At first, there was only the sound.

The crunch of snow and stone being displaced above, slow but ominous. Felix's pupils constricted, and he cautiously took a step back, his eyes locked onto the dark summit of the hill.

Through the thick veil of snow and wind, a silhouette slowly began to form.

This entity moved slowly, unnaturally, as though time itself seemed to have come to a standstill around each of its steps.

A gaunt, elongated limb extended first. It was impossibly long, jointed wrong, and ended with bony claws that scraped against the cliffside.

Then another. And another. Four arms in total moved with dreadful coordination that sent shivers down Felix's spine. The aura that the creature was radiating… was suffocating.

The creature's body was wrapped in filthy white fur, clinging to its skeletal frame. Snow clung to its body as though the blizzard bowed to it, wrapping it in a veil of frost. Bit by bit, the rest of the creature emerged from the darkness.

Finally, its head came into view.

Two long, white horns jutted from its skull, spiraling backwards like an ancient crown made of roots. Its face was pale and hairless, smooth like unblemished porcelain.

And its eyes… if they could even be called that… were sewn shut with thick, black cords. The stitches crossed cruelly over the sockets, as though something terrible lurked behind them, never meant to be seen.

Who had sewn the creature's eyes? Was it self-imposed? Or had someone else done it? Had the creature seen something it shouldn't have? Or was there something residing in its eyes that needed to be hidden?

Countless questions assaulted Felix's mind, driving his already fragile mind into a state of chaos. Though the entity's eyes were sewn shut, he had this vague feeling that it was looking right at him.

The creature didn't speak. It didn't roar. It simply kept coming. Slow and inevitable, like a nightmare given form. The closer it drew, the heavier the air became. The blizzard quieted. The world seemed to retreat, leaving Felix alone on the rocky pathway, with the thing descending upon him.

It was just Felix, the four-armed creature… and Adam.

The raven-haired youth stood several dozen meters away, his back resting against the face of the jagged cliff. His eyes shone with a blinding holy light.

As the two lotus patterns ignited with brilliance, the illusion spell he had cast on himself was strengthened incomparably. It was so potent that it had even fooled the senses of the Mana Core Magus, Felix!

Not only had Adam concealed his appearance, smell, or sound, he even weaved an elaborate illusion to make it seem that the chain Felix was holding was broken. Even the sensation the cultist felt was completely false.

Yet, Adam couldn't help but furiously curse under his breath.

Why has this bastard still not cancelled that spell?! Damn it all!

His plan had, once again, been simple in theory. He wanted to arrive at this island and instantly disappear, making Felix think that the chain had been broken and that he had returned to the material world.

Adam had hoped for the cultist to then cancel the chain spell in a moment of anguish so that he could actually return to the material world. But Felix seemed to have completely forgotten about cancelling his damned spell!

Had the realization of getting lost in the spirit world, unable to return to the material world, struck him so hard that he forgot to cancel his spell? A Rank 4 Spell that consumed a lot of mana, no less.

What the hell is he thinking?!

Adam gritted his teeth in utmost grievance.

And to make matters worse, the island he had chosen to land on turned out to be the territory of a hidden existence. And now that entity had made its presence known. Moreover, the aura it was radiating was no weaker than Felix's!

Worse still, Adam did not know if his illusion would really work before the eyes—sewn or not—of this four-armed creature. The creatures of the spirit world were mysterious to the bone, just like the plane they inhabited. Who knew if this four-armed creature could really see through Adam's illusion?

And to make matters even worse, the constant usage of the Eternal Soul Lotus was putting a heavy strain on Adam's eyes. He didn't know how long he would be able to sustain the illusion.

At least, for now, it did not seem like the four-armed creature had spotted him. Because as soon as its feet touched the rocky pathway, it lunged at Felix. A brutal battle began between the two Mana Core-level existences, and Adam was stuck right in the middle.

Cancel the spell, damn it! Are you bloody stupid?!

The youth felt like crying. He had to cling to the thick chain wrapped around his neck, staying constantly near Felix—and the monster. If he strayed too far, the chain would tighten, tugging at the cultist and revealing the truth… that it never truly had been broken. That it was all part of an elaborate scheme.

Then, there was the most concerning matter, heavily pressing down on Adam.

The flow of time!

He feared that by the time he returned to Ravenfell—if he managed to return at all—the battle would have already been over. Worse still, several years might have passed in the material world.

No matter how he looked at it… things possibly couldn't get any worse.

Adam gritted his teeth, his eyes flickering with dark, ominous intentions. He clasped the chain around his neck, suddenly thinking of a possibility.

Could it be that this man thinks I haven't truly left? And that the broken chain… is an illusion? Why else would he keep the spell activated despite fighting against a creature with similar strength?

He's an expert from the Cult, so he should have sufficient intel on me and my capabilities...

The more he thought about it, the more it started to make sense.

Felix was, in fact, holding onto the faintest chance that Adam had not left, and that he was still on this cursed hill, waiting for the most opportune moment.

In that instant, Adam felt his mind clear a little.

Of course, he thought.

What was I even thinking? How can a Mana Core Magus be so stupid?

Right then, he came to a decision. A drastic decision.

The lotus patterns etched on his pupils glowed brilliantly for a brief moment, then dimmed. Immediately after, his presence was made known to the other two.

Instantly, Felix and the four-armed creature turned their attention towards him. The former looked at him with unrestrained joy and affirmation, while the latter gazed at him with blazing hostility.

"I knew it!" Felix had never been so happy to see another person.

He quickly drew some distance from the monster and drew closer to Adam. But under his dumbfounded stare, Adam was inching closer to the monster!

"W-where are you—"

"Wish to return home?" Adam's lips curled into a taunting grin. "Then help me kill this beast first!"

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