The Former Demon Queen Versus the Skullcrusher Warband Part Two

Mary found the elven girl crouched down behind a merchant's shoe display. She quickly rushed over to meet her.

"What do we do now?" Lydia asked again, still clutching Gustav close to her chest. "The orcs are all over the place. The path to the others at the Adventurer's Guild has been blocked. You see, this is why I said we should have hidden in the inner markets, but you don't want to do that for some reason."

Mary ignored Lydia's panicked complaints and took a moment to think. The chaos around them was only intensifying. People were screaming. Swords were clashing. Shops were being destroyed.

She had to do something. She had to act now. But how?

If she transformed into her full demonic self, she could end this in seconds. But Lydia was here. And it was broad daylight. Someone would see.

How she wished the elven girl was looking elsewhere, her attention stolen for just a moment.

Wait. That was it.

"Miss Lydia," Mary called, startling the elven woman.

"Yes? What is it, Mary?" the elven girl asked, turning around to face her.

"Over there! It's Miss Leafy!" Mary lied, pointing ahead.

"Wait, really?" Lydia's ears perked up, her attention turning in the opposite direction.

With that simple diversion, Mary saw her opening.

Briefly setting the leather bag of oil containers down, she tapped into her speed and burst out of there, exploding into a sprint.

She raced towards the east side of the market, stopping to take in her surroundings. To buy herself some breathing room, she pushed her speed up to seventy percent, something she rarely did, causing everything around her to slow to a crawl.

She stood still at the head of the street, and the world around her did the same. Nothing moved—not the people, not the orcs, not the animals, not even the wind. Everyone and everything was frozen mid-action, the bandits suspended in motion as they swung their weapons.

Void time. That is what the skill was called. This was something she rarely used due to the amount of stamina it consumed, even when in her full demonic mode. Now compounded with her human body, the fallout would be devastating. But at this moment, it was necessary.

Ten seconds in this state translated to one human second in normal flow. So she had thirty seconds to observe and formulate a plan.

The carnage was terrible. Entire stores and vendors had been smashed. People lay bleeding on the ground. And above them, the orcs stood tall, evil grins plastered across their faces.

Something in Mary's eyes began to glow crimson at the sight of everything, the bloodshed, the destruction. Dark smoke seeped from the pores of her skin like mist. She was letting the thing inside her slip out—the murderous thing her mother had warned her about.

The orcs...

How could they be so evil?

How could they harm innocent people?

What was wrong with them?

She balled her hands into fists. The red in her eyes intensified, and her teeth ground together from pure rage. The black smoke thickened with her anger.

Vesperia, what did I tell you about your temper? What did I tell you about losing control of yourself, of your humanity, and letting the monster inside you take over?

Mary hesitated when a memory from her childhood resurfaced. Her red eyes widened in recollection, her teeth releasing from their grinding.

Don't ever let it win. Don't ever let it seize control of your mind and body, or else you will lose your kindness. You will lose your compassion. Is that what you want, child? To become like the rest? To become like your uncle? To become a wild demon?

No, Mother.

Good girl. Now, do as we practiced, and let it go.

Yes, Mother.

Recalling all of that, current Mary took a deep breath to calm herself. This was no place to lose her mind to her demonic aura. She might never come back from such a state.

As the smoke dissipated and her eyes returned to normal, she calculated roughly fifteen seconds had passed in void time. Lydia would be turning her head back soon. If she saw Mary wasn't crouched beside her, she might get suspicious.

She had fifteen more seconds to figure out her next move.

She couldn't directly punch the orcs—she might accidentally kill them with her overwhelming strength. Even though they deserved death, they would have to answer for their crimes another way.

Mary looked down at her fists. If touching them was an issue, could she somehow suppress the energy of each impact?

No, that was impossible in her human form.

"Oh, what do I do? What do I do?" Mary cried out, clutching her head while stomping around. "It's not like I can just... not hit them and expect them to faint. That would be ridiculous... right?"

That's when it clicked.

Wait a minute.

She gazed back down at her hands.

Maybe I don't have to actually hit them.

With a plan slowly forming, Mary burst into action. She raced down the street, leaping at the first orc on his horse. As she closed the distance, she threw a punch that stopped inches from his head. The air violently rippled, and a concussive blast shot out, slamming into his face, sending him flying backward into two others, knocking them all out cold.

Perfect, Mary smiled.

It worked.

While the void skill was active, everything she interacted with moved relative to her own time.

Just a little slower.

She repeated the action five more times. Run, jump, punch. Run, jump, punch. Each attempt yielded the same result. A vortex of compressed air followed her fake punches, creating a localized shockwave that exploded in the faces of the orcs without killing them.

Maybe she couldn't touch them directly, but the aftereffects of her intentions alone were enough.

After knocking out all the orcs on the east side—roughly fifteen to eighteen of them—she dashed back to Lydia's side before the elf could fully turn her head, with only milliseconds to spare.

She landed in a crouch, winded, her chest heaving. She forced her breathing to steady.

"Huh, Mary? I don't see her. Where is she?"

"I... just look, Miss Lydia!" Mary stammered, still catching her breath. "She's—she's right over there!" She pointed in a slightly different direction.

The elven woman turned, and without rest, Mary took off again.

This time, she went down the south side of the market, disarming the orc bandits in her path and throwing them off their horses with several strikes. She utilized the void skill, combined with her new technique of throwing punches that came close but didn't touch. She knocked out another fifteen, clearing the south side of the outer plaza.

She was back before Lydia had even finished turning her head.

"I really don't see her, Mary. Whoa, are you okay?" Lydia asked.

Mary needed a moment to catch her breath. Her whole body was shaking as if drenched with cold water. Her human form was straining under her diabolical powers. She needed to dial it back, or risk collapsing.

"I'm fine," she lied. "Just... keep looking. Miss Leafy is right there." She lied again, hoping her body could hold out for one more run, possibly using her void skill a third time if need be.

"You keep pointing, but I don't see anything," Lydia argued, reluctantly turning around.

Just then, Mary heard a growl from the courtyard ahead. Despite her exhaustion, she forced herself to look.

It was the orc leader rallying his men. They were preparing to finish off what remained of the local militia.

The commander and her remaining knights were surrounded on all sides, encircled by the horde with no way to retreat.

Mary desperately wanted to help, shifting her stance and readying herself for a third sprint.

But then...

"My lady, please do not push yourself any further!" Gustav suddenly shouted in her head, his voice sounding worried.

"You might very well die."