We reached South Knoll in only three hours and without incident. It was amazing how much having a ride made a difference. Maybe I should investigate buying a horse. Or even better, tame something I could ride. The idea really appealed to me, and I added it to my mental list of potential tames for the future. It would not help me now, however. The ride here may have only been three hours, but chances are I wouldn't be getting back to the inn till nightfall.

  "Alright Sin!" Beamed Emelda, her black hair shining just as brightly as my red tinged hair was in the bright sun light. "Here we go. Pick which ever one you like."

  I smiled and gazed into the cage. There were twenty-five of the Dragon newts in all, each one a little groggy now that they had been in the shade of the wagon for so long. It was a little sad that I was picking one while knowing that the others were soon to be prime chunks of meat.

  There were many varied Dragons in there- I'm pretty sure I would always just call them dragons- and it was hard to choose. But soon one caught my eye. There were others that looked prettier, bigger, and even seemed to catch the sun better, but the small dark red one appealed to me. Maybe, because it was a blood red color, or it was the look in its eyes. Either way it was the one I wanted.

  "There." I said, pointing to the dragon in question. It was close to the cage door and laying lazily on the floor. "That red one there with the dark blue eyes."

  "You got it!" She opened the cage carefully but none of the dragons made a break for it. Either they were too cold, or they were too stupid to know that they were on their way to being a snack. Her thin, pale hands circled the little dragon gently and it made a squawking noise but otherwise did not protest. "And here you go." She handed me the winged lizard with one hand while shutting the cage and locking it with the other.

  I held it close to my breast and looked at it with wonder. It was so cute. As if it decided my body heat was exactly what it was looking for it squirmed then clambered up around my shoulders. Its head rested on my collar bone while its tale dipped down under my shirt and curled under my right breast.

  "You know what, he actually does match you." Emelda said with a cock of her head. She pulled a sheaf of parchment out of a pocket and used a spell I had seen used several times now to sign it, handing it to me. "That's the receipt for the job. As you know, once you give that to the guild you will get your gold. Normally I would make you out a receipt for the newt, too, but if you are planning on making a contract with it, than there isn't a need."

  "Yes, I will be doing that as soon as I can." I agreed. "How do you tell he is a boy?" I admit I hadn't given him a good look over, but I hadn't seen any obvious signs that it was a male.

  She laughed as she tied the flap back down on the wagon. "There are a couple of ways. His wings are wider than a female, his scales are in a darker color while females tend to be lighter and have patterned scales, and also because its snout is slightly pointier than the more rounded females."

  "Dang, you really know your stuff. I have been trying to find some bestiaries to get more know how on monsters but the only ones I have found are expensive."

  "Oh yes. Mostly that is because the only ones who ever went out of their way to write comprehensive ones were the old tamers. I'm sure you know that the art is not practiced as it once was. The books just aren't being written any more as far as I know. So, they can get pricy."

  "I guess I can see that..."

  "Hey! Once you get good at this, maybe you can write one. Leave something for future tamers and all that."

  I laughed. "Maybe. But I am not really one to have the patients for that sort of thing. Even reading the books makes me antsy. I just do it because I have too."

  "I love reading myself. Anyway, I should be off. I wouldn't put it past Lord Cheapskate to pay me less for being late."

  "Alright. Be safe and don't let that lord pay you any less that they are worth."

  "I hope you don't run into any trouble on the road either. Sorry, you must walk all the way back there."

  "No worries." I said with a wave. I turned and took off at a jog back down the road, while Emelda got back in her wagon.

  I kept going for a few more minutes till I rounded a corner, making sure I kept a hand on the little red dragon draped around my neck, so he didn't glide off. I was anxious to get out of sight. I was excited to finally make a monster my first tame.

  So, once I came around the bend I took a deep breath, looked around to be sure I was alone, then crouched to the ground. I reached into the satchel at my side and rummaged around till I grasped the grimoire. I had read quite a bit more of it over the last couple weeks, even though half the time it simply showed me passages I had already read I had learned more from it. Mostly on how to care for and enhance my tames, as well as more elaborate explanations of topics already covered.

  For now, I opened it to a random blank page. I removed my hand from the little dragon and used a claw on my right hand to cut into my palm, holding the hand in a way that the blood pooled. Drawing from memory I used my claw and the blood to etch the needed magic circle onto the page. I took a couple minutes as I had to keep dipping my finger into the small pool of blood.

  That done I removed the dragon from my shoulder. He squawked in protest again but didn't try to make a break for it. "Sorry, little guy." I whispered. "Now what to name you then? Newt? No, definitely not. I don't care what anyone says, you are a dragon... Oh, I know! I'll call you Drogin. I like that. Okay, I am sorry buddy, but this is going to sting a bit."

  Deciding that the softest part of the dragon with the most blood vessels seemed to be its wings, I flicked out a claw scratched a line along one of the membranes. Little Drogin did not like that snarled, squirming. I held him tight to my chest, apologizing again, I held him tight to my chest and began Scribbling the name over the top of the circle. "Drrr-ohhh-gin." I said as I scratched out the letters.

  Placing the squirming, unhappy, dragon newt down on the ground I laid a hand on his back, applying enough pressure that he couldn't make a break for it. Luckily this part was easier. Because I had the book and the circle drawn there, I didn't even need to hold the image in my mind.

  "Seal." I said clearly and confidently. There was a flash of red, the circle I drew in the grimoire duplicated itself under Drogin and burned brightly. "I Name thee, Drogin!"

  It was noticeable only because I hadn't ever really used much of my mana before, but I immediately felt a dip in the energies of my body. It wasn't in anyway draining- perhaps the equivalent of running up a few flights of stairs, but it was an odd feeling. Drogin stopped squirming instantly and I stroked his back affectionately. But things were not done yet. Drogin showed no sigs of distress, but his body began to change before my eyes. He grew bigger, if only by a pound or so, and along his spine grew a double line of horn like bumps the same colour as his scales. His thin shape muscled out more and on the tip of his nose sprouted a tiny white tooth like horn. His blue eyes gained a sort of eerie glow, and I saw the cut in his wing membrane seal up and the wings themselves seemed to grow. They were now at least as long as his body when spread out wide.

  I knew that the naming process could change a monster, but I had to admit that I hadn't thought it would be in such a visual way. He looked like a handsome little dragon now. His body wasn't as streamlined as before, and his legs and chest seemed to be more muscular.

  "You okay buddy?" I asked as the glow faded. I removed my hand and allowed the little dragon to get to his feet. Even though he was bigger, Drogin was still only about six inches tall on four feet. His long neck almost making him a foot tall when he raised it high. He shook out his body like a wet dog, stretched his neck up ward, opened his little mouth wider than I thought he could and... A small magic circle appeared right at the opening and a surprising large blast of fire shot four feet into the air. The dragon snorted, clearly pleased with himself, and looked up at me expectantly.

  "Good job." I said breathlessly. I had a tiny dragon that could cast fire magic... Holly shit, I had a tiny dragon that could cast fire magic! I scratched Drogin behind the slit that was one of his ears and he made a pleased humming noise. Getting too my feet with a dragon held to my chest and the other hand putting the grimoire back into my bag.

  Drogin squirmed a little then scrambled up to what I assumed would be his usual resting place across my shoulders. I felt a flash, like an awareness, touch my mind and it felt like hunger. I chuckled. It seemed that Drogin couldn't speak, that or he didn't know language yet, but he could convey feelings. And right now, he was feeling hunger.

  I reached into my satchel and pulled out some jerky. I always made sure to have some and some dried fruit on hand. Now that I wasn't completely poor, I also made sure to have some healing and mana potions in my bag as well. I had used a couple of the healing potions but didn't see me needing the mana ones any time soon.

  Drogin sniffed the jerky happily before snapping it out of my fingers. Pleased I took a deep breath and started the long walk back to Bellana. But this time I wasn't walking alone.

  It was when we were finally, nearly, home when I realized something was wrong. I could hear shouting off to the left of the road up a head just aways. I couldn't pick out the words, but they were angry shouts and what sounded like jeering too. Drogin growled on my shoulder, his little claws poking into my skin. There was trouble up ahead.

  "Easy." I told my new partner. He was untested and the last thing I wanted was for him to get hurt mere hours after getting him. "Don't do anything unless I tell you. Let's just see what's going on first."

  I slowly made my way forward. It was too wide open to truly hide but there were a few rolls of grass near the side of the road, and I decided to use those as cover. I crouched down behind the scratchy, drying grass and peeked around the side. It was still hard to see as it appeared that who ever was making the racket was a bit of a ways into the wheat fields.

  Wait, was that even wheat? I wasn't a farmer, but I didn't think wheat grew in early spring, did it? Whatever the crop was it was tall and golden brown. It looked like wheat.

  I could see it moving just a small way into the field. There was a yelp of pain and mixed laughter of a group of men.

  "Anything good?" I heard one ask, gruff and annoyed.

  "Nah, nuh un'liss we be able ter sell books..." snickered another man, his words so heavily accented that it was hard to pick them out.

  "The heck you doin' out ere' wit a bunch'a books Sticks?" Laughed a third man, swiftly followed by a slight thump and another yelp of pain. Drogin growled low on my shoulder. "Gunna' teach all dem street rats 'ow ter read."

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  "Sounds like this bunch needs to learn how to read..." I whispered in irritation to my little dragon friend. As if agreeing with me he puffed out a small breath. "Alright, the grass is long so I'm getting closer. Remember, stay put." Another puff and I took that as assent.

  I crept forward lightly. I was always a good sneak, even in my old life. You had to be, to be an adequate thief of any measure. I had no idea if my stealth stat currently was a reflection of my former life, or if demons were just a naturally sneaky bunch. Either way I was confident that I could get close without getting caught. The stiff stocks parted easily for me, and I didn't have to travel far to find the location of the altercation. There appeared to be about ten rather nasty looking men, all human from what I could see immediately, and all smelling of unwashed bodies and filth. They were dressed in a wide assortment of leather and steal plate armor. I couldn't see who they were harassing as they all appeared to be blocking my view. It was clear that the person was on the ground however, given the other men were all looking down.

  They had flattened out an area in the wheat, ruining some poor farmers' crop. I saw loose papers on the ground, an open satchel with a ripped shoulder strap, and one of the men held a blue leather book by the cover, the pages fluttering in a light breeze.

  "Look, I don't want any trouble guys." Said a quavering voice beyond the maze of legs before me. "I don't have anything of value on me alright. If I did, I would have just handed it to you..."

  Ouch. This was getting pathetic. Poor sop. These men would have his skin as a rug if he kept up the whimpering.

  It wasn't a stretch to say that these brutes were some of the bandits that were hanging around these parts. That or, suddenly, the roads outside Bellana were teaming with ruffians. I didn't want to get messed up with these fools, but I couldn't just let the guy they had on the ground be turned into a pin cushion.

  "No? Then what are you doing out here all alone then, Sicks?" Asked the first man I had heard. Maybe he was the only one who learned how to speak properly? I saw that he was on the far side of the group with beefy arms crossed over a plate chest piece. I couldn't see his face; another heavily muscled arm blocked my view at this lower angle. "Or, do scrawny little men wander around out here all the time?"

  The surrounding men laughed and the man on the ground groaned. "I was out here on my own business. If you let me go free, I will cause you no trouble."

  "Trouble?" Said the man I was assuming oversaw this little group. "But you have already caused us trouble. How will you compensate us?"

  "Look-"Said the bandits' victim in a stern voice. "I am a member of the Red Ravens! Any action against me will have grave consequences for you and your men. Don't you understand that?"

  The whole group busted into loud laughter, and I cringed at the assault on my sensitive ears.

  "You?!" chortled a new voice. My eyes landed on an extremely fat man who was probably shorter than myself with a sweaty bald head. He was at an angle, but I could still make out the scar along his left cheek and the stubble on his chin. "You ain't nothn' but a sick, Sticks. What Royal Squadron would have a runty lil' thing like you?"

  "Well, he does have the cape Zales. We best stay on our toes." Snorted Lead Bandit.

  "Eye," Laughed the portly Zale's. "Prolly found it in the trash some place, he did. Poor Sticks be playing dress up."

  "I am a member of the Red Ravens!" Spat the man on the ground. "I am Zachariah Farset-" The man's sentence was cut off painfully as I watched Zales pull back his booted foot and kick forward. The air filled with the scent of blood and the sounds of a man in pain.

  Okay, enough was enough. Had it of been a fair fight I may have moved on. I wasn't one to step in for another's sake, simply just because. Sorry, but I'm sure I was made a demon for a reason. I really didn't even feel all that bad about it. But ten on one? And that one being a man these people referred to as 'Sticks'? Even I wasn't that morally corrupt as to stand by and let some little fellows get murdered buy ten full grown killers.

  "Oi!" I snapped, getting to my feet and stepping out of the crop into the small clearing. I felt Drogin tense on my shoulder, but he listened and did not move.

  Able to see the scene clearly now, I saw that the man on the ground was out matched. At least physically anyway. Magic could change the tide easily, but I had a feeling that if this man could attack with magic he would have. He was, maybe, a few inches taller than my self, with hardly any muscle mass to speak of. Mind you he was fully clothed and curled into a ball on the filthy ground, so I could be mistaken. Despite the dirt I could tell that he was dressed well in cotton and smooth leather. He was also, indeed, wearing a read short cape, but I had no way of knowing weather or not it was one of the capes said to be worn by the Red Ravens. I hadn't yet seen one since arriving in Bellana after all.

  The man had a baby smooth face, high cheek bones- one had a cut and was freely bleeding- and a messy mop of golden-brown curls. He attempted to lift himself up on one arm and winced. He did manage to open one eye and I saw he had the dreamy baby blues that all the girls back on Earth would have swooned over. I didn't know about him being a Red Raven, but he was, without a doubt, a nobleman. He may not have money on him now, but he did have money. Not good. If I had to bet, I would say these men would want to hold this guy for ransom.

  "What's this, what's this?" Crowed Boss Bandit. Able to see him properly now I could tell for sure that he was a big guy. Not as big as Commander Rice, but still a great deal bigger than me. I'm sure he thought that gave him an advantage too. Of course, this guy had no clue he was dealing with a demon. "A pretty little mouse has come out of the grass."

  The other men laughed and moved, reforming their semi-circle so that they faced me with the man, Zachariah, between us. He groaned and tried to get up again with out much luck. He wouldn't be much help. But I never thought he would be anyways.

  "Yes. Har har. Look at the little lady." I said, annoyed and rolling my eyes. "Look, let the little guy go and just beat it. I really don't want to kill you, and I really think that if you make me fight you I will. So, please, just beat it."

  I really didn't think they would listen. And listen, they did not. Abandoning the man of the ground, all ten men stepped forward with wide grins. Clearly confident in their own bad-ass manliness, they cracked knuckles and chuckled darkly. I supposed that men in every world were just this cliché on instinct. Sighing, I brought my hands up at the ready and waited. So much for not fighting the bandits...

  I heard the slide of mettle as a few of the men drew swords or daggers. "Don't bloody here too bad." Growled Boss Bandit. "Pretty little Beastmen still fetch a good price after all."

  It happened quickly from there. Seemingly from my blind spot a fist flew at me, but I heard the whistle of air and dodged easily enough, my body twisting away and my claws flying out, raking across someone's face. I heard a roar of pain as I skipped out of the way of a kick, then dodged another fist.

  I was pretty sure the man on the ground shouted something, but I couldn't catch it over the racket the other men were making so I ignored him. I couldn't afford to be distracted while so out numbered. Demon or not I was still pretty sure I could die to a well-placed sword thrust, even if the men's fists were not much of a threat.

  And so, I ducked and weaved and lashed out when I could. I felt my claws sink into flesh or glance off metal a few times, but I was also taking hits. A heavy punch to the gut stung like a bitch but at least I kept my feet. Then a sword grazed the back of my calf causing me to curse a blue streak all the while I slashed and elbowed my way through the bodies.

  The second I broke free I spun on my heel. "Drogin, now!" I shouted, sounding more like a snarling animal than not. A bright red circle appeared before my eyes, overlaying my view of several bloodied and shocked faces, as Drogin lifted his head and opened his small jaws. A short torrent of red flames erupted forth and sent four men screaming into the dry grass while the other six dove to the ground.

  I ducked down myself, sunk a fist into Zachariah's shirt and yanked the man to his feet. Without a back ward glance, I ran for the road. I hopped that Drogin, and I didn't just set the while field on fire. The last thing I needed was to be pegged an arsonist on top of everything.

  As soon as my feet hit the raised earth of the dirt road, I let the man go and he stumbled back, just barely keeping his feet. "Stay back." I warned him as I spun back to the field. Luckily it seemed that the field hadn't gone up in flames but there were a few tendrils of smoke. All ten bandits burst out after me. None of them looked uninjured, but all of them did look pissed.

  "You little bitch!" Snarled Zales, his pudgy belly ripped in several places. What could I say, it made for an easy target.

  "Forget it, just kill them both." Ground out the boss. Apparently, he had been one of the men Drogin had caught on fire as his head was smoking, and the hair was patchy and singed. I could smell the nauseating scent of burnt hair.

  "Shit." Zachariah swore behind me.

  Shit was right. I had hopped that Drogin's attack would have taken a couple of these men out but clearly, they were sturdier than I had given them credit for. I couldn't keep this up for long. Not while keeping my secret and keeping Zachariah safe.

  Suddenly, making matters worse I heard, "Flare Burst!", hollered out into the evening air and realized that at least one of these men knew magic.

  A ball of oily red flames came at me from the right, and I tried to jump out of the way. I avoided the brunt of the attack but being unaccustomed to having to keep an eye on others, I had left Zachariah unguarded. Three of the men advanced in on him.

  "Force!" Shouted the noblemen and two of the men were forced back about ten feet and knocked to the round by a pale grey magic circle. It was not a powerful attack and it still left one man charging at the pale noble who stumbled back in fright and lost his footing, a sword flying down toward his exposed neck.

  There was no helping it now. With an angry snarl of my own I ran past the men trying to circle me and recklessly plunged my claws into the exposed side of the bandit, my fist sinking in to the wrist. The men behind me thought that they had me off guard. They were mistaken. As I yanked my claws out of the first man my tail uncoiled itself from around my waist and flicked out behind me, swiping across the face of two men and tearing flesh from bones.

  Three men fell to the ground in a bloody mess. One had his guts spilling out, Zales was missing half his face, jaw grotesquely exposed and unmoving. The third man was rolling in the dirt with his hands cupping his face, screaming.

  I didn't wait and I did not show mercy. I had no hesitation when it was a matter of life and death. I refused to die.

  As my right hand circled around the throat of another man, my tail lashed out, the arrow headed bone plate punching clean through a man's chest, breast plate and all. As I pulled the tail out with some difficulty, I clenched my fist and tore out the throat in my hands. It was disturbingly easy. Two more men down.

  "Force!" I heard shouted again, but I couldn't afford to advert my gaze from the battle. I did briefly note someone stumbling in my peripheral vision. He may not have been strong but at least Zachariah was making himself useful.

  I pulled back my fist and punched another man in the jaw, my hand stinging, then spun and clawed across another mans face. Clawing people's eyes out was always effective growing up. Given that I had actual claws now, the damage was devastating. A roar from behind had me jerking but I wasn't fast enough to dodge the dagger Boss Bandit plunged into my arm. I screamed in pain but refused to back down. My tail wrapped around his neck and with barely a thought I sawed through, causing the skull to go flying, bouncing down the road in a way that would have been comical if it hadn't been so disturbing.

  Not allowing myself to be affected, my tail whipped about again causing more screams of pain. A snarling squawk and a slight jerk on my neck had me gasping at first. Afraid my Drogin had just met his end. But a male curse proved that it was Drogin who had sunk his fangs into someone else.

  "Behind you!" Zachariah shouted and then I heard him grunt.

  I spun on my heel once again and saw him fall to the dirt . A man with claw marks across his face stood over Zachariah, the man I had slashed moments ago I assumed. Without hesitation I reached out, wincing when I used my injured arm without thinking, grabbed the man and tossed him away from the downed man. Because of my punctured arm I couldn't throw the man as far as I had hopped but at least the Red Raven wasn't in immediate danger.

  Irritated and getting tired I decided to get this shit done with. Flicking out my best weapon, my tail, I waisted no time slicing through the tendons of two more men, plunging my claws into the neck of one and my tail barb into the chest of the other. Looking around I saw that there were eight people dead and disgusting around me. A quick glance and Drogin's angry growl showed that the last two thugs were high tailing it toward South Knoll.

  A better person would have let them run. Would have assumed they learned their lesson and turned a new leaf perhaps. I was not that naive. I was not a better person. Without further thought I shot after the men, catching up to them in heart beats. The first died to my fist as I landed an inhumanly strong punch to the back of his neck with my uninjured arm. I didn't even wince at the wet sound of his vertebrae shattering inside his flesh.

  The second man tripped and fell, scrabbling backwards with tear-streaked eyes. I advanced on him with purpose. He was sweaty and covered in dirt and gore, his snot mixing with blood on his pale filthy face.

  "Wai-wait!" He stammered, ands raised to ward me off. "I- I gots kids Lady! You- you wouldn't kill a man wif' ki-kids would'ya?"

  "Tch!" I said, glaring down at him. "Perhaps in your next life you will keep your future kids in mind when picking fights..."

  "N-no!"

  "A lesson for your future self..." I said reaching down and dragging a man three times my weight off the dirt and into the air, his feet dangling and kicking uselessly just a couple inches off the ground, I held him up one handed. "Don't fuck with demons." I said in and icy tone without feeling. The man screamed as I sliced my tail into his stomach twice in less than a second, followed by tossing his twitching body to the grown and twisting my murderous tail around his neck, cutting through vital arteries just to be sure he was dead.