Garden Of Poison

The longer Emily stared at the empty coffin, the dizzier she felt. She had sensed that something was amiss when she heard the voices, but she couldn’t see the people to whom the voices belonged.

"Should we report this to the magistrate, King Raylen?" one of the servants asked in worry, as they suspected that a grave robbery had taken place.

Raylen surveyed their surroundings, sensing no one but them in the area. As snow continued to fall from the sky, he responded, "That won’t be needed." In a single leap, he jumped into the empty coffin and laid down within it, though it became apparent that its length was insufficient to accommodate his full frame.

"What are you doing?" Emily inquired, feeling a little anxious at the sight of him lying in the coffin.

"Checking if Julia didn’t like the coffin," Raylen responded, turning his head to the side. He then stood up and climbed out of the grave. He said, "The coffin smells fresh."

"Which means she never had the chance to rot..." Emily murmured, wondering how this could be possible. The young woman was supposed to be dead. She had seen Julia’s body. She had noticed the cold and empty shell before her.

"Close the coffin and place it the way it was before when the grave was dug out," Raylen ordered the servants while they walked to the side where a large tree stood. Taking shelter under it, the gears in the Archdemon’s head began to turn.

Emily asked him, "Is it possible for someone to return from the dead?" After a brief pause, she continued, "What if she was one of the souls that was taken from—" She halted mid-sentence, realising the implications. "Julia couldn’t have gone to Hell."

"I would have agreed with you before, but right now, I am not so sure, Princess," Raylen replied to her. "But there is a way to verify it."