Scarlet

“No,” Amelia says without letting me explain anything the moment I mentioned my plan to her. And Allen just looks at me with a tired frown on his face as he says, “Did you really abandon a changeling to me to come up with this ridiculous plan?”

“Hey! It’s not ridiculous!” I exclaim, crossing my arms from my place back in Allen’s office as the three of us completely ignore the changeling that is currently tied up in the corner. A changeling I may or may not have forgotten earlier.

“You absolutely forgot him,” Tar comments, sounding more than a little amused.

Okay, so I forgot him.

Sue me.

He snorts.

“Really?” Allen says, taking the lead against me. “What part of going to Tartarus where your Grandfather would immediately find you is a sound idea? You’re the only hope we have in this war!”

“Well you don’t have to worry on that front, because Gramps won’t stop me from doing anything,” I tell him with a light shrug. And when he’s about to argue with that fact, both Tar and Amelia nod their heads in agreement with a short, “Yeah,” and, “She’s right,” making him shut his mouth immediately.

Deciding to explain, I say, “I could tell just from our negotiations that Gramps isn’t feeling entirely into this war anymore. Not when I’ve given him an out that he can take, and not when he knows I want the war to end. So he won’t stop me from doing what I want.” I purse my lips and glance to the side as I add, “Although he might drop by for a visit and talk my ear off for a while…”

Tar snorts at that, meanwhile I notice a frightened look showing on the bound changeling’s face for some reason.

Allen closes his eyes and rubs his temples with a sigh.

“I mean, it’s the truth,” I add with a shrug. And I notice Amelia trying to smother a smirk of amusement on her face.

“That’s not the issue,” Amelia says after calming down. Although I still see the corners of her lips trying to quirk upwards. “The problem is if one of the Demon Lords aside from your father find you and capture you. While your father and grandfather won’t do anything to stop you, they also won’t just let you go if some other demon manages to capture you as long as the demon treats you well. They’ll just make it a challenge for you to escape on your own again.”

I raise a brow at that and comment, “And why exactly should I be worried about that? It’s not like I’m planning on being captured, and the same would happen here on Earth. And besides,” I grin, “you Knights managed to conceal yourselves while on Tartarus, so why can’t you do the same to me?”

Amelia opens her mouth to reply, only to close it again when another voice enters the conversation, “Why, my lovely pup, I would love to help you!”

Everyone in the room turns to find Black just lying down tossing a ball into the air on one of the sofas, somehow having made it there without a single one of us noticing.

“You can knock, you know…” Allen mutters without much conviction.

Black ignores him as he says, “Come on out Gabs!”

“If this was what you pulled me out here for, I will agree,” Purple says after suddenly appearing in the corner of the room. But for some reason I feel like she’s been there for a while. Just that we never noticed her for some reason.

“Seriously… there’s a door…” Allen mutters once again, but just like the last time, he’s ignored.

“Why are you willing to help her?” Amelia asks, sounding slightly defensive as she moves between me and Black, apparently not worried about Purple behind us.

Black just catches the ball once more and looks at her with a raised brow while saying, “I mean, I owe her a couple favors, now don’t I?” He glances at me with an amused smirk on his face. “You never did check in on those, little puppy!”

Do not punch him in the face. Do not punch him in the face. Do not punch him in the face.

I take a deep breath and let it out. Then I make eye contact with him and smile, saying, “So you’ll help me stay hidden on Tartarus?”

“Yep!” he exclaims, a bright smile stretching across his face as if my own smile made him happy. Then he nods towards Purple and adds, “And Gabs here will to.” He leans in towards me and whispers, acting like everyone in the room can’t hear him, “She owes me a teensy little favor!”

Wait, the Purple Knight owes the Black Knight a favor?

I glance at Purple, only to find her eyes still closed just like they’ve been since we first saw her here. And I only just now notice that she’s in her young form, the woman wearing all purple of a very pale shade that matches her long hair, with her glowing purple eyes sticking out under the cowl of her robe even with her eyes closed, proving unable to keep the purple light hidden behind her eye lids.

Wonder what he did to get her to owe him? Normally the Purple Knight is completely detached from regular affairs of Earth.

Out of nowhere, Black appears right in front of my face, the cowl of his cloak up over his face and a mask of shadows covering anything and everything underneath it except the glowing blue eyes that I can see peering through the shadows.

“So are you ready, Scarlet Art Asger de Archeron, daughter of the Blood Calamity and granddaughter to the Demon King?” Black’s voice comes out distorted, and his tone instantly makes me realize that his personality has switched.

Oh shit.

Then a wave of shadows spreads out to cover the room before I find myself and everyone else right in front of a Class IV Gate located somewhere in demon territory. And the moment I say, “I’m ready,” I feel myself being pushed towards the gate.

I turn back around to look behind me, only to find Black and Purple both raising their hands towards me as they begin chanting something.

A ritual skill.

Black and Purple magic in the form of shadows and purple light begin to leave their hands before merging as they continue making their way towards me. Then the magic forms a thin layer over my body and fades away as if it never existed.

“May your hunt be fruitful,” Black states, his voice devoid of emotion. Meanwhile Purple just nods her head.

And without a word of warning, I feel myself being pushed through the Gate with Amelia and Allen waving at me and shouting to stay safe.