Back at the tents, it’s still bright out, but Charlotte and Eugene instruct the group to rest for a couple of days before their next expedition.

  “A couple of days? None of us sustained any major injuries,” Wyn says to Eugene.

  “So we can rotate the members. You’re free to go out on your own if you want,” Eugene replies.

  However, shortly after, the crow is heard announcing new arrivals. Charlotte and Eugene, together with Wyn’s team, make their way to the square. Lisa’s eyes widen as she notices the eight souls standing on the stage. Unlike Wyn’s team’s arrival, the crowd is rather quiet.

  “Only C- and D-tiers?” a soul remarks.

  “We still need to recruit them anyway,” another responds.

  The souls on the stage don’t look so lively. If anything, they seem like they’ve been through a traumatic experience.

  “Gab?” Lisa shouts. “Where’s Mpilo? Where are…”

  The familiar voice grabs the attention of the whole squad on the stage. Their dead eyes suddenly fill with vengeance, putting a pause to Lisa’s question. They all get down and approach her.

  “Because of you, we lost Mpilo, Bagus, Elita, Rodina, and Usko.”

  Lisa’s nightmare came true as she feared for the safety of her former team when she left them. Unable to look them in the eyes, she stares at the ground, tears streaming down her face. The team doesn’t let her off easily, blaming her departure for the loss of Mpilo in their first champion encounter. After that initial battle, the subsequent fights spiraled downhill, and they began losing more members. Feeling empathy for both her sister and her sister’s former team, Mira steps in.

  “We lost a member too – a great friend and a support like Lisa – but we adapted. You can’t blame her alone,” she says, wrapping her arms around her sister in a comforting hug.

  Hearing Mira’s reference to Anish dampens the mood for Wyn’s team, their eyes filled with sorrow. However, Gab argues that because of Lisa, Mpilo fell into a deep depression – he had been invested in all the members, loving them as his own family, something he never truly had. Gab emphasizes how easily Lisa switched teams, despite all they had been through together, which deeply hurt their former leader.

  The commotion reminds Yu of what Christine’s former team said about her, though he knows Lisa’s circumstances aren’t comparable to Christine’s. Still, he can’t help but think of her and hopes she’s safe wherever she is now.

  Despite Mira’s attempts to take Lisa back to the tents, Lisa refuses to budge, claiming she deserves this. At that moment, Wyn steps between Lisa and her former teammates, his eyes now filled with tears.

  “I’m sorry for what happened. I know what depression feels like and how it is to lose a friend. I totally understand the rage and sorrow you’re feeling, but please, enough already. This is only going to make things worse for all of us here.”

  Wyn’s team looks at him in surprise, taken aback by his reaction. Charlotte watches him in silence, also surprised to see this side of him.

  “Look, fuck off all of you. You, go to the tents and get some rest,” Charlotte says, referring to Wyn’s team. “And you lot, move on. We’ve all lost friends along the way. Learn from it,” she adds, voice shaken as she turns to Gab’s team.

  Eugene begins pushing Wyn’s team toward the tent area as the crowd gathers around Gab’s team, trying to recruit them into their factions. Back at the tents, it appears David hasn’t returned from his expedition yet, so the leaders head into their respective tents while Wyn’s team gathers in his tent.

  “Are you alright?” Wyn asks.

  “I’ll be fine, thank you, Mister Wyn. I’m grateful to be part of this team. I don’t regret the decision to reunite with my sister,” Lisa replies, sobbing as Mira hugs her tightly. “And thank you to every single one of you for being on this team.”

  “Glad to hear that,” Wyn responds.

  “And how are you?” Yu asks Wyn.

  “A little shaken, but I’m fine,” he answers with a bright smile. “Actually, I wanted us here to clear our minds and hold a short meeting, but I think it’s best if we rest first.”

  “Don’t worry about me, Mister Wyn. Please carry on with the meeting,” Lisa says, finally managing a faint smile.

  Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

  The meeting isn’t particularly significant, just a chance to catch up and gauge where everyone stands with the whole faction situation. As each member takes a turn to share their thoughts, with Wyn going last, it becomes clear that none of them want to join any faction – they believe they'll get stronger faster on their own. Still, the option of allying with David’s faction isn’t entirely ruled out.

  “Let’s meet in front of my tent in twenty hours, yes? Then we’ll choose a place to train on our own,” Wyn says.

  Wyn wakes up to flames raging inside his dormitory. Screams fill the air as tenants scramble for safety. The smoke thickens by the minute, obstructing his vision and clogging his nose. Crawling out of his room, he finds himself in a burning hallway, bodies charred and burning on the floor. He remembers what he did in the Twilight Forest, quickly using his clothes to cover his nose and mouth.

  As he crawls toward the fire exit, it seems to stretch farther away every time he gets close. Suddenly, a loud thud sounds behind him. Looking back, he sees a menacing, smoky figure filling the hallway, its form massive and ominous. On the ground before it is a headless body, and in its hand, Janine’s severed head.

  The smoke advances toward Wyn, carrying with it the cacophony of sobs and cries from Janine’s team and his own. Wyn refuses to look back, pushing himself to run toward the exit, which feels endlessly distant.

  “Duckfucker! Another nightmare? Here?” he grumbles as the alarm blares, waking him up. “I hope Janine and her team make it out okay,” he mutters to himself while sitting in his sleeping bag.

  As Wyn steps outside, he notices James is already waiting and that Mira’s tent now has two floors. Spotting Mira and Lisa leaving the tent, he immediately asks about the second floor.

  “Lisa often sleeps with me, so I figured why not. Plus, my collection is growing so fast that I need more space. I might even have to use yours in the future, Oppa,” Mira says.

  Wyn responds with a violent shake of his head. “And I’m gonna assume that ‘often’ refers to when you’re not bringing James into your tent…”

  “Ah, Mira’s collection,” James chimes in. “Inspired by the creatures we’ve encountered in Hell. You’d be amazed at how neatly she organizes them in her tent, eh!”

  “Which one is your favorite?” Mira asks.

  “The corkscrew.”

  “I’m more amazed that Hell even has these,” Wyn comments before turning to Lisa. “How are you feeling, Lisa?”

  “I’m better now! A good sleep helped a lot!” Lisa replies with a smile, though the sadness in her eyes remains evident.

  After multiple calls from Mira, Yu finally emerges from his tent, and the team begins their march toward the multi-purpose rooms. Just as when they’re about to enter a room, David, along with Charlotte and two more leaders exit from another a distant away, though David’s size is hard to miss.

  “What are you kids up to today?” David asks.

  “Discussing Mira’s awesome collection,” Wyn says playfully.

  “Hush, Oppa! Only a few get to see it!” Mira responds, blushing.

  “I’ll take that as ‘nothing serious’,” David replies, clearly confused. “Why not come with us today?”

  It turns out that the lovers haven’t returned yet. Kai and Violet have been leading a group to the Burning Village on the second floor for quite some time. Typically, a regular training expedition lasts only a couple of day-night cycles, unless it's for a special occasion, like retrieving the myniahs. The most recent contact from the two came through an email, mentioning that they had encountered SETAC – Souls for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and Creatures – a neutral group that isn't aligned with Skill Tree or anyone.

  “...How are they elites if they don’t kill creatures?” Wyn asks, puzzled.

  “I believe it started after they learned how innocent the creatures are. They…”

  “These assholes patrol the second floor often and will intervene when someone’s fighting,” Charlotte cuts in.

  “If their numbers were higher, they’d probably be on the first floor too,” Heysoos adds, his eyes fixed on Mira the entire time since he saw earlier.

  Heysoos, born Heysoos Alejandro Fernando Antonio María del Rosario de la Cruz Pérez Domínguez y López, stands at a height comparable to Eugene, though his muscular build sets him apart. He wears a plain mustard-yellow tee that contrasts with his tanned skin. His black baggy shorts hang comfortably, paired with a pair of black strap foam sandals. His dark, tousled hair complements the short facial hair that frames his sharp features. Since the first time he saw Mira, he can’t seem to keep his eyes off her.

  “We’re too weak compared to you. Just go without us,” Wyn says.

  “Eugene told me you can curve your cyclones – very impressive stuff,” David responds.

  “If we go, are you gonna make us do all the work again?” Wyn asks, half-serious.

  “Fuck off if you don’t wanna come! This isn’t the time to joke around. You want me to cut your dick off?” Charlotte snaps.

  “Sure, but it’ll be ‘a tit for a tat’, okay?” Wyn retorts.

  “Cool down, guys,” David intervenes. “Controlling an already launched cyclone isn’t an easy task. We see so much potential in you. At least you’ll be safer with us since you’re new here.”

  “I still can’t carry people with cyclones like Crowd can…,” Wyn replies.

  Mira steps in front of Wyn, advocating for her team to tag along and simply agreeing with David. After Lisa voices her agreement, the rest of the team, including Wyn, follows suit.

  “You’ll have to buy us food later for this!” Yu says.

  As the group arrives at the forest leading to the Burning Village, David summons two A3Ms – one for his team and one for Wyn’s. They venture past the small, dense forest, where plant creatures roam, and soon find themselves at the entrance to the Burning Village. According to the map, the lovers should be in the village, close to the border with the Blood Red Mountains. They appear to be surrounded by four non-blinking exclamation points.

  The village is filled with wooden huts and plants, creating a warm, inviting atmosphere – except the huts are perpetually ablaze. Unable to take the A3Ms with them further, the group continues on with Charlotte and Ruben quickly raising them with gusts of wind, propelling them toward the lovers’ location. While airborne, they spot a farm with its fence also engulfed in flames. Below, Kai, Violet, and a handful of other souls are engaged in a fierce battle against a group of peculiar creatures.

  “I’m really glad to have you guys here with us,” David says, his eyes filled with sorrow and his fist clenched at the sight of headless bodies and essence scattering around the farm.