By the time Krampus slid off of Simon's back, it was already deep into the afternoon. Shit, Santa made me watch her die on purpose, as a warning. No matter, a little death on my shoulders isn't anything new. If food poisoning doesn't work, maybe there's something else I can try...

His thoughts trailed off to a number of different ideas until he came to a conclusion with a snap. "Simon!" he called, turning to his deer friend with wide, hopeful eyes. "I have a great idea."

"What is it?" Simon said while tilting his head.

"How about the reindeer?"

It took Simon a few seconds to respond. He blinked, then inquired in a voice dripping with incredulity, "What?"

"I mean, you guys wish to see your families, correct? Henry, Dixon, Cider and all the others must be wallowing in worry by now."

The deer sighed. "Of course we do; that's why we're working hard to not get on the king's nerves."

Krampus dug his hoof into the snow and smirked. "But have any of you ever tried to escape?"

"...Yes, and they haven't come back. No one will tell us anything, not even the king. They all just avoid the topic in a roundabout way." Simon gave Krampus a bitter smile, then looked at the brilliant aurora. "Call me a fool, but I'd like to believe they succeeded."

"I don't plan on insulting you for having hope, my friend. But aren't you curious to know what would happen if all of you tried?" Krampus pursued, "Think about it― Santa without his reindeer is like a leprechaun without his gold! Surely he won't be able to keep track of everyone trying to escape at the same time!"

Alas, his companion refused to be as optimistic, shaking his furry head in dismay. "If we tried to disobey him, our families would receive the punishment. I appreciate your feelings, but have to decline."

"Hm, are you sure? You never know until you try, right? What if it worked for the others, and that's why no one talks about it? Hell, they could be with their families as we speak."

"But, Krampus-"

"Let's give it a shot. You all have vacation until Christmas Eve anyways. Speaking of which, what day is it?"

Simon huffed at his companion. "If I remember right, it should be the 23rd of December."

"That explains why the elves are in such a hissy fit lately. That wretched day is coming soon; where the snow will turn red as Santa feasts on the naughty children. Ugh," Krampus groaned, "I need to stop him before then. Please, Simon! Wouldn't you want to be with your family on that holy night?" His hands were resting on the deer's cheeks, forcing Simon to face him.

While his cheeks were being squished, glints of his sharp, small teeth became visible. "I would love to see Finn and Hou again but... I don't want to see them on their death beds. However, if my hunch is indeed correct and the others managed to escape, then I guess we could try at least."

Krampus patted his head. "Thanks." I'm hoping this plan goes better than the last one. Poor Lilith. Speaking of which, I need to return those items to her sister. He took one last glance at the night sky before turning to the plaza. Three elves stood near the bloody podium, hitting the ground with their reddened fists. A female elf gazed at the corpse and clenched her teeth.

"I'll be right back," Krampus muttered, then hopped off. He was confident his demonic aura would protect his fall, proven when he landed on the ground without a single cut or wound. His body was encased in a cocoon of black flames, nullifying the impact of gravity.

The woeful elves jumped, as they were startled by his sudden arrival. "Who are you?" the female elf who Krampus presumed to be Lilith's sister growled first. Her sloppy cap barely managed to cover her mess of brown locks, similar to Lilith's once lively hair. "Were you sent to clean up the mess?"

"Calm down, Eve," a man scolded even when his voice trembled like a wilted flower. He stood using his cane for support, then smiled at the demon. "Forgive us; she's rather frustrated after seeing something like that. We all are, really." He shook his head at the gruesome sight behind them. His hair was a bundle of thin spiderwebs tightly held together by a rubberband, each antique thread falling down his back with grace.

In his free hand was a new chef hat. Inside of it, a knife. He caught Krampus looking at the items and sighed. "As you might have guessed, we're Lilith's relatives. I'm her father, and this girl is her beloved sister, Eve. We weren't expecting this from our Lily. Now we have to give up another of our kin to take her spot or..." he trailed off, staring into the sky with glistening bronze eyes.

The girl embraced her father then grumbled, "If only I'd done something... I should've convinced her not to be such an idiot yet," her sentence was interrupted by sobs rising from her throat. "She's always babbling about taking over the kingdom to help out the elves in poverty. But to go this far... what was she thinking?"

Krampus watched the scene in silence. He understood how it felt to lose family, but at the same time wasn't remorseful. He hadn't known her long; she was only meant to be a tool, after all. Even so, he didn't want her executed. It reminded him too much of when he was in her place, pleading for forgiveness. She sacrificed her life for her beliefs, and that was worth praise.

He walked to the sobbing elves and kneeled down. "I believe these were hers. She told me to give them to you." He opened his hand to present to them Lilith's real eyes and ears. There they laid, covered in dry blood and snow. "She wanted you, her sister, to hold on to them in case she didn't make it."

The girl froze, her eyes moving towards her sister's severed body parts. "But, the king said it was a cooking accident!" She snatched them with trembling hands and scowled at him. "Why do you have them?"

"...She gave them to me." Krampus looked away, unsure of what to say next. "I met her in the kitchen due to uh, similar interests."

Eve didn't look pleased. In fact, she seemed wary of the goat demon's elusive words. "And what would that be?" she inquired while widely staring at the items he'd given her.

"Well, if I had to be specific then," he leaned in to whisper, "killing the king."

"What? You can't be serious..." Eve, along with her father who'd heard his words, fell to the ground in shock. His arms fell from her back when tears slid down his wrinkled face. Eve looked at him, then Krampus before backing away. She let out a sob, squeezing the fabric covering her chest. Her fist slammed into the ground repeatedly before gripping the abandoned knife. Eve's chocolate dipped eyes were glistening with unshed tears, their red veins becoming more visible as each second passed. "So it's your fault. My sister's dead because of you!"

The old man held onto her to prevent her from attacking the demon. "Eve, we don't know the whole story. He might've just-"

"No, no, no, no!" she yelled, gripping the knife for dear life. "Lilith was... she was innocent, but you took her life away like it was nothing!"

Krampus grabbed her collar and brought her face to his. "This is what she wanted, you idiot. She wanted to die, so that you could live freely. So that you could be happy. So that you wouldn't need to suffer like she did!"

Regardless of Krampus' words, Eve continued to deny it. "Shut up, shut up! I don't care; she can't do anything if she's dead! You should've died in her place, damned demon!"

A collage of his actions thus far appeared in his mind just then. Threatening the lustful mermaid, manipulating the cook's beliefs, giving others false hope; it was all necessary for his plan. Or was it? Did he really need to sacrifice others in order to reach his goal? "Maybe I should have." He sighed, looking up. "But now's not the time to be dead."