"Huuu."

I took a deep breath and stared at the figure beneath me. He was dead. I made sure he was.

Killing... It was starting to become easier for me. It was still hard on the mind, but the more I did it, the more I was getting accustomed to it.

I wasn't sure whether this was a good thing or not.

'I'm slowly starting to lose sight of my old self...'

Perhaps, I was. But it didn't matter. People evolved based on circumstances, and this was how the circumstances had made me.

....I didn't regret it.

At the end of the day, people always change.

There was nothing wrong with changing.

"But who would've thought...?"

I looked at the corpse beneath me. My chest itched a little and I ruffled my hair into a mess. The raw emotions that I felt were still lingering in my mind. It was hard to swallow, but I had already seen plenty before.

It took me a couple of seconds to fully recover.

Part of the speedy recovery was because another more important thought was plaguing my mind.

"It seems like they're taking notice of my strange actions."

I thought that I had been able to clear most of the suspicion based on my talk with Atlas, but it didn't seem to be the case.

There were still lingering doubts...

'Good thing that I was paying attention.'

The real giveaway was the way that he called me.

Phecda.

It made no sense for the Professor to call me like that. But of course, it could also be because he came to learn of my identity. But even so... for him to call me such a name more than once?

Something didn't quite make sense.

Even so, I pushed my doubts down and carried on with the conversation.

My attention had been fixed on the map and the 'radar'. They were useful tools. Still, what was the most impressive about the entire situation was that he acted and sounded the same as the Professor Bucklam that I knew.

There was only one problem.

'We proceed as you planned in the prison'

He had never planned anything. The fact that he acknowledged such a 'plan' was the greatest giveaway to me.

With that, I was certain and proposed to attach the thread to his ankle.

"....."

I wasn't sure about his strength.

However, he was most likely stronger than me. In fact, there was also a high chance he was stronger than my entire group combined.

But even someone like him...

Still fell by my hands.

"....."

Silently clenching my hands, I took out the 'radar' and map.

"So the red dots represent group members..."

Just as I said those words, a red dot popped up on the radar. I stared at it for a good minute before setting it aside taking the cloak from Giel's body and donning it on.

Raising the hood, I took one last glance at the body before leaving.

".....It's not your fault."

Such were the words I said before I took a step forward.

However, just as I did, I lowered my head to stare at the radar on me. More specifically, the red dot.

"....."

A thought suddenly entered my mind and I turned back to look at the corpse behind me.

"That might work."

*

The Labyrinth was large. A lot larger than I previously thought. However, with the map, I was able to navigate it smoothly.

As I moved, I stared at the thread behind me.

'....Should I detach it?'

The thread's range wasn't infinite. Its length was equivalent to how much mana I had. Therefore, the greater the distance between me and the others, the more mana I expanded.

It was a bit of a problem considering that there were things that I needed to do.

"Whatever."

In the end, I chose to keep it.

I was bound to reunite with them one way or another.

"Huff."

My steps felt a little heavy, but I kept at it and took a deep breath.

"Let's see."

Glancing at the 'radar' I came to a stop.

Thump.

Just ahead there was another red dot. Fiddling with it, I also saw that there was a small button at the side. While Giel hadn't fully explained to me how the 'radar' worked, I could tell this was some sort of signal that I could use to alert the nearby members.

Looking around, I took a deep breath and evened out my breath.

In the far distance, I was able to hear the loud 'clanking' sound of metal clashing.

'As expected, it's like he said. They're targeting all the low-ranking cadets.'

It was as Giel said to me.

"Huuu."

Taking another deep breath to calm my nerves, I lowered my head to stare at my forearm.

Two leaves were glowing.

Unlike the first clover leaf, the cooldown for the second was much lower.

About one hour.

That was enough.

Clenching my hand, I pressed the button.

***

"H-help...!"

The piercing scream of a cadet reverberated through the narrow corridor of the Labyrinth. Following closely were hurried footsteps as two cadets, under attack, attempted to escape the chaos.

Unfortunately, it was useless.

Spurt!

"Uaakh!"

Blood gushed from the cadet's body as she collapsed limply to the floor, her eyes wide open in shock. Standing behind her, a hooded figure loomed ominously.

The figure stared at her with utter disregard as its heads turned to look behind where one last cadet remained.

"A-ha... Pl-ease...!"

As the cadet pleaded, he continued to press onto his bracelet. He was most likely trying to activate the emergency button.

But that was a futile effort.

The bracelet... It wasn't working.

As the hooded figure drew nearer, the expression of the cadet changed. In his last moments, he tried to launch an attack.

Clank!

But it was deftly blocked by the hooded figure who merely raised his hand to block it.

"N-no...!"

In the end, all that the cadet could do was scream in despair as a hand reached out for his neck, snapping it in one go.

Cra Crack

Thump!

"....."

Silence once again returned to the surroundings.

Staring at the corpses around it, the hooded figure lowered down his hood to reveal a youthful figure. With short brown hair and hazel eyes, he looked no older than the cadets around him.

And he was indeed their age. Arian had been a member of the Inverted Sky since he was a child.

Dealing with cadets of this level was of no trouble for him.

....Looking around, his expression was wholly indifferent.

As if what he had done was merely something trivial.Bringing his bracelet next to his mouth, he muttered,

"I'm done here."

After that, he went on to take out the detection relic.

He wanted to see if there were any other cadets around that he could target.

"Hm?"

When he did, he was surprised to see a red dot not far from where he was.

"....Could it be Giel?"

According to what he knew, the closest one to him was Giel. Last he recalled, his mission was to talk with an undercover agent.

"He."

A small laugh escaped his lips.

"....He sure has it easy."

While it wasn't hard to defeat the cadets, it was no easy work. Arian would much rather be the one to meet the undercover agent. But unfortunately, he wasn't quite familiar with him, so Giel was sent.

"I still don't know why they put such importance on hi-"

Beep!

He was just about to finish his sentence when his eyes widened slightly. The signal had been used.

"What's going on...?"

The signal was only used in emergencies.

Giel, of all people, was having trouble?

"Could it be that we have been betrayed?"

Without a second thought, Arian rushed forward. He didn't need to run very far, with his speed, it took no time to reach Giel. When he did, his eyes widened slightly and his steps paused.

"What's..."

Laying down on the side of the wall was what appeared to be Giel's body. Staring at the detection device, Arian saw that it was coming from the body a few feet away from him.

"It can't be...?"

Looking shocked, he neared the body.

Amongst the members that had joined, Giel was one of the strongest. It didn't make sense for him to put on an emergency distress signal.

"..."

No, it didn't.

Gradually, Arin's footsteps halted.

Staring at the hooded figure, he raised his hand quickly as a magic circle formed. The process was fast. Within seconds, the circle fully formed, and the temperature around rose.

"...."

Immediately after, a large fire spread as it enveloped Giel's body completely.

Swoosh!

The flames roared within the tunnel as they lit up the surroundings. Arian's robes fluttered in the aftermath of the attack.

"I don't know how you managed to defeat Giel, or if you have at all, but there's no way I'd fall to something like this."

While it wasn't obvious at a glance, Arian noticed a few discrepancies. But the biggest factor was the fact that he could notice curse magic from deep within Giel's body. It was thin, almost imperceptible, but he could feel it.

The flames persisted for several seconds before finally they disappeared.

What remained were the charred remains of a body. A small smile tugged at the corner of Arian's lips as he moved ahead.

But just as he did, he stopped.

".....!"

Looking around, his expression hardened.

"W-what in the...?"

Threads.

The surroundings were covered in thin, threads. Almost every single space was covered with them.

Most shocking was the fact that they had also made their way around his body.

But how...?

How was it possible? Was it because he had been too focused on the corpse that he didn't notice?

....Or was it something else?

"A-"

Before he could do anything, the threads shrunk rapidly.

"Hua!"

With a shout, he tensed his body and the threads broke. His expression lit up.

'They're weaker than...!'

He wasn't able to stay happy for long as his vision darkened shortly after.

Spurt!

And blood splurted everywhere.

Tok. Tok. Tok.

Gradually, footsteps echoed in the distance. A figure emerged. Coldly staring at the sight before him, Julien retrieved the threads and lowered his hand to place it on top of the corpse.

His indifferent voice echoed shortly afterward.

"That's two..."