C RANK DEMON EXTERMINATION REQUEST (ACCEPTED)

"Finally..."

In the forests far to the west of the ever-elusive Cait Shelter, the town of Paragon sat hidden in trees. It was a small village that kept to itself for decades; in that village, no one had lived longer than Daley.

"What are you reading grandpa?"

"Oh nothing dear, it's just a good omen that's all."

The older man had seen his daughter be birthed, married, and give birth to two more. Daley had lived a long life and was by far the oldest resident in Paragon and the one who had the most experience in the twisted game of life.

"Does that mean we can go outside?"

"Not yet honey, only when it's safe."

That's why he had to be the one to take the reigns when a demon attacked the village. The first head had died in one of the attacks, and that left the town clueless and scared, at the mercy of the demon running through the forests. No one else wanted to be in charge, so Daley stepped up; he figured it was an excellent way to end his life.

"When will it be safe?"

"Soon, we'll all be fine, little one."

Even when his back was hunched with age and his hair white with time, he took the head of the village. He took the lead to the town and took in his two grandchildren, who had been orphaned far too soon.

"Even mom..."

"No... she's not coming back, I'm afraid."

That's why he was here, calming his two scared and trembling granddaughters in the cellar of the most prominent house in Paragon and telling them about brighter pasts and better futures, away from when the demon first appeared in their village.

"I miss mom."

"I do to Mabel."

Daley still dreamed of it; the original demon had slaughtered over twenty villagers during three months. The deaths had started slowly at first; the disappearing villagers had soon been marked as dead and were quickly met with the bodies of other unlucky souls that had wandered through the forest at hours they weren't supposed to.

"I hate those demons..."

"So do I, Amber."

The demon had picked off their village population from 87 to 56 in a few months, and they couldn't do anything about it. No mages or mercenaries were in the village, and any time a few brave souls tried to leave to get help, the messengers were picked off. The town was being destroyed inch by inch every night, and the villagers hadn't been able to do anything about it.

"Are you going to kill them, grandpa?"

"...no, not me."

Then, one day, the deaths had stopped, and the demon seemingly vanished overnight. No one knew why, but it was like a miracle to the villagers who had thought they would be killed, either by the demon or by starvation, since they hadn't been able to hunt. It was a blessing; the villagers took it as a sign that the devil had finally moved on from their village. With the few weeks they had been granted of peace, they had hunted enough food to last them till winter and buried their dead at the edge of town so the disease wouldn't spread.

"Who's going to kill them?"

"A mage from Phantom Lord."

That was when one of the villagers saw it. The demon picking them off like some sort of twisted game was living at the edge of the village. It was hidden under the guise of a reclusive family living near the outskirts for one reason or another. One of the villagers saw it, masquerading in the skin of a little girl like a sick trophy.

"When will they come?"

"I don't know."

After that, the village went on lockdown, and no one was allowed near the edge of town or the old house the demon family used to live in. Any time the demon or one of its siblings came into town; the townsfolk would rally, yell, and throw whatever they could to scare them off. Safety in numbers seemed to have worked so far, but who knew how long that would last.

"Will we turn into demons too?"

"No, Mabel, sweetheart, we're safe here."

The oldest girl was already being devoured and turned bit by bit; if the demon could do that to the girl, who was to say it couldn't do it to them? Who was to say it couldn't spread to the rest of the villagers like a disease?

"Will the mage turn into a demon..."

"No, sweetheart, mages from Phantom Lord are skilled. Whoever they are will know how to kill it without getting infected."

Daley wasn't willing to take that chance, not with his only living family and the rest of his village under his care, so he sent a request. With all his money and the support of the villagers behind him, he asked for a mage to kill the demon and the family it was hiding with.

"Will it be painful..."

"...I'm unsure, Amber..."

To kill the family that was already infected and beyond saving.

"I hope it is."

"...So do I."

He was only glad that they had already buried the parents, so the demon hadn't had the chance to infect them too.

July 10th, x778

The train ride to the nearest town to Paragon took a few days, most of which Sho and Vera spent drawing or playing the guessing game with shadow puppets. It was a pleasant ride; it had been a while since Vera had just been doing something without Siegrain; having that time alone with his shadow was nice.

"Damn, cheater..."

Even if his shadow was still a stickler for technicalities.

"I don't care what you say; a raven's a crow. That point was mine," Vera mumbled heatedly as he walked through the lush forests. His eyes twitched as he glanced at Sho, who gave him a playful shrug, not ashamed of splitting hairs during their last game. Vera was going to win, too, damn picky shadow.

"Next time, I'm gonna win."

'Tug' 'Tug'

"Fuck off," Vera huffed as Sho laughed silently on the nearby tree trunks. Vera could only roll his eyes as they walked through the woods towards the village cooped up somewhere out here in the middle of nowhere. Vera sighed as they found a dirt-ridden trail that would hopefully guide them the rest of the way, "Fucking finally."

About time.

When Vera got to Ashanti, the nearest town to Paragon, he asked how to find the isolated village and they pointed west and said keep walking. Well he'd walked and walked and walked for an entire day before he found this dirt trail; that's how out of the way this stupid village was, "Come on, Sho, we should be getting close soon."

Sho only gave a brief nod, the two taking the trail a few miles west until they reached the first indication that the course was ending. The dirt road was dwindling, and signs of footsteps and trampled grass were spreading. The last tree had a symbol nailed to it, indicating the village just a few steps past the tree line.

Paragon

Underwhelming if Vera was being honest.

So this is Paragon...

Paragon wasn't a big village by any means, and it seemed to be an old place. The village houses were wooden structures built from surrounding forests a long time ago, with a single mountain in the distance and a large stream running through the edge of the village. If Vera had to guess, this village held at most 100 people, and even then, it was a generous estimate, considering the town's state.

This place has seen better days.

The houses that should have been in decent condition were too troubled, even if they were old. Some fell apart at the seams, and burn marks were seen on nearly every corner. The air smelled of foul odors and dust, and the noise was nonexistent. Even in a small town, there should have been a little buzz of activity, but it was eerily quiet like the city was trying its best to be silent. There wasn't a single sign of anyone living here, and that was anything but a good sign.

"Hey, Sho, check and see if anyone's here."

Vera was pretty sure he was in a ghost town.

'Tug'

Vera watched without hope as Sho slithered towards one of the nearby houses. Meanwhile, Vera watched and leaned against a tree at the edge of town. He was ready to head to Magnolia after this because he was 90% sure this place was abandoned, and the flier had been a massive waste of time.

"Dammit..."

Which also meant he wouldn't be paying off his debt anytime soon.

"I knew this was too good to be-"

'Tug' 'Tug' 'Tug'

Vera stiffened, raising an eyebrow as he saw Sho return from one of the run-down houses and pointed back towards the town. His shadow gave a quick and silent explanation and made Vera tilt his head in complete confusion.

"They're hiding?"

Maybe the flyer wasn't a hoax after all.

It was about an hour later, and Vera was still searching for the address of the man who had put up the request, using Sho to sneak a look at any houses that might be hiding citizens in it until they found a match. He probably could have found him quicker if he had asked around, but he hadn't wanted to scare the petrified villagers any more with his sudden appearance.

"Who is he..."

"Is it a demon..."

"Did they infect another one..."

"Remember what Mr. Daley said..."

"...stay away from the window..."

"Don't catch him looking at you..."

"...don't go outside."

He had already caught their peeking eyes through some of the windows and the hushed words they spilled to their children to stay inside and hide. It was better for Vera to search for the one who requested it by himself rather than ask around and risk startling the villagers even further.

They're not used to strangers...

This village was tiny, and he doubted they had a steady stream of tourists. His sudden appearance, along with the fact that they were already on edge from the 'demons,' justified this initial reaction, although if he was being honest with himself...

Then again...

The flier's claim of demons was starting to hold more weight than he had initially given it credit for.

This place reeks of death.

That was the putrid smell he had caught when he first entered the village. He hadn't realized it until he saw the few grave sights near the forest's edge. The place reeked of dead bodies; the fact that there were barely any traces of blood made it even worse.

Whatever it was, it didn't let them put up a fight.

Vera was starting to see the seriousness of the mission, and with every burnt house and broken window, he passed, the flier's claims held more weight. There had to have been a demon, or at least a monster of some kind, that went through here; all the damage pointed to it, but that begged the question.

Why is it listed as C rank?

The damage constituted a B rank at the very least, and it wasn't like the reward was an issue. One hundred twenty thousand jewels was up to par with a low-mid B rank request; there was no reason for the village head not to make it B rank. Unless he hadn't thought of it when he put in the recommendation?

'Tug'

Vera would have to ask the older man himself.

So this is the house...

Vera hummed as he walked to an old yet beautiful wooden building near the center of town. It was the most prominent building in the village, about two rooms wide and having two stories rather than the usual one that most other houses had. If he had to guess, this was probably built to be a manor but got stopped early in construction.

Now, the reward makes a little more sense.

Vera didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the morbid thought, knocking on the door while Sho slithered out of the house to rest beside him. Sho was playing dead, so to speak, so none of the villagers got scared by a living shadow.

Thanks, Sho.

'Tug'

Vera smiled softly before he turned back to the door, hearing the creaks of wooden floorboards until the knob twisted and an older man greeted him. The man's eyes were old and dull green, with white hair and a hunched back that seemed to be screaming for rest. Vera's first impression was that the man had lived too long, but he kept it to himself.

"Who are you?"

The man didn't look like the chatty type.

"I'm Vera; I'm here for the job request," Vera said formally as he took out the folded-up flyer and held it up in one hand for the old man to see. Vera held up his other hand so the man could see the black guild mark on the back of it.

"Ah," the old man gasped like a glimmer of hope had fallen on him after a long time. Vera quirked his eyes as the man smiled at him; it was honest but off-putting in the sense that Vera couldn't get his finger on it. It was the same with the tone of his voice that spoke with a sense of benevolence and gratitude, tinged with something darker, "Thank you."

It was odd; Vera hadn't expected his appearance to be so welcomed after the cold greeting the town had given him.

"My name is Daley; please come in."

There was something off with the old man.

"We can discuss the mission and the rewards."

He wasn't going to complain, though.

Vera had to admit that Daley's house was pretty nice. It reminded him of some old castle sections in Oak Town, albeit stone was replaced with drying wood and dusted windows. The decorative walls were lined with paintings, vases, and books that were probably older than Vera was.

"You live alone?" Vera asked as he ran over a dusted stair railing. The two went to the second floor, where Daley's office was. His eyes quirked as Daley called back in a mirthful chuckle, "I have two grandchildren I care for. Excuse them for not being here; I asked them to play downstairs until they're safe."

"Safe from me?"

"Safe from the demons," Daley answered without skipping a beat, making the final step to the second floor and walking to his office as Vera followed. Vera raised an eyebrow as he saw the mess of papers and fliers for demon extermination requests littering the office, "You printed a lot of these."

"I didn't know how many would get through."

"Guess that makes sense," Vera mumbled as he stepped over another flier on the floor; his eyes quirked as he saw Daley slowly walk towards the desk near the back window. Vera watched with a hint of concern and slight wariness as Daley huffed and forced open a drawer that had probably been closed for decades. Panting from the exertion it took on his old bones, Daley sat down, took out a small necklace, and placed it on the table.

"Here, this is the reward. You can have it after the demons are dead."

Vera frowned as he looked at the necklace, seemingly laced with silver rose petals and a ruby jewel as the centerpiece. He didn't want to be that guy, but he wouldn't pretend he didn't see what the older man was trying to pull. The necklace was beautiful and well crafted but was worth less than 120,000 jewels.

"This isn't what the flyer-"

"It's enchanted."

Daley's words shut Vera up instantly, his eyes wide as he looked up to ensure the old man wasn't bluffing, "You're serious?"

"I am," Daley said as he traced the old silver and ruby trinket with his wrinkled fingers, his voice dipping to nostalgic wistfulness, "It's a family heirloom. Whoever wears it will smell like fresh roses and have skin as clean as spring water."

Vera watched in tense silence as the old man sighed, "My daughter used it for her wedding day."

Vera glanced away respectfully as the older man got lost in his memories. Vera's thoughts whirled because now he was sure the man wasn't lying; he could tell by how his eyes fell at the mention of his daughter. That meant the necklace was enchanted, and considering only Vera had to find a magic shop that would fetch him a reasonable price, the chain was worth 120,000 jewels.

"Look, I don't want to come off as ungrateful..."

No, it was probably worth more.

"But why does the request not match the reward?"

With something like this on the table, the request should have easily made the requirements for B rank. Vera couldn't see why the older man put it as C rank instead and risked having an unqualified mage claim it instead of one cleared for B ranks. It wasn't like there was any reason not to; the only restriction B ranks had instead of C ranks was that someone from the magic government had to approve them first to ensure they weren't fraudulent.

"Why isn't this a B-rank mission?"

Vera's suspicions seemed to get across to Daley, who gave a tired sigh and shrugged with aching bones and a grinning voice, "The demons have been quiet for too long; the villagers and I didn't know when they would attack again; it could be any day now. I wanted a mage to come as soon as possible."

Vera narrowed his eyes as Daley chuckled a little too freely, "I figured a high-paying C rank request would be picked up quicker than an average B rank one."

Vera didn't say anything, letting the silence settle for a bit before humming and nodding along like the idiot Daley thought he was, "That makes sense."

That makes no sense.

Sure, Daley's logic made sense, but his actions didn't. The B rank request might have taken longer, but he said it himself; the demons were quiet. If Vera had been an incompetent mage looking for an easy payday, Daley and the village would have been screwed. Vera didn't take Daley as the type to take that risk, not after seeing how desperate the village head was to get rid of the demons once and for all.

Is he hiding something...

Vera's logical side screamed that he probably was, but confronting the old man wouldn't help. Whatever the man's reasons were, that didn't change the fact that there was a severe threat in this village; the graves had been enough proof of that; it was better for Vera to handle the demons first and then deal with whatever weird shit the old man was hiding.

I'm probably overthinking it anyway...

Vera was already on edge because everyone in town was weary of him; he would be lying if he said that wasn't affecting his paranoia.

But just in case...

Vera mentally prodded Sho, who answered instantly and slipped silently under the door to the office. Vera turned back to Daley, who had taken out a lacrimal orb and was calling someone to explain to the villagers that the Phantom Lord mage had arrived. This was an action Vera was grateful for even if he was suspicious because he would rather not deal with the entire village watching him like a hawk when he left to kill the demons.

I've only been here an hour, and this job already sucks...

Vera almost wished he'd picked a different one instea-

'Tug' 'Tug' 'Tug'

Vera stalled as he felt his shadow tug on the connection, Vera glancing behind him discreetly to see Sho's thin trail slipping under the door.

Three tugs?

Not good, not bad, just weird? That was... unexpected, but it relieved Vera's suspicions slightly. Vera could deal with weird whenever he needed to. As long as it wasn't bad, like demons threatening to kill off the villagers bad, it wasn't a priority.

Hey Sho...

Vera was still curious, though.

What'd you see?

Vera quirked his eyes, hoping that Sho could discreetly tell him what he found but it was too late. An instant later, he heard the lacrimal call end and was brought back to the conversation by Daley's commanding voice, "Well, that's settled; the villagers should be more receptive to you now. As for the demons, they are in a wooden house past the edge of town. The family that used to live there preferred privacy, so I'll ask one of the villagers to take you so you don't get lost."

Vera turned back to Daley, shelving the uncomfortable feeling he got from his instincts and his connection with Sho for later as Daley gave him a tired grin as if the nightmare he was living in was finally about to be over, "He was the one who first spotted them."

Vera figured the demons deserved his attention more than this unnerving old man.

It turns out the person they brought to take Vera to the edge of town was a hunter, one of the village's last ones if he went off the mood. His name was Shin, and he had angular features, tan skin, black hair, and narrow eyes, his stature lean and voice sharp, "They're down the trail a few minutes away."

"Thanks," Vera said idly as he stepped towards the trail, stalling as he felt a hand on his shoulder. Vera controlled the instinctive urge to break it as he glanced back and saw Shin looking at him with pleading eyes, "I know this village may not be much, but it's my home."

Vera narrowed his eyes as he saw a few villagers leaving their houses. No longer fearful of him but more respectful, the few children he could see pointing at the guild mark on his hand like it was the key to solving all their problems.

"Please kill them."

Vera would have rather been hated if he had been honest. It held less weight than their expectations, but he had a guild to represent, so he softly removed the hand on his shoulder and mumbled, "That's what I was hired for."

"Thank you."

Vera had to hide his discomfort from the gratefulness reflected in the villager's and Shin's eyes as he walked into the forest. His footsteps even as he made his way down the trail, waiting until he was out of sight of the watching villagers to glance at Sho, who had sought to animate himself now that no one was watching, "Hey Sho, you up for scouting for me?"

Scouting was the logical thing to do in this situation, where he didn't have specifics on the demons he'd be killing. They seemed to be young from the very little that Shin had told him, but if Vera was honest with himself: "I don't trust their judgment."

Vera had gotten barely anything of use from the stoic hunter, and he wasn't willing to bet his life on that. Especially since he'd be screwed if he faced three full fledge demons instead of young ones like Shin had implied during their walk to the forest's edge.

'They're tiny but dangerous, like foxes. Don't give them time to think; just kill them. They might deceive you if you dawdle.'

That was all he got from the stoic hunter, and honestly, it was a little annoying. Vera would have liked more info before he tried to kill three demons, but Shin seemed to be tight-lipped on the specifics, so he would just have to scout. Thankfully, Sho was the best scout there was, and if Shin wasn't lying, then there shouldn't be any trouble killing demons who didn't know how to use their power.

"Can you help me out?"

Vera watched as Sho nodded from its place on the nearby trees. Vera held out his hand silently as his shadow took out his sword and tossed it to him; Vera immediately hooked the sword to his waist; he didn't want to go into a fight unarmed if he could help it.

"Thanks, Sho," Vera said as Sho nodded and slithered ahead at blinding speeds. Vera continued at a much slower pace as he fiddled with the green sword at his waist, palming the hilt of it as he walked through the empty forest. His thoughts on the situation circled each other while the afternoon sunlight littered his footsteps.

"I can't wait to finish this job..."

There was something in the village haunted by demons that just put him on edge. He wasn't sure what it was; it could have been the peering eyes, vague words, or the strange feeling of being constantly watched, but it was unnerving.

'Tug' 'Tug'

Vera just wanted to get the request over with so he could leave.

'TUG' 'TUG'

Vera flinched as he felt Sho tug on the connection harshly, bringing Vera out of his wandering thoughts with the force of a sledgehammer. Vera blinked in surprise as Sho came rushing back with a stature of fury on his blank face. Vera, in turn, tensed up and grasped his sword as he got ready to fight whatever was putting Sho on edge, "What's wrong, Sho?"

Were there more than they told us about?

Vera watched with narrowed eyes and tense muscles, his ears trained on the trail ahead and his eyes on his shadow. Vera's eyes slowly widened as he watched the explanation Sho gave in sequence, every silent syllable making Vera's grip on his blade tighter.

"What?"

Vera didn't hesitate to run to the shed, throwing his sword at Sho for storage as he ran to the trail's end; if what Sho said was true he didn't want to scare any of them. Meanwhile Sho took his sword and swallowed it, before melting to the bottom of Vera's feet and giving Vera bursts of speed as he ran towards the end of the trail with a single minded focus, "Are you sure?"

'Tug'

"Shit."

Vera grit his teeth as he bolted to the cabin in the woods, his eyes widened as he finally reached the tiny log cabin with disgruntled windows and moss growing into the walls. The only sign of life was the small trail of footsteps in the dirt that veered away from the cabin and deeper in the forest, towards the river, if he had to guess. The place had seen better days, but Vera ignored his concerns as he bolted to the door and swung it open, hoping they'd forgive his intrusion as he called out, "Hey! Is anyone in here!"

Vera looked around the kitchen, which looked barren, and the dusted and distraught living room. Vera clicked his tongue as he turned to Sho, who was watching from his place on the wall, "Hey, you said there was one still here, right? Where?"

Vera watched as Sho nodded and walked along the walls to a door near the back of the shed. Vera opened it to reveal a pair of bunk beds with white sheets and jewels scattered across the floor. His eyes slipped past the money and locked to the 12-year-old with white hair matted with sweat and tan skin that was incredibly pale. He was still sleeping in the bottom bunk of the right bed, his eyes squeezed shut. The only good thing about his condition was the wet rag on his forehead, "Sho, remember those footsteps we saw outside?"

'Tug'

Vera gave Sho a large loan of magic; he and Sho would be separated for a bit anyway; it was better if Sho didn't have the trail as a weakness to account for if he did happen to run into something dangerous. The last thing he needed was for Sho to dissipate and return here before finding what Vera was looking for.

"Follow them."

Vera glanced at his shadow before going to the corner, picking up the bucket of water, taking it to the bed, and holding a hand out. His silent request met instantly as Sho spit out a fresh towel so Vera could change the rags. Vera gave a silent nod as he walked back to Elfman's side so he could do just that.

"Be quick," Vera said quickly as he exchanged the rags, his eyes narrowing as he mentally discounted the idea of Mira being here. There was no way she would leave her little brother alone in this condition if that were the case, which must have meant she was preoccupied with something else. That meant the only other person who could have left the trail was alone and too young to venture off into the woods alone.

"I'm pretty sure Lisanna went to the river to get food."

Vera continued watching over Elfman as he caught Sho nodding out of the corner of his eyes. Vera's eyes were still trained on the sick Strauss child as Sho slithered away. Out of the house and towards the footsteps that led downstream; however far it went unknown, but Vera would just have to hope Lisanna was close by.

"What a mess of a mission..."

Paragon wasn't safe for them after all.