Flotol was a lot more chaotic than the last time I was here, it's not messy, to say, but I can definitely see the stress in the faces of the people. The group from the pier having eaten away at their resources must have taken a lot from them, which is expected.

  After I destroyed their igloos, those guys brought the wounded, the old, and the sick with them into the village, and then there's also the number of adventurers who survived my massacre a few days ago coming back and asking for some kind of compensation, further eating away at Flotol's resources.

  That or they stayed behind and forced the priests to heal them.

  Recovery is a slow and expensive process and I hope that these guys took everything they can from these people. Does saying this make me sadistic? God I hope so. I really don't like any of these people. Not after what they did to my family.

  Okay, to be fair, I am being petty here, even I can see that much, it's not actually the villagers' fault that the people leading them decided to one day attack my family... BUT that could have helped couldn't they? And yet they simply stood back while everything that I cared for burned to the ground, quite literally in some cases.

  "My stuff must have gotten taken, that's what I thought at first..." I trail off as I eye the ruins of what used to be our house, the only thing left standing are the charred remains of the wooden beams that once acted as its support. "Guess they did more than just take stuff from me, they wanted more than just to figure out how I made my scrolls."

  That was the original intention according to my mother, the adventurers wanted to steal the knowledge that I have.

  And I don't know if I'm just being stupid by asking this but what the fuck does burning down my home have to do anything with figuring out how I made my scrolls? What's the connection exactly? I try to understand but I am strictly speaking, lost as to the actual reason behind this.

  "Are you okay Rontress?" Laself's hot breath brushed the nape of my neck and I flinched, the anger that had been burning away at me suddenly disappeared. "I know that it looks bad, but it's not everyone's fault okay?"

  "Yes, I know." My voice was strained, tone on the verge of breaking down but by some miracle, I managed to keep it steady. "It's not their fault, I understand."

  No, I don't. I really don't. I refused to understand anything related to this and I honestly hate it. Every second I spend looking at our burned house is making me lose mercy for the people that used to be our neighbors.

  Exhale. Just exhale. A sharp exhale escaped my lips and I smile, I face Laself, "let's go, we have things to do."

  There are only 3 of us who came to Flotol: me, Wardcruncha, and Laself.

  Only a handful of us coming here to negotiate with Flotol's leaders is both a show of force and an offer or peace, the three of us were more than enough to beat anyone in this village— well, Laself is more or less a passerby, enhancing the feel of strength our small group has. — so we were showing them we aren't scared, but since there's only three of us, this technically isn't an invasion, but an act of diplomacy.

  Honestly, Flotol should just be thankful that we aren't killing them all the moment we step foot into the village, that's my opinion on this whole thing.

  We soon reach the church, and stepping in here after what feels like forever ago is really strange, my class ceremony had been what? Just a few months ago? And now I'm here again, not as some hopeful kid wishing she gets her class or an acolyte working for the priests, but as an enemy who threatens the very foundation that these people stand on.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

  Nadoson got killed by me so technically, there's only 2 village leaders left— and even then, being the head of the guard isn't that good of a title. — but there are four people standing before me: Ogarez, the second executioner, Nogjaf, or Aldalama, Folsan Oshnon, the head priest, and someone who I didn't want to encounter, Flutt Duhert.

  Flutt and I locked eyes for a second and I looked away in guilt, as much as I hated my time at the church and the decisions the head priest has made until now,I couldn't blame Flutt for any of them.

  He really did try to make my stay here comfortable, even went as far as to take care of my chores whenever I felt they were too much at the start of my training. His high hopes and expectations for me becoming a priestess weren't just crushed, they were pulverized.

  "Hello, Rontress." Folsan, on the other hand, is someone I never got along with. Well, I tolerated him out of respect but I hated him from the start, I knew there was something wrong with him and my assumption was correct.

  As it turns out, this guy is a piece of shit pretending to be a man of the holy faith, who would have thought?

  "Hello, Lord Folsan." Respect, I need to give him respect or else he'll use it against me and I can't have that. "I don't think formalities are necessary for everyone else present—" don't look at Flutt's expression, just don't. "— so let me get straight to the point, why did you start attacking my family?"

  He has no reason other than that he felt his position was threatened by my existence, that and jealousy, I know this but I asked because I wanted him to give me some form of bullshit that he'll use to justify his actions.

  Doing it this way will not just give me some form of argument against him— it's especially effective because it's false. — but also allow me to stand on some kind of social footing, because if he has accusations, then I can use that to clear my name once they are proven false.

  "It's because you're a demon, aren't you?" Loud, boisterous, and spoken without a hint of hesitation.

  Quick answer, okay, so this guy either prepared for this argument or he's been saying these accusations so much the last few weeks that he's starting to rationalize it in his head and believe his delusions. I don't know which is worse. The former? The latter?

  On one hand, I'm dealing with someone cunning enough to just lie so casually but on the other hand, this guy might be potentially insane, making him chaotic and unpredictable at the best of times. And he's the kind of insane that doesn't babble and act crazy as well, he's the type that spreads his insanity like it's some kind of disease.

  Which is worse? Am I spending too much time thinking about this?

  Yes, I am. It doesn't matter which is worse, I just need to pick what to believe and go off from there, if I am somehow wrong, then at least I wouldn't be caught off guard because I'm not frozen by indecision, if I'm right? Too bad for him, I guess.

  "You're insane." I spat, where did he even get this shit from? Did he really think I'm some kind of demon? "You think I'm with the Etters?"

  "Aren't you?! They are teaching you knowledge aren't they? Those rats!"

  Uhuh, of course they would. It's not like those oversized rats are too busy fighting each other to teach anyone or the fact that they're probably incapable of teaching— pretty sure their technology is just them copying each other, which is why it's so faulty at the best of times... — anyone anything.

  What a dumbass.

  Oh well, now that he's confirmed that I am, somehow, related to the rats, this makes things easier for me because I can just keep repeating this particular claim in the long run. People would eventually get tired of it, and even better, they start wondering how I'm related to the Etters and conclude that it doesn't make sense.

  Assuming they're all educated enough to understand the situation, of course.

  Which they are not, so I should probably not place all my hopes on the illiterate masses.

  "You have no proof." I dared him to either A. Rationalize his delusions further, hopefully plunging him deeper into insanity, or B. Find more ways to bullshit his way out of this situation.

  "That aside, you expect us to simply do what you want and kill ourselves?" I scowl as the words come out. "Me and my family wouldn't back down even if you send the entirety of Flotol against us, and you will lose, so let me give you a proposal: let's negotiate right here, right now, and see where it takes us."