The sea breeze felt heavy on everyone’s lungs. Just as the Palamedes, the air was filled with the dark poison of Malevolence. The Island and the giant fort slowly came into view, overshadowed by clusters of dark clouds. To people who had never been to that place, those were the apparent signs of misery and depression; A large fortress with bland architecture. Mere glances sent minor shivers into Laphicet. Eizen scoured the piers for any signs of activity, but it seemed to be all clear.

“All hands, ready to disembark,”

With his approval, Van Eltia moved in. The team landed quickly. The crew began to unload crates and supplies, creating a forward base near the docks. Velvet began to scan the area like a hunter. Laphicet’s eyes were fixated on the front door,

“The whole island’s a prison… It’s like a secret fort or something….” His voice sounded excited and afraid at the same time. Only three people had been to the Island, and all three of them were acting as if they expected something else. Rokurou observed the area and looked a bit surprised, like something was out of the place,

“Quiet and no exorcist or guards in sight….”

Velvet’s scoping was over, “Then let’s check inside.”

In the back, the sorcerer was going through the ancient book. He moved the pages back and forth. Something was amiss.

“Laphicet, did you take some of the pages by any chance?” he asked.

The kid moved his head to the sides. Velvet suddenly looked back at them, eyes scolding.

“Stop messing with the book! We have got a job to do here, and none of it involves reading!”

Avernus sighed and closed it, but he couldn’t shut his own thoughts. The missing pages were removed recently, but they had another important mission at hand. He asked,

“Eizen, Laphicet, Eleanor, Magilou, and prince Percival, gather around me… please.” Laphicet quickly moved to his side, with Eleanor skeptically followed him. The prince and Eizen uncomfortably stood close. Avernus caught their doubtful expressions, but he proceeded nonetheless.

He gently slammed the end of his staff on the ground—a wave of silver flame formed under them.

Whoosh!

Laphicet and Eizen felt that they refreshed with a tickling sense. At the same time, the humans sensed nothing out of the ordinary.

“For your own safety, I can’t risk the malevolence affecting either of you.”

Prince Percival smiled serenely nodded. “Much obliged, Shepherd.”

Having been called anything but the prince was enough for him. That title had a weight that he still could not carry. He was a rogue and a deserter but no less of a Shepherd. He was choosing to be responsible for them at the moment.

“Is it worse than Palamedes?” Eleanor asked wonderingly.

“Actually, no. The inhabitants of this Island mostly absorb the malevolence. But some traces of it remain.” Avernus answered.

Velvet opened the front doors. She felt anxious to go through this once more. Her senses were heightened to maximum levels. The group followed her inside. Weapons and artes at the ready, they encountered no threats inside. Instead, the painful moaning was heard coming from the dark corner of the room.

They saw a heavily wounded exorcist limping towards them. Guts in her hands, it didn’t take long for her to drop severely to the ground.

Eleanor rushed to her side to check on her. Something had disembowelled the exorcist’s abdomen. The exorcists bitterly muttered something about a ‘Headless knight’ and ‘back’ before surrendering to the void. Eleanor was overwhelmed with fear. Dyle and Kurogane arrived with Kamoana tailing behind them.

A load growl pulled everyone out of their focus. A large hairy ape daemon dropped from the balcony. Dyle and Kurogane moved into covering Kamoana and the prince while everyone else readied themselves to fight the daemon.

Velvet leaped towards the creature. The ape slashed its claws. She effortlessly dodged the assault. She jumped and flipped over the daemon. Her yellow eyes met the daemon’s startled stare. Her wrist blade extended with a cling. The poised blade that Avernus enchanted for her pierced burrowed deep into the ape’s neck. She carved a large laceration as her body landed behind him. The Bush Ape desperately tried to cover its injury. But The cut was deep and out of reach, and soon, it yielded to the poison and fell to the ground, disappearing into a dark mist.

Velvet sheathed her blade and turned to the group,

“I doubt this was the daemon responsible for her death.” She paused for a moment, “So did the Abbey actually fail to quell the riot?”

“This is the story I really want to hear,” Tia whispered in Avernus’s mind.

“You and me both.”

Rokurou remembered the strength of exorcist personnel at the time of their escape,

“I find that hard to believe. The prison was heavily staffed with exorcists. It was even looked like that they the prisoners were losing.”

The team was trying to come up with an explanation until Eizen spoke,

“It looks like Venomization.”

Avernus glanced at the Malak, a subtle smile formed on his face. People were waiting for his explanation, and he didn’t try to steal the spotlight from him. Eizen loved his speeches so much.

“As most of you don’t probably know, it’s a dark ritual that forces the daemons to each other to produce stronger daemons.”

Magilou’s malicious grinning seemed to be unintentionally targeted at Velvet.

“Daemons devouring each other to create something too powerful for the exorcists to control. Also, add the rioting to the whole ordeal. Some people seem to create mistakes for everybody!”

Velvet shrugged her off, paying no heed to her provoking tone,

“Whatever happened doesn’t matter to us now. We need to focus on how to take this place for ourselves.”

Rokurou was peculiarly happy about it. The thought of fighting that monster sparked joys and excitement. Possibilities were endless.

“That headless knight she told us about? That’s probably their leader. Let’s find it and destroy it for good!”

Everyone seemed to be consent to the plan. A new opponent for the swordsman to fight, a fort for Velvet and Eizen to operate in and something more interesting for the Shepherd; the earthpulse point itself. He had his own plan for the earthen veins.

With the main hall secured, Velvet advised to use it as a staging ground if they ever feel about returning to it for supplies. Dyle and Kurogane stayed with prince Percival and Kamoana. The uncertainty and dread were apparent in the little therion’s eyes. She lowered her head, trying to swallow a knot in her throat. Her heterochromia and misty eyes gazed at the tiles on the floor.

She felt the loneliness is returning to her again—the equivalent of all that time she spent under the Palamedes temple.

Everybody knew that she hated to be left alone, even the daemon lady.

The sorcerer first caught her gloomy mood, “Kamoana, if you ever feel threatened, call for me, and I’ll be here for you. Don’t worry about it. I’ll be quick as a silver.”

The little girl cautiously raised her small head and met with Avernus’s compassionate and peaceful face, slowly nodding at her. Nonetheless, she was still unsure; her mother wasn’t present, her friends weren’t there with her, and the only people she knew were leaving her side. Kamoana noticed Eleanor crouching beside her, levelling her height as the same as hers, “You can call for me too, and I’ll come running to protect you, okay?”

Kamoana swiftly absorbed her grace. Her morale was boosted. The innocent face of hers was flushed with faith, giving her enough hope until they come back.

The hinges shrieked as the antique wooden door opened. Avernus felt the rumbles of the suffering in the air. He implicitly glanced at Laphicet to inspect his moral. The little boy's conviction was strong, but his pure eyes showed suspense that was undergoing in his mind. Avernus gradually and indirectly shortened the gap between them. Laphicet noticed his presence, and his spirit amplified with more confidence now the sorcerer was walking beside him.

“That kid won’t grow if you want to protect him all day,” Tia whispered frigidly.

“At least he’s out here fighting and not hiding inside Eleanor,” Avernus responded in kind.

“If you hadn’t weakened yourself from the previous fight, I would walk beside you all… such an ungrateful human.” Irksome, she talked back.

Unknown to them, Eleanor was observing Avernus and Laphicet. Her mind wondered; While Eizen and Rokurou were models of free will and rebellious masculinity, Avernus shaped Laphicet’s virtues; tenacity, integrity, and perseverance. Those were the only aspects that at least were clear to her. Eleanor’s assumptions of Malakhim, daemons and even Shepherds were turning out to be completely different. She sensed that she might know nothing about them until now.

“Look out!”

Eizen’s strident warning shifted her attention to reality. Something hastily hissed as it passed above her head. She turned and saw a mutated cat creature riding a flying broom. It didn’t take long for Rokurou to sprang and cut the daemon out of the air and for Velvet to finish it off on the ground, nabbing the creature with her claw and crushing it beneath.

Eleanor noticed that four more were in front of them, levitating in the tight corridor. Without hesitation, she darted towards the closest one.

“Here it comes!” They were an easy target for her spear to reach. Eleanor slashed the daemon before it could react and quickly stabbed it with multiple thrusts from her spear. “Pierce! Spiral… Hail!”

She put all her power into one final push, a spiralling gale that swept the rest of the daemons across the small hallway.

When the aftereffects settled, the daemons were lying on the ground, motionless. Their bodies soon began to disintegrate into nothingness.

Avernus somewhat was pleased with her. She heard him somewhat complimenting her using his silvery voice. “Not bad, a solid A for Eleanor and B for Velvet and Rokurou.”

That was an unforeseen statement from the former Shepherd.

“Are you… grading my combat performance?!” Eleanor puzzlingly inquired.

“I’m always grading our performances, sometimes up to sixty-five categories… I just don’t say it loud.” Avernus confidently said as a teacher would.

Velvet, Rokurou, Eizen, and Magilou quickly turned their heads towards him as if some physical harm was coming his way. He was unfazed and unimpressed by their ominous stares, “Those glares won’t help us survive. Be better people.” His response matched his calm gesture.

Avernus noticed another large group of daemons roaming in the next room. He looked at Laphicet and, with a nod, signalled to him. The boy returned it with his courageous and bold stare.

“Now, we will show you when your efforts are worth a real A.” Avernus, self-assured, declared in a ringing voice.

Avernus and Laphicet walked side by side and moved in front of the group. Laphicet opened his hands and aimed them at the front as if he was ready to cast his artes. Avernus’s staff clicked, and two scythe blades came out of each side.

He spanned the staff. With each rotation, a soft sound of whoosh was heard, again and again. He increased the pace until it was indistinguishable in its rotatory movement.

“One of those cheap throws?” Velvet mocked him in a flat voice.

Avernus grinned. He pulled his arm back and flung the staff. The weapon arched towards the top and went above the daemons head.

“Hah, you missed.” Velvet indifferently said.

“Now, Laphicet!” Avernus signalled the boy in a clamorous voice.

Their arms and hands shone, several artes cast from them. With each shot, their arms jolted back. A barrage of crystalline magic bolts hit the turning staff. It deflected all of the elemental magic towards everywhere in the room. The magic rained down on the daemons, piercing and cutting down all of them at the same time. The room lit up above them like a firework. After a few seconds of bombardment, nothing remained but the echoed shrieks of dying daemons.

Avernus and Laphicet turned towards the group, looking invincible and satisfied. They fist-bumped while maintaining their dominance stare over the team.

“That’s how you get an A.” Avernus triumphantly declared.

“Just stay silent, Shepherd and let us do our job, let your wound heal,” Eizen’s penetrating voice dug deep into his unmoved stance,

Avernus indirectly checked his right arm. The usage of his Chaos Reach arte in the fight against the Xeno Mantis didn’t fully revert his arm to its original form. Bandages covered his right arm, and the spiky armoured gauntlet was completely concealed its ugliness.

He moved his fingers around his staff. They were still numb—no sense of touching, nothing as of yet.

“You’re not feeling better? Not even a bit?” Tia asked.

“The pain is gone, but the restoration process is too slow for some reason,”

“Carelessness, stupidity, and arrogance. Like a little child. Do you want me to say more?” Tia admonishingly whispered in his head.

Avernus silently growled in annoyance. Tia was right. He was reckless and not for good reasons. He wasn’t invincible, and for the majority of the time, he would have ignored his mortality.

The team moved on to secure more corridors and prison blocks. The daemons were easily getting routed by the team. Amidst the chaos, Eleanor noticed some bits and pieces of exorcist exorcists scattered around the area.

Sadness triggered a question that she kept it swallowed since they entered Titania,

“Who was behind the riot? What happened here?” she asked in a brittle tone.

Avernus’s staff retracted back to his original form.

“I would like to know that as well,” he said orotundly.

Velvet wasn’t bothered to explain to anyone. But when Avernus requested the same thing, she hesitated. She minded his viewpoint to the extent of caring for a little jot. Rokurou turned to Eleanor, not afraid of the topic at hand.

“I thought someone in your position would know that by now,” Rokurou implied.

“I received some reports regarding a large riot, but I was caught up in chasing your group,” she answered uncertainly.

Magilou grinned. She felt the reason behind it wasn’t a big deal. She spoke in a flat voice, “It was not of any importance, really. Velvet, Rokurou and I were being held on this Island. Velvet provoked the other prisoners to riot so that we could escape.”

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“Velvet used the prisoners?!” Eleanor’s surprising outburst wasn’t unexpected. However, Velvet was more interested in the sorcerer’s reaction. She peeked at him from the corner of her eyes. He stood silent. His face looked as if ‘I knew what you did, Velvet.’ “Yeah, You’d expect different from me?” Velvet said flatly.

Eleanor refrained from answering. Avernus did his usual head shaking in acknowledging her claim.

“But how did the riot end?” Laphicet asked worryingly.

“We did stay to see, but the prisoners were losing badly to the exorcists or at least that’s what I looked like… But if that was the case, then where did all the exorcists go?” Rokurou answered, but he was caught in his own query.

“Oscar left the Island to report the incident, but the other guards should have remained at the Island,” Eleanor said.

“So, if they didn’t flee, then we must assume that they all got killed,” Eizen concluded.

Velvet, self-assured and certain, walked towards the next area, “We will mop up anyone who’s left, daemon or exorcist. It doesn’t matter,”

“Even that headless knight?” Magilou mockingly asked.

“That’s our primary target,” Velvet reminded the group.

The team travelled deeper into the prison. Their dungeon crawling was at its best. They managed to reach the lowest part of the facility. Avernus eyes focused in the distance.

Something shone further in the darkness, like a levitating orb. They approached it, and it became clear what was the source of that light.

“The headless knight!” Laphicet shouted.

Rokurou slowly pulled out his double swords, “He looks vicious all right.”

Avernus’s staff transformed to its combat form, “Let’s get started.”

Avernus inspected their opponent; it looked like to be a larger type of living armour. But one thing about that thing was different; it was constantly whispering. Laphicet was getting distracted by the emitting buzzes. The team, however, began their assault.

The daemon’s attention was mostly focused on Velvet. Its large metal axe swung to no avail, missing all of its slashes to Velvet’s nimble movement. Rokurou, excited as he finally met a strong opponent, his daemon eye flashed red, his dual swords clashed with the daemon’s axe. Velvet’s heavy claw strikes were strong enough to dent and mend the daemon’s armour. The team’s intent on annihilating that daemon was clear. The room shone from elemental artes bouncing off its armour.

Soon, the daemon’s body fell apart, and the shimmer of malevolence inside it was silenced.

“Well, that was surprisingly easy,” Rokurou said, doubtful of the whole “Stronger Daemon.”

“Somehow, I doubt that was the leader,” Avernus observed

Laphicet’s mind cooled down after the fight, and suddenly, something flickered in his brain,

“I sense something again! I think there’s an earthpulse point nearby!”

Avernus attempted to focus his wavelengths on pinpointing the earthpulse point. The malevolence was too thick for him to concentrate, but for Laphicet, it was a different story. Contrary to his previous observation, Laphicet showed great resilience to external factors. A sudden and out-of-place thought crossed his bustling mind that maybe it was the time to pass the silver flame to someone more powerful and more competent.

“It’s pretty close too,” Eizen stated, perceiving the same experience as Laphicet.

Velvet looked down on a metal grate door and was below them. “Directly underneath us, I would guess.” She remarked.

Velvet pulled the hatch. A ladder attached to the opening, and the rest of it continued into the darkness below. The daemons and Malaks dropped down without much effort. Avernus warped into the cell, leaving Magilou and Eleanor to scale down the ladder.

Everyone quickly succumbed to the loneliness of the cylinder-looking cell. Eleanor couldn’t hold back her sense of dread, “What is this place?”

“Welcome to the most secure cell in the entire complex. The darkest hole in Titania.” Velvet said.

Laphicet’s compass vibrated and stopped moving. They were directly on the top of the earthpulse point.

“So, that means that this cell must’ve housed a therion,” Eleanor assumed.

Velvet first looked at the sorcerer. His eyes said it all. Avernus knew everything from the moment they entered Titania.

She closed her eyes. The mementos of this wretched place started to pass through her mind,

“And a hungry one… Every day, they would toss daemons into its cell. It would devour its fill, then wipe the blood from its lips. Never once realizing it was delivering to Innominat the malevolence of hundreds of daemons and prisoners. And then one day there appeared before it a female Malak, who shattered the barrier and freed the therion from its cage. But the therion knew no mercy, and it devoured its liberator. And it was then….”

Her arm suddenly transformed. Malevolence dripped through her clenched hand. Its red hue burned in the dark.

“It was then I obtained the power. The power to avenge my brother.”

The atmosphere changed drastically between the team. Another secret turned to another truth. Laphicet clenched fists and widened look was the first sign, “Velvet… You’re a therion?”

The process soon “ticked” for the reaper, “This prison island was a feeding ground for the therion, harnessing the malevolence created by the prisoners within.” He thoroughly described the circumstances.

“…Because Velvet escaped, the malevolence went out of control.” Rokurou reflected on the aftermath of their escape.

Magilou glanced at Avernus, “The same thing that happened back in Kamoana’s village. Instead, the malevolence flowed freely out of the earthpulse. am I right, shepherd?” She asked as she wanted to appeal to him. The sorcerer acknowledged it by giving her a simple nod.

“Lord Artorius would never have done such a thing,” Eleanor spoke in a brittle and low voice. Everyone turned to her. She was trembling and borderline sobbing at the same time. This was no mere mistake. It was an atrocious act and by none other than someone who claimed to be pure and wanted to save the world.

“No? What’s so unbelievable?” Velvet’s voice was penetrating. Avernus felt that a lot of pent-up sadness and anger would drown all who were nearby. “…That he used his wife’s brother as a human sacrifice? That he imprisoned his wife’s sister?” Her gaze was fixated at Eleanor, akin to a wild wolf that was going to tear apart her prey. She moved one step towards Eleanor. Her voice suddenly cracked “…Because that’s what your damn holey Shepherd did! All to get his hands on Innominat’s power!”

Eleanor’s mind was intended to keep the image of Artorius intact, grasping at straws of something rational, even if it felt small, “I’m sure he… had a reason for….”

Velvet sprang towards Eleanor. She was caught off guard. Velvet grabbed her by the collar and pulled her close to a few inches from her face. Eleanor could feel her breath on her skin, her infuriated gaze fixated on her eyes, and her strident shout piercing her ears.

“To spare the world of its pain? Don’t give me that! Who will spare my brother’s pain?! Who will soothe my brother’s despair?! He murdered my little brother Laphi! And you’ll stand there and tell me it was for the “greater good”?!”

Avernus was fully aware of her grief, her loss, the swarms of regrets of not seeing her beloved brother, and what that tragedy made her into. But he recalled his own life; The downward hill that he thought he survived, but her outburst reminded him that his own outside face was nothing but a show. He wanted to go somewhere, devoid of people, and lash out at this cruel and frozen world for as long as he desired.

“Tell me, Shepherd, are all of your kind sell your family and friends for power in the name of the greater good?” This time, Velvet's voice wasn’t directed at Eleanor. He realized Velvet’s resentful glare was aimed at him.

“Artorius claimed that he loved Laphicet, that he loved me. Are you the same?! Answer me! Are you going to forsake the one you said you love for the benefit of all?! Can you even be trusted?!” Velvet’s had her second prey in sight. Avernus eyes widened. He never directly told her that he loved her, or did he? He had nothing to tell but a simple answer, “No, never.” He whispered in a soft voice.

There was a heavy silence. Velvet broke the eye contact and exhaled deeply, “At any rate… That’s one less therion for us to track down.” She said in her toneless voice.

Avernus and Eleanor were both lost in their own thought then suddenly, “Help!” a croaky voice was uttered in their ears,

“Kamoana?!” Avernus breath stopped. He immediately looked at the top and disappeared in a flash.

Eleanor also started to check her surroundings.

“What the hell happened to you two? Did Velvet yell so hard you’re both hearing voice now?” Magilou uncertain but annoyingly said.

Panicking and nervous, Eleanor trusted her instinct, “Something’s wrong. Avernus felt that too. Kamoana’s in danger!” She worryingly expressed.

Velvet sighed in frustration, “Fine, enough, chitchat. We’ve cleared most of the prison anyway.” She declared in her cold voice.

On the top, Avernus was striding through the halls and corridors back to the entrance, “Quick as a silver… quick as a silver… you promised her, Avernus….” He whispered to himself, trying to remember the path. “Tia, what was the damn route?!” feeling lost, Avernus uncontrollably shouted.

“Middle stairway to the top, then turn right, at the junction go straight to the door.” She calmly directed him.

He reached the door and quickly opened it. His new opponent was already present. He gazed at the heavily armoured headless horseman. The malevolence dripped in large volumes, affecting even his hearing to some extent. Neither the rider nor the horse had any heads. Yet, their disembodied voice sent chills across their spines.

“A full-fledged… Dullahan!? That damn thing is spewing malevolence like there’s no tomorrow!” Avernus loudly said to himself, breathily.

The daemon trotted towards Kamoana and the prince Percival. Kurogane ran and positioned himself between them. Dullahan ride slammed and hurled Kurogane's enormous body into Dyle.

“I… Think we’re knocked out for good….” Dyle barely managed to blurt from under the huge weight of the blacksmith.

Dullahan once more rode towards them. Avernus pointed towards the prince, “Tia! You guard prince Percival, I’ll take Kamoana!” He yelled in his orotund voice. A shining orb exited from his back and instantly morphed into Tia’s humanoid form. She landed on her feet directly in front of the prince. The air around them concentrated into a bubble-looking shield. But the rider decided to target the little therion instead. The horse trotting’s sound hammered around the room. The floor shook as it moved closer to Kamoana.

“Damn it! He wants more malevolence!” Avernus disappeared in a cloud of mist. Kamoana felt Avernus’s arms around her waist. Her small feet took off from the ground, and Dullahan’s incisive spear barely missed her body. Soon she found herself in Avernus’s tight embrace. Kamoana looked up, seeing his determined and cool face with his long hair loosely floating around.

Avernus’s sharp and pointy boots hit the ground. He quickly turned on his heels and moved his right leg in the back to support himself. In a bright spark, his staff turned into the Amenoch's Longbow. His move enraptured Kamoana. Her eyes brimmed with the fondest emotions, “That is so cool!” she said excitingly.

Dullahan readied itself to attack them head-on. His horse began to paw and stomp the ground.

“Come and get it, rider!” Avernus challenged the daemon in his robust tone. He pulled the shining bow string harder and harder. An elemental arrow appeared, radiating dark mist.

“Vortex Trail!” Avernus’s deafening shout followed the release of the arrow. The rider jousted towards them, his spear staying firm in the front. The arrow hit the middle torso but dissolved into strings of magic waves. Hitting the daemon to no effect. Avernus sensed the danger and instinctively grabbed Kamoana and put her on his shoulders. Avernus ran to the wall, and with a strong step, he jumped high above Dullahan as it passed underneath them.

Kamoana laughed, enjoying the thrill of the action. She raised her arm higher and screamed in her gruff voice, “Yay! Go, Avernus! I love you!”

The doors suddenly opened. Eleanor was the first one to enter the room. She quickly looked around, shouting Kamoana’s name. All of a sudden, she saw the scene. With her mouth half-opened, Kamoana turned to her and shouted, “Eleanor! You came for me too!”

“A promise is a promise… sweetheart.” Eleanor softly spoke, still looking at Avernus carrying the little girl around. Hugging his head from behind, Kamoana pointed at the daemon, “Go get him, Avernus!”

Now Kamoana was the rider, and Avernus was her ride. Laphicet stared at the scene with the utmost jealousy.

Avernus changed his bow back. His staff extended in length, and the scythe blade appeared on the top. Dullahan jousted once more. Avernus gently rotated his body at the waist, drawing the blade along with himself as it moved in an arc from the side across in front of his body. The headless horse trotted, trailing a long trace of malevolence behind him.

The scythe blade flashed, Dullahan moved in for the kill. Avernus yelled in a clamorous voice and slashed his staff with all the strength and energy he could muster. The blades clashed, but Avernus’s vigour prevailed. The scythe found the corrupted flesh of the daemon’s horse. Dark blood spilled all over the wall, painting it in a curve sketch of poisonous liquid. The horse squealed in pain and vanished. The rider fell towards the ground.

Kamoana and Avernus cheered in victory. But the fight wasn't over. Their distraction proved to be a fatal mistake; as soon as they turned, Dullahan threw his spear at them. There was no time to act. The lance pierced Avernus in the shoulder. Kamoana fell from his back. The force of the throw hurled him to the wall behind him, pinning the shepherd to the stone. Avernus cried in excruciating pain. The blood ran down through his torn vest. The team rushed to save them both. Eleanor managed to pick up the little girl, but the rider threw his shield at them, forcing the team to back off.

Intent on taking Avernus’s life, it slowly closed the gap. Walking in a soulless style, its disembodied voice whispered to him. The sound of its armour hitting against the ground was akin to the rings of death that echoed in his soul. The daemon recalled its lance. The shrill blade came out of his shoulder. His body dropped to the ground, and the blood poured from his deep wound, covering half of his torso. The agonizing pain stopped him from moving. He watched as the daemon prepared itself to push its lance one last time into his body. "Damn it!" He murmured.

Tia flew towards him. His death meant her own demise. But another figure swiftly passed her. Avernus naturally shut his eyes.

The death didn’t come. After opening his eyes, he saw only a long hair floating in front of his face.

“Vel-vet?!” Grinding his teeth on account of the enormous pain, he called her name. She caught the spear by her hands, firmly holding it. The daemon growled and pushed harder. She resisted and shoved the rider away. The daemon lost control and released its weapon. Velvet twirled the spear and raced towards the monster. In a matter of seconds, the lance pierced the daemon's torso, and she carried it to the other side, skewering it.

Now helpless, the daemon tried to pull the spear out of its chest to no avail. Velvet slowly walked towards it. Malevolence spilled from her bandages. The cloth tore up as her claw formed. She grabbed the front armour and forcefully ripped the metal away.

The others watched the scene in shock as Velvet tore him apart piece by piece, making her way to its core. She grabbed its heart and squeezed it. The corrupted mist exited from the cracks. Finally, its crux was crushed under her claw and the remains dissolved into a dark cloud.

Eleanor, Laphicet, Tia, and Kamoana rushed to Avernus’s side. Eleanor began to quickly bandage his torn-up shoulder while Tia and Laphicet used their healing artes.

“You… you are crazy, Avernus. I… I don’t know what to say.” Eleanor said in a soft voice, still stuttering from the shock.

“Did you see us, Eleanor? We were awesome!” Kamoana told her in a thrilling tone.

Eleanor nodded, smiling, “Yes, sweetie… But you need to be more careful. Avernus, that was so careless. You could…”

But Avernus’s attention was on Velvet. He couldn’t hear what they were saying. She slowly turned to them, still standing far away. They both looked at each other from a distance. Velvet eyes showed a little bit of enviousness when she saw them together. She quickly turned her head away.

Avernus still felt the daemon’s presence. To their shock, a shadow was cast above them. He looked up and saw the Dullahan’s shield levitating in the air. The menacing face on the exterior was gazing at them.

The shield descended upon them. Kamoana screamed in terror. The only thing that Avernus could do was to shield them with his own body. He pulled them away. But in an instant, another creature snatched the last bit of the daemon and flew away. Avernus narrowed his eyes. There was no mistake.

It was a Griffin. The same daemon from the villa. It quickly devoured the monster.

“It’s a therion!” Laphicet yelled.

The creature’s large wings spanned across the room. It gently looked at the group. He was no threat.

Prince Percival walked to the creature, “That hawk is Griffin, my one and only friend,” He introduced it in his calm and modulated voice.

Velvet let out a brief sneer, “A damned therion. So that’s what Tabatha meant when she said we’d “find out shortly.”

Eleanor stood up. The day couldn’t get any weirder, “But your highness, why do you have a therion?” She inquisitively asked.

“…He’s been my dear friend ever since I was a child… Even as a therion, that matter hasn’t changed.” Prince calmly replied. Griffin flew back to him, changing back into a hawk. It soared above their heads. Finally, landing on the prince’s arm.

“You knew you were helping a therion escape. What is your scheme?” Eizen asked in skepticism.

Percival out a prolonged sighed and looked at the wounded Avernus, “I have no scheme. I wanted Griffin to be free. The reason I came looking for your friend was to find a place for Griffin and myself to live.”

“So you just do what you want!” said Magilou.

“Maybe, but it’s the first time that I ever did it out of my own choice.” The prince looked at Avernus once more, preparing to tell a mutual tale, “When you’re a prince, you’re not a person. You’re an institution, one designed to serve the state and its people. You can never priories a personal feeling over your duties to the kingdom. Seeing Griffin flying freely was my first solace over the years.”

The prince’s words were too familiar. He looked at Velvet. He prioritized her over his duty, over his true calling. Helping the one he felt close to, against the reason and the world.

“But he turned to be responsible to Innominat’s power….” Prince's calm voice soon started to break.

“So, the royal family of Midgand is well aware that Abbey is creating therions?” Velvet asked in a toneless voice.

“Definitely. The kingdom offers unequivocal support to Shepherd Artorius’s vision of reason and will. That’s why I came to you. I could not permit seeing Griffin locked up and unable to fly.” The prince continued.

“How did you manage to get your bird out of the villa?” Avernus asked.

“I tricked the exorcist on guard and disabled the barrier. But then Griffin attacked the exorcist and killed him.”

Avernus slowly stood up, holding his wounded shoulder, “But the capital will be overrun with malevolence!” He furiously said.

Magilou looked at him, winking, “Bingo, shepherd. More disaster.”

The prince shook his head, “I knew full well what I was doing and yet I couldn’t see my friend’s life be stripped away.” The prince regretfully confessed.

“Can you stop the malevolence as you did with the Palamedes?” Eizen asked Avernus.

“From here? I don’t know… maybe if….” Avernus said in strangulated voice before suddenly being stopped.

“Why do you think that birds fly?” Velvet emotionlessly and out of place asked the prince.

“…Because a bird that cannot fly is no bird at all.” He calmly replied.

“I understand. As long as you remain on this island, you may do as you please. But if you try to escape or betray me, I’ll kill you.” Velvet said in her monotonous voice.

The prince nodded, “I appreciate that you were letting Griffin and I stay here.” Aside from all that threats, he replied in a satisfied mood.

Avernus followed Velvet. She paid him no heed,

“Can I talk to you?” Avernus unsurely asked her.

"… I want to check the outside. Maybe later." She coldly replied.

"That was a straight S," Avernus said to her.

She stopped for a moment, "What does that mean?" she flatly asked.

"A new grade... Superb." He answered proudly.

After pausing for a few more seconds, she moved outside, closing the door behind her.

Avernus stood there for a few moments before going towards Tia, “Would you stay here with Laphicet? I need to do something.”

Tia glanced at him suspiciously,” Don’t do anything stupid,”

Avernus reluctantly nodded and moved towards the inner prison once more. He walked through the lonely corridors. The echo of his boots was the only sound that could be heard. His shadow bounced off the wall torches.

Soon, he found himself above Velvet’s cell. Taking a heavy breath, he jumped down into the darkness.

The cell was still cold. The chill pierced his fresh wound.

He raised his hand and moved it circularly, “Okay, Earthen Historia, show me the magic,”

The pitch-black cell slowly lit up. A small portal formed in the middle of the room. He was reluctant at first. But he kept telling himself; he had to see. He had to know. He had to feel.

He cautiously walked inside it.