Elder Kilo snapped back to the present, his heart hammering against his ribs like a trapped bird. The transition from the mist-shrouded swamps of a millennium ago to the sterile, pressurized reality of the Demon Box was jarring. His body turned numb, a cold paralysis spreading through his limbs as he looked at the young Don's face.
The aura was identical. It was the same weight of existence that had once commanded empires and silenced senators.
"Your aura is an empty shell," Kilo wheezed, his voice sounding thin even to his own ears. "It lacks a proper core, a defined entity. Yet, your reliance on those companions... it pours out limitless power. You have the eye of a lone wolf in a dark forest, yet you look like a pushover wiseman when I study your face."
"Well, half of that is true," Hermes replied, a single shoulder rising in an indifferent shrug. "Or should I say, 'sort of'?"
"Good grief. I guess I failed," Kilo murmured, hanging his head as a bitter smile touched his lips. "I forgot my true purpose. My role in this world. How pathetic."
"Huh? What are you talking about, Elder?" Hermes asked, his brow furrowing in genuine confusion.
"It's nothing. Just the ramblings of an old man talking to himself." Kilo looked at his trembling hands and clenched them into tight, bone-white fists.
"Why are you hesitating?" Kilo suddenly barked, looking up with eyes that had finally accepted their fate. "Do it! Do it now!"
"Uh, yeah, no. Can't do," Hermes answered blatantly. "Why do you think I'm hesitating to kill you? It's because... well, you haven't abandoned your humanity yet. You're still in your human form. Fresh and neat. Don't look so surprised—I can sense it clearly. I saw you dithering earlier, holding back from injecting that serum into your veins. Honestly, I'm disappointed. If you'd just used it, this fight wouldn't have lasted thirty seconds."
Not to mention, Hermes added silently, you're lucky the System restrictions are active. I'm strictly prohibited from killing a human. If I slip up and end you, I'll receive a punishment far worse than whatever you're going through right now.
Kilo let out a long, weary sigh.
I see. Vesesa's influence was stronger than I realized. I subconsciously held back, tethered to the form she loved. I've become too weak to return to my former self. He closed his eyes, the memory of the moonlit swamp stinging his mind. Master warned me. He'd probably call me an idiot if he knew I let a thousand years wash away his instructions.
"Idiot," Hermes sighed aloud. "That's really the only word for it."
Kilo's eyes snapped open. "Did you just read my mind?"
"What? No. Anyway, one last chance, Elder. If you aren't going to use that drug, hand it over. It's better to dispose of it properly and surrender. Just give up." Hermes folded his arms across his chest, waiting.
"I apologize, but I must decline," Kilo declared, his voice regaining a shred of its ancient dignity. "The serum and my pride will not yield. You will get nothing from me. I will not surrender. I would rather choose death than give up. If I must die, I want it to be at the hands of my Master—the only human who ever deserved to take my life."
"Man, seriously?" Hermes's eyebrows wrinkled in annoyance. "Your whole body is shaking like a leaf. I respect the determination, but can you please stop being a moron for once? If you won't cooperate, I'm going to have to make an 'aggressive friendly move' to get you to agree."
"You can hurt me, torture me, do whatever you wish," Kilo whispered, his breathing becoming shallow and ragged. "But you won't get anything. I've already dishonored my oath to my family, my master, and my lover. I feel terrible. I guess... it's time for the last resort. I hope the Grand Lord remembers me someday."
Kilo bit down hard on a hollowed-out fake tooth.
"Fool! What are you doing?!" Hermes shouted, moving forward, but he was too late.
Black foam began to bubble from Kilo's mouth, and thin streaks of blood leaked from his eyelids. The poison was fast and merciless.
"Vesesa... I'm... I'm coming now," Kilo coughed, a spray of crimson hitting the transparent floor as his body finally collapsed. "I'll see you... soon... dear."
"Elder... you were a reasonable man. I can't believe you'd actually go through with this," Hermes muttered, standing over the pitiful, broken state of his enemy. "You chose to die rather than take a second chance. You aren't just a narcissist; you're a goddamn stubborn idiot."
As the darkness rushed in to claim him, Kilo's mind drifted back to a final conversation in the sunlight of a thousand years ago.
"Dear, what if you were trapped in a box?" Vesesa had asked him, her eyes bright and curious. "What would you do if someone stronger than you tried to spare your life?"
"I don't know," Kilo had answered then. "I'd probably make a drastic, foolish decision. Maybe commit suicide right in front of them?"
"No, silly! Don't do that," she had giggled, hitting his arm. "Even if you have no escape, value what you have. It isn't wrong to surrender when you're weak. Humans submit to the strong all the time—it's how we survive. Just be a human, Kilo. Your soul is priceless. Value your life as much as you value me, okay?"
Back in the cold reality of the present, Kilo took one last look at Hermes's face.
Vesesa, I'm sorry, he thought, his consciousness fading. But I value my honor more than my breath. I won't show weakness to an enemy. Never. At least, in this one thing... I won.
"A... Aljen, what is your... true... name?" Elder Kilo wheezed, his fingers trembling as he extended a hand, desperately seeking a final anchor to this world.
"You silly old man. Are you some kind of tragic samurai?" Hermes asked, his voice cracking with a mixture of annoyance and genuine sorrow. "This isn't Japan, or China, or Korea. You aren't even East Asian. Man, I'm glad I have the soul of a Southeast Asian—we actually value life and family. Is this what you NPCs always do? Is this part of your 'honor' programming? For real, it's so goddamn stupid. Just... just stay put."
Hermes knelt on one knee, ignoring the black foam and the metallic scent of death. He reached out and grasped Kilo's cold, blood-stained hand with both of his own.
"Please... I... beg... you. Tell me your... name," Kilo coughed, a thick spray of crimson staining his chin.
Hermes looked down at him, his gaze softening into something weary and ancient. The arrogance was gone, replaced by a bitter, hollow smile. "Aljen," he whispered, hesitating for a heartbeat before finishing. "Aljen Mura."
Kilo's eyes snapped wide. His pupils dilated, vibrating with a shock so profound it seemed to halt the poison for a final, ecstatic second. Mura. The surname hit him like a lightning strike, dragging a thousand-year-old memory out of the abyss—the moment his master had whispered his true lineage in the palace gardens.
"Aljen... Mura? You're... a Mura?" Kilo's voice was a ragged whistle. "No w... ay. I am so.... sorry. I fail you. I made... a terrible... mis... take. I became a fool... a traitor... stupid and weak. L-L-Lo... Lord Mura!"
Tears carved tracks through the grime on Kilo's face. He reached up, his fingers twitching, trying to touch the face of the young Don—the face of the boy he had once served with his life.
"Stop crying like a baby, old man. And don't you dare try to touch me with those bloody hands," Hermes grumbled, though he didn't pull away. "You're still joking around even at the end. Whatever. Your heart, your body... they retained their humanity. Be proud of that much. You're forgiven. As a reward for being an honorable enemy, I'll allow your soul to pass through. I'm just... disappointed. You took your own life without a second thought. Didn't anyone ever tell you how stupid that is? I hope whoever you meet on the other side slaps you right in the mouth for it."
Hermes heaved a heavy, disappointing sigh. "I guess everyone has their own standards of pride."
Kilo's pupils trembled. He was finally reunited with the one he adored most, the center of his ancient loyalty. He opened his mouth to scream a warning—to tell the Master about the danger, about the past—but his jaw suddenly locked. A cold, invisible pressure clamped his throat shut.
In the blurred periphery of his vision, Kilo saw her.
A girl stood behind Hermes. Her face was shrouded by a delicate black veil, and her body was draped in a simple white summer dress that seemed to glow with a ghostly radiance. She was glaring at Kilo with a smile so terrifying it made his soul shiver. Slowly, she placed a pale index finger over her lips.
"Ssssh," she whispered into the silence of the Box.
Kilo's pupils shook. She was alive. The one person the Master should never, ever meet again. As she drifted closer, a cacophony of horrific, dissonant music began to scream inside Kilo's head.
Unbelievable... no... I cannot speak! Kilo panicked internally. This girl... she is here! A powerful spell is sealing my tongue. I made a grave mistake taking my life. If I had just asked his surname first... the past... the future... humanity is in grave danger! The spirits and that woman... they are back. I failed the promise... Vesesa... My Em... peror...
Kilo tried to lunge forward, to grab Hermes's collar and shake him, but his muscles gave out. His arms hit the floor with a dull thud. His pupils rolled back, turning into empty white orbs.
"Sleep well," the girl giggled, her voice a tinkling of glass. Then, as if she had never been there, she melted into the thin, pressurized air.
"I wonder why he looked so terrified at the end. Is someone behind me?" Hermes asked, glancing over his shoulder.
The space was empty. The shimmering walls of the Demon Box were the only witnesses.
"I don't think so, Master. You must be imagining things," Meili replied smoothly.
Hermes sighed and reached out, gently closing the old man's eyes. He laid the corpse down with a respect he usually reserved for no one.
"Master, can I eat his soul?" the Slime asked hungrily.
"No. Leave it be. Let the man die in honor and have his peace," Hermes commanded. He watched in silence as the Elder's body, no longer sustained by magic or spirit, began to crumble into fine grey ash.
"Hmmm, that's weird," the Slime muttered, sniffing the air. "Why did this elf smell like that person?"
"Every raw material smells the same when it's burnt, sis~," Meili countered, her voice playful. "It's just your imagination."
These sisters are a headache, Hermes thought, closing his eyes in a silent prayer for the man who had died to protect a pride he barely understood.
"Master~, I used a Tier 8 [Miasma] to corrupt those guards' souls, but this old guy took forever to die. He was tough," Meili complained. "His soul looks so tasty. Just one bite?"
"Seize your urges. Enough," Hermes snapped. "Take the souls of the minions if you must, but leave the Elder. We aren't savages; have some class."
"Yes, Master~," the Slime bubbled obediently. "Okay~," Meili added with a pout.
You were a respectable man, Kilo, Hermes thought as the last of the ash scattered. I'm lucky I didn't have to kill you myself. You chose to go out as a human. Rest in peace.