Page 278 of Of Sins and Sacrifice

His brows go up.

“Demon?”

I nod. “The souls are gone. He must be a high level too if he consumed them so easily.”

“But—”

Marching footsteps echo in my ear. They are getting close. It seems that the woods are not hospitable enough for them to bring their tanks or other vehicles. But that doesn’t help our situation.

If there is a high-level demon there… I will have to fight him. And though I am confident in my abilities, such a confrontation would draw the attention of any nearby deity and that is the last thing I need right now.

“Let’s go. I can carry you,” I tell him and turn with my back to him so he can mount me.

Even without teleportation, my speed should help us get far enough away from them and avoid a direct confrontation.

“You want me to…” he croaks.

“Yes. Hurry!”

He blinks, his lips trembling. Is he cold? It is quite cold and he is only wearing a shirt. Even more reason why we must leave now.

With a wave of my hand, the eternal ice dissolves. Nothing remains of the ice hut except for the tub, which I promptly send back to our shed at the base.

“Hurry!” I repeat, pointing to my back.

He shakes his head, his mouth curved in a smile.

Why is he smiling? Can’t he see the danger?

I roll my eyes at him but just as I’m about to berate him, he moves.

He places his arms around my neck and hauls himself on my back, his legs on either side of my waist. I grab onto the back of his knees to support him.

“Hold on. This is about to get fast.”

“Sure thing, tiny darling. Show me what you can do,” he purrs in a low, velvety voice.

I huff at him. He might not realize it, but with my enhanced strength, I could carry him with one arm only, too.

“Right,” I mutter drily. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

The soldiers are behind us, only a small distance away.

Holding on tightly to him, I start running.

I hope he’s not concerned about his male pride and sensibilities. It is his fault, after all, for falling for a goddess much stronger than him. And it is he who wants to marry me and make it official. Not that I’m not a willing participant. I am rather enthusiastic about it too.

Though he seems to find this situation amusing, it is good he is at least cooperating.

“Oh wow,” he breathes out when he realizes how fast I can run.

I breeze through the trees, logging in a mile per minute at first before getting to my maximum of ten times that.

“This is amazing,” he adds in awe. “You are amazing.”

He tightens his hold on me and leans back, closing his eyes and enjoying the way the breeze brushes against his face. I usesome energy to wrap him in a warm cocoon so he won’t get cold in this weather.

“You weren’t kidding when you said you were fast.”

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