The cavern's light faded behind them, leaving only the sound of their slow footsteps on the hard gray ground. No one spoke, as if the dead silence of the surface had swallowed even the sounds of their thoughts.
Kaito walked in the center, his head lowered, his eyes fixed on a scene no one else could see. Tsuki walked beside him, holding his arm without saying anything. Behind them, Saya and Hana walked side by side, their tense gazes bouncing in every direction, as if the world had become a silent trap.
Kaito's father and Hiro Shin walked behind. His father's face looked tired, while Hiro Shin was unusually calm, his eyes scanning the horizon with suspicious concentration. Minamoto walked on the sidelines, his gaze fixed on Kaito's back, as if reading something invisible.
The courtyard they had just entered was filled with pale spirits, like living specters of mist. They walked slowly, neither looking at them nor speaking. Just going in endless circles, aimlessly.
Kaito muttered, barely audible:
These spirits… don't cry, don't whisper… as if they're waiting for something… something rotten.
No one answered.
Suddenly, Hiro-Shin stopped, his nose moving lightly, as if he'd caught something in the putrid air.
Did you smell this?
The father suddenly raised his head:
Blood… old.
The two of them suddenly ran to the right, without waiting, and the others followed.
After a few meters, everyone froze.
The ground was covered in dark stains, and the air felt strangely heavy… Then the bodies appeared.
They were six… from the other squads who had entered Noxar with them. Now they were just scattered remains. One was crucified on a rock with thick black chains piercing his body from shoulders to feet. Another was decapitated, and written on his chest in letters of blood was: "Whoever knocks on hell… expects a response."
Saya gasped in a trembling voice, covered her mouth with her hand, and knelt on the ground, crying.
Hana whispered,
This isn't the work of peaceful spirits...
Minamoto approached one of the bodies, bent down, and grasped one of the charred ends of the chain.
The same voice... the same chains we heard yesterday.
He raised his head and looked into the distance:
He's watching us... perhaps now... from above.
Kaito approached slowly. He didn't vomit. He didn't retreat. He just stood in the middle of the blood, his eyes swimming in the void. He saw himself again... in the dream. The black river. The bodies. Him... covered in their blood.
He took a step forward and whispered to himself,
Murderers don't live in hell... hell lives in them.
No one understood what he said, but everyone felt something inside them slowly break.
They decided to leave immediately.
As they moved away from the square, they heard again… the sound of a chain moving slowly… but this time it was closer.
Hairu Shin immediately drew his sword and assumed a defensive stance.
Minamoto smiled faintly:
This place doesn't just swallow the dead… it feeds on fear.
At the top of a distant rock stood a tall shadow. It didn't move… it just watched them, then disappeared as it had appeared.
The ground was still damp with the scent of blood, and the sound of footsteps pierced the deafening silence. No one spoke, each lost in their own reverie... in their own fear.
Kaito walked heavily, as if his body could no longer support itself. Behind him, Tsuki silently held his arm, while the others exchanged glances of caution and confusion.
Suddenly... Kaito's father stopped.
He slowly raised his hand and pointed into the void ahead.
The sound was clear... a chain dragging over the rocks, sharp, monotonous, as if it were pounding against their chests instead of the ground.
"That sound... not far away," said Haeru Shin, placing his hand on the hilt of his sword.
From among the shadows stretching along the walls, something emerged... or better said, something crawled.
It was a creature with human stature, but it wasn't human. His body was frighteningly thin, his skin was pale gray, and his mouth stretched from cheek to cheek, filled with long, crooked, sickle-like teeth.
From his back, tentacles protruded, shifting languidly, as if sniffing for air... or fear. Black chains wrapped around his body, wrapping around his feet and dragging behind him, emitting a sharp, ear-piercing squeak.
Everyone stood still. No one moved. Even the breath in their chests was choked.
The creature began to circle around them... It didn't attack. It didn't speak. It just moved slowly, as if its body were floating in the air, its head spinning unnaturally, staring at each one.
Kaito felt his blood freeze. The creature's gaze wasn't random... It was a consciousness weighing them, sorting them out, stripping them away.
Suddenly, Kaito's father took a step forward, extending his right hand to block any movement.
Stand back... This thing doesn't kill, it just delights in fear.
His tone was cold. Stiff. For the first time, his voice sounded deadly serious.
Then he pulled black iron gloves from his bag, engraved with tiny, faintly glowing symbols, and slowly put them on.
Let me fight you to the death.
On the other side, Minamoto stepped forward. Silently, he took a short chain from his pocket. It was ordinary… until it touched the ground.
In an instant, it stretched, thickened, and wrapped around his arms, until it became a formidable weapon, its symbols glowing a dull silver.
He pulled the chain behind him and stood beside Kaito's father, without exchanging a word.
Behind them, everyone else trailed off swiftly: Saya holding Hana's hand, Tsuki pulling Kaito, who still hadn't moved, his eyes still fixed on the chains… on the tentacles… on that mouth that didn't smile, but threatened.
The creature leaned forward slightly, its chains suddenly raised, as if poised to pounce. A faint sound escaped it, not a scream… but a moan like an ancient chant in a language other than any world.
Both men, Kaito's father and Minamoto, stood side by side.
Hairu Shin whispered behind them:
Oh my… This is the first time I've seen them fight together…
Tsuki looked at Kaito, who was still breathing very slowly, his lips trembling, his eyes unblinking.
As for him… All he saw now were the symbols of the chain…
But his mind hadn't yet recalled.
As the tentacles rose, and the battle was about to erupt…
Fin chapter