Epilogue

Epilogue

The night breeze carried the faint scent of flowers and trees from a nearby meadow. If we’d been in some bustling city that night, the air would’ve smelled of ale and spices… and urine, maybe, if the city had been filthy enough.

But we weren’t in a city. Since leaving Vezendi, we’d stuck to the back roads on our way to the Kingdom of Dilse. The town we’d stopped in was remote and peaceful, with an empty tavern and a guestless inn. The innkeeper had looked shocked when we’d asked to spend the night.

I suppose that’s pretty normal in these parts, I thought. Honestly, I was glad for the calm—cities are all well and good, but every girl needs some peace and quiet now and then.

But I still had some sneaking to do. Peaceful and quiet doesn’t mean boring, y’know.

I wandered around the grounds behind the inn, picking my way by the bright moonlight. For the first time in a while, I hadn’t snuck away from the others to do some bandit-hunting; there were other things that had to be taken care of that night.

“Out for a stroll?” asked a familiar voice.

I turned. Xelloss leaned against a wooden fence, his silhouette against the moon. Alongside him was a cart piled with what looked like wooden boxes.

“Not exactly,” I replied, sliding my hands into my pockets. “I was waiting for you.”

“Hmm.” The dark-robed priest hummed, tilting his head to the side. “And why is that?”

“I wanted to say thanks for saving my life back at the lodge, for one thing.”

“You wanted to thank me?” Xelloss asked curiously.

“Once we finished up the whole Radok thing, I started to understand what it was you were doing.” I leveled my gaze at him. “You kept Raltaak at bay, didn’t you? And you were testing me, if I had to guess.”

Xelloss smiled. He stood up from the fence, then melted into the darkness and vanished completely.

“When did you figure it out?” he asked after a moment. I peered into the darkness and saw his form take shape against the moon; he now sat on one of the boxes on the cart.

“You mean that you’re a Mazoku?” I clarified. “Pretty much from the start, to tell you the truth.”

Xelloss just smiled, and waited.

“It began with Mazenda sealing my magic. I’ve done enough research on magic to know that no human could possibly do that. Since you beat her, that means you can’t be human, either.”

Xelloss laughed. “My, my. It looks like I never stood a chance against you, did I? You are correct, Miss Lina. I’m a demon, just like Miss Mazenda was.”

“But you took her down,” I pointed out. “Which means you must have something pretty complicated going on. I get the feeling you weren’t allied with Raltaak, either.”

“Ah,” Xelloss said with a smile, tapping his index finger against his lips. “As for that, I’m afraid it’s a secret.”

If he had been a human, I would’ve beaten the secret out of him. But I knew I didn’t stand a chance against the guy.

Not yet, anyway.

“I had to be sneaky with Raltaak,” Xelloss admitted. “He knew my true form as much as I knew his. So we agreed to not ruin the other’s cover and let matters take their course; my aim, like you said, was simply to keep him at bay.

“But since you were already onto me, it seems there was little reason to keep up appearances.”

“It’s not like the others have caught on yet.”

“Mm. Certainly not Mister Gourry.”

I squinted uncomfortably. “Gourry doesn’t catch on to much of anything,” I murmured. “I do think Amelia and Zel know there’s something up with you, but I doubt they’ve figured out that you’re a Mazoku.”

Xelloss shrugged.

“By the way, Xelloss. What’s your real name?”

Xelloss looked up at the moon, the profile of his face lit in the silver light. “Xelloss the Priest,” he answered simply. “In the service of Greater Beast Zelas Metalium. Although,” he added with a pained smile, “that’s quite another matter. My mission has always been to eliminate the Claire Bible manuscript from this world.”

I didn’t like the sound of that. If Zelgadiss knew that someone in his party was actively trying to destroy the one thing he wanted, things could get very ugly. Xelloss probably recognized the look on my face, because he went on to explain.

“Think of our last little adventure. If that manuscript had gotten into the wrong hands, Miss Lina, then chimeras like Zanaffar could have been mass-produced. Although that wouldn’t have actually mattered much to a high- ranking Mazoku like myself, it would have been quite an inconvenience for all the lesser demons.

“Of course, the manuscript I attained was limited, incomplete, and is now no more than ash. And that chimera, as you so aptly proved, could still be handled by humans.” He paused, then added, “But if that manuscript piece had been the one described in the royal palace of Dilse…”

Xelloss stopped short of finishing his thought.

“Wait a second,” I said quickly. “Are you talking about… humans not being able to control the Lord of Nightmares?!”

Xelloss actually scowled at me.

“Don’t utter that name in vain again,” he snapped. “For a Mazoku of my stature, hearing that name twice is unacceptable.”

My blood ran cold. I knew the Lord of Nightmares was supposed to be “the most powerful of all the Demon Lords,” but Xelloss’ reaction surprised me. Exactly how powerful was the Lord of Nightmares?

“But back on topic.” Xelloss calmly brushed some hair behind his ear. “After I burned the manuscript we found with Zanaffar, I reported back to Greater Beast. That’s when I learned of my current assignment.”

“Which is spying on me,” I offered.

“Not exactly. My mission is to protect and guide you.”

I blinked. Say what now?

Xelloss chuckled. “Before your inevitable onslaught of questions, let me just say that that’s all I can reveal. Perhaps you’d be better off saving that breath.”

“Hang on,” I protested. “What about your amplifi­cation talismans? Didn’t you sell those to me before you took the mission to protect me?”

“Indeed.”

“Then why’d you sell me your prized possessions when you were under no obligation to look out for me?” Xelloss knitted his eyebrow and considered that a moment. “Well, that was a spur-of-the-moment deal,” he said at last, giving me a smile that seemed a little forced. You’re a strange one, Xelloss.

“But to tell you the truth, I’m not very enthusiastic about this project. Hellmaster is the one who gave it to me in the first place.”

“Hellmaster Phibrizzo?!” I blurted. Damn, Xelloss had connections!

Xelloss sighed. “Hellmaster is always looking for someone to do his bidding. He lost all his minion priests in the war a thousand years ago, so that makes other priests fair game. A priest like myself isn’t thrilled with that.” He held his hand out in an apologetic gesture. “I know it was rude to not tell you, but yes—part of Hellmaster’s mission involves protecting you for a bit.”

“Right,” I said irritably. “And that’s why you’ve been testing me. You wanted to see if the person you’re protecting lives up to her reputation; I guess it’d be a great big pain protecting someone who couldn’t kick a few asses and take a few names.”

I glared at Xelloss, hoping to at least make him feel impolite. But he just nodded cheerfully. I sighed. “Well?” “To put it bluntly,” Xelloss said, “I’m not that impressed. Aside from your potential and the skill of your comrades, you barely make the mark.”

I grimaced at him. “Aren’t you a sweetheart?”

“By the way.” Xelloss smiled again, a bit more creepily this time. “What do you intend to do now that you know I’m a Mazoku? Will you… challenge me to a duel, perhaps?”

I shook my head and grunted, “Maybe some other time.” I paused for a minute after that, considering my next move. “Tell you what, Xelloss. I’ll keep your identity under wraps for now. The others don’t have to know.”

Xelloss looked surprised. “Really?”

“It may take a little ducking, but it seems like the best option right now. I’m guessing that’s what you want, right?”

Xelloss raised his eyebrows. “Indeed,” he admitted. “That would be of great assistance, Miss Lina.” He paused. “But if that was your intent all along, why did you want this conversation? Don’t you think the matter would have been best left unspoken?”

“No,” I replied flatly. “There were still things I wasn’t clear on. Besides, I wanted you to confirm what I thought I knew. I’d rather know the whole truth if I have to dance around it.” I scratched my head. “And frankly, not knowing for sure would’ve really bugged me.”

Xelloss looked up at the moon again. “Well,” he said after a moment. “There’s some truth to what I’ve heard about you, Miss Lina—you’re certainly no ordinary human.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

Xelloss turned to me, his expression serious. “Yes,” he replied. “It’s among the highest praise that a Mazoku such as myself could possibly give a human.”

So I was supposed to feel privileged. Great, Xelloss, I thought. Try selling that on a greeting card.

“So where do we go from here?”

“Forward.” Xelloss pointed his staff at the moon, which hung in the western sky.

“To the moon?” I asked sarcastically.

Xelloss smiled in the darkness. “To the north of the Kingdom of Dilse,” he said calmly. “To where the original Claire Bible lies.”