The Demon’s Bride

The man clicked his tongue, blaming his poor luck toward stumble over someone like Elise but then he was also confident that he could win. After all what can a delicate woman like her do?

Elise could see the thoughts that passed by the man's eyes. She didn't waste her time and directed the barrel to the dark sorcerer. Fear that he would turn like what his friend had turn to, the man ran away to dodge the bullet, unexpectedly he saw how Elise didn't pull the trigger.

"Is it your first time doing this?" The dark sorcerer asked as he ran, walking around her. 

Elise turned her body around, but not in panic as her eyes could followed the direction the man took even though he had run pass a human's speed. 

"It is my first time," answered Elise. As she became more aware of her Demon's lineage running in her body, she could also feel a part of her turning like Demon. She was calm despite danger, her senses became sharper, and something in her had overcome human's possibility.

"I assumed it was your ability to do this but I was wrong. It was actually a beginner's luck. What a shame for you to die soon," the man laughed again, watching Elise's expression and frowned. He wondered why the woman was calm? When he moved faster and looked at her, all of a sudden, Elise's eyes snapped behind her where he was and chill run down his spine, causing him to run away.

"We can test whether it is a beginner's luck. Come," Elise demanded confidently. The dark sorcerer was ticked off by how Elise had demanded him and how he felt cornered by a mere human girl. His hand cracked and he muttered some kind of a spell that caused a sphere of wind forming over his palm.

He sent the sphere toward her and Elise, who noticed it, quickly dodge the sphere. Her eyes then looked behind her to see the tree had been sliced. This person is the one who has killed most of the victims by cutting them to pieces with his wind sphere!

Elise clenched her hand on the pistol, calming herself so she won't turn her pistol into ash and directed the gun toward the man when she saw the dark sorcerer's eyes snapped on the person who came by after hearing a loud gunshot.

"Move away!" Elise yelled but the dark sorcerer had grin wider. He used the wind sphere on his hand to direct it toward the human man from the tree he had crawled on when he noticed how he suddenly unable to move. His eyes slowly went down and shot wide over seeing the black hands formed underneath his feet that stopped him from moving.

Using the chance, Elise pointed her pistol toward the man. The dark witched cursed underneath his breaths as the bullet hits his head. 

"Are you alright?" Elise asked the man who sat on the ground, fear and shock colored his face green. "Can you stand up?" She offered her hand but the man was too fearful and instead crawled back and Elise can't help but sigh. "They are dark sorcerers."

"I-I see!" Stuttered the man and he breathed out relief, thinking he was safe. "Thank you very much... miss. You have saved me! I owe you my life."

Elise politely showed the man a smile and she didn't waste her time. "Ian," she whispered to the tree near her and waited for him to come beside her like usual. But unlike what happen often in the past, Ian didn't come.

Elise narrowed her eyes and moved outside the village. She walked to the edge of the village that was guarded with a wooden fence that reached to her hip. Her hand then raised to cross over the fence only for her palm to be deflected from the air as if an invisible wall was created outside the fence. 

"We have been trapped," whispered Elise to herself with a click of her tongue. This was dangerous. There are still eight other dark sorcerers in the place and based from what she had heard on Warren's death shadow, there are also relics here and possibly a person with a high status amongst the dark sorcerer's clique as the person was the one who had given his order and instructions. The man might be the key to solve all the trouble the dark sorcerers had made but alone, Elise wasn't sure how far she could do it by herself.

Once she made sure the man who she saved was safe and sound, she left to meet Ernest and Warren who had sat in front of the house with fruits in front of them. The dark had turned yellowish dark.

"Lady Elise, I heard gunshot from the opposite side of the village, some other candidates went to check. If I'm not wrong, the direction where the sound came was from the house we visited the first time."

"It was me," whispered Elise in a voice only she and Ernest could hear. She could explain to the rest that they were dark sorcerers and she had been the one who killed them, but there are still eight dark sorcerer amongst them which she need to hunt. If known that she had been the one who killed the two dark sorcerers, it would be difficult to find the other eight dark sorcerer as they would be on guard when she met them.

"Oh." Ernest answered, surprised turn his expression blank white. 

"They are dark sorcerers," answered Elise and the man nodded vigorously. The man from earlier and now Ernest, did they thought she had killed them without reason?

"Of course, they are! Secret with you, Lady Elise. I trust you more than anyone here. I am sure you won't kill people without tact-" Ernest's voice was overlaid by Warren who spoke,

"Did you find anything, Miss Elise? You left earlier to find your missing belonging, have you find them?" the vampires asked and Elise showed the man a smile.

"Yes I did," and she pulled the perfume at the same time, "This is what I forgot."

Maxwell who was sitting afar narrowed his eyes when Elise had pulled the perfume. Unlike women, the men didn't know what the use to wear the perfume and they didn't think much of it which was something Elise had guessed.

"Forgive my tactless words, but I thought you would be one of those women who care less about your appearance," Warren chuckled, taking a seat next to them, "The fruits are taken from the deepest part of the forest."

Elise held the round balloon-like material which was built next to the spray and when she pressed the puff, the liquid inside the perfume sprayed over her. "It isn't my appearance that I care but the effect. I don't feel hungry, please excuse me to take  a little walk," she said, putting the perfume to her pocket.

Walking around the place with more people, Elise kept herself low profile as she passed by more people in the open field not too far from the house where Ernest and Warren was staying at. 

Passing by, she watched how some people sneezed and others coughed. When she passed by the log Maxwell was sitting at, the man turned his brownish golden eyes to her and pulled a smile.

"Tricky girl," the man remarked in whisper. 

Far from them, the Relics who had been waiting for the night to come pull a wide smile. "The Demon's Bride had killed our brethren. She appeared harmless but we should know how awfully lethal she is. Proceed with caution."

"Yessir!" came the collective answer from the Relics. 

Outside the barrier, a single black crow with golden eyes frowned when he noticed something strange forming outside the fence...