The last thing Athan and the prisoners saw was Kamata's dark energy balls, swirling ominously in the air. But before they could witness what happened next, the entire cave was swallowed by an unnatural darkness—deeper, heavier than anything they had seen before.
"What happened?! Are we… dead?" one prisoner stammered.
"That move… it felt even more powerful than Kamata's Doom Punch," another muttered, still shaken.
Athan, however, remained silent. He had seen this before.
His mind drifted back to his school days—to the labyrinth quest they had undertaken. Back then, an unexpected terrorist attack had thrown the students into chaos. He had been just like these prisoners—weak, powerless, waiting for death. But then, a boy dressed in long elder-like robes had appeared… and saved them all.
That boy had been Baldwin.
Back then, Baldwin wasn't the Demon King. He wasn't even the strongest. He had merely been the academy's top student. And just like now, he had covered an entire labyrinth chamber with his shadows, shielding those he had chosen to protect.
Athan exhaled, waiting.
A moment later, the darkness in the cave started to fade. the shadow wall before Athan sank slowly into the ground, dissolving into nothingness.
and there, standing alone, was Baldwin—a small knife glinting in his hand. without hesitation, Athan rushed toward him.
"Baldwin! Are you okay?"
Baldwin turned to him with a casual smile. "Yeah, don't worry—I'm fine."
Athan's eyes darted around. "So… Kamata's dead?"
Baldwin nodded. "Yeah. But before he died, he gave me a gift—a small knife. Haha."
Athan frowned. "Weird. Anyway, what's our next move? When are we finishing off the prisoners?"
Baldwin's smile faded slightly. "I hate it, you know. Taking lives for our own survival… but what choice do we have?" His gaze shifted toward the prisoners. "Isn't there a way to erase their memories, like you vampires do?"
Athan hesitated. "Baldwin, I don't think that'll work. This world and ours… if my theory is correct, then their memories can be restored. I can erase them temporarily, but we don't know how long that'll last. Worst of all, every time we travel, we lose the gate we came from."
Baldwin sighed. "Yeah, I get it. Let's at least hear them out first. We should know what happened here before we decide anything."
Athan nodded, following Baldwin toward the prisoners. Though he tried to suppress it, he felt the same unease. This wasn't what they wanted. But the world forced their hands.
Baldwin spoke in the prisoners' language. "Where are you all from?"
One of the prisoners eyed him warily. "Hey, kid… what happened to Kamata? Is he alive? Did he escape? We couldn't see anything—it all went dark!"
Baldwin smirked. "So, you guys weren't able to see anything?"
"Of course not! How could we?! You got lucky, kid. Kamata must've run away for some reason."
At this, Athan leaned in and whispered, "Baldwin, I don't think we need to finish them off."
Baldwin nodded. "Yeah, I think so too. It's good that they think Kamata's power display was just a distraction for him to escape."
One of the prisoners scowled. "Hey! What language are you two speaking? We can't understand a word! Where are you from, and what the hell are you doing here?!"
Baldwin kept his expression unreadable. "I can't remember exactly what happened here. For some reason… I just can't say."
The prisoners murmured among themselves, suspicious. one of them suddenly stood up.
Athan tensed. "Did we mess up?" he whispered.
Baldwin kept his voice low. "I don't know. Be ready to finish them off if we have to."
The prisoner looked at Baldwin intently. "Listen, kid… I think they used Memory Sorcery on you."
Baldwin narrowed his eyes. "Memory Sorcery?"
The prisoner nodded. "Yes. It's dark magic that consumes memories in exchange for power. Unfortunately… I don't think you'll ever get your memories back."
Baldwin's expression suddenly shifted. His red eyes glistened as fake tears welled up.
"I… I lost my memories?" he whispered, his voice trembling.
Athan stared, stunned. "What the hell is he doing?!"
To the prisoners, however, Baldwin's act was completely convincing.
"There are other dark magics too," the prisoner continued. "Like bloodline removal, life-force consumption… even the Lustful Curse. But don't worry. We'll take care of you. I can tell your friend is in shock—he's completely frozen."
Baldwin sniffled dramatically. "My… my friend's name is Athan."
Athan nearly choked on air. "Ewww! He's too good at acting! People should call him the Acting Demon, not the Demon King!" he thought, barely holding in his exasperation.
One of the prisoners, a tall man with sharp eyes, suddenly took command of the group.
"This place is not safe! We need to get out of here—now! Everyone, follow me!"
He turned to Baldwin. "By the way, I'm Rays Hagul. Knight General."
Baldwin quickly wiped his fake tears and straightened up. "I am Katz Baldwin." He controlled his emotions with ease, his act now complete. with that, the group escaped the cave.
Night had fallen over Neutron City. following massive development efforts by the Rance Republic, the city had expanded rapidly. Velisara and her daughter, Olivia, now lived in a proper home—a comfortable building that provided them with some semblance of peace.
Olivia paced near the window, her brows furrowed. "Mother! Baldwin hasn't come back yet!"
Velisara, seated on a chair, glanced at her daughter with a knowing smile. "You don't know? He went to the labyrinth."
Olivia turned sharply. "What?! But I heard the labyrinth is off-limits for now!"
Velisara chuckled. "You know Baldwin—he always finds a way to slip past the guards."
Olivia pouted, crossing her arms. "But what if he runs into danger?"
That question made Velisara laugh softly.
"Hmph! What's so funny, Mama?!" Olivia huffed in annoyance.
Velisara shook her head. "No, no, my apologies. It's just… Baldwin is strong. I'm sure he'll come back safe."
Olivia tilted her head. "Are we keeping dinner for him, then?"
Velisara smiled, reaching out to pat Olivia's forehead. "Let's eat first. My little girl is growing more mature every day."
Meanwhile, in a dark alley. Several Rance Republic soldiers lay sprawled on the ground, beaten and battered. Bruises covered their bodies, their hollow eyes staring blankly ahead—lifeless, yet not dead.
Standing before them was a man draped in a long white and blue robe. His deep blue and navy hair glowed faintly under the moonlight. It was none other than Asmudeus Furer.
Behind him, several men in black robes stood in silence, each wearing an eyepatch.
Asmudeus's gaze darkened as he stared at the broken soldiers. His eyes began to glow an eerie shade of blue.
"Tell me… have you seen a man with black hair and red eyes?" His voice was deep, commanding.
The soldiers all responded in unison: "Yes."
Yet their voices were void of life, as if they had been hypnotized.
"Did this man wear a ring? Did he use shadow abilities?" Asmudeus pressed further.
But this time, only a few soldiers answered, claiming they had seen no such thing.
A man in a black robe, wearing a gold-trimmed eyepatch, stepped forward.
"Lord Asmudeus, don't ask foolish questions." His tone was sharp, dismissive.
Asmudeus's expression darkened instantly. His hair began to ripple like flowing water, power radiating from him.
"How dare you—!"
Before he could unleash his wrath, the robed man calmly pulled out a cross and held it up between them.
"I have no intention of fighting you," the robed man said flatly. "So do as I say."
Asmudeus's jaw tightened. He held his power back.
"Fine. I'll listen to you—for now."
The robed man nodded. "Then ask them something useful. Anything strange that has happened here recently?"
Asmudeus turned his gaze back to the soldiers. "Has anything unusual happened in this area over the past year?"
One of the soldiers twitched slightly before answering, "About two months ago, the Sunrise Bandits were wiped out. The villagers claim that a single Rance Republic soldier defeated them all."
Asmudeus narrowed his eyes. "Hmph. What did this man look like?"
"He wore standard clothes… but had lightning abilities. He was at least—"
The soldier didn't get to finish.
A flash of water sliced through the air. Asmudeus had summoned his water blade—and in an instant, he severed all of their heads.
Blood splattered across the alley. The lifeless bodies collapsed to the ground.
"Useless. Trash. Baldwin wasn't here." Asmudeus scowled.
The robed man sighed. "Calm down, Lord Asmudeus. Because of your impatience, we've lost a chance to gather more information about the other black-haired, red-eyed man. You know how rare it is for humans to have black hair in this world."
Asmudeus scoffed. "Give me a break. I don't care about the other one. I need Baldwin. That's all that matters."
He turned on his heel and began walking past the robed man.
Another robed figure whispered, "Sir… he's just as unstable as before."
The gold-trimmed eyepatch man smirked. "Don't worry. Once he finishes his task… we'll dispose of that damned demon."
With that, they silently followed Asmudeus into the shadows.