Piper didn’t know how long she was out, but as she began to regain consciousness, she was almost overwhelmed by waves of searing agony. Pain worse than any she’d ever experienced in the hospital washed over her, and she screamed until her throat was raw.

  Only then did she hear Ethel's soothing voice. The woman murmured comforting words while gently rubbing her arm. She felt a cup being pressed against her lips, and she drank deeply. Then she sank back down into the beckoning darkness.

  When she awoke again, the pain had faded slightly. Cracking open one crusted eye, she found herself looking up at the roof of the longhouse. She turned her head to the side, and she saw Ethel sitting beside her on a chair. The woman was dipping a rag into a bowl before gently washing her legs.

  The events of the morning came rushing back, and her first thought was of Ophelia. Was her friend alright? She tried to struggle into a sitting position, but Ethel pushed her back down.

  “Shhhh,” Ethel said. “Everything is alright. Let me finish tending to your wounds before you move.”

  “Where’s… Ophelia” Piper mumbled, her parched throat barely allowing her to speak. “Is she alright?”

  Ethel nodded, adding another cool cloth to Piper’s foot. “She’s fine. Her burns weren’t nearly as severe as yours. Infernus only knows how you carried her back here with your injuries. I’d almost call it a miracle.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Piper said, her voice breaking. “I told her it was a bad idea. I… tried to stop her. This is all my fault. Please don’t make me leave. I really don’t want to go.” She felt hot tears pouring down her face, and she reached up to scrub them away.

  “No one is going to make you leave,” Ethel said in a reassuring tone. “In fact, we owe you a great debt for saving our daughter from the ooze. She told us everything that had happened. It was very brave of you to save her the way you did.”

  “You’re not going to make me leave?”

  Ethel shook her head, a slight smile on her face.

  Piper collapsed back onto the table, her anxiety disappearing like mist under a hot morning sun. At least until her thoughts turned to the wounds from the ooze. For the first time, she forced herself to look down at her legs. The sight that greeted her turned her stomach.

  Her skin had been burned away, and on the tops of her feet, she could see the white of bone. What little flesh remained around her toes had turned completely black. But at least the places where she’d been burned on her hands and forearm didn’t look too bad. They’d probably scar, but she was used to scars from all her surgeries.

  Ethel placed a comforting hand on Piper’s arm. “If we had the silver, we’d send for a healer for you.” She took a deep breath, her eyes glistening. “We’ve sent for a barber. Most likely, he’ll have to take your legs…” She trailed off at the end, looking despondent. “I’m so sorry my daughter has caused so much suffering for you. If I could do anything to help, I would.”

  I guess some things never change, Piper thought to herself bitterly. Once again, I’ll be crippled.

  It almost felt like a cruel joke, giving her the ability to walk again and then snatching it away. As soon as that thought appeared, she ruthlessly pushed it down. She had to stay positive. Ethel had just confirmed that healers existed in this world. It was just a matter of finding a way to afford one. Maybe she could sell off her aetherstone to pay for one.

  As long as she was alive, there was still hope.

  “…of course you can stay in the longhouse while you heal,” Ethel continued. Apparently, she’d kept talking while Piper had been lost in thought. If something good had come from this, at least she’d been upgraded from living in the barn to living here. That was something positive.

  The door to the outside banged open, and Ophelia bounded into the room. Half of her face was bandaged up, but otherwise, she looked none the worse for wear. “Is the sleepyhead finally awake?”

  Ethel rounded on her daughter, a furious look on her face. “You apologize for your reckless behavior immediately! Look at what your insane quest to become a warrior has done to Piper. She may lose her legs because of your rash actions. I’ve never been more ashamed to call you my daughter.”

  Ophelia flinched visibly at her mother’s words. “I’m sure she’ll heal up no problem. Don’t all the demons in stories have amazing healing abilities?”

  Piper perked up at her friend’s words. As a demon, or at least someone who looked like one, would she be able to heal herself? She lifted her head and stared down at her feet. As she did, she willed them to heal. After a minute, nothing had happened. With a defeated sigh, she dropped her head back down.

  “I don’t think I have any amazing demon powers.”

  “Are you sure?” Ophelia squinted as she looked at Piper’s feet. “Maybe if I poke you with a stick—” She didn’t complete her sentence as her mother whacked her with a spoon that had seemingly appeared from nowhere.

  “Out!” Ethel shouted, pointing at the door. “I don’t want to see you again until you’re done with all of yours and Piper’s chores.”

  Ophelia slunk out of the longhouse, like a dog with its tail between its legs. She shut the door quietly behind her, another rare occurrence. She must really feel bad about what had happened.

  Ethel let out a sigh. “Once again, I must apologize for my daughter. I’m going to let your burns breathe while I start dinner. Afterwards, I’ll boil some new bandages. With how many I’ve put on you, we’re rapidly running out of linen to use.”

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  “Wait.” Piper’s brow rose. “How long have I been out?”

  “You’ve been in and out of consciousness for the last three days.”

  “Three days!” Piper exclaimed, shifting slightly on the wooden bench. As she did, a jolt of pain assailed her, and the edges of her vision frayed. After a few seconds, the throbbing faded slightly, allowing her to think straight again.

  If she had been out for days, then it explained why Ophelia was back to her old self. Her friend had already had a few days to recover. She hoped the ooze hadn’t left too much of a scar on her friend’s face.

  Piper laid back on the bench as Ethel puttered around the kitchen, getting everything ready for dinner. She watched as the petite woman sliced up some vegetables and then cut a slab of pork meat into cubes. The food was dumped into the pot over the fire, and soon a delicious aroma was wafting through the longhouse.

  Shifting slightly, Piper rolled onto her side to give her tail some freedom as she watched Ethel cook. Her tail ached from lying on it for days. As she thought about her tail, she brought it around to examine the tip. Even though it had plunged into the ooze, there wasn’t any sign of burns on it. Had the armored plates on it somehow protected it?

  At least my tail is still in one piece, she thought to herself. Now if only I had the demonic healing powers that Ophelia talked about.

  Once again, she focused her thoughts on healing herself. Maybe she could figure out a way to activate her healing powers. Was it her demonic blood or some sort of magic that was supposed to heal her? After a few attempts, she almost felt something click inside of her as she concentrated on her blood.

  A moment after feeling the click, a terrible burning sensation spread through her feet. She let out a gasp of pain, curling forward as it sharpened until it felt like hundreds of bees were stinging her toes. When she glanced down, her skin glowed at the edges like magma. What was going on now?

  “Piper!” Ethel cried out, dropping a wooden bowl with a clatter. She raced over to Piper’s side and took her hand. When the woman’s eyes turned toward the glowing feet, her eyes almost became round. Sprinting back to the kitchen, she grabbed a bucket of water and hurried back to Piper’s side. Then she dumped the water onto the smouldering feet.

  As the liquid struck the skin, it evaporated, sending a jet of steam into the air. The pain only worsened as Piper’s legs began to glow like they were made of lava. She felt something shifting, and when she looked down, she watched her skin reform over her bones.

  Piper managed to raise a hand to stop Ethel from throwing a second bucket of water and watched in awe as her wounds healed. A short while later, the glow had faded, and her legs looked good as new. Her arms and hands had also healed, though she hadn’t felt any discomfort from them. In fact, she hadn’t noticed them healing at all.

  Was this a skill that only worked when she was conscious? Or had her thoughts somehow activated this ability?

  I think it had something to do with my blood.

  Lifting her feet, she winced at seeing the scorch marks beneath them on the bench. She would have to help Alfred repair it later.

  “How did you heal yourself?” Ethel sputtered.

  Piper shrugged as she sat up. Then she tentatively bent over to touch the top of her foot, almost expecting it to be a mirage. But her fingers only touched unbroken skin. Whatever had happened had healed her completely.

  “Can you heal my daughter?”

  “I… don’t know?”

  Ethel raced out of the longhouse, and a moment later returned with Ophelia. The young girl scowled as she was led over to Piper.

  “I don’t want to be healed, Mom,” Ophelia said. “All great heroes have scars. I’ll look badass with a burned face.”

  “Language,” Ethel said sternly. “And I want to let Piper try to heal you.” She steered her daughter in front of Piper and looked at her expectantly.

  She wasn’t sure what to do, so she placed both hands on her friend’s arm. She thought about healing her. Nothing happened. She focused her thoughts, concentrating on her demonic blood this time. Still, nothing happened.

  After a few minutes had passed, Piper shrugged sheepishly. “I think it only works on me.”

  Ethel sighed. “I expected as much, but I had to try. I suppose the scar will remind her of her folly for the rest of her life. Mind you, it will make it more difficult to find her a husband—”

  “I told you,” Ophelia interrupted. “I don’t want a husband.”

  “You’re getting married, and that’s that.”

  “Not if I become an adventurer.”

  Ethel crossed her arms. “Do you honestly think you can become an adventurer when a simple slime defeated you?”

  “I wasn’t defeated,” Ophelia said. “I had the ooze right where I wanted it.”

  “Uh huh…”

  As Ophelia and her mother traded words, Piper hesitantly rose to her feet. She’d feared she was going to lose the ability to walk again, but thankfully that wasn't the case. She never wanted to end up paralyzed again. When her awakening came, she needed to choose a powerful class to keep her safe—regardless of what the blood lords said.

  With one final exchange with her mother, Ophelia stomped out of the longhouse, leaving Piper alone with Ethel. She watched the blond-haired woman return to cooking dinner for a few minutes before speaking. “Didn’t you say something about helping me choose a class before… you know, everything?”

  “Are you sure you want to talk about it right now?” Ethel adjusted her apron. “You’ve been through a lot in the last few days.”

  “I really want to learn more about this world,” she said earnestly. “Now more than ever.”

  “I suppose that’s fair.”

  Ethel spent the next few minutes adding more meat and vegetables to the simmering stew and then placed the kneaded dough on the flat rocks next to the fire. Once the woman was done, she came to sit next to Piper. As Ethel settled down, her eyes kept flickering down to the freshly healed feet.

  Piper tried to ignore the woman’s staring but subconsciously drew her feet beneath her on the bench. For the first time since she’d arrived, she truly felt inhuman. Up until now, she’d thought she only looked like a demon, but there was obviously more to it than that.

  “So, what class should I choose when my awakening comes?”

  “That’s what I was hoping to talk to you about,” Ethel said. “My sister in the village chose minor illusionist for her second class. She only does little spells, like making brides prettier for their wedding nights, or hiding an annoying blemish when someone is out in public.” She let out a sigh. “I may need to engage her services for my daughter.”

  Ethel paused for a minute before continuing. “No matter. What I was going to say is I think you should spend some time with her. She might give you the deeds you require to choose an illusionist class at your awakening. And I trust my sister to keep your secret safe. Especially after she learns about what you did for Ophelia. If you can learn how to cast illusions on yourself, then you should be able to make yourself look human again.”

  Piper nodded along with Ethel’s words. An illusionist class would solve nearly all of her problems. But after facing the ooze, she also wanted a class that could protect herself with. Could an illusionist do that?

  Regardless, the idea of casting real magic thrilled her to bits.

  “When can I meet your sister?” Piper asked excitedly.

  “I’m traveling into town tomorrow,” Ethel replied. “I’ll talk to her then. If she agrees, which I don’t see why she wouldn’t, then I’ll have her come out once a week to show you the basics.”

  Leaning forward, she thought about choosing a class in the near future. She wasn’t sure if she was going to choose an illusionist class when she awakened, but she was seriously considering it.

  Hopefully, Ophelia wouldn’t get her eaten by dragons before then. Which, after the events with the ooze, seemed like a very real possibility.