At Lioran's command, Zobi slowly raised his head, but he still didn't dare look directly into his eyes. His gaze slid across the ground, as if even the dirt felt safer than meeting Lioran's stare.
But Goba was still lying on the ground, pretending to be dead. His shallow breaths were the only sign that he was still alive.
"I said both of you… or would you prefer that I cut off your legs so you'll never be able to stand again?"
Lioran's threat had barely faded from the air when Goba jumped up in terror, his limbs fumbling as he tried to steady himself.
"N-no… wait, my lord!"
He hurriedly dropped to his knees in front of Lioran, lowering his head as he continued in a trembling voice.
"Please forgive me, my lord… it won't happen again."
Seeing Goba's reaction, Lioran slowly nodded. There was no anger on his face, no impatience—only the same cold indifference as always.
His hand was still stretched out toward them when suddenly—
The air beneath their feet grew heavy.
A dark and deep magic circle silently formed on the ground. Its lines opened across the dirt like glowing wounds, while strange and unfamiliar symbols revolved around it—letters that did not resemble any human language.
"Well then… let's return to the question."
His voice was calm, almost casual.
"Do you wish to become my loyal dogs… or do you prefer the same fate as those three?"
Goba's face went pale at the sight of the circle. His legs gave out, and he fell backward without control. His breathing turned rapid and uneven as he asked in terror.
"W-what… what is that magic circle…?"
At the sight of the magic circle beneath his feet, Zubi froze. His gaze remained fixed on the ground for a moment; the black lines slowly spinning there seemed to steal the air from his lungs. Then he slowly raised his head and stared at Lioran in confusion.
Chaos stirred in his mind.
' He's a swordsman… so how is he using magic? Is something like that even possible? I've never even heard of someone who can wield both magic and the sword…'
His throat had gone dry. He drew in a deep breath.
' That doesn't matter right now… what should I do? If I refuse to become his dog, he'll kill me… maybe even worse than what happened to those three. But if I become his dog…'
He clenched his teeth.
' No… I have to ask before I decide. Even if it means dying in the worst possible way.'
It seemed he had made up his mind. Zubi fixed his gaze on Lioran's blood-covered face. He swallowed hard and said,
"I have a question… before I give you my answer."
Lioran didn't even blink. He replied immediately,
"Go ahead. What's your question?"
Zubi drew a shaky breath, but this time his voice was firmer—as if something inside him refused to let him back down.
"I want to kill the one who murdered my wife. The only reason I'm still alive… is for revenge. I must take it. Will you stand in the way of my revenge?"
Lioran stared into his determined eyes, his gaze long and heavy. His lips parted slightly.
"If your wife was innocently murdered and the one who—"
He didn't finish his sentence.
Zubi suddenly cut him off. His face tightened, and the suppressed fury within him bled into his voice.
"My wife was innocently murdered… her only sin was that she was too kind."
Hearing Zubi's words, Lioran sensed the restrained anger and the pain hidden behind each of them. He looked into Zubi's eyes and said calmly,
"Then I won't stand in the way of your revenge… I'll help you achieve it."
Zubi froze without realizing it. His gaze locked onto Lioran's eyes. The revenge he had always thought he might never obtain suddenly felt possible. For several moments he simply stared, as if he still couldn't believe it.
Then his expression turned serious. He took a deep breath and bowed his head respectfully before Lioran.
"Then I will serve you until my last breath, my lord."
Lioran merely gave a slight nod—no smile, no extra words. Then his cold gaze shifted toward Goba.
Goba, who had been holding his breath the entire time, snapped back to reality when he felt Lioran's eyes on him. Immediately he rushed forward, dropped to his knees, lowered his head, and said in a trembling voice,
"I will serve you until my last breath as well, my lord."
With the confirmation from both of them, the magic circle beneath their feet silently came to life. The strange runes carved into it peeled away from the ground like living stains—not glowing, but dark, thick, and suffocating. The symbols crept upward from beneath their feet, slow and crawling, as if something dead had begun to move.
Feeling the cold and unpleasant sensation sliding along their legs, Zubi and Goba instinctively looked down. The dark runes were climbing from their ankles and slowly moving up their legs, writhing like living things as they continued to rise.
"My lord… what is this…? Please help me, my lord…!"
Seeing the runes continuing to crawl upward without stopping, Goba fell backward in terror. With his hands, he tried to wipe them off his legs, but it was as if the marks had become part of his body. They wouldn't fade, and they wouldn't stop.
"My lord… why won't they disappear? You said you would give us another chance… please spare our lives, my lord…!"
Zubi, however, did not scream. He simply stared at Lioran with a tense expression and a heavy gaze. Fear was there in his eyes—but more than that, there was expectation, as if he wanted to know exactly what this fate would be.
The runes continued their movement. When they reached their chests, they sank in without any resistance, as though skin and bone were no obstacle at all. One by one, the symbols disappeared, and at that very moment a cold, dark mark formed over the hearts of both men.
The image of a human skull—skeletal and lifeless—like a seal pressed from within.
The spell was complete.
Lioran glanced briefly at Zubi's astonished face and at Goba's trembling voice. He let out a quiet sigh and said,
"Don't be afraid. As long as you don't betray me, nothing will happen to you. Now both of you, get up and bury the bodies of those three."
"Yes, my lord."
Zubi immediately bowed his head. The mark on his chest still felt heavy, but his body obeyed the command without hesitation. He rose to his feet and looked toward Goba, who was still frozen on the ground, breathing in short, uneven gasps.
In a low but firm voice, Zubi said to him,
"Hey… this is our lord's first command. If you don't get up, it might be the last command you ever hear."
Hearing this, Goba suddenly snapped back to his senses. He hurriedly got up, grabbed Zubi's shoulder tightly, and said in a frantic voice,
"No—I don't want to die! What's the command? Tell me… tell me!"
Zubi glanced for a moment at the man's trembling hand, then let out a deep sigh and turned toward the corpses.
"Come. Follow me."
Without a second of hesitation, Goba moved after him like a shadow.
While they carried the bodies away, Lioran cast a brief, cold glance at their backs.
' I hope I made the right decision leaving those fools alive…'
Then his gaze shifted toward the children.
One of them lay unconscious on the ground—motionless and pale. The other three were huddled together, their eyes tightly shut and their hands pressed over their ears.
Even so, their small bodies were still trembling, and their uneven breathing broke the silence around them.
Lioran closed his eyes and murmured to himself,
"Now it's your turn…"
Within Lioran's dark inner world, Anahita stood quietly in the darkness. A faint smile spread across her lips as she said,
"Leave it to me."
At that very moment, Lioran suddenly appeared within that endless darkness in her place, and the control of the body passed into Anahita's hands..