“The Burgrave. And the king. There is a law against what Hazoth does, Malden. There is a penalty, if he’s caught, and it’s burning at the stake. Everything he does in the average day is probably illegal according to the laws of this land.” She looked over into the corner of the room, where Ghostcutter leaned against one wall. “The Ancient Blades exist to enforce that law.”

“Croy told me Hazoth lives in Ness because the Burgrave’s ancestor granted him a sort of safe haven here,” Malden pointed out.

“Exactly. Now he’s trapped here. If Hazoth left Ness he would be under constant suspicion. Croy and his brother knights keep a constant watch on any sorcerer who looks powerful enough to draw a demon up from the pit. They are never allowed a moment’s rest until they prove they are faithful to the law. Hazoth couldn’t live under that kind of watchful gaze. Eventually he would be caught summoning a demon or doing something else so infernal he would be arrested for it. He would be given a trial, but his sort are never very good at defending themselves in a court of law. He would be found guilty and sentenced to death. After so many centuries of life, to be caught by petty reeves and burned at the stake by peasants would seem utter injustice to him.”

“Yet why would he want to travel abroad when here, in Ness, he could live forever and be unmolested?” Malden asked.

“Can you imagine what it is like, to be called a free man, but only if you agree never to leave a certain place? Can you imagine the irony in that freedom, which requires you to remain always inside what must feel like a prison cell?”

Malden pursed his lips. He could imagine that exactly. He remembered when Cutbill had described his own situation in just the same terms. He had never wanted to feel sympathy for Hazoth. Nor did he now—at least not much—but he had to admit he could see Hazoth’s motivations.

“Once his demon child is born, it will protect him from such a fate. He can go where he pleases—do what mischief he pleases—and none can stop him.”

Malden stroked his chin. “Croy told me something else as well. About demons. How they’re unnatural, and how they distort reality around them. How their power will eventually wreck the world if they’re not stopped. There was one in the Burgrave’s tower that would have choked the world if it wasn’t checked.”

“This one is much the same, though its dangers are less obvious,” Cythera agreed. “Hazoth knows the risk he’s running. He just doesn’t care.”

“That is troubling,” Malden said.

“I meant it to be.”