As soon as John from the Ancient Federation was killed in front of everyone, his guardian appeared in the VIP box. He was glaring at Lucy, barely able to contain his aura.

"I demand an answer!" He shouted, alarming the stupefied crowd, which already stopped cheering and was now focusing on him.

​​

Dan, the Overgod guarding Isadore Malfront, as well as Amidel and Gutcha all appeared around Paul, giving him threatening glares.

Arthur stayed behind to make an announcement, which echoed throughout the plateau merely seconds later.

"John from the Ancient Federation Team has been caught cheating and breaking the competition rules. Not only did he fake his age, he also used a puppet to win the Third Trial."

Still standing in-between the Demon girls and Ho Qing, Arthur's voice paused for a second, his bone-chilling gaze falling on Cosima and Marjory for a couple of breaths.

"I will tolerate any attempt to assassinate any of the participants. This is a friendly competition and killing blows are strictly prohibited, especially if the opponent is already incapaciated. Let it be known that anyone who dares to disturb the flow of this competition will be dealt with appropriately. I believe John was a clear demonstration of how much I value the rules."

"This is preposterous! Do you even know what you did?!"

Paul seemed even angrier after listening to Arthur's brief speech.

"I advise you to calm down."

Lucy stood up from her seat and stared back at the man, a frosty aura emanating from her hands and enveloping the VIP box.

"Calm down? You just murdered one of the participants without a proper investigation! As the federation's delegate, I won't stand for this!"

"And what are you going to do about it?"

Arthur appeared next to Lucy, his eyes dangerously narrowed as he glared at Paul.

"John broke the rules and cheated. He was about to kill one of the participants. His punishment was as severe as his crimes."

"You're not the one who decides that."

Paul was gritting his teeth and controlling his aura, trying not to attack. He knew that it was a losing battle… there's no way he'll make it out of here alive if he acts rashly and attacks first. Even if it was just Lucy, she's more than capable of killing him and Paul was more than aware of that. Nevertheless, he couldn't bear such a massive loss of face, especially as the only delegate dispatched by the federation. John was an important member of the Ancient Federation young generation and coming back without him will cause repercussions that he could not handle.

At the very least, he'll be punished and sacked immediately after. The worst case is the guillotine, quite literally. Honestly, he didn't expect John to act like that and try to inflict fatal harm on one of the participants. That's not what they agreed upon. In fact, ever since his secretive meeting with Arthur, John had been behaving strangely.

"You won't be able to get out of this, Arthur MoonStar."

"We'll see about that."

Arthur waved his hand dismissively at Paul then turned around and sat down.

"Why are you shivering, your Majesty?"

Once Paul of Irfondor left, Arthur chuckled and asked the young king.

"A-ah… it's nothing."

Isadore didn't want to say that it's due to Lucy's aura, which was bone-chilling. She released it to frighten Paul but it affected him more, even with Dan's protection.

"Here, a token of my appreciation for your help."

Arthur did a simple gesture which caused a wave of warmth to wash over Isadore.

"Don't mention it. We're friends, are we not?"

"More like allies." Corrected Arthur while shrugging his shoulders.

"Isn't it the same?" Added Isadore while beaming at the Parasite.

"Let's take another route."

Marjory helped Cosima up, the two slowly backing away while warily looking at the motionless Ho Qing.

The red-haired youth remained like that for an indeterminate amount of time, trying to recover some Nether Energy and reflect on his unsaid mistakes. Although he managed to fend off the Demon Team, he ended up getting separated from his Team, which complicated the situation.

Gutcha clearly said that there were twelve points to find so only one person will be disqualified. However, now that John is dead, it's possible for everyone to pass the Sixth Trial, which was actually a bonus trial meant to decrease the number of the participants.

…

"This is it, right?"

Bora tentatively approached a glowing blob of light, circled around it before asking Rosea and Ardor.

"It must be." Rosea kept looking to her rear, afraid that they would get ambushed.

"Who should take it?"

"I can continue." Said the girl with determination.

"I can too."-Ardor

The two looked at the tanned youth, who scratched his head then shook it.

"I can still fight too."

"You stay here and wait for a bit then. If someone appears then take it."

Bora agreed with Rosea's proposition and stood guard very close to the floating blob of light.

****

Ten days after their departure, Midolf, Radolf, Edward and Sonia have finally reached the Ramel Kingdom. They directly headed toward the mysterious pit.

"Where the fuck is it?"

Midolf stomped the ground as he looked around, spotting nothing but mountains of sand.

"It should have been here. Maybe it disappeared."

Edward grabbed his orange scissors made of plastic and started cutting the air, trying to discover something. Only Sonia remained calm and aboard the Spirit Boat, surveying the vicinity with interest and fascination.

"We should report back."

Radolf scouted the area and came back an hour later, ordering them all back on the boat. Since the pit is gone, they had nothing else to do here, much to Midolf and Edward's elation. Both of them did not like the climate and the never-ending masses of golden sand. Sonia, on the other hand, showcased a lot of interest in the history of the Ramel Kingdom and secretly wanted to visit the capital. Unfortunately, it wasn't the right time for that so she ended up keeping her mouth shut and her thoughts to herself.

***

"What are you writing?"

Timos was pacing around and seemingly deep in thought, however, he suddenly stopped and glanced at the youth that has been accompanying him for a period of time now.

Vyncent raised his head and put down his pent.

"All my experiences so far."

"Don't they say that the unforgettable experiences stick around even if you don't write them?" The Creation God cackled like a lunatic and kept pacing around, but Vyncent merely snorted and continued writing.

A bit later, Timos stopped again and asked.

"What are your theories about this place?"

He gestured with the desolate land surrounding them, the grey and gloomy canopy, and the blood-red ground, made from crumbled ruins and lot… absurdly lots of blood.

"I think the pit was a crack or a hole in the fabric of reality… that's why it keeps transporting us to different times and places. Is my theory correct?"

"If I knew I wouldn't be asking you. But what you said does hold some truth… I wonder if in the future or the past."

"For a Creation God, I thought you'd be able to handle yourself." Scoffed the bearded youth, continuing his unceasing scribbling.

Timos spread his hands and shrugged nonchalantly.

"This is out of my hands. There are things that not even Creation God can control."

"So we'll be stuck here forever."

"Hopefully not."

Timos folded his hands and focused his gaze on a half-black half-white Crow circling in the air before flying closer to them.

"No need to panic." He chuckled as Vyncent abruptly stood up and was about to attack.

"It's time you showed up, Bilgart."