There's a seclusive cave that no one other than the members of the organization knew about. A man in his suit with a black mask entered.

He saw that there's some trace of blood lay scattered on the ground as he's gotten closer to his destination. A secret door opened when he showed his face to the guard. ​​

In one nod, the four guards saluted and gave way. He asked one of them to bring him to the founders of the group and he unquestionably guided him to their master.

As he approached the room, he could hear the moan and cries of a poor boy.

'Damn, pedo. He's doing it again,' he said inside his mind.

"Master, Master Seraph is here. Sir, I'll take my leave," he lowered his head and left him behind.

'What kind of security is this? Does he even care about his master? Nevermind, I need to prioritize my mission,' he commented.

Seraph flinched when the voice of the boy disappeared. There's a sound of a crack and his nose sniffed the smell of blood.

"Seraph, please enter," the host called him, and he obediently followed.

He saw the fresh corpse of a young boy, age 12 below, on the surface. His butt was covered by his blood. His eyes turned at the lower part of the culprit, and he explicitly felt disgusted by looking at it.

"Greetings, my friend. What can I do for you?" asked the host, removing the blood from his hand with his blanket.

The host named was Arak. He's a tamer and an immortal human being. He's an old acquaintance of Seraph and the most notable assassin in the world before the fall of the Ratican Empire.

He had brown hair and a beard. From the stomach to his chest, it was covered by his hair. He had a long mustache and a feminine face.

His sky blue eyes smiled at his friend.

"There's something I want you to have," Seraph handed a letter to Arak.

Additional information, Arak was the leader of the Second Root. An interdependent collaborator of the Visigoth Cult.

"What's this, milord?" asked Arak as he got surprised after he read the content.

Seraph raised his hand and pointed his index at Arak, "A new prophecy has been added. Your presence is needed. All you have to do is finish the task without any questions. The Grandlord wants an absolute and hundred percent guarantee that the mission will be completed properly without delay."

Arak picked up the picture of the present Hermes Archnemesis.

"Are you telling me that I must kill this masked child, my liege? Oh, my gosh. This is interesting. Do we have a new version of him? How old is he?" he blushed.

Seraph chastised, "He's fucking fifteen years old, Arak."

"Oh, boy. He's no longer my type. I want fresh meat just like this little boy. He entertained me so much. My gosh, I wanted to release my stress one more time, but I accidentally cracked his neck when he resisted earlier."

"Grandlord's words are absolute. He wants you to kill him before his guardian demon joins in. I'm not interested in your hobbies, Arak. Remember, you've only gained your immortality because of his power. Don't disappoint our master." Seraph demanded.

"Sir, the letter mentioned that I must bring all of my men to attack him. We are only eight people right now. My brothers are still in the village though. Is the child that powerful to send all of us?" Arak deadpanned, waving the picture like he's bored.

Seraph folded his arms across his chest and raised one finger up.

He replied, "No, but bringing him down with numbers is advantageous. Trust me, going alone is a bad idea. The grand lord scolded me last time because I went alone to finish the job."

Seraph recalled the time he failed to kill the young Don four days ago. His limbs were still hurt because of the curse that his former colleague, Justin, gave to him. Right now, he's currently recovering from the injury.

Arak's face turned serious and he commented inside his mind while he looked at the photo, 'For real? This kid is dangerous indeed.'

"Lord Seraph, there are some enemies out there like the Verdugo clan, and our organization needs more human resources to revive the demon lord as per instruction of our master. But to be honest, I'm still trying to recover from the shame. I'm very thankful that the grand lord gives me a chance to redeem myself."

"Shame of what?" asked Seraph.

"One week ago, you asked me to send my cute little pet to murder the children of the head of the Camelia though. But I failed. Someone interfered. I'm so infuriated by the people who murdered my puppy. My gosh, whoever those people are, I'm going to kill them. The prophecy has been delayed because of that." he yapped.

Seraph nodded and commented inside his mind, 'Yes, the prophecy for the future of the village has been delayed too much. Good thing, he's mad about it. His hatred of the culprit will strengthen his resolve and willpower to kill him.'

"Then, good for you. It's Hermes and his butler did that. Not to mention, he's with the two children," sang Seraph, smiling.

"For real. OMG. This is the best day of my life. By the way, are they both girls?" he quizzed.

Seraph's eyes wrinkled and he realized that he's asking what the gender of the twins.

"One of them is a woman," Seraph answered.

Arak licked his lower lips.

"Another sacrifice. With her soul, the demon lord will be revived today! Okay, I will make sure to finish the job. I'll take down that child and bring the two in our custody," said Arak, confidently.

"I thought you only want the girl? Don't tell me ― shit. You make me sick to my stomach," rasped Avery as he turned and walked away.

"Oh, please. You're leaving because of that. How cute. Oh well, there's something I want to do for that little male lamb though. Fresh meat is a must for my dinner," he chorused.

'Fucking pedophile,' Seraph commented inside his mind.

Two guards entered the room and dragged the corpse out of the place.

Arak grinned and he raised his arm, "All hail the Grandlord!"

Meanwhile, the crew arrived at their destination. Venus commanded Mambo to look after the kids.

The Seerside forest was the most abundant and secured place for the Camelia family. Every Monday, they went here to collect the rare herbs that only the forest could offer. The mana coming from the mountains and the Great Dark Tree was the birth of all herbs to sprout here.

The location was an interesting spot for a picnic because the place resembled a large garden of flowers.

The rare herbs were the source of income for the family, and it's one of the main export of the Neue Fiona Village.

On the right side, there's a river next to it with clear and clean water. It could be a good source of water source for travelers.

The young Don sat down on the log, and he used the newspaper as his cover from the dirt. He turned his gaze at the kids who were happily picking up a lot of herbs in the garden. On the right side, the priestess who was wearing his jacket was looking at the birds hanged on the small tree.

"Slime, measure her," he commanded.

The slime eagerly responded, "Yes, master."

"Sir. Aljen, look. There's a Redpula on the tree. Look, look, so cute," Venus called him like a child found a new animal in the zoo, but he only waved his hand once as his reply. Thankfully, the priestess didn't get mad about it because she's eager to watch the birds than scolding him.

The slime took a few minutes to measure her whole body.

"Height is 145 cm, Hips size is 32 cm, Waist size is 28 cm and her Buzz size is 81 cm, sir. Fertile, healthy, and not to mention, she has a good waist for child labor. Good catch, master. I advise you to wait for her to reach her legal age," the slime congratulated him.

Hermes sput out the water from his mouth after he heard it. He coughed several times before he could recover. He closed again his tumbler to prevent another water loss.

He explicitly asked, "Why did you measure her whole body? I'm not talking about that one."

"But you ordered me to do so, master? Not specifically in full details," the slime corrected.

He badgered, "What I want you to measure is her affection rate towards me, not her sizes. Damn it, slime. Read the lines here next time."

"Aaah, so. Let's be real here." the slime joshed, "Do you want to do some nasty stuff with her, master? Man, you're really a playboy."

"Cut the crap, slime. My life is on the line. Don't ask any stupid questions. Just focus on your job. Do it," he demanded.

"Master, I don't know how to measure love affection, but I could read her pulse and heartbeat to identify it. Poets, novelists, and songwriters have described it in countless turns of phrase, but at the level of biology, love is all about chemicals.

Although the physiology of romantic love has not been extensively studied, scientists can trace the symptoms of deep attraction to their logical sources," the slime explained.

Hermes was impressed.

"Oh, really? How so?" he asked.

"Part of the whole attraction process is strongly linked to physiological arousal as a whole. Typically, that's going to start with things like increased heart rate, sweatiness, and so on," the slime added in his explanation.

The young Don rubbed his jaw and he realized that the slime had a good point.

He queried, "Slime. How can we identify if the person is in love with you through that kind of method?"

The slime went into deep thought before he responded.

"When you catch sight of your beloved and your heart starts racing, that's because of an adrenaline rush," said the slime.

"And?" Hermes raised his eyebrows.

The slime added, "Here's how it works: The brain sends signals to the adrenal gland, which secretes hormones such as adrenaline, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. They flow through the blood and cause the heart to beat faster and stronger."

The young Don had no idea what was those words, but since it eagerly explained it properly, he decided to go in the flow.

"Good. I understand it very clearly. Now, do it," he commanded.

"But, master." The slime hesitated to say it, but he heaved a sigh before he resumed, "You need to understand the risk here. The host must get closer to the target."

"Okay, fine," he jumped out from the log, and he walked his way towards the priestess.

Venus removed her hat and she used it to cover her mouth, "What do you want, Sir Aljen?"

Her eyes could easily captivate the boys but the resistance of the young Don repelled her cuteness.

"May I ask to look at your hands?" asked Hermes, calmly.

Venus blushed, and she fidgeted her fingers while holding her hat. She tilted her head on the side and she gravely looked at his mask.

'Kyaaaa!' she screamed inside.

"Huh? W, Why do you want to look at my hand? Are you planning to read my palm? Interesting. I didn't know Sir Aljen is a fortune teller now. Fufu~," she giggled.

Hermes scratched his chin and he felt embarrassed when she said it.

"Master, you need to touch her," the slime reminded.

"Ah, my bad. I'm not into that. By the way, can I hold your hand?" asked Hermes.

Venus blinked her eyes thrice before she returned to reality. She took a cough once and returned her hat on her head.

"Umm, okay. Here," she raised her hands with an emotionless face.

But the opposite was different. She's screaming in joy.

'W, What? How bold. Kyaaa, oh my gosh!' she said inside her mind.

Hermes touched her hands and he closed his eyes.

"Hmmm," her face turned red and her lips trembled. One by one, the young Don's finger touched her palm and wrist. And then, he held it so tight that it made the priestess bit her lips to stop her from excitement.

Mambo was surprised when he saw the young Don and his master were holding hands.

He commented, "How bold, Sir. Aljen. Sir Justin will be so proud."

One minute later, the priestess was almost at her limits, and after the young Don opened his eyes, he turned around and walked away without saying anything.

'Kyaaaa!' the priestess touched her cheeks and fanned herself.

"Oh, my gosh. What was that all about? Don't tell me, he's hitting on me now? Kyaaa!" she shook her right hand up and down with overwhelming joy.

"What's the status? Did I get a positive number more than 50?" asked Hermes.

"Master, negative. The heartbeat only got 10 percent. That means, she doesn't feel comfortable with you. It means, she's only thinking of you as a friend."

The young Don's eyes turned blank. His face turned blue with cold sweat.

"Fuck!" Hermes slammed the log in despair.

'So, I'm just assuming that she's into me. She's thinking that I'm just a nice guy. Fuck my life!' he screamed in pain inside his heart.

"How pity. Master got friendzone. I'm sorry," the slime chuckled.

Unbeknownst to Hermes, the priestess has the ability to control her heartbeat, and because she's surprised by his action, she certainly made sure he won't feel anything from her. She's embarrassed to show her childish act again in front of her crush, so the slime failed to read it thoroughly from the start.

Thanks to the advice of her attendants, she controlled herself from jumping in and expressed her love. She's really afraid that he would feel disappointed because of that kind of personality.

The only way for a girl like her to get his attention was to be a more intuitive, confident, and timid person. Boys like girls who were not easy to take according to Ylla's instruction.

"Master, I've detected a strong aura coming from the north," the slime said.

"Are you sure?" queried Hermes as he turned his gaze at the direction it pointed at.

The slime confirmed, "Yes, sir. They are releasing a powerful aura, an unfriendly and chaotic level. I advise for all to evacuate quickly or else."

"I know, you don't need to remind that to me. Only the silly people with overpowered abilities would dare to fight them. How long would it take for them to get in here?" asked Hermes, calmly.

"Five to six minutes, master," the slime said.

Hermes halt and called Mambo.

"Sir. Aljen, what's wrong?" Mambo inquired. "We've got some company coming from the north," Hermes said, pointing at the direction of the enemies' location.

The young Don and his crew had been surrounded by demon beasts. They were all ready to attack them all. Mambo quickly moved in the front to shield his master, the priestess held the children behind her back, and the young Don looked at the responsible for this situation.

Mambo flinched, lips flattened.

"How did you know?" asked Mambo. "You don't need to go. If you want to live and care for the lives of these people, we need to bail out right now before it's too late," Hermes deflected.

Mambo nodded and he quickly called the attention of his master and the children.

"What's wrong?" Venus inquired. "Master, I'll explain everything later. We need to get out of here."

"Mambo was right. Children, unpack your things. Don't ask any more questions. Make haste," Hermes commanded. "Copy," the children replied without hesitation.

Venus was puzzled earlier because it was too sudden, but she quickly realized that something was off.

"Sir Aljen, is there an enemy coming here?" Venus questioned as she approached the young Don with a worried face. "Honestly, there's a bad company heading this way," Hermes said.

"How can we confirm if they are bad people? Do you have a basis?" she quizzed. "You don't need to know. People like me don't want to reveal his secret," Hermes ended feebly.

Venus grabbed his sleeve and this surprised the young Don.

"W, What is it? I have to check the area right now. You need to go now," he bleated. "Sir Aljen, please let me remind you that you should be more open with people, okay. It's kinda rude for you to push away a girl like me in this situation."

"Umm, what? I'm lost. Nevermind, we have only a few minutes before those people come here. You'll be left behind by the crew. You have to go," Hermes directed. "So, what are you going to do, stay behind, and fight them to buy us some time? Please don't do anything crazy. If you want to do it, then let me join you too," she implored.

"Venus, this is not the time for acting like a hero. You're the priestess of the village. Do you even know how to fight? C'mon, Venus. Please, I'm beggin' you. Get out of here," he stressed.

'If you get caught by these people, I'm screwed. Please stop being stubborn, will ya!' Hermes begged inside his mind.

On the other hand, the priestess blushed like a young maiden got lovestruck by her knight and shining armor. Her lips retracted while looking at her crush.

'He really cares about me. What a hero. He's too stubborn to admit it in front of me that he loves me. Kyaaaa, if he wants to stay, I stay!' she determined.

"Master, Sir Aljen, this is bad," Mambo and the children returned to the garden.

"Why are you still here? Didn't I tell you to evacuate the children? You've got one job, Mambo. One job," Hermes chided.

Mambo hung his head to apologize.

"Brother, brother, there are some weird people out there," Troy kept grabbing his shirt to get his attention.

Hermes turned his gaze at the children.

"There's a guy who is looking at July with a disgusting face. He even licked his knife as she looked at me. July here is scared," she embraced his waist and pressed her head, trembling in fear.

"Oh, my gosh. The evil god is on our side. I can't believe that all of my targets are all together in one place. I'm so lucky today," the man, who was wearing a pink cloak, appeared on the branch of a tree.

The rest of his followers appeared one by one in every direction.

The man on the cloak removed his hood and his spiky blonde hair appeared. His ears pierced with earnings and his nose pierced with a large ring. His pupils trembled in excitement as he sensed the fear of everyone.

Not only that, he licked his lips after he spotted the little boy near Hermes. Troy shivered and felt cold thereof.

'Ah, a pedophile.' - Hermes commented after he realized that he's aiming for the twins.

"Who are you?" he demanded. "Good grief," he blinked in one eye while looking at him directly, "Haler, I'm Arak. The founder of the Second Root. The sole provider of true followers of our greatest creator. One of the best independent agencies of the Visigoth cult," he said, Arak the Immortal Great Tamer of the former Ratican Empire and the loyal subordinate of the Grandlord of the Visigoth cult.

'Visigoth cult again?' Hermes said inside his mind, lips turned up in disgust.

"Oi, pedo. Can we skip the introduction here? Tell me, what do you want from us?"

Arak was disappointed and annoyed, his eyes and lips flattened.

"Sure, young man. Or should I call you a child? Haler, figures. What I want from your group is none other than you," he pointed his index at the young Don.

He pulled out his gun from his bag and pointed it directly at the leader.

"I get it. You're aiming for me. Leave the kids, this black useless guy, and this woman alone. Fight me instead," Hermes challenged.

"No, I told you. I will fight with you!" Venus insisted. "Me too, sir." Mambo followed.

The twins nodded once and agreed to join together to fight the bandits.

"Oh, what a bold group. Hey, lady. I know it's kinda rude to ask, but why are you wearing a summer outfit. It's winter though. Anyhow, I like your dress and jacket, baby. Where did you buy such a thing?" Arak joshed, placing her a hand on his waist and pointing his index at her dress.

"It's a gift from my father at Romue. I was planning to show it to my crush!" she answered

"Oi, don't answer him," Hermes chided. "I'm sorry, but this man likes my dress though," she apologized.

"Hmmm, " Arak tapped his index at his chin while looking at the design of her dress. "From where exactly? Haler, can you still remember the name of the district?" he asked.

"No idea. Maybe you can find it somewhere in the east? Wait, aren't we skipping something here?" puzzled Venus as she contemplated the situation. "Ah, yes, I forgot to ask the right direction," Arak said.

"Right, there is a nearby store and the street there has a lot of cute things to offer," she seconded. "I said don't answer him," Hermes hit her. "I'm sorry," she pouted, holding the part she got hit.

"Lady, we still have time for that. I could kill you any minute now. But I'm interested in the design of your dress. Can you remove your jacket, please? It hinders your beauty. Haler, your outfit is so fabulous. S-u-p-e-r-b," he wrote the letters on the air, "Superb and marvelous. The designer needs a raise," he declared as he hit his ass once.

"Oh, really? Thank you. But it's cold," she said.

"Umm, master, this is not the right time for jokes," Mambo reminded. "He's right," Hermes seconded.

"Wait, please. This is my forty-fourth time to have a chat with a fellow fashionista. Kyaa, I love talking with them. Sir Aljen, this is an important discussion. He's very knowledgeable about fashion. Don't worry, we'll kill him after I got what I want," she declared.

"Master, we should escape than fighting them all at once," Mambo placed a hand on his head and heaved a sigh.

The twins blinked their eyes twice while looking at the excited priestess.

"Sis Venus is pastanista? She's weird," Troy commented.

"July here is interested too," she declared, raising her hand and embraced the waist of the priestess.

"Eh, you too?" Troy shocked with a gaping jaw.

"Brother, please shut your mouth. This is a girl's issue," she said, making her brother stunned.

He ran behind the young Don, crying.

"B, Brother Aljen, help me," he begged like a crying puppy.

"Troy, I don't think I could help you with that. Girl's brains are hard to understand at all," Hermes sighed, petting the head of the crying child.

"Sir, I mean, Ma'am, should we kill them now, " the second in command asked.

He shook his head and he dropped down on the ground.

"Nobody moves in their position. I'm going to have a little chat with a fellow fashionista. Anyone who dares to disobey my orders will be killed by me, so don't even dare to do anything without my signal, okay," he said.

All of his subordinates got worried and pulled down their weapons.

"Lady, you need to put on some makeup. Damn, you're not even wearing perfume? Are you perhaps a newbie in this kind of concept? Boys won't look after you, dear," he protested. "Oh, really? No wonder he's not interested," she pouted, lips turned down.

"Anyways, your dress is cute and adorable. You could be a model, sister," he complimented, pointing his index at her face.

"Oh my gosh. Thank you. Everyone says those words for me," she beamed.

Arak noticed the little girl, approaching from his side.

"You little one, I'm not interested in you so back off," he jeered, raising a hand onward to stop her from joining in.

"Eeeh?" July's eyes trembled, lips turned down.

Arak placed a hand on his forehead and heaved a sigh.

"Call your brother then, I'll give it a shot," he said.

"Really? Brother Troy, come here," she called him.

"Oi, don't get too carried away!" Hermes chided.

He quickly hid the little boy behind his back.

"Don't be shy, Troy. He's not going to harm you, I think," Venus pleaded.

"Master, be careful. Don't to get carried away."

"Oi, shut the fuck up, black guy," Arak gibed.

All of his subordinates laughed and mocked him from the side.

Mambo got insulted, lips sucked in. Hands clenched tightly.

Hermes tapped his shoulder to comfort him. Then, he came up with a plan after he realized it.

His lips turned up. Grinning.

"Mambo, take the children from the side and escape. The Priestess is trying to buy us some time to run. I'll make sure to keep her safe, so go now. Call for help once you leave the forest," he murmured in his ears that only the two of them could hear.

Mambo agreed without saying a word.

"July, come here," Hermes called.

The little girl came closer and, "What is it, brother?" she asked. The young Don knelt down and closed his distance to the child, "Run as fast as you can, okay," he said.

The little girl nodded and she understood it.

"Mambo," Hermes called the black guy. "Yes, sir?" he asked. "Protect the kids. Don't let anyone caught, understand?" he said. "Affirmative, you can count on me," Mambo placed a hand on his chest and nodded.