Three days ago, during the late afternoon, Adrian and Winnie were weeding their home’s front yard when a contingent of knights approached them. Among them, two knights donned full plate armor of Mythril hue, which had a grey tint and contrasted with the gold-themed armor worn by the rest of the eight knights. The two knights donning Mythril hued full plate armor were Holy Knights, the highest-ranking knights in the Kingdom. Adrian and Winnie could sense animosity emanating from the knights.

  Adrian stood up as the knights drew near, shielding Winnie behind him with his body, and cautiously greeted them, "Good afternoon. How can I help you?"

  "Travis, take it easy on the kids." A Holy Knight in his late thirties with black skin and military-styled short green hair said in a low deadly voice as his abyssal Onyx eyes pierced the children. Despite the defensive words, his tone was everything but protective.

  "Ok, Daniel, I know, I know." Travis, a knight in his late forties, responded casually as he walked toward the children. His fair skin contrasted with Daniel's black, and his fleeting Emerald eyes only breezed through the children like the wind. Lastly, his well-combed blue hair parted in the middle was more stylish than Daniel's military-themed cut.

  The two Holy Knights could not contrast with each other any more than they already did.

  Adrian took Winnie's hand and stepped backward, pulling her closer to him. "What do you want?" he asked, trying to keep his voice from trembling.

  "Don't be afraid," Travis said as he swiftly handcuffed the children and attached a chain to their shackles. "We're just going to see your parents." He seemed very accustomed to handcuffing people. THe locking handcuffs clinked as if sealing their fate.

  For an instant, Adrian's eyes caught a hooded man in a black robe, perched on a tree behind the knights. The tree’s leaves were dense and the sun was behind the man, making him difficult to notice. However, Adrian quickly forgot about it, preoccupied with the knights.

  "Where are your parents?" Travis asked, his tone softer than Daniel, holding the chain to their handcuffs.

  "That way, in the farm." Adrian lifted his hands trying to point to the eastern path, but the handcuffs were heavy.

  "Go, lead the way." Travis ordered.

  Adrian then began to walk toward the farm where his parents were. Winnie followed behind him.

  Bob and Tiffany were toiling in the farm under the unforgiving afternoon sun. They saw the knights walking toward them with their handcuffed children and immediately ran toward the knights.

  "Travis? What’s going on?" Tiffany anxiously asked.

  "You are under arrest for being demon sympathizers. Julie, handcuff them." Travis declared coldly.

  "Yes, Your Holiness." Julie replied with her youthful high pitched voice very distinct from the older Holy Knights. Her innocent and disciplined Sapphire eyes, well-combed long straight blue hair, and baby-like fair skin distinguished her from the rest of the golden knights, who were apparently older and more battle-worn as can be seen from their gazes and postures.

  "Wait!" Bob shouted, his voice filled with anxiety.

  "Shhhh. My hand might slip if you do anything stupid. If you have anything to say, say it later." Travis said as he raised the chain connected to the children’s handcuffs.

  "Hey take it easy, Travis." Daniel repeated. "By the way, you know them?"

  "Previous acquaintances." Travis answered with a poker face. "I bet they put me in this mission because of it."

  Daniel stared at Travis for a moment, who did not reveal any emotion. Then, Daniel looked away, deciding not to say anything else.

  The couple let Julie handcuff them.

  "I request to be judged under the Goddess's observation." Tiffany said in a clear, firm voice.

  "Let’s head to the town hall first. Then, we’ll talk." Daniel, the leader of the group, brushed her off and started walking.

  At the town hall, they were escorted into the court almost immediately. The judge arrived shortly after. All of the ten knights who escorted them were also present, sitting in the guest section. After making oaths to tell the truth, the session began.

  "I have read the evidence you gave me, Holy Knight Travis. The session may commence." said the Judge.

  "I request to be judged under the observation of the Goddess." Tiffany interrupted desperately.

  "Request denied. Who do you think you are?" the judge responded with impatience and some hint of anger. "Don't forget that you are no longer a noble. Say another word without permission, and there will be consequences."

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  "Let’s start questioning with the children first." Travis said in a business tone.

  "Please proceed." The Judge did not object.

  "Adrian, is your family sympathizing with demons?" Travis asked.

  "No, we are not." Adrian answered with his trembling voice. Everyone could tell the child was scared.

  "Have you ever seen or talked with anyone you suspect to be demons?" Travis asked again.

  "No." Adrian answered.

  "Really, no one? If you have seen anyone that was suspicious, please tell us. It will help us a lot in our investigation. We need to defeat the demon cult who stands against the Goddess Liliana." Travis switched into a friendly tone and smiled.

  "Um… " Adrian gazed upward as he remembered the hooded figure perched in the tree a moment ago. "Ah, yes, th…" Suddenly, he could not talk anymore. Everyone noticed that Travis was using his Divine Power to stop Adrian from talking. He was not even subtle about it. However, no one said a word.

  "There you go. Please, record this testimony." Travis switched back into his serious tone and said to the secretary.

  "It is hereby noted that this family has acknowledged ties to demonic entities." said the court secretary.

  The law was apparently rather unclear about what a tie was and the knights were taking advantage of that, interpreting the law as they pleased.

  "Great." Travis said.

  "May I have a word?" Bob asked tentatively.

  "Objection! Demons always lie." Travis said.

  The judge nodded. "Objection sustained."

  "Please wait!" Bob tried to say something else, but the guard next to him gave him a good punch in his stomach. Adrian and Winnie were frightened and Tiffany attempted to console them.

  "Take them to the execution ground and burn them alive at the stakes." The judge said. Despite the severity of the sentence, he said it calmly and without emotion, as if ordering lunch from a waiter.

  "Your Honor. May I have a word?" Travis immediately said.

  "Yes, Your Holiness." The judge replied.

  "Shall we give the family some time to repent before they are sent to the Goddess?" Travis humbly requested. "Could we postpone the execution to tomorrow?"

  "Request granted. Take them to the prison. They will be executed first thing tomorrow morning." The judge told the guards.

  On the side, Julie said in a quiet voice so that she wouldn’t disrupt the court. "May I ask a question, sir?" Julie asked the Holy Knight sitting next to her in the guest seats.

  "Yes?" Daniel responded in a low tone, seemingly impatient.

  "Why was this case so hasty unlike the others? Perhaps we could investigate a little bit more?" Julie asked with concern.

  "We don’t have time. To kill one demon, we must be willing to kill ten innocent people; and we’re doing this to save hundreds or even thousands of people." Daniel brushed her off without explaining.

  Adrian heard the conversation as he was escorted from the court.

  The family soon arrived at a prison cell under the town hall. The guard who led the family there left as soon as he locked the prison door. This was a town hall of a small village and the prison was not occupied by any other inmates.

  "It is all my fault. Sorry Mom. Sorry Winnie." Adrian started crying.

  "No, it is not." Tiffany tried to comfort Adrian but she couldn't cover up the nervousness and trembling in her own voice. "They would have convicted us no matter what. You simply shortened the trial."

  "I am glad you know." With a slight hint of sadness that only a close friend or a family member could tell, Travis said to Tiffany as he entered the prison dungeon.

  "Travis." Tiffany said with animosity.

  "You may call me Your Holiness now." Travis tried to change the subject.

  "Travis." Bob said, with the same animosity.

  "Don’t you want to congratulate me for ranking up?" Travis shrugged.

  "Ah, you ranked up. Congratulations. Your Holiness." Bob said, his tone heavy with sarcasm.

  "Thank you. It is the least I can do to delay your execution for one more night" Travis said with a hint of regret in his voice. "Bob? I apologize for any offense or hard feelings, but I feel it’s important to separate my personal and professional life. I had to do my job as a Holy Knight. But, I have come to see you as a friend."

  "Oh, and Tiffany. Are there any messages you’d like me to pass on?" Travis continued.

  Tiffany wanted to say something. However, after looking at Adrian and Winnie for a brief second, she gulped and stayed silent.

  "I will let Joseph know." Travis softly said after looking at the children.

  "Well, I have a mission to attend to. I hope you can at least enjoy your meal here. I have requested the cook to prepare your favorite dishes for dinner, Tiffany," Travis said. "May Goddess Liliana welcome you to Heaven."

  Travis then walked to the guard at the end of the corridor. "Please deliver the dinner and the dessert properly. Treat them well." Adrian saw Travis giving something to the guard, most likely money.

  "As you command, Your Holiness, it will be done!" The guard, who was lazily sitting on his chair, immediately stood up straight and saluted after checking what he was given. He seemed very thankful.

  Travis looked back at the family and lowered his head before walking out.

  "I am sorry, this is my fault." Adrian apologized as his tears began to flow again. Winnie also started crying. Tiffany rushed to comfort them.

  "No, it is not your fault, Adrian." Tiffany said as she looked into Adrian’s eyes. "The knights would have convicted us no matter what. So, stop saying it is your fault. Do you understand?"

  Adrian calmed down after his mother talked in such a serious tone. "Yes, Mom." He answered.

  Bob, seeing his children crying, began to search the prison cell, examining each brick and metal bar meticulously, in search of an escape route.

  Adrian could hear Daniel outside the steel-barred window. "Hurry up!" Daniel said with dissatisfaction.

  "Sorry, let’s go." Travis answered as Adrian heard the group of knights galloped away.

  "Ok, let us play Hot Hands!" Tiffany tried to distract the children with games.

  After playing for about an hour, dinner was ready. The prison guard had to use a service cart to bring everything. There were mac and cheese, rotisserie chicken, Hawaiian pizza with stuffed crust, clam chowder, baked ribs, steaks, etc. However, one could notice that the pizza was missing a few slices and the chicken was missing one of its legs, among other things.

  "Be thankful. This is from His Holiness." The guard told the family without any hint of politeness. However, he still provided the family with enough plates, utensils and napkins. Bob and Tiffany wondered how much Travis needed to pay to make him do all this.

  After dinner, the guard then served them tiramisu, cheese cake and sliced fruits. Again, the cakes were missing a few slices. Evidently, the guard had been helping himself, but it did not matter because of the abundance.

  Finally, the guard gave the family some blankets before he left for the night and said, "Good night, and don't try to bother me," he said, looking like he would sleep after the satisfying dinner, despite being on duty.