Lilith was in a small square.
It was a tiny corner of the capital. Children ran back and forth, their laughter bouncing off the white stone walls. The pigeons, startled by the noise, took flight in groups, beating their wings hard before landing again on the cornices.
She sat on a stone bench.
She held a small candy between her fingers. It was a bright amber color. She brought it to her mouth. The sweetness exploded on her tongue, a flavor she had never experienced before.
Meanwhile, she kept observing.
The structures stood impeccable. The cobblestone streets were clean, without a trace of mud or waste. Everything looked orderly. Absorbing. It truly seemed like nothing bad ever happened in the world.
She finished eating. Stood up.
She walked toward a shop just behind her.
It looked more like a warehouse than a store. The ceiling was low. Upon entering, the smell of salt, dust, and animal fat hit her. There were hides hanging everywhere. Deer, wolf, bear. A man was rolling them up and storing them on rough wooden shelves.
Lilith approached.
"Hello."
The man didn't stop working.
"You're a hunter, aren't you?"
He turned slowly. His eyes were small and cunning. He looked her up and down, pausing at her dress.
"If you're looking for a luxury coat, you've come to the wrong door," he said. "I only sell raw material here."
"I'm not looking for clothing. I wanted to know if you take special orders."
The man snorted. He left the hide on the counter.
"Special? If it's reasonable."
Lilith leaned in a little.
"I was thinking of a foreign creature."
"Okay?" The man crossed his arms. "What do you have in mind?"
"A goblin."
The hunter almost laughed. The corner of his lip twitched.
"A goblin? What for?"
Lilith didn't answer.
"Its meat is unpleasant," the man continued, shaking his head. "Bitter as gall. And its skin... its skin is so soft it tears like butter when you try to tan it. It's useless for anything. Why would you want something like that?"
"I don't want to eat it."
Lilith tilted her head.
"Isn't it possible to keep one as a pet?"
The man's expression hardened immediately.
"No," he said sternly. "It would kill you as soon as you closed your eyes to sleep. It's not a toy. It's a cunning vermin."
He turned around to go back to his shelves.
"Besides, they wouldn't allow me to bring something like that here. At least not alive. The royal guard burns anything that smells of corruption before it crosses the first bridge."
He went back to arranging his leather rolls.
"Not even for a lot of money?" asked Lilith.
"Not all the money in the kingdom can stop the law," the hunter replied without looking at her. "Not in this city."
Lilith raised an eyebrow.
"Alright," she said calmly. "Where do goblins live?"
The man stopped. Pointed his finger toward a side wall.
"In the Abyssal Kingdom. You can see it on that map."
Lilith approached the wall.
It was an ancient map, drawn on yellowish leather. Her eyes traced the ink lines. It was far. Very far. To get there, she had to cross an entire kingdom that served as a border.
When the hunter turned again to say something else, Lilith was already gone.
---
Lilith returned to the perfumery.
She began to prepare. She went to the back garden. She took a sack of grain and some fresh lettuces to the woodshed pen.
"Don't die," she told the animal.
She went back upstairs.
She took a leather suitcase. Filled it with clean clothes, some fabrics, and nothing else. She herself put on a long dress, made of a resistant but light fabric that reached her ankles.
She left the shop.
She hailed a rental cart on the main street.
"Take me out of the city," she told the driver.
The journey was silent. The rattling of the wheels on the pavement turned into the crunch of earth when they crossed the city walls. Aldric Thorn grew small behind them.
When the sun began to set and there was no one else on the road, Lilith paid the driver.
"I'll continue on foot," she said.
The man looked at her strangely, alone in the middle of the countryside, but he took the coins and turned the cart around.
Lilith waited for the sound of the hooves to fade away.
She went into a clearing in the forest, far from the sight of any traveler. The air blew fresh among the trees.
She stopped in the center.
She closed her eyes. Took a deep breath.
From her back, beneath the fabric of the long dress, the bulges began to form. This time, the movement was fluid. Slow. The dark limbs extended outward, settling under the wide design of the garment.
She spread her wings completely.
She beat her wings once. Dust and dry leaves rose in a whirlwind.
She jumped.
She rose, gaining height in seconds. The air hit her face.
She looked toward the horizon, toward where the map indicated the world grew dark.
She flapped again and disappeared into the immensity of the sky.