Swimming in the dark sea, Azael spotted a glow. It was far away… but it was the only light source within Azael's sight. The only thing separating him from absolute darkness.
"Connor," Azael patted his shoulder gently, feeling around until he found the arm beside him. "Look, I think that's the anglerfish."
Azael hurried to swim toward the glow.
Anything was better than the choking black around them.
But Connor stayed silent.
"….."
Azael's chest tightened a little. Connor was still alive. Azael could hear Connor's loud heartbeat in the quiet sea but Connor, the loud and expressive guy, wasn't answering.
That alone made Azael uneasy.
Azael thought of using his fire invocation as a torch, but it only lasted a couple seconds, so it was useless in this endless darkness.
A sharp cracking sound echoed nearby.
Azael stiffened.
He didn't know what it was.
He couldn't see anything.
Everything around them was just… black.
"Connor, was that you?" Azael looked down where he thought Connor was. There was silence for a heartbeat. Then another.
Finally Connor answered.
"no…."
The tone was different from the loud and obnoxious guy that azael knew.
But Azael brushed it off, at least Connor was still alive. He's probably just feeling scared, Azael tried to reassure himself.
They got closer to the glow. Azael squinted at the shape ahead until it formed into the anglerfish up close. He had only seen it from far away, eating human skin before… but now that he finally saw it face-to-face, it only had one huge eyeball, Two fangs, and a hundred of small teeth beside the fangs.
But something made Azael's heart drop.
He was sure this was the same species of anglerfish he had seen before… but back then, the fish had a colorful red velvet skin.
This one was just… depressing gray.
It looked like its soul was sucked out of it.
It didn't even respond to Azael being so close. Its mouth was gaping wide, its eye completely dead.
"What's wrong with this fish…" Azael whispered.
He pointed his index finger and shot out the small fiery invocation, killing the fish instantly.
[ Congratulations, you have killed a Hellhound Creature: "ruby anglerfish" ]
[ You have obtained 100 soul energy ]
[ Invocation slots full. Say decline to refuse Dead Light, or discard one of the following: ]
— Wrath of Fire
— Eye of the Blizzard
— Breath of the Ocean
"You can only get 3 invocation?" Azael asked Satan in his head.
"Well duh, you want unlimited invocation?"
Since he wouldn't be needing the Eye of the Blizzard anymore, Azael discarded it.
It disappeared and was replaced by Dead Light.
"Okay great, now to test this on—"
Azael extended his palm.
Dead light.
[ Dead light activated: 50 soul energy consumed ]
[ Duration: 00:30:00 ]
A sudden blue glow appeared above Azael's palm, a faint light spreading from his hand.
They could finally see a little.
"Only 30 minutes? Great… I'll need to use it again later."
Azael pointed the glow toward Connor who looked motionless.
"…uhh… Connor?" Azael nudged him.
Connor's body moved slightly… too slightly.
Then Connor's head turned toward him, slowly, stiffly.
With nothing in the background but darkness, and the only light being the faint the blue glow revealing Connor's expressionless face, Azael felt a chill crawl up his spine.
"Yes?" Connor said, like a doll.
"…nothing."
Azael forced himself to look forward, focusing the glow ahead. It was almost useless he still could only see his own body and a small area around them.
That's definitely not Connor anymore.
Azael tried to pull his hand free.
Connor's grip didn't move at all.
Not even a twitch.
For a slim guy who looked like he could barely hold a weight, Connor's hold was impossibly strong.And Azael, whose body had changed drastically after ranking up, couldn't even budge his hand.
Azael's heart dropped.
Whatever is gripping me…
it isn't Connor.
I need to get off from him.
"Connor, can you let go for a bit…?" Azael said with a shaky voice.
Connor simply turned to Azael and smiled.
"No… we're gonna get lost, remember?" he said with an eerie smile.
While Connor was opening his mouth to talk, Azael noticed something moving inside near his tongue. The glow wasn't wide enough to reach the tongue, but he clearly saw… something. A dark, segmented shape that curled and uncurled for a moment before disappearing.
"Connor, what's that?" Azael pointed the glow at Connor's face to see it more closely.
"It's nothing!" Connor's face was still expressionless, but his voice sounded more panicked than before.
Connor turned his head away to avoid the glow. "Well this is really suspicious…" Azael muttered. He tried to make Connor face him, but Connor wouldn't budge.
Hey Satan, I can still use my other invocation, right? Even if there's already an activated one? Azael asked in his head.
"Yeah," Satan responded nonchalantly.
Great.
With a serious look, Azael tried to pulled his hand out of Connor's tight grip. "Whoever you are, get off this man's body or I'll burn him with you in it," Azael threatened whoever was inside the body.
"WAIT, NO!" Connor immediately let go of Azael's hand and bolted into the darkness. The sudden movement shocked Azael, making him stumble over a piece of rock and fall onto the seabed.
"Fuck, I lost him…" Azael got up and pointed the glow around him, but it was almost useless in this pitch-black water.
"Should I just leave him…?"
For a moment, Azael genuinely considered it. Connor had been suspicious from the start. But then he thought about how Connor wouldn't survive without him — how he'd probably be tortured here. And… Connor was the first friend Azael had made after arriving in this hellish place.
"…"
Azael thought for a moment. Then he chose to search for Connor, even if the man was suspicious. Friend or not, he couldn't abandon him.
"Connor, come out! I'm sure we can sort things out!" Azael called into the dark, empty sea.
As expected, there was no reply.
"I wish this dead light were bigger… It would've been way more useful if I could throw it…"
Then an idea clicked.
"I can shoot my Fire of wrath invocation to light up the way."
Azael made a finger-gun pose and fired the invocation. The black flame shot out, streaking through the water like a spear of ink. It hit a rock in the distance, burning it with a dull, eerie glow. Even though the fire was black, it still lit a decent area far more than the glow in his hand.
Azael fired again. And again.
Each shot illuminated a different part of the ocean around him like flashing lightning in slow motion.
The first shot lit up a slanted stone pillar covered in pale red moss, the kind that only grows in places untouched by the crimson sun. The moss twitched when the fire touched the water near it, shrinking away as if alive.
The second shot traveled farther, revealing a large skeletal structure half-buried in the sand. The bones were massive easily five times larger than any creature Azael had seen so far. Some still had dark threads of flesh clinging to them, swaying like kelp.
Azael's stomach tightened.
How many monsters lived here? How many died here?
He shot a third flame, this time hitting a coral archway that looked almost like a ribcage. A swarm of tiny red shrimp-like creatures scattered from beneath it, their bodies glowing faintly like embers.
He fired again.
This shot illuminated a long shadow behind a coral cluster, something humanoid. His pulse jumped.
He swam toward it as fast as he could, heart pounding. He looked behind the coral
but it was nothing.
Just darkness swallowing everything again.
"He must be nearby…"
Azael fired more shots, each one tiring him further.
"Kid, you're gonna run out of soul energy if you keep using it," Satan's voice cut in. Somehow, it was comforting. Azael had been so lost in the darkness he almost forgot Satan was there.
"Fuck… I'm tired…"
Azael gave up and lay down on the seabed, exhausted and mentally drained. He wondered if Connor was even worth saving.
"Satan… when will it be Sabah again? This darkness is making me go insane."
He lay there, the glow in his hand finally fading out. Now he saw nothing again, too tired to even reactivate the Dead Light. The silence was absolute, a physical weight on his eardrums. He was utterly, terrifyingly alone.
"There's no set period," Satan explained. "It depends on how much soul energy there is on each floor. If there are more monsters and humans, Layl becomes shorter because the crimson sun needs soul energy essence to rebuild itself."
"Great… I'll have to experience something like this again in the future…" Azael scoffed, feeling like he was losing his mind.
"Not really. You're just stuck in a really bad situation. Normally, I'd tell you to grab wood and start a fire with your invocation… but well, that's impossible underwater."
Azael knew Satan was trying to cheer him up, but he was too exhausted for any of it to register. His body was screaming for sleep he had been swimming for so long with no rest.
Just as Azael's eyes were closing, he felt a breath in front of him while laying down.
He snapped his eyes open and, in panic, azael activated Fire of wrath and swung it toward the creature. He caught a brief glimpse of it.
"Ow!"
Azael froze.
"Connor??" he said weakly.
He activated Dead Light and shined it forward. Sure enough, it was Connor rubbing his cheek — a little burned from the earlier attack.
"You… GET OFF MY FRIEND!"
Azael raised his other hand to prepare another strike at whatever was controlling Connor.
"Wait!"
Connor stopped him with a hand.
"Let me explain first!"
Azael immediately noticed Connor now had more expression and his voice sounded more alive.
"Connor… is that really you?" Azael's voice softened.
"Well, uhh…" Connor rubbed the back of his head, looking around like he didn't want to meet Azael's eyes. "This is awkward but… it's not the Connor you know…"
Azael tilted his head.
"What do you mean?"
"LOOK— I actually saved you from this guy."
Connor pointed at himself, making Azael even more confused.
"So… you're a creature that took control of Connor? What do you mean you saved me from him?"
"This guy— I saw him trying to grab a rock while you two were swimming. He was about to throw it at you, but I quickly transformed into an isopod and took control of him."
Everything the creature said made Azael's brain melt.
None of it made sense.
"What do you mean turn into an isopod? What exactly are you?" Connor or rather, whatever was inside him trembled Nervously.
"Well, uhm… I'm actually a mimic."