Darmaine blacked out mid-fall, consciousness devoured by the terror of inevitable death.
Lamia shut her eyes, teetering on the edge of unconsciousness.
Plummeting from the forty-fifth floor felt like being swallowed whole by the jaws of fate itself.
But in that instant of certain doom, a shadow burst forth from the darkness. It was Cain.
Leaping from a window on the fourteenth floor, Cain caught Lamia gently with his right arm while seizing Darmaine by the hair with his left.
His movements resembled a hawk riding the storm.
He landed with elegance, feet touching ground as if gravity bowed to him.
The shock left Lamia trembling, while Darmaine woke with a scream from the pain of his hair being yanked.
"Argh, damn it… what the hell…?"
"Thank you… um… who are you?"
Lamia's voice quivered like a flower swaying in the wind.
Cain said nothing. He only stared into her face—his eyes flickering like flames deep in the abyss.
"Whoa! We're alive! A miracle! Was it you who saved us? Oh, you're a fine-looking guy! Never seen you around before—who the hell are you?"
Darmaine's carefree tone was silenced when Cain glared.
Those eyes—madness incarnate—pierced like blades forged of darkness.
"Take the girl to the Indus ship and wait there. Do not set sail until Endi and I return. Got it?"
Darmaine swallowed hard, overwhelmed.
"Y-yeah, fine… damn, I like you, kid! How about becoming my underling?"
"Go. Now."
Cain's icy words froze him. Darmaine dragged Lamia away toward the harbor, scurrying like prey driven to ground.
"Cheh, cocky brat… who the hell does he think he is?"
"Tell me… is Endi truly alive?"
"Of course! He's probably waiting on the Indus for me to return right now!"
Yet Lamia's heart could not trust Darmaine's words. Cain's command to "wait" hung heavy in her chest like a thorn.
On the forty-fifth floor, Jackson and his men stood dumbstruck at Darmaine's insane leap.
Guild, who had been unconscious, staggered to his feet, trembling with rage.
"Damn that bastard… he hit me… I'll never forgive him!"
His voice roared like the flames of hell itself. He lashed out at his subordinates.
"What the hell are you idiots gawking at?! Where is that son of a bitch?!"
"Darmaine is dead. He should be dead."
Jackson's pale face looked like a specter delivering a death sentence.
"What? Dead?! Hah! Hahahaha! Quick work! I like it! Still, he punched me, dammit. I'd rather you'd caught him alive so I could've tortured him slowly."
"No… he jumped. With Lamia."
At Jackson's words, the blood drained from Guild's face like ice stabbing into his chest.
"What!? He jumped!? With Lamia!?"
"Yes. Perhaps he realized torture awaited him, so he chose death instead. And he dragged Lamia down with him…"
The room froze. Terror seeped into the air like poison.
"If word of this reaches him… we're all dead!"
"Him? Who do you mean?"
The voice came from the shattered window. Cain stepped inside as if the forty-five floors meant nothing.
"Y-you?! How did you get here!?"
"I climbed."
The simplicity of his answer struck harder than any blade. Guild collapsed in fear.
Cain's footsteps echoed as he approached.
"I've heard of you. The military state of Old Doal once prided itself on cutting-edge science. After the defeat four years ago, its leaders were executed. Only the supreme commander and genius scientist Guild disappeared. And now… you're hiding here with your stragglers."
His presence weighed heavy, like a predator choosing its prey.
Guild shrank, mute with terror.
Jackson drew his greatsword and leveled it at Cain's neck.
"Who the hell are you? Speak before you die."
Cain ignored the blade.
"Who's this him you fear? Whose orders are you obeying?"
"I-I don't know what you mean…"
"Don't play dumb. I've guessed your aim. You're preparing to invade the Kingdom of Nakatam. But rabble like you, guarded by a puffed-up brute, won't cut it. Someone's above you."
"A puffed-up brute…? Are you talking about me?"
Jackson's rage boiled like a volcano about to erupt.
"Azbal, isn't it?"
At that name, both Jackson and Guild froze as if their hearts had been ripped open.
"Bull's-eye, huh? So the Reaper still walks this world. That explains it."
Cain resumed walking, regal as a king.
"W-wait! Where are you going?!"
"Leaving. I only came along with Endi, and I was curious about the Reaper's identity. Whatever scheme you're hatching doesn't interest me. I'm done here."
He turned his back. Soldiers parted, retreating instinctively like animals bowing to a lion's presence.
"Wait, boy… you think you can just walk away? Nobody leaves alive."
Cain stopped. Slowly turned.
His expression was no longer human. It was the mask of a mad emissary from the abyss.