The night was still young when I followed Sannarah deeper into the slums. Surprisingly, I had almost grown used to the stench already. After the initial gag reflex when I entered the city premises, my body quickly adapted to the new environment. My shoes were already filthy with a mixture of mud and blood, and I dare not guess what else. Mortal's establishments were genuinely depressing. 

Sannarah, on the other hand, looked like she was right at home. She moved confidently through the maze of the dark alleys, her red tail swishing from side to side, providing her with a balance that gave her stride feline grace.

"Stop staring at my tail, Golden Boy," she hissed over her shoulder.

Heat rushed to my face. "I didn't...." I grunted, shaking a sudden embarrassment. "Do you know where to find the person who sent you to the crime scene?"

"Yeah, I have a pretty good idea where he should hang out at this time." As the narrow alley turned to a small street, she slowed her pace to walk at my side. "But we must be careful. If he sent me there on purpose, he'd probably try to run once he realises I'm back."

"So, who is he?" I inquired, giving her a side glance. She wore a frown, annoyed with the whole ordeal.

"A Greed Demon. They are the best information brokers in this city."

"What kind of demon are you?" The question left my mouth before I could bite my tongue. It might have sounded rude, but I had no way of telling with her power confined. And I was genuinely curious.

She turned to me with raised brows, not breaking her stride. "Guess."

"Lust Demon?"

Her snort echoed through the empty street. "Of course, you would say that. You think every demon with boobs is a Lust Demon?" she mocked.

"No, I..." It hit me how offensive that sounded, though she could use her physical charms to lure mortals to their doom. I rubbed my neck. "It's tough to tell you apart. Angels always make their position visible, so you know who you are dealing with."

"And where is fun in that? You need a little bit of chaos to make life more interesting."

I frowned, annoyed with how evasive she was. "I wouldn't call chaos fun. And you didn't answer my question."

She rolled her eyes and shrugged. "There is no need for you to know that. I'll give you some time to resolve that riddle." Sannarah grinned, showing her sharp teeth. "You're an Archangel of Justice, after all. I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually."

Unfortunately, she was right. Her demonic affinity was of no consequence to the investigation. And yet I couldn't help my curiosity. I never dealt with demons who weren't renegades–lost in their madness and beyond redemption.

But Sannarah was just like an ordinary person. Yes, she was rude and cocky, but I could quickly point out angels who acted very similar. Excluding illegal business and corrupting human souls, of course.

I gave her another glance. It was hard to guess just based on her appearance. She was too slender to be a Gluttony Demon and far too energetic for a Sloth. Based on what she told me, I could rule out Lust and Greed. So she must be Pride, Envy or Wrath Demon. I would have to observe more of her behaviour to determine which one. If I were a betting man, I would go with Pride. But I'm an angel, and we do not dabble in any gambling, so I would wait to gather more information about her before I venture my next guess.

My pondering was interrupted by the growing commotion ahead of us. After the quiet of small alleys, the sudden change was almost shocking. A crowd was gathered in front of the large warehouse that looked abandoned at first glance. However, all those mortals seemed to know better. Two huge men kept guard at the double doors and slowly admitted the queued people inside after exchanging coins.

Sannarah stopped at the edge of the building. Her eyes narrowed when she was scanning the mob. She raised a hand to stop me, so I patiently waited. "Of course, he's here," she muttered.

I leaned over her shoulder to see who she was looking at, and she flinched as if she wanted to jump away, so I quickly asked, "Where is he?"

"At the front of the crowd." She pointed with her claw.

Only then did I spot a demon in a throng of mortals. He leaned at the wall, his beady dark eyes scanning people while he weighed a heavy-looking money pouch in his hands. He was chatting up the passersby with a sly smile, although we were too far to hear the exact words. But as the jiggling of coins echoed through the street, I was sure he offered some betting.

It was easy to confuse him with other humans. Like all demons, he was wearing a glamour, and he must have locked down his powers the same way Sannarah did, but when I looked close enough, I could see small black horns protruding from his sandy hair like little spikes and a shadow of bat-like wings sticking out over his shoulders.

"I will approach him, but he'll probably try to run," Sannarah said and turned to me. "It would be easy to lose the chase in the alleyways we just came from. Stay here and cut him off, all right?"

"I can do that." I nodded. I never thought I would follow the orders of a demon, but Sannarah was clearly in her element here, and the Greed Demon might be our most crucial witness, so I wasn't going to question her methods. After all, I asked for her assistance.

Sannarah nodded, and quietly as a hunting cat, she moved towards the gathered crowd. She circled it to approach the informant from the entrance's side, leaving an opening for eventual escape in my direction. I stepped deeper into the shadows and waited.

As she predicted, once the Greed Demon spotted her, his eyes went wide, and he dashed right at me. When he almost reached the alleyway, I stepped out of the shadows and blocked the way with my arms crossed.

I'm tall and well built, so my physique is quite intimidating, even without my powers. The demon was a lanky man half a head shorter than me. He didn't have much chance in a fight. I hoped he would realise that. I didn't want to resort to violence.

The Greed Demon came to a sudden stop. "The Hell you came from?" he blurted, but Sannarah was already on his heels, so without spending another moment, he grabbed something from his pocket and smashed it into the ground.

Suddenly, the air filled with thick, suffocating smoke. I covered my mouth too late to prevent a violent coughing fit. Footsteps thudded past me, but my stinging eyes couldn't see a thing.

Someone grabbed my wrist and yanked me backwards.

"Come on, you big oaf!" Sannarah exclaimed. "Don't just stand here, run! He's getting away!"

When we escaped the suffocating vapour and I could finally see, I noticed the Greed Demon disappearing into the alleys. Sannarah let go of my hand and dashed after him with a speed that astounded me. But I didn't waste time admiring my unassuming partner and rushed to keep up with her.

We chased him through countless twists and turns, but he kept ahead, barely out of our grasp. When I was sure we would never catch up, he finally ran into a dead-end alley. I hoped it would end our mad chase, but I was wrong.

Without breaking stride, the Greed Demon jumped up the wall and scaled it like a monkey. To my astonishment, Sannarah followed suit. Her claws found purchase as effortlessly as if she was using a ladder.

I tried to follow them, but my momentum only took me up a couple of feet, and then I helplessly slid down while my fingers failed to grab anything. Without claws scaling that wall was impossible. I wouldn't have to resort to such crude methods if I could use my wings, but those were locked up with my powers. I couldn't risk breaking the blocker, not just yet.

Demon's footsteps thudded on the rooftop above me, so I turned back and dashed to follow them from below. I managed to keep pace with them for a while. I was sure our prey would have to come down eventually. I would be waiting for him then. And this time, I knew better than to fall for his dirty tricks.

But when I got to another narrow intersection, I was forced to stop abruptly. Right in front of me, blocking the path, dark creatures waited. They looked roughly like dogs but were much bigger, and their snouts were broader and full of unnervingly sharp teeth. Their dark fur looked stiff and dirty, but the muscles underneath it were impressive.  Also, their eyes burned red.

The stench of sulfur hit me simultaneously with a heavy presence of foul, dark magic. I drew my sword and stood ready. While the monsters bared their teeth at me, their dark fur stood on their backs. Low growls sounded behind me, and I realised that more creatures came out from passageways, surrounding me in mere moments.

That was not a good sign.

I stood ready. My hand on the sword handle became clammy. Those mutts wouldn't be challenging, but I could only depend on my body's physical strength without my powers. I could probably hack through and run for it, but there were too many of them.

Before I formulated any plan, the creatures attacked. I slashed the first two beasts, but another jumped on my back, and sharp teeth pierced my shoulder. I cried out in pain and smashed the beast at the nearby wall, throwing it off. The wound was bleeding profoundly, but I didn't have time to worry about it. I gritted my teeth and fended off charge after charge with my back to the wall.

The beasts became angrier with every failed attack, blood and saliva dripping from their bared fangs. My sword arm was already tired, and blood loss must have been significant because I started to feel lightheaded. 

I didn't expect that the need for my powers would come so soon, but I had no choice. I couldn't investigate the case if I were dead. I was seconds from breaking the seal when someone fell from the rooftop and landed right in front of me in a crouch.

A low growl echoed through the alleys─it was so savage and manacing that my skin crawled. The creatures whined and slowly backed away with tails between their legs. 

Sannarah stood up gracefully, making the monsters cower even more with a sharp whip crack. "Down, boys."

The realisation finally dawned on me.

"A Wrath Demon," I gasped.