The Demon Wolf (Book 1 of The Devil and the Huntsman)

Chapter 74

At that exact moment, Julius knew that the new commander had lost his will of being part of the light. Even though Balvu believes he fights for the light, his mind and soul were dominated by Harald; the new king conquered every man who once fought under his banner. Harald did not dominate Julius's mind because he knew that Julius would come for him and try to take the throne for himself. The demon hunter could feel Mephiles hunger for the bodies of the people that Harald dominated. He can understand the desire the Demon Wolf is having while listening to his master speaking with the ones who blamed him on that night.

It's true. Harald has become something I feared would never be possible. He may have had a taste of my power, but he will still pay the price for his treachery against me. Julius thought. He was still pretty exhausted from everything he did last night while trying his best to defend Loftain from the night creatures.

"Father, what's going on?" Lagertha asked.

"We're following them for now. We have to do what they say before we do what we promised. Trust me at the moment," Julius answered. It was the only thing she wanted to ask as she walked with her father back to Loftain.

Lagertha was confused and speechless with the sudden change of heart from the ones who came to bring them back to their city. Balvu may seem like he is not evil and looks as if he has not betrayed Julius, but it was hard for the demon hunter to be convinced. It was almost impossible for anyone serving King Harald to convince Julius that he does not bring darkness from the castle. Julius, Lucy, and Lagertha continued following Balvu and his men to the place where Midland's people were there to convince Julius to join them. A few minutes later, they finally reached the entrance doors to the city, and there was a group of guards standing behind the ramparts.

The barrier of Loftain was still a bit damaged because of the dragon-fire, causing it to burn to ashes. The power of Mephiles was enough to keep most of the fallen buildings and walls to be risen and rebuilt in a blink of an eye. Harald simply sat down on his throne and watched a quarter of Loftain rise while raising his hands. It was by his sorcery that made most of what was burned down be reduced to stone. Harald never thought about rebuilding the palace because he believed he no longer had any use for it.

He knew that most everyone would move to the new city he built because it was much closer to the castle. Julius needed to give himself plenty of time to prepare himself and gather his army to take the court for himself. His wife and daughter were silent as they followed Julius into the city to be seen and heard by the people. The town still smelled of death and fire, but the citizens were glad to sense a ray of hope with Harald as their king. Some people were gathering things that were lying down on their houses while the others watched Julius and his family walk into the heart of the city.

How much power has he used? Harald knows nothing. My fire will melt him before he can melt me. Julius thought. He despised the king and loathed the idea of Harald not seeing his wife and son be with them before the year ends.

It seems now that Harald will not have to worry about seeing them because Julius will be the one to meet with them and tell them all that has happened. Erica and Brant were the only logical people who left Midland when they had the chance. Those two refused to sit through the horror and desolation of war, as they knew they could not stand a chance against the demons. Julius knew the night creatures would return to Midland and fight against humans again and try to retake the kingdom once more. In the eyes of many, Midland was once considered the greatest of all kingdoms before the demons took over.

Now it has been turned and dominated under the reign of King Harald as all of his enemies fear him and Julius. A few seconds later, the people gathered around and noticed Julius and his family were walking to what was left of the palace. Balvu was still leading them, and the morning made Julius feel a bit exhausted inside, but seeing the court at its current state made him unable to find a good sleep. As long as he lived, he knew he would never sleep in the night; everyone who fought in the long battle would never sleep in the night ever again. Balvu walks in front of the people as Julius stands in front of the people and his wife and daughter.

"It's true. The demon hunter is alive. God has not abandoned such a powerful man!" A lady said.

"Even the dragons of Hell fear a man like Julius. His sword cuts down even the mightiest of demons. The king is lucky to have such a man," a man said.

"The stories were true. He is the one true demon hunter. With his skill and strength, he shall make Midland great again!" A girl said.

"Whoever this man is, he was sent by God to save us. With him by our side, those monsters will leave us forever. We are honored to have such a mighty knight," a boy said. Julius stared at every citizen who stood before him, and all he could feel was desperation and disappointment.

They might believe he has saved every man and woman, but in reality, he felt cold and empty inside. He squints his eyes and looks away from the people as they say wondrous things about him. He did not want to become one with Harald, even though he gave Harald one chance to rule by his side. As he gave Harald that request, Julius did not know that the earl was already planning about ending his humanity. Julius did not want to be worshipped, not after all the betrayals and blasphemies that happened to him last night.

Then Balvu looked at the citizens and said to them, "Friends. Noblemen. Julius... the mighty and powerful slayer of demons. Balder, the demon king of Midland, is dead. And Harald has taken his place!"

A second later, everyone standing in front of Balvu lifted their hands and rejoiced for such a tremendous win over the demon king. Their minds were full of surprise, and their expectations were exceeded when they heard of how the great king of demons suffered at the hands of the son of Lancelot. Lagertha thought her father would accept this kind of accomplishment, but she saw him not wanting any of this. She tried to say some things to her father, but she was too powerless to talk behind the knights. Lucy wanted to stay away from all of this; she immediately assumed that this was all a trap devised by King Harald.

Balvu continued speaking with them, saying, "From this day on, the demons will fear our strength and honor for the new king. The servants of darkness will know that it is by the king's hand that all that their god has wrought will be undone. For we rejoice in our victory and lift our chalices to Julius and Harald for one purpose only. Tirelessly defend the lands of the earth from the evil that the demons bring. King Lancelot and his fathers watch down from Heaven, and they all bask in our tales of triumph. All hail King Harald! All hail the demon slayer!"

Julius had no choice but to watch and witness the crowd cheering and clapping their hands with great joy. He had no problem with the people being happy, but seeing King Harald control them gave him more anger than ever. Julius has already been lied to about his childhood and, he has now been betrayed by the man he used to call a brother. Those days are lost to him now; the price he has paid to save his people was too high and too heavy of a burden to carry. He knew he could not rest from the lies and undertakings of Harald, and he understood that he had to put a stop to it.

I can't stay here. I can't stand here. What's going on with me? Are you becoming hungry, Mephiles? Julius thought. The intensity of his soul was burning his body as he was now seeing Midland's new general as his new enemy.

The people return to their daily lives as Julius wanders off without Lucy and Lagertha noticing him.