1.
Right after Peter took charge of Sylas.
Nahan immediately moved to the newly established hideout of the <Black Wolf> Mercenary Corps, as reported.
The first to greet him were Luna and Han-Ryang, who had been on guard in the shadows.
“Oh? Captain?”
“You’ve returned already—?”
As the two approached, Nahan raised a hand to stop them and spoke.
“Talk later. Call Lactea.”
“Yes! Captain!”
“……Understood.”
Unlike Luna, who turned swiftly, Han-Ryang turned back with a faint sense of unease.
After hesitating briefly, he muttered toward Reina, who was carried on Nahan’s back.
“I apologize for the misunderstanding—.”
“…? What are you talking about?”
“…Calling the Vice-Captain—.”
Turning his back on a puzzled Reina, Han-Ryang disappeared. Moments later, Lactea appeared and bowed her head.
“You called for me, Captain.”
With that same beautiful, languid smile, Nahan turned his gaze away and responded.
“The plan went awry. We need to move to the Gardner County right now.”
The teleportation seen previously.
Among the members, only Lactea and Kassler were capable of such movement, which was why he had sought out Lactea. Still, she asked curiously:
“Why me instead of Kassler…?”
With pure curiosity in her voice, Nahan answered without hesitation.
“I just thought of you first.”
“…!”
Though it was actually part of a setup to resolve the misunderstanding with Reina, Lactea, unaware of this, shyly smiled and took Nahan’s hand.
“…I’m glad.”
The usual quiet pressure in her demeanor was gone, replaced by a genuinely happy expression. Nahan, slightly flustered, tried to change the subject.
“Uh, anyway… Peter is currently in battle with an Eclipse elder, so it’s urgent.”
“Yes, Captain.”
Gently letting go of Nahan’s hand, Lactea began casting a spell and asked.
“What destination shall I set?”
“The destination is…”
Nahan brought his lips close to her ear and whispered softly.
“…Are you serious?”
“No matter how I think about it, that’s the best place to entrust the Empress.”
“…Lately, I really don’t understand you, Captain… but I’ll comply.”
Lactea entered the destination while Luna and Han-Ryang cheerfully waved.
‘I’ll explain the situation quickly, entrust the Empress, and return to help Peter.’
Now that the members believed Peter had turned his back on <Black Wolf>, Nahan was the only one who could help him.
“…Captain, we’re departing.”
“I’m counting on you.”
Wrapped in a platinum magic circle, Nahan waved to the members who had come to see him off.
.
.
.
“Come to think of it, where’s Yuria?”
“Ah… she’s asleep.”
“Asleep?”
“She should wake up. …Probably.”
“…Lactea?”
After a short chat (?), the group arrived at—
“…Who are you?”
“Black Wolf.”
“…You won’t leave even if I ask, will you?”
“Smart girl.”
—The villa where Hestia, the flower of the Gardner family, resided.
“Haa… Let me ask, you’re not here to kidnap someone again, are you?”
“Of course not. This time, I brought her.”
“…Huh?”
Nahan gently lowered Reina from his shoulder and glanced between the two women.
“Reina, meet Hestia.”
“It’s been a while, brilliant strategist of the 1st Legion.”
“Hestia, meet Reina.”
“Eh, e-e-eh? Ehh?”
It was a welcome reunion.
2.
A deserted abandoned factory in the back alleys.
Through the rusted and crumbling roof, faint moonlight shone down on two men.
The first to speak was the 3rd Elder of <Eclipse>—the Calamity of Silent Silence, Sylas.
Fluttering a cloak that resembled but wasn’t quite the imperial sigil, he muttered in a low voice.
“Ria… was that her name.”
“…What?”
“That woman who searched for the demon named Peter… a monstrous woman just like the demons.”
At his scornful words, Peter’s brow furrowed sharply.
Whether he noticed or not, Sylas grasped a stake in his hand and declared.
“I came… to end our cursed connection.”
A person who does not care about the other person’s feelings and only looks at his own goal.
A man who has no regard for the other’s feelings—who looks only toward his own goal.
Known simply as one who seeks the extermination of evil spirits, that was the sole purpose of Sylas’ life.
But the same could be said for Peter.
“So it was you. The bastard from five years ago.”
“You’re not… blind, I see.”
“Shut up.”
Realizing that Sylas was the true culprit through the subtly different yet familiar emblem, Peter stepped forward and growled low.
“Explain that emblem.”
The extermination of evil spirits.
Ria’s revenge.
Both realizing that killing the other was the fastest way to achieve their goals, they walked toward the center, eyes locked.
“Evil spirits… the only explanation you deserve is death.”
“…Yeah. Sooner or later, you’ll start talking—once I start tearing you apart.”
The battle commenced.
Having already expended most of his morale in the battle with Nahan just hours before, Peter lowered his stance for close combat.
The stat boost granted by the skill—<Faith Harvest (SSS+)>—would last barely five more minutes.
‘I’ll end this before then.’
Crack!
Drawing the dagger he had picked up at the Imperial Castle, Peter charged in without hesitation.
But a steel stake flew toward him.
It was thick—he dodged it with minimal movement. Yet something felt off.
‘…It wasn’t aimed at me?’
By the time he realized it, it was already too late.
CRACK!
As the steel stake grazed his collar and struck the shadow beneath his feet—
【<Fixation (SS+)> has activated.】
【Using <Eternal Iron Stake (S+)> as a medium, evil is absolutely bound.】
He was frozen in place, as if shackled. Sylas took that chance to close the distance instantly, pressing a stake beneath Peter’s chin.
“…Die.”
THUNK!
The hammer struck.
“Guh!!”
Peter barely jerked his jaw up in time to avoid the worst of it—and in that instant, an old memory flashed through his mind.
A moment just like this.
Only, back then, the one bound by the stake hadn’t been him. It had been the woman who took him in.
Ria, who had saved Peter from Sylas, had spoken with a gentle smile.
– It’s not your fault.
And ever since then, Peter had wondered—
“So then whose fault is it?”
THUNK!
“Do you really… have time to think about that?”
The second strike aimed for his heart—darkness burst forth like a beast awakening.
【Warning.】
【Peter’s Seal is being released.】
Someone once said.
Humans are born evil.
Someone else claimed they are born good. Yet another said they are born neither, but become one or the other through how they live—and debate ensued. But Peter knew the answer in his case.
Humans…
No, people like him—
【Awakened Essence – <Evil> returns to its rightful place.】
—Were born evil.
The twisted emotion that had distorted Peter’s expression vanished in an instant, returning to nothingness.
Because of the memories of Ria.
Because of the sorrow of losing her—
Because of the pressure emanating from Sylas—
Because of emotion—
The power Peter had been wasting without even realizing it was now directed toward a single goal.
That goal was
Evil, the essence he was born holding from the very start.
A demon who took the lives of others without reason had finally opened his eyes and muttered.
“You’re annoying.”
It happened in an instant.
“…!!”
Sylas noticed the change in Peter and twisted away just in time to avoid the grasping hand. But in doing so, he lost his balance—his arm was caught.
Crack!
Peter broke it effortlessly using only brute strength, without any technique, then yanked Sylas forward and slammed his left fist toward his chin.
“Ghhk!!”
Just barely dodging like before, Sylas threw himself outside Peter’s attack range—still anchored to the stake.
Crash!
Covered in dust, Sylas pulled out an elixir from his cloak, sprayed it over his injured arm, and muttered as he waited for recovery.
“So you’re finally… showing your true colors.”
“True colors?”
Peter wondered.
Was the reason he maintained until just now the “true self,” or was it the now reawakened Evil?
But that was only a passing thought.
At this point, it didn’t matter anymore.
“Figure it out yourself.”
Peter went silent, once again searching for the best way to kill his opponent.
Was it because his sealed essence had only just awakened?
– It’s okay, Peter. It wasn’t your fault.
Ria’s voice kept echoing in his ears, but it wasn’t particularly important now.
‘If I rip out his heart and pour elixirs into the cavity, what would happen? If I just pull out the stake, I could subdue him alive. Should I try it?’
Driven by pure curiosity, Peter began searching for a way to capture him.
This was what it meant to be a demon.
Just as Peter had once faced such beings—beings who moved according to nothing but instinct, devoid of even the faintest emotion—
Now he was one of them.
Their instincts: survival or curiosity.
Whether it was an evil spirit driven by survival, or by curiosity—either one inevitably became a disaster for others.
And now, Peter was the very embodiment of both, once called the head of the evil spirits even within the cult Sylas belonged to.
“I will… kill you.”
“Go ahead and try.”
At that moment, as Sylas completed his healing and Peter—having reclaimed his evil—stood in full opposition.
【Essence – <Evil> has settled.】
What little reason remained thanks to the seal was blown away, and something took hold of Peter’s mind.
【Condition fulfilled.】
【<The Girl’s Last Words> is beginning.】
【<Ria (???)>’s final message manifests.】
Before he could even understand what was happening—
At the edge of Peter’s vision, a girl appeared, walking gently toward him and greeting him.
“[Have you been well?]”
With the faint smile Peter himself often wore, with the same black hair and black eyes as his own—
The girl was the nun who had taken him in: Ria.
Peter finally faced her. He hesitated briefly, then opened his mouth.
“Get lost.”
