My heart raced—not out of despair, but from the adrenaline of doing what I love. I still had seven arrows left. That was enough. I fixed my aim on the biggest one's head and, at the same time, declared in my mind:
"This is for you, donkey."
This arrow was different from the others, because it carried my desire to save.
I released it, and something snapped near my right ear.
Please don't let it be what I think.
Yes. It's exactly what I thought—the bowstring cut. The arrow changed course and hit the donkey.
"Ow! There's an arrow in my . . ."
But this time I didn't waste a second. It wasn't one arrow—it was two. The second one struck the demon in the skull.
I ran to the donkey while the demon's friend tried to pull him away.
"An angel came down from the sky to save me."
The donkey called me a celestial being. I went speechless hearing him say that—how is that even possible? There was no time to think.
"Shut up, donkey. I'm killing demons," I snapped back!
"I'm not a donkey… I'm yours, my goddess," he whispered when he saw me.
The demons must have messed with his head. It has to be that.
I'm not answering now. We need to run.
I cut the ropes with a branch and pulled out the arrow I'd hit him with. I climbed on, slapped his backside, and he shot toward the gate as if he understood what I wanted without me saying a word.
While I was dealing with the arrow, I saw the relic on the ground—the panties.
I'm so happy, because now I've got a complete demon armor set.
Near the gate, the donkey stopped.
"Why'd you stop, you nag?"
I yanked his ear.
He caught his breath and explained.
"You need to save the girl who's sleeping. She's under a tree . . ."
I jumped back before he even finished the sentence.
"Leave it to me."
Ow, my knee.
Running toward the place the donkey mentioned, I heard a female voice arguing with a demon—the CHIEF OF LOVE. So they wouldn't see me, I pressed myself against a tree. Yes, they were arguing. The girl sounded terrified. I was about to step out when the torches flared to life.
"Little girl, you cook, you."
The chief was about to grab her, but by sheer luck she slipped away.
She tore through the forest screaming like a madwoman, and the Chief of Love smashed every tree in his path.
My bow was shattered, and I had only one arrow left. How am I supposed to shoot? . . .
They ran straight toward me. Everything's screwed, I thought.
But the girl fell to the ground, crashing into my feet. Now. It's all or nothing.
"Hmm. A demon behind you."
That almost sounds like a hero line.
I threw the arrow with my right arm, using every last bit of strength I had. I didn't aim—I just hurled it. It hit the Chief of Love's left eye. He howled in agony and fell backward with a massive crash.
I stepped close to the girl, who was shrieking nonstop like a pig. I pressed my face close to hers and whispered:
"You lured him here. You smell like trouble."
I tried to blame her, even though I knew what had happened.
She took a deep breath and replied like I was her partner.
"Sis... if I told you how my day started."
I turned my back on her and said:
"Got it. You look like too much trouble to survive five more minutes. Let's go."
"You're going to just sit there? Follow me."
What is going on here? Does she not care that she's naked? Weird girl. Too much to think about.
Does everyone in this world have the same perverted habit of walking around naked in the forest?
That thought kept gnawing at me. I didn't have the courage to ask.
As we walked toward the exit, I asked her name, but she didn't answer. She blushed and stared at the ground.
I figured she must be scared. That explained the silence.
Dawn was breaking. Sunlight mixed with the delicate skin of the naked girl—hair white as clouds. She looked ahead, and I could see her blue eyes . . .
She looks like some rich family's daughter.
"Hey, hey—what are you doing?"
I thought the donkey was in danger again, but when we reached the gate, it was another girl. She was trying to climb onto the donkey to escape.
"Who are you?"
The girl and I asked at the same time.
"My name is Seraphine."