The clearing was eerily quiet in the aftermath of their brutal training session. Damon, Daveon, and Anaya lay sprawled on the ground, still recovering from their one-sided battle against Miss Leana.
Every inch of their bodies ached, bruised and battered from the relentless beating their guardian had given them.
Miss Leana, however, stood as if nothing had happened. Not a single strand of her dark hair was out of place, and her breathing remained as steady as ever.
She regarded them with an almost amused expression before casually announcing, “I’ll be heading out for a bit.”
Damon, lying flat on his back and staring at the crimson-tinged sky of the First Layer of Hell, let out a groan. “Where are you going?”
She shrugged. “Hunting a Grade Four demon.”
That got their attention. Even in their half-dead state, they all turned their heads toward her.
“You’re serious?” Daveon was the first to speak, his voice hoarse from exhaustion.
Miss Leana nodded. “I promised Damon a Grade Four Essence Core, didn’t I?”
Damon blinked. “Wait, you didn’t already have one?”
“If I had, I would’ve given it to you already.”
Anaya sat up slightly, wincing at the pain that shot through her ribs. “So you’re leaving us here like this?”
Miss Leana gave another shrug, her indifference infuriatingly casual. “I don’t see why not.”
Daveon let out a disbelieving laugh. “Uh, because we’re basically corpses right now? If a demon wanders over here, we’re done for.”
Anaya quickly nodded. “Exactly! You just beat us to a pulp. If a Grade Five demon comes by, we won’t even be able to fight back.”
Miss Leana smirked, tilting her head slightly. “Then that’s your problem.”
Damon frowned. “Our problem?”
She nodded. “If you’re weak enough to get eaten, then you weren’t worth training in the first place.”
Silence fell over the group.
Damon, despite his soreness, sat up and shot her an incredulous look. “You do realize who made us this weak, right?”
Miss Leana tapped her chin, pretending to ponder his words. Then, as if seeing some merit in his argument, she gave a nonchalant nod. “Fair enough.”
Before any of them could sigh in relief, she reached into her Void Key and pulled out a thick coil of rope.
They exchanged glances.
“What’s that for?” Daveon asked suspiciously.
Without answering, Miss Leana walked over, grabbed Damon’s wrist, and began tying him up.
“Wait, what the hell—?!” Damon protested, trying to squirm away, but his body was still too sore to resist.
She secured his arms and legs before moving on to Daveon, then Anaya, ignoring their complaints. Within minutes, all three of them were bound together in a tangled mess of limbs and rope.
They were too stunned to react at first.
Then Anaya found her voice. “Are you seriously tying us up right now?”
Miss Leana finished the last knot and stood up, completely unfazed. “I can’t have you running off while I’m gone.”
Daveon scoffed. “Run off? With all due respect, Ex-General, we can barely move!”
Damon struggled against the bindings, then gave up with a sigh. “Okay, I get that you don’t want us to wander, but what’s with the rope? You could’ve just told us to stay put.”
Miss Leana smirked. “And where’s the fun in that?”
Before any of them could argue further, she grabbed the rope and—without warning—began dragging them across the rough, rocky terrain.
“Ow, ow, ow—wait, that didn’t hurt?” Damon blinked in confusion.
That was when they noticed something strange.
Despite being pulled over jagged stones and uneven ground, they felt nothing. No pain, no scrapes—just a strange sensation, almost like floating.
The three of them fell silent.
Miss Leana, sensing their confusion, finally decided to enlighten them. “I reinforced the rope with a protective enchantment. You won’t feel any pain while being dragged. Convenient, isn’t it?”
Damon, still lying limply, let out a breath. “You know, that was almost considerate of you.”
Daveon exhaled. “Almost.”
Anaya sighed. “I don’t even have the energy to protest anymore.”
Miss Leana smirked, giving the rope a small tug. “Good. Now shut up and enjoy the ride.”
And with that, she continued dragging her three bound wards away, leaving behind nothing but disturbed dust and the occasional groan from the trio as they resigned themselves to their bizarre fate.
~~~~~
The expedition had started as nothing more than a routine mission.
A group of researchers and their assigned Dunters were sent to explore an uncharted region of the Northern Ireleone Continent.
It was supposed to be simple. Survey the area, mark dangerous locations, and assess whether this zone was stable enough to be used as a forward outpost.
They had passed by a certain cave earlier, noting its existence but seeing no reason to investigate.
It was unremarkable, just another jagged wound in the earth, a dark hollow leading into nothingness. The Dunters had seen plenty like it before. They didn’t waste time on meaningless detours.
Hours later, as they began their return trip, something changed.
A demon.
A weak one.
A Grade Seven demon—its frail body twisted and deformed, its skin peeling off in patches—was crawling desperately toward the cave. Blackened blood dripped from its wounds, its legs barely functioning as it dragged itself over the cracked ground.
The group froze, watching it.
Corvus, the leader of the Dunters, narrowed his eyes. “Strange.” His hand rested on the hilt of his sword, fingers tapping lightly. “Demons don’t retreat unless they’re running from something stronger.”
“Maybe it was already injured in a fight,” one of his men suggested.
Corvus wasn’t convinced. “Then why head into the cave? That thing’s barely hanging on, but it’s still trying to get inside.”
Dr. Vaylen, the head researcher, adjusted his spectacles. “This area isn’t mapped yet. If there’s something unusual in that cave, we should investigate.”
Corvus hesitated. His instincts screamed at him to let it go. But the Dunters were well-trained, and the researchers were determined. They had faced worse odds before. A few stray demons weren’t enough to deter them.
No one could have predicted that stepping into that cave would seal their fate.
The cave swallowed them whole.
At first, it was just a normal tunnel—dark, damp, and lifeless. Their torches cast flickering light against the stone walls, revealing jagged formations jutting out like broken teeth.
But the deeper they ventured, the more unnatural it became.
The air grew heavy and uncomfortable. Every breath felt like inhaling something thick, something that clung to their lungs.
The walls… pulsed. Not visibly, but they all felt it. A slow, rhythmic thrum beneath their feet.
Something was breathing.
No one spoke of it, but the unspoken unease spread through the group.
Then they reached the cavern.
A massive chamber stretched before them, veined with multiple tunnels spiraling into deeper darkness. It was vast, hollow, and endless. The researchers muttered among themselves, taking notes, marking pathways.
The Dunters stood guard, tense.
Corvus tightened his grip on his sword. “Something isn’t right.”
And then—
The torches flickered.
A whisper of movement.
A growl.
Kaaareeeii!!
Then came the screams.
The darkness moved.
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They poured out of the tunnels—dozens, no, hundreds of them.
Demons of every size and shape. From the hunched, scuttling forms of Grade Seven demons to the towering, grotesque monstrosities of Grade Three. Claws scraped against stone, teeth gnashed, glowing eyes flickered in the abyss.
They came like a flood.
A wall of death.
There was no escape.
The first attack was so fast, so brutal, that one of the researchers didn’t even have time to scream before he was split in two.
Splat…
Thump!
His body hit the ground in a wet pool of his own blood, his insides spilling out.
A Dunter lunged forward, swinging his blade—only for a Grade Four demon to cleave straight through him. His torso crumpled like paper, a spray of blood misting the air.
“Run out!”
“Escape!”
“Ahhhhh!!”
Screams.
“They’ve locked down the whole place!”
Snarls.
Bones snapping.
Corvus fought. His blade lashed out, slicing through the nearest demon’s neck.
The creature gurgled, black ichor spewing from the wound—then another tackled him from behind, fangs sinking into his shoulder. He roared in pain, twisting his weapon, impaling his attacker before throwing it off.
He turned—just in time to see Dr. Vaylen being dragged into the darkness.
The researcher’s fingers clawed at the ground, his terrified eyes meeting Corvus’s before he disappeared, “Corvu—” his final scream abruptly cut off.
The researchers were the first to die. Their fragile bodies stood no chance.
The Dunters lasted longer.
They fought like animals, slashing, casting spells, trying to break free of the encirclement. But the demons were endless. For every one they cut down, three more took its place.
One by one, they fell.
One by one, they were devoured.
“You annoying pieces of shit!” A Dunter screamed as a Grade Three demon tore off his leg. Another cried out as claws gutted him, spilling his organs onto the stone floor.
Blood drenched the cavern, seeping into the cracks, painting the walls.
And then—
Silence…
The demons did not linger.
As quickly as they had appeared, they vanished.
The tunnels swallowed them whole, dragging them back into the abyss. The chamber was silent again, as if nothing had happened.
No bodies remained.
No weapons.
Nothing.
Only the blood, soaking into the cold stone.
And yet, amidst the carnage, something small had fallen to the ground.
A black crystal.
It tumbled from the torn remnants of a Dunter’s armor, rolling slightly before coming to a stop. The blood-soaked ground pulsed faintly as the crystal did its job.
A location beacon. A life beacon.
Bound to its owner, it transmitted its final message.
Far away, in a distant outpost, its twin counterpart flickered—transmitting the location to whoever was watching.
A last, desperate warning.
Then, its purpose fulfilled, the crystal crumbled to dust.
Its job was done.
And the cave remained as it always had been.
Silent. Waiting.
Hungry…