Kael and his friends, who were sitting a few rows behind, were staring at the interaction between Azalea and the demon general with wide eyes. It was only when Sylas had left that they ran up to her and started bombarding her with questions.
"Are you alright?"
"What were you doing with that scary man?"
"He did not harm you, did he?"
Azalea helplessly watched as they looked all over her and relaxed only after they realized she was fine. Marlin gave a dramatic sigh and fell into the empty seat beside her.
"You almost gave me a heart attack."
Kael and Raya claimed the seats behind them and leaned forward. Raya looked at her with gossipy eyes.
"So...you didn't answer why you two were together?"
"We ran into each other," Azalea shrugged while her eyes ran inside around them.
"Out of everyone here, you had to run into him?"
Azalea frowned slightly. "He is not that bad, you know."
"Not bad!" Kael whisper yelled. "Have you not been listening when I told you he is a half-demon who killed his own nanny when he was just a child!?"
"Those are just rumors spread by people with too much free time."
"Even if some of those stories are exaggerated, it is still true that he is a heartless monster who can kill without batting an eye."
"Is that a bad thing? I do that all the time,"
Kael looked at her in disbelief and then slumped back in his seat, muttering, "We are doomed. One devil was not enough, we now have a she devil as well."
Raya elbowed him, "Does she look like a she devil to you?"
Kael looked at Azalea up and down, "Actually, now that you mention it... she does look like those seduction demons Uncle William told us stories about."
He had just said those words when the three friends stiffened as if realizing something and stared at Azalea with wide, horrified eyes.
Azalea rolled her eyes, "You kids have wild imaginations."
Marlin shifted away a little, creating some space between him and Azalea. "So...are you a de-mon?" His voice cracked on the last word.
Azalea gave them a bright smile, revealing her dimples. She put her arm on Marlin's shoulder and leaned forward slightly. Then, in a low voice, "Yes. I'm a demon who eats children to stay young forever."
Marlin hickupped.
"Sis-siter...be-beautiful sister, it's okay. I know y-you are a good de-demon who won't hu-hurt us. YYou d-don't have t-to worry. Yo-your se-secret is safe w-with us." he stammered.
Azalea stared at him for a few seconds. Then her smile widened even more, and she burst into laughter. The sound was light and musical, like bells chiming in the wind. It was so lovely that several people turned their heads to see where it was coming from.
"You kids are really fun to tease," Azalea pulled back and wiped the tear from the corner of her eyes. When she saw that three were still frozen solid, she raised her hand and ruffled Marlin's hair. "Relax. I am not a demon."
The trio stared at her for a moment longer, and when they saw that she was not lying, they finally relaxed.
"You're mean," Kael grumbled, crossing his arms.
Azalea looked at the kids and then at those people around her. The smile on her face became soft, and a distant, almost nostalgic look appeared on her face.
Centuries have passed, and she no longer recognizes this world. The people she knew were long gone and were replaced by strangers. Yet in all of this, she was still the same...well, a lot weaker, but it did not change the fact that she was a historical relic stuck in the future.
.
.
Two hovercrafts had been dispatched to evacuate the villagers. Once everyone was seated inside, it began to move upward. She looked outside the window she was sitting next to, looking at everything with curiosity. The hovercraft floated still for a couple of seconds. Then, like a bullet, it shot forward, yet much to her amazement, they were not impacted by the force and were sitting rather comfortably.
She stared outside the window as they flew above a forest. Then, buildings began to appear.
Was this what the world looked like now? It had changed a lot, yet at the same time, it seems that nothing had changed. Everything was different, but she could still recognize them.
They flew for almost an hour before they arrived at South City. The hovercrafts landed in the empty parking lot of a tall building. Outside, people in army uniform were already waiting.
The people of Agora village were not the only ones present there. There were other hovercrafts lined next to theirs, and more people were pouring out.
Azalea had a thoughtful look on her face as she took in everything, jotting down the information she deemed important in her mind.
Alright, listen up!"
A scary-looking man with scar running from his left eyebrow to the corner of his mouth stood at the front.
"You lot need to register first. Line up on the left and wait for your turn. Once that's done, a guide will take each group to your residence block. Clothes and basic supplies will be delivered to your rooms later today. Meals are served three times a day at a fixed schedule. If any of you feel like cooking your own food, there are shared kitchens in every residence block, but you need to buy the ingredients yourself."
He paused, letting everyone take in the information before he began again, "One more thing. Anyone who causes trouble will have to answer directly to me. And trust me when I say this, nobody here wants that to happen."
Once he was done, he turned around and left.
Marlin leaned closer to the others and muttered under his breath, "Why does this feel more like we're enlisting to become guardians instead of being refugees?"
"Do you even know how guardian enlistment actually works?" Raya asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
Marlin thought about the things he had heard and shuddered. He was definitely thinking too much.
"They are doing this to maintain peace and order," Azalea explained. "In hard times like these, it is really easy to cause chaos over small things. They need to address it at the very beginning to avoid future trouble."
"Oh," Marlin nodded slowly, his expression showing he understood.
They all joined the line that was set up for registration. The line was long, but it was moving rather fast. At the front, there was a white robot the size of a toddler and was scanning everyone just like the small spear she had seen at the village. The only difference was that once it was done registering, it would give out an identity card through a slot on its torso.
Once she was done, she joined back the people of Agora village who were gathered on one side.
"Has everyone registered?" a woman stood before them. Azalea remembered her as the guardian who was in their hovercraft.
Once it was confirmed that everyone was done, she began to guide them to the place they would be staying. Azalea followed along while she looked around curiously. The building was rather simple and dull, with white walls and a couple of paintings hanging here and there. The rooms themselves were simple, with nothing but two beds and a table inside. Even the bed covers were plain white sheets.
Raya decided to share the room with Azalea while Kael and Marlin took the room across from theirs.
"Eh...this is all?" Marlin said, looking inside.
The others ignored him and went into their rooms to settle their things. Azalea, who had nothing to do, stood by the window and stared outside. Their room was located rather high, thus giving her quite a view of the city.
She stood there for a long moment, lost in thought. No one who saw her could know what she was thinking. Raya watched for a few seconds but did not disturb her and went back to her things.