Page 38 of The Demon God's Desire

Guilri seems convinced of whatever plan it is that I’ve set in motion because his eyes light up with more excitement than I’ve seen in days.

“A god, Bridget. That’s what we need on our side.”

I sit up and look down at him while pieces of my hair fall over my chest. I don’t know much about the dark elf pantheon, but I’m aware of their deities. They’ve slain enough of us in their names for us to have a general idea that they not only encourage violence, but warmongering as well.

It scares me to think that not only has Guilri been tied to a goddess most of his life that is now trying to kill him, but now we’re going to have to potentially involve another god just to survive this mess.

“It’s the only way,” he sits up slowly, tucking my hair back. “The Hearthkeeper is a fearsome force to be reckoned with. But she’s not infallible. She has her own enemies.”

“Like who?”

He lifts a shoulder. “It’s tough to say.”

I pull the covers back from myself and slip out of bed, wandering over to the small desk on the other side of the room. I get the lamp lit before bringing it over along with a pad of papyrus and a writing utensil.

Guilri takes the lamp from me, gently setting it on the sill next to the bed and pulls the covers back over my lap when I crawl into bed again.

“We’ll make a list,” I tell him, turning the pad sideways. “Start with the Hearthkeeper.”

“Well,” Giulri folds his legs, one over the other and contemplates my question for a long moment. “Like I said, she’s a force to be reckoned with. Her and The Warrior are two sides of the same coin. They both uphold what us dark elves fight for. Tradition, our core values, family, things like that.”

I nod, scribbling it down. “The Warrior… would never go against the Hearthkeeper?”

He shakes his head. “They have a balance between them. There’s a status quo that cannot be toppled. They’re both revered by the miou castes, so I doubt the Warrior would be interested in helping us.”

Damn.

I scribble out the Warrior. “Who else is there?”

“She has enemies, such as the Deceiver, the Gatherer, the Guide, and the Hunter too. Even the Hedonist is said to not get along with her.”

I blink, writing it down. “Bit of a long list. She doesn’t seem to be the most likable.”

He gives me a wry smile. “Gods and Goddesses are tricky beings. They come in and out of favor with one another just as easily as the seasons change. They’re infinite in their powers but not so much in their own squabbling.”

“Sounds kind of like how humans are.”

He laughs. “Don’t even say that if you find yourself in the presence of one of the gods. They’ll smite you on the spot if they hear themselves compared to a human.”

“I suppose I’ll keep that in mind, seeing as how we’ll probably be coming face-to-face with a god soon.”

“Yes.” Guilri’s expression suddenly falls, turning grave. “I’ll protect you in anyway that I can, Bridget. I promise you that. I won’t let them hurt you as long as I can help it.”

My chest warms at his fierce words. I never thought I’d fall for a warrior as stubborn and brash as Guilri. I always thought that I’d end up being with someone soft to counteract my own brash nature. But his protective nature over me touches me deeply.

I’ve never had someone care as much about my well-being before. Usually, it has always been me caring for everyone else. And to have a soldier like Guilri, a favored warrior who could take down entire legions with his powers alone, by my side is a comforting thought.

I lean over to kiss him softly, not knowing how to exactly express that gratitude I feel. But I figure that actions are enough at this point.

“So, out of the five you named, who would be most likely to go against the Hearthkeeper?”

“It’s hard to say. But if we can travel to one of the temples and offer something to curry favor, we should be able to be granted an audience.”

I tap the end of my writing utensil against my lips, staring down at the list of gods and goddesses. “What do each of them rule over? It may be better to narrow it down to one so that they don’t feel we’re splintering our time between them. Gods get kind of testy about that sort of thing, don’t they?”

He nods. “Good point. It would be better to focus on just one and put all of our energy towards them.”

I tap against the pad. “Right.”