Elania followed a few steps behind the Ranger--- Marcus was the name he had given her, as they stepped out of the Mushroohum Chieftain's hall. The Mushroom Men who had not been able to fit themselves into the building were out and about doing whatever business or task they had. As she studied the ranger’s back she wondered why having the strange non-human people about felt comforting to her. Shouldn’t she have felt relief at finding some other humans that she could talk to?

A little voice of doubt filled her as she continued to follow along. The memory of the Paladin trying to kill her wasn’t that old, but the monk party hadn’t reacted the same way. The one monk made his dislike of her very obvious, and that was actually a good thing; she’d prefer outright antipathy rather than covert maliciousness.

The monks were already well ahead of Elania and the ranger, carrying the baskets toward one of the buildings she assumed was going to be their quarters for the night. The thought that she didn’t actually need to sleep much meant that she’d probably be able to spend some more time around the village with the Mushroohums if she chose. That would be good if she found the company of the monks unbearable.

One of the novices tripped over his own feet and fell face first. The lid to his basket flew off and the familiar turquoise hue of the Glow-Moss spilled out of the wicker. ‘Seems like they are going through a lot of trouble for some flammable moss stuff.’

“So, Little Demon, how’d ya end up out here? Some poor group accidentally summoned ye? Group of unlucky cavers run into ya and turned into snacks?”

Marcus’s questions distracted her from the Monk’s mishap and the contents of the basket.

“I was summoned. On purpose, though.”

“Ah, yes. A group of incompetents dealing with something well beyond them. Probably didnae even realize a newly summoned Demon’s favorite snack is essence-brimming sapients. And now here ye are.”

Elania didn’t want to mention the Paladin or the Cultists yet as he theorized her history. What did surprise her was the realization of what had been meant by the ‘New Form’ comment from earlier--- they thought she ate humans and became one of them! Before she could say anything he was already continuing.

“You’ll wanna be careful around the monks. Their Conclave doesn’t have much love for demons--- especially ones that have slipped their contract. Too many orphans with demon-gobbled parents there. Fix yer unbound status and most won’t care enough to give you trouble.”

“Unbound? What’s that mean, and how do you know I don’t already have a contract?”

He smiled at her like he was glad that was her question. Had that been his intent to steer her toward it?

“As a fresh off the circle demoness, you’ll probably not have any experience with contracts yet, since ye ate your summoners. Your eyes are red, so at the very least you aren’t under a contract at the moment.” He paused after making a few obvious points that Elania was just barely starting to follow. Her failure to answer had him grinning at her which set the skin on the back of her neck prickling. “One thing a demon can’t do is hide their eyes.”

[Identify] that told everyone she was a demon, eye color based on contract status, Elania started to think that being a demon had a lot of inconvenient tells.

They had caught up to the monks who had fully filled into the building with the baskets. It didn’t even have a front door, if the party tried anything, she’d be able to yell for help she told herself. From what she had observed, she didn’t think Skinner or the Mushroohums that had supported him would have sent her into an ambush, and there was that huge deal about adding an extra basket to ‘pay’ them to take her away.

If it was the chieftain she wouldn’t have had much hope, but she didn’t think Skinner would have allowed her to go with them if they were going to turn on her as soon as they left the village. She really wished she could borrow the communication orb and ask the Mushroohum.

“The thing you used to talk to them… could I borrow it to talk to Skinner?”

“Skinner? Ye mean the old one that argued for you? And no. It’s a bound item that only works for the user; they are quite expensive. It’s half my business from those who need to converse with Demi-humans who can’t speak.”

“So there’s more than just the Mushroohums?”

“Oh, you’re lucky that you didn’t get caught by the Arachums. They’d have webbed you and kept you that way until you dehydrated… or I guess in your case ran out of Power.”

“Sounds like a fun bunch.”

The conversation had delayed them at the entrance, but then Marcus finally moved inside. Elania took a breath and crushed the bit of doubt she was having. Mentally it was easier than entering a spider nest at the very least. Mushroohums suddenly didn’t seem so bad.

As she entered the room was much the same as the storeroom she had been in before, just without the supplies and goods stacked along the walls. The monks had placed the baskets full of Glow-Moss along the back wall and were setting up bedrolls. The one who had been glaring daggers at her most of the time was kneeling at what Elania realized was a firepit, doing his best to send a spray of sparks on some kindling.

“Hey! Isn’t that dangerous?” Elania looked between the sparks and the baskets full of moss with alarm. The ‘wildfire’ incident wasn’t one she was about to forget anytime soon.

He stopped and looked up at her in surprise, and the small flame he had almost coaxed to life went out. He almost immediately realized his mistake and then glared at her. “What the fuck are you on about?”

The others had stopped what they were doing as well and Elania realized they were all staring at her warily. She cleared her throat and pointed to the baskets. “Aren’t those really flammable? Is it really safe to have fire in here with them?”

‘Angry monk’ stopped glaring at her and went back to striking the sparks without answering. The other monk that seemed to be in charge answered instead.

“The Glow-Moss is only reactive to mana. Regular flame won’t set it off which is why Taniel is using the flint instead of the sparker.”

“Oh.” That was good to know, having a campfire without the danger of everything turning to ash was nice. She hadn’t wanted to consider eating anything raw, and a campfire had seemed like a bad idea even if she had had the tools to make one herself before.

Marcus had set down his pack on the single table in the room, and out came what she assumed was the company’s mess kit. One of the novices brought out some potatoes and other staples, it seemed a meal was on the menu and the prospect pleased her. Even if she didn’t need to eat, she missed it.

While the monks worked on cooking, Elania found a spot against the wall near the entrance and watched the efforts play out. The group seemed organized in their manner of unpacking, which probably meant they were well experienced. Marcus didn’t bother to help them with the stew preparations and had his bedroll unpacked. He noticed she was standing off to the side and patted a spot near him. “Come sit and talk.”

“I’m fine standing, thanks. How far is it to the city… Neftasu?”

He shrugged, “About a week’s travel, depending on the Razorscale migration. Ain’t the best time to be traveling through the area between here and the city.”

A week, depending on how much travel in a week they could do, that meant the city was probably way too far to find on her own without a map or guide. She considered that sticking with them until then would be the best bet for her to find civilization, but she wasn’t sure how much she could trust them.

The issue of time brought up another thing she really wanted to know and had been driving her crazy. “A week, ok. How do you tell what time it is? I didn’t see you having anything like a clock or watch…?”

“Just look on your system screen.” One of the novices interjected, looking at her like she was stupid.

“She doesn’t have a clock yet. There’s no binding stone around here, the nearest one is in Neftasu and the clock is based on that.”

“Oh, right. Sorry.” The novice offered a sheepish apology before being pulled away by Taniel to work on the food preparation.

“Binding stone? Don’t tell me if you die you resurrect at those?”

Marcus shook his head. “Fun idea, but no. It’s an artifice that provides certain functions to those who reside in the area. Clock, maps, the ability to call the guards, among other things.”

That did sound useful but Elania couldn’t help feel a bit skeptical of getting all that for free, and the word ‘binding’ seemed to suggest being stuck with it somehow.

“I guess I will be without a way to tell time for a while then… just to confirm there are twenty-four hours in a day, and seven days in a week, right…?”

Marcus nodded, “Four weeks to a month, thirteen months to a year.”

‘Thirteen? Oh well, that isn’t so bad as to be too confusing.’

Before she could ask something else, Taniel interjected.

“Why are you bothering answering her stupid questions? Just offer her a contract before she gets hungry and decides to have one of us for a snack.”

Elania did not like his suggestion or where it led. She had no intention of signing any contract until she knew it wasn’t some sort of slavery thing. She’d rather take her chances escaping into the caves and hiding with the Dark Walkers than anything like that. She held up a hand.

“I don’t plan on making any contracts until I understand everything more,” she paused mid-way to frown at Taniel, “And I am not going to eat anyone for a snack. The only thing I’ve absorbed is another demon, some Ralfots, and Dark Walkers.”

“So she’s lying to us too, Tanyan, don’t you need some extra karma for your next skill? Why don’t we just dispose of her so you can earn that.”

What made him hate her so much that he would suggest killing her? Marcus had mentioned the orphan thing, but the hostility radiating from the man was chilling. Tanyan, the other senior monk, along with the novices looked like they were taken a bit aback at the sudden suggestion as well, although no one came to her defense. There was a moment of quiet only broken by two of the novices working on stirring the stew.

The sudden silence was too much for Elania and she offered another question.

“What’s Karma do anyway? I only have 24, but I didn’t see anything relating it to skills?”

“See, she killed 24 people already if they were all -1s, just get rid of her.”

“No, I have positive 24, I started with twelve points and I didn’t kill anyone unless you count that other Lesser Demon which gave me positive twelve.”

They all seemed to stare at her, except two of the novices who were doing their best to ignore the conversation. Marcus and Tanyan looked at her with skepticism, while Taniel only continued to offer a defiant glare.

Marcus eventually asked, “24, and not -24? You didn’t actually kill anyone when you were summoned?”

“That’s not possible.”

Marcus looked at Taniel and shook his head. “It is, although rare.” He looked back to Elania and asked, “So, you were a human before being summoned?”

“Well, yes.”

“She’s lying, obviously,” Taniel said immediately.

There was another awkward moment of silence, but it was the other senior monk that broke it.

“Elania, show us your ‘Status’ screen,” Tanyan said.

“Eh?” Her confused look prompted an explanation.

“Normally It isn’t polite to ask, but in this case it’s an easy way to prove what you’re saying.”

“I don’t actually know how.”

Marcus chuckled, addressing the others like she wasn’t even there and Elania felt an instant dislike toward him.

“She’s like a kid who doesn’t know the way around her own system.”

He turned back toward her with a condescending smile.

“I assume you know how to open your status? Do that and then simply will it to be visible to us the same way you open it. Nothing’s easier.”

Showing them her Status didn’t seem to be too bad. She would have worried more if they had wanted to see her skills or attribute pages, though.

[Status]

Name: Elania Reyes

Race: Lesser Demon (S Class Monster)

Level: 36

Power: 56/208

Karma: 24

Titles: [Locked]

[Some functions are disabled due to insufficient requirements.]

The page in the air appeared obediently. The next part was a bit more complicated, but after a few seconds of ‘willing’ it to appear to the others a few of them reacted. She noted that each person seemed to have their own way of accepting the request, as the screens suddenly appeared in the air in front of them.

It was weird, being able to see her own status screen floating in the air for each person.

“Woah! Look at her ‘Power’ cap! It’s over 200!” One of the novices commented, and another pointed out her level.

“Level 36? It’s a bit high for just being summoned?”

“I killed a bunch of Darkwalkers, that seemed to give me a lot of them. Is killing things the only way to level?”

Marcus gave her that same condescending smile and she felt really glad she wasn’t sitting anywhere near him.

“Killing things is the main way, yes. Non-fatal combat will give some eventually as well, especially at lower levels. Crafting is a safe way, but it takes years. A lot of skilled artisans go adventuring early on to gain attribute points they can use to boost their trade of choice.”

“So leveling gives attribute points, I got one at level ten, but none since then?”

Tanyan offered the answer, “One, Ten, Fifty, and then every Fifty levels, 100, 150, 200, etc.”

Elania looked at Marcus and frowned, he was the highest level and that meant he had seven or eight attributes? She remembered the list that had been offered her, and some of those had seemed pretty powerful. She’d picked [Regeneration] in a hurry, but considering how fast she had been leveling, it wouldn’t be long before she got another chance to choose another.

“Does everyone get the same attribute choices?”

A loud clunk interrupted, Taniel hitting the now boiling stew with the metal scoop.

“Why are you all entertaining her? The levels, the high power-cap? She’s obviously older than she is letting on and probably just picked up the good karma by farming it off some negative people.”

Nothing seemed able to convince Taniel that she was anything other than an evil demon, and Elania tried to tamp down the worry that a lot of people would react the same way. That was starting to seem more likely, though. She hadn’t been able to read much off Tanyan although he was at least not hostile. Meanwhile, Marcus was giving off all kinds of red-flags despite all the very useful information.

“I don’t really get the whole Karma thing. It seems like you gain it by killing people? I got it from killing that other demon, but it seemed really evil that seemed normal?”

“Oh, people learned how to game the system long ago, girl. Killing a fellow sapient will earn you one big ol’ negative point. Kill someone with negative points and you’ll get half that many as positive points. It’s a shit system for keeping track of who’s good or bad. There’s slave markets in the west that have whole stables for sale that aren’t based on anything other than their merchandise’s negative karma.”

“And something like that unlocks a [Holy Monk] skill? That seems a bit off…” She looked to Tanyan and frowned.

“Well, we can write a letter and send it off to one o’ the gods with the complaint they set the world up wrong.”

“What’s your highest skill, Elania?” Tanyan asked, and it almost surprised her, he had been pretty quiet for most of the discussion. He seemed the most friendly of the three and she thought about it.

“[Demonic Aura] and [Mana Manipulation] in the Magical tree. [Throwing Weapons] and [Combat Mastery] in Physical now after the big fight. For Mundane it’s [Athletics] but [Universal Speech] and [Identify] are at five now. Oh! [Improvised Crafting], I leveled it up a lot so far making spears. Maybe [Reading] and [Writing] are good too?”

“Well, with [Universal Speech], [Reading] and [Writing] were you a noblewoman? Those aren’t very common skills.”

“Uhh, no. I was a University student.”

“So from a rich family then.”

Her family was middle-class back home, but that probably would count for rich here, considering all the modern amenities middle class Americans enjoyed. She didn’t think they would be much interested in that though so she just nodded. There was one question that she hadn’t asked yet that was very important to her.

"How do I get home?"

Elania waited for what felt like way too long as Marcus paused, looking at her, considering his answer.

"Normally, you don't. Can I ask how you were summoned?"

She took a deep breath, and briefly went through the course of events from her arrival in the summoning circle up to the point where she escaped the cultist compound.

“So, that explains how you got out without a contract then. I’m more surprised that you didn’t end up dead.”

Elania wasn’t going to argue, she knew exactly how lucky she had been to survive up to this point. The monks looked to Marcus. Elania realized that he knew a lot more about Demons than they seemed to.

“I don’t know any way to send Demons back. I’ve never even heard of it being attempted. Most Demons are animals or monsters when they are summoned or form naturally. Wild Demons that live long enough generally evolve into the demon form of whatever they devour. Summoned ones evolve into whatever their masters feed them. It’s not hard to form a contract with a summoned demon, most are quite stupid and easily tricked into accepting anything as long as they get more essence from their summoner.”

“So… people summon demons and turn them into slaves with a contract, then turn them into whatever they want? That’s… terrible.”

“Ahh, it’s more tolerated than the Karma markets of Ravost. There’s a Demon market in Neftasu. Every major city, really.”

Her race was generally regarded as useful slaves, or as a dangerous monster. Marcus gave her a smile that made her feel hunted. “Don’t worry, Little Demon, contracts aren’t always one-sided. You have a huge advantage in negotiating a contract compared to a beast whose only desire is essence.”

“Stew’s ready,” Taniel announced.