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Carmella sat on a bench, a sandwich in her hand. Beside her, Gerome was peeling the crust off of his bread, feeding it to a nearby squirrel. They were sitting in a corner isolated from the rest of the army inside of Marossa. It was a dainty city with colorful houses, but the brightness of the surrounding buildings was subdued by the gray armor of the soldiers lazing about. They were everywhere, occupying the streets, the porches, and even the interior of the houses. The citizens had fled long ago—the only ones remaining were the elderly on the verge of death and those too attached to leave.

A figure approached Carmella and Gerome, causing them to raise their heads. It was Owen. His face was unkempt, his thin beard curly and matted. His cheeks were gaunt, and his eyes had a certain look to them: sunken, hollow, exhausted. Carmella had to break eye contact, focusing on a piece of lettuce in her sandwich. “Hey, Owen,” Gerome said as he scooted over closer to Carmella, making space for their companion to sit. The squirrel followed after him, begging for more food. Its ears twitched when Owen approached, and it fled after he sat down.

“Both of you are looking well,” Owen said as he sighed and stared at the sandwich in his hand, leaning back so he was facing the sky and holding it over his face. And it was true; compared to the rest of the army, Gerome and Carmella looked like they had been taking a stroll through a meadow while everyone else was crawling through mud.

“If you followed me, you’d be less haggard-looking also,” Carmella said and shrugged. “I don’t understand why you try so hard if you know we’re going to retreat every time. If you just hung near the back with us, you’d also be the last one on the battlefield and first one to leave.”

“I can’t do that,” Owen said as he inhaled and sat up straight. “Lady Raea and Lord Elrith both left. I can’t disappoint the Caelum family’s name any further. I have to give it my all every time to make up for them. If I can achieve something great, then perhaps the council will be more lenient when they catch them.”

“Do you really think the council will be able to catch them?” Gerome asked. “Elrith’s pretty strong, and Raea killed an archdemon, didn’t she? If they did their best to resist, they should be fine.”

Owen shook his head. “They may have their lives, but their quality of life surely won’t be as great,” he said. “If I can get the council to offer amnesty, then that would be for the best. I’ve already failed Lady Raea many times. I couldn’t be there for her when Lady Selena died. This is the least I can do to make it up to her.”

Carmella and Gerome looked at each other, and Carmella shook her head once. “He probably hasn’t,” she said and focused on eating her sandwich.

“Owen,” Gerome said with a furrowed brow. “Have you heard the rumors?”

“Rumors?” Owen asked and snorted. “If you have time to gossip, then you have time to focus on your training.” His gaze hardened as Palan’s image flickered through his mind. He had to admit the demon was right about some things. “Listening to rumors won’t save your life in combat. Only training and experience will.”

“It’s about Elrith,” Gerome said.

“Didn’t you hear what I just said?” Owen asked.

“They say he killed a lot of people and rampaged through the third and second sectors. Everyone’s labeling him as a traitor,” Gerome said, ignoring Owen’s question. “Just this morning, a few people arrived from the rest stop southeast of here. They said that Elrith ordered a demon to rob them and threatened them before announcing the fact he was going to Ni’En, so they better avoid that road or they won’t be let off a second time.”

Owen’s sandwich exploded, splashing ketchup onto the floor. His hand trembled as the sandwich was compressed in his fist, veins bulging along his forearm. “Palan?” he asked, practically growling. “There is no way Lord Elrith would do something like that. Never.”

“The people are bitter,” Carmella said, talking while chewing. “Their general abandoned them, and then they suffered loss after loss. I bet they thought there was no way Elrith would desert the army like that, but he did. They’ll believe these rumors as well if only just to have someone to vent their frustrations on.” She shrugged. “it’s not fair, but that’s life. Even if you manage to kill Solra by yourself, you won’t be able to pardon Elrith. They say he’s fallen—he’s in too deep even if it wasn’t his fault.”

Owen threw his sandwich to the ground and wiped the remnants onto his pants. He closed his eyes and inhaled loudly, scaring away a bird that approached. His eyelids trembled as his hands clenched and unclenched. Gerome sidled closer to Carmella and away from Owen. “Do you want to see Elrith?” Carmella asked. Owen’s eyes snapped open. “We can. It’s easy.” Carmella pointed. “All we have to do is jump over that wall right there and use your powers to help us travel underground where we won’t be detected.”

Owen’s gaze followed Carmella’s finger. The wall really was pitifully small. That was also part of the reason why their defense were terrible. Things would’ve been different if Elrith was around to summon his fortress at every battle. “They’ll execute us,” Owen said.

“We’ll die if we stay here,” Carmella said. “The army’s already lost a third of its numbers.” She didn’t mention the fact that four archangels from the council were coming. It was Owen’s fault for not listening to gossip. “It’s just a matter of time.” She didn’t have any confidence in the archangels that were coming. Besides, she had other reasons for leaving the army. If she had Owen’s assistance, it would be much easier to slip away. Owen stayed silent. “Would you rather be beside Elrith and Raea, or would you rather throw your life away for a cause that’s unrelated to you?”

Owen’s face darkened as he clasped his hands together and sat in silence. Finally, he said, “We leave after dinner. What kind of caretaker would I be if my charges died before I did?”

“That’s the spirit,” Carmella said and smiled. She resumed eating her sandwich as Owen got up to leave. Once he rounded a corner, the smile on Carmella’s face disappeared.

“You’re worried about your family?” Gerome asked. Carmella nodded as she chewed on her food. Gerome sighed. “We’ll find them. Don’t worry—I’m sure they’re alive and well. They must have gone further east when the city fell.”

“I pray that’s the case,” Carmella said as she put down her sandwich. She wasn’t hungry anymore.

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