Chapter 133

Chapter 133: Chapter 133

Caedos warped to Flaeris midstep, setting fire to the blood of the Fiend Duke Morkoth was the only thing that would soothe some of the rage he felt but going against him right then was foolhardy, he would only be handing himself over to be added to the Grand Duke’s extensive stables.

So he returned to the outskirts of Ibaeron, just meters from the stables he had set ablaze. The building had been left to burn down, it had been a handful of hours now so all that was left was a building charred black, plumes of grey smoke wafting to the sky.

He turned away from it, hunting down the next stable. It was only a few streets away like Ardan had said, a line of armed Demons stood in front of the building, they seemed to have been expecting him.

"State your business," One of the Fiends pointed a spear at him, stepping forward menacingly.

Caedos looked them over, "You had the chance to escape and didn’t take it." He said cryptically, stepping forward to meet the hunters standing guard.

The terror in their gazes was evident but they stood their ground, looking to each other to rally themselves to action, clearly having confidence in their numbers.

His attention had been on the stable behind them the entire, the hunters seemed to have caught wind of his attack on the other stable. He attacked first, having no use in waiting for them to build up the courage to make the first move.

He snapped off the head of the spear pointed at him and stabbed the hunter brandishing it in the side of his neck. That sparked a wave of attacks, swords and spears coming for him.

In a short time, the weapons were all discarded on the dirty cobbled stone, snapped and mangled, their owners no better.

He stepped over the bodies of the dead and dying, walking into the stable. To his surprise, the Hellhounds were all released from their cages, made to form a protective wall between him and a smaller group of hunters behind them.

The clash outside had frightened the Fiends running the stables, and without stepping out to check the source of the attacks, they had immediately gone on the defensive.

So they didn’t expect a single Demon to walk in, and least of all a Hellhound.

Howling started up at his appearance, weak defeated calls that reflected their beaten down states.

Caedos started forward, the captive Hellhounds parting silently for him, most sat, some lay down, like they had been using the last vestiges of their strength to remain upright. Or perhaps it was the immense relief that came with being saved and safe.

The hunters behind wisely said nothing, acceptance in their dread-filled gazes. Just as they could pillage the Deep Woods, so in turn it could be done to them.

By the time the five suns of Flaeris were starting to go dim, a soft red sunset falling over the city, the stable was up in flames. Only Caedos stood in front of the raging fire, a portal to the Deep Woods.

He looked around the large city, there were still so many stables just in this city alone, and there were nine other cities after Ibaeron.

His shoulders remained straight despite the heavy weight on them, his broad back awash in the light of the sunset. The fight for freedom would only get more gruesome from here on out, a retaliation was inevitable - it would be a full blown war between Hellhounds and the ten cities of Flaeris.

-+-

The carriage rode into Marlen at sunset, Dulce peered out the windows, the capital still bustling even as the day drew to an end.

The marks on his neck had healed but it didn’t prevent the stares it still drew. Kath’tan no longer wore disgruntlement on his handsome face, it was now replaced with a dark hunger, his intentions plain to see on his face.

Dulce sat back in the carriage, a peaceful expression on his face. "It was a great idea to swap out horses when we got to Marlen, now we can ride on through the night."

They did ride through the night, leaving Marlen behind by sundown the next day.

Dulce couldn’t hide his excitement about passing through Ensbury, frequently bringing up the topic of the pleasant flower wine and hoping to try another jug.

It got colder as they rode further and further to the outskirts of Alderth, enough to worry Dulce.

"Should we perhaps stop for some winter clothes?" He asked as they finally arrived in Ensbury.

It had taken over well a week and half although Dulce occasionally made stops to have the horses changed out so that they didn’t have to spend too long on the road.

Three stares focused on him, Ruoxi wore only a waistcoat over his gold dress shirt, and Kath’tan barely wore a dress shirt at all. Only Asael was properly dressed, completed with an overcoat and cravat much like Dulce.

"Are you cold?" The Shadow Demon asked in turn.

"No..."

"Then there’s no need to," Asael cut him off, used to the Vampire treating them as fragile.

Dulce looked unconvinced, fortunately distracted for a moment by his plans when they stopped for the night at an inn.

"Do you have flower wine?" He directly asked the barmaid who approached them to guide them to their inn rooms.

She looked him over, her focused expression easing. "Unfortunately, Ensbury only has flower wine in spring," She relayed the disappointing news. "There might still be a few jugs to be found in summer but there is no hope of that now in the heart of autumn. Would you like to try our other wines?"

Dulce’s lips tilted down at fhe corners, devastated. He had been looking forward to the flower wine of the boundary city ever since they stepped off the ship into Hurwell.

"Perhaps while we eat," He said to be polite, following the barmaid to the second floor where their inn rooms were.