Jagon stepped inside. I followed closely behind and saw an extraordinarily beautiful woman seated on a chair. She had long brown hair cascading down her back and striking red eyes that contrasted with her thoughtful expression. Her pointed ears were visible, and her full, sensual lips were pressed together as she pondered something.
"Excuse me, Lady Catnys," Jagon said respectfully, bowing slightly as he entered.
"Report, Jagon?" Lady Catnys demanded, lifting her gaze from the scattered papers on the desk before her. Her eyes bore into Jagon, demanding full attention.
"A bad news, unfortunately. I have spotted a camp about a few miles from here, consisting of around fifty to sixty people. All humans, and I recognized some knights bearing the emblem of the Light Empire," Jagon reported solemnly.
"Did you recognize any of them specifically?" she asked, her serious gaze intensifying as she assessed the gravity of the situation.
"Not directly, Lady Catnys, but I can say with certainty that the summoned Heroes of the Light Empire are present among them," Jagon replied, his voice steady.
"Heroes," Catnys scoffed, her tone dripping with disdain.
Interesting. She isn't scared of the Heroes at all. Well, seeing her level… Catnys Lvl 122. I can understand why she isn't scared of them…
"What about the others? I don't think the Divine Knights would send their pawns alone. There should be at least one among them, shouldn't there?" she asked, her voice tinged with suspicion.
She had hit the nail on the head. For the Demons, the Heroes were just mere pawns, and it seemed Lady Catnys was more wary of the Divine Knights, as expected.
"I… indeed felt a formidable presence in one of the tents, yes," Jagon said, his tone trembling slightly. "I… I think the Divine Knight leading them is stronger than you, Lady Catnys. Pardon my rudeness." He bowed quickly, fear evident in his voice.
"I'm not offended. I know these monsters well enough," Catnys said, raising her hand to calm him. "I want a clear and honest answer. Do you think we can handle the Divine Knight?" she asked, her eyes piercing through Jagon.
"No, I… am sorry, I don't think so," Jagon replied without hesitation, shaking his head emphatically.
He had an exceptional sense of observation, and despite knowing that the monster Radakel was around, he took his time to analyze us. Quite bold, this Jagon.
But he was right.
Radakel was strong. Stronger than even this Catnys.
"When will they be here?" she asked, clenching her fists tightly.
"They are currently resting, but as soon as they wake up, I fear they will head straight towards Uteska. I would say we have three to four hours at best," Jagon estimated.
"Half that time, Jagon. Whoever that Divine Knight is, he probably noticed your presence already," Catnys shook her head, her expression grim.
"What?! But I made sure no one noticed me. My stealth skill was active and..." Jagon protested.
"Jagon, never underestimate these cunning Divine Knights. I am certain he noticed you. He might have even sent someone to follow you," Catnys said firmly.
"Impossible…" Jagon muttered, disbelief etched on his face.
"They hate us too much to let any of us escape without having an idea of where we could be heading. That is the reality," Catnys sighed.
That's what I thought too.
The idea of Radakel sleeping while a Demon roamed in his camp was hard to believe. And whether he sent someone, I wasn't sure, but I was confident that no one noticed me. I had been very careful while following Jagon, and my stealth skill was superior.
But Radakel…
Did he notice me following Jagon?
Why do I feel like I'm being played by him?
The worst-case scenario would be that this whole demon-killing operation was a ruse to take me down. But at first, I thought I was being arrogant to even consider such a possibility.
Would a Divine Knight go that far against me? He shouldn't know that I was the true strongest Hero, but he might have had suspicions. And from Khione, I learned that suspicions alone were enough reason for the Divine Knights to wipe out an entire town.
"T-Two hours?! Then we have to evacuate immediately!" Jagon shouted, panic evident in his voice.
"Not all of us, Jagon," Catnys said, stopping him with a raised hand.
"Lady Catnys?" Jagon asked, confusion and concern mixing in his expression.
"We have children and elders with us. They will catch us, and it will be a slaughter if that happens," she explained calmly.
"Are you suggesting we abandon them?" Jagon was dumbfounded, his voice rising in disbelief.
Catnys glared at him, her eyes flashing with anger. "Do you take me for one of those despicable knights of the Empire? We send the children and elders first with a small group of our best warriors. Ensure they leave immediately, heading north. Meanwhile, we will depart a little later, drawing attention to ourselves," she commanded.
"D-Does that mean...?" Jagon looked at Catnys, his voice trembling.
Her plan was quite obvious. She intended to sacrifice themselves for the children, mothers, and elders.
Jagon clenched his fists in frustration. "Just when we found a place where we could stay…"
"It was just luck, Jagon. We found this village empty, with corpses strewn about as if some gods had given us this opportunity," Catnys said with a bitter laugh. "But I suppose we've been too happy for this world."
I see now. This village was already dead when they entered it.
An entire village wiped out?
Quite suspicious…
But there was something I didn't understand at all.
"How are they supposed to go, Lady Catnys? The children, mothers, and our elders—will they even be able to survive and find another shelter in this human empire?" Jagon asked, frustration evident in his voice.
"The only thing we can do is shield them for today. The rest is up to them. There is no safe place for Demons in a human empire," Catnys replied calmly.
Despite the dire situation, she was thinking rationally. Now, I understood how they had managed to live quietly until now. They had a smart woman leading them. But as expected, today's situation was out of her control.
"Don't waste time, Jagon. Explain the situation to everyone. The most important thing is to keep the future of our race, the children, safe," she added seriously.
"Yes…" Jagon nodded painfully and was about to leave.
It was time to stop spying around. I stepped closer behind Catnys.
"Ha!" she reacted as soon as she sensed my presence, even though I was using a stealth skill.
Impressive, but too late.
"Don't move."