Rustling sounds echoed around Kim as she moved three steps back with her palms covering her mouth.

"THIS IS NOT OUR JOON!" She said in a loud, sobbing voice that sent chills down Eun-woo’s spine.

Eun-woo moved forward slowly, focusing on the pale body that had its tongue out with wide open eyes.

He looked at the corpse’s face, at Leon, then back at the corpse again. ’So we’ve been moving along with a fake Joon. How did I not recognize the sudden change in behavior? Fuck!’

When Seo-jun stepped forward to the corpse, he only nodded once, then moved toward Leon. He placed a heavy hand on Leon’s shoulder, then looked straight at him.

"I’m sorry for the earlier action."

"Sorry, is that all you can say?" Leon shoved the hand off, then moved a step away. "Well, I thought you knew. Nothing like knowing you were all dumbasses."

"Dumbass—" Kim said as she moved a step forward with an angry face.

"Kim. This is not the right time," Seo-jun stopped her before she could near Leon.

He shifted his gaze to Leon, then smiled. "Thank you."

Leon looked at him for a second, then turned without saying a word.

Kim stood where she was. Her eyes drifted back to the corpse, and she pressed her lips together. She had called it Joon. She had spoken to it like it was Joon. The thought sat heavy on her chest, and she swallowed it down without a word.

Since Tartarus only had the burning sun and nothing more, none of the three Ghost Squad knew what day or time it was. They only knew that they had spent more than three days of the five days, judging by the number of Starfire they had carried.

"So now, how do we get the Starfire Opal we placed in the Triarch that Joon, sorry, this imposter, took?" Eun-woo asked when he stood up and planted his hands on his waist.

"There is only one way and one person who can help us locate it." Kim said as she shifted her gaze from Eun-woo to Leon, who was seated at the open ramp of his Triarch.

Without hesitation, Eun-woo walked to Leon, then sat beside him.

"How will we even get to leave this hot place," he said in a jovial manner while secretly waiting for Leon to react.

He stood up on his feet, then lifted his eyes to the dead clouds above. "Oh my wife, my kids, my granny. How will I celebrate you all since today is a day for ladies."

Leon lifted his gaze from the ground and looked ahead. He stood up, then dashed into the control section.

Eun-woo’s face gleamed with joy as he turned and watched Leon turn on the engine of the craft. ’Yes, I convinced him without even saying a word to him. But wait, I made that thing up. Did he really take it that seriously?’

Behind the control unit of the Triarch, Gia reeled into life and greeted Leon.

"Good day, Leon Storm."

Leon sat down, then exhaled sharply, without responding to Gia.

The moving blue wave reeled back as Gia bounced back again after a minute of no response.

"Are we heading back home? I can’t wait to fly again. I’ve been sleeping for days and need to be energetic again."

A smile tore across Leon’s face when he lifted his gaze and watched the moving blue waves on the panel.

He turned, looked at Eun-woo, then frowned. "Are you guys spending the rest of your years here?"

"Nah, nah," Eun-woo said as he rushed into the Triarch. "We are coming. But first, let’s go for the Opal stones that are in the Triarch that imposter took, before we head out of this land."

"Ok. That’s where we are heading now." Leon said as he grabbed the steering wheel.

Gia reeled back to life again. "Let me pilot it once we are in the sky. I’m good at flying in the clouds."

"Thank you, Gia." Leon said and smiled.

Outside the Triarch, dust blasted into the air as the blue flames flared out at the side of the craft.

"Seo-jun, we’ve got to leave. Leon is about to take off." Kim said as she carried two sacks on her shoulder and hurled them into the craft.

She climbed onto the raised ramp, then stood there, waiting for Seo-jun to appear.

At that same moment, green blood splashed on the walls of the small path leading to the inside of the heart of Tartarus.

"Fuck! Where are these even coming from?" Seo-jun said through his teeth as he swiped the green blood off his face, then spat on the ground.

Two iron-hide lizards dashed toward him and hooked their claws on the sack he had placed on his shoulder.

Seo-jun pulled out a purple blade sword from his back, then chopped the creatures into perfect halves.

"Seo-jun, hurry, else you’ll grow old and die here!"

Kim’s voice wafted through the creatures’ snarling sounds and seeped into Seo-jun’s ears while he was managing to move out of the crowded iron-hides.

"Why did I even come into the cave for the last sack? Huh." He said and swung the sword against the creature which had neared him.

Blood gushed out onto Seo-jun’s face and clouded his eyes. Before he could wipe it clean, the creature loomed over him like a mountain taking shape.

Outside the cave, at the front of the ramp of the Triarch, Kim squeezed her eyes, then focused on the figure that seemed to be moving at high speed.

"Leon, wait, I think something is happening to Seo-jun." She said when the craft leaped into the air.

"What are you waiting for? Go and help him so we can leave here." Leon said in a low voice.

When he turned and saw the look in Kim’s eyes, he sighed out of grief.

"Gia."

The blue wave wobbled and reeled on the panel. "Hello sir, you called for me." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

"Can I trust you?"

"Of course you can trust me. You’re the reason I was created."

"Ok. Take them to this location. I will join you there." Leon said as he pulled out the scroll, then marked a location at the eastern part of Tartarus on it.

"Show me the map."

In a flash, blue light gushed from the Triarch and expanded from its starting point, then loomed over the entire Tartarus.

The Serakels stood there and gasped as the light flashed over their mansion of mansions. The Syrs’ eyes glowed with rage when they saw the light moving at high speed.

When Aurelian saw the light, he smiled. He let the smile sit on his face for a long moment, then slowly turned away from the light like a man who already knew how the story would end.

Countless creatures dashed toward the light’s direction when it returned. When the Syrs tried to follow the blue light back, Aurelian stopped them.

When the light returned to the Triarch, a large landscape of Tartarus appeared on the screen before Leon’s eyes.

"There." He said and pointed at where another Triarch had crashed. "Take them there."

"As you wish, Leon Storm," Gia said, then began drawing a navigation line on the screen.

When Leon loosened his hands from the craft’s steering wheel, blue light climbed up and filled the entire controls.

"Where are you going?" Kim and Eun-woo asked when they saw Leon placing Liu Yan’s sword down and tightening his grip on the war discs.

"I’m going to get Seo-jun." Leon said and jumped from the Triarch.

As soon as he landed, the Triarch’s ramp closed as it dashed into the skies like a shooting star.

"I can feel something drawing closer," Leon said low as he felt the ground vibrating beneath his boot.

Snarling and wailing sounds echoed ahead of Leon when he dashed into the cave.

With a single swing of the war disc, he wiped out countless iron-hides, then pulled Seo-jun out of the corpses.

"Are you okay?" he said, staring at Seo-jun’s clawed face.

Seo-jun looked at Leon with a shocked expression, then picked up his purple blade sword. "Better than ever."

He took in a deep breath, then carried the sack of Opal stones.

Leon’s expression died when he saw the sack on Seo-jun’s shoulder. "Leave it, or else you will die."

Seo-jun shook his head, then carried it along.

The moment they exited the cave, the sack slid down Seo-jun’s shoulder and slammed on the ground.

Pam!

The stones scattered and spread across the ground like spilled stars, swallowed almost instantly by the dust and heat of Tartarus. Neither of them had time to grieve it.

"WHAT THE HELL!" Seo-jun screamed when he saw countless creatures gathered around them like bees.

Sweat dripped from his face as the half-snake, half-human creatures snarled at him, their long, divided tongues slicing through the air.

When he turned and looked to his left, Leon was nowhere to be seen. Only swirling dust clutched at his eyes.

’Where is Leon?!’ Seo-jun screamed while his eyes rolled in their sockets. But when he shifted his gaze to the front, countless Serakels were flying in the air.

"Seo-jun, what are you waiting for?" Leon screamed from the center of the creatures as he continuously plowed through them like a maze.