There was an area within the Undercity that offered most discretion from those around. It was called the stone forest. Locals would rarely go there, as monsters could occasionally be seen roaming the area around there. As such, this zone became a hotbed for criminals and vagrants, a place where they could camp out and gather.

The zone consisted of hundreds of green, stone columns of various shapes and sizes, comprised of stalagmites and stalactites fused together, creating a stone veil that separated the area from the rest of the Undercity. It was dark and damp. Many species of fungus grew clumped up beside the stone structures. The columns themselves were covered in patchy dark green moss, giving them a strangely cozy appearance. This same moss was also clinging to the ceiling and certain areas of the floor, creating a makeshift lawn.

Zeke stood in wait, hidden within the darkness, behind one of the mossy stone pillars. He gazed from the darkness; the light coming from the campfire illuminated a total of four faces; Haze, Antonio, Zamira and Jesse.

Haze appeared visibly tired, his face was sunken in and pale, the parts of his face just beside his mask seemed damaged, almost like they were roughly torn and flayed before the mask was placed back on. He sat in a slouched position with his back resting against a boulder behind him.

This stone was large, with strange spiral markings engraved on each of its sides. It was too big to have been carried there. And too intricate to be carved in such a desolate place. From just one look Zeke could tell; that rock was the only one of its kind.

Zeke peered in closer to see the stone more clearly, careful so he didn’t get spotted.

“What are you doing?” Fredric asked, placing his hand on Zeke’s shoulder.

Zeke leaped up, visibly startled.

“Shhhh,” he gestured, bringing his index finger towards his mouth. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, you know, just seeing what you’re up to!” Fredric laughed.

“Shhhhhhh,” Zeke panicked, “Quiet, they’ll hear you,” he whispered, keeping his head down.

“They won’t,” Fredric smiled.

“How come?” Zeke wondered.

“They can’t,” Fredric shook his head. “Nothing I do or say reaches their minds,” Fredric yawned.

“Is that some form of magic?” Zeke asked.

“It’s a demon art,” Fredric sat down.

“What? How does that work?” Zeke asked, visibly surprised.

“My domain is time,” Fredric cleared his throat. “I can use magic in a 3 kilometer radius. So, I simply affect the brains of everyone who can see or hear me within that radius, changing them for a time, to a reality where I’m not actually there. As such, nothing I do is detected,” Fredric explained.

“Isn’t that overpowered?” Zeke remarked.

“A little, yet there are limits. My magic only works on living things.” Fredric stared down at the ground.

Suddenly, Zeke heard a noise coming from the darkness. Before he could do anything to further hide himself, Ludwig approached him, stepping into the light. Zeke panicked, stumbling down to the ground. Just as he was about to say something, Ludwig went past him without acknowledging that he was there.

Zeke looked toward Fredric.

“Are you allowed to do that?” Zeke asked with suspicion.

“Nope, I’m cheating,” Fredric nonchalantly replied.

Meanwhile, Ludwig slowly but rhythmically made his way towards Haze.

“Well, don’t you look like shit!” He said, looking at Haze’s state.

“You’re one to talk,” Haze replied, coughing.

“Who’d you piss off?” Ludwig asked, gritting his teeth.

“Nolan,” Haze growled.

“WHAT! Are you stupid?” Ludwig screamed out.

“Ulmak was there. Nolan protected him, so we fought,” Haze explained, slightly squinting.

“Well, I’m surprised you survived,” Ludwig stated in a deep tone. “Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!” he screamed, punching a stone pillar next to him. “Fuck it!” Ludwig turned to face Haze. “There is a field filled with spider-lilies and white chapel in an area north of here. It’s small yet taken care of. If you go there, you’ll find the guy you’re looking for,” He explained.

“Are you allowed to tell me that?” Haze asked.

“I’m not. But that Fox asshole is cheating too, so why should I play by the rules!?” Ludwig grunted in frustration.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“See, it’s alright,” Fredric smirked.

Zeke continued listening to what else Ludwig had to say.

“What of Ulmak?” Ludwig asked, tapping his foot on the ground.

“What of him?” Haze questioned in a slightly annoyed tone.

“You said you’d either get him to join us or kill him. But seeing as you already attacked him, I guess option one is out of the way,” Ludwig mumbled while pacing back and forth.

“You’re wrong,” Haze said with a sigh.

“What?!” Ludwig exclaimed, visibly surprised.

“Know men like him. I’ve seen countless of them. Idealists who act all fair and morally clear. All until they are met with a choice between power and their morality. And as you can expect, in such cases, morality always loses.” Haze explained with a grim look.

Ludwig left soon after, once again disappearing into the darkness. Haze and the team hurriedly packed their bags, masked their trail, hiding the campfire, and took off towards the north. Zeke followed them from the shadows, being careful not to be noticed by anyone. Fredric followed him, in a careless stride, with his arms crossed behind his back, constantly yawning.

On their way, the group crossed an abandoned region. An area that consisted of carcasses of buildings, torn up skyscrapers built before the calamity. All of the buildings were covered in lush greenery. These trunks and roots spread themselves like a net, engulfing them in the taint of their scarlet leaves. The wines spread wide along the walls of the buildings. This mishmash stood like a like gravesite to the modern world, a requiem of a legacy that people will soon forget.

The group eventually came upon a stone road paved in rubble that had fallen off the buildings. Each individual component was polished perfectly flat, revealing bits of metal rebar and plastic peeking out from inside the rock. They followed the path until they reached a dark metal archway covered in rust. The words: “I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep,” were etched into the structure.

“Alexander the great,” Haze smirked.

“Someone you know?” Antonio asked with a lost expression.

“’I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion’,” Haze elaborated, “Words said by a once great man.” He looked towards the distance with a sad expression.

Haze stepped through the gate, not giving the sign any further attention. Before he had the chance to go further, Haze spotted a figure standing in front of him.

“Soul,” Haze chanted, manifesting his weapon.

In the blink of an eye, sparks came flying out of the air as Haze’s weapon clashed with the unknown assailant’s.

“Hey pretty boy,” the woman said, revealing her face previously hidden under the hood, revealing herself to be none other than Hanna, Olivia’s chosen leader.

Suddenly, four more cloaked figures dove from out of the gate. Before the figures could get far Haze took a small step back, separating his weapon from Hanna’s blade. With a flick of his wrist, he extended his whip. The flowing weapon appeared to be enchanted, almost magical, as Haze directed it’s path through the neck and the heart of two of the attackers.

“How?” Zeke looked on in shock at this unbelievable mastery.

Just as Hannah prepared to strike with her short sword, Haze skillfully shifted his weight onto his front leg, parrying her attack with the heel of his whip, launching Hannah flying back in recoil.

“Great, another crazy bitch,” Haze sighed.

Meanwhile, Antonio leaped forward, intercepting the two attackers that were not dealt with by Haze.

“Soul,” he called his weapon forward with a wide grin. Summoning a large, black, ornate gauntlet the shape of which resembled a flower.

Antonio slammed one of the attackers in the stomach with his gauntlet, throwing them to the ground. He grabbed the other attacker by the throat, crushing their windpipe in an instant.

“How brave of you to attack us here,” Antonio smirked.

Zeke pulled a walkie-talkie out of his pocket and said, “Are you there?”

“We’re in position?” a voice replied.

“Good,” Zeke said. “On the count of three, proceed with the plan.”

Hanna stared at Haze. She looked him deep in the eyes, his expression filled with disgust.

“I love a man who puts up a fight,” Hanna said, licking her lips.

“One,” Zeke whispered.

With no warning, Haze charged at Hanna, kicking her in the stomach, forcing her to crouch down in pain.

“Shut your mouth, you fucking cunt!” Haze screamed out, visibly angered.

“Two,” Zeke counted.

“You’ll pay for that,” Hanna scoffed at Haze, “I invo-” she said before being interrupted.

Antonio rushed in, grabbing her by the mouth, stopping her invocation.

“He told you to shut your mouth!” Antonio exclaimed, visibly angered.

“Three,” Zeke whispered.

The surroundings lit up in a bright blue light. The bodies of two of Hanna’s teammates, along with her face that was clutched tightly within Antonio’s gauntlet, suddenly exploded. Her teammates were torn to shreds in a blink. As for Hanna herself, her face and tongue became irreparably damaged, making her unable to speak.

“GO!” Zeke screamed from the top of his lungs, charging towards the gate.

Suddenly, Ulmak and Elaine dashed from out of the shadows, they too started charging towards the entrance.

Antonio let go of Hanna, letting her lifeless body drop to the ground, as he looked on at the incoming attackers.

Ulmak stuck his spear into the ground, causing 3 stone pillars to rise from the ground and spiral around towards Haze and Antonio.

The two dodged with ease, running towards the opposition.

In an instant, the ground beneath Ulmak’s feet protruded like a spring, launching him towards the two while Elaine engaged with their teammates.

The stone pillars formed into a makeshift stone tunnel that allowed Zeke to sneak past the two contractors.

As Zeke ran, his and Haze’s eyes met briefly. He could feel the intensity of Haze’s gaze. The untamed rage and humiliation from being outsmarted sent shivers down Zeke’s spine. From that moment on Zeke knew he was his target.

Zeke ran past the gate and came upon a large field filled with spider lilies. Just, as Ludwig mentioned, a chapel stood in the middle of the field.

Zeke approached the stone doors of the chapel. The words, ‘I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion,’ were carved into the doors.

Zeke pushed the doors open and entered inside.

The doors closed behind him.

The interior of the room appeared to be much larger than the exterior. It was filled with immaculately carved stonework, much like the one Zeke saw in the Legend hotel. The room was circular in shape, a golden throne was placed in the middle of the chamber. Sitting upon the throne was the man with white hair Zeke previously saw before departing to the Undercity. Another figure was standing beside him, a member of Hanna’s team.

“I see another guest has come,” the white-haired figure said with a warm smile.

The other man readied his weapon.

“Hold on,” the white-haired figure said, softly, “You are not allowed to fight here.”

“And what happens if I refuse to conform?” Haze growled loudly, startling Zeke from behind while opening the stone doors.

“You tell me,” the figure smirked, resting his head on his right fist.

image [https://i.postimg.cc/KjKJy5pT/Name-Alias-X-Species-Demon-Age-80-Height-182cm-Affiliation-Knights-Rank-Special-grade-investigator.png]

image [https://i.postimg.cc/yYK949Y5/Name-Alias-X-Species-Demon-Age-80-Height-182cm-Affiliation-Knights-Rank-Special-grade-investigator.png]