Enveloped by fog, the stone pathway stretched afar, shrouded in bright crimson moonlight. An arched gateway of weathered stone stood across the destroyed surroundings, as if it alone remained untouched, even years after a war had passed. The place was filled with a deafening silence, indicating not a single living organism resides there.

Breaking the silence was Aridus, wearing dark leather boots. His footsteps echoed with each step, the sides of his lips curled upward as he walked. The man's attire was a blend of rugged practicality and elegance. A dark, flowing cloak wrapped around his shoulders, its edges trailing behind him. His bright green hair contrasted against the crimson moonlight, and his sharp dark green eyes—seemingly devoid of emotion—stared deeply.

Stopping in his tracks, Aridus asked with a playful tone, "So, which one are you right now?" Across from him, Heizen sat on a wooden crate, staring at the floor in silence.

Looking at Aridus' direction, Heizen's brows furrowed before asking, "Who the fuck are you?"

"Hah! Those infuriating eyes—yeah, you're definitely Azazel right now."

As soon as Aridus’ lips closed, a pillar of flame that reached up to the sky burst forth, engulfing Aridus.

"Woah... That's some devilish flame you've got there. Speaking of devilish flames, this steak I tried the other day was so goddamn good—juicy and flavorful—that I couldn't help but order another one! And guess what? The flame they were using was similar to yours. I don't know much about cooking, but the flame they used definitely added to the flavor of the steak."

Standing by Azazel's right side, Aridus couldn't help but ramble about the juicy steak he just had as he watched the awe-inducing pillar of flame.

"You piece of shi-" As Azazel turned to attack Aridus, before he could even notice, Aridus was already on his left side.

Aridus' brows curled upward as he uttered in a worried tone, "Don't push yourself. The last fragmented soul you consumed was when you awakened, right? If I defended myself right now, your sorry ass would definitely weep."

Angered, geist began to swirl around Azazel. The geist around him started to flutter, and reality seemed to warp. His surroundings began to heat up as steam emerged from nowhere. However, before he could finish what he was doing, Aridus interrupted him, binding Azazel with his technique. A green, thread-like geist engulfed Azazel, rendering him unable to do anything.

"Now, now, let's not get heated. Hehe, I'm not here to fight you—in fact, I came here with a present that you'll definitely like."

Azazel remained silent, his brows furrowing, as Aridus continued to ramble.

Reaching out from inside his cloak, Aridus took out a spherical marble coated in bright crimson. "Ta-da... It's one of your fragmented souls." Undoing the binding, Aridus flicked the fragmented soul toward Azazel. "You're not gonna use it?" Aridus inquired as Azazel stuffed the fragment in his pocket.

"Do you like eating while a filthy homeless man keeps spitting his saliva on you?"

"What kind of question is that? Well, definitely no."

"That's why, I'm not using it now."

"Well, that's rude. Anyways, Eis has one of your fragments and he's currently at the dungeon where you awakened. But don't worry, I've already done some tinkering, so definitely expect a third fragment."

"Who are you? And why are you helping me regain my fragmented soul?" Azazel asked in a condescending tone.

"Now that I think about it, I definitely haven't introduced myself, huh?" Bending his knee and placing his left foot behind his right, Aridus placed his right palm on his chest. His lips stretched across his face as his sharp eyes narrowed. "My name is simply Aridus. I belong to an organization wishing for your full recovery. People regard us as demon cultists.”

.

.

.

The seven circled the campfire, its flickering light casting dancing shadows across their faces. They huddled beneath the sprawling branches of a colossal tree, its canopy shielding them from the relentless rain. Though deep within the dungeon, the soothing patter of rain and the cool breeze carried an almost deceptive sense of tranquillity.

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“How long has time passed since we first met again?” Friedrich asked in a monotonous tone as if he's bored.

“About six months already?” Eis replied in the same manner.

“Time sure flies by, huh?” Frieda, with her usual cheery tone, joined in.

“Keke, by the time you get back, you’ll be gone from the university’s list of students,” Heidi uttered with a chuckle, teasing Eis.

“So, what’s your excuse going to be for being absent for six months?” Ruhig inquired in a calm manner.

“Make that ten months. We still have four months to travel from the 35th floor to the 1st,” Will added, his tone laced with concern for Eis.

“Honestly, I don’t really know what to do once I get back,” Eis replied, sighing.

“Hah! Just tell them you were constipated,” Bernadette uttered with utmost confidence, with pride even."Or you could just join us," Friedrich suggested, shifting from his previous monotonous tone to an energy-filled one.

"I don’t mind that, but I want to at least graduate. Else, I won’t be able to face my friend after all the bravado I did," Eis murmured.

"Heizen?" Friedrich asked.

"Him too, but I’m talking about Blume," Eis replied.

"Oh! Isn’t that the childhood friend you mentioned briefly before?" Frieda asked enthusiastically.

"Wasn’t she the academy’s top student before graduating early? And then Heizen replaced her soon after?" Ruhig added.

"Before your awakening, you were consistently the top student, and after that, your two childhood friends took over... Holy shit, man, you three are powerhouses, huh?" Bewildered, Heidi couldn’t help but be in awe.

“Once you graduate, what will you do?” Will asked Eis in a soft tone.

“Well, I want to help Heizen first. But besides that, I want to travel outside the world and catch up to Blume,” Eis replied. Curious, he then asked them, “What about you guys? I heard from Ruhig that you all formed a party because you want to travel outside the world too.”

“I want to make a name for myself,” Will replied.

“Huh?” Contrary to his usual demeanor, one would have expected Will’s desire to be simply experiencing the wonders of the outside world. Not expecting that answer, Eis paused before continuing. “That’s a bit unexpected coming from you, Will.”

“Well, I want to become a renowned doctor.” Blushing a little, Will’s lips curled upward like a bashful child sharing his grand dream. “I don’t know much about the worlds outside, but in our world, Segenreich, knowledge about the medical field is too limited. People are more focused on how to become stronger with geist. Research in the medical field rarely gets support and is usually funded out of the researchers’ own pockets. That’s why I want to travel the countless worlds outside, learn from them, and share what I learn with fellow medical experts in Segenreich. I just want to become big so I can help a lot of people with their health.”

“That’s very noble of you, huh?” Smiling, Eis shifted his eyes to Bernadette who's about to speak.

With a grin on her face, Bernadette wrapped her right arm around Will’s shoulders. “Since we were kids, Will only cared about medicine; his only associates are us.”

“Come on, I have some acquaintances here and there,” Will protested, flustered, trying to debunk Bernadette’s claim.

“What about you, Bernadette?” Eis inquired.

Before Bernadette could reply, Heidi interrupted, “That woman is a meathead. Don’t expect much.”

“Hah!?” Bernadette grabbed Heidi, choking him with her biceps. “Why the hell are you slandering this delicate lady, huh!?” she exclaimed, trying to mask her anger with a smile.

“Where the hell is that delicate lady at?!” Heidi shouted, furiously tapping her arm.

“Then what’s your goal, Bernadette?” Eis asked again.

“Ah, it’s nothing grand, really. I just want to expand my culinary skills,” Bernadette answered, still holding onto Heidi.

“Eh, that’s really unexpec—I mean, makes sense! The food you cook for us is really good!” Failing to finish his first thought, Eis stammered, glancing at Heidi, who was coughing on the ground.

“That’s good to know!” Bernadette replied enthusiastically.

“As for me! What I want to do is just learn lots of information about geist!” Frieda exclaimed, cutting off Eis before he could ask his next question.

“O-oh. But then, couldn’t you have just pursued geist academics? Why are you an adventurer?” Eis asked, instinctively taking a step back from Frieda’s energetic declaration.

“Being stuck in a room researching something for hours, if not days, is boring. Traveling while gaining knowledge is way better, isn’t it?” Frieda replied, still brimming with enthusiasm.

“That does sound healthier for your mind,” Eis muttered.

Eis glanced at Heidi, who was still sitting on the ground.

“Huh? If you’re gonna ask me next, it’s getting stronger. Plain and simple, heh!” Heidi puffed his chest, grinning from ear to ear.

Friedrich snorted lounging further into his seat. “Heidi’s always been a simple guy. If you expect some insight from him, you might as well clean the curtains with rice. Doesn’t make sense, right?”

“The fuck d’you say!?” Heidi clenched his jaw, exclaiming “At least it’s better than your shallow ass.”

Friedrich shook his shoulder with a silent laughter. Tilting his head slightly upwards, feigning deep thoughts as he stretched his legs, “Oi, oi, my goal is the bane of men’s existence. Something as deep as my goal can’t be understood by the likes of you!”

“What’s your goal, Friedrich?” Eis asked. Throughout their journey, to Eis, Friedrich had always felt like the easy-going older brother figure. If Eis wanted to fool around, Friedrich was the first person that came to mind to accompany him. Hearing Friedrich’s words, Eis couldn’t help but feel curious.

Friedrich leaned forward, breaking out of his relaxed state. Resting his elbows on his knee and interlocked his fingers with a serious expression, as if preparing to step onto a battlefield, Friedrich declared his goal:

“I want to get laid.”