Delphine and Simon leave their room again, and they walk back to the cathedral to meet up with Edward. The afternoon has come and twice as many people were walking around in the city and living out their daily lives. Delphine made sure that her cloak hides her face just in case some unspecified stranger tells everyone else who she truly is. When Delphine walks before Edward, she kneels down before him and Simon stood and watched her.
"Delphine, I don't know if you've heard the news, but two guards were killed last night. It happened inside the cathedral, and it occurs very often," Edward said.
"Did both of them have their insides eaten?" Delphine asked.
"Yes. There are more victims every day. This week alone there have been five," he answered. Since she knew quite a lot about demon-slaying, Delphine suspected that this particular demon was a very hungry one.
"It appears to have a voracious appetite," she said.
"Voracious appetite?" Edward asked.
Then Delphine answered and said to him, "When a demon goes on for too long without food and water, it can go on a massive killing spree on anything and anyone. But the longer a monster lives, the more its appetite grows. They get more cunning and stronger. I call them 'Voracious eaters.' I hate to break it to you, but it's really rare that I encounter these types of demons. It's not every night that I see a demon who starves and its mind is corrupt because it needs something to eat."
Edward became utterly shocked by the things she said, and she looks up at him to make sure he understands everything. Simon began to be a bit worried about the other things that Delphine is about to say to the old priest.
"Are you... sure that we're going to be alright? Are you quite certain that you will face this deadly beast?" Edward asked.
"I need facts. The names of everyone who came and went from the cathedral last night," Delphine said.
"I'm not so sure, nobody could come or go. As you can see, the entire city guard is under watch at night every single day. Their only goal is to make sure that neither they or anyone else gets caught and eaten alive," he said.
Those two guards from yesterday showed how hard it is to sneak in and out unnoticed. I have to assume it's somebody on the inside. She thought.
"In that case, I'd like to know who was here last night," Delphine said.
"Of course," Edward said. He had a good memory of the priests who were in the cathedral and what they have been doing.
Then he said to her, "Bishop Chandron was in the sanctuary. He was been with the cathedral the longest, and holds a special place in our ranks. Father Rodo is usually at his side. He, too, has been in Gisbourne for a long time and is an aide to bishop Chandron. Also in the sanctuary were the monks Tony and Raj. The others were father Sam, father Mozgus, father Anderson, and Ralph and Andrew are the monks.
"That's ten people altogether. The knights are always on the lookout. They are everywhere and most of them guide the sanctuary entrance. Captain Harry makes sure that all the knights know exactly what they're doing."
"Good. I advise you to be careful around those people," Delphine said. Then, she stands up and begins to turn around and go back to her hotel room with Simon.
"But, how can any of them go against me... or you? Those are the only people I trust," Edward said.
"Abandon your notions. A demon in disguise can fool even family members," Delphine said. Then, she starts walking out of the sanctuary, and Simon follows her, and Edward starts to shiver after everything she said.
Then, Delphine thought to herself, I still don't understand why it stays in the cathedral. What's in this place that this creature wants from these priests? It could roam around in the city at any time. How can it be so confident that it won't be found out? That's the question. I feel like I've forgotten something vital.
A few hours later, Delphine and Simon were having dinner as the sun was setting down and the people were returning to their houses. The people were told to stay home because of the powerful demon lurking somewhere inside the cathedral. As they were eating, Simon began to see something different in Delphine's eyes, but he couldn't think of anything to say. It was very hard for him to say anything to her that might be able to comfort her. Simon continued to be curious about anything that Delphine does and why she is doing it, otherwise it would not matter.
For some strange reason, it was pretty difficult for him to talk it through with Delphine, so it was easier for him to slap on a fake smile in front of her. Then, Delphine looks up and sees that Simon was staring at her, and he did not say a single word about it. She was insisting that something was wrong with him, but he could not share it with her.
"What is it, Simon?" Delphine asked.
"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking about something," Simon answered.
"You're giving me some pretty weird vibes here. You look like you've seen something that you shouldn't be seeing," she said.
"Where on earth would you get that idea?"
"Well, we've been here since yesterday. For pretty much the entire day, you've been looking at me. You stare as if you want something from me. You've been having the look of somebody who asked a difficult question and wants an expert to answer you. I don't know if you need something from me or you don't, but I can't really offer you anything if I don't have a clear response."
"Hold on, it's not like that. I don't really need anything at the moment, well... not now anyway."
"If not now, when? I think you should already know that you're with me. Since I'm here to defend and protect you, you can ask me anything that's in your mind. I won't hesitate to give you an answer. We are friends, aren't we?"
"Well, yes. I was just curious about what we were going to do after you've finished dealing with that demon. What's next for us?"
"Excellent question. First, I would like to take a bath here... and I think you need one as well. Secondly, I would have to get my payment from those priests for killing that immense creature. After that, we head for the northern mountains. We go there and do what we've been doing for the past couple of days. It's quite simple, really."
"Delphine, is it true what that man said about you? Is it true that you are rejected by many people? Do you really believe anything that man told you?"
As he asked her this, Delphine shuttered and became speechless, and she looked down at herself for a brief moment. Simon didn't have a clue on what she might say to him; she might as well tell him not to trust anyone who isn't reliable.
"Maybe I do, maybe I don't. I'm not one to agree on many things people say about me. I just ignore pretty much everyone around me... except for you," Delphine said.
"Oh, well that's perfectly fine. But, why not tell him that he's wrong?" Simon asked.
"I can't just simply kill someone because of some lie they make. If I told him everything, he would make the situation much worse. Otherwise, I am what these people say I am," she said.
"How long do you think it will take for you to defeat that creature? How much of a challenge will you endure while fighting it?"
"I'm never the one who decides how hard or challenging a demon is. It depends on what kind of power they carry. It depends on how far they will go in trying to put me down. Of course, it would all be for nothing if I get killed by the demon. You would be all by yourself and think about how many accomplishments in the future you would lose. I just continue fighting the creature until they get slow, lose their balance, and lose any chance of trying to fight back."
"You sure seem to know a lot about these things."
"I know. Now if there is nothing left for you to say or ask me, I shall be on my way. I can't linger here any longer. If you want the rest of my food, you can have it."
Then, Delphine gets herself ready and grabs her greatsword, and she walks to the window and opens it. She was determined to end this sickening nightmare that threatened the people of the holy city and needed to be at other places.
"Good luck, Delphine," Simon said. Then, she turns her head to Simon and still saw the worried eyes he had earlier in the day.
Delphine knew that he had so much concern for her despite him being less stronger than her, and she refused to let him down. She nods her head and leaps outside from the window, and she lands onto the roof of another building as Simon watches her from the inn.