I Saved a Demon, and Now He’s After Me - Chapter 50

‘Come to think of it, the method is the same. Back then too, he took the villagers.’

What was he trying to do by gathering people like this? Judging from the threat to use them as sacrifices to open a gate if they didn’t pledge loyalty, it seemed like he was trying to open a gate again, like last time…

‘Thinking can wait. Action comes first.’

Eden’s own ironclad rule came into play once again. This wasn’t the time to be pointlessly racking her brain. Eden broke into a run toward the alley where the servant would be.

“Miss Hunter?”

She heard the flustered villager calling her from behind, but she didn’t look back. Bezel and Johan, who had been walking ahead supporting the villagers, stared at the running Eden with startled eyes.

“Eden?”

“Why is she in such a rush again…”

She had no choice but to hurry. If the demon she killed had been a subordinate of Marbas, then there was a high chance the remaining demons were his underlings as well. This was a golden opportunity to find out where Marbas was.

Eden sprinted forward, overtook the people at the head of the line, and arrived at the servant first. The servant, who had been pacing near the carriage waiting for them, widened his eyes as he saw Eden rushing toward him.

“Miss Hunter? Why are you in such a hurry?”

With a face full of fear, he glanced behind Eden. The way he pulled his feet back as if ready to flee at any moment suggested he worried she might be chased by a demon.

Before she could even catch her breath that had risen to her throat, Eden shouted recklessly.

“Where is the next reported location?!”

At the booming shout, the servant squeezed his eyes shut, scrunching his nose. But he was not covering his ears, and there was no way that could block out the sound anyway. At the continued urging, the servant opened his eyes and spoke in a shaken voice.

“It’s about five kilometers from here. A place called Haven Village…”

“So where exactly is that?!”

“Oh my, well you see…”

Unless one originally lived here, it was not easy at all to explain the route to someone who knew nothing about the geography of this area. Eventually, the servant gave up on verbal explanation and pulled out a rolled-up map from inside his clothes.

“Will this work?”

Before he could say anything else, Eden snatched the map and unfolded it. Red circles had been drawn all over the viscount’s territory, likely marking the locations where reports had come in.

This was enough. Eden shoved the map inside her shirt and walked toward the horses, not the carriage. The servant, whose map had been snatched in an instant, scurried after her.

“Miss Hunter? Where are you going?”

“I accepted a commission, so I need to earn my pay. I’m leaving immediately for where the next demon is! You take care of the villagers here. I’ll go on my own.”

“The carriage door is this way!”

“I have eyes too, I know.”

Eden drew her sword and approached the healthier-looking of the two horses. Misunderstanding that she was trying to harm the horse, the servant made an expression like he was about to faint.

“N-no! That’s a horse the Viscount cherishes!”

“Does it run well?”

“Of course! What a precious breed of horse this is…!”

“Perfect.”

With Marbas’s trail right in front of her, she didn’t have the time to leisurely ride in a carriage. Swinging her sword to sever the connection between horse and carriage, Eden swiftly mounted the horse that had no saddle.

“Hyah!”

Neigh!

She dug her heels into its sides, and the startled horse surged forward.

“Miss Hunter! It’s dangerous to go alone!”

The servant shouted as he ran after her, but a mere human could not keep up with a horse’s speed. His cries of protest grew farther and farther behind Eden.

“Everyone worries too much.”

Eden gathered the long reins and pressed her upper body close to the horse’s back. It was to reduce resistance and gain even a little more speed.

Did it know she was going to find traces of its master? Her right hand gripping the reins throbbed.

“Still, two is definitely better than one… Should I have at least brought Bezel, just in case?”

She had always traveled alone. It hadn’t even been that long since she gained a partner, yet she was already thinking like this. This must be what people meant when they said you don’t notice what you never had, but you feel it immediately once it’s gone.

Whether because of the pain from the curse or the upcoming battle with the next demon she would soon face, she missed Bezel’s presence. But not enough to waste time going back to fetch him.

‘As long as I don’t run into a high-ranking demon, it’ll be fine.’

Eden spurred the horse once more and advanced toward the next village.