The dark world or a slave for a demon. Novels with dark ones. Dark World Andrey Lazarchuk

Chapter 1
- Nooo! - Tears flowed from the girl’s eyes, which seemed impossible to stop. - Please, don't do this! I don't want!
A tall man stood in front of her, but it was impossible to see what he looked like, as if some impenetrable and vague veil was hiding him.
An authoritative and rather rude voice, with some hoarseness, rang through the room:
“Your desires don’t bother me at all, eskha.” I decided so - it means you will obey! - then, looking towards one of his warriors, he ordered: - Chain her! A little later she will join the other escha in my palace.
- I obey, lord! - the warrior with hair as dark as a raven’s wing said, standing at attention. Then he turned to the girl, holding bracelets in his hands to chain her in them. - On your knees, eskha!
- No, please, no! - the girl shuddered in sobs, kneeling down. - Do not do that!
As soon as she lowered herself, they put bracelets on her hands, shackling her wrists, and a collar made of a metal unknown to the girl closed around her neck.
Grinning contentedly, the ruler said:
- That's it, let's leave! - he waved his hand, making a couple of passes into the void and the air in the room began to become electrified, a small dark glow appeared, and then a portal opened into which all these people stepped, including a girl, grabbed by one of the warriors by the arm, and everyone disappeared into this dark matter.

Ten hours before
- Irka, where the hell are you? All my heels already hurt from such a long walk, I lost my feet while I was looking for you! - my childhood friend Svetka came up to me.
Beautiful, well-groomed and quite tall brown-haired woman with an amazing figure. Breasts are no smaller than size 4. Thin waist and rounded hips. Her ass is like a nut and, quite well, sticks out from behind - Sveta was exactly the girl who made guys almost wring their necks, looking after her, especially if she was wearing short shorts that only slightly covered her gorgeous ass!
- Well, where have you been, may I ask? - asked a friend, pouting her plump lips, painted with bright red lipstick.
- Light, forgive me, you know, if I went into one of the boutiques, you won’t kick me out of there until I try on all the clothes I like! - making innocent eyes and smiling sweetly, I tried to justify myself in the eyes of my friend.
Squinting her sky-blue eyes, Sveta shouted quite loudly, apparently so that the entire shopping center could hear:
- Why the hell didn’t you pick up your cell phone? I called you ten times!
- Well, Svetik, forgive me! I just went into the fitting room, and you understand - one thing, another, and the cell phone in my purse is on silent mode, so that my parents don’t bother me with their calls,” I said, making a dissatisfied grimace. - You know them, the real nightmare, not the parents! “Irina, where are you?” “Irina Viktorovna, come home quickly!” Irina, don’t make me angry!” “Irina, I will complain to your father, and he will deprive you of all your pocket money. Come home quickly! And everything in the same spirit,” I sighed heavily.
“Okay, I forgive you, I have the same problem myself,” my friend relented. Sveta wrinkled her nose and suddenly, as if remembering something, she screamed: “Listen, what are you doing this evening?” Vadim just gathers all of us in the apartment. Well, so to speak, the “golden” youth. You and I are also invited as the most honored guests, because we are beautiful, popular and very rich girls at eighteen years old! What do you say? Maybe we can go?
Sveta looked at me with hope in her eyes, expecting a positive answer. Well, of course, I never refuse to hang out. I love to have a blast! True, the parents are completely unhappy with this. Although, for the most part, I don’t care what they think. The main thing is that dad sends money to the account every day, and the rest doesn’t matter.
I'm young and beautiful, so I want to try everything possible! I’ve already tried alcohol and, to be honest, it’s not my thing, I didn’t like it at all. I tried to start smoking - I almost threw up! Phew, as soon as I remember, it makes me sick! Drugs? Absolutely not! Of course, I’m young, but I’m not completely stupid! The only thing left to try is sex, but, alas, I haven’t had any luck yet - I haven’t found the right guy. Svetka was lucky, at the age of eighteen she had already changed so many guys, as if she were wearing gloves every day, and this, believe me, is not a little! She is experienced in these matters, not like me.
- Svetul, I just can’t. Today my father invited his family to our home for dinner. business partners on business. Unfortunately, I must attend.
- Damn, I don’t envy you! Sitting there smiling at everyone and trying to be nice so that the guests are charmed and the parents are happy...a nightmare! I often have dinners like this, my father constantly invites different people from his social circle to join us, and it’s just terrible! Brrrr! - Svetka shrugged her shoulders, and then suggested hopefully: - Or maybe they should?! Take it and run away from home for one evening, at least have some fun today, otherwise you will sit with these old farts and suffer! Vadim said that the party is planned to be super! Well, come on, Irikha! Well, please, I don’t want to go there without you, it’s more fun with you! - the friend began to wail.
- Svetik, I would be glad, but I really can’t. My father said that if I didn’t show up at the appointed time for dinner, he would deprive me of all my pocket money, and that’s fifteen grand a day - not a little. But, what’s even worse, he will then send me to study as an economist, and I will live in a dorm on a scholarship that is awarded at the university. And you know, my dad is a flint, he said he did it. But I don’t wish such a fate for myself, I already have a very good life! I have money, I have friends and parties - I don’t need anything else. So, I definitely need to be present today if I don’t want to lose all this.
“Yes, it’s just darkness,” muttered Sveta, nervously stamping her foot, shod in chic red sandals with high heels. - He is cruel to you.
I shrugged.
- Sometimes you have to sacrifice something to achieve your goal.
- Do you know what the dinner is in honor of? - asked a friend.
- No, my father didn’t say. But I think that something very important is coming.
- Well, I don’t understand - why force your child to attend such boring events? This is the most natural nonsense! - my friend asked grumpily.
“I agree - I don’t understand this either,” I supported her.
- Irina, have you already chosen your outfit for dinner? - Svetka inquired, slyly narrowing her eyes.
“I understand your train of thought,” I smiled, “So I answer - no, I haven’t chosen it yet.”
- Which means...
- Go shopping! - we exclaimed in one voice. We laughed merrily, holding hands, and headed to one of the most expensive boutiques to choose my outfit for tonight's dinner.
***
Of course, I love shopping, but with Svetka this pleasant little thing lasts for a long time. A whole four and a half hours of shopping! Koshma-a-ar! I’m tired, but I still need to go to the beauty salon in time: manicure, pedicure, nourishing face mask, hairstyle, makeup... Yes, I need a whole lot of time for this! I’m already exhausted to the limit, and here’s this! No, I don’t argue, beauty is an important matter, but I may not meet the time set by my father. The main thing is that I took the dress, and it’s gorgeous!
“Light,” I called to my friend, already barely moving my feet, shod in sneakers from a fairly famous fashion designer. - Svetik, I'm tired. Let's get some rest, shall we? Let's sit and drink coffee in a cafe. My legs hurt! I don’t understand how you walk all day in these high heels and manage not to get tired?
-Are you completely crazy? No rest, we haven’t picked out the jewelry for the dress yet! And, by the way, I’m tired too, I’m just not whining like you,” she grinned. An ulcer, not a friend!
- Svetul, maybe they don’t care? I have so much of this jewelry at home that I could open my own jewelry store,” I cried, if only she wouldn’t drag me anywhere else.
My friend looked at me rather sternly.
- Listen, Ir, you’re not stupid by any chance, are you? Well, what kind of nonsense are you talking about? You've already worn those jewelry. So, you need something new and exactly the style of your new dress to fit. “I never wear the same piece of jewelry twice and I don’t advise you to,” she snorted.
I stopped in the middle of the shopping center, holding bags of new acquisitions in my hands, and frowned at my friend.
“Sveta,” I turned to her rather sternly, “I don’t need new jewelry, there’s one pendant at home that I’ve never worn, and it fits the dress perfectly,” I had to lie.
“Sveta, leave me alone, I don’t want to go anywhere else!” I thought.
My friend is wonderful! She will never leave me in trouble and will always, if I need it, support me in difficult times. But sometimes she can be so intrusive that there is simply nowhere to escape from her ideas and decisions!
Sveta chuckled and straightened her small shoulders proudly.
“Okay,” she agreed, “Then first we’ll go to the beauty salon, and then, if there is time, we’ll sit in a cafe and drink coffee.” Agree?
I nodded affirmatively and also smiled at my friend.
“Glory to you, world famous fashion designer! She agreed!” I quietly rejoiced to myself.
- I agree, Svetik! Of course I agree!
And we headed to the beauty salon together, I have to look chic, because that’s what money exists for, to spend it on yourself, the one you love!
But, alas, we didn’t manage to sit and drink coffee, too much time was spent in the salon - one hairstyle only took an hour and a half, not to mention everything else.
Coming out of the "Ladies' Paradise", we warmly said goodbye to Svetochka and, having received her wish to have a good time at today's dinner, I went home. There was only an hour left before my father's scheduled business dinner. We need to hurry!
About twenty minutes later I was already at home in my bedroom, which was located on the second floor - yes, the house is very large and beautiful. I won’t go into detail and describe the architecture of this house, I’ll just say that it is the pride of my mother. She says the house is like the palace she always dreamed of and her father granted her wish.
My room is very comfortable and spacious, decorated in light colors, there is even a private bathroom. Imagine, a whole separate bathroom just for me! In a word, paradise! In general, everything I need is here. A large and soft bed, on which I love to lie down and chat on the phone with Svetka. On the desk there is a laptop and a couple of photo frames with my photos. On the walls there were photo paintings depicting cities at night, and on the floor there was a soft white carpet, which I simply adore walking on, a kind of massage on my heels! It’s especially pleasant to walk on it after a long walk in heels, your feet are rested!
In general, it depends on everyone, but I really like my room, and I won’t fully describe it to you, otherwise you will start to envy. I'm just kidding, if anyone doesn't understand. Well, I agree that I have a poor sense of humor, and sometimes I suffer from it myself. Oh, I forgot to add, I also have a dressing room where a pole is installed for practicing strip plastic. I admit it, but I don’t repent, it’s just that strip dancing is my weakness, I’ve been doing it for six months now, and believe me, it’s awesome!
Throwing my purse and shopping bags on the bed, I headed towards the mirror built into the wall, left side from the front door to the room.
She looked at me from the mirror attractive girl: height one hundred and seventy centimeters, a nice and athletic figure thanks to strip plastic classes, breasts of the third size, an elastic ass and a very thin waist, as many would say, wasp. Short-cropped platinum-colored hair, like fallen snow. Everyone was unanimously surprised and asked for the number of my hairdresser-stylist, but the fact of the matter is that I have never dyed my hair, it is such an unusual natural shade. About the length. Long hair I never liked it, so I cut my hair short - a small “snowy” cap on top, and very short on the sides and back.
And so, it would seem, why did I stay in the salon for so long? Yes, everything is simple to the point of banality. Nourishing mask for hair, with which I sat for at least twenty minutes, then a moisturizing and restoring mask. It’s tedious and time-consuming, of course, but beauty requires sacrifice, as they say! Well, and finally, styling so that my white “hat” doesn’t get disheveled. And that's it, I'm beautiful!
Eyes... Oooh, eyes are my pride! Bright blue-green large eyes with long black, which, by the way, is strange, eyelashes. The eyebrows are also black. It's just some kind of anomaly, it turns out! But I was born this way. A neat little nose, slightly snub-nosed and plump, naturally scarlet lips. Long graceful neck. Small rounded shoulders, thin wrists.
I was wearing a light red plaid shirt with elbow-length sleeves and dark blue denim breeches. Simple and tasteful! Just what you need for a shopping trip!
For some time I spun around the mirror like a model, admiring my appearance. I was distracted by my mother’s voice from behind the door:
“Irina,” my mother called.
- Yes mom? - I responded, stopping my narcissism.
- Are you ready yet? Can I come in?
- Uh, no, mom. But I’m already getting dressed, honestly! - I lied. “I’ll be ready in five to ten minutes.”
“Okay,” the woman behind the door sighed tiredly. “The guests will arrive soon, so hurry up, please,” and I heard the sound of retreating heels.
Sighing, she quickly began to undress, taking off absolutely everything, leaving only a white thong. Throwing my casual clothes on a chair, I went to the bed and took the bag containing the dress I had bought especially for today’s dinner.
White, light, flowing, as if woven from a million of the finest cobwebs - it fit perfectly on my figure, emphasizing the high chest, thin waist and smooth curve of the hips, spreading downwards in a flowing silk wave all the way to the floor. The high collar and long lace sleeves only emphasized the perfection of this dress. Oooh, it's wonderful! In it I looked like a snow nymph.
To complete this wonderful look, she wore white open sandals with low heels. Well, that's it, the image is complete! And it didn't even require any decorations.
Taking a deep breath, I looked at myself in the mirror before leaving.
- Well, Irina, are you ready for this evening nightmare? - the reflection, of course, could not answer me. However, this was not required. You still need to go and don’t be late, otherwise daddy will get angry.
And I opened the door and left the room.
Going down the stairs to the first floor, I heard voices and laughter that belonged to my father. “I wonder what made him laugh so much”? - a thought flashed through my head, but I didn’t get hung up on it, there’s no point in filling my head with all sorts of nonsense. While I was descending, the feeling of impending disaster did not leave me; confusion and fear reigned inside me, expressed in the form of a shrinking heart. Of course, there were no rational reasons to worry or be afraid, but it was impossible to calm down. “Yes, what’s wrong with me”? - I thought feverishly, continuing to descend.
“And here is our daughter,” my father’s low voice distracted me from my thoughts as soon as I reached the first floor. “Irina, come to us,” he called me.
A tall man of forty-nine years old with hair the same platinum as mine, with a piercing gaze blue eyes, a large nose with a hump, thin lips, clearly defined cheekbones and a powerful chin with a small dimple. They say that the one who has it is a monogamist. “They’re probably lying about this dimple,” a stupid thought flashed through my head.
My father's name is Victor, and he is the general director of the Aikhire company. I still don’t know what this name means, and my father won’t admit it. The company's annual income is very large; such amounts are not even worth mentioning. I didn’t know what his company was doing, because my father decided not to let me know about his business. However, for me it didn’t matter, as long as our family remains rich, how my father earns money does not interest me.
My father stood at the foot of the stairs and looked at me seriously. Yeah, he’s afraid that I’ll do another trick or stupid thing. “Not this time, daddy,” she smiled at her thoughts and approached her father. I turned my gaze from him to the guests, or more correctly, the guest, looking at whom my eyes almost flew out of their sockets! A man... no, a man, the most a real man. Low, about a head shorter than me. Thick as a baobab tree, in addition, bald and scary, like death itself! Potato nose, small eyes like a pig's, full wide lips, protruding ears, neck swollen with fat. I'm just going to be sick right now!
- Mmm, Irina, time to meet you! - he said in a high, squeaky voice, approaching me with the obvious intention of slobbering on my hand. Well, like, kiss. I don't want, I don't want! Get this fat guy away from me.
Out loud, smiling sweetly (in fact, my face was distorted with disgust), I said:
“Very nice,” I hope my forced smile doesn’t reveal how unpleasant this guy is to me.
He took my hand in his, leaned down and kissed it. Horrible! Give me an antiseptic to treat my limb that has been damaged by his drool! And he stank so much of sweat that not a single perfume can cover up this terrible smell! To say that I am squeamish is an understatement!
And it was for this boar that the dinner was planned? Yes, if I knew what awaited me, I would have agreed to Svetkino’s offer to go to Vadim’s party without talking. But instead, I now have to watch this scarecrow for several hours! It seems I'm in my own personal hell!
- Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. Sifushin Oleg Ignatievich, future partner and, I hope, son-in-law of your father, - this creature with fat legs squeaked.
I stared at my father in complete bewilderment.
- Son-in-law? What the hell kind of son-in-law? - I hissed, my eyes flashing angrily.
- Irina, I wanted to tell you later, but since this happened, I’ll tell you now. Oleg will become your husband.
- What?! - Mom and I exclaimed in one voice.
Recoiling from my father and this pig, I added:
- This won’t happen! Do you hear?! Not. To happen!
- Shut up! - my father cut me off harshly. - If I said that he will become your husband, then he will become your husband and this is not discussed!
Angry tears appeared in my eyes and threatened to spill out. I wanted to ask: “why are you doing this to me, dad? What have I done? Not only is he a freak the world has never seen, but he’s also old, forty years old, no less!
- Darling, what are you saying? It’s too early for her to get married,” my mother tried to intercede for me. But he looked at her so much that she immediately fell silent, lowering her gaze to the floor.
- I am the head of this family and the decisions I make are not discussed!
- Why are you doing this to me? - I asked in a trembling voice.
“Irina, my little girl,” my father came up to me and, lifting my chin with his large and wide hand with long fingers, said softly: “I love you very much, snowflake, and I want you to be safe...
My father always called me a snowflake if he wanted to apologize to me for something. That aching sense of danger in my chest intensified.
“How cute,” came a mocking, but slightly rude male voice from the front door.
Everyone turned sharply towards the voice. A tall man, probably two meters tall, with an impressive figure, entered the house. I tried, yes I really tried, to make out this man, but his image all the time seemed to be blurred, or something, vague. The only thing I clearly saw from him were his eyes, piercing and black, like darkness itself, eyes that made my body shiver. “Dangerous,” a terrifying thought flashed through my head.
- Well, hello, my old friend, - said this stranger, walking into the house. Behind him came two more men, completely dressed in black, their faces covered with bandages, leaving only their eyes open, each with...swords hanging in sheaths on their belts?
“Security,” I guessed. Just kind of weird.
“You…” my father exhaled, kneeling on one knee and bowing his head.
- Long time no see... What's your name now - Victor? “You chose a terrible name for yourself,” this strange man grinned. Then, frowning his thick black eyebrows, he said rudely, looking at my father: “You disappointed me, Vic, by not fulfilling the terms of our agreement.”
“Sorry,” he said, swallowing loudly and in a hoarse voice.
- Forgive? Nooooo, it won't work! You have lost my trust, so I am not going to forgive you, instead I will punish you.
- Yes, who are you? - Sifushin squealed, taking a step towards this strange stranger. -What right do you have to punish anyone?
“What a disgusting guy,” the man said, wincing in disgust. - I will give you just one chance to leave this house alive. Leave.
- I'm not going anywhere! - Oleg exclaimed, sticking out his fat belly.
"Fool. Oh, damn it, I’m a fool,” I thought.
“Hmm, a hero, then,” the man grinned harshly.
I tried to see him again, but I saw nothing but black eyes.
“Well, you yourself decided so,” he said calmly and waved his hand towards Sifushin, who before my eyes, wide with horror, turned into a statue of ash and just a moment later began to crumble, turning into a handful.
Screaming, I covered my mouth with my hands, not believing my own eyes. Can't be! This simply cannot be! Fear and panic with new strength began to grow inside me. The man looked away from the pile of ashes that was once Oleg and looked at me.
“Beautiful,” he said thoughtfully, his gaze wandering over my body. - I take it this is your daughter?
“Yes...” my father exhaled, still standing on one knee, bowing his head.
“Okay,” the stranger nodded, satisfied with the answer. - I'm pleased. Now about your punishment. You broke the agreement that was made between us. It's been six months since your daughter came of age, but you still haven't introduced her to me, so I decided to come for her myself. But instead of becoming my eina, she will become my eskha.
- No! - exclaimed the father, abruptly rising from his knees. - I won't allow this!
But one smooth movement of the stranger’s hand and... my father, clutching his chest with his hands, fell to his knees again.
-You dare to contradict me? - the man asked, slightly surprised. - Reckless of you. Apparently, the punishment I voiced is not enough for you. So... - he thought for a while, - Yes, that’s exactly what I’ll do,” looking angrily at my father, he said harshly: “Listen to me and pay attention: you will lose everything you have achieved in these twenty years, you will lose what you this agreement was concluded and you will lose the one for whom it was worth living.
- I beg you, don’t! - Victor wheezed.
- It's too late, Vic. - the man turned his gaze from his father to... his mother, who was sitting on the floor neither alive nor dead.
Snezhnaya Elena Vladimirovna is a small, thin brunette with a pretty face, large brown eyes, filled with horror and lips the same as mine, naturally scarlet.
“For her sake, you made an agreement,” the stranger said, looking at his mother. One movement of the hand in her direction and... she, like Oleg, turned into ashes.
- Noooo! - I screamed in horror, rushing away to the one who gave me life, took care of me, loved me.
- Mother! Mommy! Ma-a-a-ma! No, mom, no!! - bitter, burning tears gushed from my eyes, the wild pain of loss flooded my heart, tearing it apart. - Mother! - I found myself next to her just at the moment when she began to crumble, turning into a small handful of ash. Sobs shook my body.
“Elena…” the father’s quiet voice, filled with indescribable pain, sounded. “Forgive me, my love,” my eyes filled with tears, and a heavy groan filled with suffering escaped from my chest.
“And this one,” the man nodded in my direction, “She was worth living for.” And she, Victarion, will go with me to where access is denied to you,” looking at me, the stranger said: “You, escha, will go with me to the Dark World, where you will serve me as I please.”
And after a couple of minutes I, shackled in wrist bracelets and with a collar around my neck, I stepped into the portal leading to the Dark World - to where the fate of a slave awaited me.

Victor was sitting on the floor in the house that was built for his wife Elena - his beloved, only and beautiful woman, for whose sake he concluded that damned contract!
- Yes, if I had known how all this would turn out, I would never have made that deal! Even if I were alone and unhappy, but you, my beloved, would be alive now,” bitter and angry tears choked, practically not allowing the man to breathe. - But I won’t leave it all that easily! I lost you, my love, but I don’t intend to lose our daughter! - Rising from the floor with a sharp movement, he took his cell phone out of his trouser pocket. Selecting one number from the contact list, he pressed the call button.
“I’m listening,” came a low, slightly hoarse male voice.
- Gaiho, this is Victor. Did I wake you up? Sorry.
- Victor? - he didn’t understand. - What kind of Victor?
Sighing noisily, the man replied:
- Victarion.
There was a moment's silence on the phone, and then a guarded:
- Mister?
- Yes, Gaiho, it's me. I need your help.
- Mister, Victeirion, please excuse me! Woke up, I didn’t recognize you. Please excuse me again,” the man said in a voice still hoarse from sleep. - Uh, could you wait a minute? - he asked.
“I’m waiting,” Victor answered briefly and looked around his home, which now, without Elena, had become unnecessary to him.
A luxurious palace is her dream, the dream of his beloved woman. How many times did Elena tell him about her dream that Victor could easily imagine what exactly this house looked like in her dreams. And after some time, he gave her a dream. Her dream. He will never forget how much happiness there was in her eyes then. And he will never forget how much horror they had before death. “It’s all my fault,” the man thought sadly.
“Mister,” the man called him now in a more cheerful voice. - I'm ready to listen to you.
- Gaiho, convene all of us who have at least a little of the magic of the Dark World left in them. We urgently need to open the portal. - Victor was tense to the limit, as his voice indicated - irritated, nervous and angry.
- Portal? But this may take a lot of time, Sir. Here, things with magic are much worse than in the Dark World,” said Gaiho, without hiding his excitement.
“You have a maximum of three days to gather everyone and open the portal,” Victor said rather harshly.
- Three days? So few? But why such a rush? - the man didn’t understand.
- He has my daughter, Gaiho. He came for her. He killed my wife and took Snowflake to the Dark World, to his domain. We have three days to create the portal and three days to get my daughter out of his clutches. If we don’t have time to cope within this time, then in a week my daughter will be legally will become the eschoa of the Lord. And then we will no longer be able to help her, but now there is still time.
- What? - the man asked instantly in a hoarse voice. - Did he take Snowflake? But she...
- Yes! - the Master interrupted him rudely.
After a short silence, Gaiho said decisively:
- Everything will be done in the shortest possible time, Mister Victarion.
“I rely on you,” Victor answered and dropped the call.
Now determination and unshakable confidence showed in his gaze.
“Irina, my girl, don’t be afraid, I’ll come for you,” he squeezed his cell phone with such force that it crumbled into small pieces. Shaking them off his hand, he whispered: “I will pull you out of the clutches of the Lord of the Dark World, Snowflake.” My little girl, my Snow Demon.

Recommended by: Sonya Vetrova
From dark fantasy, I was impressed by the novel
Ani Sokol "On unknown paths"
Status: 99% finished (according to the author, it will be posted in full one of these days), free of charge The heroine is not a boor, not an idiot, who ended up in the world of stitches (the dark world) and learns to live there, among evil spirits, demons and scavengers.
Annotation:
There are so many people around. And all, of course, involuntary. No one dreamed of falling into a black hole and having an adventure. Everyone was thrown in without asking. Did at least one of them look back at the relatives they left behind? NO
There are dragons and princes ahead, and parents are boring.
I suggest you look back. Only once.
The novel is only one minute old - it has not been proofread (but there is a warning that this is a draft)
http://fan-book.ru/samizdat/na-nevedomih-tropinkah/1-gost16384/page/1
Botalova Maria "In the power of demons"
Abstract: What should an ordinary student do if she is unexpectedly dragged into another world? And four men, without giving you time to come to your senses, simultaneously begin to seduce? Or even not to seduce, given that no one is particularly interested in your opinion. Oh, they're also demons? And besides, princes? And should you marry one of them? Oh, do you want love? So this is not for demons - they only specialize in voluptuous pleasures! But who will let you go now...

Status: completed

Grin Anna "Forget my name!"
Abstract: Do you like fortune telling? Lena always liked them. But this time the girl was unlucky - after drinking a potion on the advice of a friend, she was transported straight into the arms of a demon from another world! A wonderful dream, you say? But no! The problems that follow are clearly not like a beautiful fairy tale. It’s good that this demon constantly helps Lena out of trouble. Or maybe he is the betrothed one who was predicted by pseudo-fortune-telling?

Status: completed

Aleksina Alena "Playing with the Beast"
Abstract: What is happiness? Maybe it's love, friendship or loyalty? No, not in this world. In this world, there is exactly one happiness - to find a Master who will be indifferent enough not to torment, and indifferent enough not to kill. There is no other happiness here. Why? Because this world is cursed. Because people here are weak-willed slaves, living only to satisfy the whims of cruel and almost immortal Masters. There is no love, sensitivity and selflessness here. But a girl with the strange name Cassandra, pulled out of a modern metropolis into this ugly reality, will find the strength to survive and destroy the ancient Curse that has turned kindness into weakness, devotion into stupidity, and love into a cruel game. But... what will it cost her?

Status: Completed

White Lily "Dream"
Abstract: Once in another world, you become the personal slave of the demon lord. And when you finally manage to escape, what will you find out? Your life in exchange for the life of the world. Is the whole world worth one life? Costs. What if this life is yours?

Status: Completed

Natalya Ruzhanskaya "Spread your wings"
Abstract: A tale of love...
What lengths will the Lord of Demons go to in order to delay or even cancel the prophecy of his death?.. And what should a young angeless do when the ground disappears from under her feet, and you are left alone among enemies? How to survive if you exist only at the whim of the dark Lord, without knowing what the next day will turn out to be? Just live as you know how... and time will tell where the winding path of Fate will lead...

Status: Completed

Irina Sergeevna Gribovskaya "Don't look for adventures"
Abstract: You live for yourself and don’t know that one day you will wake up not at all in your cozy bed, and not at all in splendid isolation. Of course, I wanted adventure, but for that?! I decided to post it as a common file, for convenience for both you and us. Happy New Year, my dears!!! And in general this is the end. How happy he is is up to you to decide.

Status: Completed

Galina Krasnova "Favorite toy"
Abstract: Well, some people are lucky! And then it hit me like that. Instead of a fairy-tale world - slavery. Instead of power - the shameful status of a “favorite toy”. Instead of a goal, there is a desire to survive. Friends? Is it those over there? Two exiled princes and a capricious princess? With such friends, there is no need for enemies. And there are too many of the latter even for a hero who has drunk too much anabolic steroids, let alone for a fragile dancer. Well, it’s okay, we’ll dance again when they finish playing...

Status: Completed

Painted Natalya "Fire-haired demon"
Abstract: The plot of this story is outrageously banal - it is an unobtrusive, light fairy tale.

Status: Completed

Painted Natalya "The Devil's Secretary"
Abstract: What to do if your beloved guy sold your soul? If now you work in Hell, side by side with the Prince of Darkness himself - the Devil? If life is destroyed and gaining momentum, but in the wrong direction? The only advice is to never lose heart and boldly step forward into the “beautiful far away.”
Warning!!!
There is no violence or sex in my work. And yes, the Devil is still my sweetheart and darling, but only for Angelina and for her sake. In addition, the main character is not a super-duper girl who can stop a burning hut at a gallop and howl at a horse... uh, something I’m not talking about... in short, you understand me. Or maybe it would be more interesting to read if GG-I was hysterical and fainting all the time??? So, lovers of sex and cruelty, as well as those who don’t like pink snot - let’s pass, let’s pass by!

Status: Completed

Kuvaikova Anna series Helliana Valandi:
- You don’t choose friends;
-- Shards of the past;
-- Saitanshes rose
Abstract: Heh, did I, a seventeen-year-old magician, think, going to study at the Academy of Magic, that fate would bring me together with two dark elven princes, a slightly suspicious High Elf and a bunch of other “wrong” personalities? I never even dreamed of it! And then it turns out that not everything is in order with my magic, the arrogant lady-in-waiting of the local princess hates me fiercely, and the local handsome guy is going to kidnap me for the eighth time in a month. And these are the little things in life! Ahead of me lies practice in the city of half-bloods, competitions in necromancy and a trip to that city where I swore not to even stick the tip of my nose out! The question inevitably arises: where did I sin so much?

Status: Completed
Legacy of the Rose: The Magic of Silence
Abstract: Sometimes, fate manages our lives completely differently than we would like. Simple and so sweet revenge to the demon’s heart turns into a real punishment for himself. A simple girl, mute at that, ends up in his field of vision completely by accident... But who said that she cannot be used for his own purposes? Demons are not the kind of people to pass by gifts of fate, self-confidently thinking that they won’t have to pay for them. But sooner or later, Ariatar will need to understand who this strange child is: punishment or punishment. Or maybe... salvation?

Status: in progress

Anastasia Isaevna Kovalchuk "Mistress of Darkness"
Abstract: A girl finds herself in another world, and not just another world, but in the castle of the Lord of Darkness himself, the demon! His son, Daimon, undertakes to teach her magic. Do you think she wants to study? No matter how! And soon there will be a ball in the castle, and the girl is hired as a teacher of etiquette and ballroom dancing... The teacher suffered a nervous breakdown, tics in both eyes and a stutter. And when it turns out that the Lord and his son want to use the girl as a sacrifice in a ritual... She flees the castle and is caught up in a whirlwind of adventures. A new friend is a metamorph, and also a prince. A crazy demon, by the way, the half-brother of the Lord's son, who is trying with all his might to seize power in the Empire of Darkness through a girl... An obnoxious vampire mercenary, a charming Amazon... And with this whole friendly company they decide to save the Empire, simultaneously leaving behind destroyed churches, robbed by robbers and colorful memories among tavern visitors.

Status: Completed

"Friends in Captivity", "Order of Death"
Abstract: Bewitch a third year student? Easily. Destroy the hall of practical magic? Maybe. Go on a trip instead of studying? With joy! Fail your exams and end up in practice to hell? Exactly. Meet Elsa, a first-year student at the Academy of Magic, who has the ability to attract trouble. She managed to do a lot in a couple of days. Attend the Imperial Ball with the elves, take part in the tournament of gunsmith apprentices, save the king of the metamorphs and his son... And also wander into the cemetery with your elf friend and run away from there with such screams that even the trolls were scared!

Star Elena"My Personal Enemy"
Abstract: “All magicians are vile, arrogant, shameless womanizers” - a truth known to every witch. “Battle magicians are the worst category of magicians” - everyone in the kingdom knows this. “Witches are trained only in a closed Vedic School” is an axiom. But contrary to all laws of logic, the ministry sends thirteen witches to complete their final year of study at the Academy of Applied Magic, in the very lair of adepts of the combat faculty. And the witches will have to urgently attend to issues of survival. For example, figure out how to get rid of annoying boyfriends? What are battle mages afraid of? How can you annoy the rector of the academy? How to awaken a beast, horned and hoofed, in a man in seven days? And what should the hereditary witch Yaroslava do if she managed to lose the argument to this very awakened one? But the magicians and the demon will have to worry about survival issues, because the ancient truth says: “It’s more expensive to get involved with witches!”

Status: completed

Strelnikova Kira "The Demon's Lover"
Abstract: Returning from work in the evening, I could not imagine how a chance meeting at a crossroads on a rainy evening would end. And I never thought that I would be where I am main character an ordinary children's fairy tale about Beauty and the Beast... However, I’m hardly drawn to Beauty, and my Beast is not at all a handsome prince. But everything is in order. So, I'm returning home...

Status: completed

Alexandra Lisina, series Time for Change
-- The Dark Lord
-- Gray Limits
-- Labyrinth of Madness
Abstract: At the end of the ninth millennium after the Age of Race Wars, the time is approaching again when the Border separating the Inhabited Lands from the Gray Limits is gradually weakening, and the rulers of the world are thinking about the threat of the imminent end of the world. Every thousand years, the immortal races send out brave souls on a long March, capable of penetrating into the very heart of the Cursed Forest and returning the power to the Amulet of Iziar. Every Age there is a suicide bomber who is not afraid to venture into the Labyrinth of Madness to give the people of Liara hope for the future. Now, troubling times are coming, when desperate audacity is required, bordering on madness. And again the opportunity arises to change this world at will.
However, this time not everyone agrees to change.

Status: Completed

Mamleeva Natalya Rinatovna "Academy of Omnipotence, or My Demon from Childhood"
Annotation:
“You’re lucky to have such a nice enemy,” Niella sighed, looking out the window under which there was a training ground, where the eighth year was now swinging his swords with might and main.
-You call this monster cute? - I rolled my eyes to the ceiling, and then carefully casually looked out the window, my personal nightmare, as if having heard us, turned around and bowed comically, saluting with a sword. - Maybe a little...

Status: Completed

Lina Alfeeva "Akkad DEM and I"
Abstract: A non-classical trip to another world) the scene of action is the Fiery Citadel, in which the demons of Chaos are trained.
Easy to read, lots of funny situations.

Status: The first part is finished, the second is being posted. Selling almost every day.

Odysseva Penelope "Oath or Marry the first person you meet"
Abstract: Find out about the groom's infidelity on the eve of your own wedding? The only thing worse is to make a thoughtless oath and become the bride of a demon.

Status: Completed

Either Ldokl made a reprimand to the housekeeper, or she was busy the entire time we were away, but I managed to get by without being reprimanded about my absence (which, it seems, no one noticed at all). The housekeeper just shook her head, sending me to the guest of the castle, and warned that at the slightest complaint I would be punished. For the first time in this castle I ate with such an appetite: after all today’s worries I was pretty hungry. I don’t know who prepared the dinner, but it seemed to be more filling than the previous one... On reflection, I remembered that I still hadn’t really had dinner at the castle - yesterday’s banquet didn’t count, everything was too formal there. As before, as soon as I finished my tea, everything disappeared from the table, and I wondered what to do. I didn’t want to read at all - that is, I tried, but the smiling face of the demon kept appearing before my eyes, obscuring the lines, and I soon put the book down. I soon got tired of sitting mindlessly and reminiscing. Yes, Ldokles is handsome, one might even be more precise - demonically handsome, and it would, perhaps, even be interesting to interact with him if... If he were not a demon, I suppose, with his extremely awkward manner of communicating. Besides... What could he even see in me in this terrible robe and mask, and why doesn’t he want to talk to me when I’m normally dressed? I mean, what makes a maid more attractive to him than a guest? Or does he hope that I will quickly break from loneliness? How true are Ruanna's hints about the attitude of demons towards girls and the dangers that threaten the maids? If everything had been as she describes, Ldokl would not have let me out of his bedroom, and if Ruanna is lying, then why was he happy about the scarecrow that I am turning into in this robe? Why did he even need to ride me on dragons and intimidate me? Did I accidentally fall out of the chariot? Why is he looking at me like that?! Resolutely getting to my feet, I decided to find something to do that could save me from unnecessary thoughts. Demons never lie, so going around the castle might actually help me get out. Having driven away ridiculous thoughts about whether it’s worth running away from here, when there is so much beauty and magic here (including, of course, the owner), I left my room and thought. I walked around the entire second floor, or almost the entire one. In addition, Ldokles ordered not to be seen by him today. For the same reason, the third floor was excluded, especially since, according to the housekeeper, only the demon’s office remained on it; I don’t think there is any particular need to visit all the closets, dressing rooms and bathrooms. On the first one there was always a risk of running into Ruanna, and the castle wouldn’t let me into the towers. By way of elimination, I settled on the basement, especially since if the castle’s magic doesn’t work there, I don’t have to be afraid of the sudden appearance of a demon, maids or housekeeper from around the corner. Of course, it is absolutely not necessary that the rule told by Ruanna apply to the basement, but... “We have to go somewhere,” I said to myself out loud. - Why not go to the basement? The castle seemed to agree with me: a door opened in front of me, leading into a narrow long corridor, at the end of which I saw steps. - Thank you! - I said into the air, but didn’t wait for any answer. Having reached the steps, I was just about to go down when I suddenly discovered that my hem had caught on a hook that had come from nowhere. Turning around, I discovered that a coil of rope was tied to the hook, which, as soon as I took it in my hands, immediately broke free and rolled down the steps. I gasped and stepped towards the steps, intending to catch up and pick up the skein... and froze in place, discovering that the rope, among other things, also glowed in the dark with an even bright light. Of course, I didn’t think about the lamp, having completely forgotten myself during the day spent “visiting” the demon. A glowing ball was jumping up the fifth step from the top, inviting me to follow it. - Thanks a lot! - I bowed to the castle from the bottom of my heart and began to descend. The descent seemed endless to me, the skein happily jumped in front of me five steps ahead, gradually unwinding, but not decreasing in size. Ten... fifteen... twenty... twenty-five... thirty... forty, forty-one... On the forty-second step, I caught my heel and fell, covering my head with my hands. Having climbed probably five steps in this way, and stretched out on the cold stone floor, I groaned and loudly announced how unhappy I was. Something hit me on the arm and, with a squeal, I opened my eyes, which had been closed during the fall. A coil of glowing rope was jumping around me. There was no other answer to my words, and where could he come from if the basement really wasn’t enchanted. Groaning, I rose to my feet. The bruises hurt terribly, after all, a stone floor is no joke, especially if it is not enchanted. The skein was jumping at my feet like a dog asking for a walk. “Let’s go,” I agreed, taking the first step. The skein jumped up to my knee with joy and rolled forward, spilling light to the height of my height. I wanted to see the ceiling, but the darkness was spreading overhead, thick as good coffee, and my attempts to catch a skein and lift it higher ended with me running into the first shelf in the basement. Gasping in pain, I stopped the “hunt” and rubbed my bruised forehead. The skein slowly rolled towards me and rubbed against my shoes - I'm sorry, but I still couldn't get my hands on it. Following the rope, I walked around the rack, and then waited until the skein rolled in the opposite direction, so as not to form extra loops: in the basement itself, each fathom reduced the diameter of the ball, and it apparently did not want to end prematurely. I didn’t notice anything interesting either in the rack I bumped into or in the other three. Dusty jars with preserves, marinades, pickled mushrooms, jam and marmalade. Bottles of rare wines, some of which I had only read about, were impossible to get at our house for any price. Sauerkraut, which can only be seen in families ordinary people , and next to it are jars of pickled lingonberries. Taking a closer look, I noticed that there was no dust anywhere on the shelves, bottles and cans; apparently, the products that were constantly used in the castle were stored here, because magic doesn’t work in the basement, and the dirt won’t go anywhere by itself. As soon as I thought this, a skein rolled out from behind the racks and led me further - to where I felt a strong cold and saw in the dim light a space free of racks. The basement turned out to be divided into a sector of shelving and many nooks, into which I could hardly see chests, bags and barrels. Taking a step towards one of these nooks, I caught the smell of sauerkraut, and from the barrels standing on the other side there was the smell of wine - a sweet and at the same time tart smell that made my head spin. Here it is - the mysterious wine of demons, which makes people forget about all their sorrows. And I already thought that Ldokles was boasting then, at his holiday, and the guests were served, although rare, but not at all magical drinks. Motok didn't give me much time to explore all the nooks and crannies in the basement. Very quickly the rope began to fade so that I could barely see it myself, and I hurried to return. The light became brighter again, and the skein, bouncing merrily on the stone slabs, led me further. Every step I took was picked up by an echo so that it began to seem to me as if someone was following me. I stopped in fear, the echo died down and sounded again as soon as I took a step. I had to put up with the constant noise and hope that no one would go down to the basement after me. The path seemed as endless as it was monotonous. Chests, barrels, bags - at some point I was afraid that the basement in the castle of darkness was no different from an ordinary cellar - except in size. But for some reason the skein leads me along it - he wants to show me something, right? Before I had time to realize how absurd it is to talk about an inanimate object “wants,” the skein stopped and, jumping, glowed so brightly that at first I almost went blind. We stood in front of a stone wall - seemingly completely monolithic. - So what now? - I asked quietly. The echo carried my words just as it carried my footsteps before. The skein jumped even higher and began to hit the wall - then it would hit below, near the floor, then it would jump up to the height of my shoulder, then again near the floor, but at a distance of about an arshin from the first point, and then it would hit again at the level of my shoulder - right above the third point. From his blows, a rectangle two arshins high and one wide appeared in the wall, and I, squinting from the bright light, did not immediately realize that this piece of the wall was gradually moving away like that. .. as if a door had opened in the wall. Rubbing my eyes, I realized that the comparison was accurate. And this is in the basement, where there is no magic! A coil of rope rolled up to my shoes and began poking at them, as if pushing me towards the door. Unable to resist curiosity, I leaned over so as not to hit my head and stepped over the threshold. A huge hall appeared before my eyes. It seemed to extend several miles in length and width, and reached at least five fathoms in height. It is impossible to imagine that it would be humanly possible to rebuild such a room. The walls, bare near the door, were then covered with tapestries, the ceiling was painted with images of demons and monsters, and the floor was literally littered with various treasures. I have never seen so much gold in one place in my life. Ancient coins with symbols incomprehensible to me were stamped on them, ingots and gold sand were scattered everywhere, sparkling in the bright lighting of the hall. As in other rooms of the castle, the light poured in as if from nowhere, and the coil of rope that rolled into the door after me, on the contrary, went out. I looked back, but the door was no longer visible. I was overcome with fear - is this really a trap and I will stay in the basement forever? The darkness is great, I would prefer a dark cellar with countless supplies of food as a place of imprisonment than a bright hall with its sparkling treasures. As soon as I thought so, a coil of rope pushed the wall where the door was, and it immediately opened, and the light in the hall went dark. I let out a sigh of relief, and the ball rolled to my feet, pushing me to go further, deeper into the treasury. I stepped forward towards the door, but the skein seemed to go berserk and, jumping in front of me, began to hit my legs until I stumbled back and, tripping over something in the dark, fell on a pile of gold. Groaning in pain, I stood up with difficulty, and a coil of rope, like a naughty kitten, rubbed against my shoes. “I’m not angry, but you shouldn’t do this to me,” I said. There was no echo in the hall, and therefore my voice sounded very quiet. The coil of rope jumped for joy a couple of times, and then began to push me to continue the excursion. Sighing, I obeyed; however, I myself was interested in seeing what was hiding in the basement of the castle of darkness. Taking the first step between the piles of gold and jewelry, I heard the door close behind me with a creak, and at the same time a bright light flashed in the hall again. Well, let's hope Ldokl will guess where I could be if I can't get out of here, and Ruanna notices I'm missing. The main thing is that she doesn’t do this before I’ve seen the most interesting things... And there were a lot of interesting things. In the piles of gold here and there sparkled with multi-colored lights gems . It is impossible to imagine that somewhere in the world there are stored diamonds no smaller than the palm of your hand and rubies probably the size of a human heart. The stones were carved in the shape of balls, drops, or bizarre figures that depicted creatures unknown to me. Bending down, I tried to pick up one particularly beautiful pebble, from which an unknown artist had made the likeness of a ripe apple, but the light around me dimmed, and the “apple” glowed with such an ominous blood-red light that I hastily pulled my hand back. At that very moment everything became the same. - Look - look, but don’t touch anything, right? - I asked. No one answered me, only a coil of rope pushed against my feet. Then absolutely amazing things opened up to my eyes. At first, I actually didn’t understand what I saw: there was nothing like this in any house and not lying on the street. Only on the pages of old books are such things described, and occasionally there are pictures from which I recognized what I saw. In the demon's treasury lay weapons - dumped at a distance from the jewelry. Swords, knives in leather sheaths, broken swords, bows and arrows, battle axes, and next to them were spears with broken shafts. Much was broken, the metal not hidden by gold was rusty, the swords had terrible jagged edges. There was also metal clothing - armor - for protection from deadly blows, also crumpled and rusty. Piles of weapons, starting at my feet near the aisle, extended to the far wall of the hall. The tapestries that I noticed on the walls were clearly woven for this castle: the paintings on them were so huge that I could easily see them; however, the hall turned out to be smaller than I thought at first. The scenes that decorated the walls cannot be seen anywhere else, except that in pictures in old books something similar occasionally appears: armed people, people emitting radiance, people flying through the air with spears in their hands - and others stand in front of them, covering heads with shields. The expressions on the faces of the people depicted, the way they stand and hold weapons, scared me: I have never seen such rage, such a desire to cause harm. It was written in the books that the fairies promised people to tame demons if people stopped killing each other, but no details were given about that time. This is how they did it. Raising my eyes to the ceiling, I saw other pictures there: demons - they could be distinguished from people by their beauty, skillfully conveyed by the artist, multi-colored clothes and by the emblem denoting the element subject to each - fighting with dragons. Compared to demons, these were three times larger than the Lacertus of Ldokle, they breathed fire, lashed their tails and fapped their wings. And then - a man dressed in red - most likely a demon of fire - carries in his arms beautiful girl . The girl is wearing a pink and blue long dress, and her face is distorted with suffering, as if the touch burns her. Nearby is a bright scarlet castle, from which tongues of flame are bursting out, probably the demon of fire is carrying his victim there. People have gathered under the walls of the castle, they are shaking their weapons, their faces are distorted with the same rage as in the tapestries. But the demon is not touched by the rage of people or the suffering of the girl: he laughs merrily. And in the next picture, a demon dressed in blue bends over a man who is crouched on the ground and tries in vain to cover his head with his hands. A pale yellow castle - it seems to be made of sand, but much larger than what playing children can build - and a girl looks out of the window in the tower. She is wearing a white dress and her face is sad, as if she has no one else to rely on. A demon dressed in black stands on a seven-color bridge - and at the other end a girl in a rainbow dress is backing away with a frightened expression. She doesn’t look at all like the rainbow fairy that Sol showed me, but I understand that the poor thing can’t be anyone else. Who knows how truthful the artist was, or maybe now the rainbow fairy of that time is simply no longer alive. A terrible thought occurred to me that it was then, at the moment captured in the picture, that the unfortunate woman could have died... I was already walking, throwing my head back, and not looking at my feet, and now, getting excited, I lost my balance and fell, stumbling about something solid. The coil of rope, “noticing” this, hurried to roll towards me, and I sank onto it with my right knee, thus hitting only my left leg. “Thank you,” I said with difficulty, standing up. It seems like I got more bruises in this basement than in my entire previous life! The skein rubbed against my legs and rolled further, leading me along with it. I no longer risked looking at the ceiling paintings, so I looked around. In addition to tapestries depicting battles, I was struck by portraits standing on easels right in the middle of piles of treasures: ladies in heavy dresses covering their entire bodies and in headdresses covering their hair, men in armor and helmets, with swords or spears - and in some places, axes in their hands, young men with bows in their hands, quivers and daggers on their belts, and girls in the same heavy clothes as the ladies, but with hair flowing over their shoulders and bouquets of flowers. These people never seemed to smile; they were serious and perhaps even stern. Why? But here is a painting depicting not just one person, but, as on the tapestries and the ceiling, an entire scene. The huge black castle is overwhelming in its size. It has narrow windows on the first and second floors, and on the third level, small turrets rise in the corners, which rise another floor above the general level of the castle. They are round and extended beyond the wall so that through their narrow windows you can see the entire plain near the castle. And there is something to look at: a crowd of people... no, demons have gathered around. They do not seem as beautiful as on the ceiling, their faces are distorted with rage and anger, and each one shakes weapons or empty hands, from which, however, a multi-colored radiance emanates. A “glow” also emanates from the castle - only black, it is darkness creeping in, and in some places the bright glow of the demons gathered around collides with clots of darkness. However, the castle is protected not only by radiance - fanged monsters are flying in the air, flapping their wings and, it seems, are about to fall on the demons gathered around. - What is this? - I muttered. - Castle of darkness? Another castle? Some kind of battle? No one answered me and, sighing, I moved on. Unknown artists, about whom people had never heard, depicted all the scenes (unlike the portraits) in such a way that I could almost hear screams, moans, threats and curses. I could only guess about the events depicted in the paintings I saw. “There were wars, and people carried weapons,” I said out loud. - And the demons kidnapped the girls, and people tried to fight them. People also wore uncomfortable clothes, and demons fought among themselves and with fairies. And then something changed. Weapons were brought here, and paintings depicting battles were brought here. Maybe the books were brought here, because now everyone says that there are very few old books, and nothing has survived. All this was brought here and hidden in the basement. For what? So that people don't know their past? To forget about how they once fought? What is this all for? Nobody answered me. I walked further, step by step passing by fabulous treasures that cannot be seen anywhere else: gold, and stones, and precious vases, and jewelry worthy of the greatest rulers, which are now nowhere else, and weapons - not only broken and rusty , but also new, sparkling no worse than jewelry, such as to match the great warriors from a very ancient epic. Tired and weak-legged, I sat down on another pile of gold and thought. “The fairies say that the thirst for power, the thirst for money, the desire to kill their own kind and get more than others are dark qualities, and those who follow them will lead the world into darkness, when demons will rule the world. But Ldokle told Sol that , if people do not fear demons, they will no longer obey fairies, and Sol cried at the very thought of this. But fairies - that's what everyone says! - at least the light fairies do not strive for power, and they control people for their own benefit. I saw diadems worthy of great rulers and swords worthy of great warriors, but we did not and cannot have great warriors and rulers: we have no one to fight with, and we are ruled by a council of cities, which we choose. Where then is the beauty in the world and is magic really needed only to educate people like little children in school?" The questions seemed difficult to me. If I ever return home, will I have to tell about what I saw? What - will the new agreement that the demon is going to conclude with my help bring benefit or harm? Will my escape bring harm if I manage to escape as planned? I was completely confused, and no longer knew what I should do to cause less evil and grief other people. Suddenly my thoughts were interrupted by the fact that my magical guide began to fuss and jump around, like a dog calling its owner for a walk. “As you say,” I said, getting to my feet, “let’s go further.” However, the coil of rope was not going to lead me further down the hall or anywhere else at all. Suddenly the lighting in the hall began to dim until it disappeared completely, leaving only the dim light from the rope. He jumped a few more times, and then rolled up to me and, before I could do anything... either to say or to do, he wrapped a rope around my legs and dragged me - there’s no other word for it - back to the exit. In vain I tried to throw off the rope, break free, or stop him with words. The first jerk made me fall to the floor, and after that I barely managed to protect my head so as not to hit the treasures lying everywhere. The skein inexorably dragged me back and only at the wall in which there was an invisible door did it slow down slightly. Irritated voices could be heard from behind the wall: Ruanna and Ldokles were arguing. I froze with horror, imagining how I would now be carried right to their feet. The darkness is great, is there really nothing that can be done? Meanwhile, as I already said, the speed at which I was being dragged along the floor began to fall. I first managed to grab the knife I had noticed from afar from the pile of treasures (this time nothing stopped me from picking it up), and then, right at the door, I managed to sit down and grab the rope that tied my legs. The movement stopped, and the skein jumped up and down next to me in obvious impatience. I raised the knife to cut the path, and the skein went completely frantic, starting to hit my hands, and when he “realized” that this was not helping, he began to attack his face and neck, trying to hit him harder each time. Throwing the enraged ball away (I will never again trust the friendliness of magical things!) I grabbed the knife more comfortably and cut the rope. There was a quiet ringing sound, the fetters fell off my legs, and after a moment's hesitation they went out. Immediately after this, the skein thrown aside also went out, and when I tried to feel for the guiding rope going behind the wall, I discovered that it was nowhere to be found. Great darkness, will I really stay here forever?! No no! A demon and the housekeeper of his castle are walking around the basement and, if I have no other choice, I can call them for help. Probably, Ruanna noticed my absence and called the owner to help find me - however, it is not clear how they guessed where to go? The voices came very close, and I perked up. Despair never managed to overcome me: everything that was happening was too similar to a fairy tale, one of those that I read as a child. And in fairy tales, everything ends well and... Even when I was being dragged along the floor, I wasn’t afraid that something might happen to me, I just didn’t want to be thrown out in front of the demon in such a funny and uncomfortable position. Now, clinging to the wall, I eagerly listened to the conversation between Ldokl and the housekeeper, hoping that their conversation would tell me a way out: in fairy tales everything would happen like this, why shouldn’t this happen in the castle of the demon of darkness? My expectations were not in vain...

Tonya quietly hummed a cheerful song to herself, with difficulty winding the well chain onto the collar. The bucket hit the side of the well loudly and cold water fell on the girl’s tanned legs. Tonya deftly picked it up and poured it into her blue plastic bucket, which still smelled like the store. - Help? - a pleasant male voice touched her ears and the girl quickly turned around. The man who offered his help looked at her intently, as if trying to remember every little detail. His light, almost transparent eyes were cold as the winter sky, and his hard, heavy chin was covered with stubble.

He was tall and powerful, like a bear, huge muscles rolled under his T-shirt, and Tonya thought that he could easily carry the bucket with her straight to the house. - No, thank you, I’ll do it myself. “I don’t care on the way with you,” the man picked up the bucket and headed up the road. “I’m seeing you for the first time,” Tonya followed, looking at his broad back with pleasure. - Are you visiting someone? - Came on business. I would like to buy your milk plant - Yes? - the girl was surprised. - Usually such people don’t carry buckets of water...

Believe me, people are different,” he grinned, revealing his white, strong teeth. - And you are the daughter of the owner of the milk factory, aren’t you? - Yes... but it’s unlikely that getting to know me will help you acquire it. - What do you! I never thought of using our acquaintance for my own benefit... “And you wouldn’t have succeeded,” Tonya smiled, “my stepfather was never interested in my opinion.”

Mother! Mother! - a ringing voice rang like a bell in the silence of the street. - Martha gave birth to kittens! Tonya rushed to the little boy standing near the huge, forged gate and fearfully grabbed his hand. - Why did you go out?! - I heard your voice... A long and dry woman like a pole appeared near the gate, she quickly approached the boy and led him to the house. - Why don’t you allow your child to go outside the gate? - the voice of her guide brought Tonya out of her frightened thoughts. - He's blind. - She answered sharply and took the bucket from his hands. - Thank you.

Sorry, I didn't know. - the man suddenly extended his large palm to her. - My name is Arnold. - Antonina. - the girl put her narrow hand into a warm hand and he gently squeezed it. - Why do you go to the well? Isn’t there water in such a huge estate?” the man changed the topic of conversation. - No, it just has the most delicious water in the whole village. - Tonya smiled. - I'll go... all the best. She disappeared behind the gate, and Arnold whispered after her: “You’re probably delicious too... Which is what I want to check.”

Who was that? - The stepfather’s voice was dissatisfied. - Where? - Tonya asked again, although she understood perfectly well who he meant. - The man who accompanied you from the well itself. - his fork clinked on the plate. - I don’t know... he offered to help... he said that he wants to buy your plant. - the girl answered calmly and pushed a plate of cake towards her son. - Honey, your favorite cake.

Yes? Why didn't he contact me? - Don't know. - Tonya shrugged. “I don’t like that you walk around with a bucket like a village woman,” the man continued irritably, “tell the servants and they will bring it, since you like this damned water so much!” Tonya looked at him and looked away, unable to withstand this gaze, filled with anger and something else that she would prefer not to think about. - Mom is not a woman! - the boy’s voice was offended and loud. - Shut up, Georgy! - his stepfather hissed. - And don’t you dare interrupt when adults are talking! - Don't yell at him, Vitaly Andreevich! - Tonya jumped up.

He lacks education! - He threw a napkin on the table and stood up. - Take care of him before I send him to a boarding school for the disabled! The man quickly left, and Tonya hugged the boy to her, looking into his frozen, frightened eyes. - Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you...

Arnold immediately saw Antonina's soft, feminine form as she walked delightfully, smoothly along the sidewalk, and having driven a little further, he slowed down. - Good afternoon, Tonya!

Hello Arnold,” she waved her hand at him. - How are you doing? - Okay, let me give you a ride. The girl calmly climbed into his car and leaned back in the seat. “It’s very hot today...” “Yes, it will probably rain,” Arnold agreed and looked at her, noting her high breasts and graceful knees peeking out from under her light dress. - Did you take a walk? - No, I went to our car service center to find out how the repair of my car was going... - the girl straightened her hair and he suddenly clearly smelled her scent, dizzying and intoxicating.

How is your boy? - Okay, thank you... I spent the whole day sitting next to the lambing cat. - Tonya laughed. “I was worried that all her kittens wouldn’t have enough milk.” - He's a nice kid. - Yes, that’s right... Arnold drove slowly along the deserted street, feeling its warmth and fresh breath on his skin. - So you live with your parents? What does your husband do? - My husband died four years ago along with my mother... They crashed in a car accident when they were going to the hospital where I gave birth to George... - Excuse me again... I didn’t even imagine...

Nothing, everything is fine... - she touched his hand and Arnold felt everything, even the movement of blood through her veins and a slight pulsation at her fingertips. - My stepfather did not leave us with my son and I am very grateful to him... He takes care of us... - Apparently he good man. - Arnold said, but the way her heart fluttered and the blood pounded excitedly in her temples, he began to doubt it.

A dark cloud appeared on the horizon and thunder roared, moving away with its grumbling to the tops of the pine trees.
- Now it will rain... - Tonya carefully looked at Arnold and admired his chiseled profile and long, light eyelashes that cast shadows on his high cheekbones. His hands gripping the steering wheel were beautiful, with long fingers and thin, dark skin.
- Do you like me, Antonina?
The girl shuddered and blushed, taken by surprise.
- You are a handsome man...

You are also very beautiful. - His transparent eyes slid over her face and Tony’s heart began to beat like a caught bird. - I live very far from here... There are mountains covered with heather and ancient castles with ghosts, in which winds walk, whispering secrets...
- Where are these wonderful places? - Antonina whispered in fascination, watching his face lean closer and closer.
“In Scotland...” he breathed and their lips met. Thunder rumbled and Tonya heard his words: “Do you want to see everything with your own eyes?”

* * *
- This goes beyond what is permitted! - the stepfather furiously clenched his fists, looking at Antonina, wet and barefoot, holding sandals in her hands. - In front of everyone, you were hanging around with this bandit! What do you think?!
- Don’t I have the right to build my personal life? - Tonya looked in bewilderment at the angry face of Vitaly Andreevich, covered with red spots.
- As long as you live in my house, you will adhere to my rules! Get this on your nose! - He grabbed her hand and threw her on the sofa. Tonya fell awkwardly, her dress rode up, exposing her smooth hips, and her stepfather’s face was distorted by a grimace, similar to painful lust, which made her feel uneasy. He ran out the door and the girl heard the sound of a car driving away.

Mom is that you? - Georgy entered the living room, holding onto the walls with his hands and peering with frozen eyes into the darkness visible only to him. - Mother?
- Yes, honey, it's me. Come here.
The boy quickly covered the distance between them, deftly avoiding the furniture and pressed himself against it.
-Are you wet?
- Got caught in the rain, son.
- I also want to go out into the rain...
- Oh, this is very nice! Someday you will definitely feel it! - Tonya began to cover his chubby cheeks with kisses and they rolled around on the floor, fooling around. - Well, now it’s time to drink warm milk.
- Do you read to me?
- Of course, honey... let's go.

Arnold entered the office, filled with antiques that were absolutely not in harmony with each other, revealing the owner’s complete lack of taste, and looked around.
- Good afternoon. - Vitaly Andreevich stood near the bookcase and the light from the window did not penetrate even a single ray into the dusty shadow of the corner.
- Hello. - Arnold didn’t see his face, but he felt the anger and hostility of the owner of the house. - I'd like to talk to you.
- If you are talking about the dairy plant, then you are too late, I agreed on its sale with another person.

It's a pity... but I have another topic to talk about.
- And which one? - Arnold heard notes of undisguised irritation in his voice.
- About your daughter... I would like to ask you something.
Vitaly Andreevich stepped towards him, flashing his cruel eyes.
- What does she have to do with you?
- Not yet... but I hope that soon this will change.
- I am listening to you.

* * *
- Your friend came today.
Antonina perked up and this did not go unnoticed by him.
- Which friend?
- Arnold.
- A-ah...about the plant? - Tonya tried to look calm and at ease.
“And not only,” the stepfather’s voice became unctuously sweet. - He wants you.
- In terms of? - The girl glanced at him excitedly.
- He wants to marry you. - Vitaly Andreevich walked around Tonya and stopped behind her. - What do you think about it?
She shrank from the feeling of his gaze drilling into the back of her head and from the feeling of impending disaster.

I... I don't know... I like him...
- And you would easily follow a man you don’t know? This is your essence, Antonina...” his stepfather hissed and his breath made the hair on her head move. - Well, it’s okay, all this can be fixed.
He walked away from her and the girl sighed with relief.
- Maybe you were seduced by his money, huh?
- I was seduced by his money! What are you saying?! - exclaimed the indignant Tonya with horror, looking into his snake eyes.
- Or maybe you decided that he needs your blind puppy? - Vitaly Andreevich laughed hoarsely.
- You are a vile, rotten person!
- And I thought you liked me... Antonina...
- You might like the smelly rat better! - Tonya exclaimed and jumped out of the room.

Vitaly Andreevich grinned smugly and took a voice recorder from his robe pocket.
- Well... you wanted this yourself...

* * *
Antonina was nervously gnawing on a straw when a black jeep drove up to her, from which two huge foreheads emerged. They unceremoniously dragged her into the car and, not paying attention to her screams, drove down to the river, laughing happily and looking at the frightened girl.
- Don’t yell... we won’t do anything to you...

Where are you taking me?! - Tonya tried to open the car door, but strong hands twisted her.
- We'll take a couple of photos and deliver it home. - One of her captors neighed. - Calm down, you will be alive and well!
When she was dragged out of the car, Tonya instantly recognized this place - the Cleopatra sauna, which also belonged to her stepfather.
- Why did you bring me here?!
“Come on, open your mouth,” the bald guy suddenly said and took out a bottle of vodka from the car.
- I don't want!
But the second bandit covered her nose, and as soon as Tonya opened her mouth to take a breath, a burning liquid poured into her throat.

* * *
- You know what to do. - Vitaly Andreevich handed the package to the short, frail man.
- You see... Arnold Robertovich didn’t ask me exactly about this... - his narrowed eyes flashed greedily.
- Why... he asked you to find out everything about Antonina, and I think this will be worthy material... Make sure that his spirit is no longer near her! I will thank you generously.
- Ok, I'll call.
- I rely on you.
The man left, and Vitaly Andreevich went up to Tony’s room and with a grin looked at the girl lying on the bed in a drunken stupor...

* * *
Arnold put on a black silk robe, hiding the signs on his body that were not intended for prying eyes, and nodded to his assistant to invite the lawyer who was waiting in the living room.
- Did you bring me anything? - He immediately got down to business.
- Yes... but I'm afraid you won't really like it...
- Yes? - his eyebrows shot up. - And what is it?
In this frail little man he felt fear, excitement... but in his presence many experienced these feelings.
“My man installed a recording device in her stepfather’s office and this is what came out of it...
He put the flash drive on the table and pushed it towards Arnold.

"Your friend came today.
-What friend?
- Arnold.
- A-ah...about the plant?
- And not only. He wants you.
- In terms of?
- He wants to marry you. What do you think about it?
- I was seduced by his money! There might be more to like about the smelly rat! "
“There’s another photo there...” the lawyer said awkwardly, hiding his eyes.
Arnold calmly opened the photo folder and stared at Tonya, liberated and naked, with a bald big man wrapped in a sheet.
- Thank you. My assistant will give you the money for the work.

The lawyer did not linger, feeling that something terrible was rising in this strange, powerful man. He slipped out of the office and sighed with relief.
Arnold raised his heavy eyelids and stared at the wall, on which smoking holes instantly appeared. He growled and his snow-white fangs were reflected in the ancient mirror, which he forcibly tore from the wall, scratching long nails surface.
- I will make you suffer, you disgusting trash!

* * *
Tonya woke up with a terrible headache and a dry throat. No matter how much she tried to remember what happened yesterday, only vague fragments, blurry and trembling, flashed before her eyes. She stood up with difficulty and went into the shower to wash away the feeling of something dirty and disgusting.
Having forced herself to have breakfast, she played a little with her son, gave him to the nanny, and went outside. She walked slowly along the sidewalk, straining her memory, when Arnold's car pulled up right next to her.
- Hello, sit down.
Antonina excitedly got into the car, enjoying the smell of leather and expensive cologne.
- Hello...

Did your stepfather tell you about my visit?
“Yes, of course...” her face turned red.
Arnold looked with disgust at these pathetic attempts at acting and could barely restrain himself.
- What did you decide?
- I don’t know... I feel something for you, but we don’t know each other so well...
Arnold felt fear, shame and confusion in her, but now he understood what caused them. She was a hypocrite and played, and all her feigned tenderness and pleasant smile was just a mask of a greedy and lustful girl.
- I want to give you something. - Arnold handed her a small package. - Look at the house.

Antonina took it and smiled.
- What is this?
- Surprise.
The girl looked at him intently, as if feeling disgust and anger raging within him, and got out of the car.
Arnold did not stop her and drove away, without even looking at her lonely figure on the hot sidewalk.

* * *
What Tonya heard and saw shocked her. She stared blankly at the computer monitor and everything that happened last night clearly appeared before her eyes.
“No... no...” she whispered, shaking her head from side to side and imagined with horror what Arnold thought of her... a man who was so fascinated by her that he was ready to connect his life with her, who she liked him, and to whom she felt an irresistible craving... Tonya jumped up with the decisive intention of finding him, explaining everything, but the rude, mocking voice of her stepfather stopped her.

Sit down! It’s unlikely that after what he saw, he will want to listen to your pathetic excuses!
- For what? Why are you doing this to me? - Antonina looked confusedly into her stepfather’s excited eyes. - What did I do to you?
- You should be with me! - he hissed, advancing on her. “I’ve been waiting for this for fifteen years and now I won’t let you run away with the first person you meet!” You are mine!
- What are you saying?! - Tonya backed towards the window. - Stop it! You're scaring me!
“Well, I’m not that scary...” Vitaly Andreevich whispered and yellowish saliva appeared in the corners of his mouth.

This will never happen! - the girl curled her lips in disgust, looking at her stepfather’s shaking belly, peeking out from his unbuttoned shirt.
“Then I’ll get rid of your blind puppy,” he laughed, “I’ll drown him in the river.” How do you like this option?
- You won't dare! - Tonya turned pale and folded her shaking hands. - Please...where is my son?
- In one, very secret place... if you want to see him, tonight you will have to ask me nicely about it, dear daughter... - his lips stretched into a lustful grin.

* * *
Arnold stared blankly at the wall, barely restraining anger and hatred, so poorly controlled feelings among demonic creatures. She made his anger boil inside him like fiery lava in a volcano, but his passion for this beautiful, big-eyed girl did not go away. He was tormented by these contradictory sensations until the evil inside him won and he bared his teeth, imagining the fate that he had prepared for her, so that this lustful trash would never smile again and enjoy life and deception...

* * *
Tonya rushed around the house like a trapped wolf. Finally, unable to bear it, she jumped out into the street and rushed to the river, realizing that little George could be hidden in the sauna. She ran like crazy, not noticing that she was running barefoot and hurt her feet on sharp stones. She didn’t even notice that Arnold was following her, getting closer and overtaking her. The man opened the door with a sharp movement and dragged the screaming girl inside.
- Arnold?!
- Did not expect? - he laughed evilly. - Where are you in a hurry? To your next lover?
- What are you talking about? Stop it... - Tonya felt tears rolling down her cheeks. - The stepfather hid George and is threatening to kill him!

I don't want to listen to your lies! - Arnold interrupted her and the girl recoiled from him, frightenedly pressing her hands to her chest.
- My stepfather set it all up! He wants me and is blackmailing me with his son! - Tonya peered into his transparent eyes, but saw in them only disgust for herself.
- Or maybe he isolated the poor, sick child from a whore like you? - Arnold asked mockingly. - Maybe you don't belong next to normal people and are you driven only by greed and lust? Have you already been in your stepfather’s bed, or did you leave that for later?
- How can you?! After all, you don’t know anything!
- I saw the photographs.
Arnold immediately sensed her shame and became angry.

All. I have no desire to listen to you.
Tonya jerked towards the door, but Arnold’s huge hand painfully squeezed her shoulder.
- You will stay with me. Now your place will be right - the place of a whore and a servant.
- Leave me alone! - Tonya began to kick, trying to escape from his tenacious fingers, but only caused herself even more severe pain. - My son is there, you bastard!
- You won't deceive me anymore! Sit quietly or I'll hit you! - Arnold growled and Tonya fell silent, desperately smearing tears of rage and helplessness down her cheeks.

* * *
- Ram, don't take your eyes off her until we get to Scotland. - Arnold ordered his assistant and he nodded, but could not resist asking: - How will Lydia react to her?
- Why should she treat her somehow? Lydia is my woman, and this is an ordinary whore. - Arnold noted with pleasure how Antonina flushed. - Take her to the basement, that's where she belongs.
Rem approached Tonya, but she did not allow herself to be grabbed by the hand and proudly walked forward.
“Why the hell is she pretending to be an insulted innocence?” Arnold thought irritably. “He’s too tired of this game... or is she so used to deceiving that she can’t stop? But how seductive are her high breasts and long, slender legs with graceful ankles... Damn!"

* * *
Tonya walked from corner to corner, unable to stop for a minute. Her attention was drawn to a square window almost under the ceiling and she looked around. A pile of boxes in the corner is the path to salvation. She stacked them on top of each other and reached for the window, hoping there was no bar on it. The frame opened easily and the girl slipped out, skinning her shoulders and legs. Carefully making her way through the yard, she noticed a barbecue grill and several skewers sticking out of a stand. Tonya grabbed one and slipped out the gate.
Hiding behind bushes and trees, she reached the river and approached the Cleopatra, listening to the sounds coming from there.

Looking through the large window, she immediately saw George sitting alone in the large kitchen, his eyes full of tears. The stepfather did not even try to hide him for real, being sure that Tonya, distraught with fear for his life, would do everything he said. The girl climbed into the kitchen through the window and carefully approached the boy so as not to scare the already frightened kid.
“Who is this?” Georgy squeaked thinly and blinked, causing a huge, transparent tear to roll down his cheek.
- Hush, baby, it's mom.
“Mom?” He tried to get up, but Tonya picked him up and turned to the door and saw his skinny nanny.

Leave the child! - she squealed, but Tonya put the skewer forward and hissed:
- Get out of the way or I'll run you through!
The nanny jumped to the side in fear and Tonya rushed forward, as if all the demons of hell were chasing her.
The baby whined quietly, clinging to her, and at that moment, she was ready to kill anyone who would dare to take her son away from her.
- Are you going far?
Tonya flew into someone's huge chest and looked up to see Arnold.

No...
- Yes. The child will have to be returned.
- I won't give it up! - Tonya stabbed him in the stomach with a skewer and gasped in horror, watching how it entered his flesh like a knife through butter.
Arnold sighed heavily and pulled out a skewer and threw it aside.
- What's happening? - Tonya stepped back and almost fell. - Who are you?
Georgy began to cry thinly and hysterically and stared straight at Arnold with his unseeing eyes.
- Don't touch my mom... don't touch...
Arnold seemed to fall into an abyss, looking into those eyes, touched his soul and felt how great love fills his small heart with love for his mother, to whom he clung with thin fingers.
- Give it to me. Don't be afraid, he will stay with you... It's not his fault that his mother has such a black soul...

Tonya realized that she had no choice and whispered in her son’s ear:
- Don't be afraid, he won't hurt you.
The boy trustingly extended his arms and Arnold picked him up, feeling how fragile he was.
* * *
George was sleeping, sprawled on the sofa, and his flushed face was calm and peaceful. Arnold took his eyes off Antonina, who was sitting next to her son, and said:
- Children are blind, but you won’t fool me. Don't think that all these events will make me feel sorry for you.
- Who are you? - Tonya asked quietly, without raising her head.
- You don't need to know that.
He left, and the girl fell asleep with her head on the edge of the sofa.
She woke up already in Scotland and, opening her eyes, screamed, looking at the gray walls covered with ancient tapestries...

What are you yelling about? - An elderly woman looked into the room and looked sternly at Antonina. - Get up and get to work!
- Where I am? Where is my son? - Tonya quickly looked around the room.
- A boy plays in the yard with other children.
- But he is blind!
- So what now, lock him in the room? - the woman chuckled.
- Where I am? - Tonya asked again. - How did I get here?
- In Scotland. - The woman could barely restrain her smile. - The owner moved you here at night.
- How did you move it? - Tonya asked in bewilderment, not understanding what she meant.
- He's a demon. And therefore everything is subject to him.
- Wha-oh???

Be respectful, you have the great honor of serving the Black Dragon...the master of the Golden Mountain. - the woman whispered. - Understood?
- I didn’t understand anything... you’re telling some kind of fairy tales! He's just a cruel, evil man who does whatever he wants!
-Shut up! - the old woman shouted at her. - For such speeches your head will be torn off!
- What's going on around you?! - Tonya ran to the window and stared in horror at the stormy river carrying its waters over the stones.
“The Black Dragon Clan is very ancient...” the woman sat down on the bed and patted the mattress with her hand, inviting the girl to sit next to her. - Sit down.
- Black dragons are the demons of the night, the guardians of Hell... On dark nights, they ride their black horses across the heather moors and God forbid anyone appears on their way...

They are cruel, but noble, shrouded in the mystery of their origin... Their bodies are covered with drawings that the Devil himself inflicted on them and they plunge people into horror...
- Well, okay, even if this is so... Why did he want to buy the dairy??? Daemon??? - Tonya chuckled. - It doesn’t fit somehow with his mysterious essence.
“I don’t know why he did this, but it’s not about the plant, he was trying to achieve something, and the plant is just a cover for his true intentions.” How did you meet?
Tonya told her everything from beginning to end, and as she told the story, the woman’s face became long and pale.
- Not this...

What? - For some reason Tonya felt scared.
- Arnold fell in love with a girl from Russia and married her, offering her his heart and even immortality... She was very beautiful and gentle, with a sweet, naive smile... But one day, the owner found out about her betrayal... The girl turned out to be lustful and carousing and always found entertainment in the nearest villages, disguised as a peasant... He waited until she gave birth and took the child, who was conceived by an unknown person and killed her... with particular cruelty... The screams of his wife were heard on the entire area and people were shaking in horror, fearing reprisals from the angry demon...

Now it’s clear why he didn’t believe me... - Tonya whispered. - Tell me, where is this woman’s child?
- Lives in a castle, but the owner does not notice him. We're surprised he didn't kill that poor little girl...
- Do people living nearby know that he is a demon?
- This is a parallel reality. Here everything is frozen in antiquity, both the castles and the people... We, the servants, were brought from Russia so that the owner’s wife could understand us, and we could understand her wishes. Here only people age, but demons do not... The villagers hide and close their doors and windows at night so as not to see the terrible demons from the Black Dragon clan... so as not to lose their life or soul...
- What should I do?..
- Try not to show yourself to him. Do whatever he tells you to do. Now let's go to the kitchen and help with lunch. My name is Ekaterina Mikhailovna, what about you?
- Antonina...
- Dress Antonina in the clothes that I brought and let’s go.
- Tell me, who is Lydia?
- You don't need her. Don't you dare argue with her.

* * *
Dressed in a soft linen dress, with her hair braided, Tonya asked Ekaterina Mikhailovna to see her son and, going down the stone steps, found herself in a small garden with green trees and colorful flowers. Children's voices came from under the spreading oak tree and Tonya headed there. There were five children, apparently the children of servants, George and a little girl with blond hair. The son smiled and chirped something, touching the children’s hands, and they treated him to nuts and apples.
- Georgy! - Tonya called him quietly.
- Mother! I have friends!
- That's good, honey. Aren't you afraid yourself?
- No, I'm having fun!
“Then I’ll go, but I’ll watch you from the window.”
- Fine!

Tonya looked at her son with love and then felt the gaze of a girl who looked like an angel. There was so much pain in her eyes that the girl’s heart sank with pity. Most likely this was the daughter of a woman killed by a demon...
Antonina went back, but those eyes remained in front of her for a long time...
The kitchen was hot and smelled of food being prepared by women in colorful aprons. She was given the same one and sat down to clean the fish, looking at it with interest and whispering to each other.
By lunchtime, Tonya was completely exhausted, her arms hurt, her back couldn’t straighten, and her eyes were red from the onion fumes. She went to the window and stuck her head out Fresh air, inhaling the delicate aroma of flowers wafting from the high hills.

Don't you have anything better to do that you're looking at the beauty of Scotland? - a sharp, female voice came from below and Tonya looked at beautiful woman, dressed in a dark red dress. She looked at Tonya with disdain and irritation, and her Golden hair reached almost to the knees.
- I ask you, maid?
-Can't we get some air? - Tonya asked in bewilderment.
- It is forbidden! - the beauty hissed. - Need to work!
Antonina guessed that it was Lydia...Arnold's mistress and felt a pang of jealousy.
- I can't work all day, otherwise I'll fall from exhaustion.
- How are you talking to me, rubbish?! - she screamed. - What’s your name and why haven’t I seen you before?!

Ekaterina Mikhailovna came up from behind and pulled Tonya away from the window.
- Why are you talking to her? I warned you!
- I can’t remain silent! Am I a slave?! Some ancient age!
- Hush hush! Don’t make such speeches here! In your opinion, it won’t happen anyway, but you’ll find trouble on your own head!
A breathless girl flew into the kitchen and blurted out:
- Arrived! Set the table!
Panic immediately arose, women ran in, trays and plates rattled, ironed tablecloths were pulled out of the closet, and Ekaterina Mikhailovna pushed Tonya.
- Serve the meat, quickly!

I?!
- Who? Take the dish and go get Innes!
Tonya grabbed the dish with meat and followed the little girl who was carrying the bread. Going down to the living room, Tonya tried not to look up so as not to meet Arnold's gaze. Even though she was following Innes, she still had to raise her head to see where to put the dish.
- Do you have a new slave?
Tonya couldn’t resist and cast a fleeting glance at the speaker, remaining standing with her eyes wide open. In front of her sat five men dressed in leather, with incredible eyes... Arnold, huge as a bull, looked at her with his transparent eyes, in which silvery lights flashed, his hair framed his high-cheeked face, and sharp fangs were visible through his parted lips.

Yes, I brought it from the human world.
- Good...
Tonya shuddered, looking at the same huge man, with red eyes and white hair braided.
“You always choose pretty slaves, Arnold...” said a demon with dark hair and strange, orange eyes. The others sat silently and glared at her with piercing gazes.
- The main thing is that she knows her business and is efficient. - Arnold laughed and turned to Tonya. - Why are you frozen? Don't stand like a statue!
The girl put the dish on the edge of the table and rushed away from the living room.

* * *
She managed to lie down only late at night. She persuaded Ekaterina Mikhailovna not to send her to wait at the table anymore and worked in the kitchen. They brought George to her, she fed him and sat him in the corner with an old wooden horse, which he felt with quick fingers and stroked its rough sides.
When her head touched the pillow, the child was already fast asleep, tired from the long day, and his legs were twitching as if he was running somewhere. As soon as Tonya began to fall asleep, the clatter of hooves and the neighing of horses was heard under the windows. The girl stood up and looked out into the yard, transfixed by what she saw.

Five horsemen dressed in black rode into the courtyard... their leather jackets were open and Tonya clearly saw the marks on their powerful torsos. They moved and flowed from one to another like black snakes. The terrible eyes of the demons were burning, but it was such an amazing sight that Tonya involuntarily gasped. One of the men raised his head and the deep hood of his jacket fell over his shoulders, revealing a familiar, high-cheeked face with silver eyes. He looked at her for a long time and galloped on, knocking sparks out from under the horse’s hooves. Tonya trembled with anticipation of something approaching with terrible force and immediately saw that a demon with red eyes was looking at her, his blond hair fluttered in the wind and fell like a silk blanket onto the black croup of the horse. Tonya backed away from the window and jumped into bed.

But she never managed to fall asleep... Katerina Mikhailovna quietly entered the room and bent over Tonya.
- Get up... get up...
- What's happened?
- The owner is calling.
- For what?
- Don’t be stupid... she’s not an innocent girl anymore...
- I will not go! - Tonya rolled to the edge of the bed in fear.
- Stop being hysterical! - Katerina Mikhailovna barked at her. -Are you being led to slaughter? Another would have run ahead of me long ago! Get up or there will be trouble.
Tonya prayed to herself and followed the old woman, realizing that her secret was coming to an end...

* * *
Arnold was lying on the bed and his body, hot from the night's jump, was pulsating with pleasure. His skin was smooth and dark, beautifully toned blonde hair. When Tonya entered the bedroom, he tensed, looking for in her that voluptuous sexuality that Lydia was full of. But there was not even anything similar in this artless beauty, as if sculpted by the hand of a master. He felt his male nature rise, seized by the desire to possess this delicate body covered with golden hairs. But when he saw her eyes fixed on his penis, frightened, surprised, he became angry.
-What scared you so much? Or have you never seen male organs before? Or did your lovers have less impressive qualities?

He came close to her and lifted her head by the chin. His eyes scanned her face and Tonya could have sworn that she felt a slight tingling under her skin.
- How well you snakes can hide your essence under a mask of naivety... These eyes, on the verge of tears, these trembling eyelashes and bitten lips... Soon all this will be caused only by passion, when I take you...
He bent down and kissed her, insistently and roughly, imposing his will. Tonya succumbed to him, feeling a fire flaring up in her body, deciding to experience all the delights of intimacy with this beautiful demon.
But the wonderful moment was interrupted by a knock on the door and Arnold cursed and shouted:
- Come in!

The door swung open and Tonya saw a blond demon with red eyes. He looked at her with one quick glance and turned to Arnold.
- The Golden Mountain was attacked by the Sloa.
- When will these damned dead calm down?! - Arnold exclaimed and ordered Tonya: - Go to your place.
She didn't need to be told twice and quickly left his bedroom.
- Since when did you start messing with virgins? - The red-eyed demon grinned.
- What are you talking about Edgar?
- I feel such things very well... And you know it.
- This can’t be, she has a son...
- I'm never wrong.

* * *
- What's happened? - Tonya watched from the window as five demons quickly rushed outside the castle gates, kicking up clouds of dust.
- The Sloa attacked the Golden Mountain, there is no peace from them! - Ekaterina Mikhailovna muttered irritably.
- And who is it? - the girl watched in horror as a bloody fog rose above the hills, from which screams and the clanking of swords rushed.
- These are dead people. Sloa become sinners, or generally evil people, whose souls turned out to be unworthy of going either to Heaven, or to hell, or even to another world... They rush in flocks across the sky and fight, never resting. Their screams and the clang of weapons can be heard far in the surrounding area...

What do they want?
- They take women and force them to cohabit with them, which is why they then give birth to terrible monsters, half dead, half people who have incredible strength. Their life is war and battles, blood and fear... so don't catch their eye... even over great distances they can see you. Don't stand by the window, go to bed.
Tonya shuddered and moved away; the prospect of being dragged away by a dead man did not appeal to her at all.

* * *
The demons returned in the morning, bloodied and satisfied. Antonina was looking at them with interest from the kitchen window when a plaintive cry from George was heard from the direction of the garden. Tonya rushed down headlong, her heart freezing with fear, and a monstrous picture was revealed to her eyes. Lydia held the boy by the neck and beat the squirming child with a thick leather whip. Lost with rage, Tonya ran up to Lydia and snatched the whip from her hand and hit the enraged woman with it. The eyes of the demon's lover turned into slits, and her face was distorted by a mask of hatred.
- How dare you, slave?! Guards! Guards!
Two armed guards burst into the kindergarten and, not paying attention to the frightened crying of the children, grabbed Tonya.

Whipping her in the stables! - Lydia hissed. - So that there is no living place left on it! Let him know his place!
The men dragged the reluctant Tonya under the roar of the children and the laughter of Lydia, who did not notice how the blond girl slid into the hole in the fence.
Antonina was pushed into the stable and tied to a pole on which the harness was hanging and she heard the men laughing. A whip whistled through the air and a burning pain pierced Tony's back and she screamed.

* * *
Arnold had washed the blood off himself and was now heading down to join the demons, who were drinking wine and animatedly discussing the night's battle. He went down to the kitchen door and immediately noticed a small figure climbing the high steps. The child was out of breath and groaning desperately, but purposefully climbed forward, making Arnold laugh with his persistence. But when he realized who it was, the smile instantly left his lips.
- What is a child doing here?! - in a stern voice he asked Ekaterina Mikhailovna, who was peeking out from the kitchen.
- Oh, fathers! - the woman exclaimed and rushed to the child.
But the girl had already crawled up to the demon and stood on her feet, lifting her pretty face up.

There they beat my aunt. - She stammered and pulled his finger. - Go.
- What? - Arnold asked the girl irritably. -Who are they beating?
- They beat my aunt. - She repeated again and slapped herself on the leg. - Go.
- Mommies, they’re beating Antonina! - Ekaterina Mikhailovna clasped her hands, but the demon no longer listened to her, but rushed down, not noticing that he grabbed the girl in his arms and she grabbed his neck with her small fingers.

Antonina's screams echoed throughout the yard and Arnold, tearing out the stable door, flew in like a hurricane, sweeping away everything in his path. The guards fell on their faces in horror and the demon saw with a shudder Antonin's bloody back...
- What does it mean?! - he roared and the straw around the men caught fire, causing panic.
- We were ordered...
- Who?!
- Lydia...
- Get out, I'll deal with you later! - the demon yelled and the guards rushed away, not wanting to become victims of his rage.

Arnold approached Antonina and only at that moment realized that a girl was sitting in his arms, fear splashing in her silver eyes. He lowered her to the ground and she trotted towards the exit. The demon carefully untied Tonya and she fell into his arms, quietly whispering:
- My son... where is he?..
Arnold took her to his bedroom and entrusted her to the care of Ekaterina Mikhailovna, who groaned and shook her head, looking at the bloody scars.

* * *
The child cried, smearing tears down his cheeks, his sightless eyes looking at one point. Arnold walked up to him and sat down next to him, shuddering in horror, looking at the red stripe crossing his face.
- Georgy... come with me...
The boy shuddered and extended his hand in his direction.
- Where is mom?
Arnold took the handle and squeezed it carefully.
- Mom is waiting for you. Let's go to.
-Are you my dad?
This question became something stupefyingly scary for him and Arnold was at a loss.
- Uh... yes.

Why did you allow this evil aunt to hurt your mother? - the boy didn’t even remember his injuries. - Mom was crying.
-Are you still here, you disgusting puppy?!
Arnold slowly turned towards Lydia's voice and stood up.
- What happened here?
- Your slaves have completely lost their belts! That little bastard stained my dress with his paws! - Lydia raised her hand over the unsuspecting boy, but the demon grabbed her wrist and she howled as bones crunched.
- Who were you when you got here, weren’t you a slave?!
“I’m your woman...” Lydia looked into his eyes, and tears of pain flowed down her cheeks.
-You are no different from others...only your clothes are more expensive!

I thought...
- What were you thinking?! - Arnold grabbed her by the neck. - Do you put yourself above me? Or are you my equal?!
- Why are you protecting her?! - Lydia howled, throwing herself at his feet. - Why?!
- Get out before I tear you to pieces! - the demon growled. - Your soul is blacker than the hell in which I was born!
Lydia jumped out of the kindergarten, and he turned to the boy:
- Come with me.
- Let's go, dad. - Georgy groped his hand and gasped when Arnold picked him up. - Hurt...
- All will pass. No one will hurt you anymore.

* * *
Antonina woke up from a sharp pain and screamed.
- Hush, hush... It's me.
Ekaterina Mikhailovna carefully removed the old bandages from the girl’s back and applied fresh ones. - Lie still.
- Where is Georgy?
- The boy is with the owner.
- How?!
- Calm down, because of you, he executed the guards and kicked Lydia out of the castle... now, without a doubt, she will become a victim of Sloa...
- Why so cruel?
- Cruel?! It's a demon, Tonya! He should have torn out their hearts and fed them to the dogs! This is a manifestation of his generosity... dear...

The door swung open and Arnold entered the bedroom, leading the boy behind him.
- Here's your mother.
- Mom, are you in pain?! - Georgy rushed to Tonya and she winced in pain.
- No... everything will heal soon. Show your back.
The boy lifted his shirt and Tonya burst into tears, looking at the red stripes and admiring his courage.
- Don’t cry mom, it doesn’t hurt me! Dad punished the evil aunt!
- Dad?!
“Come on, son,” the demon took his hand and he obediently followed him, “mom needs to rest.” And you, Ekaterina Mikhailovna, I will ask you to come with us and look after the boy.
- What about Tonya?
- I'll take care of her myself.

She immediately felt the bed bend under him and froze tensely.
- Relax, I'm not going to rape you.
- I was not thinking about it.
- I thought. No need to deceive me, I see right through you.
Tonya turned her head and looked into his silver eyes, in which curiosity splashed.
-Whose child is this?
- What? - Tonya became covered in sticky sweat and hid her eyes.
- George is not your son.
- Do not understand what you talking about. This is my child.
- Okay, I’ll check it differently, although I already know that you’re lying.

The girl did not expect what he would do next... Arnold slid his fingers between her legs and Tonya twitched, realizing that she could not resist because of the pain from the scars inflicted by the guards.
- Stop it!
- Why? Or don't you like it?
- I do not like!
- You're lying again... I can hear how everything in you is trembling...
He touched his lips to her shoulder, then to her neck, as if savoring the taste of her skin.
- You are sweet. I want you...

Tony's body responded to his caresses, but fear squeezed her heart and she desperately tried to hide it.
“Relax, I’m not a beast...” whispered the demon. “You’ll love feeling me inside.”
- Fine! Fine! - Tonya exclaimed. - I will tell you!
Arnold grinned and hovered over her.
- I am listening to you.
- George is my brother. When I was sixteen years old, I married my mother’s lover so that my stepfather would not suspect them of an affair and kill both of them... He was very cruel to her and often raised his hand to her, especially when drunk.
Mom fell in love with her stepfather's driver, who was seven years younger than her, and he responded in kind...

Knowing her husband’s cruelty, she was constantly afraid for both him and me, understanding how this could end, but how could she hide the pregnancy? She trusted me and we decided to do such a crazy thing. When I told my stepfather that I wanted to marry Valera (that was the driver’s name), he was furious. - Tonya shook her head and chuckled. - Now I understand why... he probably had his eye on me back then... But the argument that I was pregnant and the arguments and persuasion of my mother forced him to agree to this marriage...
“But it was impossible to hide the mother’s pregnancy.” How did you resolve this issue? - the demon asked, stroking her cheek.

Oh, we’re incredibly lucky here... - Tonya laughed. - The mother’s belly was practically invisible until the fourth month... And the stepfather had some serious troubles in business and he hid abroad from his partners for three and a half months. Georgiy was born seven months old... small and constantly screaming. I was constantly at the clinic with my mother and stayed there with the baby after his birth. Things got better for my stepfather and he returned home, having learned that I was in the clinic, he bought gifts and sent my mother and Valera to me with congratulations... On the way to me, they died, having seen their son only once.. .

Arnold sank onto his back and stared at the ceiling, not understanding what was going on in his soul... which... probably wasn’t...
- How long have you lived with your stepfather?
- My father died when I was five years old... My stepfather is my uncle... my dad's brother...
“Incest, even among demons, is considered a dirty business... How could he even think about it?”
- I don’t know, but according to my mother, he was always jealous of her father, and when he died, he began to convince her that marriage with him was the only true option.
- Like, I'll take care of you, etc...
- Yes... That's how it was...

They fell silent and this heavy, thoughtful silence was suddenly interrupted by a loud scream coming from the direction of the Golden Mountain.
- Sloa! - Arnold shouted and jumped out of bed, scaring poor Tonya half to death.
She didn’t even have time to notice how he was wearing his leather, blood-soaked robe, and he jumped out the window, under which a horse was waiting for him, beating its hoof.
Antonina stood up with difficulty and, wincing in pain, went to the door, feeling the skin on her back bursting.
- Stop! - a vile, slurping voice sounded behind her. - And come here slowly!
Tonya turned around and gasped in fear when she saw in front of her a half-decayed warrior in dull armor.

“The Sloa got here!” - a thought arose in her head and she reached out to door handle, hoping to have time to jump out into the corridor, but her hand ran into someone’s hot fingers.
- Get out of here, you disgusting dead man! - this voice was powerful and beautiful, but not at all familiar.
Tonya gave in to temptation and turned around, then lowered her eyes, meeting the gaze of the blond demon.
- Stand behind me, woman.
Tonya stepped towards him, but an unknown force grabbed her and carried her away from the castle.

So... - the hoarse voice of the terrible sloa sounded like the hiss of a snake. - A beautiful, lively woman...another one...
Tonya, unable to move from horror, looked at the dead man with empty eye sockets, who stood in front of her and looked at her with the air of a master.
“Let me go...” the girl whispered. - My son was left all alone...
- How beautiful! - Sloa exclaimed. - Son! This means you will give birth to many strong children!
- No! - Tonya shook her head. - No!
- Don’t be so intractable, you’ll like it!
This terrible voice and laughter of the sloa remained in her ears for a long time, from which she was covered with sticky fear..

She was thrown into a dark room with a small window through which a grayish light came through. Tonya groped her way towards him and, pulling herself up, looked out into the street.
- You won't run away from here! - a loud, angry whisper made Tonya turn around in fear. She peered into the darkness, but saw nothing but multi-colored circles.
- Scary? - Laughter came from the darkness. - Now you will have the love and affection of the owner!
- Lydia?!
- Yes! Lydia! Who was kicked out of the castle like a dog because of you and your blind bastard!
Tonya noticed how Lydia’s burning eyes and her arms, twisted like chicken legs, appeared from the darkness.

Share with me a wonderful fate! - she laughed. - You will be the beloved wife of some sloa!
- But it’s waiting for you too!
- I will enjoy the fact that you experience no less delightful pleasures!
- Well, shut up! - a cool wind flew into the room, carrying with it the smell of heather. - Come out one at a time!

Lydia looked angrily at Tonya and was the first to go to the door, near which the bellicose dead man stood. Pushing her on the way out, the sloa nodded to Tonya to hurry up.
She did not test his patience and followed Lydia.
The warrior led them along a dark corridor and stopped them at black doors covered with skulls.
- Don’t even think about opening your mouth until you’re asked, okay?
- It's clear! - Lydia snapped and received a poke in the back.

Sloa opened the door and the girls entered a hall with high ceilings, hung with cobwebs. Tonya shrank in fear when she saw a motley group of half-decomposed dead. They were devouring something, sitting at a long table, and this something exuded a terrible stench.
- Here come the ladies! - the lips, eaten away by ulcers, stretched into a grin. - Well, warriors, let's decide who will get them...

The speaker stood up and, wiping his hands on himself, walked towards the girls. He came so close that Tonya felt the stench emanating from him and heard the creak of bones.
- Both are good! - he wheezed and stroked Tonya’s face, enjoying the velvet of her skin. - But I choose this one!
Antonina was covered in goosebumps with horror and disgust, frantically wishing that this turned out to be a dream.
- Why will you get it?! - a stocky, bandy-legged dead man jumped out from behind the table. - I want her too!
- Bones! Bones! - the rest of the sloa screamed. - Whoever wins will get a wife!

The dead began to fuss, clearing the table, and Tonya noticed with horror the bloody pieces of animals that the sloa were eating.
The short, bowlegged man pulled out a black bag from the cold fireplace overgrown with cobwebs and poured ordinary human bones onto the table.
- Quickly to the corner! - the sloa who brought the girls pushed them into a dark corner and hissed: - Sit quietly!

Tonya could not see what was happening at the table, only the swearing of the sloa and the clatter of bones hurt her ears.
“We need to run away from here...” Tonya whispered. - Let's slowly get closer to the doors. - She looked at Lydia and lightly pulled her hand.
- Leave me alone! - she hissed and pulled back her cold fingers. - Benefactor!
- Lydia, now is not the time! Let's try to get out of here!

She looked at her strangely, but nodded as if in agreement. Tonya took a step towards the door, but the dead, engrossed in the game, didn’t even notice it. The girls took a couple more steps and froze, cold with fear. The door was getting closer and closer, and it seemed to Tonya that their intermittent breathing was making noise throughout the entire hall. When the treasured hand was very close and her trembling fingers touched the icy metal, silence reigned in the room. The girls slowly turned around and met the angry gazes of the dead, who were preparing to attack the fugitives. And then Tonya suddenly felt the door shake, vibrate, as if an earthquake was starting.

The heavy iron structure collapsed onto the stone floor and Tonya, with admiration mixed with horror, saw Arnold in his bloody robe. From under the hood his eyes burned with a cold, winter flame. He quickly moved towards the sloa and they howled in anticipation of battle. Tonya still could not come to her senses when she was picked up by the strong arms of a blond demon and she recognized Edgar. He carried her away from this terrible place and the last thing she saw was Lydia’s eyes, doomed and full of fear.
- Stop! - Tonya shouted to the demon. - Stop!
Edgar looked at her in surprise and Antonina nodded at Lydia.
- I can't leave her here.

* * *
- What is this woman doing here?! - Arnold, with frowning eyebrows, glared at Tonya, who was sitting on the bed in his room.
She looked with delight at his naked torso, striped with fresh wounds that were healing before her eyes, and was silent..
- I asked a question!
- I felt sorry for her...could I leave her in this terrible place? - Tonya asked him quietly.
- Oh, Devil! - Arnold exclaimed, raising his hands. - I still haven’t had enough of these angelic deeds!
“I...” Tonya began, but he grabbed her by the shoulders and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss was demanding, almost painful, but in the end the demon slowed down its pressure and Tonya even thought that for a second he became gentle.

You scared me... - he breathed into her hair and the girl felt protected and happy, not wanting to remember the past.
- Do not leave me...
- Never ever...
* * *
And on a high tower, Edgar stood and his white hair was ruffled by the cold wind carrying the spray of the sea. He knew what was happening in Arnold's bedroom and it brought him pain, so unfamiliar and burning.
- Why do I need this?! For what?! - he roared and the storm picked up this roar, smashing it into the hills...

* * *
Arnold covered Tonya's face with kisses and she trembled from the excitement rolling over her, an unfamiliar, but no less pleasant feeling. Throwing off her dirty dress, the demon carried her into a hot bath, prudently filled with servants, and carefully lowered her there, gently running his fingers over the still unhealed wounds on her back.
Hearing his angry growl, Tonya took his hand and whispered: “Will you join me?”
“No, I want to love you on a soft bed, covering you with my body...” Arnold answered in a deep, excited voice. He soaped up the washcloth and began to wash his shoulders and chest with gentle movements. - Relax...

Morning burst into the bedroom with sparkling rays and Tonya woke up, inhaling a fresh, floral smell. A huge, white rose, still covered with drops of dew, lay on her pillow. The sharp thorns were prudently cut off and the girl took it in her hands, smiling at such a tender gift from the cruel demon.
- Do you like it?
Tonya turned towards the voice and saw Arnold standing in the doorway.
- Very! She's so tender...
“No more tender than you, my precious...” he said and his eyes flashed as the demon walked towards her.
- Do you hear what this is? “Antonina heard some commotion in the corridor and became wary.

But the small body of George appeared in the doorway, holding onto the wall.
- Mother? Dad?
- Come here! - Arnold picked him up and the boy squealed with delight. - Who is it that walks around the castle and looks into the rooms? Isn't he a spy?
- No! No! It is me! - Georgy hit him in the chest with his fist. - Don’t you recognize me?!
- I don’t think it’s little George... you’re too old... I don’t know...
Tonya watched their playful exchange with a smile and suddenly saw a pale face with silver eyes, looking sadly at the man with the child.

Arnold... - she called quietly and he immediately turned to her. Tonya looked at the door and the demon immediately saw the girl. His face darkened and for a minute it seemed to the girl that he was angry.
- Tell me, boy... do you have accomplices? - he asked in a stern voice and George immediately understood who he was talking about.
- No, dad! This is Veresk!
- Who?
- Heather! Her name is Erica, which means heather! She is my friend!
- No, my friend... she’s not a friend... she’s your sister...
After these words, Tonya burst into tears and called the girl:
- Heather, come here...

The girl did not dare to approach and her silver eyes were wide open with excitement.
- Daughter, come to us. - Arnold extended his free hand to her and the baby leaned forward, and then began to scurry her legs towards him. He picked her up and suddenly turned away, drawing attention to her dirty dress, covered with holes and stains.
- Heather, you are my sister! Dad said so. - Georgy extended his hand and stroked her curly curls.
- Dad? - the girl looked him straight in the eyes and even Tonya was surprised by such a powerful radiation of these silver eyes looking at each other. The demon touched his lips to the tender cheek and the girl closed her eyes with pleasure.

But what happened next caused terrible confusion and shouting. The girl opened her eyes and looked at George, emitting something powerful and terrible, which made the boy go limp in a strange way, as if he had lost consciousness. Tonya jumped up and rushed towards them, but Arnold stopped her with his gaze.
- Don't interfere.
Heather extended her arms and pushed George on the forehead with her fingers, his head shook and he opened his eyes. Tonya gasped when she saw that his eyes had become meaningful and the same silver as the girl’s.
- Now you have eyes too! - she giggled.
Georgy batted his eyelashes once, twice, and then turned to Tonya.
- Mom... how beautiful you are...
They couldn't help themselves and laughed with Arnold for a long time, and children's joyful squeals were heard throughout the castle.

* * *
Demons, like gloomy witnesses, sat near the newlyweds, drinking blood-red wine for the health of the newlyweds. Ekaterina Mikhailovna and the rest of the servants still could not believe what was happening, but joyful smiles constantly appeared on their faces, because finally, the Golden Mountain had found a mistress who would give birth to a bunch of little demons with silver eyes. Only Edgar was sad and silent, seeing off as if on his last journey the only woman he had loved. Who knows how the life of beautiful spouses will turn out, thought the red-eyed demon warrior, and will something happen that will throw this beautiful girl into his arms? In the meantime, he will be content with the caresses of black-haired Lydia...

(Mystical fantasy about the love of a demon for a girl)

He woke up quickly, almost immediately. The obsession passed, he could see, hear, feel, breathe again... It was painful to breathe, and blood foamed on his lips, and some people were bending over him, covering the sky. They said something vying with each other, they were afraid of something and tore the buttons of his favorite sand jacket.

Lie down, Count, lie down, the doctor will be there soon...

It’s not worth it... - The fox coughed heavily. “It’s not scary... I have my own...” I tried to get up, but my head started spinning, and I had to fall back helplessly on the ground again. Yet complete humanization had its drawbacks. The wound, of course, will not kill him; it is not difficult to heal. But not in front of everyone, his healing methods are too radical for the most respectable public. First you need to get to the chambers allocated to him.

Gaston,” he called to the servant, “help.”

With the help of his faithful secretary, he almost managed to get up (it would have been much easier if he had not had to fight off many hands trying to hold him down), but then endless horror pierced his heart, and somewhere in the depths of his skull a desperate female scream vibrated.

Rozzie,” the Fox whispered doomedly, finally realizing what had happened. And he desperately rushed towards her, forgetting about the “mortal wound” and “serious condition.” Fortunately - along with the wounded body, although this is truly a miracle.

Rozzie! - the door swung open and Fox burst into the bedroom. - Everyone get out! - he barked at the maids who had come running to my cry. - Gaston, horses, carriage - we are leaving immediately!

He took several steps from the door to the bed without his usual smoothness, in jerks. And he fell heavily on his knees next to me. At that moment I, too, was already sitting on the floor - frightened, trembling - clasping my unstoppably shaking hands.

Hush, Rozzie, hush. Scared? - He smiled so confidently and calmly that for a moment I believed that everything was all right. And then I noticed blood caked on his lips and chin, a ripped and blood-stained jacket in the area right breast hair matted with sweat and gray with dust.

You... Were you hurt? - I immediately get scared again. - Are you dying? Is this why I?..

What are you doing, Rozzie, what are you doing? I am immortal. Didn't I say that? - He smiles calmly again, and a thin stream of blood flows from the corner of his mouth and goes down to his chin. - And this is just a duel, I told you: sometimes men need to fight. Don’t pay any attention,” he extended his hand in a soiled glove and carefully covered my palms.

Do not feel! - I moved my hands in panic. - I don’t feel you, see?! I'm not touching! - I sharply jerked my hands up, and they easily passed through his palm, as before they passed through the bedside post - without even feeling an obstacle in their path.

Forgive me, my rose, it’s my fault,” my wounded count sighed slightly, without showing the slightest surprise, “he climbed towards the noble lady in dirty gloves. We’ll fix it now,” and very slowly and carefully he pulled the glove off his right hand.

I was expecting... something. I don’t know, but his manic desire to always and everywhere wear gloves gave me a strong suspicion that there, underneath them... There was a palm. Ordinary, human, male palm: bright skin, the bluish veins emerging through it, the mesh of “lines of fate”... He handed it to me, and I instantly grabbed it, without thinking for a moment, like a drowning man clutches at any straw... no, bogged down in a terrible, unreal swamp...

The hand was real! I held on to her, I felt her. My palm didn’t go right through it! The hand was warm, reliable, strong. Not believing myself with happiness, I grabbed it with my other hand, I squeezed his palm with all my might, I leaned on it with almost all my weight. His palm only trembled slightly, swaying in the air, but held me back!

Let’s get up, Rozzie,” he carefully pulled me up. - Everything is fine, you see, right? Everything is fine.

Biting my lip and not taking my intense gaze off his face, I very slowly stood up, holding his hand as if it were the last support in the universe. My legs were shaking after the nightmare I had experienced, and I didn’t trust my legs, I only trusted his hand in my hands.

But then he staggered, turning even more pale, and we both almost fell.

Oh, sorry,” I stopped putting pressure on his hand, straightened out and helped him stand. - Sorry, you're injured... You probably need to lie down. Is everything very bad?

With a wound? No, it will be okay. It's just not the right time. Come on, you need to get dressed. We'll have to leave here. Right away, Rozzie. There is no time to waste.

Without letting go of my hand, he led me to a chest of clothes that stood near one of the walls. He opened the lid with his free hand (the one from which he had not removed the glove stained with earth and blood), took out a wide cloak, wrapped me in it, threw a huge hood over my head, completely hiding my face, and immediately pulled me towards the exit: - Let's go !

Wait, what about shoes? And you told me to get dressed, and I was wearing just a shirt under my raincoat.

All later, my Rozzie, we just have to get to the carriage.

But, Fox... - trying to slow him down at least a little, I grabbed the door frame with my free hand. I tried to grab him, but my hand went right through him. And the nightmare that had receded again made me go into a heart-rending squeal.

“Don’t touch it, Rozzie, don’t,” the Fox asked calmly and matter-of-factly, like a caring dad of an overly busy child, long accustomed to the restlessness of his tomboy. And, without slowing down, he dragged me to the exit of the outbuilding.

Fox, I...” she told him in a voice that had shrunk in horror, having stopped squealing, “I think I’m falling into the floor.” I'm stuck in it.

Don't get stuck, Rozzie, it's just your fears. Calm down, the parquet cannot harm you.

But Lis...

Not here, my joy. You understand - not here.