"What are you doing here?"

"Huh?"

"Just so you know, civilians aren't allowed here. What are the others outside even doing?" Reizel rubbed her forehead and sighed sharply.

JD's mouth opened briefly but closed a second after.

"She doesn't know you're the one Zalden is after."

"So, it seems."

JD took on his stance, eyes not leaving hers as she shook her head, thoughts elsewhere.

"As the executive outside said, Reizel Angelos just returned today. So, that might be why."

Reizel returned to go on duty today and had only gotten out of Zedekiah's office a few minutes ago. He had informed her about their latest operation, something to do with a man named John St. Michael, but she had no idea what he looked like. Zedekiah said she'd know once she saw him.

"I just got back, and the others are unexpectedly slacking. How would one person even get this far?" Reizel hissed with crossed arms.

"So, we are near Zedekiah."

JD nodded.

Reizel's eyebrow rose. "You're still here? I thought I said...." She shook her head. "Right. An intruder, you are."

She brought her hands to her sides, glowing eyes staring directly at JD, prompting him to remain on guard and watch her every move.

It wasn't like she hadn't used her inborn magic on JD before. She did, back at the inn. But what got her eyes wide was how different it was from the last time.

Before, there was nothing special she could sense. If anything, it was below average. No inborn talent, no special magic or soul like how Zedekiah's appeared to her. The only unique thing she noticed about JD was his ability to deduce the truth from simple observations. But right now, JD's soul looked like something else. Something she'd never seen before.

"Soul detection, huh?" JD said, surprising her all the more.

"How...?"

Reizel figured he might be one of Zedekiah's mind-controlled civilians that got here for some reason, but mind-controlled people had magenta marks on their souls. Meanwhile, in her eyes, JD didn't have a soul.

JD tilted his head and took a step forward. Nearly transparent navy and gray flares appeared and danced around JD's arms, their hue brightening as they met in his fingers.

"What do you see in my soul that surprises you so much?"

Reizel gritted her teeth but then scoffed. "Why should I tell you?"

A little shoulder rest was JD's reply, followed by his spurt toward her. She pulled her sword vertically from its sheath hanging around her right belt. Her scarlet blade flaring a pastel-ish green, blocked his leg infused with a speed boost spell and other forms of magic enhancement.

"Left-handed, huh?" JD mumbled, his eyes sliding over her left hand, tightly gripping the hilt.

Despite realizing JD didn't know his soul was like what it was, Reizel remained in the dark. Confused and craving more answers, she didn't know how to ask or how to phrase. Ultimately, it nailed into her senses how this wasn't what he used to be yesterday.

JD jumped back and manipulated the space where he left with both hands, a distorted force with navy and gray flares flashing her way. Again, she parried, blocking her left side. Then her right hand, infused with the same space manipulation magic, attempted to stop the other force that sped up to her right side.

But Reizel's right hand trembled, her strengthened fingers pushed back by the powerful force. She gritted her teeth and sliced through the force on her left and then to the one on her right.

The space distortion vanished, then she spun away, right hand grabbing her phone and dialing its emergency contact immediately.

"Hmph."

JD dashed back and swung his left foot flaring more colors, which she stopped with her blade. Again, with JD's right leg, she scarcely blocked this time. Then again, and again. Reizel kept up with JD's pace, but the longer and more he was advancing and initiating, the narrower her dodges became.

"Brother, why are you holding back?"

JD ducked, leaving her blade swinging in the air above him. His hands slapped on the floor, and he lifted himself sideways, swiftly turning both feet to her face. Soles of his shoes collided with her cheek, pushing her further back. One hand went and wiped the dirt off her cheek, but given no time to relieve herself, JD almost teleported in front of her and landed one kick.

"I don't want to hurt her too much."

The ringing of her phone echoed lightly across the room as she stumbled back and swung her blade upfront to receive another kick.

"I just need to render her immovable somehow."

Then as JD dropped his leg, his right hand lunged toward her phone. Determined to avoid letting it fall into his hands, she loosened her grip, his fingers slapping it across the room.

As it slid away, Reizel raced towards it. But when the call was received, she froze about a meter away from it. Her legs and feet suddenly gripped and pulled to the ground as cool gray chains appeared from the floor.

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She turned her head to the side where JD stood. One of his hands pointed towards her, controlling transparent magic chains to wrap around her legs. Two more appeared on her left and right, swiftly taking hold of her wrists. But her grip on her sword only tightened, refusing to let it fall to the floor.

"What is it?"

Reizel's glare disappeared, and her head turned toward her phone. She gave herself an internal pat on the back for enabling the loudspeaker option earlier, allowing JD to hear the contact.

She turned her head swiftly to JD, who stood in the same spot a few meters away from her and the phone.

"Reizel." The contact called, his voice clear and calm. "What is it?"

"S-sire!" She yelled.

JD raised a brow and tilted his head. There was only one person people would regard highly in this group.

"Yes?" The voice remained calm amidst receiving a shouted reply.

Reizel side-eyed JD, uncertainty and uneasiness crawling to her skull. He only stood there and watched. He didn't try to take the phone like she initially thought he would.

"Sire, there's...." She clenched her jaw to even her voice. "There's someone coming for you!"

"...And?"

"He's..." Her bluish eyes turned to a shimmering indigo again. "He's not normal."

A muffled voice came after as if the contact spoke to someone else and covered his phone briefly.

And then his voice rang clear again. "What do you mean?"

"His soul..."

"What about it?"

If she said it now, JD would know. But Reizel insisted that her top priority was to warn the contact before JD arrived.

"It's..." Her voice softened. "There's... nothing."

One of JD's eyebrows rose, and inside his head, Andrew voiced out his confusion.

"...Reizel, if it's a corpse, you will still see a string of who's controlling it, won't you?"

"Yes, but-"She choked momentarily. "This isn't like that at all!"

"A living person is impossible to be soulless."

"I know. But that's not what I meant..!"

"Reizel."

"Sire, I-I couldn't detect him...." She paused, then grunted at the chains around her limbs tightening. As if urging her to keep talking.

"Reizei, you're the one who can see souls. Not me or anyone here. Just tell me what you see." It was almost unnerving for Reizel that the person on the other side of the call's voice remained steady and calm—no hints of panic or urgency whatsoever.

Reizel bit her lip, shooting JD a side glare for tightening the chains around her wrists the longer she remained silent.

"...A soul..." She squinted at the phone. "...with no light."

"...There are no such things as lightless souls."

"But-"

Reizel's throat took a brief halt, then a scream followed. The chains tightened more and more, and her squeezed skin and muscles pressed too much against her blood and bones screeching a streak of pain she could no longer resist.

"Reizel?" The voice now reeked concern. "Reizel!"

Reizel shot her head upfront at the shattering noise. JD had reached for the phone and struck it with force in the space between it and him.

The chains loosened as JD turned to face her.

"Lightless, huh?"

Reizel's body trembled, but with the newfound tinge of freedom from the transparent chains, she struggled to move. Every little move sent waves of the unreal sensation as if her muscles were being torn apart.

"Why could that be?" JD wondered out loud, eyes not on Reizel anymore. "Because of my inborn magic?"

"Perhaps because we're together inside one body?"

"That could be it."

His inborn magic might've been more remarkable than he gave Garnet credit for bestowing it onto his soul.

"When our souls are together, there is no light."

Andrew recited, recollecting something from the past.

"The absence of light." JD continued, earning a hum of agreement from Andrew. "But why..."

"I don't know, brother."

JD shook his head and scoffed, a small smile sliding to his face.

"Maybe Garnet cared about me more than I think he did." He muttered to himself.

Andrew giggled.

"Maybe."

Behind the struggle, Reizel's eyebrows met at what she had heard. Her expression turned to slight fear and caution when JD's gaze jumped back to hers.

He cupped Reizel's chin with one hand, gently raising it to meet his eyes as he leaned close. JD squinted, then whispered one word.

"Rest."

Her fierce gaze softened until her eyelids dropped, and her head weighed more in JD's hand. He undid the chains and carried her to the wall, assuring her upper body leaned the tiniest bit comfortably against it.

"Hm." JD hummed, gaze hovering over Reizel's face and bruised limbs. "Drew, can you heal her?"

"Mhm."

JD followed Andrew's instructions on where to place his hands and how lightly he should allow the air to carry them. When Andrew finished, JD stood up.

"Do you find her attractive, brother?"

"Hm? I think she's pretty. She's formidable and strong, too. But no, not really." He looked back at Reizel's unconscious body. "Do you?"

"Huh? Oh, um, no. I don't...."

There was a pause, but JD looked up at the ceiling, waiting for Andrew to continue.

"I don't... like girls."

"Oh."

"Do you like girls, brother?"

"...I don't particularly care." JD walked on forward. "I've never been attracted to anyone. Have you?"

"Um, y-yes, actually... back in Paradise."

JD could practically see and feel the shyness oozing from Andrew's soul, making him smile lightly.

"Is it someone I know?"

"Y-yes. But I don't really care about him much anymore."

"Must be the times. It's been hundreds of years, after all." JD nodded to himself.

"Mhm. L-let's focus, now."

The smile on JD's face widened.

"You're so cute."

"Shut up..."

JD sighed. "Okay, okay." Then he pursed his lips. "Thinking about it, I do like people, too."

"Oh?"

"Just..." He awkwardly smiles. "Not really in the romantic or sexual sense."

"I see!"

"I like Charles. We're good friends." JD pictured himself smacking his friend, satisfying his inner sadist. "I like some other people back in other places I've traveled to as well."

"Ohh."

"Either way," JD smiled warmly again as he closed his eyes briefly. "I like you the most, Drew."

"...Me too."

A comfortable, brief silence overcame the space until JD stopped in front of the last door in the ground-floor hallways. As the building was still in construction, the elevators and staircases still needed to be completed, meaning the CEO's office should be the last one on the only active floor.

"Only one."

JD's eyes slightly broaden.

"There's only one person beyond this door, brother."

"No guards? At all?"

Andrew didn't reply.

With a sharp sigh and tight clench of his jaw and his other hand, JD's hands took hold of the door handle, and it clicked open.

Slowly, the door swung open. Inside was the same as outside—plain and pure white walls with very few monochromatic and neutral-colored furniture pieces displayed around—a minimalistic style from the outside to the temporary main office of the CEO.

Right at the center stood a man in a bald fade haircut with a short stature and plump body, back turned on his long-awaited guests.

The air conditioning's white noise remained the only sound after the soft click of the door returning to its place. No words came out of JD, and Andrew didn't react either. But deep inside, as JD had finally faced Zalden's CEO directly without anyone around to cause distractions, his soul quivered—their souls.

"It gives me great pleasure...." The man started, hands on his back calmly lingering together. "...to see you together...."

"Together?" JD and Andrew gasped in sync.

He turned around, his sunglasses hanging around his coat's pocket, hazel eyes burning a soft turquoise as they stuck JD and Andrew frozen in place. His voice rang as clear and calm as it did during the phone call, but rather than that, it reminded the two of a fellow god they used to know back in Paradise.

"...Lord Hysta and Whist."