Chapter 32 Trust is a Rare Thing

“You didn’t look for him?”

“Of course I looked for him. Everyone did. But he was gone. Just like that.”

 The old man’s voice dropped to a whisper, “No blood. No struggle. Nothing.”

“Did the official report said demons?” 

“They always say demons. But we were in a demon-screened sector that night. Detection crystals were active across the whole district. If a demon had so much as peeked in our direction, the entire street would’ve lit up like a harvest festival.”

The younger guard’s face paled.

 “So, what happened to him then?”

The old man looked him dead in the eyes. 

“I don’t know. And I don’t want to. But I know this—he asked the wrong questions around the wrong people. About some mission reports, about the king’s past, about the previous Hero.”

He stood and adjusted his gear with a heavy sigh.

 “So, you better keep your head down. Smile when you’re told to smile. Salute when you’re told to salute. And for the gods’ sake—don’t start asking about people who vanish. Or the next one to disappear might be you.”

The younger guard gave a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his neck.

 “Oh, come on man. Can you not tell horror stories when I’m still on shift? I’ve got to walk home tonight. Through the dark. Alone.”

The old man smirked faintly.

 “Then walk fast and don’t look back.”

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The teleportation circle’s afterglow was still fading, blue motes of magic scattering into the sky. Rein stood with his sword at his side, the three girls beside him, as the last echoes of Liora’s footsteps vanished in teleportation gate, toward the King's castle.

Mari put her hands on her hips, kicking a loose rock.

“The barrier magic active. That teleportation field around the Plains—it’s not budging anytime soon. Even my Tier Four dismantling spell wouldn’t scratch it. So… what now, fearless leader? We gonna just stand here breathing in town dust, or…?”

Selene adjusted her spear, cool-eyed as always.

“Great. So basically, nothing we can do but wait. Real heroic.”

Kaia brushed dirt from her armor, smiling faintly despite the exhaustion under her eyes.

“It’s not bad to have a break. It’s been... a long march. So, what do we do now?”

“I don’t know, Kaia. Until the King, Liora, or Commander Kael come up with a plan, we wait. That’s all there is to it.”

Mari grinned suddenly, leaning on Rein’s shoulder.

“Then I vote we go find the nearest tavern. First round on you, rich boy. Don’t think we’ve forgotten you’re the kingdom’s golden Hero while the rest of us are just poor country girls who scraped their way here.”

Rein sheathed his blade and shook his head.

“Not tonight.”

Mari blinked, mock offended.

“Excuse me? You’re refusing three beautiful ladies drinks? That’s a war crime, you know.”

Rein gave her a small, tired smile, but his eyes were distant.

“I’ve got a lot on my mind. Too much noise in my head right now. I need… a little time alone. I’ll meet you in the barracks later.”

The three watched him walk off, Mari’s teasing grin fading just a little.

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The streets of the town were alive with chatter, carts creaking under wares, children darting between people. But for Rein, it was all a blur. He walked aimlessly, his cloak drawn tight and hood shadowing his face—not out of secrecy, but to retreat into his thoughts.

Each step echoed his unrest. Aura.

The name echoed louder than the clang of blacksmiths or the laughter of townsfolk.

He turned a corner onto a quieter path, boots crunching over scattered leaves. This street was older, homes faded, gardens wild. He liked it more.

His mind wandered.

"She used to hum when she trained. Gods, it was always off-key. Said it helped her focus, though I think she just liked to annoy me.
Every morning she’d knock on my door, say I had five minutes to be outside or she’d drag me out barefoot.
She was stronger than anyone else I knew—but never cruel. Never arrogant. She smiled like she didn’t know what fear was, like pain was something she could just carry for the rest of us.
When my parents were killed... I stopped eating, sleeping. I hated the world. But she sat there every night, right by my side, never saying a word until one night she just said: 'You’re allowed to fall, Rein. Just don’t forget how to stand.'”

He stopped walking.

"And now, some monster claims to be her? That cursed Demon Lord, she is mocking her. Mocking me."

Rein resumed walking, slower now, the noise of the city fading behind him. The street narrowed, and a gentle breeze stirred the dust. Somewhere, a church bell rang—not the grand cathedral in the square, but one of the small, tucked-away ones. Aura had liked those.

"She was from one of the border orphanages. Never talked much about it at first. I only learned when we were older, when I finally asked why she never went home during the winter festival. She just smiled, said there wasn’t one to go back to.
Monsters had taken her family—same as mine. That’s why she understood. Not because someone told her to be kind. But because she remembered how it felt to be alone."

He stopped beside a weathered wall, fingers brushing the stone absently.

"Aura never had to prove she was strong. She didn’t raise her voice. She didn’t posture like the other knights or bark orders just because she was a Hero. 
She could crush a stone in her grip, stop a sword mid-swing with one finger... and yet I never once saw her use that strength to hurt someone who didn’t deserve it."

Rein stopped beneath an old tree, its bark gnarled with age. He leaned against it, head tipped back.

"I used to watch her in awe. Every time she stepped into a fight, it felt like nothing could touch her. But the way she looked at people—every wounded villager, every frightened soldier—like they mattered... That was what made her strong."

He inhaled sharply.

"And that demon dares to pretend to be her? Pretending to be kind. To speak like her. To smile like her. But she’s not Aura. Aura would never run. Aura would never lie. And Aura sure as hell would never raise a hand against the innocent."

His eyes burned, though no tears came.

"She’s gone. Killed by that monster. And if I have to tear through every demon between here and that throne, I’ll make the one who took her pay for it."

He pushed off the tree and started walking again, slower this time, but the storm behind his eyes hadn’t settled.

"And now… that demon dares to pretend she knows the weight of what Aura carried?"

His nails dug into his palm.

“She was everything good in this world. And I let her down. I wasn’t strong enough then. But I am now. I won’t let anyone tarnish her memory.”

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The grand doors of the obsidian chamber creaked open, and silence fell over the room.

The Demon Lord stepped in, her new armor dark silver with red accents—less ornate than the one she wore into battle, more practical now. Her hair was pinned back tightly, the last traces of her earlier vulnerability hidden beneath a mask of quiet command. 

The war room was carved into the bones of the mountain itself. A wide, round table stood at the center, made of blackened stone etched with ancient runes that pulsed faintly with energy. Around it stood her generals—each powerful, each bearing scars from decades of fighting Demon Plain monsters.

They bowed as she entered, but her hand lifted immediately. 

“No need. We have much to discuss.”

She walked to the head of the table. A magical map floated above the stone, showing the borderlines shifting ever so slightly, the effects of skirmishes and troop movements visualized like ripples.

A pale, sharp-eyed demon general named Verron was the first to speak, “My Lady… we feared the worst when the guards reported your injury.”

“It was nothing, Verron, just a scratch.”

General Halvek, a hulking demon with a battle-worn axe strapped to his back asked, “The human hero did that?”

 “Yes, Halvek. The new Hero has grown strong. Very strong. I know him. From the past. Rein, his name is Rein. We were close once, before Arthur poisoned his mind with lies. Just as he did to me, once.”

The room tensed.

“We should strike first,” Halvek said, “Use the tunnels beneath the canyons. Take the fight to them before they regroup.”

“No. That is exactly what Arthur wants. They’re pushing us to react, not to think.”

Verron asked, “How about the Hero? You said you know him, did he recognize you?”

A pause. Aura looked down at her gloved hand, fingers curling slightly. 

“I told him who I am. He did not believe me. And… perhaps I should not have hoped he would. I have changed so much, and there is Arthur's lies. He thinks I am dead.”

Murmurs passed between the generals, but no one contradicted her. They had all seen how illusion and fear twisted perception on the surface. Trust was a rare thing.

“But we have time, my magic was successful. They will not break through our wards—not yet. The teleportation seal will hold for weeks, long enough for us to prepare.”

Halvek asked, “And what of the human armies? Their numbers near the border are swelling.”

 “Let them. We’ll let them camp and waste their strength under the Demon Plains sun. I want watch units rotating every six hours. Double the shielding runes on the outer cliffs. And send a courier to the eastern range—I want to know if the mining settlements remain intact.”

Verron asked, “You plan to defend indefinitely?”

Aura looked around at her generals, then spoke quietly, “No. I plan to end this war. But not with fire and swords.”

She placed her hand on the edge of the map, the swirling lines pausing at her touch. 

“There is a truth the humans have buried—forgotten. I intend to remind them.”