Nightfall quietly descended.

During this time that was supposed to be busy, old Abel did nothing all day for a rare moment, just sitting silently at home, as if winter hadn't ended, waiting for a spring that seemed never to come.

Thinking it over, things weren't that bad.

He convinced himself, watching his children fall asleep one by one, including his wife who had cried enough, until the entire household was quiet.

Time slipped by second by second, unable to sleep, he eventually crawled out of bed, rubbing his frozen fingers, he stepped outside to the field he had faced since birth, wandering aimlessly, not knowing what to do, nor where to go.

At this moment, a sound came from the distant farmhouse. He walked over instinctively, forgetting to bring his pitchfork and failing to wake the sleeping neighbors.

The wooden door creaked open.

No surprises, three small demons were lying on the beet bucket, feasting with loud munching sounds.

"Oh oh oh!"

"This tastes really good!"

"Woo woo woo, stolen things indeed taste sweeter!"

"Eek! Someone's coming?!"

The commotion at the door startled the three little demons, who hastily dropped the beets in their hands and flew up to the rafters.

Old Abel glanced at the scattered vegetable leaves and roots all over the floor, then looked up at the little demons on the rafters.

They locked eyes, surprised at each other, momentarily silent for a long time.

Initially, the three little demons were nervous, but seeing the human remained still and hear no footsteps from others outside, they pretended to bare their teeth and show their bean-sized fists, trying to force him to step aside from the door.

"Hey! Old man, want a fight?"

"I'm warning you, ow! Come closer, and we'll use magic!"

"That's right, that's right! Spiritual Magic! Ke ke ke, you wouldn't want to become an idiot who remembers nothing, would you?"

Old Abel remained silent for a while after hearing this, then shook his head with a bitter smile, sitting down on the wooden bucket by the door.

"Go ahead and eat, have more."

Actually, these beets belonged to Master Ges, mainly used for making sugar.

In the past, he probably would've felt heartache, after all, these sugar-making beets weren't always perfectly consumed, with leftovers often distributed to the tenant farmers around here.

But now...

Master Ges no longer needed these things, and this year the sugar-making craftsmen in town probably needed to find jobs elsewhere, although this meant all these beets became theirs and wouldn't be consumed in this mere dozen days.

Eat then, eat.

How much can a few small demons eat?

Not more than the wild boars sneaking into the fields, or the constantly chewing sheep.

And most crucially, this land no longer belonged to him, he had lost the reason to protect it.

But then again, it had never belonged to him...

Seeing the old farmer seeming completely drained of energy, the three little demons glanced at each other, perplexed by this guy's reaction.

"...The moon rose in the west."

"What's happening? A trap?"

"Human! I warn you not to play tricks, ow! Or you'll pay the price!"

"Our boss is Yousi! That guy can eat a big lizard in one bite!"

"Yes, yes!"

Seeing the old farmer truly ignoring them, they flew down from the rafters again, grabbed a few beets, and zipped out the door like bats, vanishing into the night.

The farmhouse returned to silence.

Old Abel watched them leave without a word, like a burnt-out wick, merging into the late winter night...

...

In the distance, flapping their wings, the little demons flew while occasionally looking back.

Until a silver-white forest came into view, they slowed down, resting on a treetop.

"Damn it, what's wrong with these humans?"

"They weren't like this before!"

"Exactly, exactly!"

"Really not chasing us? Did these guys all sell their souls to the Lord Demon King?"

They stuffed their mouths while muttering.

Mischief was the nature of little demons, and also their favorite thing to do after filling their bellies.

Usually, they would break into human farmhouses and create chaos, then deliberately draw the attention of nearby villagers.

By the time villagers came with pitchforks and firearms, the demons would hide in haystacks or under eaves, laughing at the villagers cursing the Demon God angrily, or complaining to Saint Sis.

This time they did wrong, yet no one was chasing them, suddenly making the food in their hands lose its taste...

While the little demons were chattering away, the sound of hooves and wheels suddenly came from the distant road.

Hearing the disturbance in the forest, the three little demons perked up immediately, threw away the half-eaten beet roots, and chased towards the sound.

"A human's horse-drawn cart!"

"Ke ke ke, a lone traveler!"

"Let's scare him!"

"Traveling in the Lord Demon King's territory without a guard, let's give this ignorant guy a scare!"

"Ow—!"

Flying to a treetop beside the cart, one of the little demons first used the Eye of Fear, the yellow pupil flickering briefly with a faint red glow.

The glow turned into an invisible current, shooting straight toward the horse pulling the cart like an arrow leaving a bow.

However, at that moment, something unexpected happened; his spiritual probe seemed to hit an invisible wall.

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