As the golden torrent of enchanted wine descended like a crashing waterfall, Mia acted quickly, stretching her hand above her head.

"Crystalline Veil"

A roar of ice erupted from her palm, exploding outward into a massive arched shield of frozen mana.

The wine froze mid-air, cascading around the barrier like a gilded wave captured in time.

CRACK—CRACK—CRACK!

Sith leapt forward and started kicking through the icy curtain.

Shards of frozen wine shattered around them like stained glass as they escaped from beneath the shrine's ceiling.

They didn't stop to marvel at what had just happened.

Sith grabbed two of the remaining headbane wine jars, slender containers etched with runes, and tossed one to Mia.

"That better be the right one," Sith muttered. "Or we're wasting our time."

"It has to be," Mia said, inspecting the rune. "Spirit bamboo brewed under blue fire. That's what the symbol means."

They climbed back up to the inn in silence, then slipped out through the rear exit, heading into the forest outside the town, toward the cave mentioned in the letter.

Carrying heavy jars, both of them at rather a slow pace through the woods. For some reason, they cannot be kept in storage rings, and have to be carried manually.

Due to such inconvenience, before they reached the location, the sun dipped beyond the treetops, casting long shadows across the narrow dirt path.

Sith's eyes narrowed. "Sun's down."

"Yeah," Mia muttered. "That's when they said the head emissaries start moving. They come for the wine jars."

As if on cue, a distant rustle echoed from the woods.

Then another.

Then, a dozen.

Figures emerged from the darkness: humanoid shapes with pale skin, sunken eyes, and bald scalps. They moved on all fours, sniffing and crawling like feral hounds. Clawed fingers dug into the dirt as they scrambled toward the two women.

"They're coming." Sith bared her fangs and stretched her hands, placing the jar aside. Claws emerged from her fingers. "Want me to go all out?"

"Hold them off. I'll create a path!"

Mia also threw the wine jar aside and slammed her staff to the ground.

"Arctic Bloom"

A blast of frost pulsed outward. The ground froze beneath the advancing monsters. The ice bloomed like wildflowers across the forest floor.

Several of the undead creatures were encased mid-crawl, frozen in snarling poses.

Sith then darted forward like a blur of crimson in the darkness. Her claws flashed and decapitated the lead creature, its body twitching as black blood splattered the roots.

More emerged. Their numbers grew with every minute. In no time, dozens of them erupted.

"Too many," Sith growled. "They just keep coming."

"Kael's safety is more important, right now. No matter what, we have to get through this."

Sith nodded. "Then we cut a path. I'll take the left flank. You clear center."

"Frost Fang!"

Mia's spell launched an arc of jagged ice, tearing through the ranks of monsters like a blizzard blade.

Together, the vampiress and the sorceress surged forward, cutting down the undead emissaries under the growing moonlight.

Meanwhile, far away;

Kael stirred.

His head throbbed with dull pain, and his limbs ached from lying in the cold, damp corner of the cave for too long.

"Ugh…"

Groaning, he opened his eyes. The space was dim, the rough stone ceiling above him glistening with condensation. His wrists were bound by coarse ropes, looped with deliberate knots.

"Tch… Cleo…"

He reached out with his mind.

A flicker of thought, and a whisper-like connection returned.

Cleo's voice echoed faintly in his mind.

"Master…"

"Where are you?"

"I'm here in the woods. I see that Lady Mia and the vampiress are engaged in battle nearby. They're surrounded by undead."

Kael's eyes narrowed. "They must be on their way to save me and got ambushed."

Summoning the primordial flame, a flicker of fire erupted in his palm. It didn't scorch, but it ate away the rope with clean precision. The cords blackened and fell to the ground in ash.

Kael then stood.

His movements were quiet as he made his way out of the chamber and into a narrow rock corridor.

After a short walk, the passage widened abruptly, and before him stretched a massive underground cavern.

There were over a hundred people, all dressed in tattered robes, kneeling in eerie silence before a jagged stone altar, behind which loomed an emblem: a circle split by three vertical lines with one spiraling eye in the center.

Kael's eyes swept the crowd and landed on a familiar face.

"You…"

The bald innkeeper, still wearing his greasy smile, turned to him. Standing beside him was the tea-seller, the one who'd drugged him.

"Ah, you're awake," the innkeeper said with theatrical disappointment. "Looks like that little dose wasn't enough to hold a man like you down. For a plainfolk like you, I guess you have quite high resistance."

"Why was I abducted?" Kael growled, acting almost like he was wronged. "If this was about money…"

"Oh, it's not about gold, friend." The man took a step forward. His tone darkened, and his smile faded. "You entered this island. That alone was your crime. You can't be allowed to leave."

Kael's fingers twitched near his waist, ready to summon a weapon at any moment.

"So the undead… that was you behind it, after all."

The innkeeper nodded slowly. "Every adventurer who lands here becomes a gift to our head god and becomes a part of his army. Through the headbane wine, brewed with the flesh of the Karmic Bug, we infect their spirit. They lose identity… and are reborn as emissaries of the Head God."

Kael's lips curled in disgust. "So you sacrifice them."

"They serve a higher purpose," the tea man said from beside him. "They protect our village from outsiders. They purge the curious before they reveal our ties."

"Ties to what?" Kael asked.

The innkeeper's eyes twitched. He leaned in. "To Nanyin. The god of many faces. The devourer of rebirths. He sees through all masks… even yours. As for your friends, they managed to escape the trap I set for them and are on their way to save you, but no matter, they will die anyway."

Kael stared at them calmly.

Then, with a small smirk, he clapped.

*Tap* Tap* Tap*

"Impressive. Your planning, your wine, your rituals… all of it. I'll admit, you almost got me."

The innkeeper's eyes narrowed. "What are you…"

Kael's expression sharpened. "But you made one… terrible mistake."

The cultists paused.

And then…

WHOOSH.

A wave of heat pulsed outward as Kael's body began to glow. Horns erupted from his head, curved and sharp. His skin turned deep crimson, scales creeping up his arms and chest like armored plates. Wings unfurled behind him.

Staring at him, Kael then finished. "Your mistake is to abduct me and then admitting your crimes."

"Y-You're not human…" the innkeeper stammered, stumbling backward, sweat forming on his pale brow. "You're a demon!"

"Not a demon," Kael corrected coldly, drawing both Elerium daggers.

"Just your executioner."

The first cultist charged blindly—Kael didn't even blink.

With a blur, he vanished—and then reappeared behind the man.

A clean slice.

No blood. Just a burned, cauterized line through the torso as the body collapsed lifelessly.

"Kill him!" the innkeeper screamed. "He's just one man."

They surged forward.

Kael moved like a shadow.

His daggers danced, precise and fatal.

He weaved through their ranks like a predator through sheep. Each strike carved through flesh and bone, burning away their twisted souls. Screams filled the air, followed by silence.

The chanting turned to panic.

Then, begging.

Then…

Nothing.

In just under one minute, the silence was complete.

102 corpses lay on the floor.

Kael calmly stepped out of the cave, his demonic form dissolving, red skin fading back into human complexion, wings and horns vanishing like smoke.

Kael sheathed his daggers.

He tilted his head toward the evening sky, inhaled the clean air, and whispered:

"Ignis, come out."

As the mystic tattoo on his arm glowed, the fire pegasus materialized before him. Taking a leap on its back, he caressed its mane. "Ignis, let's go."

The fire pegasus flapped its wings and flew into the sky.

Not long after he left, a death energy aura emerged from the corpses, all flying toward the wall. It slowly slid open on its own, revealing a vertical crypt. A cocoon of black vines absorbed the death energy, and it slowly started to snap.

Meanwhile, far in the woods;

Sith gritted her fangs, shielding the limping Mia with one arm while lashing out with the other.

"They're endless!" she growled, slicing through another undead skull. "Get behind me."

Mia gritted her teeth, holding her side where blood soaked through her dress. Her golem stood beside her like a shield wall, carrying the wine jars in one hand and the other fist busy smashing skulls into pulp.

However, it was just a never-ending horde.

Mia seemed quite tired, and she was getting injured more than before. Her head was turning dizzy. She looked like she could collapse at any moment.

But all of a sudden…

"NEIIIIIGH!"

A blazing streak cleaved through the grey sky as the neigh of a familiar horse head in the sky. For a moment, the battle paused, and everyone raised their heads.