Inside a cave on Kalvish Island, everything was silent.
A group of people stood there—tense and terrified. The cave was so quiet that even the faint wind echoing through it sent chills down their spines.
Elli's entire rear army had suddenly vanished.
Because of that, everyone was even more confused and on edge.
Then suddenly—
"AAAA…! T–THERE IS SOMEONE…!!!"
A soldier from the front line screamed in fear.
Everyone turned toward him.
He was sitting on the ground, trembling uncontrollably. His entire body was shaking, his eyes red with fear. With a shaking hand, he pointed toward a direction—
But there was nothing there.
The soldier beside him said,
"There's no one… you must be seeing things…"
But the terrified soldier shook his head violently.
"No… no…! I'm sure there's someone here!"
Suddenly—
A faint sound echoed.
At first, it was barely noticeable… but slowly, it became clearer… heavier…
Everyone looked around in confusion.
The sound grew louder—
It was like water droplets… falling onto the ground.
Drip…
Drip…
Drip…
But the sound kept getting louder… closer.
Fear began to spread.
"What is going on?!"
"We should leave!"
"I want to go back!!"
Elli suddenly shouted angrily,
"No one is going anywhere! This is just the island's security system!"
Her voice silenced them for a moment…
But the fear on their faces didn't disappear.
Elli clenched her fists, panic rising inside her.
First the soldiers behind me vanished… and now this…
"Did I… make a mistake coming here…?"
She paused.
Then forced herself to steady her mind.
"No… what I'm doing is right. If it's for my darling… then everything is worth it."
Suddenly—
A strange voice echoed from deep within the cave.
It sounded almost like a siren…
Everyone turned toward the darkness.
Elli slowly stepped forward, pushing soldiers aside as she moved ahead.
But the moment she reached the front—
Silence.
Complete silence.
"…What is going on?" she whispered.
"If you're going to attack, then do it. There's no point in trying to scare me like this…"
Then—
Drip…
The sound returned.
Louder.
Closer.
Elli's fear grew.
Without turning, she said,
"Someone go ahead and check what's going on."
No response.
"Go…! Someone go!"
Still nothing.
Her fear turned into frustration.
She turned around and shouted,
"SOMEONE GO AND—"
But the moment she turned—
Everyone was gone.
Her entire army had vanished.
No one remained.
It was as if no one had ever been there in the first place.
"…W–what…?!"
Elli's eyes widened in disbelief.
Her legs gave out, and she fell to the ground.
Then—
Drip… drip… drip…
The sound became extremely loud now.
She felt something behind her.
Slowly… trembling…
She turned back.
"Ah—!"
Her eyes froze in shock.
About 8–10 meters away—
A tall, extremely thin humanoid figure stood there.
Its body looked like flowing liquid darkness.
A fog-like aura surrounded it.
Its head was tilted at an unnatural angle.
Where its eyes should have been—
There were cracks… like deep fractures in a mountain…
From those cracks, a faint white glow leaked out.
Each step it took—
Sounded like water droplets hitting the ground.
And it was staring directly at her.
Elli's body shivered uncontrollably.
She slowly placed her hands behind her on the ground and asked in a trembling voice,
"W–who are you…?! Are you… Entity 21…?!"
The being formed a creepy smile.
Its mouth stretched unnaturally—
A half-moon grin beneath those glowing cracks.
A terrifying, unnatural smile—
Enough to make any normal person faint instantly.
Then it spoke.
"Heh… an insolent creature… comparing me to my lord…"
Its voice carried a strange pain… yet the smile never faded.
Elli shouted,
"T–then who are you if you're not Entity 21?!"
The being took a step forward.
Drip…
"I am… NAKSO…"
A pause.
"…the left hand of Lord Entity 21."
Elli forced herself to stand, trying to regain confidence.
"Hah…! Do you even know who I am?!"
Nakso tilted its head slightly.
Elli continued proudly,
"I am Elli… daughter of Ocean King Antonio!"
Nakso simply responded,
"…Ah."
No reaction. No fear.
Nothing.
But Elli was still terrified inside.
She quickly added,
"I–if you harm me… my father will attack you… and your lord Entity 21!"
Nakso replied calmly,
"Yes… that's true… Entity 21 wouldn't want me to kill Antonio's daughter…"
A pause.
"…But."
His gaze locked onto her.
"You came into my territory… not the other way around."
Elli's voice trembled.
"I–I came here because I heard… one of the 12 Nicul Knives is on this island… I came to take it…"
Suddenly—
Something moved inside Nakso's mouth.
Then—
It dropped something onto the ground.
A knife.
One of the Nicul Knives.
"You mean… this knife?"
Elli's face twisted in disgust.
"That knife… was inside your mouth?!"
Still—
She gathered courage and stood up.
Slowly, she walked toward the knife—
But suddenly—
The distance between her and the knife increased.
It was as if the space itself stretched.
"…What?!"
Nakso spoke,
"I found it inside a broken house on this island…"
A pause.
"But why should I give it to you?"
His voice turned colder.
"Why do you want it?"
Elli's expression changed instantly.
Her fear disappeared behind a calculated smile.
With a serious tone, she said—
"…Let's make a deal."