s gaze lingered on Benny. Benny’s eyes were no longer the ominous purple glow he remembered. It was something far more unreal: a reversed human eye. The sclera was pitch black and the pupil white. It looked like the negative of a normal eye, a distortion colder than the purple flames of a demon.

  Natasha cleared her throat, breaking the tension in the room. “Eli,” she said with a smile that did not reach her eyes. “Welcome. Meet our new companions.”

  Eli stepped into the room, his gaze moving across the unfamiliar faces. They were dressed very differently from the people of Brittania.

  The first man was broad and muscular, with blond hair emerging beneath a thick beard. He wore a heavy coat that appeared to be made from bear fur—the very image of a warrior. The other man was taller and leaner, but just as muscular. He had black hair tied in a knot and a thick beard as well.

  Natasha smiled, gesturing toward the two men. “These are Bj?rn and Jakob,” she said. “They come from another city called Norvella.”

  Eli’s eyes widened in surprise, but deep inside he felt a wave of relief. So they’re not from there, he thought. The tension in his shoulders eased slightly.

  Natasha nodded slowly, her gaze determined. “They claim several things, and if they’re true, then Lucius was right. The Royals are feeding us false truths. There is deep corruption in Brittania. We’re going to get to the bottom of it.”

  Bj?rn stood up. He was the largest man in the room, an intimidating and aggressive presence. The muscles beneath his bear-fur coat tensed, and his shadow fell across the others. Thomas, Kevin, and Gina instinctively took a small step back, purely because of the sheer force of his presence. Natasha watched him sharply. Meanwhile, Benny’s hand slowly moved toward the knife hanging at his belt. The situation felt tense and threatening; she did not truly know these men from Norvella.

  “We’ve been sitting here for quite some time,” Bj?rn said, his voice heavy. “When do we get to see Brittania?”

  “We leave early tomorrow morning,” Natasha replied firmly. “It’s too dangerous right now.”

  Jakob, the taller man, let out a short laugh. “Dangerous? You people live on an island. There are barely any strong A-rank demons here.”

  “We leave now,” Bj?rn said immediately.

  Benny’s fingers tightened around his knife. He took a deep breath. “With this group, we should be able to survive the risk.”

  Natasha’s expression tightened. She was clearly unhappy with the forced timing, but she knew they had to leave. Time had run out. Eli, who had followed everything closely, broke the tension.

  “What truths?” he asked. “And more importantly, Natasha… can we trust them?”

  Natasha shrugged. “Trust is a matter of instinct, Eli. You can never be certain.”

  Bj?rn pierced Eli with his gaze. “We are not your enemy. My father has long known that several settlements survived the demon essence. We are searching for only one person.”

  “Demon essence…?” Thomas asked, who had been silent until now.

  Jakob burst into laughter, a short, cold sound. “These islanders really are ignorant, aren’t they?” he mocked, never taking his eyes off Eli.

  Eli’s patience ran out. He stepped forward, raising the tension in the room. “Who are you looking for?!” he demanded. The pressure and unspoken threat were now palpable in the air. Even the fire seemed to crackle more quietly.

  Bj?rn acknowledged Eli’s boldness with a small, rough smile that barely reached through his thick beard. He paused, letting the silence grow heavier still, and then spoke the name like a thunderclap.

  “Miller.”