An Inquisitor had been slain.
If word of it were to spread, the Church would issue an execution decree without the slightest pause.
Its faith was not tempered by mercy, but forged in fear.
"Go ahead," Aeris said. "I'll follow."
Asmodeus caught the fleeting tremor that crossed her face.
He knew that if he asked what lay behind it, he would not endure the answer.
The moment Aeris drew the magic orb from her pocket, the air grew dense, heavy enough to press against the lungs.
Two figures emerged beside her.
Her grandfather and her grandmother.
They appeared to be in their thirties, yet each had lived for more than a century.
Their presence alone crushed and twisted the surrounding mana, bending it beneath the weight of their power.
"Grandfather," Aeris said softly. "Can you erase this?"
"I can," the old man replied, his voice calm and measured.
"But the disappearance of an Inquisitor will set the Church in motion."
Aeris gave a careless shrug.
In the next instant, she stood once more within the academy, waiting for Asmodeus.
Meanwhile, Asmodeus—
"Aren't you bored, Sabbah?" he asked the darkness.
This time, no assassin struck.
Instead, a folded slip of paper was placed before him.
The leader of Sabbah wishes to see you.
Asmodeus stared at it for a long while.
This was not an invitation.
It was a command.
He offered no reply.
By the time he reached Avalon, night had already settled in.
Aeris had fallen asleep while waiting.
Asmodeus entered quietly.
She woke regardless.
"I didn't mean to wake you."
"The way you tried to sneak in was so ridiculous that I woke up anyway," she said, then her tone hardened.
"Why are you late?"
"The leader of Sabbah."
Aeris's gaze sharpened, cold and precise.
"If you go anywhere without me," she said evenly,
"I'll kill you when you return."
Asmodeus nodded.
Yet he knew the truth.
To take Aeris to Sabbah would be to throw her directly into the flames.
He would go alone.
The following day—
The academy courtyard was more crowded than usual.
Students whispered among themselves, eyes fixed on the lists posted along the walls.
Asmodeus approached one of them.
"What's happening?"
"A swordsmanship tournament," the student replied.
"Between academies. The prize… one thousand gold."
Asmodeus's expression changed instantly.
He carried only two silver coins.
Without hesitation, he signed his name.
The tournament lay a week away.
And that week would be devoted to Sabbah.
Asmodeus entered the academy's main building alone.
The new dean sat behind his desk, his calm forced and brittle.
"I hear you've entered the tournament," the dean said.
"I have."
"I want a week of leave beforehand."
The dean frowned.
"The timing is… curious. Immediately after the dungeon report."
Asmodeus leaned forward, lowering his voice.
"We both know how delicate that report is."
Mana stirred uneasily within the room.
The dean's fingers tightened against the desk.
For a fleeting moment, his eyes gleamed crimson.
"One week," he said at last.
"But if you fail to return—"
"I will return," Asmodeus replied.
"My business is not yet finished."
The seal came down with a dull stamp.
Asmodeus turned and left.
The moment he departed the academy, he resolved to find Merlin.
In this world, after King Arthur, Merlin was the only man Asmodeus truly respected.
And the only one he trusted.
He entered an inn.
It was crowded—
filled with noise, laughter, and the sharp scent of alcohol.
Asmodeus took two steps.
"Mer—"
The world went dark.
A hand clamped over his mouth.
Another seized the back of his neck.
In the blink of an eye, he was forced down into a chair.
"I told you," said a familiar voice.
"In Britannia, you can find me simply by asking."
Merlin sat across from him.
He wore the robes of an ordinary traveler, yet his eyes remained unchanged—
eyes that seemed to know everything.
"I need your help," Asmodeus said.
"To aid the heir of King Arthur is an honor," Merlin replied.
"For what purpose?"
"The leader of Sabbah has summoned me."
Merlin's smile faded.
"So they're all crawling out now that Arthur is gone."
He fell silent for a moment.
Then, a faint smile returned.
"They need to be reminded of their place."
At that moment, Merlin turned his head.
"And who is this child following us?"
The hood slipped away.
Silver hair.
Eyes of glowing violet.
"AERIS?!" Asmodeus shouted.
"I told you that you couldn't go without me, idiot," Aeris said flatly.
Merlin burst into laughter.
"Of course. You're all coming."
In an instant, they stood before Sabbah's headquarters.
It was not a building.
It was a rift—
a wound in reality where stone, shadow, and magic were fused together, its very existence unsettling.
They were expected.
Asmodeus felt it the moment he stepped forward.
The air was too perfect.
The silence, absolute.
Merlin took a single step—
and halted.
"Hm," he murmured.
Light split the ground beneath them.
Runes spread outward like spiderwebs.
Mana was torn away.
Legendary magical traps awakened.
Galion's Snare.
Chains of pure magic lashed out from six directions.
The instant they touched Merlin, the surrounding mana screamed.
An ordinary mage
would have been erased in that moment.
Merlin's knees bent slightly.
"A triple-layered seal," he said calmly.
"A temporal stabilizer… intriguing."
The chains coiled around his body.
The trap sealed shut.
Asmodeus turned back.
"Merlin—"
Merlin raised a hand.
"It's fine," he said.
"It will take some time, nothing more."
The chains tightened.
Time froze for the span of half a breath.
"Go," Merlin said.
"I'll be free in half an hour."
Asmodeus clenched his teeth
and entered the dark corridors with Aeris.
The dungeon stones were damp.
The air was thick and oppressive.
Aeris despised dungeons.
Without realizing it, she moved closer and gripped Asmodeus's arm.
He said nothing.
He did not pull away.
A voice echoed from above.
"Welcome… cursed children."
The ground collapsed.
Stone shattered.
And from the darkness, the Minotaur rose.
It bore no resemblance to the beasts of legend.
Its hide was dark crimson, its muscles layered like forged armor, its horns slick with dried blood.
It charged straight for Aeris.
"AERIS!"
Asmodeus hurled her aside with all his strength.
BAM.
The next instant—
The Minotaur's massive foot crashed down upon Asmodeus's arm.
CRACK.
The sound of splintering bone rang through the dungeon.
His arm was driven into the stone floor.
Flesh collapsed.
Blood sprayed outward.
From the shoulder down, sensation all but vanished.
Asmodeus did not scream.
But he fell to his knees.
The Minotaur pressed down harder.
A little more—
Bones shattered one by one.
This creature
was stronger than even Seraphael.
With Aeris beside him, Asmodeus could not unleash his dark techniques.
The Minotaur raised its axe.
"The test ends here," a voice declared.
"Let us decide which of you will live."