For a mont, silence hung heavy in the air.
"Stop twisting words," Vic and Sol spoke at the sa ti.
"He said he was going sowhere for urgent work," Vic added quickly.
"Urgent work?" Duke Serpentine asked, his face filled with shock. "What urgent work could he possibly have here?"
A dangerous thought crossed his mind for a split second.
Could it be… betrayal?
But he imdiately shook his head.
'No. That's impossible.'
Even so, the unease did not disappear.
"Then where did he go?" Duke Serpentine pressed. "Does he even know this region well enough?"
Vic and Sol looked at each other, then shrugged helplessly.
They truly had no idea.
......
anwhile, the person they were talking about was climbing a small hill not too far away.
Kael let out a long sigh as he reached the top.
"Ahh… If only I had brought Mariana, things wouldn't have been so bad…"
He had wanted to bring her along. But after Adele's betrayal, the people here would surely look at Mariana with suspicion.
More importantly, he had handed her the responsibility of organizing the entire Heretic Sect within the Heizen Empire.
And the Heretic Sect was not limited to Heizen alone.
Kael took out a token from his storage ring.
It was given to him by Mariana.
A Heretic Sect token of the highest command.
He poured mana into it slowly. As the mana flowed in, the token glowed faintly.
Once activated, any Heretic Sect mbers in the region should be able to sense his presence and co to him.
Kael waited.
And waited.
SWOOSH!
Only the sound of leaves rustling in the wind answered him.
The hill was drowned in silence.
"…Did I overestimate the Heretic Sect?" Kael muttered.
SHRIEEEKKK!
A sharp shriek suddenly echoed across the sky.
Kael raised his head instinctively.
A small dot was visible far above, rapidly growing larger.
It was a massive bird.
"A Steel Eagle," Kael murmured.
CHILL!
Before he could react further, a figure jumped off the eagle and began accelerating downward at a terrifying speed.
The sheer montum sent a chill down Kael's spine.
He waited for a mont, watching the falling figure.
Then his eyes widened.
"FUCK!"
"He isn't slowing down!"
Kael imdiately ran backward to put so distance between them.
The falling figure twisted his body midair and slamd straight into the ground.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The earth trembled violently. A powerful shockwave erupted, scattering dust and debris in all directions.
Kael raised his arm and waved his hand to clear the dust.
A figure erged from the cloud.
"THIS SERVANT OF THE HERETIC SECT IS HERE!"
The man roared loudly, his voice shaking the surroundings.
"Proclaim your order, and this servant, Brawn, will achieve it as soon as possible, even if I must brace for a bloody storm!"
The man was tall and burly, his body covered in countless tattoos carved deeply into his skin.
There was no way soone like him could ever remain unnoticed.
Kael stared at him for a mont.
"…Where did you co from?"
"Huh?" Brawn raised his head and squinted at Kael.
"Who are you?" he demanded. "I don't rember you among any higher-level mbers of the Heretic Sect."
Kael paused.
'Now what should I say?'
"Will you believe if I say I am the Heretic Leonard?" Kael replied calmly.
"God Leonard my ass!" Brawn roared. "How dare you utter such blasphemous words, you bastard!"
"A puny ant like you dares to compare yourself to my god—ahahhhh!"
Brawn pulled out his massive axe and charged straight at Kael without hesitation.
"Just die!"
Kael's eyes widened.
Sweat ford on his forehead.
'Did I just summon a crackhead?'
BOOM!
Kael dodged to the side as the axe slamd into the ground, tearing it apart.
'Peak A-rank… damn.'
'Where the fuck did they pick up a barbarian like him?'
......
Monts later, a heavily beaten man lay sprawled on the ground.
Kael clapped his hands lightly, clearing the dust, and looked down at the sorry figure below him.
"Now," Kael said calmly, "can we talk?"
"Yes, sir…" Brawn raised his thumb weakly, his body jolting in pain as he did.
At this point, he only had one thought.
'Just kill already. Don't use such torturous thods… ahhhh!'
"So," Kael continued, "you were appointed by the Saintess' order, and this badge was given to you by Grand Sorceress Mariana?"
"Yes!" Brawn replied quickly, nodding despite the pain.
Kael then briefly explained the situation to the battered man lying on the ground.
As Brawn listened, his earlier madness slowly faded, replaced by a serious expression.
He finally understood just how badly he had misjudged the man standing before him.
"By the way, where were you when I summoned you?" Kael asked.
"I was in the camps," Brawn replied honestly.
"Whose camp?"
"The Nightstar camp."
"… "
Kael paused for a mont. His expression froze, and then his eyes slowly began to glow.
"So you are fighting from the Nightstar side?" he asked quietly.
"No," Brawn replied without hesitation. "I am actually a mber of the Abyssal Cult."
"For real?" Kael stared at him. "Did you infiltrate the sect?"
Brawn nodded firmly.
Kael let out a long breath and sighed in relief.
'Then what cos next might be easier.'
"What do you know about the Abyssal Sect's plan?" Kael asked, his voice turning serious.
"Plans… huh?" Brawn scratched his head.
"They want to summon the Abyssal Plane and turn this place into a disaster. All the preliminary steps are already done. They are waiting to perform the ritual on the next full moon."
Kael felt a chill run down his spine.
"Damn… that's quite nefarious," he muttered. "Did you receive any orders from the Heretic Sect?"
"No," Brawn shook his head. "My job is only to observe and report to the higher-ups. What happens next is their decision. I just follow orders."
Kael frowned and fell into deep thought.
'So they have chosen to stay as observers. Or maybe they are positioning themselves to support from the shadows.'
It sounded reassuring to have backup, yet it left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"How many people do we have here?" Kael asked.
"Umm… around a hundred," Brawn replied, scratching his cheek.
"A hundred is not bad," Kael nodded. "Alright, listen carefully."
"I am all ears," Brawn said imdiately.
...…
"Just where did he disappear to…" Sol muttered, pacing back and forth with a worried expression.
He turned toward the others. "Aren't you all worried?"
"You should worry about yourselves instead of him," Ariana replied calmly.
"This is a real war, not the virtual wars you fought before," she added. Her words made Sol stop mid-step.
He nodded slowly, unable to refute her.
Just then—
"I am here, guys."
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