"Squad Leader! Squad Leader!!!"
"...Shit!!"
"Fuck! What the hell happened?!"
It all happened so fast that none of them was able to react. In one moment, they had finally managed to get out, and in the next moment, when they were about to pull the Squad Leader up, something grabbed him and pulled him back.
"Damn it!! I'll... go!"
Nora reached down and prepared to go down, but right before she could do that, a hand grabbed her by the shoulder and stopped her.
"Fuck, damn it! What are you doing?!"
It was Niel.
His expression was just as serious as hers, but looking down beneath, and spotting only darkness, Niel pursed his lips together.
"...Wait."
"What do you mean, wait?!"
Nora shouted.
"The Squad Leader just got taken away because he was trying to buy time for us! You saw it, I saw it, she saw it." Stopping, Nora pointed at the camera strapped to her chest, "The entire world saw it!"
Her words bellowed throughout the surroundings.
"He sacrificed himself to buy us time! To... buy us, the team that everyone called useless, time! If we don't do anything, then we'll just prove everyone right! And above all, we'll be... we'll be..."
"I know."
Niel calmly replied, taking a deep breath while taking off his glasses and brushing his hair back.
"Trust me, I also want to go down there to look for the Squad Leader, but don't lose your cool just yet. If we go down there, then there's no guarantee that we might be able to come back. In fact, we might even hold the Squad Leader back."
"What...? What are you even saying?"
Nora frowned while looking at Niel.
Feeling her glare, Niel put his glasses back on as he looked back down.
"...The Squad Leader isn't dead. If you take a moment to calm yourself, you can feel that our connection is still there."
Nora's lips parted, but nothing came out. She wanted to refute him, but Niel was right. She could still feel the connection that she had with him due to Ariel's abilities.
In that case...
"That's even more reason for why we should go! If he's still fine, then...!"
"As I said, we might hold the Squad Leader back if we all go. Let's wait for Ariel and the others to come back before going all in. We'll be less of a liability, and we'll be able to actually be of help to him instead of carelessly going there with no plan."
"That's granted that he'll make it! What if... What if...!"
"What if what?"
Mia suddenly spoke, her face looking rather serious as she looked at Nora.
"What?"
Such a gaze caused Nora to be at a loss.
Mia continued, "The Squad Leader is someone who managed to defeat the Malovia Gate and rank first in the First Trial. If there's anybody who needs to be worried about him, it isn't us. I agree with Niel, we should go back and wait for Ariel and the others to come to us before looking for him. Ariel might be able to communicate with him."
"Ah, ugh..." Nora's face changed several times, her hands reaching for her hair as she shouted, "Agh, fine!"
Alternating her gaze between the two and then the darkness within the trapdoor, she glared at the two.
"...I'll trust the two of you once. But if something happens to—"
"It won't."
Mia cut Nora off before she could finish her sentence, already turning to head to the main building.
"Nothing will happen to him."
Mia continued to walk, not looking back as Niel followed her from behind.
"...I'm sure of it."
***
The darkness came first.
It embraced me from all sides, brushing against my skin and making every hair on my body rise from the cold.
Then, I was pulled.
Dragged into the darkness as I tried to fight against it.
But it was no use.
The more I struggled, the more the darkness pulled.
It felt as if I had been dropped into the ocean.
Not the surface, not where light still touched the water, but somewhere far below. Somewhere incredibly dark. The pressure built around my body, squeezing tighter and tighter, making it harder to breathe, harder to think.
The surface felt impossibly far away.
And I was still sinking.
And soon—
Thump!
"Ukhg!"
My back hit the floor hard.
Pain shot up my spine as the impact rattled through me, forcing a sharp gasp from my throat. The air was knocked clean out of my lungs, leaving me momentarily stunned, vision flashing as I struggled to draw breath.
"Cough! Cough—!"
I coughed violently, dragging in rough breaths as I clutched at my chest. My other hand scraped against the ground, fingers digging into the coarse surface beneath me, causing me to momentarily pause.
'Soil? Is this soil?'
Slowly, my vision began to clear.
The darkness faded, replaced by towering silhouettes all around me.
Dark trees.
They rose high and uneven, their trunks thick and twisted, branches tangling together above me. A dense fog wrapped around the forest, swallowing everything in the vicinity as the air felt especially dense.
"Where... where the hell am I?"
This was too different compared to the research facility that I had just been in a moment prior. Taking several deep breaths to calm myself down, I eventually turned my head to stare at the figure standing by one of the trees, looking at me with a smile.
I clenched my teeth.
"You..."
"This place is interesting, don't you think?"
The Conductor looked completely unfazed by my anger as it looked around, seemingly intrigued by everything that was around us. I really felt like giving it a beating at the moment, but held back when I knew that I was not its match.
"Why did you do that?"
Instead, I asked the obvious.
"Why did you drag me here? What if I had died? Our lives are tied together. If I die, then you..."
"I, what?"
The Conductor tilted his head, looking at me with the same smile.
"Whether I live or die, it matters little to me. My ambitions lie elsewhere, and if you die, while it might be a pity, it just means that I was never meant to fulfill my ambitions. Of course, since you're alive, it's all good, no?"
I really felt like beating the Conductor.
"Still, this place is quite interesting."
The Conductor brought this place up again, its hand remaining crossed as it looked around. I did too, trying my best to figure out where I was.
Did I get kicked out of the research facility and back to the Eastern Side of Point Z?
'No, the threes feel different. In fact, even the air feels different.'
Something about this place felt extremely unsettling. Especially when I looked at the trees.
Just what sort of place—
"Limbo."
The Conductor eventually spoke, clapping his hands in understanding.
"We're in the Limbo."
"....."
Blinking slowly, I looked back at the Conductor. Limbo? What the hell was he talking about? What was this Limbo?
As if understanding my confusion, the Conductor's lips twisted sinisterly as its voice reached my ears.
"It's no surprise that you're not aware, but we're in the Limbo."
With a pause, its voice turned into a soft whisper.
"The first layer of hell."
"What?!"
My heart skipped a beat, my expression changing as I looked at the Conductor. What did it just say? First layer of Hell?
"Hell exists?"
"Why wouldn't it?"
The Conductor tilted its head, looking at me as though it was looking at an idiot.
"You met one of the Dukes of Hell not too long ago. Why would hell not exist?"
"Because..."
My words stopped there. There was nothing else for me to argue with. Indeed, the idea of Hell existing wasn't an out-of-reach concept. In fact, it made sense, especially with the appearance of Dantalion.
But that made things even more grim for him.
"Fuck."
I covered my face, trying my best to remain calm.
"What the hell have you dragged me into. How the hell am I supposed to get out of this place?"
"Well, honestly, it's not that hard."
The Conductor replied, looking at me cheerfully.
His words reignited some hope for me.
"This place isn't meant for the living. You will naturally go out once you find the exit or the place rejects you."
My eyes lit up.
In that case...
"But I can't quite tell how long it'll take for this place to reject you. Maybe a day, two days, a month? A year...? Well, it might take a long time."
It was as if cold water had been poured all over me, washing away all the lingering hope that had built up a moment prior.
This sadistic bastard...
"Your best bet would be to find the exit. That should be the easiest way out of this place."
I took a deep breath, once again trying my best to remain calm. My patience was really starting to get tested.
"Don't be too mad."
The Conductor chuckled.
"This might be hell, but it doesn't mean that it's all bad. Remember what I said about finding an anomaly that might be useful to you? There's no better place than Hell to find it."
"...That's the last thing I want to do at this moment."
The idea felt tempting, but in this unfamiliar place, I would rather not engage with such a powerful anomaly.
"Well, a pity."
The Conductor didn't seem to be disappointed at all.
"Still, this isn't all too bad. At least you solved the mystery behind the disappearances."
My body froze, my eyes slowly widening as I looked at the Conductor.
"The people, the squad members who were sent here..." The Conductor mumbled, looking straight at me. "Their disappearance..."
My gaze swept across the fog-choked forest, the Conductor's voice whispering in the air.
"It's because they were sent here."
I held my breath, taking out a familiar compass and looking at it.
"Not such a wasted trip, right?"
***
"Let's hurry! We need to show this to the Squad Leader immediately. This might be a clue to figuring out the disappearance of the squads sent here previously. We might be able to jump ahead in the rankings!"
Joanna and the others all rushed back towards the research facility, moving past the fog and rushing with all their might.
Joanna's chest rose and fell with excitement as she saw the outline of the building in the distance.
'Yes, yes! We're almost there! With this, we might be able to jump ahead of the other teams! We'll be able to prove that we're not useless!'
The group arrived at the front of the building in no time, moving up to where their team was supposed to stay.
And as they reached their area, they immediately spotted three other people.
"Nora, Mia, Niel!"
Joanna cried out as she rushed in, looking around.
"Where is the Squad Leader? I just got something incredibly important! I think we might be able to..." Joanna's words stopped halfway, her expression changing when she noticed the grim looks on their faces. "You, why are you looking like this? Did something happen? And where is the Squad Leader?"
Joanna's words were met with silence as Nora's expression darkened. She seemed to want to speak, but merely lowered her head and shook her head.
Joanna's eyes widened.
Don't tell me...
"He's not dead."
It was Niel who clarified.
"We... lost track of him. We don't know where he is at the moment. Although he isn't dead, we were waiting for you guys to come here before rescuing him."
"T-that's..."
Joanna's heart sank, all her previous excitement fading as she looked at the others. There were so many things that she wanted to say at the moment, but after looking at the others and seeing their expressions, she stopped, her expression falling.
But right then, the soft click of a heel echoed.
All heads turned as Ariel calmly walked into the room.
"I heard what happened."
Her voice was calm.
"He's fine."
She added, not looking at all concerned.
"I can still feel my connection with him. He doesn't seem to be in any danger. And even if he is, it doesn't matter."
"What?" Joanna's voice rose. "What do you mean it doesn't matter?"
"He's strong."
That was all Ariel said before leaning against the nearby wall and crossing her arms. Then, as her gaze swept over the group, her lips pulled into a thin smile.
"But I can't say the same about us. Now that the Squad Leader is gone, we're pretty much on our own. There's no doubt about it. We're by far the weakest group in the entire Congress. At the rate things will progress, we'll fall behind even more, and possibly die."
"That's not..."
Joanna tried to rebuke, but she choked on her own words as she struggled to think of anything to reply to her with.
Her mind scrambled for something, anything, to refute her, yet every thought she grasped at slipped away just as quickly.
In the end, she stood there in silence, lips parted slightly, unable to find a single convincing reply.
Ariel's lips curled further as she looked at her.
"At the rate that we're going, this is how things will be. But if you let me... Hm?"
Ariel's words cut off mid-sentence.
Her head turned sharply toward the entrance, attention snapping away from the conversation. That was when she caught sight of a certain group making their way towards them, Patrick leading them as he entered.
"Is everything alright?"
He looked friendly, but his expression paused the moment he didn't notice their Squad Leader.
"...Hm? Where is your Squad Leader?"
"He's... away at the moment."
Joanna replied after a brief moment of hesitation.
"Gone?"
Patrick frowned, his expression not looking as kind. Then, as if something crossed his mind, he spoke up, "Don't tell me that something happened to him?"
"Ah, no..."
"I can't sense him at all. It seems like something did happen to him."
One of the members of Evening Sun spoke up, their expression turning into a smirk as they looked at Patrick.
"What did I tell you, Squad Leader? He's a fraud. We shouldn't have paired up with him. Now all that's left is his team, which will act like baggage. Let's get rid of them."
Everyone's expression changed, a sudden tension rising in the room.
"Stop."
Patrick raised his hand, stopping his team member from speaking any further.
Once the silence settled, he looked back at Joanna and the others. He carefully looked at their faces before speaking again.
"Can you tell me where he is?"
"That is..." Joanna pursed her lips, looking back at Mia and the others. But eventually, she straightened her expression and frowned. "He's currently dealing with something important. He'll be back soon. We can't disclose it just yet."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
Patrick nodded.
"Pack up your stuff."
"What!?"
"What are you...!"
"Don't blame us." Patrick calmly looked at them. "Since something has happened to your Squad Leader, you are no longer of any use to us. As my member has said, you'll just be baggage for us. In that case, it's best if we part ways amicably."
"You—"
"Alright."
Ariel cut everyone off before they could argue. Wearing a smile that was unlike her, she reached for her stuff and started to walk away. Joanna looked at her in shock, finding the current Ariel to be so different than the one she was used to.
The same went for the others, at a complete loss because of her attitude.
But Ariel remained completely unfazed, walking past the Evening Sun Guild.
Patrick nodded at the sight, watching her pass by him.
"Looks like you're not unreasonable."
But right as Ariel was about to pass him, she stopped
Then, her lips twisted into a sadistic smile as she looked at him straight in the eyes and grabbed his head with both hands.
"Kidding~"
She smashed her head against his.
BANG!
"Ukhe!"
Patrick immediately stumbled back, completely caught off guard by Ariel's sudden actions.
"You—!"
"What did you do!?"
Immediately, the members of the Evening Sun Guild sprang into action as they surrounded her, but as blood leaked down from her forehead, Ariel looked at their group and began laughing.
Her laugh seemed almost deranged as she held onto her forehead.
"What a thick head~."
Her head tilted back as her eyes gleamed with a certain shine.
"Hmm, well, it's still enough."
Then, looking at those surrounding her, blood still dripping down her forehead, Ariel got into a stance and threw a slow fist forward.
Her actions confused everyone present, including those from her group.
But the next moment, everyone's expression froze as Patrick mimicked her exact movement.
"Good. Good."
Ariel loosened her shoulders.
Patrick did too.
She jumped on the spot a couple of times.
Patrick did too.
The actions shook everyone to the core as Ariel's lips twisted further and further.
"Attention back to me, please~"
All eyes shifted toward her.
Ariel slowly turned to face the members of the Evening Sun Guild. Blood streaked across her face, tracing along her cheek and down her jaw, the red stark against her pale skin. The sight alone sent a chill crawling down everyone's spine.
Brushing some of the blood from her face, Ariel's eyes gleamed.
"Hey, guys."
She quietly called out to Joanna and the rest, her expression twisting into sadistic pleasure.
"...Have you ever seen a team get beaten up by their own Squad Leader?"
Laughing, Ariel threw a couple of random punches while Patrick followed her movements perfectly.
"I'll show you."
-x-X-x-
"Hehehe~"
Throwing a couple of fists in the air, with Patrick mimicking her movements, Ariel looked at the members of Evening Sun as she brought her hand forward.
"What are you standing there in a daze for? Come."
Her words started a chain reaction.
Or at least, it managed to trigger at least one person.
"You fucking bitch! What have you done to the Squad Leader!?"
"Wait!"
One of the more hot-blooded members of the Evening Sun Guild charged toward Ariel, his large frame swelling as he began to radiate power. His momentum was overwhelming, but Ariel stood still, a smile on her face as blood continued to trickle down her cheek.
He crossed the distance in less than half a breath.
His fist came down without hesitation, cutting through the air with brutal speed. The force behind it was unmistakable, aimed to crush Ariel into a pulp.
Or at least, that was the initial plan.
The fist did hit, but it didn't hit the right person.
"Shit!"
Merlin's expression changed drastically as a figure leaped before his fist, taking the attack head-on.
BANG—!
A soft crunching sound reverberated across the surroundings as Patrick's nose caved in and his entire body shot back, crashing against the nearby wall.
"Squad Leader!"
"Oh, no! Squad Leader—!"
"Merlin!"
"No, I..."
The members of the Evening Sun Guild stood frozen in shock.
None of them had expected the fight to turn so abruptly. The Squad Leader's body hit the ground hard, blood spreading beneath him as the sound echoed across the room.
Merlin's gaze dropped to him, disbelief flashing across his face.
"I... what..."
And in that single moment of distraction, it happened.
Swooosh!
A presence materialized behind him without warning.
An arm slipped around his neck, locking into place. The hold tightened instantly, cutting off his balance before he could react.
"Huek!"
Sarah coldly stared at Merlin's face while tightening her grip on his neck. Instantly, Merlin tried to fight back, his large hands reaching for Sarah's arms. Those from his Squad also rushed ahead, trying to free him, but before they could move, Min rushed ahead alongside the others.
"You...!"
"Fucking bastards! Get rid of them! They're all weak anyway!"
The group charged at Min and the others.
Another fight broke out.
"Get off of me..!"
In the meantime, Merlin's body flayed as he tried to get rid of Sarah. However, her grip was strong. Regardless of what he tried, she refused to let go of him. His face turned redder and redder by the second, and as he looked around, his gaze eventually fell onto the nearby wall as he charged towards it.
His intention was clear.
He wanted to smash Sarah against the wall.
And that's what he did.
BANG!
The room shook as his back crashed against the wall. The impact caused everything to rattle, but to Merlin's dismay, Sarah's body was long gone.
"Damn it!"
He looked around, trying to find her.
And as his head flicked in all directions, a figure jumped in.
"Found you!"
His node churned as he smashed towards the figure lunging in his direction.
BANG—
The impact was devastating. The moment Merlin's fist came into contact with the shadow, he heard another powerful crunching sound.
"Ha...! I got—"
But his joy was short-lived as he quickly realized what had happened.
"S-Squad..."
His eyes widened in horror at the sight of his Squad Leader. His nodes stopped churning as his mind scrambled to process what was happening, but right as it did, Sarah's figure appeared once more, hooking against his neck once more.
"——!!"
Merlin's expression changed once more, his legs tensing as he tried to smash his back against the wall again.
But right as he was about to do that, a soft laughter echoed in his ears.
"My~ My~"
From the corner of his vision, silver hair fluttered as a figure approached, her expression looking thoroughly entertained.
"All brawn and no brains. I can see that's what you are to the group. I mean, had you not jumped in, you probably would've made our life harder. However, because of your actions, your entire team was sent into scrambles."
Giggling, Ariel arrived before Meril as she tapped her finger against his forehead.
"I like it like that. Makes it much, much easier to control, you know?"
Her eyes gleamed as she looked at him.
Staring back at her, Merlin's expression twisted as his eyes shook. He already had a vague idea before, but it was all too clear now.
This woman.
She was..
"C-crazy bi—"
"Shhh."
Ariel pressed her finger against his mouth, shutting him up.
"I'm not crazy."
Her smile faded.
"That's the last thing that I am. However..."
Ariel's smile returned.
"...The Squad Leader is. That bastard is the crazy one."
Merlin's eyes shook even more, but that merely lasted for a few more seconds as his eyes turned hazy a moment after, and his body turned limp.
Sarah jumped off his back a moment after, her gaze alternating between Ariel and him.
"Well."
Ariel ruffled her hair as she looked in the direction of the other fight. Things didn't seem to be too good on that side.
BANG!
"Get past him quickly! Attack from both sides! Make this quick! The more this drags on, the more disadvantageous it is for us!"
Min was desperately shielding the others with his body, but the members of the Evening Sun Guild were well-trained. Their movements were not only perfectly coordinated, but they also seemed to completely suppress the others in terms of abilities.
Although Min and the others were also good, the difference in abilities was clear.
"...I guess we should help them."
Taking out a tissue, Ariel wiped the blood from her face, her expression calm.
"You two, go and help."
Patrick and Merlin sprang into action, rushing toward the other team without hesitation.
The scene that followed wasn't a pretty one.
"Haaa!"
"Squad Leader!"
"M-merlin!"
"Damn it!!"
Spurt—!
Screams tore through the space as chaos erupted all at once.
Patrick lunged in without warning, and Merlin followed next to him. Their sudden aggression caught the opposing group completely off guard, shattering their momentum.
Min did not hesitate.
He and the others surged forward in perfect sync, exploiting every opening that appeared. Blows landed one after another, taking full advantage of the chaos.
Within moments, the tide had fully turned.
Ariel watched all of this in silence, graciously wiping the blood away before eventually putting her handkerchief away.
That also marked the end of the fight.
Step. Step—!
The gentle click of Ariel's heels echoed through the room as she moved toward the other groups. With them being suppressed, and Sarah appearing to help, they weren't able to deal with her as she swiftly tapped onto their foreheads, rendering their bodies completely immobile.
"Hmm. That's good."
She then turned her gaze to the heavily breathing Joanna and the others, her expression unreadable.
"I've been thinking."
Ariel's soft voice carried throughout the room as she joined them.
"What even is the point of working with others if they're going to treat us like this? They don't look favorably upon us. Neither does the world. In that case, why should we care about how others look at us?"
Ariel's steps stopped, her gaze lowering to stare at the members of the Evening Sun Guild.
"I might not be as strong as they are when dealing with anomalies, but when it comes to dealing with people, I don't think there's anyone better than me."
Her lips curled all the way to the end as she brought her hand down to touch the heads of the members of the Evening Sun Guild.
"They're also not aware of my powers yet. In that case, why not make them work for us?"
Pulling her hand away, Ariel's gaze flickered as the members of the Evening Sun Guild stood up one by one.
"We will still follow what we were doing before, but let's do it on our own terms. With people who won't look down on us. Let's..."
Turning her head to look in Joanna's direction, Ariel licked her lips.
"...Let's give the Squad Leader a surprise for when he gets back. What do you say?"
"....."
Joanna stared blankly in Ariel's direction for a moment, her gaze distant. She... Then, without a word, she turned to look at the team she had just been fighting alongside. They all stared at Ariel with the same dumb look she wore.
Even now, Joanna was struggling to make sense of what had happened.
In one moment, they were getting kicked out, and in the next moment, Ariel decided to turn into a completely different person as she took over the mind of their Squad Leader and helped them take down one of the strongest teams in the entire Congress. They weren't just any regular team, but one of the strongest.
Joanna's mind struggled to make sense of everything.
But as she lifted her gaze and saw the dazed expressions on the faces of those who had been looking down on them only moments ago, Joanna froze.
Joanna slowly raised a hand to her lips.
Why?
Why was she smiling?
"It'll be fun."
Ariel continued.
"Making every team crawl at our feet as the world watches."
Her giggle echoed across the room.
"Wouldn't you guys say so?"
-x-X-x-
There were no words that I could use to describe my current situation.
"..."
Staring at the compass in my hand as it spun wildly in all directions, I closed my eyes and put it away.
'I should've seen this coming. This is hell after all.'
Even now, I was struggling to come to terms with my current situation.
This place was different. Not just the air, but the very atmosphere of this place felt different. I could feel a sense of rejection coming from my surroundings as the long and skinny branches of the trees pierced through the thick fog.
"This makes things difficult."
With the compass not working, I didn't know how to proceed.
'If it's like the Conductor suggested and the people from the teams have all fallen into the first layer of Hell as I have, then my goal should be to look for them. Granted, they are still alive...'
This place...
I could tell that it wasn't one that just anyone could survive in.
'Fuck.'
I glared at the Conductor once more.
The more I thought about my situation, the more I felt like cursing at it.
"Don't be so angry. This is a good opportunity for you."
The Conductor chuckled.
"In this place, nobody is going to watch you. Nobody will be able to see your abilities. You can go all out without any issues. Isn't it about time that you start learning how to manage your skills properly?"
"What?"
Moving forward, the Conductor pressed its long finger against my chest.
"Didn't we say this before? You can't rely too much on the knife. Although the power you'll gain will be immense, the mental toll on your mind will be great. You also can't rely on breaking your node again since there's no chance you'll ever make it out alive sane like you did in the past. Isn't it about time you focus on what you already have?"
The Conductor moved its finger away from my chest, interlocking its hands behind its back as it leaned forward and whispered next to my ear.
"...Of course, if you don't like that, then you can just focus on your abilities with the piano and form a band with me. With everyone else we can—"
"Alright, I think I've heard enough."
I cut the Conductor off before it could spiral again into its usual nonsense about starting a band. I'd heard it far too many times by now.
"A pity."
'But the Conductor isn't quite wrong about what it said. While I shouldn't give up on the knife, I shouldn't be overly reliant on it. I also can't replicate what I did back in Malovia. I... guess I should start focusing on developing the skills that I already have. But which one should I develop? Which...!'
Swoooosh!
My thoughts were shattered by a sudden gust of cold wind as it brushed past my body, sending chills running down my entire back.
Even the Conductor's face changed subtly as it looked around.
But...
'I can't see or detect anything.'
By now, it was clear to me that the knife wasn't omnipotent. It couldn't detect everything like I had expected it to. However, despite knowing this, I still touched it.
And it was in that very moment that I saw it.
The numerous red dots that circled me from every direction. No, more than that... The more I looked around, the more red dots appeared in my vision. So many that I instantly gave up any idea of using my newest node.
My heart sank whilst the Conductor burst out laughing.
"What a fantastic greeting, don't you think?"
I couldn't even bother responding to the Conductor as I felt something invisible grasp me from the back, pulling me deeper into the mist. Without second thought, I activated [Trait Transfer] and coated my entire body in darkness.
Or at least, I tried.
"Hm—!?"
The moment the darkness began to coat my body, I lost my balance as something grasped me from beneath, clawing at my ankle as it tried to pull me down.
"Not fast enough."
The Conductor's words echoed from the distance as it stared at me without doing a single thing.
But that wasn't all.
Sitting on top of one of the branches, Mirelle looked down at me while chewing on some gum.
She also looked to be enjoying my current predicament.
"——!"
Ah, this...
I suddenly started regretting making them my anomalies.
"Kh—!"
Unfortunately, there was no time to think about this as even more hands emerged from beneath me, clawing at my ankles and pulling me down. The fog around me thickened as I started to struggle to breathe.
At the same time, my heart sped up as dread began to crawl up my body.
'No, I can't get dragged down. Remain calm. I must remain calm.'
I had a vague idea of what was going to happen if I were to be dragged down, and as such, became even more frantic.
Struggling with all my might, I had no choice but to use the knife as I cut down at the hands that were clawing at me.
Swooosh!
That seemed to do the trick, and I managed to free myself from whatever was dragging me down. But it wasn't over; my legs were still nearly knee-deep in the ground. To make matters worse, I could feel the number of entities around me beginning to increase.
'Shit! Shit! Shit—!'
The situation was turning worse and worse for me.
Looking around, I frantically searched for a solution, my knife slicing through whatever tried to cling to me. My power grew with each cut, but so did the pressure in my mind, as faint whispers began to slip inside.
More.
Deeper.
Stay.
"That's it—!"
I tore myself free from several of the invisible hands and heaved upward. For a brief second, I broke their hold—
—but it wasn't over.
My legs were still in the ground.
Worse still, I could feel it.
The number of people around me was growing.
The most infuriating part was that even now, I still couldn't tell what I was dealing with. I could feel the hands, yet I couldn't truly see them.
Even with the knife clenched in my hand, I could barely tell where the attacks were coming from. They struck from every direction at once, as if the fog itself had grown hands and decided to close in on me.
Wait...!
'The fog!'
It finally hit me as I glanced at my right shoulder, where something tugged insistently, trying to drag me down. Another grip tightened around my waist, adding to the strain on my body, but this time, I didn't resist.
'If I'm not dealing with multiple entities, but just one, then...'
I let whatever was trying to pull me down do its thing.
The ground beneath me split apart as my body sank further and further, the pressure in my chest increasing.
This continued until half of my body was submerged in the soil.
That was also the moment I did it.
I activated my Fourth Node.
[Herding]
"Stop."
In an instant, a terrifying pain tore through my mind, so sharp it stole the air from my lungs. I winced, almost collapsing back as I just barely kept myself from falling back while holding onto the ground beneath me.
But—
Everything seemed to freeze at once.
For a brief moment, everything turned silent. So silent it felt unsettling.
But soon, I broke the very same silence.
"Haa... It's... haa... gone."
I could feel it. The hands, or whatever those invisible things were that had been trying to drag me back, had stopped.
I waited for the next several seconds, waiting for the pain inside of my mind to calm as I held my hand forward and mumbled, "Come."
Swooosh!
The fog around me trembled.
But not for long, as it soon began to follow my order, and the surroundings started to clear up.
In the distance, I could feel the Conductor's lips pull into a smile.
"Not bad."
It clapped, looking satisfied.
"...But this is just the start. Things will get quite a bit more interesting. I can't wait."
-x-X-x-
[Herder] was a skill that was similar to [Containment Vessel] to some extent, but also differed in many ways.
Both skills allowed me to control anomalies, but unlike [Containment Vessel], which was permanent, [Herder] wasn't permanent. There was a limit to how long I could control an anomaly, but I could also control a lot more anomalies than with [Containment Vessel].
The more powerful I was, the more anomalies I could control.
"...Come to me."
The fog condensed into my palm as I created a connection with it.
My fourth node churned as I controlled the fog, but I paid no attention to it as I stared at my surroundings.
Without the fog, I was now able to get a better look at everything around me.
"Yeah, it seems like I'm in some sort of forest."
This much had already been clear to me before. However, it was still good that I could see far ahead now. This made things a lot less tense for me.
With that being said, the surroundings were still dark.
Looking up, I could see no sky.
Just... darkness.
"Where could the others be?"
I looked around me, unsure of where to go.
The Conductor stood close to Mirelle as she remained where she was, her legs wiggling on top of the branch while she took out another gum and shoved it down her mouth.
After which, she said, "I can't see anything from here."
"I figured that much."
There was no use calling for Mr. Jingles as the clown would be of no use to me at the moment. Perhaps the Realmwalker could offer something, but that wasn't my immediate concern.
Right now, my real problem was far simpler, and far worse.
Where exactly was I within the Limbo... and how was I supposed to get out of this place?
'With the compass not working, things have become so much harder for me.'
Still, not everything was bad.
I looked at the mist hovering above my palm and clenched my hand into a fist. The mist dispersed, moving in all directions.
'With this, I should be able to move without any problems.'
Now that I was in control of the fog, I was able to sense anything that entered its domain. I could also now hide my figure within the fog, making it harder for anomalies to spot me. The unfortunate thing was that the mist couldn't spread very far.
There was a limit to how much I could spread it.
But just because it couldn't spread far, it didn't mean that the distance was short.
"I should be able to scout the area ahead of me better."
The range was about a kilometer in every direction.
"There's no use spending time over here doing nothing. I might as well go ahead and try to scout my surroundings."
Without any further ado, I began walking ahead.
*
The number of anomalies that I met on the way was a lot less than I originally expected. In fact, there weren't many to begin with. The most concerning thing about this place was the absolute silence of everything.
It was as if no soul existed.
Sigh~
'How long have I been walking for?'
The more I walked, the more endless this forest felt. The fog spanned a kilometer in all directions, and it felt as though I had walked for several kilometers by now, and even then, I had yet to find a way out of the forest.
Not even anything related to the teams that had disappeared.
'Could they have been dragged to the layers beneath?'
The thought surfaced in my mind.
My heart sank at the idea. I had learned a little bit about the nine layers of hell, and amongst all of the layers, the Limbo was supposed to be the most forgiving of the layers.
Sigh~
I sighed as I walked.
"At this rate, I'll be stuck here for a very long time. I hope that time here flows the same as it does on the outside."
I continued to walk.
"But why can't I find anything?"
Sigh~
My legs started to hurt.
"Maybe I should rest up a little bit."
Sigh~
I was sighing a lot, wasn't I?
My steps paused.
Bringing my hand to my face, I ruffled my face.
"As expected, this place is trying to mess with my mind."
The more I walked, the more depressed I felt.
It was as if my very energy was getting sucked out of me. At the same time, I started to worry. The more time I spent here, the more disadvantageous things would be for my team above.
I trusted them, but could they handle the situation without me?
"No, they can't."
My chest tightened.
"I need to get to them quickly. I need to——Huh?"
I stopped abruptly, my head spinning towards a certain direction as I felt a disturbance in the fog. I focused all of my attention in the direction of where I felt the disturbance, and my heart skipped a beat.
'Something!'
...One, two, three...
I could feel the presence of four people.
And they weren't anomalies.
In that case...!
Swooosh!
I didn't waste a single second and rushed in the direction of the presence.
***
"Squad Leader, where the hell are we? Do... you still not have any signal?"
"I don't."
Esteban replied, looking back at his own team members. Everyone present was an elite member of the Melson Sanders Guild. They were all adept at handling situations that would catch one off guard.
But before they knew it, they found themselves lost.
There had been no signal to begin with in Point Z, but at this moment, it felt as though all electronics had stopped functioning. They had also shot a flare, but nothing came out of it.
"...I am not sure about this situation."
Esteban continued, taking out a map and looking at it.
"Are we even in Point Z?"
His words brought a sudden tension to the surroundings as they all looked at the Squad Leader with worry. But as if things were already not bad enough, a sudden fog began to appear, consuming all of them at once.
"——!"
Tensions rose as everyone looked at one another, unsure of how to react.
"Everyone, stay close."
Esteban looked at his Squad Members once more. With him, there were a total of four. They were all trained elites with a lot of years of experience, and under Esteban's orders, they all moved closer.
"Let's go back this way."
As Esteban pointed in a certain direction, everyone followed without a word, moving carefully in hopes of escaping the fog.
But the farther they walked, the thicker it became. The mist swallowed the path ahead, curling around their legs and climbing higher with every step. The world around them smeared into shifting shades of gray until even the nearest shapes began to dissolve into formless shadows.
Only the sharp tips of the surrounding trees remained visible, their sharp crowns piercing through the fog like dark spears.
Silence pressed in all directions besides the soft crunch of their steps.
No one spoke. They scanned their surroundings in silence, every step measured. Muscles stayed tight, breaths shallow, each of them braced and ready for whatever might lunge from the fog.
As they walked, however, it wasn't long before the group noticed a silhouette in the distance.
Esteban raised his hand, stopping everyone at once.
Their bodies turned incredibly dense as their nodes churned at once.
But the figure in the distance remained still. Hidden within the fog, the figure looked to be levitating in the air.
Esteban's eyes narrowed. He gave a subtle nudge to his team, signaling for them to spread out and encircle the entity as they advanced in silence.
The closer they moved, the clearer the silhouette became.
At the same time, a sound reached them.
Faint at first. Easy to mistake for wind brushing against bark.
A slow, uneven swaying.
Then a soft creak.
One resembling the pull of a rope.
Creaak!
Accompanying the sound, the figure became even more clear, distorting into a humanoid shape. But as the group drew closer, their steps slowed as their eyes caught a better look at what was ahead.
And then—
THUMP!
One of the members stumbled back, their expression turning white as paper as they pointed at the silhouette.
"T-that! That...!"
"What? What's wrong with you?"
Esteban frowned, taking a close look at the silhouette. But as he did, his expression changed drastically too. For the silhouette was not an anomaly.
No, it was...
"Jordan?"
Creaak. Creaak.
The faint creak of rope swaying echoed through the forest, the sound stretching thin against the suffocating quiet.
This...
"How is this possible? This makes no sense!"
This was none other than his squad member.
But wasn't he with them just now?
If he was, then how could...?
"He seems to have killed himself a while ago."
A voice shattered the silence, startling everyone present as a figure appeared next to the corpse, looking at it closely before looking back at them.
"...At least an hour ago."
-x-X-x-
"You—!"
The unexpected appearance took everyone in the group aback. However, they were also just as quick to get ready as they surrounded the figure, their nodes churning and their bodies ready to deal with what was before them.
But contrary to their expectations, the figure remained nonchalant as he analyzed the hanging body.
"Mhm, he's certainly been dead for at least an hour."
As if confirming his thoughts, he turned to face their direction. The moment he did, Esteban's expression underwent a subtle shift as his entire body chilled at the sight of the dark eyes that greeted him.
However, he was quick to shake himself out of that state as he recognized the figure immediately.
"It's you?"
There was simply no way Esteban wouldn't be able to recognize him.
In fact, everyone recognized him. How could they not when he was the man of the hour? The most popular person in Congress.
But there was an issue—
"Who would've thought I'd see you here?"
A voice echoed from behind Esteban as a tall figure stepped forward, his frame even larger than Esteban's. As his bushy brows furrowed tightly, Drake pushed Estaban aside and stood before Seth.
In Drake's presence, Seth looked tiny.
"...Oh, it's you."
Seth also appeared to recognize him.
How could he not?
"You're the guy who ranked behind me."
"You—"
"Work hard."
Seth pulled his gaze away from Drake, not looking at all interested in having a war of words. In fact, he seemed more interested in the body that was next to them.
Drake's expression changed slightly, his lips parting, but before he could get any words out, Esteban walked forward and pressed his hand over Drake's shoulder.
"Now is not the time. Jordan is dead."
Drake's lips closed immediately, but his glare grew more intense.
Esteban sighed in relief.
While it was true that he was the Squad Leader of the team, the strongest person in the group was Drake. There was a clear difference in their ability, but the issue with Drake was his attitude.
He was rather hot-headed.
"Let's figure out what happened."
"There's no need to figure it out."
Seth suddenly spoke, pointing at the rope tied over Jordan's neck.
"He killed himself."
"What sort of nonsense are you spouting?"
Drake blurted out, unable to hold back as he took a step closer to Seth.
"We're all trained professionals over here. We all take the most advanced mental examinations. Jordan is also one of the most elite members of our Guild. Someone like him would never commit suicide."
"Well, he did."
Seth shrugged, seemingly unfazed by Drake's pressuring gaze.
He was, in fact, unfazed. He had seen too many things. There was also the fact that they were in hell.
"Haa."
Drake took a deep breath, closing his eyes to keep his cool. At the same time, he turned to look at Esteban.
"I'll look for whoever is responsible. The body is still warm, so it can't have happened long ago. I don't know how this happened right under our noses, but I'll get to the bottom of it."
"...You won't find anything."
Seth's voice echoed once more, causing Drake's expression to turn even more.
But just before he could say something, Esteban spoke.
"Why do you think so?"
Unlike Drake, he actually wanted to hear his opinion. Not only was Seth ranked higher than Drake, but he had also ranked at the very top in the First Trial. There was no way the input of someone like him wouldn't be of any use.
'Perhaps, he might even know where we are.'
"This place is affecting your minds. I'm sure you've noticed it. The longer you stay, the heavier your thoughts become. Your chest starts to feel empty, and thoughts you'd never once considered begin creeping in."
Seth's words caused the expression of the group to change subtly.
"What bullshit!"
Drake suddenly spat, his eyes narrowing as he turned around to look at Seth.
"I've been trying to hold myself back. From the moment I saw you, I wasn't exactly pleased, but I kept quiet for the group's sake. But you're making that difficult. What would someone at the Second Order really understand about this? How can you spout such nonsense? What thoughts? My mind is completely clear."
"That's because you need a mind for you to hear anything. I'm also not talking to you, am I?"
Seth looked in Esteban's direction.
From the start, he was clear with the group's hierarchy.
"You—"
"Stop."
Esteban raised his hand to stop Drake from saying another word.
Narrowing his eyes, he alternated his gaze between Jordan's body and Seth. He appeared to be lost in his own thoughts, the silence around them dragging on before he eventually nodded his head.
"I believe what you said is true."
"Squad Leader?! Why would you—"
"Stop letting your prejudices affect your mind. It's because you're like this that I'm stuck being the Squad Leader when you're far more qualified than me."
Sighing, Esteban moved towards Jordan's body.
Stopping right before it, he analyzed it carefully before speaking again.
"Not long before we spotted the body, Jordan was with us. That's why we never took notice of his disappearance. Since he probably killed himself an hour ago, someone or something pretended to be in our group."
"...Likely."
"However, the moment we arrived here, there was no longer a fourth member with us."
"..."
"Then you suddenly show up out of nowhere, and you explain all of this?"
Esteban calmly looked in Seth's direction.
He didn't attack or do anything. Instead, he calmly looked into Seth's dark eyes. For some reason, they seemed even darker than before as he stared back at Esteban.
"I'm sure you understand where I'm getting at, right?"
"I can see your point, yes."
But surprisingly, Seth was still relatively calm.
He didn't look at all fazed by the suspicion directed at him.
"I certainly do look suspicious if you put it that way."
"I'm glad you know."
Esteban nodded.
At the same time, Drake's figure appeared right behind Seth.
"We're not going to harm you. However, until we figure out what's going on and whether you're truly with us, I'd like you to cooperate."
"....."
Seth looked around, feeling the not-so-friendly gazes from those around him.
He had the ability to escape or even fight them.
But—
"Sure."
He smiled.
"I'll co-operate with you."
***
I wasn't tied up or anything of the sort.
However, it felt as though something was locked with me as the group before me closely analyzed the dead body. They asked me questions from time to time, and I answered to the best of my abilities.
Of course...
"You really don't like me, do you?"
I looked at the big guy in front of me.
His attitude since the Ranking Announcement hadn't changed one bit.
"I do not like you."
He was also rather straightforward with his replies.
"I still do not believe that you deserve the spot that you've achieved. I've worked tirelessly throughout my entire life to crack the top 100, and yet, out of nowhere, you come and take over the rankings with minimal work. I do not like it."
"...Is that so?"
That certainly made sense.
'But I wonder if there are more people here. If so, should I try looking for them too?'
As I sat next to one of the trees, I continued to monitor the surroundings. I made sure to check if there were any anomalies in the surroundings, and as the minutes passed, I eventually spotted something.
"There's an anomaly coming not far from here. North."
The group paused, all eyes turning toward me as Esteban looked at a skinny man with an extremely pale face. The moment Esteban glanced at him, he closed his eyes. Judging by that reaction, he was probably the team's [Hunter].
Lines formed on his forehead as he tried to look for anything, but...
"I can't feel anything."
As he opened his eyes, he shook his head.
"...There's nothing."
Drake's lips twisted with scorn.
But before he could say a word, I extended my hand and activated [Trait Transfer].
He reacted almost immediately, but I laughed.
"Hahaha~"
Whatever he was trying to do stopped at once, causing his expression to change as a dark film spread across my skin, writhing as it reshaped itself into the form of a gun. Without waiting for anyone to say a thing, I pressed the trigger, and—
BANG!
I shot right at Drake's head.
Thump!
The expression on Drake's face was a sight to see.
Staring back at me with wide eyes, his eyes trembled. On the other hand, I looked at the gun in my hand.
'Not bad at all.'
It was the Conductor's words that made me think more about my abilities. In particular, the Realmwalker's first ability, [Body Morphosis]. There was no real limit to the skill. It enabled the Realmwalker to manipulate its body in any way that it wanted.
A sword.
A... shield.
It could turn into anything.
And if that were the case, then why wouldn't it be able to turn into a gun?
'I thought guns wouldn't be effective in this world, and while they don't, I do know that the girl from Obsidian Bastion specializes in them.'
Having studied them quite a bit due to the sudden sponsorship and the fact that they were one of the strongest Guilds around, I had a sudden bout of inspiration.
That was when [Trait Transfer] came to play, and I tried it.
'...Safe to say that it isn't too bad, but still far from what I want.'
The power was not quite there yet.
"It's not dea—"
BANG!
A foot pressed down on the anomaly, squashing its frame into a pulp as Drake's expression darkened. He seemed to have a lot that he wanted to say to me, but after opening his mouth, he decided to close it.
Esteban, their Squad Leader, moved towards the body.
"I'm not quite familiar with this anomaly."
"...I wouldn't be surprised considering its current condition."
I pointed at the pulp that was on the ground.
Esteban smiled.
"I had gotten a good look at it before Drake stepped on it. I am certain that it isn't an anomaly that we're accustomed to."
But other than that, he didn't say anything else.
In fact, the way he and the others looked at me was filled with even more suspicion.
I couldn't blame them.
After all, somehow, I was able to detect the anomaly that even the [Hunter] in the team couldn't. Me, a Second Order.
"Squad Leader, what do you think we should do?"
Drake looked at Esteban, who seemed lost in his own thoughts. After a while, he looked in the direction of their dead squad member and took a deep breath.
"There's no point in staying here. We'll just be wasting time. For now, we don't even know where we are, so it's best to proceed. Since we've met him here, there might be a chance that more people are here."
By 'him', they were talking about me.
Of course, Drake had to add his own quip after Esteban's words.
"That's assuming it's really him," he said, his gaze fixed ahead. "Or that he isn't the one responsible for all of this."
I didn't even entertain him, fixing my attention on the dead anomaly.
Tapping my foot against the ground, I watched as the others removed several items from their dead member's body and bowed slightly to him before leaving. I followed them in the middle, sandwiched by Esteban and Drake.
'They really don't seem to trust me, huh?'
Honestly, if I wanted to, I probably could've left on my own already.
But truthfully, I wanted to stay for several reasons. Mainly, I felt that with more people around, I could get a better picture of what was going on. Secondly, I didn't want to hear anymore of the Conductor's nonsense.
"...Sam, tell me if you feel anything."
As Esteban referred to the [Hunter] in the group, we continued to walk ahead. The fog remained thick as I kept it that way, the long and skinny branches of the trees stabbing through the fog as I tried to sense any presence.
But be it an anomaly or people, there wasn't anything else within our proximity.
This carried on for several hours, until—
Creaaaak!
A soft creaking sound echoed in the distance, causing everyone to pause as Elbert looked back at us, making sure everyone was present. Once he was certain that everyone was next to him, he moved towards the source of the sound.
Creaak! Creaaaak—
That was also when it became clearer that the creaking sound didn't just come from one source.
But multiple.
And as we moved past the trees, several silhouettes swayed within the fog.
The air around us significantly tightened as Esteban walked forward, his expression changing as he stopped before the silhouettes, his hand moving forward to stop one of the bodies hanging by the trees from swaying.
His gaze eventually turned to me.
"...Suicide"
By now, if he had any doubts about my previous words, there were none anymore. I had been with the group the entire time, with Drake and him keeping a close check on me. If I really had been the one responsible for this, the two would've noticed.
I spoke up.
"They were most likely affected by the surroundings. Just like I mentioned before, this place feeds on your darker thoughts. The longer you stay here, the heavier they become, creeping deeper into your mind until eventually you kill yourself."
Tensions rose as I said those words.
However, that wasn't what I cared about the most at the moment.
'Although this is what I said, I have a feeling there's more than that. I have a feeling there's something else more sinister playing, but I can't quite explain it.'
Looking down at my hand, I watched as all of the hair stood on end as I rubbed it down and tried my best to keep the goosebumps down. But right as I was about to say something else, the fog stirred.
'—!?'
No, it didn't just stir.
Something was attacking it!
My head flicked in the direction of where the attack was coming from, and without wasting a single second, I pointed in that direction.
"I feel multiple presences coming from there."
Esteban looked at me, his brows furrowing tightly. I wanted to say something more, but my expression changed as I clenched my hand and quickly recalled the mist. However, to my absolute shock, the figure jumped into the mist and instead of attacking it, seemed to be headed right for us.
'Shit!'
My heart leaped out of my chest as my fourth node trembled.
In that split second, I stopped using the fourth node at once, releasing the fog from my control.
The air grew thicker the moment I did so, but right as I released the fog, a blinding light shot from ahead of me, heading right for me.
I wasn't even able to react in time before my vision was blinded.
I didn't react. Didn't have the time to blink.
By the time I realized what had happened, a blade stopped right next to my throat as a familiar figure stopped in front of me.
"...Oh?"
His golden hair fluttered softly as he turned to look at me. After a brief moment, his lips slowly curved into a calm, serene smile.
"It's you. I didn't expect you to be here."
His sword remained close to my throat.
No...
Rather, it seemed to pull closer to it. Almost to the point it was touching it.
"...Were you the one responsible for the fog?"
The blade continued to press over my neck.
Everything happened so fast that I hardly had the time to react. But I was quick to snap out of it as I stared at the figure standing before me.
I recognized him with a glance. How could I not when he was one of the highest ranked Paragon's participating in the Congress, and the person who ranked right after me during the First Trial?
"Are you not speaking?"
"...That's not it."
The words flowed out of my mouth with unexpected ease.
"I'm just trying to process why you put your sword over to my neck."
"Didn't I say why?"
Leon smiled, staring at the fog around us. After which, he returned his attention to me as his eyes gleamed.
"I felt a strange connection between the fog and you. Hmm. Wait..." He suddenly frowned, looking around. "How strange. I no longer feel that connection, but I'm almost certain that I did feel it."
My heart sank.
Something like this can be felt...? What sort of monster was this guy? Thankfully, I had already severed my connection with it.
Otherwise—
"Did you sever your connection with the fog?"
This guy...
"...I didn't."
I continued to deny it.
Despite the sharp tip of his sword still resting over my neck, I maintained a strange cool as I continued to make eye contact with him. He looked back at me, and for just the briefest of moments, neither of us said a thing.
That was until a certain voice shattered the silence.
"Are you saying this bastard was the one controlling the fog?"
Oh, great...
I didn't even look back.
"That would make sense. Things have been rather strange ever since he's come."
"Oh?"
Leon raised his brow, shifting his attention towards Drake.
"Tell me more about it. What happened while he was with you?"
"One of our team members killed themselves. Or at least, that was how it appears to be, but I've got a nagging feeling that this guy is involved. There are just too many things that are suspicious about him."
"Is that so?"
Leon shifted his attention back to me, his lips pulling upwards slightly.
"Is there more?"
"He said that the reason for our team member killing themself is because of this place. That it slowly eats at your mind. Even now, I've not felt a single thing. I think he's full of shi—"
"Well, I guess he's cleared for now."
Contrary to everyone's expectations, Leon removed the tip of his sword from my neck, putting it away as he looked around.
His sudden actions caused Drake's face to stiffen slightly.
But before he could get any words out, Leon turned his attention towards me.
"I've noticed this as well. There's something about this place that drives someone to commit things that they normally wouldn't do. I'm not surprised that you've managed to figure this part out, considering your performance in the first trial."
"It wasn't much."
I glanced to the side while answering. Without much needing to be said, Drake's face was a piece of work at the moment. It looked like he had eaten a pile of shit.
I wanted to smile, but Leon's next words prevented me from doing so.
"But that's not all."
His words brought the attention of all back to him.
"While it is true that this place drives someone to kill themself, the most troublesome aspect of it all is that even if you kill yourself, you probably won't realize it."
"What?"
Leon's words made everyone pause, including me. As if sensing my shock, Leon smiled as he mumbled, 'So you weren't able to notice this part, huh?'
He proceeded.
"It's just like I said. Even if you end up dying, you'll probably never notice it. You'll keep following the group like nothing has happened, not even realizing that you're already dead. You and your group will only realize this once you find your body, and by then, you'll eventually disappear."
"How is that possible?"
Drake's words came out rather loud as he found himself unable to hide his shock. I didn't even blame him, for I was just as shocked as he was.
If what he said was true, then...
"Mhm."
Leon nodded.
"There's a good chance that either one of us is already dead and we don't know it yet."
The silence that followed the statement felt incredibly heavy. I wanted to deny his words. I could feel my nodes and my connection with the Conductor and the other anomalies. I was almost certain that I wasn't dead.
But...
But what if...?
What if I had truly...
"There's no need to be too shocked. This is merely something that I found out through some observation. I've experienced it myself, and what's most surprising is that the person who is dead will have all of their abilities working without any issues."
"But if that's the case, maybe they weren't dead? Maybe—"
"No, they were dead."
Leon spoke over Drake.
Pausing for a moment, he tapped on his temple.
"...You see, I rarely get these things wrong. I'm certain about what I saw."
His words were met with silence. Drake wanted to argue further, but stopped himself.
For some reason, it felt hard to argue with him. His words sounded a little arrogant, but when taking into account just who was saying it, then he had the reputation to back up his statement.
And—
'I have a feeling that he's not wrong. Especially after what I heard coming from the group from Melson Sanders. They did mention something about their group member being with them until they found the body.'
But that begged the question...
How would one know if they were dead or alive?
"Oh."
Suddenly, Leon's head turned. Not long after, several figures began to appear through the mist, eventually arriving before Leon. Wearing the same crisp uniform as him, they all lined up in front of him without making a single sound.
'Looks like his team members are here.'
Leon looked at his team.
"Have you found anything?"
"Nothing."
A man stepped forward. He had a rather long nose, while his dark hair was neatly parted to the side. Although he wasn't a Paragon, I had an idea of who the man was. He was rather famous.
"Mhm."
Leon looked at the group.
Then—
Swoooooosh!
In a motion my eyes couldn't follow, he slashed in the direction of the one who had spoken, severing their neck at once. The expressions on everyone's faces changed drastically, everyone's body tensing at once.
"What?!"
"Squad Leader...!?"
"Y-you...!"
But not me.
Looking at him and then the severed head, I noticed something.
His calmness.
It was a little too strange.
And sure enough.
"I guess that proves it, huh."
He smiled, lifting his head to look at me while my gaze remained fixed on the head as it slowly merged with the fog, gradually disappearing.
"Would've been really embarrassing if I got that wrong."
He laughed.
But his laugh didn't make me or anyone smile.
All I felt were chills.
"You really can't tell the difference between someone who is dead or who is alive. They're almost identical. I'm glad that I was right. But..."
As his laughter died down, his gaze scanned over our group.
The chills that I felt intensified.
"...I wonder just how many of you are truly alive."
The question made everyone turn silent.
Staring in Leon's direction, I didn't know how to respond or react. Was what he was saying true?
'I did see it with my own eyes, but I still have my connection with the Conductor and the others. I doubt that I'm actually dead.'
Looking around, my heart sank when I saw the others show similar expressions to mine.
They were probably thinking the same thing.
"...That's two from my group."
Hovering over the spot where the severed head of his group member was, Leon shook his head in disappointment.
"His name was Michael. He was quite talented. It's a pity to see him go like this, but at the end of the day, since he's dead, it only means that he wasn't good enough to be in my group."
Those from Leon's group stiffened, but said nothing while Leon put his sword away and looked around, his eyes scanning the surroundings. Eventually, he moved towards one of the trees and sat down, leaning back against the dark bark.
Staring at him, I didn't know what he was planning on doing.
But right then, his lips parted.
"That's annoying."
His gaze was fixed on the fog around us.
"It's been bothering me for quite a bit. Hey, you."
Leon looked in Drake's direction as he nudged his head.
"Get rid of it."
"What...?"
Drake's face stiffened at the sudden command.
Leon cocked his head.
"Did you not hear me?"
The corner of Leon's eyes curled, almost as if they were smiling.
"...I said get rid of it. I know you. You're more than capable of doing so."
Drake's face darkened at the command, but before he could say anything, a hand reached for his shoulder as his Squad Leader shook his head.
Drake's face twisted further, his jaw tightening before he eventually agreed.
"Fine."
Turning his attention toward the surrounding fog, I felt something shift in the air as a soft popping sound reverberated through the area. At the same time, I could feel Drake's nodes beginning to churn as his fist clenched tightly.
I stood by the side, observing in silence.
'I wonder what his Decree is. I did study the Decrees of all the top people, but he wasn't one of the ones that I'd studied.'
Then—
BANG!
He punched the fog with one swift motion.
The pressure behind that single punch was enough to send my hair and clothes fluttering wildly as the fog writhed intensely before compressing into the spot where he punched, fading completely.
By the time he was done, Drake was breathing heavily as he looked in Leon's direction.
The only thing Leon offered was a smile.
"Good. I'm glad I could count on you."
From the way he acted, it seemed like he had known all along that he would have been capable of doing that. On the other hand, I was struggling to come to terms with what I had seen, my lips pursing together as I tried to hide the shock from my face.
'He was that strong...?'
No, this shouldn't have come as a surprise.
There was no way someone ranked in the top 100 would not be this strong.
'I guess his arrogance makes sense. Nevertheless, it's also clear that he's in the top rankings because of his strength and not his other qualities. I'm also surprised he didn't do this earlier, but considering how heavily he's breathing, I guess that might be it.'
He had the power, but not the brains.
Feeling Drake's glare as I pulled my gaze away from him, I looked around before settling my attention towards one of the trees. Taking in everything that I had just learned, there was a lot that I needed to process.
I wanted to sit down and process everything.
But—
"Hmm. I think I've got it figured out."
Leon suddenly stood up.
My eyes widened slightly as I looked up.
'What? He's already figured it out?'
This guy...
"This place feeds on your negative emotions. From the moment you enter this place, it'll enhance every negative emotion that you feel in your body, eventually leading to you killing yourself. That's the goal of this forest or place."
Yes, this much everyone already knows.
So what did he figure out?
"The way to get out is simple."
Suddenly, Leon raised his finger and stabbed his right eye with it.
Spurt—!
As blood spurted in all directions, everyone's expression changed. Despite this, Leon remained completely unbothered as blood dripped down his eye, his finger pulling out a short moment later as he wiped his bloodstained finger over his clothes.
"Mhm, looks like I was right."
He suddenly smiled.
"...One has to sacrifice something important to them to see the way. Only through such a way can you show that you can let go and not cling to the thing holding you down. The more you cling to the thing that you can't let go of, the stronger the dark thoughts become. This will continue until you eventually kill yourself."
Hearing his explanation, my heart skipped a beat.
This...
'When I take into account that this is the Limbo, and what it signifies, his explanation makes sense. But how did he figure out so quickly? Does he know that we're in hell? Just what sort of monster is this?'
"As expected, the path is clear."
Leon looked towards the distance.
At the same time, one of his team members moved next to him.
"Your eye..."
"It's nothing important. I'll have a Mender heal it later."
He then turned.
"Well, you're all in luck. Considering how I am the one to have sacrificed something, you all won't need to do that. In that case, just follow me. I'll bring you all out of this place."
He smiled as he spoke, his expression looking sunny.
But amidst the shine, I could feel something else. Something more perverse and broken.
So this...?
This was how a top Paragon operated?
***
It had been almost two days since the World Congress had begun. The popularity of the event was through the roof, with TV ratings reaching an all-time high.
But not all was good.
"We need to stop this at once! Several teams have already disappeared with no idea of whether they are dead or alive. At this rate, we'll lose a major force."
There was a meeting between the Guild Masters of several large Guilds and the event organizers.
However, despite the protest, the event organizers remained indifferent.
Vice-Director Vale, the main spokesperson, looked at all the gathered Guild Masters and spoke.
"Every year, the situation is the same. We have already mentioned to all of you the risks of the event. Although we've indeed lost connection with several groups, there is nothing that states that they are dead. Please believe in your own members."
"That's easy for you to say!"
"You're not the one who is at risk of losing one of their major forces!"
"This is bullshit."
Several Guild Masters began shouting, but the Vice-Director remained indifferent to it all. He just looked around lazily.
Until—
"Let's set the situation with the disappearances aside."
A certain Guild Master spoke.
With long black hair, clear blue eyes, and an appearance that didn't match his age, the surroundings fell silent the moment he spoke. He was Ian Rashmold, the Guild Master of the Evening Sun Guild, one of the top guilds in the world.
"I'm here to bring up a different matter."
Tapping onto the desk in front of him, a projection appeared.
The projection displayed a certain group.
One that many of them were somewhat familiar with. But in particular, the Evening Sun Guild Master's gaze fell on a silver-haired woman.
His finger tapped against the table for a moment before he turned his attention to another person sitting not far from him, a metal plaque reading [Severed Stars Guild] resting before him.
Their gazes met as the Guild Master from the Severed Stars Guild smiled.
"I'm sure all of you are aware of why I'm bringing this up, correct?"
The Evening Sun Guild Master didn't return the smile.
"This group..."
In fact, his face turned colder.
"...I demand they get eliminated from the competition. This goes beyond the realm of what should be acceptable in this competition. This is downright unacceptable."