That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon

Content Warning: This section discusses substance use.

Cinnamon Hotpepper attends a festival in her village to see off one of the champions of the goddess Myva. Centuries ago, Myva trapped demons behind Volsog gate. Every 15 years, the gate weakens, and Myva chooses four champions (collectively known as the heroes party) to fight back the demons that escape. Cinnamon is glad she wasn’t picked because, while glory and attractive heroes sound nice, she values safety. She wonders why Myva needs champions since the legends say she is powerful enough to banish all demons from the land. An explosion comes from the direction of Cinnamon’s spice farm. The crowd dismisses it as the newest champion starting her job early. Drunk and worried, Cinnamon heads home.

On the way, a son of the local fisherman bothers Cinnamon, pretending to be a bandit and demanding she hand over her cloak. Exasperated with the fisherman’s sons’ frequent antics, Cinnamon chases him into the trees. Instead of the boy, she finds an attractive man trapped by a rockslide—the explosion sound from the party. Cinnamon helps him, and he transforms into a demon. Unsure how a demon got so close to the goddess’s temple, Cinnamon runs for her life, zig-zagging through her family’s cinnamon fields.