“Demon Lord.” The old man interjects, “This is no regular demon. She is a Demon Lord.”

“Is it that time?! The scriptures said it would be—”

“I’m NOT a Demon Lord!” I yell, “I’m… It doesn’t matter what I am! I’m just trying to do good in this world.”

“By taking over the body of our dear Maria.”

“I…” The old man was right. I did take over her body, but it’s not like I’m going to do anything evil with her!

“Campbell, begin your prayers to speed this up.”

Campbell kneels down with the rest of them and starts to chant. I’m not the bad guy here! I’m… I’m just trying to live a life I never had. Is that so wrong? I mean sure, Maria and her friends were caught in the crossfire but, I was just defending myself from your detection items. Your knights trying to hunt me down, and your decisions to send out this girl despite knowing the risks that come with fighting demons. This isn’t my fault. Right? Right?!

“I’m going to make it up to Maria.”

“Excuse me?” The old man is puzzled.

“You may not understand my ways. But I have goals far beyond your human understanding.”

“It’s her last words, don’t listen to her.”

“Stick to the prayers Campbell.” The old man looks directly at me, “What are you saying?”

“I left a place filled with expectations of me that disregarded how I felt. There was no way to get out, until one day I decided to run.” The blue glow on the ground begins to show magic circles with the runes slowly appearing clockwise, one by one. “I finally got that chance to run and I was able to make it out. You see me as a demon, but I have a name. It’s Apura.” I am no longer using Maria’s voice. “I can think, I can breathe, I exist. And sure I have done things that I can say aren’t the best but I plan to make up for it with all the lives I’ll save. What’s a few lives compared to the thousands? Millions!”

“That’s nonsense! Every life is valuable!”

“Campbell! Prayers!”

“That is true… Every life is valuable. Had there been any other way I could’ve done this without taking a life, I would have. But at that moment, I felt like I had no other options.”

The old man is silent. The runes complete, the magic circles begin to create lines that flow across. “All I wanted was a chance.”

The old man walks towards me and kneels down, he places his hand on my shoulder, his eyes still on me. “Gratia dei.” With his other hand, he grabs my hand with the shard of the blade and takes it out. I watch as he pushes it into the ground between one of the lines. The glow stops and the group’s prayers are no longer heard.

“What’re you doing?!” Campbell is irritated.

“Acta non Verba,” the old man is looking at Campbell, “Deeds not words. She could have killed us all the moment she stepped into the cathedral Brother Campbell, but chose the path of least resistance.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. It’s almost like, he’s making an excuse for me again? He looks back at me.

“Are the boys dead?”

I nod my head and keep it down.

“I see. Go recover the bodies and give them a proper burial.” A few from the group get up and run up the stairs. “Why didn’t you destroy the cathedral, Apura?” He said my name? My name? I try to speak, but only the air from my breath escapes.

“Take your time.” He moves his arm from my shoulder and sits in front of me, letting go of my hand. This old man… No, this kind man, is acknowledging me.

“I didn’t have the need to… I’m just trying to leave to live my life.”

“You do not wish to harm any of us? Why did you kill those boys and take over Maria’s body then?”

“I… I was scared. I didn’t know what else to do. I had to get away from the underworld somehow, and I was more worried about what my father would have done if he had found me. I was only thinking about myself.”

“Your father is the true Demon Lord, correct?”

I almost hesitate to answer, “Yes.”

The old man gets up, “You can call me Father Evin.” He extends his hand to me, “Don’t be afraid.” I take it and he helps me up.

“Why are you doing this?” I ask.

“You didn’t attack us when you came in. You had no malice towards me, as well as… You told me the truth.” He smiles, he’s back to the same kind old man I met at the back of the cathedral. “This is a place of refuge. It’s a shame that our adventurers had to die, but our prayers will do them right. I’m taking a chance on you. If it’s a mistake to do so, then I’ll bear the burden.”

“Father! She’s a demon. Not just that, the daughter of the demon lord! She killed Bet, Bernard, and Connor!” Campbell protests.

“Ah, Bet. You do recall how you felt when that beastman came to us, do you not?”

“Tch.”

“He too was looking for refuge and Maria took care of him. He earned our trust. I’m sure Apura will be able to do the same. Make amends for her actions.”

“Father I…” I want to tell him that Maria’s existence will be erased the longer I stay inside of her but… 

“Do not worry my child. I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”

There’s a warmth in my heart that I feel each time he speaks to me, almost how Maria was towards her friends. Did I really have to kill them? I had a choice didn’t I? As soon as I controlled Maria’s body, I could have spoken to them. I’ll definitely learn from this experience. Father Evin… He feels how a father should be. Supportive, forgiving, understanding. This is nothing like how my dad is. Without a thought I hugged him. I could feel him patting my back. 

“Father. Let go of that demon.” I could feel the anger emitting from Campbell.

“Brother Campbell, we are forgiving her. I’ve already mentioned that I will take full responsibility for this child’s actions. Our ways teach us to be better than the average man. To be a role model for them to aspire to, have you forgotten?”

“Have I forgotten?! Have you forgotten?! We are here to stop these creatures from entering our world! You know better than anyone what they are capable of!”

“And yet, we still live in a world alongside many creatures we call ‘demons’. A coexistence is possible.”

“The scripture! The scripture says the day a Demon Lord arrives, life as we know it ends!”

“It also says a light will be brought forth to guide us to freedom. I believe this girl is that light.” He let’s go of me, “You may not agree with it, but I’ve made my choice. What is yours? Will you follow in my footsteps and see it in your heart to forgive this creature?”

“No!” Campbell stretches his arm as his hand faces us and places his other hand on top of his arm, “In the name of God, I will rid this demon!” He begins to chant, and his hand glows a bright white. It’s divine magic. Just as he’s about to cast it, the others around him shut his mouth and grab his arms, separating his arms and canceling the spell.

“I’m disappointed in you Brother Campbell. Let him speak.” They remove their hands from his mouth.

“You’re disappointed in me?!” He manages to pull himself out from the grasp of the others, “You’re the one forgiving a demon. I’ll be in my quarters.” He storms up the stairs, the echoes of his footsteps dissipating as he gets further away. One of the members comes up to me with the staff and hands it to me. I take it from him and see his hands are burnt from the demonic energy it emits.

“How are you planning to save millions? As you put it.”

“I want to be a healer! But to do so, I also want to spend my time outside. Learning about the world. The people that inhabit it.”

“Why don’t you stay here and learn the holy arts then?”

“As much as I would like to, it’s not possible for a demon. I can see into Maria’s abilities but I cannot access them. If she had the capability to heal, then I cannot use her version of it.”

“‘Her version’. Very interesting choice of words.”

“I know there’s a way a demon like myself can do it. My da— The demons in my world have their own ways and I think if I explore the world and encounter more people who are hurt, I’ll learn how to do it on my own.”

“Alright.”

And just like that he accepted me and my words. I watch him walk up to the man who handed me my staff and watch as Father Evin grabs his hands,

“If you can heal like this,” the Father’s hands glow a white light over the man's hands, the burns rapidly healing, “Then you can consider yourself a healer of the world.” I couldn’t believe how fast he had healed his Brother’s hands. It was almost as fast as my dad’s healing. Are all humans capable of this level of healing? There’s so much I want to do and learn about this world. My eyes shift and I glare at the Father, 

“I won’t have to preach about your God, will I?”

He laughs, “Not at all, you just live your life the way you want to, and find a way to spare Sister Maria. Please.”

I look at him with determination. I can still feel her presence, and if I can still feel that, there’s still time for me to learn how to achieve a physical form of my own. Other than that, there’s one thing that’s bothering me about all this,

“Father… How did you know about the fragment in my hands?”

He crosses his arms and rubs his chin as he looks up, “Hmm. I noticed a slight bump in your sleeve when you were thrown aside and assumed it had to be important somehow. From when we first greeted you to when we escorted you here. Speaking of which, I hope you’ll forgive our treatment of you.”

“No, no! I get it, I’m a demon after all. I even killed your friends…”

“Make it up to them as well then.”

I’ve decided that my powers will be used to heal, and if I have to fight in any way, I’ll do my best to hold back.

“Let’s go, Apura.”

“Huh?”

“We’re going to pay our respects.”

We leave the area and return to the back entrance of the cathedral. Something I didn’t notice before was on the left side beside the building is a grave. A grave of all the adventurers and clergy people are laid to rest. I see the group of members finishing the burial of Bet, Bernard, and Connor. Father Evin does his eulogy and we pay our respects. I vowed to make it up to them and even save more lives than I had intended to. It was a strange service, no one cried for the fallen. They did their prayers and returned to their duties. Maybe it’s because it’s the way of life here and it’s expected but, even the goblins who reside in the underworld feel something for their kind. After the battles they face that is.

The father and I are at the front of the cathedral. It is evening, and he insisted I stay the night. I would have accepted the offer but I had imposed enough as it was. He protected me enough despite what I had done, and listened to me. I want to start my journey right and thanks to him, I am able to. I’m about to say my goodbyes.

“Apura, wait.” He seems to be a little distressed. I could tell by the way he’s looking at me, the sweat dripping slightly from his head and the tone in his wary voice.

“Yes?”

“Our goal is to protect our world from the demons who escape the cave to the underworld. There are many other entrances.” He was correct, I just happened to find this one. “That means, those who will be able to tell you’re a demon possessing Maria won’t be as accepting— I misspoke. They won’t be accepting. All I ask is for you not to kill them no matter what. I took a chance on you, so please. Take a chance on them.”

I get where he’s coming from. And I want to… No, I owe it to him. “I will.” I smile.

“That wasn’t the reason I’m stopping you though…”

I look at him confused.

“In our scripture is the telling of the Demon Lord who will return to destroy the world. However, there is also the legend of how that same Demon Lord will have a change of heart if guided the right way. If that’s you, I’m hoping I am sending you on the right path.”

This. This is what real support looks like, and I don’t want to let him down. He sees me off and I wave. My journey to becoming the best healer in the world begins.