Seek help in a bigger village.

"We should go seek help somewhere else," Gilly insisted. "I don't feel comfortable at all going back to our village."

"Maybe this was just a little raid and the bastards are long gone," suggested Katarina.

"Perhaps. But we escaped once, barely. What if this was just some kind of vanguard for the demon army? Or what if these creatures are specifically on the look out for girls like us. They clearly seemed to have an interest in young women. Kata; please, let's go to one of the bigger villages and ask for help there. If this really is the start of a War of Demons, or something like that, it's even our duty to warn the villages around us!"

Katarina scratched her head, thinking about what Gilly had said. "You might be right, Gilly," she reluctantly said. "Although I don't like the idea of abandoning our village."

"Let's go to Ravenstone, all three of us," Gilly suggested. "My father sometime went there to buy spices from the market. There's a small castle there, with armed men who surely must know how to deal with demons. It would be a day or so to walk from here. We can warn the lord of Ravenstone, and leave this whole thing up to people who must know better than us."

Katarina nodded, slowly. "Sounds like a plan, Gilly. We stay here for the night and head for Ravenstone early in the morning, before dawn. But we probably should not use the road. If you are right and these imps are out there hunting for women, or if there's a demon army out there, we should stay hidden. We can use the cover of Silverpine forest, turn north and follow the Danudon river. That should get us to Ravenstone in about a day, hopefully."

Gilly frowned. "But wouldn't we have to cross the Mist swamp?"

"I don't know. Maybe. I've never walked this far. I know that the Mist swamp lies East of the Danudon river. But even if - probably walking along the edges of the swamp would provide a good cover. Nobody will be travelling there. Nobody will see us or find us."

"I don't like it, Kata. What if travelling through the countryside slows us down? What if we don't make it to Ravenstone before nightfall?"

"We have Ysdella with us. She's a hunter. She knows how to deal with these things."

"She's the daughter of a hunter, Kata. She's like us. I know how to make pastries, but I still haven't figured out the secrets of a really good bread. You know how to forge horseshoes, but you don't...," Gilly looked at her friend and her eyes widened. "Since when are you wearing chain mail, Kata? Did you forge this yourself? Did you wear this the whole day? I hadn't noticed. There was so much else..."

Katarina shrugged. "Yes, I did it myself. It... it's a long story. But there's something strange to it. It helped me against one of the imps earlier." She grinned. "I'm quite proud of this work actually, fits better than some of the dresses that Joseline makes. You have a hunter and a fierce warrior on your side, Gilly. We'll protect you!"

"Still, I'd prefer the roads, Kata," Gilly said.