“Vhalnich has the Names,” Wren said. “He knows what they are. He was looking for them.”

“As our lord the pontifex suspected. It’s possible the entire Khandarai expedition was a ruse for that purpose.”

“We still don’t know if he bears a demon himself,” Wren said.

“At least one of his subordinates does,” the Liar said. “This Ihernglass. He must be the power I can feel in the city.”

Wren nodded. His own magical senses, ironically, were far less developed, but as they’d come closer to Desland he felt the vague pressure of a powerful demon at the back of his mind.

Twist shoveled another huge load of dirt over his shoulder. His hole was already waist-deep, his massive strength making short work of even the dry, rocky ground of the woods. The body of the old man waited beside him, the cloth that covered him mercifully sparing them the sight of his final, twisted rictus. Even Wren, who had seen the Liar work many times, felt a little uncomfortable when he watched the man’s demon slowly burn someone alive from the inside out.

Before the magic killed him, they’d gotten a lot of information, but Augustin hadn’t known everything.

“We don’t know the nature of the demon Ihernglass bears,” Wren said.

“I can feel its strength,” the Liar said. “I have only felt such power a few times before. A Demon Lord, for certain, and not the weakest among them.”

“It still need not be a threat,” Wren said.

Even the most powerful demons didn’t always grant their bearers dangerous abilities. There was a man in Elysium, for example, whose demon allowed him to copy entire books in a matter of hours. While the Church made good use of such abilities, of course, Wren was glad his own demon gave him the strength to work in the field, combating the enemies of God directly.

“We know Vhalnich left the Thousand Names in Vordan,” he went on. “Finding them should not be difficult. If Ihernglass is here, so much the better. He will not be able to interfere.”

“So we assume. The powers of hell continue to surprise us.” The Liar shook his head. “We cannot leave a Demon Lord to roam unchecked, not so near at hand.”

Twist climbed out of the hole and pushed the old man’s body into it, where it landed with an undignified thump. The Penitent lifted his oversized shovel again and started filling the grave back in.

“We will have to kill Ihernglass,” the Liar said. “It should be simple. He was injured in the battle, I’m told.”

“Attack him without knowing the nature of his demon?” Wren said.

The Liar shrugged. “A risk, of course. I will attempt to gather more information, but I suspect only Vhalnich himself knows, and he is still too well protected.”