We reached the village around midday. Though plenty of the houses were still standing, many were little more than skeletal frames, blackened by flame. Despite the devastation, I could see people going about their day. Demons, I assumed, but they wore brown, all-encompassing robes that made it hard to tell. They could have been humans for all I knew, though that seemed unlikely given what I’d learnt of this world.

With my new demon pal beside me, the group went to the burnt-out houses, paying no attention to the farmers nearby. I looked around but there was no sign of the raiders still being here. “What now?”

Korzan looked up from inspecting the ground. “Now we look for tracks and try to hunt them down. I don’t suppose you know much about tracking?”

“Nope, not a thing.”

The demon sighed. “Yeah, I’m not much better. Spent most of my life in towns and cities.”

“Me too.” I wondered what someone from this world would make one of earth’s larger cities. I doubted they had anything of that scale here. With nothing else to do but wait for the soldiers who looked like they had a clue what they were doing to find something, I looked around.

A few of the villagers were keeping an eye on us. None of them approached, they just kept their distance and watched. I wondered what they were looking for. Were they wondering if we’d attack them like the other demons had? Or maybe they were working as spies for the raiders’ boss?

Nah, they were probably just bored. I can’t imagine there’s much entertainment out here. Hell, if soldiers had come to hunt down some criminals near where I’d lived back on earth I’d probably have watched too.

One of the soldiers eventually found a trail and we moved out, leaving the village and its people behind. The trail brought us to a series of rolling hills, much of which was obscured by a strange bush that grew in dense clusters throughout the area. It’s dark-red leaves covered in spikes didn’t look like anything I wanted to be in contact with, so I kept well clear of it where I could.

Talking amongst each other, the soldiers fanned out and went off in small groups. It seemed counter-intuitive to me when we were at risk of running into the enemy. “What are they doing? Why are they spreading out?”

Korzan shrugged. “To locate the enemy faster.”

I tactfully avoided rolling my eyes, even I knew that much. “Yeah, but is it really worth the risk? What if we’re attacked while we aren’t together?”

“There’s no need to worry so much, they wouldn’t spread out that much. And as soon as someone spots the enemy we’ll reform.”

Her words didn’t do much to make me feel better. The terrain had plenty of places to hide, perfect for an ambush. Maybe being reckless was the nature of demons. Would the demons we were hunting have enough patience to lay an ambush? Or would they charge as soon as we located each other? It was impossible to say, they might not stand and fight at all. They were only raiders after all, there wasn’t any real reason for them to attack us.

The more I thought about it, the more sense it made. I still intended to remain alert but it helped to ease my sense of anxiety. The actual battles hadn’t been so bad once they were underway, but the waiting was intolerable, it was enough to drive a man mad.

I felt like I’d glimpsed the constant tension that ate away at soldiers when they were at war. Being able to relax was probably essential to maintaining my mental wellbeing. Of course, that wouldn’t matter if I died, but it was still worth thinking about. Even if only to take my mind off the waiting.

Korzan and I were left to bring up the rear of the dispersed formation. The plan had been to stay close enough together to help each other, but the poor visibility and difficult terrain had made that difficult. Before long we’d spread out enough that Korzan was the only demon in sight, though I still caught occasional glimpses of the others as we travelled. “Do you think this will take much longer?”

“It shouldn’t. If they’re here we’ll flush them out sooner or later.” She put her helmet on and drew her sword. “But you never know when things might kick off. Could be just a few moments from now.”

I glanced around, worried that she might jinx us. But no adversaries popped out of the vegetation around us and I relaxed. Why had Lord Sarinknell sent me out here? I wasn’t suited for any of this. Was he trying to kill me off or did he just not know the depth of my incompetence? I suppose I had put up a good fight against his soldiers given the circumstances, if I do say so myself.

Minutes went by, the only sounds those of rustling bushes and clanking armour. I took a deep breath and exhaled. Have to stay calm, that was the most important thing. If I panicked, I’d only make things worse. A bush shifted to my side and I brought my sword up, ready to strike. I paused, it was only the wind.

Korzan glanced at me. She didn’t say anything but I could feel her judging me. Would she think me a coward for being so on edge? Or was that how we all were? It was hard to tell, especially from an instant of eye contact, but it made me feel better to think she was just as nervous.

I wasn’t afraid, not exactly. I didn’t want to run away, at least not any more than usual, I just wanted the battle to start if it was going to. I don’t know if I’d ever wished that something dangerous would happen to me but it seemed there was a first time for everything. Korzan stopped in her tracks and I jumped. What was it? Had I missed something? “What is it?”

She pointed her sword toward a hill a little way ahead. “Do you see that?”

“See what?” It looked like a hill to me, much the like the others we’d seen.

“On the ground, there’s something metallic there.”

I looked lower and saw what she was talking about, there was a dull glint among the brush on the ground. Could it be something someone had left here? Didn’t seem too likely, there wasn’t anyone living that close by. I suppose one of the raiders might have dropped it… but it was better to assume it was a sign of something dangerous. “Should we check it out?”

“I guess.” Not being able to see her face behind her helmet it hard to judge her reaction, but she probably wasn’t too thrilled by the prospect. Clutching our weapons, we crept forward. As we got closer, I realised the glint was a sword blade protruding from the vegetation. It looked a lot like the swords I’d seen the other soldiers carrying, not a good sign.

There was no way someone would just drop their weapon, not at a time like this. Either they’d lost it during a fight or they were dead, maybe both. I stopped and listened. Other than the noise Korzan was making, I couldn’t hear anything out of the ordinary. We drew closer and my heart seemed ready to leap out of my chest.

Korzan reached out with her shield-hand and pushed the brush around the sword aside. The plant shifted with little resistance, exposing the whole of the weapon. It was in good condition, almost certainly one of the soldiers’. But there was no sign of how it came to be here. Could it be true? Could someone have left it behind by accident?

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a shadow shift and I knew, this was no accident. A glimpse of the huge, brown thing bearing down on me, thick claws outstretched, was enough to convince me. I swung Shotensho in a circular arc, putting all the momentum of my turn into the strike.

The rusted edge struck true, cutting through the thick skin and deep into the creature’s flesh. My arms shuddered with the force of the blow as the blade skittered along bone, but it wasn’t enough to fell them. Their thick, oily blood stained Shotensho a dark green.

Ignoring the gaping cut in their chest, the beast lunged at me with claws outstretched. I wrenched my blade free and backpedalled. But it was too close. With one swipe of its oversized hand, it knocked me off my feet. I lay there, trying to get my breath back. Each gasp brought with it a fresh wave of agony, it must have broken some ribs.

The mail armour had held, sparing me the claw’s edge, but had done little to blunt the impact. Our exchange of blows had injured them more than it had me, yet I was the one lying helpless. Had Korzan not strode forward to engage the beast, I would have been finished.

Keeping her shield out to intercept, she drew it away from me with a series of light stabs, not committing too much. She worked away at the creature, staying just within reach and stepping back when it tried to strike. The cut I’d given it soon proved to be too much and it slowed.

After a wide swipe that it was slow to recover from, Korzan stepped instead its reach and hacked at its thick neck. Skin and muscle parted across a good section of its throat and Korzan withdrew. Clutching in vain at its neck as its lifeblood flowed out, the creature collapsed.

I got to my feet, sheepish that I hadn’t been of more help. My chest hurt but the shock had worn off and I was ready to fight. There was, however, nothing to fight. At least nothing that presented itself in our immediate area. I looked down at the beast that had attacked me. It was misshapen, covered in irregular lumps and a mixture of fur and exposed skin. Nestled beneath a thick, bony ridge, its lifeless eyes were black with flecks of green. “What is this thing?” I hadn’t seen anything remotely like it in my time here.

Korzan wiped her blade and looked askance at me. “It’s a demon.” She was very matter-of-fact about it all, clearly my brush with death hadn’t phased her. I guess there was no chance she was in love with me after all.

Jokes aside, this monstrous thing was a demon? I had trouble seeing much resemblance to the other demons I’d met. They were both humanoids but that was about it. This one didn’t even have horns. “Uh, really? It doesn’t look much like you and the others I’ve met.”

“Then you mustn’t have spent much time on the outer reaches. This is a tertium.”

“Tertium? What’s that?”

“A third stage demon.”

I scratched my head. Stages? What was she talking about? “What stage are you then?”

“First. A primis.” She made it sound like it was obvious. “Same goes for anyone you’re likely to meet at a Demon Lord’s estate.”

“Are you actually related to that thing? What are these stages?”

She sighed. “They represent the degree to which we’ve been corrupted by the other side. Those of us in the first stage are the most human while those in the sixth are the least. Got it?”

So, the demons had all started off human? I assumed they were their own distinct race. Did that mean I might turn into one of the creatures we’d fought someday? It was a sobering thought, as if there wasn’t enough to worry about in this damn place. “Yeah.”

“Good. Then let’s go, we don’t know how many more of them are out there and we need to catch up with the others.”