[55.5] A City of Demons

The panther demon grabbed my hand and started dragging me into the city. My mouth was wide open as I looked around. The city was really a supernatural feat of ingenuity. Demons were all walking with each other, chatting happily, while younger demons ran around chasing each other. Humans were beside them, conversating with them naturally. If it wasn't for the horns on their heads or their animal-like bodies, they wouldn't seem out of place.

How could such a place exist here?!

The panther spoke, "This village was blessed by the Great Fairy. It rests at the foot of the Snowy Mountains in the West. You can only get here through the Macabre forest because the other sides are filled with snow from the mountain."

He pointed to the right and I squinted my eyes. Sure enough, snow was building up against an invisible wall, but it didn't advance further.

He explained, "The Great Fairy constructed a barrier when she first came to this village. During that era, we were only made of humans. The humans were close to dying because of the terrible harvest, so she made a barrier that would allow only good weather. It rains when it needs to, and is sunny and warm all the other times."

I looked around to the demons who were all stopping to stare at me. I spoke in a low voice, "There doesn't seem to be very many humans compared to demons…"

"Ah. Yeah, well that's because over time, the humans and demons mated so now a full-blooded human is hard to find. We have a few, but it's not common."

My cheeks blushed from the stares and I looked to the ground, "I-I see. So, it's not often everyone sees a human."

He laughed revealing his pearly white teeth, "Especially when that human isn't from here. No one in this city ever leaves unless to trade with the humans in the town by the forest, but we barely need to do that. There's no need for us to go so there's no need for us to invite in a human either."

He gave me a profound look, "Yet you walked in like it's your front door."

I raised my head to look around. My heart raced anxiously as the demons watching me started to follow me without speaking. I forced myself to stay calm, "So where is Caldwell?"

Caldwell! I need you! Please! These villagers are so scary!

"He's just up-"

"Bale."

A firm voice came from in front of us and he stopped immediately as if commanded. I ran into him and peered around him in confusion. An elderly woman hunched over, holding a cane as she trembled, stared at us. There were no horns nor any demonlike features.

She's human?

He grinned, "Elder! Look what I found in the forest!"

The Elderly woman gave me a look, "What is your name?"

I straightened up, "My name is Reika."

She stepped over to me, looking me up and down, "How did you get in here?"

"I uh… I just walked in."

She raised an eyebrow distrustfully, "That's impossible. Our barrier is still functioning properly. You must have come in another way."

I shook my head, "No. I really just walked in."

"Hmm…" She suddenly grabbed my hand, staring at my palm with an intense look. I was speechless as she then pulled down my head, checked my eyes, then pulled out my tongue. Then she let me go.

I spat out, "Bleh!"

Disgusting!

Her critical face suddenly turned warm and affectionate, "The Great Fairy smiles upon us again."

The other demons all bowed in cue, repeating her words, "The Great Fairy smiles upon us again."

What is going on here?!

Is this a greeting?!

I bowed my head instinctually, and when I raised it I noticed the others had all raised their head with me. I looked around nervously, "I-I am looking for Caldwell. Is he here or not?!"

"You're looking for my son?"

I turned to face the speaker and saw a tall woman with two horns on her head. Her silver hair rested against one of her shoulders and her eyes were so kind, they made you immediately trust her. What made her so alluring was the fact that she resembled Caldwell so much.

But… Did she say son?!

This woman looks to be the same age as Caldwell!

She spoke again, "What do you want with my son?"

I stuttered, "H-He's a friend. I came here to speak with him."

Her eyes lit up, "Oh my! Can it be?!"

She ran over to me and began pulling at my face and hair just as the elderly woman had done moments before.

Is this how these villagers say hello!?

She released me with a bright smile, "You must be the Young Miss he keeps talking about!!! My future granddaughter!"

"Uhh-"

"-Wait here! I will go fetch my son for you!"

She turned into a snowy owl and soared into the distance, disappearing faster than you could blink your eyes.

The Elderly woman tapped me with her cane, "While we wait, would you like to see our museum? It has sculptures and beautiful paintings from thousands of years ago."

My face lit up, "Museum?!"

She laughed, "I see that caught your attention. Yes, come with me. We have many artifacts from the Great Fairy. We dedicated a museum in her honor."

I followed the Elderly woman with a skip in my step. I no longer cared about the demons following after us in curiosity.

The Elderly woman spoke, "How much did Bale tell you about our village?"

"Bale?"

Ah! That panther demon.

I hummed, "He talked about how it was created by the Great Fairy."

"Heh. It's more than just that. The Great Fairy was our savior. After that, we were willing to do anything our goddess commanded. The Great Fairy asked us to take in demons who were victims of humans, so we graciously agreed. Over time, our village became like this. My family was part of the original family who lived in this village, so we worked hard to give the newer generation the stories of our ancestors so we would never forget their struggles."

We came to a giant tree centered in the middle of the road. Ropes lines the tree and the fruit bloomed beautifully. Seeing my look of admiration, the Elderly woman reached up and pulled off a fruit. From the stem left on the tree, a flower bloomed and then was replaced by a full-grown juicy fruit.

She handed it to me, "The Great Fairy gave us this tree which blooms constantly. She said if we were ever in a dire situation again, we would at least have this tree."

I pensively took a bite of the fruit and felt a rush of taste fill my mouth. I let out a happy sigh, "Amazing."

She chuckled, "There's every type of fruit on this tree. Any time you have a taste, you can take it from this tree and it will regrow immediately."

"Wow…"

She motioned to me, "Come. Let's visit the museum."

She brought me inside a building near the tree that was filled with glass boxes holding random items. I leaned near one to look closely, "Is this a… Handkerchief?"

"That's right."

It must be significant if they have it-

She added with a smile, "The Great Fairy once used that to wipe her nose."

"..."

I glanced down the line of glass boxes and noticed more trash with preserving magic circles to keep it as it was.

I forced on a smile, "You said there were paintings and sculptures?"

With a nod, she brought me into another attached room and pointed at a line of ice sculptures, "The Great Fairy loved making these kinds of things. She would give one as a token of appreciation every year this village welcomed demon refugees."

I let out a sigh of relief.

It looks like they have normal items here too.

I walked further into the museum, taking the time to appreciate every sculpture there was. My eyes were finally drawn to a glass case with a broken stick placed delicately inside.

My breath caught in my throat, "What's that?"

"That? That was the Great Fairy's wand."

I stared at that wand feeling something tugging at my heart.

"Or what's left of it." The Elderly woman explained, "This was gifted to us by the Great Fairy. She arrived from the sky and landed on it, breaking it in the process. She gave it to us as a way of showing her gratitude. It held much sentimental value to her, so we show our respect by keeping it safe all these years."

That…

Why did it feel so familiar?

When I look at it, I feel like it's part of myself.

Just as I was going to reach into my sock to pull my wand out, someone startled me out of my thoughts, "Young Miss!"