Mephistopheles burst into satisfied laughter as he looked at Zeke and the former vassals of the Arrogant Savior who followed him.
"Hahaha! As expected, my hunch was right!"
He pointed his fan toward Lilith, who had become a shadow guardian spirit behind Zeke.
"To turn that damned Great Whore of Babylon into a summon right away. Impressive! Truly astonishing, Zeke Draker!"
Zeke wore an expression that suggested he had anticipated Mephistopheles's reaction; he had been waiting for him.
'Thereʼs no way that guy didnʼt hear Lilith calling out to me.ʼ
From the moment he first encountered Lilith, he hadnʼt trusted her words.
If what she said had been true, Mephistopheles would never have let him into this place.
He must have pretended not to know, driven by curiosity about what reaction Zeke would show when meeting Lilith.
Zeke said to Mephistopheles,
"Youʼre not thinking of interfering with me taking back the vassals of the Arrogant Savior, are you?"
At those words, Mephistopheles shook his head with a laugh.
"Hahaha! Of course not. For me, itʼs something to welcome. Weʼre allies, after all. The stronger your forces grow, the better it is for me, isnʼt it?"
Zeke could instinctively sense that Mephistophelesʼs words, spoken with glowing violet eyes and a friendly tone, were not the truth.
'It seems like heʼs got some ulterior motive.ʼ
He couldnʼt know the true inner thoughts of Mephistopheles, the demon of contracts, but for now, since he was showing a friendly attitude, it didnʼt seem like he would cause immediate trouble. Still, vigilance was necessary.
The reason Zeke wanted to draw in the former vassals of the Arrogant Savior in the first place was to guard against the demons of the Demon Realm and their vassals.
'You never know when these guys might stab you in the back, so I have to be careful.ʼ
Without revealing his thoughts, Zeke said to Mephistopheles,
"Now that Iʼve taken care of my business, itʼs time for you to fulfill my second request."
Mephistopheles narrowed his eyes at Zekeʼs words and said,
"Yes, you presented two requests to me. To convene the grand lord council and to reveal the hidden truth that the Arrogant Savior spoke of." He nodded nonchalantly and continued in a casual tone.
"Itʼs not a difficult matter."
Mephistopheles snapped his fingers again.
Tssst—
As the surrounding scenery shifted, Zeke and Mephistopheles moved to an antique room.
Mephistopheles threw himself onto the well-made bed and lay down, then flashed a seductive smile at Zeke while patting the spot beside him.
"Come on, Zeke Draker. Lie down here."
Zeke looked at Mephistopheles with a dumbfounded gaze.
Mephistopheles shook his head and said,
"No, no! Donʼt get the wrong idea! Though, of course, itʼs possible if you want. But not right now."
Zeke eyed Mephistopheles, who was patting the bed, with a dubious expression before eventually lying down beside him.
Then Mephistopheles took Zekeʼs hand.
"Now, what Iʼm about to show you is a very heartbreaking story. So, you should brace yourself."
Zeke furrowed his brow at Mephistophelesʼs words.
"What do you mean..."
Before Zeke could finish speaking, the surrounding scenery changed.
Tssst—
An alien world appeared, one that looked like it was made of hundreds of thousands of pieces of glass.
Zeke realized he had entered Mephistophelesʼs unique domain.
At that moment, Mephistophelesʼs voice rang in his ear.
—Welcome to my unique domain, Kaleidoscope.
Mephistophelesʼs unique domain, Kaleidoscope, had the ability to show "everything" that had ever existed.
'So this is Mephistophelesʼs unique domain. Amazing.ʼ
Upon closer inspection, each piece of glass in the Kaleidoscope reflected events from all over the world.
It was possible to see not only things happening in the Phenomenal World but also events from various places in the Demon Realm.
—Here, you can look back not only on current events but also on things that happened in the past.
Zeke asked in surprise at Mephistophelesʼs words,
"Things from the past? So the truth youʼre telling me is about the past?" —Yes, keep your eyes open and watch carefully, Zeke Draker.
As he spoke, the Kaleidoscope domain began to glow and slowly change.
Woooooong!
The hundreds of thousands of glass pieces rippled, and in an instant, the surrounding scenery completely transformed.
'This is...?ʼ
Zeke looked around at the changed environment.
He stood in some forest in the Phenomenal World, not the Demon Realm.
It felt so vivid, as if he had actually moved locations.
'Did I move to the past? No, it doesnʼt feel like Iʼve crossed the timeline.ʼ
The only authority that could cross timelines was the power of Chronos.
Though he had glimpsed fragments of the past before, he had never experienced it so clearly and vividly, so Zeke felt a bit disoriented.
At that moment, something passed in front of Zeke.
Swish swish—
Zeke realized that the people quickly moving into the forest were from the Draker familyʼs Black Stage and felt startled. 'Is this related to the Black Stage?ʼ
He couldnʼt understand what connection the hidden truth spoken by the Arrogant Savior had to the Black Stage, so Zekeʼs expression hardened. But for now, rather than thinking, he needed to confirm the reality.
Since it was just a reenactment of the past, the Black Stage operatives seemed unaware of Zekeʼs presence.
He followed behind the Black Stage operatives.
The Black Stage operatives moved deep into the forest, suppressing their presence as they searched for traces.
Zeke scanned the surroundings and soon realized where this was.
'It seems like the mountain between Baranaon and the Principality of Troy.ʼ
He still didnʼt know why the Black Stage operatives were searching for something here or what relation it had to him.
At that moment, one of the Black Stage operatives raised a hand and gave a signal.
It seemed they had found a crucial clue.
They quickly ran deeper into the forest following the trace.
Zeke followed them as well.
Soon, they stopped somewhere and took out an artifact from their pockets, shining it around.
The blue light illuminated various spots, and soon an unnatural ripple appeared in one place.
It seemed a magic circle concealing the entrance had been set up.
When the Black Stage operatives placed a metal plate engraved with magic circuits in front of the magic circle, the metal plate absorbed the flow of mana, revealing the hidden entrance.
The Black Stage operatives gestured and entered the entrance one by one.
Zeke, who had been watching from behind, followed them inside.
Passing through the entrance, a secretly hidden space appeared inside.
'What is this place?ʼ
There was a level patch of ground like a courtyard in front, and behind it, a huge cave.
But a knight stood in front of the cave.
The Black Stage operatives drew their swords upon seeing the knight and took up alert positions.
At the same time, Zeke couldnʼt help but be shocked to see the knight guarding the cave.
'Decker?ʼ
It was Decker, who had taken care of Zeke since he was young. Zeke found the young version of Decker, whom he saw for the first time, very unfamiliar.
Decker, who had been the captain of the Black Sword Knight Order and who now worked as the mayor of the ruined city of Heli, had been a knight of Draker in the past.
And his mission was none other than to protect Zekeʼs mother, Laura Agamemnon.
'Why is Decker here?ʼ
Decker, emanating killing intent while assuming the rider stance of the Dragon Slaying Technique, faced the approaching Black Stage operatives.
Then he said in a low voice,
"Iʼll cut you down if you come closer." Woooooong!
As if to prove his words were no bluff, an aura blade surged from his sword.
The Black Stage operatives exchanged signals upon seeing such a Decker and spread out widely, surrounding the cave area.
A moment later, the Black Stage operatives charged at Decker simultaneously with a signal.
Whoooosh!
Facing the Black Stage operatives rushing from above, below, and the sides with shortswords, Decker calmly unleashed the Dragon Slaying Technique.
Whoooong—
From Decker swinging his sword with powerful momentum, a strong will to never let them into the cave could be felt.
The Black Stage operatives who clashed with Deckerʼs sword imbued with aura couldnʼt even deflect the attack and were sent flying.
"Kuhk!"
Zeke couldnʼt help but admire the martial prowess of the young Decker as he watched the Black Stage operatives fly away like fallen leaves in an autumn wind.
'At that level, he must have been a promising talent even within the Draker family.ʼ
Zeke thought that if Decker had continued as a knight of Draker, he would surely have been appointed to the Guardian Knight Order.
"Huuu."
Decker exhaled and looked down at the fallen Black Stage operatives around him.
Even in this urgent situation, Decker had subdued the Black Stage operatives without killing a single one.
The Black Stage operatives, seeing that Deckerʼs skills were far superior to their expectations, seemed flustered and tried to retreat.
But it was then.
Kugugugu!
An enormous presence approached from the entrance side.
Crackle crackle!
The barrier magic concealing the hideout completely broke, revealing someoneʼs figure.
Decker gritted his teeth upon seeing a man approaching through the fallen Black Stage operatives.
The one standing before Decker was none other than Arthur Draker, the family head of Draker.
Unlike now, the past Arthur Draker without a beard looked much sharper in impression.
He glanced once at the fallen Black Stage operatives around and said to Decker guarding the cave,
"Decker Galahaut. Watching your remarkable growth has been one of my great joys. But
I didnʼt expect you to disappoint me like this."
Decker, feeling the immense pressure from Arthur, breathed heavily as if even breathing was burdensome.
Arthur took one more step toward such a Decker and said,
"A knight of Draker pointing his sword at the family head. Doesnʼt that go against your oath of loyalty?"
Decker, exhaling roughly, said to Arthur,
"...I will gladly accept the sin of tarnishing my honor as a knight. But... I cannot let you pass through here."
At those words, Arthur smirked as if amused.
"Youʼre going to stop me. Do you think thatʼs possible?"
As Arthur took one more step, the pressure on Decker intensified.
He felt as if he was carrying a massive iron weight on his entire body.
Sweating coldly, Decker said to Arthur,
"...As a knight, I cannot forgive the family head for breaking the heavenly principles." At those words, Arthurʼs eyes widened.
Before he knew it, his beloved sword Caliburn was gripped in his hand.
Arthur swung his sword straight at Decker.
Kugugugu!
It was a single sword strike, but Decker felt as if his entire body was being torn to shreds.
But he did not yield and advanced to receive Arthurʼs sword.
Kwang!
The moment he clashed with Arthurʼs sword, Decker felt a shock as if his whole body was shattering and collapsed to his knees on the spot.
"Kuh uh uh."
Not only his arms and legs, but it felt like all the bones in his body were crushed.
Arthur, holding Caliburn, looked at such a Decker and said,
"I am not someone you can judge." His mad voice echoed in Deckerʼs ears.
And it was then.
Kugugugugu!
A massive vibration rang from inside the cave.
At the same time, an unexpected sound burst out.
Wah—
A clear babyʼs cry came from inside the cave.
Upon hearing it, Arthurʼs eyes changed.
He left Decker kneeling and entered the cave.
Decker tried to move somehow, but with his body shattered, he couldnʼt.
"Kuh uh uk!"
Decker deliberately let his body fall and began crawling toward the cave little by little.
Zeke watched Decker crawling into the cave with tears of blood, feeling heartbroken.
'So this is what happened.ʼ
He turned his head and looked inside the cave where the babyʼs cry had come from.
And he slowly walked inside.
Before he knew it, Zekeʼs heart was pounding.
And at the end of the long cave, an unexpected, horrific sight unfolded.
Puk!
Arthurʼs Caliburn had pierced through Laura Agamemnonʼs heart.
Laura, looking at Arthur who had stabbed her heart, was bleeding from her mouth.
She gave a chilling smile and said,
"...Arthur Draker. No matter how much you struggle... the wheel of fate will eventually shatter."
Arthur furrowed his brow at Lauraʼs words.
Then he pulled out the sword that had pierced her heart in one go.
Thud!
Laura Agamemnon collapsed to the floor, bleeding.