Damien didn’t acknowledge the woman at first. He ignored her completely, his focus shifting to the girl lying on the ground.
Her body trembled, her breathing was erratic, and the tear-streaked dirt on her face spoke of exhaustion, pain, and terror.
Luton shifted on Damien’s head, sensing its master’s intent. Without needing to be asked, it produced a robe from its storage space, dropping it gently into Damien’s outstretched hand.
With a calm, steady motion, Damien draped the robe over the girl, covering her tattered clothing and shielding her from the cold air. He wanted her to know that he wasn’t after her body, that he wasn’t like the monsters who had chased her down.
He crouched beside her, his voice soft but firm. “What’s your name?”
She parted her lips to speak, but before she could answer, a sudden shift in the air warned Damien of the incoming attack.
“Behind you!” the girl screamed.
Damien didn’t move—he didn’t need to.
Aquila acted first.
The griffin, standing watch just a few feet away, reacted with blinding speed. With a single, powerful swing of its wing, it struck the woman across the face with devastating force.
Bang!
The sound of the impact cracked through the air like a thunderclap.
The woman’s body was sent flying, twisting mid-air before she slammed into a tree a dozen meters away.
Boooom!!
Crack!
The sickening crunch of bones breaking followed as she crumpled to the ground, coughing violently, her body convulsing from the sheer force of the blow.
For a brief moment, she lay there, motionless.
Then, with a choked gasp, she forced herself to her feet, swaying unsteadily. Her eyes flicked to Damien, to Aquila, and then to the girl he had just protected.
She bolted.
Not once did she look back as she disappeared into the dense forest, her ragged breaths and frantic footsteps fading into the distance.
Damien finally turned back to the girl. His expression remained unreadable as he repeated his question. “Your name?”
The girl hesitated, still shaken, but this time, she answered.
“Lizella,” she said quietly.
Lizella’s wide, fearful eyes darted to the fleeing woman. Her hands clenched the robe tightly around her as she turned to Damien with urgency. “You have to stop her. She’ll return with more of them!”
Damien, to her surprise, smirked. “That’s exactly what I want.”
Lizella’s brow furrowed in confusion. “What…?”
“I’m letting her go because I know she’ll run straight to the others,” Damien explained casually, stretching his arms. “And once she does, I’ll know exactly where to find them.”
Lizella swallowed hard, staring at him as though seeing him in a new light. “Who… who are you?”
Damien’s smirk softened into something more neutral. “No one important.” Then, with a small nod, he added, “Just call me Damien.”
Lizella shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, but as they spoke, she kept stealing glances at the small, gelatinous creature resting atop Damien’s head.
Luton remained unmoving, stuck to Damien like a second layer of hair. It wobbled occasionally, reacting to the shifting movements of its master, but no matter how Damien tilted his head, it never budged or fell off.
Damien sighed, finally acknowledging her curiosity. “Something on your mind?”
Lizella hesitated before pointing weakly. “That… thing on your head. What is it?”
“Luton,” Damien answered simply, reaching up to give the Stellar Slime a light pat. “It’s a companion of mine.”
Lizella blinked, watching as the slime vibrated slightly, almost as if it was pleased. She opened her mouth to ask another question, but Damien cut her off with a more pressing inquiry.
“Why were they after you?” he asked, his voice turning serious. “I want the full story.”
Lizella hesitated before nodding. She took a deep breath, steadying herself.
“My father,” she began, “was a small-time Dunter. He Sort of gave up on demon hunting though.”
“Instead, he focused on investigate criminal activities, especially ones involving people who went missing. A few weeks ago, he discovered information about a human trafficking ring… the Stray Hounds.”
Damien’s expression darkened, but he remained silent, letting her continue. Enjoy new tales from My Virtual Library Empire
“They tried bribing him to stay quiet, but he refused,” Lizella went on, her voice shaking slightly. “So… they came for us.”
Her hands tightened around the robe. “They captured my father, my mother, and me. They planned to sell us, but not together. They planned to sell our parts. They said if they split us up, it would be easier to keep their operations hidden.”
Damien’s fingers twitched.
“My father was furious. He fought back… and they killed him.” Her voice wavered. “My mother—she tried to help me escape. She… she pushed me away while they…”
She trailed off, her breathing uneven.
“They killed her too,” she whispered.
Damien let out a slow breath, shaking his head. ‘Humanity truly is a disease.’
For a fleeting moment, he wondered if demons were really the greater evil. Compared to the cruelty of men, demons at least killed for survival or feeding. Humans did it for pleasure. For greed.
Maybe the world truly needed to be cleansed.
He pushed the thought aside. It didn’t matter right now.
Lizella looked up at him, her expression uncertain. “If you hadn’t arrived… I would’ve been—”
She couldn’t finish the sentence.
Damien stepped forward and held out his hand. “Do you want revenge?”
Lizella stared at him in shock.
“I…” she bit her lip, her eyes clouded with hesitation. “I don’t have the strength.”
“That’s not what I asked,” Damien said firmly.
Lizella’s breath hitched. Then, after a long pause, she finally nodded. “…Yes.”
Damien smirked, reaching out to ruffle her snow-white hair. “Then I’ll help you get it.”
Lizella’s eyes widened, a flicker of something unfamiliar crossing her face. Hope.
Damien adjusted the robe over her, ensuring it covered her properly before leading her toward Aquila.
The griffin remained still as Damien lifted Lizella onto its back.
Something about this moment made him pause.
Aquila didn’t let just anyone ride it. The only other person who had been granted that privilege—besides himself—was Arielle, and that had only been because of Luton’s influence.
Yet, Aquila didn’t resist Lizella. It didn’t screech or shake her off. It simply accepted her presence.
‘Interesting.’
Shrugging off the thought for now, Damien climbed up behind her, gripping the reins.
“Hold on,” he instructed.
Lizella obeyed, clutching the feathers in front of her.
Damien grinned. “Let’s go hunting.”
With a powerful beat of its wings, Aquila shot into the sky, chasing after the woman who had fled.