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Aleron stiffened, likely unsure of what to do or what was happening.

But that was okay; she just wanted to hug him.

“He misses you very much,” she softly stated. “I’ll try to take care of him for you.”

Within an instant, all his tension deflated out of him in a single false breath. He loosely wrapped an arm around her waist.

“I miss him, too. I will try to find a way back to him.”

Tenderness flooded her chest for Aleron. He seemed kind and gentle, just like Ingram.

I really hope that’s true.

She squeezed him tighter with all her might, hoping he could feel the strength of emotions she was trying to convey.

“We’ll be waiting for you.”

Standing in his more humanoid form, Ingram stared down at Aleron on all fours. Aleron tipped his snout down to his feet before trailing it back up to his short, upward-jutting goat horns.

Before he left his kindred, he wanted to teach him and show him as much as he could. Hopefully it would help him in the future.

It would have helped Ingram had he known about all his abilities. His body, how to sheath his claws, that he could mimic the way humans walked.

I don’t want to leave him,Ingram thought with his sight turning blue. Yet, he faced Emerie instead, who was standing right next to his kindred.But I must.

Finally, Ingram dipped his head towards Weldir.

“We are ready,” he stated, lifting his claws towards Emerie, wishing she could take his hand.

Even though she couldn’t, she still played pretend with him and hovered her palm above his own. She came to his side.

“Good, because you are almost out of time,”Weldir stated, what remained of his face dropping to the last, palm-sized amount of flesh remaining right where Ingram’s sternum was.

“Actually, I do have one question for you,” Emerie stated, turning to Weldir. “Did I do it? Did I destroy the Demon King?”

Weldir was silent for a moment, and the hand that was visible tightened. “I am not sure.”

Emerie’s brows furrowed deeply. “What do you mean you’re not sure?”

“I can no longer sense his magic, nor have I seen him among the rubble of his castle from my viewing discs, but my mist has not touched his soul.” He waved his hand through the air, his claws pointed upwards. “It may have been destroyed since it belonged to a half-Demon, but an Elf’s soul is blue. If I had touched it, I would have noticed immediately when I tried to eat it. But yes, for now, we believe he was destroyed. That is all we can hope for.”

“I guess that’s better than nothing. I’ll be really angry if he survived after that, though.”

“So will we.” A small chuckle left him. “Now, this will not hurt.”

That was the only warning he gave as he shoved his hand into Emerie’s spirit. Thankfully she’d already said her goodbyes to Aleron and Gideon because, once he yanked his hand out, she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Instead, a small, white flame became visible in Weldir’s tight fist. Ingram couldn’t see the body of her soul, but he knew it was there.

Ingram held his hand out for it, but the part of Weldir’s face that showed his lips smirked.

“Not quite yet,” he stated. “First, you must leave the way you came in.”

“I don’t understand.”

Weldir disappeared in a mist of glittering black sand with that smirk still in place.

Was he supposed to walk back? He inspected his chest.I will not make it.There was only a little of him left, and it had taken a long time to get here. He also didn’t know the way.