In the Voiceless region, at the Dark Stadium, where masses gathered to crown the strongest Knight after Kysa's disappearance, the tournament had lost its edge.

The crowd favorite, Seraphim D'Angelo, had disappeared without a trace after brutally slaughtering Dumpy, her last opponent.

The crowd reeled from her disappearance, but the tournament pressed on. A replacement duel was held to fill the vacant slot, won by the Persistent Mantis.

She had lost to Seraphim initially and should have died, but the Child of Deceit had shown mercy and healed her.

Clearly, this wasn't the victory the Persistent Mantis craved. Through all her vicious fights to reach the final, one goal burned clear, revenge on the Child of Deceit.

***

While the lesser Voiceless Region scrambled to find someone to restore the balance Kysa had maintained for decades, the Ashen Ages paid no mind to such trivial concerns.

Every bit of terrain here was marked, claimed by some individual or faction. Though Knights existed as the world's backbone class, Assassins occupied most of the land and were far more common to encounter, making this the most treacherous region of the three.

Currently, the NeverLight cohort was pushing through uncharted lands, racing to rescue one of their own: Delilah, Halo's sister and a beloved member.

There was a problem, however.

They'd encountered neither Sinners nor humans, which was highly unusual. Every territory should have been claimed, and their intrusion should have triggered a reaction.

"This is where legends are made. You don't get recognized unless you live here. Most people group themselves by their Only Sins, and some cohorts only recruit those who share the same god. Unless you're Kysa, of course."

Jihriel said, walking alongside Halo and his clones while the others reluctantly led the way, then turned to Saint.

"What do you know, Dark Saint?"

Saint gave him a lazy look.

Jihriel smiled.

"So, you want to build an empire. This region's the place for that. I'm guessing that's why you came. Care to tell me what you've learned?"

Though she was featureless, her annoyance was apparent. After a soft look from Halo, though, she finally spoke.

"This region has five empires, and they control most of the lands. Not everything, though, some areas belong to cohorts or even OverKings. Still, I'll be the first to hold an empire reaching from here to Voiceless."

Halo furrowed his brow.

He still wasn't thrilled about joining Saint on her quest to build an empire. But listening to her, he began to understand the weight of what an empire meant, and her resolve was unmistakable.

"That had already been done, Saint."

Dark Saint frowned, but Jihriel replied with a knowing smile.

"That's not possible. I fact-checked that. No one had done it!"

Jihriel gestured negatively. It was as though he wanted Saint to speak just so he could tear her world apart. It was obvious why Saint disliked him.

"It starts at the academy and runs toward the fog. That giant scar in the land was their work. Follow the mist and the endless fall, and you'll find it spans seven lands. That person is something this world wasn't meant to have. I only hope we see them someday."

Halo's expression darkened.

He remembered. He'd used that fog when he first arrived in this world to take down the first Sinners he'd encountered. But to think one person created that endless drop… insane. It would've been easier to believe if an Absolute Sinner had made it.

That rubbed Dark Saint the wrong way. Her abrupt calm said it all. She wanted that history for herself, and whoever had created it was on her radar now, and not in a good way.

However, Kysa hurried her words to break the silence immediately.

She reached for Halo and Light's hands.

"We will go, right? I need to find my lineage, the Giants."

"Huh? There are giants? I thought that was just a title."

Jihriel turned to Halo.

"You know about Witches and Warlocks, right? You've met the Fourth Witch already, if I'm remembering correctly. Every god has their own sacredness. Favorites, even. It's all about shared meaning.

Darkness pairs with night, black, and dark. Destruction also pairs with Titans, Giants, and titles that embodies perseverance. Those are lineages. And around here, most of them live together like family."

'Does that mean—' Halo thought.

It couldn't be possible, could it?

It just couldn't. Death was rumored to be dead, and besides, there could only be one Shadow of Death. Unless Death cast multiple shadows, Halo had to be the only Shadow alive. Unless it was tied to "Death" itself—the concept, not the creature.

Should he look for them?

That would be futile. Only one person had supposedly served Death, and they were rumored to have killed it. Considering their status, if that were true, they wouldn't be a Calamity, they'd be a success story. Halo didn't want any part of that.

"So, so… can we go?"

Kysa asked enthusiastically, nothing like the person who'd been depressed for decades. Halo gave his clones freedom.

She could do what she wanted. But unless it fit his schedule with Jihriel, he wasn't going anywhere. Light was basically Kysa's little boyfriend now. The two were eager to go.

The distorted routes, the narrow bushes, the vast groves of rubbled trees, and the dead ends filling them with annoyance, the NeverLight crew had been walking for more than a day and still hadn't found any sign of life.

Still, Thor was certain their path would lead them straight to Delilah's location. His True Ability, Great Ally, could locate anyone he considered an ally.

This only made the journey more tiring. They could be heading into a Northern Mist trap. Plus, they were in either the hero Kitten's territory or the Caretaker's. If only they could tell which was which and figure out where the hell they actually were.

Soon enough, something caught their attention. Not what they'd prayed for, but something they were grateful for nonetheless.

"No one should move!"

Omega said under a quiet command.

The presence was overwhelming, and only one creature came to mind.

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