Three Days Ago — Orphanage
Rio, Yuna, and Klause sat huddled together inside their small room, their faces grim.
"...That’s not possible. You must’ve miscalculated," Yuna whispered, her brows furrowed as she stared at Klause.
Klause’s eyes narrowed. "Miscalculated? You’ve cheated off my papers enough to pass your tests. Do you really think I get numbers wrong?"
Yuna bit her lip in nervousness. "B-But... Sister Kole is so kind. How could she ever serve demons ?"
"She does," Klause said coldly.
Before Yuna could argue, Rio suddenly stood. His movements were calm but carried a strange weight that made both of them go silent.
"She’s coming. Hide everything."
Klause’s heart lurched. He scrambled to gather the sheets of parchment and stuffed them into his pocket just as the door creaked open.
"What are you children doing in here?" Sister Kole asked, her expression soft but curious. Her gaze lingered on Yuna.
Without hesitation, Rio leaned back on his bed and spoke casually. "Yuna is teaching Klause what happens between a man and a woman on their wedding night."
"WHAT?!" Yuna, Klause, and Kole shouted at once, their voices echoing off the walls.
Kole’s eyes narrowed. "Yuna... is that true?"
"I-I... Sister, I was just telling him about—"
"Yes," Klause interrupted smoothly, his face composed. "She was explaining how they... hug each other and fall asleep afterward."
Kole’s suspicious look softened into a gentle smile. "Ah, I see. Is that all she told you?"
"Yes," Klause answered without hesitation.
"Then that’s fine." Kole’s voice warmed again. She turned to Yuna. "Come, help me collect the clothes. They should be dry by now."
As she moved to leave, her eyes flicked toward Rio, who was smiling faintly.
"Why are you smiling, Rio?" she asked, curiosity edging her tone.
"Hm? Oh, nothing, Sister. Yuna read me a story this morning," Rio replied with a serene smile. "About a foolish demon who wandered into the Human Kingdom and got himself killed because of his own stupidity. I was just thinking... how stupid demons really are."
For the briefest moment, Kole froze. Then her expression steadied into neutrality. "...I don’t think demons are stupid. I believe everyone acts with purpose."
With that, she left the room.
The moment the door closed, Klause’s mask dropped. His voice trembled with urgency.
"You saw that? She didn’t even deny it! Every year fifty children leave this orphanage—but only twenty ever come back. I’ve spoken with each one who returned. They all say only twenty left in the first place. So where do the rest go ?"
His voice cracked. "They’re offering kids to the demons. And because we’re children, they think we won’t notice. But I did. And if we don’t act, we’ll vanish just like the others.
Now, do you want to get eaten by demons ?"
Rio’s voice cut through the fear like a blade. Calm. Absolute. "We leave tonight."
"What? No! You’re insane. Are you really suggesting we run away from the orphanage?" Yuna hissed, panic in her tone.
Klause met her eyes with resolve. "I agree with Rio. If he’s with us... no one can catch us. I mean he can practically see the fiture."
"...And that’s how we escaped the orphanage," Klause said flatly, his eyes locked on Leon.
Leon leaned back in his chair, expression unreadable. "Did you encounter demons when you ran?"
Klause shook his head. "...I didn’t. But he did." He pointed to Rio.
Rio’s blindfolded eyes lifted slightly. His voice was calm, detached. "I saw one. In a vision. But I can’t place the timeline. Whether it already happened, or will happen soon... I don’t know."
Leon’s gaze sharpened. "Elis."
"Master." Elis appeared at his side in an instant, kneeling with her head bowed.
"Open the doors," Leon commanded.
"Yes, Master." With a flick of her hand, the entry and exit doors slid open with a heavy thrum.
Leon turned back to the children. His tone was cold, merciless. "Listen. I don’t know if your story is true or not, but if it is—you’ll have to lea—"
Rio’s voice cut him off. His words froze the room in an instant.
Leon’s eyes narrowed. "...Who?"
"They sent a demon to hunt us," Rio said, his tone flat as steel. "He’s been chasing us for three days straight. No matter where we run, we can’t shake him."
"W-Wait... A demon is chasing us for the last three days ?" Klause and Yuna asked with serious expressions as they looked at Rio.
"Is that why we are continuously moving at night for the last three days ?" Yuna asked with a serious expression.
"I couldn’t tell you guys about it... You would’ve panicked too much." Rio replied with a serious expression.
"We are panicking right now." Yuna spoke with a serious expression. Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡⚫𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢⚫𝘯𝘦𝘵
"Master... A strong monster just entered inside the dungeon." Elis informed as she looked at Leon.
"Hah..." Leon let out a sigh as he looked at Rio.
"Shall I take care of him for you, Master ? Most of the lower demons are obligated to follow my commands." Enid spoke as she looked at Leon.
"Oh wait... I have you. Why am I getting worried ? Let’s go and meet that son of a bitch." Leon spoke with a smile as he wrapped his hand around Enid’s waist and both of them disappeared immediately.
Enid and Leon re-appeared on the third floor and noticed a dark shadow standing on the stairs of the third floor’s entery gate.
"What ? Are you just going to stand there ?" Enid asked as she stepped forward with an arrogant expression.
As soon as the demon stepped forward, Enid’s eyes widened in shock.
"Oh my god..." She spoke with a surprised expression.
As soon as he entered inside the room, Leon noticed that this demon looked exactly like a human and he was also wearing human like clothes.
He had long black hairs tied behind his back, yellow glowing eyes and a very muscular body. He was wearing a very tightly fitted black coat.
"Enid ? What are you doing here ?" He asked with a neutral expression.
"Do you know him ?" Leon asked in a low voice.
"M-My husband..." Enid replied with a serious expression.