Kyle stabbed one of the StarGod Twin Daggers into the cliff's wall, then hurled himself downward, using the blade as a hook. With that, he twisted his body swiftly to catch Adela, and succeeded.

"I got you!"

He gritted his teeth and summoned every ounce of strength to hurl her above him, even as his hook began to lose its grip under their combined weight. The brittle rock cracked and loosened the hold of the blade, but by then the grey-haired beauty was already back upon the ground, where Orion caught her firmly, dropping to one knee with the effort.

Tears streamed down her face while she trembled faintly.

"You're okay, Adela. You're fine," the handsome youth assured her as he tried to calm her down.

She looked at him with an apologetic gaze.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I have a fear of heights, because... because... I'm sorry."

Kyle remained suspended on the cliff, his eyes growing wild as he turned them towards the horseman, who was already aiming another arrow, one that had manifested in mid-air. They were not even certain whether the rider was human or something else entirely, nor from whence it had come.

'Fuck, I have to lift myself before that arrow comes at me.'

Kyle knew that the moment that disastrous arrow was released from the horseman's bow, he would be reduced to squashed meat. However, to his aid, Na-Ri had already begun to form a large spear of ice, risking the use of her Spiritual Energy in an attempt to counter the arrow. Her eyes were instantly consumed by a bright blue light as the spear grew to match the disastrous force of the arrow aimed at Kyle.

Even so, the horseman did not seem to care about the ice, keeping their entire focus on Kyle. Orion crawled on the ground to the cliff's edge to help Kyle up as he stretched down his hand.

"Kyle, here, grab my hand!"

The young man looked up and quickly used his free hand to seize Orion's, then dismissed the Twin Daggers as the handsome youth pulled him up with every ounce of strength he could muster, straining. But before success could be secured, the horseman released the arrow towards them and Na-Ri's ice construct met it head-on.

An ear-damaging explosive sound echoed across the entire canyon as the two forces collided in mid-air. Rocks shattered and a wide shockwave rippled through the air, almost blowing the four of them away. Adela, Orion, and Kyle were thrown to the ground on the far side, while Na-Ri remained standing, steady and unshaken, her glare fixed on the horseman who had ceased their attack once the group reached safety.

The beautiful stranger, unable to form another ice construct due to her waning Spiritual Energy, raised her hand towards the horseman.

"...I hope we meet again." she muttered flatly.

All of a sudden, the mask on the horseman's face split apart at the edges and folded inward, melting into its own form as though it had never been there.

What it revealed was far worse.

...A face without flesh, composed only of darkness, where the upper half swirled upward like black fire before vanishing, only to coil again in endless repetition.

None of them could discern whether they were staring at a beast in disguise, a Demon, or something beyond both.

Kyle and Orion slowly staggered to their feet beside the beautiful stranger, who herself seemed momentarily unsettled by the sight.

The handsome youth squinted.

"...I-is that a beast, or another Demon?"

Confused, Kyle answered:

"A Demon? Maybe. But on a horse? Fascinating."

The beautiful stranger dismissed her blade and said flatly:

"Whatever it is, I am certain it will come for us. Which means we are both the hunters and the hunted."

'Tsk. As flat as ever. Well, I am not even surprised by what I am seeing right now. Who would be? Fuck.'

Honestly, the being resembled a shadow, its horse alike, but far more menacing and potent, like Darkness given bodily form, distinct even from the visage of a Demon.

***

The small party pressed on grimly through the jagged terrain of rocks, hills, and small mountains. All the while they remained on edge, expecting the being that had tried to kill them to emerge without warning and strike again.

That fear was hardly unfounded, for the horseman had materialised from nowhere once already, riding out from the very forest they had left behind. It had loosed its arrow at them without them even grasping its position until it had chosen to reveal itself.

With the stakes so high, they knew they had to reach the Citadel as swiftly as possible, or else they might never know the joy of life again.

Thankfully, the handsome youth's shadow once more guided their way, serving as their unerring compass.

Kyle, however, was caught in his own thoughts. From his perspective, it seemed the horseman's true focus was on him rather than the others. Perhaps he was overthinking, but he could not shake the sense that its gaze, its intent, and its murderous will were centred on him alone.

There was little evidence to support that theory.

'Pfft. A definite no. I mean, what importance do I hold for it to be after me? Don't be delusional, Kyle. Wait, why didn't he… huh?'

He thought back to their entire conversation with Orven when the man had been explaining the way to the Citadel. The madman had warned them of dangers along the path, but he had never mentioned this horseman.

...Could it have been sent by the Red Cult?

Still, Orven should have known and told them if that were the case.

In fact, why had he not mentioned it at all? There was no way, no matter how far into madness someone had sunk, that they could forget a being whose appearance alone, along with its horse, branded it as unforgettable.

From what Kyle could discern, the creature was born of Darkness. It was, of course, in no way connected to Orion, whose Element was Darkness.

He glanced at Orion with a sceptical look before dismissing the thought.

'What am I thinking?'

Instantly, Kyle dismissed the whole thought of the being as nothing more than crazed theories, though his insecurity kept biting at him. Na-Ri, Adela, and Orion walked ahead while he lingered behind them.

On this rocky stretch of the island, the luminescent sky pressed down with a harsher weight. The heat bit at them, steadily sapping their stamina. After all, they were human, and nature was never too far away to remind them of their limits.

The handsome youth cast Kyle a faint, questioning look.

After a moment of thought, he slowed his pace, moved closer to his side, and whispered a question.

"Kyle, I have a really big question."

Kyle's brow furrowed.

"Oh? What is it?"

"Umm…"

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