Imha and Omi left with nearly eighty percent of the army she had housed in this castle. I left with them, but then when she was too busy and focused on her tasks, I teleported back.

I called all the demons left in the castle to the throne room and told them to wait for me as I had important information to deliver. Meanwhile, I went to the gates and unlocked them, undoing the magic Imha and Omi had conjured to secure the estate.

In the distance, I saw a red spot against the dark top of a hill. The signal that they were here.

A feeling of unease settled in my stomach as I walked back into the villa’s main building. I wasn’t nervous or thinking this over—I just wanted to get this done so we could move on.

In the throne room, the demons grew restless. They looked side to side, growled at each other, as if I didn’t give some important order soon, they would become too bored and start ripping each other’s throats out.

Which was all right by me.

A few tense minutes passed.

We’re here, Victor said in my mind. In position.

About time, I answered.

“All right, all right,” I said out loud. The demons quieted down and turned to me. “I have some important news to deliver to you.”

On cue my allies dropped the veil over their auras and burst through the doors and windows of the throne room—Nadine, Levi, Ceris, Izaera, Zelen, Alice, Ronen, Maho, Sol, and many other deities. They fell on the demons and didn’t give them a chance to fight back.

With pure rage in her eyes, Ceris came at me, but Levi stepped in her way. “He’s on our side,” he said out loud, so everyone could hear him.

Her jaw fell open and her eyes widened. “W-what?”

Behind them, everyone else, but Nadine, faltered. They engaged the demons, but their attention was on us.

“I’ll explain later,” Levi said. “Now we have a fight to win.” He turned to the demons and, after staring at me for another few seconds, Ceris shook off her shock and commenced fighting the demons.

I fought too, but most of my attention was on Nadine, looking super-hot in her repaired uniform and a sword in her hand. She cut through the demons like water until she was fighting by my side.

I couldn’t help but smile. “Hi, darling,” I said, throwing a black bolt at the chest of a demon. The bolt exploded on its chest. The demon crumbled into ashes soon after.

“Hi,” Nadine said, sounding a little timid. She knelt to avoid a claw and brought her sword up, slashing the demon’s gut. It fell on the floor, in a pool of gooey blood, and she stood up, smiling at me.

By the Everlast, I wanted to sweep her in my arms and kiss her senseless.

But a demon lunged at me and I had to kiss it instead.

Not even ten minutes after it started, this battle was over.

Nadine turned to me and I turned to her, both of us already reaching for the other. In two seconds, my arms were around her waist and my mouth on hers.

“Gods, I missed you,” I said, before sealing my lips on hers again and kissing her like she deserved it. Nadine’s body melted into mine. Gods, I loved the feel of her, the scent of her, the taste of her. I loved all of her.

Someone cleared his or her throat. Nadine and I broke apart—though my arm was still around her waist and nobody would be able to get it off there—to see the rest of gang approaching us.

“That was easy,” Levi said, serious.

“So,” Ceris started, sounding wary, “you were on our side the entire time?”

“Yup,” I said.

Maho looked from Levi to me. “Why all this mystery? Why tell us we were going to Imha’s training camp instead of here, and why not tell us about Mitrus working for us?”

“Yeah,” Sol said, a deep frown between his brows. “I do not take being lied to lightly.”

“That was quite a surprise,” Ronen said, sounding amused.

Levi stood tall. “Mitrus was working with us,” Levi corrected Maho before glancing at me, a meaning hidden under his brief stare. “Let’s just say it was necessary.”

The uneasiness hung around our group and I thought it wouldn’t wear off easily.

I scanned around. The throne room looked like a slaughterhouse. Our side didn’t have any deaths, but I could see a few deities bleeding—nothing worrying. Most of the demons were dead, and about two dozen were gathered in the center of the room, being watched by Ceris and other deities and held by magic.

Ceris nodded toward us and we nodded back. Then she teleported out, taking the demons with her. The plan was to take survivors to the island in Croatia, where Ceris had worked her magic and said no one, no demon, no deity could get out without her to undo her spell.

While Ceris was out, Nadine walked around the room, using her new and improved healing abilities on the deities with the worst wounds.

Ten minutes later, Ceris was back with us. “We should keep moving,” she said.

“Where’s the portal?” Levi asked me.

“Through here.” I took Nadine’s hand in mine and led them to the back of the castle, where a curved shallow pool complemented the garden.

When we approached the pool, our symbols appeared as bright lights in the water’s surface. One by one, we walked into the pool, using our powers to walk on the surface, and stepped on our symbols.

Levi, Ceris, Izaera, Maho, Ronen, Sol, and I extended our hands in front of us and our scepters appeared in our hands. We bumped the scepters three times on strategic places of our symbols, and a new light appeared in the center of our symbols, forming a big, united circle. Bright light shone through it until it reached the skies.

The portal was open.

They all stepped into the light. I turned to Nadine and beckoned her to come with me. Looking a little wary, she walked to me, caught my hand, and we marched through the portal together.