The chamber was dark, illuminated only by the feint light dangling from its ceiling. There were sixteen cells in this dungeon -on this floor at least. They were all filled with men, their minds broken and bodies lay bare on the cold floor. Though there was one cell with men who seemed just fine. One was asleep from the power of the hair around his wrist, while the other had passed out from his lack of blood… Yep, just fine…


    It might be important to note that when Akuma passed out, the Akashic Records carried him to back to his cell and regenerated his wounds using Tenshi’s cells and tissues. It also weakened the effects of the chief’s hair, allowing Tenshi to regain his consciousness.


    “Damn, my head’s killing me!” Came Tenshi, pressing his palms against his eyes to alleviate the pain. I’m not sure if that actually works, but that’s just what he liked to do.


    His shouting woke Akuma, who quickly surveyed their surroundings and took note of their predicament.


    “HEY, SHIBO!!!” he shouted, checking if he left already.


    “You idiot! I just said my head’s killing me!”


    “Sorry about that. I wanted to check if he was still down here with us.”


    “Nah, he ain’t down here. I can’t pick up on his scent.”


    “Hm? You mean you can smell non-divine things? Like regular stuff too? …That’s pretty handy.”


    “Yeah, it’s been that way since I ate that demon. I’m still getting used to it though.”


    “Wow. Since that long? Well, can you pick up on Rin or Alice? Or Arthur?”


    “Nah, just you. And it’d be hard to pick up on their scent from far away with how bad it smells down here.”


    “I don’t think I like how you said that.”


    “Nah, I meant the prisoners...”


    Tenshi glanced around the chamber through the cell’s gate.


    “…This place reeks of semen… I think they use them for sex.”


    Having seen Palola’s memories, Akuma was already accustomed to Amazonian culture, so he knew exactly why these men were down here. With that being said, having encountered two of the “Cult of Salomon”, along with the whereabout of his friends unknown, Akuma found himself at a crossroad. He knew he had to take a risk, but was he prepared for it? Had he steeled his mind in preparations?This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    Akuma gulped before muttering, “Hey, Akashic Records… Can you… explain our situation?””


    Tenshi, sitting nearby, was left confused, wondering if his brother was perhaps talking to him.


    Unknown to Tenshi, a dark cloud of miasma that reeked with the stench of trauma appeared in front of Akuma. From it, a being in the form of an angelic child materializing, hugging Akuma’s neck as he descended. The child leaned in closer and began whispering into Akuma’s ear, and though he had no ill intentions when doing so, Akuma felt overwhelmed by a flood of emotions. They crashed over him like relentless waves, causing the Akashic Records to jump bag in concern for Akuma.


    The first wave came in as “guilt”. The guilt of taking innocent lives, followed by the bitter realization that he mistakenly believed he sent them to heaven, when in truth, he’d sent them to an existence that could only be described as limbo.


    The second wave was “despair”. An emotion that overflowed through him as he was nailed to a wooden frame, hearing nothing but the tormented screams and weeping of those who cried out to him. He was powerless to save those he cherished as he was burnt alive.


    Akuma’s breaths came in heavy, rapid gasps and a dull, viscous fluid trickled from his lips, pooling on the cold, frigid floor beneath him. Simply listening to the Akashic Records speak was enough to break him, as his soul had now been fully fused with his mortal body.


    Deeply concerned for his brother, Tenshi called out to him.


    “What’s going on with you, Akuma?!”


    In an attempt to comfort him, Tenshi reached out but was swatted away.


    “GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!!!” Akuma roared.


    For a moment, he looked as if he were a primal beast, the drool pooling from his teeth only highlighting that fact.


    To Akuma it was the hand of the angelic boy he was swatting, who’d also reached out to Akuma to comfort him. Following that, Akuma shot him a crimson glare piercing deep into the angelic boy’s soul, prompting him to disappear in hurt confusion.


    (Dammit all!!) Akuma thought, his mind finally beginning to settle. (…Like I thought, I can’t handle the “price to pay” anymore. Earlier I was running on adrenaline, and the need to save those two and Palola overlapped my feelings of guilt and despair… Dammit. Dammit! Dammit!! …Screw it. I’ll just do it the old-fashioned way… Think, Akuma. Think…)


    Akuma took a deep breath, resting his back against the wall to help catch his breath.


    “…The chief is one thing, but Aamil is still a mystery. I know that she has Pegasus, but I still don’t know why she’s here. Or how she got here… I doubt Finral would transport a single girl here, so, who? Who would have the power to transport someone to another world, and what the hell would they be doing on earth? …I can think of three people with that power: T.S.B.J, Michael and Finral. I can’t see a reason Finral would have to do it, or Michael. And T.S.B.J prefers to stay neutral. Though, there are people who have the ability to use their powers like Lucifer… Dammit all, I’m practically trying to find out a variable that could be anything-!”


    A sudden pause in his muttering, followed by an almost eerie villainous laugh that only further convinced Tenshi he’d gone mad.


    What had sparked such a reaction from the boy was the memory of Aamil introducing her horse flashing through his mind.


    “Of course, how could I have forgotten about you...? According to Palola’s memories, my guess about her arriving in this world years ago is definitely correct. And that would make perfect sense. After all, his power works best on children who don’t know any better… So, you’re the one who sent her here… Odysseus... And I think I have a good idea why...”


    Akuma stood up from the cold floor, his gaze shifting to the handcuff woven with hair that confined his wrists. Well, I suppose “confine” is an inaccurate way to put it as they’d long been in tatters since he used the power of the Akashic Records earlier against the cult.


    “…I guess it’s time I go save your village, Palola… Hey, Tenshi.”


    Still a bit hesitant and questioning his brother’s sanity, a feint “hm?” escaped Tenshi.


    “There’s something I have in mind… It’s something I know you’ll find fun.”