Crying screaming throwing up, I wish I had a side profile like that.
Anyways, this chapter is just over 4.7K words, so have fun ig. You can consider it me making up for yesterday's cliffhanger <3333
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I finally stopped running when my legs near gave out. I leaned against the nearest tree, heaving for breath while I slid down the trunk. It was approaching noon now, with the sun overhead and the air so warm. I wiped the sweat off my brow and pulled off my cloak. I gazed up at the treetops while I calmed my breathing. "Now, where the hell am I?"
I walked around slowly, until I found what I was looking for; a special moss that only grows only on the north side of trees, regardless of the hemisphere. I sat against that tree's base, resting now that I knew for sure the direction I'd been running in. "Lambda is north-east of the capital..." I murmured to myself, closing my eyes. "The camp was travelling south-east for a day, at a significantly quicker pace than we moved with Cozbi's group. And I've been running south-west for the past 12 hours..." I sighed, bowing my head.
"S**t, I'm probably 2 days from Lambda and, travelling alone... maybe 6 or 7 from the capital." I knocked my head against the tree. "I'm armed with two throwing knives, and I don't know where exactly I am." I sighed drily. "At the very least, I'm not trapped in a camp that'll inevitably find out I'm human and eat me... Though, of course, the biggest 'problem' there has already found out the human part."
I picked up my cloak and fumbled with the collar, pulling out my packet of herbs. But as I opened it and rifled through the packet, I found only a few leaf scraps. "S**t, just when it couldn't get any worse. I've got 36 hours worth, probably. Not enough for either direction." I groaned, leaning back against the tree. "Man, I was really banking on Cozbi being here."
"Moreover, between Lambda and I, there's a camp of blood-thirsty demons I indirectly just burned the camp of down, who now not only know I'm 'Y/N,' may also know I'm human. In Cozbi's words: I'm f**ked."
I stood up from the tree now, yawning. Mujika had showed me the plant the herbs were from, but it only grew by watersides. Armed with two throwing knives, going to near water could be suicide. Of course, travelling through the woods alone- armed with two knives and reeking of human- would also be suicide.
I winced, looking to where my arm had been cut a few nights ago. I had hastily bandaged it at the time, and kept it tucked under my cloak, even placed an extra leaf against it so my blood wouldn't smell, but now, without any medicinal herbs, I risked infection.
I decided treating the wound came first. Though all my spare bandages were in my confiscated knife belt, along with all my medicine tools, I felt I could figure something out. I wandered around until I found one of the medicinal herbs Mujika had taught me about years ago. I pulled out the plant carefully and then cut off the roots, stuffing them in one of my pockets.
After finding a group of the "sea-anemones" plant that contained water, I rinsed the partially scabbed-over wound as best I could, and cleaned off the makeshift bandage I'd used earlier. As I looked at it, I frowned. It was deeper than I thought- if it came to it, it might need stitches.
Then, I used two rocks to smash the plant roots until they were more malleable. I rubbed them onto the bandage and pressed them against my arms as best I could. Usually, I'd have made a paste from the roots, but I lacked the tools. Finally, I wrapped the bandage around my arm tightly, tying it off.
It would have to do for now, I figured. Now I decided I needed to make my decision on which direction to go- all the way to the capital, or back to Lambda.
Thinking of it, Orion could've made it from the camp, to the village to drop off Addy, and back to Lambda in a day. Assuming they asked for help for Cozbi and I, it would've taken them half a day from Lambda to the camp... Though the camp would've been on the move by then, Benny was a decent tracker, and so was Aurelia –following the camp would've been a trivial matter... but it's possible they were around during the wild demon's attack and were injured. There's a slight chance one of them managed to follow after me...
Though depending on which one, I wasn't sure how much of a comfort that thought was.
For now, I chose to find a waterfront to gather scent-concealing herbs- I felt my chances would be better there, since there were fewer wild-demon territories to the north of the capital. I looked around for plants that required a lot of water until I eventually noticed a few trees in the distance- I couldn't recall the name, but they had distinct streaks of green, which belonged to a type of tree that typically grew within a hundred metres of waterfronts.
I quickly jogged up to these plants and then walked around them, in small circles that slowly expanded. Eventually, I found what I was looking for; a small river nestled in the woods.
I gripped my two knives in my hands and crept around the waterside, from several metres away and hidden in the underbrush. When I determined the area empty, I moved closer to the river. I glanced around the nearby trees, until I located the plant I was looking for- the ones with the anti-human-smell leaves. I peeled off as many as I could, stuffing them into my pack, when I suddenly remembered something.
The village would've reported the attack. And if they did, the royal battalion would follow. If they moved full-pace, the group of soldiers would likely be travelling through this area soon– if they hadn't already.
Now I walked around the waterfront carefully, taking in its shape. As soon as I recognized it, a slow smile spread over my face. I remembered one of the maps I'd studied while bored in the castle, (Sonju insisted I be aware of all the basic land masses, at minimum) and recalled two small rivers of similar shape. One was on the west side of the capital, one was on the North–this one here.
I sighed in relief; knowing my location was a huge comfort. In addition, between the castle and the Lambda village, this was one of very few waterfronts. Which would mean that the battalion would be stopping to gather water here, without much of a doubt.
I looked carefully around the river, and to my joy, I spotted the faint signs that an upright-demon had travelled the spot multiple times, back and forth. The repetitive work of gathering water for a large camp, no doubt.
So the battalion had passed through this area already.
I followed the faint tracks now, back to the where I found signs of a large camp. They were indeed recent, the large group had likely passed through the area this morning. The Royal battalion moved faster than I expected. But I could catch up to them, before they approached the bandits location. And if I travelled near them, I'd be safe. The bandits would likely steer clear of the direct path the battalion would plan to take from the castle to the village- running into them was a danger they didn't need.
I exhaled in relief, standing up from the crouch I used while studying the tracks. Though there was a slight problem with my plan, of course. I'd discovered a while ago that when I pulled my mask off last night, the strap had pulled loose, and the bottom of the mask had cracked. The leather strap had been damaged multiple times over the past few months, so it's breaking wasn't much of a surprise.
But I'd get to that problem when I got to it.
It was evening when I was close enough to hear the demons, and though the tracks were harder to read in the dim light, it was obvious they were recent. I crept up carefully until the rowdy soldiers came into view, still travelling as the sky got dark. Such was the Royal-battalion way; they were trained to travel on minimal sleep and rest hours to get where they were going as fast as possible.
"How do I do this..." I muttered to myself, walking quickly over broken leaves and branches while making hardly a sound. In order to get treatment for my wound, I'd have to admit that I was human, (a demon as young as myself would be nowhere near their Hayflick Limit)
And since the Royal battalion served Mujika and was loyal to Sonju, it was unlikely they'd try to eat me once they knew who I was.
...unlikely.
I travelled parallel the group until they decided to set up camp for the night. They started eating heartily once the tents were up, chattering lowly amongst themselves.
Thinking this was my chance, I approached the camp now, though I stayed concealed in the shadows. "Err..." I started while I approached a group of conversing demons, face ducked in my hood. "Excuse me..."
The demons' chattering slowed to a stop, and they turned to me. "What's a kid like you doing over 'ere?" One of them asked, leaning forward and lowering a leg of meat from it's face.
I ducked back a little, chuckling. "Well, it's a bit of a long story—"
"Wait—" one of the demons sprang to their feet. "Are you perhaps Y/N?? With the height and voice." The other demons started mumbling amongst each-other in recognition, and I nodded slowly.
"What're you doing over here??"
I hesitated a moment before pulling back my hood, raising my head. 'Oh, screw it.' "As I said, it's a bit of a long story."
There was a short pause while the demon men took in my... non-demon face. "Well," one of them sighed. "Why don't you get on over here and tell us about it, then?"
I blinked a few times and then ducked, travelling through the underbrush until I approached a log. One of the demons scooted over to make space for me to sit and I took the empty space, surveying the soldiers around me.
In better lighting, I recognized many of the demons, as I'd visit the battalion training grounds on many occasions. In addition, many of them served as castle guards and sentries when they weren't on the move.
"Y/N's here!" One of the demons called out to the camp, and the others began to gather around, taking seats here and there.
I leaned back on the log once they stopped gathering, crossing my arms. "Mind explaining why none of you are surprised?" I gestured to my humanoid face.
Carl laughed. "Sonju told the castle guards. Many of us would've figured it out on our own, anyway. It was fairly obvious, especially in the beginning. No offence, Y/N."
I frowned. "That obvious?"
Another demon chuckled. "Your side of the castle used to reek like human." I raised an eyebrow.
"Reek?" I hummed humorously, eyebrows raising.
The demon in question stuttered. "O-of course, not like reek in a bad way—"
"-You grow quickly." another interrupted. "How many centimetres in the past year? And you learn quickly. What takes you months takes most of us centuries."
I chuckled sheepishly. "Good point there. Didn't think of that. Admittedly, I've been a tad distracted."
"-When you'd come back from training with Sonju, Mujika would set candles through your hallway and open all the doors," one of the other castle guards chuckled, "cause your sweat smells so strong."
Several of the demons released a bellowing laugh. "True that!"
I frowned, wrinkling my nose. "For the record, you guys don't smell too pleasant either. Say, did one of you eat a Glump again?" I named the demon-animal that oozed an odorous slime that was rumoured to smell so bad, demons would cut their noses off to avoid it. "-Looking at you, Norris."
The demons roared in laughter, slapping Norris on the back. "Hey, that was one time, you guys!" Norris groaned. "Quid dared me to!"
"Oh man," one of the soldiers sighed. "The smell was so bad we kicked him out of the barracks for a weeks. The one time Y/N visited, she turned on her heel and left without a single word."
"And yet, Tyson smells worse."
Soon the snickering died down, and the demons turned to look at me. "So? What's the story? We know you ran into some trouble a while back, but Sonju said it'd been solved. Weren't you running experiments in the haunted farm or something?"
I shrugged. "How much do you want to hear?"
"'Much as yer willing to share."
I leaned back on the log. "I met some demons with a special genetic that counteracts Mujika's blood." The demons grew quiet; degeneration was all of their worst nightmare.
"They 'kidnapped' me," I made sure the air-quotes around "kidnapped" were obvious. "-in order to make a trade with Mujika for humans so they could survive. Alas, it didn't go exactly as planned. So I made a deal with them– I'd help those closest to regeneration, and then help the rest find a cure for their situation through genetic modification."
"...why?"
I grinned. "Out of the pure kindness of my heart, of course." several of the demons chuckled in a sardonic way. "No, they'd have found out I was human sooner or later." I sighed. "best to find a solution that ended with no one dead. Anyhow," I hummed, "I took them to the Lambda farm ruins to run experiments, and called in Leuvis to help."
"Leuvis?" One of the soldiers echoed. "The baron who does whatever he wants, whenever he wants? Why'd he listen to you?"
"He wants a rematch with me, since I was part of a group that blew out his first core." I explained. "Told him I'd agree to it if he made a cure for the gene. Originally, I was going to fight him if he managed to make pigs fly, -not by my own choice, of course- but if I was going to fight him anyway, figured I may as well have him help some people in the process. Also, flying pigs are not something I want to encounter in my lifetime if I can avoid it."
I stretched out my arms. "After that, a friend and I learned of a group of bandits hiding out nearby. We found their camp and decided to play some...tricks. You know, arson and pillaging."
The soldiers chuckled humorously. "Normal people would be executed for that."
"Whattt." I frowned, though a grin soon broke through. "It was in the name of justice..." I snickered. "Eventually, the idiots attacked the village to make a trap for my friend and I, using kidnapped children. Hate to admit it myself, but I have a soft spot for kids, ever since... well, you know. So my friend and I willingly walked into the trap, and ended up getting captured. I didn't go down without a fight, of course. Killed 6 of 'em before my friend decided I was likely to die if we kept fighting. Then I killed a few more for good measure before going down."
A few of the soldiers nodded proudly. Ah, yes, blood and murder. Perfect thing to be proud of being instilled into a young child.
"She let them capture us, by bargaining that I was worth something, cause I'm 'Y/N.'" I furthered. "Though her plan worked and we weren't killed, some new fellows soon joined up with the group, who loathe the Royal crown, including their 'commander,' named Zev."
The soldiers squirmed at the mention of the name. "Good thing you escaped." Carl muttered. "Nasty pieces of work, that Zev and his small band of bandits. Been chasing him for months, to no avail. We always seem to loose a few of our fighters in the process."
I nodded while the demons watched me, quiet and respectful. "They packed up camp yesterday morning. Last night I managed to escape by luring a pack of wild demons into the camp, and slipping out during the chaos that ensued. Though our wonderful friend Zev found out who I was, and my human identity in the process." I grumbled. "I managed to find my way to the river a while back, and recognized your tracks. I caught up to you a few hours ago, but decided it best to wait till you were relaxing before joining you."
One of the soldiers sighed. "We must be growing lazy, to've not noticed you tracking us so long."
"Don't hold it against yourself. She's learned from the best." Carl chuckled.
"Which simply begs the question," another demon added, everyone's attention turning to her. "What kind of a human are you, Y/N? You've lived in a castle for the past year or so, yet you aren't a pampered brat like everyone expected. Ratri clan members have a certain air about them that you lack. Not to mention, you've accumulated many survival skills."
I hummed, pushing out my legs. "Everyone has their own story. Remember the 23 Gracefield escapees from a while back?" The demons stayed quiet, though there was a collective intake of surprise.
I grinned. "Escaped farm child, that's me." I puled down the top of my turtleneck, revealing the Gracefield ID tattoo. "I learned a lot while on the move- and befriended the current royals during that time, too. A while ago, I made a promise with "the one" that sent all my friends over to the human world and barred passage. In return, I stayed here." The demon soldiers were silent.
"Yeesh, no need to go so quiet." I laughed sheepishly.
"No, it's..." one of them started quietly. "Well, it's just... well... I've eaten Gracefield meat once before at a celebration. And thinking that it could've been one of your siblings..."
Yikes, I hesitated, recognizing that many of the demons around me had similar feelings. Eating humans for them was supposed to be a survival thing, but once you ate a higher-grade human, it was no longer about survival, it was a matter of enjoyment.
"It's alright." I hummed at last, pushing my hands into my lap. "It's in the past, you know? Don't remember most of my siblings, anyway." I rubbed the back of my neck. "If you don't eat humans anymore... well, that's all I can really ask for."
"Of course! I had no plan of eating humans, not since Mujika came into rule."
"Same here." One of the others hummed. "-though I'll certainly miss the taste—" the demon sitting beside him elbowed them in the gut.
"God Norris," I sighed in exasperation. "You're a lost cause."
"Sorry, ma'am."
"Hey, Y/N," a soldier cut in suddenly, standing to their feet. "You up for a spar? We've another hour before we plan for bed." A few of the demons clamoured excitedly at the mention of a duel.
I shook my head, rising from my seat. "I'm a little tired for that, I'm afraid. Speaking of which, is there a spare tent I can borrow for the night? And some spare knives. I've lost most of mine again."
"Of course." Carl stood to his feet. "I'll show you to the tent Norris was using; he can sleep outside tonight." Norris, across the campfire, groaned in despair. "-And I'll bring you some knives in the meantime."
"Thanks." I nodded. "Also, you wouldn't happen to have any proper bandages available, would you? I have one in use right now, but it's a little... well..." I glanced to the piece of cloak wrapped around my arm.
Carl nodded. "We've first aid for the soldiers near their regeneration limit. I'll bring some of those to you, along with some spare knives. I'll get you some food while I'm at it." I nodded gratefully at the mention of food. "I'll have someone keep watch outside your tent, too." The demon man smiled kindly. "You can rest up, Y/N. You look like you could use a couple hours good sleep."
I nodded tiredly. "Yeah. Thanks, Carl."
The demon man nodded. "No problem. I'm only doing as Sonju would expect of me."
I followed him towards a small tent, which was mostly empty, save for some of Norris' spare weapons and belongings laying on the floor. To the left side rested the makeshift bed soldiers carried, that could be compressed into something easily carried. It was compromised of a straw mattress and several layers of sheets and animal furs. I sat on the bed with a yawn, rubbing my eyes tiredly.
I planned to stave off sleep until after Carl came back with bandages, knives, and most importantly, food, but I was apparently too exhausted, as I'd drifted off to sleep within a few minutes of waiting.
By the time I'd woken up, the sun poured in through the tent flaps. I sat up slowly, stretching out my stiff limbs. I'd slept like a rock; save for a few confusing dreams I struggled to remember now. Beside the bed rested a new knife belt and cloak, paired with bandages and a healing salve. Though I found my arm already taken care of, washed and fixed up. It appeared to have been stitched up, as well, as there was no need for a bandage.
There was also a basin of water in the corner of the tent, with a cloth hanging on the side. I splashed the cold water into my face and exhaled slowly, before scrubbing off dirt from my cheeks. Beside the small basin rested some homemade soap. I secured the tent flap closed before peeling off my turtleneck, which was severely dirtied with sweat, blood, and dirt. I washed it quickly in the basin and scrubbed my arms clean, too, deciding to leave my undershirt as it. I wrung out the turtleneck before putting it back on– it was a little cold and damp, but it would dry quickly in the summer heat.
I then pulled the belt around my hips, sliding my spare throwing knives into the empty sheathes. It had a few other blades attached to it, though both the knives and belt were clearly intended for a bigger frame. I added the extra first aid supplies to the belt, too, and lastly, I pulled the cloak over my head. It was a bit big, too, but it would serve it's purpose.
I then exited the tent, shielding my eyes from the bright sun. "The sleeping beauty awakens!" I heard a soldier exclaim humorously.
"How was your sleep?" Carl asked, distracting me from my glaring. "You look refreshed. And less..." he gestured to my new cloak. "-bloody." Indeed, my previous cloak had been drenched in dried blood from my collective endeavours. Mostly the blood of demons, of course.
"It was good." I admitted, raising my left arm "-Did someone fix up my injury?"
"My wife." Carl hummed with a proud smile, as it did whenever he mentioned his spouse.
My face brightened. "Celia is here??"
Carl nodded. "Yep. Though I told her that her battle-axe skills would be more useful at the castle, 'cause it's understaffed whenever we're away. But she insisted on coming along- 'cause she'd follow my sandwiches wherever they went."
"Home isn't home without you in the kitchen, hmm?"
"Exactly." Carl chuckled.
I glanced around the camp now, which was virtually the same as I'd left it when I went to bed. "Usually you'd've be on the move by now. Why is everything still set up?"
The demon shrugged. "Everyone wanted to wait till you were awake before packing- and Celia said you were sleeping so soundly, you didn't wake to her giving you those stitches. I also figured you'd have useful information on the bandits."
"You should've woken me." I sighed quietly while I walked over to the once-campfire, where soldiers were chattering over a simple breakfast. "If you've a map I can use, I'll point some things out, first, though..."
I stopped in front of the demons, placing my hands on my hips with a bright smile. "Whoever called me 'sleeping beauty,' ready yourself. Oh, the ones who laughed at the comment, too." several of the younger soldiers looked up. "I think I'd have use for a few sparring companions, once I'm done with breakfast." The older members stifled laughs, while the younger ones- obviously new recruits, glanced around nervously.
After eating a hearty breakfast of rabbit and bread rolls, (and absolutely destroying a couple new members' pride), the demons gathered around a stump, a map of the area spread out in the middle. "This is our current location." One of the soldiers pointed to a spot on the map.
I nodded. "Lambda is..." I pointed to the hill the old farm rested on. "Down here is the village, and..." I paused, finger trailing across the map. "The bandit camp was right around here." I tapped a space south of the village and north of Lambda, west of both.
"They packed up and started moving south-east, and two nights ago, they camped north of a wild demon territory... around here. If they continued travelling south-east at the same pace, they'll be around here right now." I dragged my finger across my predicted path they'd take, in that instance. "Though I suspect they were heading in the direction of the capital, so if they looped around to avoid you, they'd probably be..." I pointed to a slightly different location. "–around here "
"Under what notion do you think they're headed for the capital?"
I smiled brightly. "A hunch." I leaned back now, crossing my arms. "Anyhow, the bandit group is about 100 strong. Or it was, before my friend and I were involved. Now I suspect it's around 80 strong. Your average member isn't too smart and too powerful... for reference, they're probably on-level with Jaskier over there." I pointed out one of the new members I'd beaten a few minutes earlier
"Hey! That's not-"
"She's probably being realistic." One of the older members cut in with a humorous tone. "You can complain about it when you can actually defeat her in a fight."
I stifled a laugh. "Then again, I think you guys could take most of them. But there's a group of 8, along with Zev, that are on a different caliber. Zev's strong, no doubt. The others of his group are strong, too. Not sure I could take one of them without a gun."
I pushed myself to my feet. "Anyhow, we're about a day's travel from Lambda. I think I'll head there, and make sure my friends are alright. After that, I'll head back to the capital, just in case that's where the bandits are heading."
"You won't travel with us?" A soldier hummed disappointedly. "We could make use of your stories around the campfire. Beat some more sense into the youngins, too."
I chuckled. "I'll have to make up for it some other time."
"Should we send someone to accompany you?" Carl asked, rising to his feet.
I shook my head. "I'm fully armed now, and I'm well-rested. I can take care of myself for 24 hours."
The demon man nodded. "Alright. We'll see you later." he procured something out of his pocket, and handed me a spare mask. "I fixed it up, so it should suit you. The bottom part can be removed, though I thought you'd like it attached."
"Thanks." I took the mask from him and secured it to my face before pulling my hood over my head. "I'll be off, fellas. See you later."
"Stay safe, Y/N. –Else Sonju have all our heads."
I waved and ducked under my hood, leaving the camp in the direction of Lambda.
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HAHAHA make sure you don't get too attached to the soldiers. COUGH COUGH COUGH
I mean, I am already attached to them, so–