Ace wakes to the sound of someone wincing in pain. He slowly opens his eyes, squinting as the light pierces through the cracks in the wooden walls.

A sharp pain shoots through his head, and he groans as he tries to stand. Leaning against the wall, his legs give way beneath him, and he falls to the ground.

He massages his temples, trying to clear his head. Why do my legs feel like spaghetti? he wonders, while he scans his surroundings. He sees Inara standing over him.

"You had a seizure," she says, her voice laced with concern. She helps him back onto the makeshift bed. "You shouldn't try to walk right now."

Ace nods, feeling a mix of embarrassment and frustration. "How long was I out?"

"About five to ten minutes," Inara replies, her eyes searching his face for any signs of lingering confusion.

Ace’s attention shifts to the bloodstains on Inara’s back. "You're injured. Let me help," he says, concern etched in his features.

Inara’s eyes darken. "I've already taken care of it," she says sharply.

Ace’s frustration boils over. "So, what's the plan against the demons? Do—"

"We wait like Mr. Himey said we should," Inara snaps back.

"So, we just stay here like lost puppies waiting for a miracle?" Ace retorts.

"Yes, and you, of all people, shouldn’t be saying that," she says, getting up in his face.

"You're the one who passed out. You made things difficult for him and me. You don't have the right to talk like that." She pokes him in the chest, her eyes blazing.

Ace is taken aback by her attitude but doesn’t back down. "I’m not a liability, and I didn’t ask for your help," he says, slapping her hand away.

"I’m going back to help him. With or without you," he yells

"You’re going to die like an idiot. What you’re doing is basically suicide," she argues.

"I never said I was going there to die," Ace counters.

"He’s gone, you idiot."

"What?" Ace turns around, surprised.

"The light that woke you up was probably him. Since then, look around you." She points to the roots in and around the building. "His roots are withering."

"It just means he’s getting weaker, which means we need to hurry," Ace says, determination in his voice.

Inara pulls him back. "Why are you being so—"

A loud crash interrupts them as Rebecca smashes through the walls of the mill, tackling Ace with the full force of her momentum. Sending them both crashing through the other side of the building.

Radcliff casually opens the mill’s door, sword pointed at Inara. "Are you going to run away again, little girl?" he taunts, his voice low and shrill.

Inara tenses, her eyes scanning the surroundings. "Round two. Let’s go," she says, her voice low and steady.

Radcliff swings his greatsword at Inara, but she leaps and clings to the roof, dodging it. He jumps and cuts across the entire ceiling with his greatsword cloaked in flames. Inara, her body cloaked in lightning, drops quickly to the ground. As the burning roof fragments fall, she rushes toward Radcliff, who is still midair.

In a last-ditch attempt, he twists midair to slash at the onrushing Inara. "Too slow," she says, sidestepping his strike and delivering a lightning punch that sends him flying through the back of the mill, tumbling to the ground.

Barely on his feet and still regaining his balance, Radcliff is hit by Inara’s shoulder charge, sparks of lightning flying as she makes contact. He crashes into Himey’s tree.

Inara approaches Radcliff, who is inspecting the tree. "So, this is what healed you so quickly," his voice shrieks.

"esna, Aimi," Inara commands, her sword materializing in her right arm.

"That bastard, looking after you maggots till the end. You know he’s gone, yes?" he asks, looking back at her, only to immediately block a slashing attack from Inara’s lightning-cloaked sword, forcing him to kneel.

"You look angry," he groans.

"Shut up," she replies, upping the pressure, sinking him further into the ground.

He breathes fire onto Inara’s legs. "Shit," she mutters, easing up the pressure to move away. Taking the opportunity, Radcliff smacks her backward. She blocks in time with her sword, the impact sending her back.

Before landing, she throws her lightning-infused sword like a javelin, piercing the unaware Radcliff through his stomach. "Damn you!" he curses, trying to grab the blade, only to scream in pain from the static shock.

Inara wastes no time getting up in his face. He tries to move his paralyzed body but to no avail. She grabs onto her sword, twisting it before cleanly cutting through Radcliff, his half-dismembered body falling to the ground.

"Who’s the demon that brought you here, and why?" Inara demands.

"My Lord wanted to test someone here.”

"You didn’t answer my first question," she sneers.

"Demons never reveal their own names, let alone their Lord’s," Radcliff replies.

"Who did he come to see, then?"

"You don’t know?" Radcliff laughs.

"If I knew, I wouldn’t be asking. So answer me," Inara says angrily, touching Radcliffe's head and shocking him with red lightning.

Radcliff screams in agony. "You… What you did just now… How?" he groans.

"Possession works by another soul taking the driver’s seat in someone else’s body. Unfortunately for you, I can feel, see, touch, and eat those souls. And it looks like the original soul of this body is long gone.”

With wide eyes, he stammers, "Son—"

Inara pushes his head deeper into the ground. "Don’t you dare say that name. My name is Inara," she hisses.

Radcliff laughs weakly. "I hope to see you again, then… Inara," he says, his voice trailing off.

"No, no, no… I messed up. I should have bound him," Inara mutters to herself. She gently places her hand on Radcliff’s head. "I’m sorry I couldn’t save you. I really am."

She’s startled as a root touches her, pointing her toward the tree. Walking over, she sees writing on the bark. "He really is gone, then," she murmurs.

Meanwhile, on the other side, as the adrenaline fades, Ace feels the full extent of his exhaustion and pain. He slumps to the ground, gasping for air. Rebecca charges toward him on all fours, her long nails sharp and deadly. Ace manages to sidestep her attack and counters with a kick to her jaw. The snap of bone echoes in the air. "That was supposed to knock you out," he pants.

Rebecca snarls, her face contorting with anger and pain. She rolls out chains from underneath her sleeves, flicking them towards Ace to tie him up. With perked-up ears, Ace quickly rolls out of the way, avoiding the chains. He gets back up, facing Rebecca again, keeping a safe distance. "You're playing hard to get for someone who fainted earlier," she taunts.

"Trust me, I don't even know how to explain that. Let's introduce ourselves again. I'm Ace, and you?" he asks.

"Rebecca," she replies aggressively, attempting to whip Ace with the chains. He manages to evade the attacks, though with some difficulty, whispering, "esna, Joker." A mask and a box of cards strapped to his side appear.

"What's that?" Rebecca asks, surprised, as she rushes at Ace, chains wrapped around her arms and fists.

"If you could just give me some space, I'd love to explain," Ace says with distress in his voice as they exchange quick blows and parries.

"Four of hearts," Ace announces as he steps back, a card floating between them. "Huh?" Rebecca says as long lines of knotted handkerchiefs erupt from the card, tying down her limbs and wrapping her up.

"Finally," he sighs heavily. "I can catch my breath," he says, taking deep breaths, only to notice the handkerchiefs burning to ash as Rebecca frees herself with her red-hot chains.

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"You’re joking, right?" Ace asks as she tries to whip him with the fiery chain. He jumps to dodge, throwing a card toward her head.

She spins to dodge the card, going for another attack, but her chain passes through another card. "What?" she exclaims, bewildered, as Ace suddenly appears behind her.

"Shit," she mutters, scrambling to turn around only to see another card. "The first card," she realizes.

"Yup," Ace says, throwing two cards that pierce into her back. "You twat," she yells in agony, turning to face him.

"It’s over," Ace declares.

"It’s over when I roll your head off your neck!" Rebecca snarls, charging at him.

"Hold, Joker," Ace commands, and two ghostly arms emerge from the cards, wrapping around Rebecca and pinning her to the ground. She falls face-first with a grunt, squirming against the invisible force as occasional bursts of fire escape her mouth.

"Told you it was over," Ace says, walking toward Rebecca, who continues to struggle, but the arms hold her firmly in place. "Seal her mouth, Joker," he orders, and one of the large fingers presses against her lips, silencing her. Ace leans in, carefully observing the black markings on her face.

"I hope Inara knows how to break a demon possession. I’ll call her to get here. Huh, why isn’t it working?" he wonders, fumbling with something in his pocket.

Rebecca mumbles beneath the ghostly hand.

Ace frowns. "Are you laughing? What’s so funny?"

She rolls her eyes, continuing to mumble.

Ace sighs. "You know what? I walked into that one. Let her talk," he says, and the ghostly hand moves away.

"It’s too late for her, boy. This body is mine," Rebecca says, her voice laced with dark amusement.

"Yeah, like I’m going to listen to you. Plus, there’s no horn," Ace retorts, still fiddling in his pocket. He glances up and notices Inara approaching from a distance.

"Hey, Inara, I’ve caught her! Do you know any—" He’s cut off by Inara rushing toward him, urgency in her stride. "Huh? Why is she running?" he thinks.

"Out of the way!" Inara yells, pushing him aside as she shoots a stream of lightning from her hand.

"Urgh, it’s heading straight for her!" Ace realizes, quickly shouting, "Protect, Joker!" The ghostly arm raises its palm, blocking Inara’s lightning attack.

"What are you doing?" she demands, her sword cloaked in lightning, only to be stopped in her tracks by knotted handkerchiefs that suddenly bind her in place.

"What am I doing? How about what’s wrong with you? Are you trying to kill her?" Ace counters, frustration creeping into his voice.

Rebecca giggles, her voice dripping with malice. "Too late."

"What?" Ace asks, turning toward her.

"My partner just gave me the heads up. Perhaps you two are the ones my Lord came to visit," Rebecca says before her eyes roll back, turning white as the black markings on her face begin to fade.

"Urgh, you’re so frustrating to work with!" Inara yells, setting the handkerchiefs ablaze, burning them off her.

"You were going to kill an innocent person," Ace retorts, glaring at her.

"Think. Those guys are high-ranked demons, aren’t you?" Inara snaps, irritation clear in her tone.

"What are you talking about?" Ace asks, confused.

"Unlike low-ranked demons who just push the soul of the original body aside and take control, these ones outright kill the soul."

"Leaving only the mind," Ace says, his eyes widening in understanding.

"Exactly," Inara replies, brushing ash from her clothes.

Ace narrows his eyes at her. "Wait, that means Radcliff is gone, doesn’t it? Did you kill him?"

"Yes," Inara says, avoiding his gaze.

"You killed him?" Ace’s voice rises in shock.

"It was for his own good," she replies bluntly.

"That doesn’t mean anything. So what are you going to do? Kill her too? There has to be another way," Ace insists, desperation in his voice.

"There isn’t. The moment this demon leaves her body, her mind will take over, and without the soul giving it direction, she’ll just be a psycho woman running the streets," Inara snaps back.

Ace frowns, torn between his desire to save Rebecca and the grim reality Inara presents. He can see the determination in her eyes, but he can’t help feeling there must be another way.

"Do what you want," Ace says, resigned. Inara steps forward, placing her hand on Rebecca. Red sparks flicker from her fingers. "Well, that’s new," Ace mutters under his breath.

"You done?" he asks after a short while.

"Yeah. Come on, Mr. Himey left us a message," Inara replies.

After a brief walk, they arrive back at the tree with the message carved into it. Ace looks around and sees Radcliff’s dismembered body. "I’ll ask whoever Father Kayden is how to save people like him," he whispers to himself.

"Here, go ahead," Inara says, gesturing toward the tree.

"You’ve read it?" Ace asks, approaching the tree.

"Yes. So take your time."

Ace leans in, squinting at the message. "Now, let’s see what he said," he whispers to himself.

"From Himey: If you’re seeing this, I’ve passed and have failed to adequately protect you both. I deeply apologize for that. Hopefully, the tree at the safe point healed you both enough before it withered. The giant one in the center of Hans Village will be the only one standing, acting as a seal to keep Father Kayden in place. I can confirm that whoever is possessing that body is a Prince of Hell. And although due to various circumstances, he’s very weak—weak enough for me to even compete a bit—he’s still a very dangerous person. So please wait at the safe point. After a day or two, if Elizabeth doesn’t receive a check-in from me, she’ll know something is wrong. Worse case scenario, after the three-day test period is over and you’re not back, they’ll come find you. So please stay where you are and be safe."

"I need answers," Ace says, more to himself than to Inara.

"What?"

"I need answers," Ace reaffirms, walking away from the tree.

"So you’re going to fight Father Kayden?" she asks, catching up to him.

"Yes. You need answers too."

"For what exactly?" she asks, skeptical.

"Rebecca said he came here to meet two people, and she believes it’s us. Did Radcliff say something similar?" Ace asks, studying her face.

Inara looks away, hesitating.

"He did, didn’t he?" Ace presses.

"Assume he did. Then what?" she asks, challenging him.

"I want to know why he’s here. You might not care, but don’t you want to know why he came to see you? And a boy you’ve just met for the first time?"

Inara sighs, exasperated. "If it’s going to cost me my life, then I’ll just drown in not knowing. Someone else can find out and tell me."

"So you’re just going to let me go alone?"

"You’re the one looking for a death wish," she retorts.

"He’s weak."

"And he’s a Prince of Hell," she counters.

"Weak. And even weaker because of Himey. I know we can win this. You’ve still got some moves you haven’t used. And so do I," Ace says, determination steeling his voice.

"And you think that will be enough?" she asks, doubtful.

"Come on, like you said. Think. Demons’ powers drop by half when they’re fighting with a possessed body. We easily beat the high-ranked ones."

"They’re not a Prince of Hell," she retorts.

"It doesn’t matter right now, especially since Himey has done the heavy lifting for us," Ace insists, meeting her gaze. "Come on, what do I have to say to convince this girl?" he thinks to himself.

She sighs. "Fine."

"You agreed? I mean, you agreed!" Ace exclaims, surprised.

"On one condition. If things go bad, it’s every man for himself," she says, extending her hand for a handshake.

"Sure," he says, shaking her hand. Immediately, she punches him on the shoulder.

"Ouch! What was that for?" he asks, rubbing his shoulder.

"Don’t you ever tell me to think again," she says, her tone serious.

"What? You’ve been telling me that all day," Ace protests.

"That’s different. It’s you," she replies.

"Jeez, no mercy. Has anyone ever told you you’re just mean?" he asks.

"Plenty," she says, a smirk tugging at her lips.

"God, she might just be a bully at this point," Ace thinks to himself.

"We should share our abilities and figure out how we can combine them and form our tactics," Inara suggests.

"Sure, we’re going to be working together from now on anyway," Ace agrees.

"And I’ll say this now: I don’t have a ketsu ability," Ace admits awkwardly, a nervous smile on his face.

Inara looks surprised. "I thought you could freeze things?"

"Oh, no. What made you think that?" Ace asks, puzzled.

"Never mind. Let’s just go," Inara says, brushing off the topic as they start walking together.

Ace hesitates. "Really? You don’t mind? You’re not worried that I don’t have a ketsu ability?"

"Nope, you beat that Rebecca person, and you qualified for the test in the first place. So ketsu or not, you can handle yourself. When you’re not fainting," Inara teases.

"Please, can we just leave that in the past? That wasn’t one of my proudest moments," he pleads.

"I’ll try," she says with a shrug.

"Nice. So, what’s that red lightning? And do you have a commandment?" Ace asks as they make their way back to the church to face Father Kayden.

"I do have a commandment. And just like the red lightning, it’s something I can’t use when I have teammates around," Inara replies, her tone serious.

"Oh, I don’t have anything like that. The max I can do is bring Joker out," Ace admits, shrugging.

"Joker?" Inara asks, raising an eyebrow.

"You remember the hands?" Ace prompts.

"Yeah. They’re attached to a body?" she asks, curiosity piqued.

"Yeah, they are. But when I bring her out, she’s not as big as the arms. So, I still have some learning to do there," Ace explains, a hint of frustration in his voice.

"It’s a her?" Inara says, sounding shocked.

"Yeah. I don’t know how to explain it, but I just kind of know," Ace replies, scratching his head awkwardly.

"I see. Well, my commandment is multiple lightning strikes from the sky, but I can’t aim them, so it just attacks randomly," Inara confesses.

Ace laughs. "I honestly thought you were perfect at everything. But I guess we both have some learning to do.”

Inara chuckles, a rare smile tugging at her lips. "Trust me, I was a mess just learning to summon them in the first place."

"I’ll hear that story another time. What about the red lightning?" Ace asks, his curiosity growing.

"That. Besides the obvious boost in my physical abilities, it also allows me to draw in and absorb the souls of everything and everyone around me. Unfortunately, it’s something I can’t control," Inara says, her voice tinged with regret.

"Hence why you don’t use it actively around teammates," Ace deduces.

"Yeah. So if you see red, just leave. Add that to our agreement," she says, her voice firm.

"I will," Ace promises, nodding.

"You’re serious?" Inara asks, studying his face.

"Every man for himself, right?" Ace reminds her with a smirk.

"Right," she says, a grin forming on her lips.

Ace studies her for a moment, noting the sincerity in her expression. "Doesn’t look like she’s lying. She even smiled a bit. She’s definitely a weird one, hard to figure out. But I can’t help but feel she’s on my side," Ace thinks to himself, a sense of trust forming despite the odd circumstances.