Himey strolls through the forest, his sharp eyes scanning the surroundings until he comes across a cylindrical device, emanating subtle waves around itself.
“That makes five. No one’s guarding this one either. This feels too easy,” he mutters, planting a seed beside it. He glances around before tapping his watch, bringing up a screen.
The signal is still being jammed. Inara might have noticed as well.
He then steps closer to the device, taking his time inspecting it.
“Just as I suspected,” he says aloud.
These devices are casting an illusion over the village. Annoyingly, rather than trapping people in a loop of a single day, it picks a random day and mimics future events from that day going forward.
Himey frowns as he looks around the forest. “This is high-level Nexus tech. Someone is putting a lot of effort into whatever they’re planning,” he mutters.
Days will go by, and an outsider passing by will never suspect a thing. It's safe to say everyone in this village is already dead.
“It’s very well made, isn’t it, Mr. Supervisor?” a woman’s voice suddenly cuts through the silence, drawing his attention.
Himey turns swiftly toward the source, finding a woman dressed in a nun’s attire standing just a few feet away.
How long has she been there? he wonders, tensing slightly.
Or worse, how long has she been following me?
“Are you the one who planted these machines?” he asks, his tone firm.
“Of course not. I’m here to strengthen my faith in God. Can’t you see?” She gestures to her dress with a smirk.
Himey folds his sleeves, his eyes narrowing. “I don’t like whatever business you’re running here. Kindly stop before I take action.”
She giggles, vanishing behind a tree. “What a rude supervisor. You didn’t even ask who I was, my motives, or where the device jamming your signal is,” her voice echoes through the trees.
Himey steadies himself, ready to react to any attack. “That’s information I can get from your wounded body,” he replies coolly.
“Aggressive. I like that,” she says, suddenly appearing in front of him, tapping a finger on his nose.
Himey jumps back, startled, eyeing the nun, who laughs at his reaction.
She’s definitely trouble.
“But like I said, I didn’t plant those devices. Someone else did,” she says casually.
“And you’re telling me this, why exactly?” he asks, suspiciously.
She replies, her tone nonchalant. “Because I want him and his goons dead. But you can leave him barely alive, to be honest. I still need him to tell me a few things,”
So, there are two groups, working independently.
“You seem capable of doing that yourself, from our little interaction,” he replies.
She also seems to be working alone, from what I can tell.
“It’s never that simple. You’re up against a prince of Hell,” she says, her voice dropping to a serious tone.
Himey’s eyes widens slightly.
If what she’s saying is true, then this is really bad.
“What’s a prince of Hell doing here, and which one is it?” he asks before muttering to himself.
“Arrg, Not that it even matters. They’re all unpredictably unstable.”
While Flipping through a hand book, she replies. “Too many questions. All you need to know is that the device blocking your signal is somewhere underground in the village,” she says.
Himey takes a moment to think.
As long as I can destroy that device, backup will arrive, and it should be more than enough to capture her and the prince.
“Okay, I'll believe what you just said. But who are you, and what do you gain from the death of a prince of Hell?” he asks.
“The villagers here call this body Sister Lily,” she remarks with a mischievous smile.
“This body?” Himey repeats, his eyes narrowing.
He yells. “Are you a prince of hell as well? Did you possess that body?”
“No. This woman is dead. I’m just cosplaying her. She looks rather nice, doesn’t she?” She replies, twirling around on a branch.
“Was it you who killed her, or was it the other group?” he demands.
With her hands in the air sister lily replies. “The other group, I'm innocent.”
A frown forms on Himey’s face as he sinks deep into his thoughts
Hmm. People possessed by devils, a prince of Hell, and an unknown devil who can shapeshift, all in the same place. This just became a lot trickier to handle.
“Tick tock, Mr. Supervisor. Time is ticking. Who knows what the prince has in store for your little students?” she taunts.
“True. So I’ll take it, you'll help me fight our common enemy” he asks.
“Oh no. What kind of gentleman lets a woman fight? I’ve already helped enough as it is,” Sister Lily says.
Himey retorts. “I can’t really say you have,”
“Bold of you to think you found those devices by yourself. And did you really think there weren’t any guards protecting them? Please, don’t be childish,” she says with a smirk.
Himey sighs. “I get the gist of things. You’ll probably jump in when the opportunity suits you and get what you want.”
“Exactly. Good luck, Mr. Supervisor,” she says, walking away.
Can I just let her leave like that?
“Wait, what will you be doing until then?” he calls after her.
“Well, that girl Inara asked for some extra hands earlier, so I’ll probably—oh!” she exclaims, evading the vines and branches of the trees suddenly moving to capture her.
“Stay away from them,” Himey warns, his voice cold.
“Calm down, Mr. Supervisor. I'm not interested in them, and I won’t be as long as you play along,” she reassures him, her voice teasing.
Himey lowers his hands, stopping the roots from advancing further.
“Good boy. Bye-bye,” she says as she slips out of sight.
Himey leans back against a tree, then slowly slides down to sit on the ground. He scratches his head with a deep sigh. “Things are already messy,” he mutters to himself.
He takes out a picture of his family. “Luck really isn’t on those kids’ side. Then again, that’s life. Life has never cared about taking the lives of the young.” he says staring into the picture of his wife and two kids.
Shortly after, he claps his hands, and the roots of nearby trees dig through the ground, opening a hole big enough for him.
It’s going to take a while to find exactly where that device is, best I get to work.
He glances up at the sky, letting out a big sigh. “Honestly, I don’t get paid enough for all this,” he says aloud before jumping into the hole.
After a long haul of manoeuvring through the underground cave beneath the village, Himey finally locates the device. A somewhat large spinning cube fixed in the centre of the cave.
He hides behind some debris, observing the red and dark blue-skinned humanoid demons with horns guarding the device.
“Well, look at that. She did help with the guards earlier,” he murmurs to himself, noting the absence of several guards.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Now, how do I go about this? He wonders when suddenly, he hears someone clapping.
“I know you’re here, Supervisor. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice my men going missing?” Father Kayden’s voice echoes through the cave.
“Damn that woman,” Himey curses under his breath as he steps out from behind the rubble.
“Although, I’m curious as to why you didn’t destroy the devices,” Father Kayden asks, his tone dripping with condescension.
“Simply gathering more information,” Himey calmly replies.
“Well, that isn’t working out so well for you, is it?” Father Kayden retorts.
“It’s not. And by the way, what’s a prince of Hell doing in a small place like this?” Himey asks, his curiosity piqued.
Father Kayden glares at Himey. “Ooh, aren’t you full of surprises? How did you know about that?” He asks, genuinely intrigued.
“I have my ways,” Himey responds cryptically.
“And I have mine as well. I’ll get what I need from you and those kids,” Father Kayden says, his voice turning sinister.
Himey tosses some seeds onto the ground, which sprout into vines that wrap around everyone in the cave.
“Don’t even think about—” Himey begins, but Father Kayden interrupts him.
“Shh, shh. Can you hear it? The stars of tonight’s show are here.”
What is he talking about now?
Himey wonders, straining his ears until he hears Ace and Inara talking above.
“Did you find anything?” Inara asks.
Ace replies. “Not much. The blacksmith wasn’t in his forge either.”
“And also, Supervisor,” Father Kayden says, drawing Himey’s attention back to him.
“You’re already at a disadvantage in this fight,” he says as he and the demons burn the vines restraining them.
This is getting worse by the minute.
Himey thinks, watching Father Kayden dust off the ashes of the vines from his clothes.
Then Himey announces. “I guess it can’t be helped,” catching Father Kayden off guard.
“I didn’t want to involve those kids in this mess, but I don’t think I have a choice anymore,” he says, loosening his tie.
“Wound him,” Father Kayden orders.
The objective remains the same: break that device and get the proper help to handle this mess.
Himey watches as the varied colours of demons cautiously approach him. He decides to ask, “Will you grant me the grace of knowing your name, Your Highness?”
“I’m the King of Hell. That should give you a hint,” Father Kayden replies.
Himey steps back, shock evident in his eyes. You’re kidding me, he thinks, struggling to regain and maintain his composure. “Lucifer Morningstar,” he says aloud.
“Hmm. Close enough,” Father Kayden responds nonchalantly.
“It doesn’t matter anyway. I was already planning to go all out,” Himey declares as three guards rush toward him. He sidesteps the first guard’s spear, swiftly wrapping both the spear and the guard in vines, immobilising them.
The second guard leaps onto his back, aiming to strike through his neck with sharp claws, but Himey catches the guard’s arm and swings him forward to the ground.
The guard screams in pain as Himey twists his arm. “And here comes number three,” Himey mutters, noticing the guard chanting before releasing a stream of fire at him. Himey quickly uses the previous guard as a shield.
The guard's screams echo through the cave as Himey pushes through the stream of fire with his live shield, crashing into the third guard and knocking him out. He takes a stance, watching as the remaining guards retreat, taking extreme precautions as they reorganise themselves.
A quick glance at Father Kayden reveals him looking bored and uninterested.
I expected a much stronger set of guards to be with him, but they’re quite fragile.
Suddenly, a large explosion shakes the cave, interrupting his thoughts. “That came from above,” he remarks.
“Yes, it did. Like I said earlier, the stars of the show have arrived, and they deserve the very best treatment, don’t you think?” Father Kayden says.
Himey resolves, immediately taking a great leap off the ground, intending to break through the ceiling of the cave.
These guys are just fodder to stall me. The real threat, besides him, is going after the kids. I need to get out of here.
On his way, he is met with a kick that sends him flying back down into the ground.
wincing at the throbbing in his arm.
Even blocking is going to be this difficult.
“I didn’t say you could leave,” Father Kayden says, seated cross-legged, upside down from the ceiling of the cave.
Himey replies. “I have other means of trying,” after which he begins to chant. From which a green aura flows out of him, filling the ground of the cave.
Clasping his hands, he commands. “Impose Forest Germination.”
The entire area vibrates, resembling an earthquake. The earth cracks open beneath the spinning device as an enormous tree erupts from the ground, damaging the device as it shoots up through the roof of the cave, shattering it.
jumping onto the growing trunk of the tree to make his escape
Now is my chance.
The tree breaks through the ceiling of the cave, destroying the church as it grows to its highest point, towering over the entire village. Its leaves and branches create a shade from the moon’s light over the entire village.
Himey watches the barrier that once covered Han’s village slowly fade away, while five other smaller trees grow on the outskirts of the village.
Good. At least those previous devices are destroyed now.
The once peaceful village seen earlier in the day is no more. As the illusionary barrier fades away, a ruined land reveals itself. A land bathed in all consuming flame, ruined buildings and corpses littering the roads comes into view.
“Now, where are they?” Himey mutters, scanning the chaos for Inara and Ace.
Suddenly, he hears the deafening sound of thunder in the air.
Himey Spots Inara and Ace emerging from the rubble of a collapsed building, with two individuals advancing towards them.
There.
“Already using a commandment? Aren’t you taking this too seriously?” Father Kayden interrupts, appearing beside him, punching him in the chest. But Himey leans back into the trunk of the tree, which covers him just in time to block the punch.
“Ouch,” Father Kayden growls as shockwaves ripple through the trunk.
“You’re not the priority right now,” Himey replies.
“I think you have your priorities mixed—” Father Kayden stops mid-sentence, realising his hand is stuck in the trunk.
“Damn you, deer head,” he sneers as Himey sinks completely into the tree, disappearing while dragging Father Kayden along, leaving his body halfway stuck in the trunk.
Quickly following his trick, Himey emerges from the top of the tree.
That should keep him busy for a while.
Taking a look below him, he curses. “Damn it.
That device is still spinning!? He notes, looking down at the large hole made by his tree from the cave beneath the now-ruined church.
“I’ll deal with that later,” he mutters to himself as he jumps to the ground. With a clap of his hands, large roots intertwine from the ground, cushioning his fall.
“Inara, Ace, please be alright,” he prays as the roots immediately begin to move toward their location.
Meanwhile, the two nuns suddenly appear behind Ace and Inara, preparing to strike. “Like what we’ve done with the place?” Morgana asks, striking her dagger towards Inara.
“Can’t say I like the smell,” Inara retorts, moving out of the way with sparks of lightning that send a slight shock to Morgana.
“It’s rotten flesh,” Morgana hisses.
Ace blocks a kick,
It’s heavy.
His thoughts are quickly disturbed by Rebecca's rapid swing of her chain at his feet.
Ace jumps to avoid it.
“Good, but not good enough,” she says, swinging the other chain from her arm, catching Ace mid-air.
This is really going to hurt, Ace grimaces as he tucks himself into a ball to block the chain. Upon impact, he goes flying, tumbling across the ground.
“Esna Joker,” he says while tumbling, and a mask appears on his hip as he crashes into a wall.
He immediately throws a card, which strikes the shoulder of the onrushing Rebecca, causing her to stagger backward.
“That stings!” she yells, trying to remove the card, but to no avail.
“Ace, we’re leaving!” Inara shouts.
“What? Why?” he asks as Inara appears before him, sparks of lightning crackling around her.
“I don’t like being caught off guard,” she says, picking Ace up.
“Don’t let them get away!” Morgana yells as she dashes towards them. Ace quickly cuts his hand with a card.
“What are you—?” Inara begins to ask.
“Just run!” Ace yells dropping the bloodied card as Morgana and Rebecca close in.
With a thundering sound and sparks of lightning, they both disappear, arriving at an abandoned building.
“God, she’s fast,” Ace thinks as she sets him down.
“You have a plan, right?” she asks.
Showing Inara his bloody palm. “Yeah,” he replies, while making his way towards a building.
“They should be able to track me now, we’ll set a trap here,” he explains.
“Alright then. Let’s see what you’ve got,” Inara says.
I’m actually surprised she’s just going along with it. I better not mess this up, Ace
Shortly after on the other side of the battlefield, Himey arrives at the last place he’d seen them. Noticing the collapsed building they’d emerged from, and the subtle signs of a fight.
They escaped, that's good, he notes, crushing a seed in his palm. A flower grows from it pointing him in a certain direction.
Elizabeth was right, who knew spraying them with pheromones would come in handy.
Not long after, the flower leads him to a semi-collapsed building.
Here? He questions, walking towards it. He gently steps through the door, taking a few steps inside. “Cards?” he mutters in confusion as he passes by two cards.
Suddenly, two large ghost-like hands spring out from the cards, holding his body in place. I was careless, he thinks as Inara bursts through the roof, her sword coated in white lightning, ready to swing it through his neck.
But with a snap of his fingers, a vine wraps around her waist, pulling her backward and causing her to miss her swing by mere centimetres. Inara crashes to the ground.
“Relax. It’s me, Himey,” he says, getting their attention. A momentary silence fills the room before Ace speaks.
“Sorry about that. We thought you were the one following us,” Ace says as the ghostly hands release their grip on Himey, the cards returning to a deck in Ace’s hand.
“I understand. Are you alright?” Himey asks, offering to help Inara up.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” she replies, getting up on her own.
“So, care to explain what’s happening here?” Ace asks.
“This isn’t part of the test, so what's going on?” Inara chimes in.
Hmm, There isn't much to hide from them anyways. But their safety comes first.
Himey thinks to himself before speaking. “You’re correct. This isn’t part of the test. But rest assured, you’ve passed and will be members of Squad 97 once you get home,”
He takes Ace’s bleeding hand while he continues to speak. “Right now, you should head towards the mill. One of my trees grew right beside it. That should be more than enough to keep you two safe while I handle my duties,” He turns to leave.
Ace looks and flexes his healed hand before yelling “wait,” blocking Himey’s path.
“You can’t just leave us here like your baggage. We’re all in trouble, and you’ll need all the help you can get. Right, Inara?” He glances over at her, searching for support.
Inara shrugs her shoulders. “It’s none of our business,” she bluntly replies.
“What? How can you say that? Don’t you care about him or the people of this village?” Ace argues, frustration creeping into his voice.
“I don’t know about you, but I came here to pass a test. And I’ve done exactly that. I’m not here to play hero. That’s his job,” Inara refutes coldly.
“What kind of heartless person are you?” Ace snaps, his disbelief palpable. “At least be interested in what’s happening out there.”
Inara glares at Ace. “Incase you missed it, there's no one alive in this place anymore. Whatever happened, happened, we can't change that now, ” she says.
Himey watches the argument unfold with crossed arms, his thoughts swirling.
He hasn’t unlocked his ketsu ability yet, but the report says he’s good with his Nexus weapon. Those hands definitely caught me off guard and those cards also looked interesting.
“No,” Inara says, turning to Himey. “Like I said, it’s not my business.”
And her. Her background with the children of Ophelia, puts her levels above her pairs. If she hadn’t noticed it was me earlier and slowed down, I’d be wasting energy healing my almost detached head right now.
“What signal should we look out for to head to the safe spot?” she asks, indifferent to Ace’s protest.
“Look out for a lot of leaves,” Himey replies, his eyes meeting hers.
Ace steps forward, confronting Himey. “Are you really just going to send us away?” he asks, disbelieving his words.
“I appreciate the offer—”
“But,” Ace interrupts.
“Excuse me?” Himey says, caught off guard.
“There’s always a but,” Ace insists.
Himey sighs. “But like she said, it’s not your job. I’ll handle things out there. You two just get to the safe point. Once I’ve destroyed the device jamming our signal, help will come to get you both. Understand?” He looks directly at Ace, his tone firm.
“I understand,” Ace replies, though disappointment is clear in his voice.
Suddenly, Himey makes a sharp turn, his eyes narrowing as he scans the area. “Just now…” he murmurs.
“They’re close,” Inara and Ace say in unison, their voices tense.
“Stay close behind me, and run when you see the signal,” Himey instructs, leading them out of the building. Ace and Inara follow closely behind, their senses heightened.
Sharp senses as well, it's a shame I didn't get to observe them more properly, Himey ponders as they step outside, coming face to face with Father Kayden with Rebecca and Morgana by his side.
Himey's voice is steady and firm. “Now to deal with you,” he says
“I should be the one saying that, Supervisor. You’ve been causing me a lot of trouble since you decided to show your face. Even going as far as using a commandment on this weak body of mine,” Father Kayden rambles, a twisted grin on his face.
“I’m just using my privileges. I’m sure the Guardian gave you yours,” Himey retorts.
Father Kayden wears a smirk. “There wouldn’t be any fun in bullying the weak if I did,” he says.
Himey’s eyes narrow. “I was wondering why His Highness was leading such a cowardly scheme of hiding and sneaking around. You’re here without the Guardian’s permission, aren’t you?”
Father Kayden remains silent, his grin never faltering.
“Uh, what does that mean?” Ace asks, confusion evident in his voice.
“It means we now have two ways of getting out of this mess. Either I destroy the device jamming our call for help,” Himey says, taking off his blazer.
“Or I force him to use a certain amount of his strength, which would alert the Guardian of an unwanted guest,” Himey explains, his tone calm but focused.
“And I guarantee you, you won’t be achieving any of that. Kill them,” Father Kayden orders, his voice dripping with malice.