"Children of the Gods, prepare yourselves. The new Supreme Grand Commander Rascha-Xena will arrive in a few minutes."
Inside a vast church, the ceiling was painted with two spirals—purple and black—intertwining with each other.
On the raised platform, Guardian Francis stood, watching everything below. Beside him was an old priest.
"Children of the Gods, the one who connects us to the Heaven is on the way."
The priest held a piece of paper and read aloud.
Below them were countless large wooden boxes.
Each had only a narrow slit, just enough for a head to stick out.
Inside every box stood a person.
But their eyes were empty. Their heads swayed slightly, and their mouths were left half open.
Therion, Macaw, and Vdolky from Squad 3 were also here, each trapped inside a separate box.
Therion and Macaw had their ears plugged tightly with small pieces of cotton.
Only Vdolky had nothing blocking his ears.
Therion secretly raised his arm. A keyboard appeared on his forearm.
He quickly typed a message and sent it to the other two.
Macaw and Vdolky raised their arms as well.
"Stick to the plan. You and I will wear earplugs. Vdolky won't."
Macaw replied:
"So we'll only look at Rascha-Xena without hearing, while Vdolky both looks and listens?"
Vdolky looked extremely nervous, sweat covering his forehead.
"This doesn't feel right… I'm scared."
Therion responded immediately:
"It's fine. If we complete the mission, we'll know whether Rascha-Xena has the ability to control others."
Macaw added:
"This is also a key step if we want Odin to remain as Supreme Grand Commander."
Vdolky read the messages on his arm, took a deep breath, and lifted his head.
Immediately, he froze.
Francis was already standing on the platform, staring straight at them.
Panicking, Vdolky began pressing randomly on the keyboard, trying to signal the others.
But misunderstanding him, the other two only grew more confused.
Vdolky let out a small cough.
Therion looked up—
And right in front of him… Francis was already there.
The bird-like mask felt chilling and terrifying.
Therion panicked, then quickly pointed to his ears and mouth, signaling that he could neither hear nor speak.
As a result—
He was immediately thrown out of the church.
Inside, only Macaw and Vdolky remained.
Everyone else showed no reaction at all. They simply stood motionless inside their wooden boxes, like lifeless statues.
Outside Heavenfield, the large wooden gate slammed shut behind the expedition team as they arrived at Rhodes.
The heavy rain had completely drained everyone's strength.
Napoleta looked exhausted.
"Paul… I'm going to lie down for a bit…"
He was about to collapse—
A hand suddenly grabbed him.
"Do you want to die?"
Commander Raindor snapped, pointing downward.
The floor beneath them was only made of loosely connected wooden planks.
Far below was a clear lake, glowing faintly blue—but with no visible bottom.
A small stone fell—
It kept falling for a long time without hitting the water.
Only after it completely disappeared did a small splash rise up.
The others carefully sat down, removing their armor and weapons, letting the rainwater drain away.
Grand Commander Umi simply froze the water on his body, then let it fall off.
He raised his hand.
Steps of ice slowly formed, leading up to a wooden platform above—the place where supplies were stored.
Umi sat for a moment, observing them, then stood up.
"All the warrior, attention!"
His voice echoed, making everyone look up.
Ganso was still wiping himself dry, while Raindor focused only on drying his hair, ignoring his soaked body.
Standing on the platform, Umi spoke firmly:
"Total numbers: one Grand Commander, one Commander, 18 elite soldiers, and one from the Sernik continent."
He raised his hand. A swirl of ice formed in his palm, spinning.
Below, another swirl of ice appeared on the floor—
Then suddenly, multiple ice pillars shot outward, freezing the entire surface into a smooth blue layer.
"We will split into three teams. Right flank—"
He pointed at Raindor.
"Raindor and 8 elite soldiers. Responsible for carrying supplies."
Then he pointed at Ganso.
"Center team—Ganso and 8 others. They will lead the way."
Finally, he placed his hands behind his back.
"Left flank will be led by me, with 2 elite soldiers, to maintain mobility."
Everyone stepped onto the frozen floor and quickly formed their groups.
Umi scanned them briefly.
The teams of Raindor and Ganso were already complete.
Since no further orders were given, all 18 elite soldiers had already divided into those two groups.
After a moment, Umi pointed at Napoleta from Ganso's team and Perrie from Raindor's team.
"You two, with me."
They immediately stepped out and moved to the left side.
Umi continued:
"The three teams will maintain a distance of 800 meters horizontally, and the center team will move 300 meters ahead."
Everyone raised their hands and shouted in unison:
"Yes, Grand Commander!"
In a dark place—
A long corridor stretched forward, with white walls and massive pillars on both sides.
From the ceiling and the tops of the pillars, strands of moss hung down.
On the ground were orange crystals, glowing faintly, occasionally flickering brighter.
The deeper one went, the more crystals appeared, and the stronger the light became.
At the end of the corridor was a raised platform.
At its peak stood a massive throne.
Seated upon it was a figure with deep red skin.
The dim orange light barely revealed a pair of long horn on his head—shaped like a human spine.
Three figures approached and knelt before him.
"Lowly demons… are honored to kneel before Demon King Kronos."
They bowed deeply.
One revealed a large horn at the center of its head, another exposed long legs far larger than its body, and the last spread a pair of massive wings behind its back.
"We, Waffle, Blondie, and Browne, request permission to follow Envy to the place where the humans are hiding."
The air was thick, heavy, almost suffocating.
Kronos's voice echoed—low, but filled with overwhelming power.
"Three of you… newly turned into demons…"
The three kneeling figures trembled.
"…and already wish to wipe out all of humanity?"
Waffle raised his head, placing one hand on his chest.
"My lord Kronos… though we have not been demons for long, we swear to become your most loyal servants."
The crystals flickered, revealing Waffle true form—
A strange creature, resembling a giant orange beetle.
"That place lies to the North… a large tower in the middle of a lake, my lord."
Kronos remained seated.
"Then… how are you so sure that is where humans are hiding?"
Waffle lowered his hand.
"I assumed so… because Envy—"
"Who allowed you to speak as if you stand equal with me!?"
A thunderous shout erupted.
A shockwave burst outward, shattering the glowing crystals and extinguishing all light.
The corridor was swallowed by darkness.
Waffle trembled.
"M-My lord… I meant no offense… it's just… a few days ago, Envy followed the humans' trail… and found that place…"
On the throne, Kronos stared down at the three figures.
In the darkness, his eyes lit up—
A burning orange glow.
His pupils were rectangular, like those of a goat—
Fixated directly on Waffle.