Split of the Worlds (18+)

Chapter 11.4

The voice inside her, the one that analyzed his motives and pointed out cracks, clues, and grounds for doubting the lord of the fortress's consistent malice, was growing louder and louder. That voice shouldn't even exist...

Was she going mad? Or was she simply weak? Perhaps it was normal, in a situation like this, to cling to a straw, no matter how fragile it might be. And no matter what price that clinging might exact.

She couldn't and wouldn't give up now. Yes, so far she had always failed when it came down to it. She hadn't been able to flee. She hadn't resisted the pact with the demonlord. She hadn't killed him when she'd had the chance. She had bound herself to him. She hadn't yet found a way out of the fortress, even though she could move more freely.

But there would be other opportunities. Perhaps this adjutant would really distract the demonlord enough to give Veidja a chance.

Patience.

This brooding was pointless. The warrior had to move, had to shake off her thoughts for a moment. She had basically never brooded before; it just wasn't her nature. She had known the rules. She had known what her task was. Who she was. This endless circling of thoughts gave her a headache.

She would go look for the garden. Even if it was locked, the sight of the gate calmed her. The knowledge that a small wilderness awaited beyond it, full of rich colors and burgeoning life.

She briefly considered whether it was worth changing into different clothes. After all, the garments she was currently wearing had been chosen to underscore her status as an accessory to the lord of the fortress. It didn't matter. She could move easily in them; everything was of excellent quality and a comfortable cut. Why give that up?

Since the layout of rooms and caves within the fortress was constantly shifting, Veidja simply set off. She avoided the throne room, which had a fixed location, as well as the quarters of the lesser demons. The arena and the smithy would (probably) have been in the other direction, but she didn't want to go there either. There were other side passages that were less frequently used. Most of the time, she was lucky enough to eventually come across the garden there. Only sometimes it seemed as though it didn't want to be found.

These corridors just looked too much alike... For the moment, however, she was content just to be searching. The main thing was that the movement helped clear her head a little.

Veidja dodged a few oncoming crawlers. They probably would have made way for her, but she didn't want to come into contact with them. Unless she could kill them. It was only a moment, but she had been focusing too much on the lesser demons, so she could no longer avoid the adjutant, who was suddenly heading toward her, without obviously making a run for it.

The tall woman with shoulder-length red curls looked at her kindly. She moved confidently and naturally in this fortress that was foreign to her. And with a captain on her heels, who was likely watching her more than protecting her.

"How wonderful that we meet. We didn't really get a chance to introduce ourselves earlier." The adjutant bowed slightly to the angel. "I've heard so much about you."

Veidja just looked at her, breathing shallowly, remaining on guard. The encounters she'd had so far with representatives of the seducer caste made her fear the worst.

"Please let me know how I can be of service to you." A flash of blue from her eyes. "Of course, only insofar as it doesn't interfere with the master's wishes." Of course. Sehai managed to look regretful as she said this.

Veidja was once again amazed at how little she could distinguish between genuine expressions and the demons' masks. But she sensed something. A flutter in her thoughts, a cautious probing. The demoness was trying to test her defenses.