Luna and the others reached Ebondrift minutes after Asomodeus and Marcus reached. "This place looks like a graveyard," Beatrix stated, seeing the damaged buildings and fields. There was no one in sight, instigating her curiosity.
"Where is everyone?" Luna questioned. She urged her horse, which met them on their way to the village, forward. The buildings were all empty. It appeared as though they had left the town.
A man walked over to them. "Thank you for bringing Marcus back to us," he said with tears all over his face.
"Where is everyone?" Luna questioned. He informed Luna and the others to come with him. They were led to a graveyard. The people in the village were surrounding someone in the cemetery. Upon seeing Luna, they cleared the way for her to pass.
The village chief lay on the ground with a cloth covering his body. "What happened?" Luna asked. Asmodeus emerged from the villagers and threw a Southern guard to the ground.
"You are going to pay for this?" The soldier said. He then got up to his feet and dusted his armor. Turning to Luna, he asked, "Are you their leader?" He shook his head and continued to talk, "I don't think so. A blind lady like you can not be a leader. The fact that you are a lady itself makes you ineligible to be a leader." He turned to the villagers and began to threaten them.
"You are all going to pay for this. If the king hears about what you did, he will send his soldiers to come and slaughter you all. You wait. Just wait," He said.
"Who is going to tell the king?" Luna asked. The Southern soldier turned to her. He wondered what Luna was going to do with him. "What does your King want with this village?"
"I'm not going to tell you anything?" As soon as the words left his mouth, the soldier's head rolled to the ground, blood oozing from his severed head. Luna looked in astonishment at what occurred. She did not believe Asmodeus would act without her command.
"Please forgive me. Before your arrival, this soldier kept spouting nonsense about slaughtering these people," Asmodeus placed his axe on the ground and gave Luna a slight bow.
"Next time, you seek permission before you act," Luna informed him. She then turned to the villagers. In a calm tone, she said, "I have decided to stay here and protect you from the Southern soldiers. With your help, we could make this village impenetrable."
"How are we going to do that? We haven't eaten for days," A woman cried out.
Before Luna could talk, Sebastian said, "I gathered some fruits on the way here. It may not be much but everyone will get some." He pointed to a bag outside the cemetery. Luna wondered when and how Sebastian could gather all these fruits when he had been with them all the time. On their way here, Sebastian moved away for a short period with Luna or the others not noticing.
"We will manage this for now. From tomorrow, I will make sure you get enough to eat, and we will start rebuilding the village," Luna announced. She then moved away with Sebastian and the others, leaving the villagers to mourn the death of their loved one.
"Your angelic soldiers know how to do their job," Beatrix nudged Luna, giving her a wide smile that soon faded away. "I can not believe how these villagers have suffered," She muttered loud enough for Luna to hear.
"I was told you can do many things," Luna said, referring to Sebastian and Asmodeus. "Why don't you people prepare some food for me and my friends," She gestured to Beatrix and the sibling beside her. "And when you are done, prepare the materials we would need to rebuild the village. If you have something to say about the rebuilding, feel free to tell me."
The two demons bowed and disappeared from Luna's sight. Marcus made the villagers form a long queue and fairly shared the fruits among them. And because the villagers were not many, some had run away from the village due to the Southern Kingdom's oppression, more fruits remained.
