Yuki walked landed back to the ground, his knees bending at the impact. He walked to the glass panel that controlled the entire room and motioned to Sarah and Akira to follow him.

“I’ll be releasing them. However, there are a few in here that cannot leave,” he said. “They’re actual criminals. Uriel went through the list of demon’s imprisoned here and found about five that had actual criminal offenses.”

“So what do you want to do with them?” Akira asked.

“I’ll release the others first, but those five will be kept in their cells. I’ll make sure to let the others know why they’re still here. I don’t think anyone would doubt it but if they do, I’ll show them the charges.”

“Understood,” Sarah said.

“Why would the Shikaku arrest criminals?” Akira said. “Wouldn’t it be beneficial to let them stay in the public and stir up more trouble?”

“Yes, but they also need proof that they are causing trouble,” Yuki explained. “So they arrest some and leave the rest alone. The ones they capture can be used to scapegoat crime and point at demon’s as a race that is evil and such. It’s a pretty smart plan.”

“I see. What are we going to do with those five prisoners then? We can’t leave them here.”

“We have to remove them. The fastest way would be to kill them and dispose of the bodies. Unless you have another idea?”

“Can we get them to change?”

“You mean turn them away from their criminal ways? Possibly. It depends on the person and whether they are mentally well or not.”

“That’s true,” Akira said. She paused for a bit, thinking. “Erica. Would she be willing to talk to them? To examine if they’re fit mentally or not?” 

“I’m sure she would be willing. The problem is whether or not she’s fit to assess them. I think I’ll ask those five whether or not they would be willing to submit to a mental examination.”

He glanced over to where Erica was. She was still at the cell of the demon with fox ears. She looked a bit like a kitsune. They were talking to each other in hushed voices. The tears on the kitsune’s face had dried up and she had a small tiny smile on her face.

“You’re going to get Erica to look into their memories?”

“Probably. If they say no, then we’re going to have to kill them,” Yuki shrugged, turning his head back around and continued walking to the glass panel. “Does that sound alright?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s get to it.”

Yuki tapped on the glass control panel and located the locks for each cell. From there, he searched for the controls to the restraints that each demon had around their necks. He found it with a few taps and deselected the five that he planned to talk to later. Then with a single press of a button, he disabled the rest of the collars.

The moment he pressed it, Yuki could hear when the prisoners realised that their restraints had just been removed. The commotion rose as more and more prisoners reached to their necks in disbelief.

“Well then,” Yuki said as he turned around, his voice carrying around the hall. “You can rip off those collars right now. And shatter that little glass pane that’s been trapping you here while your at it.”

There was a small pause that was then followed by joyous roars. The sound of metal being ripped and glass shattering soon came after. One by one, the demons walked out of their cells. Some of them started stretching while others began to break down into tears as the sound of metal hitting the floor echoed in the room.

One male demon turned and locked eyes with Yuki. He started to march toward Yuki and stopped right in front of him. Then he went to his knee and lowered his head.

“I thank you from the bottom of my heart, my lady,” the demon rumbled. “To repay you for this debt, I offer you my allegiance.”

“Oh, I was planning to just let you all go off on your own,” Yuki replied. “I don’t need anything from you all.”

“Even so. My previous master had lost his way. With a heavy heart, I abandoned him and tried to live a fulfilling life among the elves,” the demon said. He looked up with a determined expression on his face. “But now I have found someone worthy. I wish to aid my savior in anyway I possibly can. And so, I offer you my soul.”

‘A soul seems like a very important thing that shouldn’t be given away,’ Yuki thought. ‘But this man may prove to be useful.’

The demon looked to be middle aged when compared to the other demons in the prison. He had a few wrinkles scattered around his face with the deepest ones forming worry lines on his forehead. His hair was moderately long and hung in front of his face but it wasn’t unkempt. Looking deeper, Yuki could feel a certain confidence that followed those with power. A confidence that declared that a person wasn’t afraid and truly believed in what their ideals.

‘Those are all good qualities to have. I wasn’t looking to recruit but this isn’t a horrible turn of events.’

“What type of demon are you?” Yuki asked. 

“A devil, my lady. I came to this world a little over a millennia ago,” the man replied.

“Do devils normally give out their loyalty like this?”

“Of course, my lady. We are a hierarchical society. Those of us that do not possess the temperament or strength to become a king offer ourselves to those that do. But we are not without standards. We choose who we follow through a variety of means. And one of those is gratitude, my lady.”

“What makes you think that I’m strong? I’m sure that you wouldn’t lower yourself before someone weaker than you.”

“That is correct. But you, my lady, are not weaker than me. Maybe right now, but you haven’t yet reached your peak. I cannot grow any stronger than I am now, my lady. However, you are still young and have barely tasted the strength that remains hidden before you. We devils can sense that within others. Their potential. And I see great potential within you, my lady.”

“Those were very beautiful responses, my dear devil,” Yuki nodded. “I accept your pledge. I hope you can serve me well.”

“And I shall,” the devil replied. “I, Mathali Ecterus of the Five House, offer to you my body and my soul. I shall be your hand and your aid. Should I fail in my duties, the gods up above shall descend to this land and strike me down.”

He held up his right hand, still kneeling on the ground. Around him, a circle had appeared and was glowing softly. Yuki reach out and grasped the offered hand. The circle grew to surround Yuki as well and flared a dark violet. On the back of the hand Yuki held, a mark was slowly emblazoned. It was a simple pentagram that seemed to shimmer slightly in the light.

Yuki let go and Mathali retracted his hand. The mark faded away and the devil stood, his back straight and at attention.

“The contract is complete, my liege,” Mathali announced. “From now until death, my life is yours.”

“Can I call you Mat?” Yuki asked. “Mathali seems a bit long and would slow down conversation at times.”

“Whatever your want, my liege.”

“Also, I have a question. If the contract binds you for life, then how did you escape your previous one? Did your master die?”

“No, my liege. My previous master betrayed his side of the contract. The contract is mutual between master and servant. If the master ever promises me anything, then that promise must be fulfilled. If I promise anything to my master, than that also must be fulfilled.”

“I see. Then let’s not get into the habit of unnecessary promises, shall we?”

“As you wish, my liege.”

“You just made a contract with the devil.” Yuki glanced over to Akira who was trying to hide a grin. “You know what they say about those.”

“Figures of speech are never meant to be taken seriously,” Yuki replied. “I don’t believe Mat here will betray me.”

“That is not something that you should worry about in the slightest, my liege,” Mat announced proudly. “You were the beacon of hope that shined in the darkness of the abyss of despair. You’re light pierced through the heavy shadow that dragged down my soul and restored my faith once again.”

“It seems that we have a bit of a Shakespeare here today,” Yuki commented.

“Shakespeare? What is that, my liege?” 

“Ah, a small writer. Not something that should be of concern,” Yuki said. “Now if you don’t mind, I will return to the matter that I originally came here for.”

“Of course, my liege,” Mat nodded. He stepped to the side and Yuki walked a few steps past him.

Yuki looked at the numerous faces that stared back at him. They watched what happened between Yuki and the devil and seemed quite interested in what had just occurred.

“I am not looking for any of you to promise their loyalty to me,” Yuki announced, amplifying his voice. “I’m not even searching for a word of gratitude. I do not need it. Freedom shouldn’t be something given in the first place. Every person should have at birth. It’s their right.”

He paused and noticed a few relieved expressions in the crowd before him.

“One of my associates will be leading you out of this facility,” he continued. “But once we reach the outside, you are all free to go and do what you please. My friends here will be leaving with me the moment we step out of this building. What you do with your freedom will be on you. Are there any questions?”

“What about those five that are still inside their cells?” a voice asked.

“They will be staying behind for a bit. I need to talk to them in person. Anything else?”

Yuki waited for a bit but no one else spoke up. Nodding, Yuki gestured to Sarah to come to him.

“This is Sarah,” Yuki introduced. “You will follow whatever she tells you to do. Please do not argue or complain. That would be tiring and annoying. Now, I will instruct you in how to get out of this place.”

Gathering mana within his hands, he created a model of the prison by bending light. Then he expanded it so that the entire hall could see it clearly.

“This is where we are right now,” he said. “Normally, people would come in and out by using the elevator in the front of the hall.”

He zoomed in onto the metal door of the elevator. 

“If I was just with my group here, I would use this elevator. Once I’m up top, I would sneak around the remaining guards and then be on my merry way back home. However, there are almost fifty of you here right now. Going up the elevator would take a very long time to do and even if we managed to take you all up it would be a nightmare to try and get a group that big to sneak around guards.”

“So what are you suggesting?” a person asked from the group of former prisoners.

“I’m glad you asked,” Yuki replied. “You all will be leaving the same way you came. At the back of this hall is another door. Surprise! And beyond that door is a tunnel that leads out into the forest.”

“Why is there a door there?” Akira asked quietly.

‘I’ll explain why later. I need to get these people out as quickly as possible,’ Yuki replied.

[Alright. I’ll think about for now then.]

“Now, Sarah will lead you through this tunnel,” Yuki continued. “There are some cameras and sensors and the like in there but you do not need to worry about them. I’ve taken care of them and they aren’t working quite how they’re supposed to right now. But I can’t keep it like that for long. Sarah, if you will.”

“It’s at the end of the hallway?” she asked.

“Yes. I’ll tell Uriel to open the entrance for you.”

She gave Yuki a nod and walked to the end of the hallway. As she approached the wall, Yuki told Uriel to open the door and the flat metal caved in and slid open.

“I shall return as soon as I can, my liege,” Mat announced before following Sarah.

The other demons slowly made their way to the metal doors of the tunnel, trying not to push each other. Some of them glanced over Yuki as they walked. He heard a few mumbles that sounded like words of gratitude and saw a few smiles from the members of the crowd but most looked straight ahead or whispered with one another. 

‘Good. Let’s move on to those five that are still here.’