After securing a decisive victory, the three of us stood before the door from which countless soldiers had poured out.

Despite the number of people exiting, they hadn’t fully opened the door, which suggested that something was happening inside.

And that was likely related to the "big event" the old man had mentioned.

Tension began to fill the space between us as we braced ourselves for anything that might happen at a moment’s notice.

"I’ll open it."

White Mask was the first to speak, and both Muyeon and I silently nodded. White Mask took a deep breath.

Then.

Bang!

In an instant, she flung the door open and drew her sword as she charged inside. We followed close behind, immediately adopting battle stances.

However, what we saw inside left us stunned.

White Mask and Muyeon froze in place, their faces rigid with shock, as if they’d witnessed something unspeakable. Without hesitation, they covered their ears and turned away.

The knight’s rule: Do not look or listen to anything related to the Outer Gods.

It seemed they were following that rule to the letter.

But I was shocked for an entirely different reason.

Because…

“Peekaboo! Oh, what a cute little baby we have here!”

“Heheh? Hehehe!”

…The cultists were gathered around what looked like a magic circle, speaking to what appeared to be an Outer God that looked just like Ria, treating it as if it were a baby.

These people… what in the world are they doing?

I thought I might be imagining it, but even after rubbing my eyes, the scene remained unchanged.

As shocking as the scene was, the more disturbing question was: Why was there an Outer God that looked exactly like Ria here?

Outer Gods are supposed to be fragments of something else, right?

Wait…

Does that mean the Outer God that created Ria is nearby?

"Huung. No, it’s not like that," came a voice in my head.

…Ugh. I had been ignoring it, but even now it still gave me the necessary information.

I was starting to feel a bit guilty.

No, no. Ignoring a man’s sense of romance is almost a crime.

We would have a conversation later, but not now.

"Rrrr… Human, help! Leaf is forcing me to listen to her… Awooo!"

…It seemed Bell was having a hard time, too.

Sorry, Bell. Hang in there a little longer.

In any case, that wasn’t the issue right now.

“Eek! The knights are here!”

“Please, save us, O Torturer!”

As soon as the cultists realized we were there, they scattered in a panic, leaving the Outer Gods, who were sitting in the magic circle, reaching out for the fleeing humans, as if begging them to keep playing.

Torturer.

Was that the name of the Outer God these cultists worshipped?

It was too late to beg for mercy now.

They were about to be thoroughly smashed.

I thought this would be resolved easily and hoped it would end peacefully, but then…

“…”

A presence walked toward us, exuding an ominous aura.

I sighed in frustration.

Of course, it wasn’t going to end smoothly.

White Mask and Muyeon tensed up as they eyed the girl who approached, despite knowing we were knights.

But this time, I wasn’t going to let them fight.

"Master, I’m asking you to handle the other cultists."

“Underling.”

“This time… I’ll handle this one.”

It would be wiser to fight with White Mask and Muyeon’s support, but...

I had seen it.

That strange red aura descending behind the girl.

And that aura was eerily similar to Asti’s.

I wanted to fight her myself and gather some clues, so I hoped they wouldn’t get involved.

“…Understood. I’ll leave it to you.”

Fortunately, White Mask agreed with my request and, along with Muyeon, began rounding up the screaming cultists outside.

Good.

As soon as they disappeared, I didn’t hesitate to speak.

“You.”

“…I have nothing to say to an intruder.”

“Do you know someone named Asti?”

I had expected some sort of reaction, but the girl remained expressionless, exuding a hostile aura without a word.

“Fine, if that’s your answer.”

It seemed that a fight with this girl was inevitable.

And given her similarity to Asti, she was likely stronger than I anticipated.

Before I could fully prepare myself for the battle, the girl suddenly lunged at me.

Wham!

She fought with her fists, just as I had expected. My punch collided with hers, but the impact wasn’t intentional; it was pure coincidence that our fists met mid-swing.

“Grr…”

“…”

I felt a heavy weight press against my arm, causing me to groan, but I had no time to dwell on the sensation.

The girl was already preparing her next strike as if the earlier clash hadn’t affected her at all.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

I blocked her rapid punches with my arms, but each blow felt as if it would shatter my bones.

Ignoring the pain, I countered with a punch and retreated.

Although I had confirmed her strength through that exchange, it was within my expectations.

I could devise a strategy to win.

Until I saw what happened next.

“Ugh…”

“Uwooo…”

As the girl raised her arms and moved her fingers, the Outer Gods, who had been sitting idly, began to rise.

Before I could comprehend what was happening—

Thud!

“Damn!”

The Outer Gods flew toward me and clung to my body, creating an opening.

Wham!

“Gah!”

A heavy blow struck my abdomen, sending me crashing into the wall.

I felt like I was about to vomit everything inside me, but there was no time to recover in this brutal environment.

Boom!

The girl charged at me, and I barely dodged, but the nausea worsened.

As I struggled to stand, three Outer Gods flew toward me, and then—

“Hi-yah! Hi-yah! Hi-yah!”

They started slapping me across the face.

It hurt, but it wasn’t unbearable.

But that wasn’t the problem.

Wham!

“Grr!”

The girl took advantage of my distraction, landing blows all over my body.

Each punch left a bruise, and my mind began to feel foggy from the relentless beating.

But I couldn’t fall here.

If I collapsed, everything would be over.

Wham!

Finally, I found an opening and threw a punch at the girl. I thought it was the perfect moment, but she blocked it effortlessly and distanced herself.

What in the world is this girl?

She’s stronger than a seasoned knight like me.

This is bad.

Really bad.

If I could barely handle the girl, and she could control these Outer Gods, we were in an overwhelmingly disadvantageous position.

If this continues, I’ll just keep getting pummeled.

Is there no other way?

As I contemplated my options, I suddenly heard a voice.

“Tanton…”

It was so close that I flinched, but I quickly realized it came from near my chest.

“Ria?”

When had she come out? Peeking her head out from her bear suit, Ria was looking at me with a determined expression.

“Just hang in there! I’ll help!”

With that, Ria flew off somewhere.

I was bewildered by her sudden words, but as I watched the Outer Gods, I finally made the connection.

Outer Gods grow weaker and unable to speak when alone, but they regain their power when they’re near their kin.

The Outer Gods being controlled by the girl were the same species as Ria.

“That girl…!”

The girl cursed as she attempted to attack Ria, but I intercepted her.

Her reaction made it clear: wherever Ria was heading, it was something critical.

“Hold it! You have to get through me first!”

Deciding she couldn’t stop Ria herself, the girl commanded the Outer Gods to fly toward her.

Under the girl’s control, they moved much faster than free-roaming Ria.

Ria was flying toward a totem that was glowing with a red light.

A red light.

And an ominous shape similar to Asti’s.

Was the "Torturer" these cultists worship actually "her"?

As the pieces of the puzzle began falling into place, the girl shoved me aside and flew toward Ria.

“No…!”

Just as the girl was about to catch her, Ria accelerated and rammed into the totem.

Crrack! Boom!

The totem, unable to maintain its balance, collapsed, and the red light faded.

Simultaneously—

“Huh? What?”

“Wah…”

The Outer Gods that had been chasing Ria landed on the ground and sat down, smiling innocently.

“Almost… I was so close…”

Approaching the despairing girl, I realized she hadn’t noticed me yet. When she finally did, she looked up at me with the most pitiful expression.

Yeah, you’re pitiful.

So very pitiful.

But I had made a promise to myself after what had happened with Candle.

Never again.

Thud.

“Urk.”

I punched her in the abdomen, and her eyes quickly lost focus as she collapsed.

I had hit her hard enough to knock her out, so she wouldn’t be waking up for a while.

As her body slumped, I caught her and gently laid her on the ground.

I had steeled myself, but I wasn’t heartless.

“Hah, is it finally over?”

I was about to let out a sigh of relief when Ria, perched on my shoulder, started rubbing her paws against my cheek.

Wait, wasn’t this supposed to be over now that the totem was down?

Just as I was thinking that, White Mask and Muyeon returned.

Ria, faster than anyone, tried to hide in my pocket, but I calmed her down and let her stay.

White Mask gave me a brief look of surprise at Ria but quickly met my gaze as if nothing was unusual.

“Keeping a pet now, are we?”

“Haha… It just sort of happened.”

“Perhaps your crimes weren’t as exaggerated as we thought.”

Oh, was that a joke?

…Though it was still technically illegal.

“Well, we won.”

“Not yet, Master. Cultists who prepared this much wouldn’t back down so easily.”

Based on what Ria had shown me, I reported the situation to White Mask.

He acknowledged the information and, along with Muyeon, began scouting the area.

We needed to hurry.

If there were this many Outer Gods gathered, it was likely that the ritual had progressed significantly.

“Over here!”

While we were searching the area, Muyeon called out urgently.

“I read about this in a book once. Summoning circles have to be symmetrical. But this one…”

The circle Muyeon pointed to was far from symmetrical.

If something seems off, act on it immediately.

I stomped on the ground, and a hidden panel beneath us fell away, revealing a ladder.

White Mask and I exchanged a glance and then quickly descended.

And what we found there…

“Eek!”

“What is this…?”

Though we couldn’t see the face clearly…

A red dress.

Snow-white hair.

And skin so pale it seemed almost translucent, just like the hand Asti had summoned.

The sight was so eerie it left me dazed.

“There! Over there!”

Ria pointed to something, and I noticed a candle beneath the figure of the Torturer.

Was that the medium?

“Aaargh!”

Using every ounce of strength, I sprinted forward and kicked the candle away, then slammed down on the altar, smashing everything in sight.

And thankfully, the figure of the Torturer vanished into nothingness.

“…Hah.”

“Is it over?”

“That’s a death flag, Master!”

Don’t say something so dangerous so casually!

…Thankfully, nothing bad seemed to happen.

Maybe I’d become an expert at dodging flags lately.

“…You did well, Underling. When we get back, I’ll have to give you another commendation.”

“No, Master. This time, Muyeon played a significant role.”

“What? No, no! It was just luck… hehe.”

Now that it was over, the tension drained from me, and I felt an overwhelming wave of exhaustion.

Ah, finally.

Let’s get some rest.

I don’t mind traveling, but this is too much.

After stomping on all the suspicious objects and crushing them, we climbed back up the ladder and saw a group of Outer Gods chattering among themselves.

Uh.

What should we do with them?

“Why don’t you take them with you?”

“Huh?”

“They seem to like you, seeing as they’re clinging to your shoulder. What’s the harm?”

“That’s illegal.”

I could practically see three question marks appear above White Mask’s head, but I ignored them.

It’s one thing to do something in secret, but doing it openly is a bit much.

But he had a point. If we left them here, they’d just become another hidden threat.

Better to take them now.

“Fine, I’ll collect them.”

“Hey, bottle…”

Ria pointed to a bottle rolling on the ground, and I immediately picked it up, using it to gather the Outer Gods one by one.

White Mask and Muyeon made disgusted noises as they watched.

…I wonder what they saw that made them react like that. Now I was curious.

…No, never mind.

As I collected the Outer Gods, some of them rubbed their cheeks against my hands before entering the bottle.

Are these little guys naturally affectionate?

“Nooo! They’re mine!”

…Ria clung to my neck, growling protectively at the Outer Gods.

Why are they all so possessive?

“They’re not going anywhere, calm down.”

“Huff…”

When I scratched her chin, her previously “ferocious” expression melted into one of pure bliss.

Yeah, that’s Ria.

…Let’s hurry up and get out of here.

I was so exhausted I couldn’t even enjoy how cute she was.

In Tanton’s room, with Tanton absent, a figure quietly sat, stroking the bed with a delicate hand.

Suddenly, the figure seemed to sense something, stiffening momentarily before relaxing again, as if relieved.

“…You’ve done it, Master.”

Please, take me with you…

Muttering softly, Asti rose from her seat and began walking, preparing to welcome her master back.