Nugia stared at the girl; behind the glass, the mark of her hand on his cheek was glaringly visible.
"Stop staring at me! You're nothing but a mindless beast!" she barked.
Nugia remained silent. However, his pupils radiated the depth of a dark ocean, even though the blue glow no longer lingered in his eyes.
"Take him to Sector 2!" she commanded.
"Young Lady, this is not our jurisdiction! We'll be in trouble!" one of the soldiers stammered, his voice wavering as he felt a sudden, heavy atmospheric pressure emanating from Nugia.
"Are you defying me?" The girl with the flaming hair turned, her tear-filled eyes now flashing with a forced ferocity.
"N-no! SIR, NO!" The soldier froze instantly, more afraid of his Young Lady's wrath than the actual consequences of interfering with another sector's soldiers.
Reluctantly, they pointed their Vermilion-crested daggers at Nugia. Suddenly, a raucous voice laced with a mocking tone made the air turn suffocatingly cold.
"Why are thieves playing in my garden?"
Snake. He walked slowly. Without the Sector 2 assassin unit even realizing it, they were already within his reach. His presence seemed to suck all the oxygen out of the corridor—like the coil of a serpent caressing every throat in the room.
The five elite soldiers jolted, their Vermilion daggers trembling slightly. They were trained killers, yet their skin crawled—their instincts screamed that the figure before them was Death itself, merely taking a stroll.
The arrogant girl clutched her teeth, the hand that had just gripped Nugia now balled into a tight fist at her side. "How dare you call us thieves, you wild animal?"
"Shh.. Shh.. Shh.." Snake chuckled.
"Unusual for the most famous person of this century—the holder of the title for the best and youngest assassin in the history of PETERUMMAN—to be playing here? Ariella!" Snake chuckled again, sharper this time, like the rasp of scales sliding against stone.
"Do you wish to feel the warmth of my Vermilion Dagger?" Ariella challenged, gripping the hilt of the blade at her waist.
Snake smirked sharply and removed his glasses. Instantly, his pupils seemed to resonate, causing Ariella to choke. Her breath caught. She could no longer hide the trembling of her hands, nor the fear flooding her heart.
For a split second, a flash of memory tore through her mind. She saw a glimpse of Snake's cruelty—an image that left her speechless.
"Are you ready to become my masterpiece, Princess of Fire?" Snake asked casually, shattering Ariella's trance.
The five elite Vermilion soldiers were no longer looking at Nugia. Their daggers vibrated so violently they made a faint metallic clinking sound. They knew that if Ariella drew her blade, this corridor would turn into a slaughterhouse in seconds—and they were the sacrificial lambs.
Nugia stood motionless, but his eyes, as dark as the deep sea, seemed to be recording every second of Ariella's mental collapse. He wasn't afraid; he was simply... observing.
Then, the sound of rhythmic, elegant footsteps thawed the frost from the direction of the door.
"Forgive my young soldiers, Captain Snake!" a woman's voice shouted—a figure who never removed her hat.
"I will discipline them upon our return!" General Valky stated. Though her steps were firm and authoritative, her tone was lower than her rank—as if she knew exactly who she was facing.
"General Valky! A request from you is hard to refuse. However, you know there is a price to be paid for this!" Snake smirked craftily.
"How dare you—" Ariella cut in.
"Close your mouth, soldier!" Valky's snap brought Ariella's resistance to a dead halt.
"Shh.. Shh.. Shh.." Snake put his glasses back on.
Valky fell silent for a moment, her eyes shifting to Nugia and then to Ariella, who was deathly pale. She took a heavy breath, as if she had just surrendered a portion of her soul to a demon.
"Vermilion Unit, follow me!" Valky shouted. Nugia watched Ariella, who appeared deeply shaken.
Instantly, the corridor left only Nugia and Snake. The space that was once filled with screams now only held the monotonous hum of the air purifiers. Snake simply smirked, leaving Nugia to stand in the silence while the aura of death still lingered in the air.
***
In another room, Meyra was forcing herself to see Amae and Nugia. "Enough, Mey! You haven't fully healed! They're going to be fine, trust me!" Zilla said, remaining calm in her chair. Meanwhile, Reyna—the fragile girl—tried to block Meyra at the door, spreading her arms wide.
"Don't get in my way, Rey! Do you want me to break this door down?" Meyra growled. Reyna ran to hide behind Zilla. Meyra limped forward, dragging her leg while her left arm hung in a cast around her neck.
"Huuhh.." Zilla sighed. "Fine, let me check the situation outside first." Zilla patted Reyna's head and stood up to leave.
Zilla took a deep breath, trying to neutralize the residual anxiety she had caught from Meyra. Her fingers touched the metal door handle, which felt colder than usual.
As the door slid open, the heavy air of the corridor immediately ambushed her. Zilla froze at the threshold. The hair on her neck stood up—not because of the temperature, but because of the lingering presence of something intensely predatory.
Her eyes went straight to Nugia. Her comrade was still standing silently in front of Amae's isolation room. However, Zilla narrowed her eyes when she saw the red mark on Nugia's cheek and Captain Snake beside him.
"Nugia?" Zilla whispered. Her voice was low, almost drowned out by the drone of the air purifiers. "What just happened here?"
"Zilla, do you see Amae crying?" Nugia asked, staring at Amae, who lay helpless amidst the tangle of tubes still clinging to him.
Deep within Amae's eyelids, a dream unfolded—a place where beautiful times were a daily reality.
***
In a warm village, the houses were made of giant mushrooms. Each mushroom gave off a colorful glow. Not far away, a clear stream tempted children to play.
On the outskirts of the village, a miracle began to take shape. In the center of Nadia's palm, sparks of light began to dance, calling the nearby fireflies to gather. A warm ball of golden fire was created. With a practiced, graceful flick, Nadia launched the fire into the sky.
BOOM!
The fire exploded in the dark sky, shattering into thousands of petals of light like a magnificent firework, illuminating the children's faces and the snowflakes falling outside the protective dome.
"Wow, so beautiful!" Zilla cried with a playful hint of envy. "That's not fair, Nadia! You have to teach us too! I'm bored of only being able to make the river water vibrate a little."
"Yeah! Teach us, Princess of Heaven!" Kyuhyun chimed in, cheering her on.
Suddenly, a boy named Amae stepped forward with an arrogant stride, hands on his hips. "Hahaha! You're asking the wrong person. You should learn from this Master of Magic! Pay attention and behold! The legendary sorcerer will show you a performance that will leave you all stun—"
THWACK!
A blow landed squarely on Amae's head. The sound was hollow, like striking empty wood.
"Just do it already, stop talking!" grumbled Meyra, the notoriously fierce little girl, her fist clenched.
Amae rubbed his throbbing head, then returned to his confident pose. He squeezed his eyes shut so hard his face turned red from the effort. The fireflies around him even flew away, sensing an unstable energy.
SPLAT!
Instead of a giant spark, a tiny pop appeared and hit his own nose. It sounded like hot iron being dipped into water. Amae immediately screamed and burst into tears from the shock, causing Meyra to lose her temper and hit his head once more. Laughter erupted by the riverbank, drowning Amae's comical cries in a rare, pure joy.
Suddenly, a harsh metallic screech tore it all down. The colors of the mushrooms faded, absorbed by the cold metal that cleaved through space and time.
As if drowning in water, air bubbles filled Amae's vision.
For a moment, tranquility returned to him. In front of him, he no longer saw his village. Instead, he saw a man he recognized very well. But he was different. He looked older, with hair glowing blue. Nugia.
For a second, he saw the entire world stop moving—even stop breathing. Only Nugia and an unknown entity continued to move.
However, his eyes could not keep up with the battle. In a single blink, he caught sight of a sword piercing through Nugia's stomach.
"Nugiaaa!" he screamed hoarsely, closing the scene into a void.