Chapter 11

Crystal woke up, she had laid down on her side. She groans softly, knowing that it would cause her back to hurt for a while when she got up, so she rolled over to lay on her stomach. Looking ahead of her, she saw Rayth sleeping.

Staring at him curiously, she wondered. What benefit does it have for Rayth to keep her alive?

Almost as if her thoughts were spoken, he woke up.

"Good morning, Crystal."

"Morning." Crystal said flatly before pushing herself up off the floor, and looks around.

That's when an unknown scent hit her nose. It was coming from her bag. Grabbing it and searching it thoroughly, the smell was indefinitely coming from the heart sapphire shards.

"That's odd." Crystal said as she stuck them up to her nose and took a good sniff.

"What?" Rayth asks as he puts on some tea over a fire in the middle of the room.

"It has a scent." Crystal looks at it with a puzzled look. She looks around, and sniffs the air, "And it's going somewhere."

Without a second thought, Crystal grabs Tatsuka and walks out of the room. Following the scent, it leads her out of the village where Rayth finally catches up.

But as she got closer, she caught the scent of another half demon. She pulls out Tatsuka and looks around once the smell became strong.

"Crystal? What's going on?"

"Come out. I know you're there. If you come out peacefully I might let you live."

A girl hops down from the tree, her brown hair in 6 different ponytails. Her outfit looking quite foreign, but what was noted was the scar on her arm that was surrounded by a jaguar pattern.

"Who are you?!" Rayth shouts.

"I'm called Neca. One of my jewels started to smell so I followed it's scent. It brought me here."

"I see. You did the same as I did." Crystal glares at her, "Which means you have a shard of the Heart Sapphire."

"I found it one day killing a strong demon, but couldn't find anyone who knew what it was called. So you know what it is?"

"Why yes. I do." Crystal relaxed a little, "I'm seeking to collect them. Because a very strong demon is planning on using all the shards to restore the Heart Sapphire to potentially do real harm to the world." Crystal looked into the girls eyes, ruby red mixed with her light blue.

"Well. If you offer me a good enough price-" A loud boom came from the village before she could finish what she was saying, and in a flash, Crystal was gone. Leaving Rayth and Neca alone, "W- What?"

"That was the village. She must be going to see what happened. I better go too." Rayth ran back towards the village. Leaving the half demon girl in shock, of whom went to watch what was happening.

A demon had broken through the barrier and was fighting with the demon slayers when Rayth caught up. Crystal among them. It was a large gorilla like demon, it's muscles pulsing as it was

getting angrier.

Rayth joined the line of fighters. That's when the horde of demons they sensed started to swarm in behind the big one. Rayth looked to see what Crystal wanted to do, and all he could see was fear on her face.

No, that's not right. Crystal can't be afraid, what is she afraid of?

"Everyone! Run for cover!" Crystal shouts, holding her ground, and readies Tatsuka.

"Why should we trust a half demon?!" One of the villagers shout, and Crystal seemed to hesitate for a moment.

"If you value your lives you'll trust me!" Crystal shouts back, before swinging Tatsuka. A bolt of lightning escapes the blade, once it made contact with one demon, it seemed to spread like a plague making a chunk of the demons explode.

"I guess I'll have to help!" Rayth shouts, and pulls out his polearm. His had its own surprises, but he stayed with jumping up into the horde, killing each individually with it. Crystal was doing the same, before the both of them landed, only to watch all the dead demons disappear.

The only one left was the giant gorilla. Which was chasing someone?

"That must be the half demon." Crystal said with a huff, before running after them. Leaping up onto a tree branch, using it to give her more momentum she could see over the gorilla. It was the girl, she was running out of pure fear.

"Please!!! Someone save me!!!" Crystal swung Tatsuka in that moment, slicing through the gorilla's center before slamming down on the ground. The gorilla tried to fight a little but it was futile. It popped, and dropped a large amount of items behind Crystal.

The half demon looked at Crystal with wide eyes.

"You-!" She shouts, "You were going to kill me earlier. Why didn't you just kill both me and the

gorilla?"

"Because you're not threatening the village." Crystal huffs, as if it were obvious, "Plus. I don't like killing for no reason. I'd rather knock you out and take what I want, than kill you." The girl looks at her with a blank expression.

"You're so merciful. That may end up killing you one day."

"I'm not that easy to kill. Come on, you're gonna want to eat with us, and then we'll discuss a less violent way of me receiving the shard." Crystal turned and started to slowly walk away from the small woman who sat in awe. Before hopping up to follow her. As they returned to the village, they could see the priestesses were hard at work fixing the barrier, and the villagers already started to celebrate with a feast.

"This your village?" The girl asks, and Crystal shrugs.

"My father was the lord around 7 years ago, but someone else has taken over. Its just a hurdle in my journey and I have no interest in staying at the moment." The two stop at the buffet table, and the girl starts to drool at the food.

"I've only had vegetables, and the occassional rabbit for food. I'm going to eat my heart out."

"Go ahead, but decisions are being made after dinner." Crystal walks off, and the girl begins to eat.

"What's your name?" A man asks, the girl turns to see its the same man that was with the woman.

"My name is Neca!"

"Nice to meet you. I'm Rayth, and that was Crystal."

"She's got such a big heart! The most merciful half-demon I've ever met!"

The cringe on Rayth's face made her feel like she said something wrong.

"She doesn't know mercy. She just doesn't want to waste her time killing you."

"Oh I see..." Neca stares at the food she was eating, "Sounds kind of harsh."

"Definitely." Rayth chuckles.

"So, you're clearly a demon slayer, why are you accompanying a half demon?"

"She has piqued my interest in a way, no one ever has." Rayth said calmly, "I want to see her complete the Heart Sapphire, because I truly wonder what her truest desire will be."

"Huh.." Neca looks over at Crystal who tended to the children, "What if it's world domination?"

Rayth starts laughing, "As if! As far as I've seen, she doesn't give a tail about power, otherwise, she probably would be ruling over these lands already."

"She's that powerful?" Neca asks curiously.

"She's that powerful because she does possess the same restrictions and hesitations like you do."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You ever felt horrible, coming to a decision to kill a child?"

"I never hurt children, it's not right. I wouldn't feel right." Neca said calmly.

"Crystal doesn't feel." Rayth said flatly, "She was born without a heart."

"Wait, what?!" Neca screams as Rayth nods.

"Yeah." Rayth said in a deadpan tone, as if she shouldn't be so surprised.

"How is she, ya know, living?"

"I don't know how it works, but she just does." Rayth shrugs softly.

"Wow..." Neca just stares blankly at the woman as she played with the children. It seemed so one sided, like she was just putting up with it. Neca looks down at her food and shrugs, "I might have an idea of what I'd like in return for the Shard."

"What is that?"

"I'd like to travel with her. She clearly is going to be travelling for more of these shards, and I am technically indebted to her, since she saved my life..."

"Pretty sure she won't mind that deal." Rayth said confidently, "Just relax for now, as long as you remain as unthreatening as possible, she won't hurt you." Rayth walks off with a tea in his hand. Neca eyes Crystal again, wondering what it was after all that made her save her, if its true that she doesn't have a heart, she doesn't really know the meaning of mercy, right?

"She's insane. How can she be alive without a heart?!" Neca shouts in frustration, scaring some of the nearby villagers, which she in turn sheepishly smiles at.

========

"Another shard got out of our reach?!" Omose shouts, slamming her fist on her throne, "If my mistake of a daughter collects all the shards, she will no doubt destroy me with them." Omose sighs, pinching the space in-between her eyebrows, "This is ridiculous. I need actual strong demons to do this job, since no one else is capable."

"Well. Count me out." Hajuka stood against a wall, his arms crossed, "I get that we can't let her destroy you, that would destroy everything here, but I refuse to kill my own sister."

"Then." Omose smirks, looking off to her right at a small child in a cage, "I'll just use her."

Hajuka gapes as his mother approaches the child.

"Pathetic child. Wake up." Omose says harshly, the child looks up at her with dark blue eyes, similar to Omose's own eyes, "I have a job for you, something that may gain you permanent love from your dearest mother, me."

"A job...?" The child whispers.

"You will be the item that makes Crystal's walls crumble, and when she does, steal the shards." Omose said swiftly, the child looks up at her then down at her frail body, before nodding.

"I'll do it mother."

"Good. Do not fail me, Liliac."

"Of course not, mother..."