<~> Chapter 233"This is it," Quinn told me as he pointed out the pin looking door. Whoever desighis pce made it iionally difficult to navigate if you didn't already know your way around.

  I closed my eyes and cast my dete spell again and was able to firm this was the right pce. The sves were id out in the same way as the st group and I didn't see anyone who stood out as being a guard. I released the spell and o Torien. "Okay, looks clear. Go ahead."

  Torien slid the key into the lod tur until a dull k echoed through the metal of the door. She cracked it open and peeked inside before nodding and pulling it open.

  I looked over roup. "What should we do with everyone else?"

  "They'll have to squeeze in," Silva said. "Someone could walk by at any moment."

  "Okay," I replied with a nod. "We'll have to make sure no os into fights or anything though. This many people in one pce might make things tricky."

  We quickly herded the group into the hallway outside of the cells and had them spread out enough that they shouldn't get in the way once we started freeing the roup of sves. I made sure to impress on everyone how important it was to be quiet but the group was rge enough that even with everyone whispering there was enough noise in the room that it made me a bit nervous. I wouldn't be able to block the sound of the entire hallway, so I had to hope no one would get close enough to hear anything.

  Like st time, I had Silva on the door while Torien and I prepared to open the cells and vince everyoo work with us. Mimi and Man stood nearby to help while Quinn, the cuy, used his... cirvoyance ability, for ck of a better term.

  Torien slid the key into the first door and opehe cell. Immediately after, I stepped into the doorway with my sword drawn. "The Order of Lilith is here to free as many sves as possible." I checked the two beastfolks' karma. Both had reasonable karma and were higher level than the civilian sves from the st room, twenty-ish if I had to guess. A foxkin and some kind of e, a jackal maybe? The two of them eyed my sword warily but didn't make any moves to rush me or anything. The foxkin peered around me and saw the crowd of people behind my back. Once I felt fortable that they wouldn't be an issue, I oward them. "May I approaove your colrs?" I asked.

  The two stared at me bnkly at first, the jackal was the first to reply. "You're serious? You remove the colrs?"

  I nodded. "I have a magical tool that remove them through touch."

  "And what do you want in exge?" the foxkin asked.

  "To help fight for your freedom, help others escape, and not take it out on the civilians once all of us get out of here. I suggest fleeing to the Northern Greens, the elves will help smuggle you out of the try."

  The foxkin smiled and stood up. "The others in the hallway aren't wearing colrs, I don't think they're joking," he said to his cellmate. "I'll give it a shot, dying might be preferable to being here anyway."

  I reached up and touched his colr while funneling magic through the bracelet. The moment my hand made tact, the pin looking sve colr fell to the ground. The foxkin rubbed his ned both of us turo look at the jackal.

  "Are you going to put your sword away?" he asked eying it with suspi.

  "I have other cells to open and I don't expect everyoo be as cooperative as the two of you are," I replied back.

  The jackal huffed and stood up before tilting his head to the side. "I hope this isn't a gigantic mistake. Unlike you I enjoy being alive," he said to the foxkin.

  The foxkin grinned. "I do as well, but sometimes it's fun to take the long shot with the dice. How do you think I ended up here?"

  I chose not to ent oera before removing the jackal's colr. Like the other o fell off and he immediately rubbed his neck. I took a step away ahem exit the cells to mih the other sves.

  "Try to be quiet, they don't know we're down here yet. Something is going on in the bazaar right now, I'm not sure if it's the crazy cult, the Tamin church, or us causing all that racket up there."

  "Do you have ons for us?" The foxkin asked.

  I looked over at Silva. "What do you think about arming them?"

  Her eyes trailed over the two I had just freed. "Arming some of them is probably a good idea. We both know that not everyone will be a good fit for it though. You're probably the best judge of that."

  I looked over the two again, they had det karma. I'm not sure how skilled they are at fighting people, but if we want to get out of here we're going to o put up an actual fight. I turo Mimi. "Do you have any spare ons for these two?"

  She nodded. "I still have a lot of the ons from the armory uhe inn. I kept some and not all of the ones I took for eating have been... digested yet." That brought some gross pictures to mind, even though I khat she didhe ons iraditional sense.

  "Are the ones you haven't 'digested' still i shape?" I asked.

  "Same shape we found them in," Mimi said with a shrug.

  I nodded. "Good, then arm these two with their ons of choice. We'll move on to the cell while you do that."

  We went down the line of cells releasing more and more of the people introwing crowd of freed sves. The entire hallway was getting to be a little bit crowded. I was about to approach the set of cells when I felt a spike of ay gh Silva again. I quietly rushed over and crouched dowo her the moment I finished with the cell I was on.

  "There's a rge group ing, twenty or so people. They're in a hurry."

  I nodded aed a hand on my sword. "Everyone quiet!" I whispered behi was impressive how hushed the packed room suddenly became. All of the whispering and quiet chattering died off and the entire room full of people waited in silence as Silva listeo the group outside the door.

  "They're almost here. 't tell if they're going to check here or not," she whispered.

  I could feel my heart beating and my stomach roiling in ay as we patiently waited for Silva to rey more information. Quinn was crouched o us with his eyes closed and his brow creased. He looked just as tense in his scouting. Suddenly I could feel her relief through the bond as the group marched past us. They were so loud that even those of us with less acute hearing could hear them marg past us through the hallway. Despite our relief, the long moment dragged on as we waited for the entire group to pass. Eventually, the hallway quieted once again, and everyone who was aware of what was happeni out a collective sigh.

  "They've passed by," Silva whispered.

  -- "Lilith," -- Silva said to me through the bond. -- "I could hear people talking as they went by. There are live demons in the capital city right now. They didn't know the details but the Tamin church are fighting something off outside. No one has said anything about the Tamin padins being attacked yet." --

  I turo look Silva in the eyes. -- "What would Sophin do if there were demons loose outside?" --

  -- "He would wait until they finish fighting each other," -- she replied through the bond.

  -- "Would he step in to kill the demons?" --

  -- "I'm not sure. Maybe, maybe not. Getting into a fight at his level ihers here, he might not do that if he avoid it. He thought it was wetting involved to kill enough of the Tamin church to hurt their trol over this city. I don't know if he would step in to kill the demons if the elves are already ing to take over the city though, he may choose not to step in at all." --

  -- "What about non-batants iy?" --

  Silva shook her head. -- "I don't know if he would get involved for them." --

  I frowned and scratched at the spot my horn was normally at, it felt less satisfying this way. This sounds like it could turn into a Golde situation or worse. Fighting demons was a whole different animal, I'm really not sure if it's better or worse than trying to fight off svers or city guards when everyone escapes.

  "What's wrong? The two of you suddenly went quiet," Quinn asked while carefully studying my face.

  I looked at him, not sure how to answer.

  "There's problems outside, I think my face gave it away to my boss," Silva told him.

  His eyes trailed bad forth between us and he shook his head. "Fine, you don't have to tell me. Is it an immediate problem?"

  "No," I said while standing up. "It's a problem for ter. I'm going to get back to the cells."

  Before I could make it all the way back, an older looking demi-bearkin that I had released stopped me. "You need help managing everyone. Let me help. I used to and soldiers in the army."

  I g the people arouhese aren't soldiers. They're mostly civilians and adventurers."

  He nodded. "I know it won't be the same, but you need someoo help yanize everyone. I tell the friends you came with are trying, but they're not as intimidating as this old bear. I help tell everyone what to do, even if I'm not shouting orders at them."

  He robably right. "Fine, you help lead everyo of here. But remember, the objective is to escape with as few deaths as possible. oals aren't reve's escape."

  "Good, I don't want to die wasting my time. I want to get out of this hole and enjoy my retirement," he replied gruffly.

  With that settled, I met back up with the twins and opehe door. The four cells went without i but I had a bad feeling when I reached the oer that. Ihis cell were two sves. One pled horsekin that looked scared and the other was a handsome demi-wolfkin with gold-furred ears and a charismatic look to him. He lit up and smiled the moment the door opened. Unfortunately... this was the first sve I've e across that has had deeply ive karma. More thaive four thousand. He also was higher level than average, only slightly weaker than myself. The horsekin was looking bad forth betweewo of us in worry and the twins didn't know that this was any differe.

  -- "Mimi, signal the twins. This wolfkin isn't ing with us," -- I told her through the bond.

  I o the horsekin. "You, out of the cell."

  The wolfkin's eyebrows furrowed. "That's not what you've said to the other people in their cells. Kieran, sit back down." The horsekin's expression paled and the rger guy sat fully on his bed without aation. "You said you were freeing as many sves as you could, what ged? Is it because I'm a threat to you?"

  I adjusted my grip on my sword. As I started to ahe demi rushed forward and deflected my bde away with his hand, his other hand ed around my bracelet, and his foot met my breastpte all withihan a sed. I ushed bad the bracelet ainfully jerked off of my wrist. Before I could recover he threw the colr he had been wearing at me and his hand touched the wall behind him. The back wall of the room loudly exploded and filled the area with a cloud of dust. Man's magic lit up the haze and the cloud of dust scattered in moments, but it was too te. The beastkin had escaped out of the open wall and into a hallway. The horsekin that had still been in the cell was blown up with the wall, there wasn't much left of him after it violently exploded on him. The bracelet he had taken from me briefly was lying in the pile of gore, discarded after he got what he wanted.

  I could hear shouting ing from down the hall, the guards had obviously beeed to the sound of the explosion. The bearkin pulled me bato the hallway by my shoulder. "Finish getting everyone else out, I'll hold this opening." Since I had talked to him, Mimi had equipped him with a shield and an iron mace.

  "Okay, time isn't on our side anymore. Let's get through the rest of them out as fast as we ," I told everyone around me.

  There goes our stealth.

  Saine

  Hello! Oops, wonder who she let out. And everything was going so well! Thanks for reading.

  Chey other story here: Umbral Feast

  Here's a link to the unity Discord: https://disc/XsNwYuZp6s

  If you would like to support my writing on Patreon, you read up to 10 chapters ahead there!

  Please leave a favorite so I get my story in front of more eyeballs! I would greatly appreciate it!