A strike sent Halo slamming into the ground. He forced himself to his feet. Another one landed before he could take a breath, repeating the motion.

After forcing his body to level up with Beelzebub despite not being ready, his body was locked in a dull state. He couldn't think even if he wanted to. It was like being asleep while standing.

Each strike the giant vine-like creature landed not only left him fractured but also gradually dragged him back to reality through the pain.

It was subtle, but his body knew best even when his mind couldn't.

After nearly a dozen strikes from those gigantic arms, Halo finally regained consciousness. His legs trembled worse than before, his head spinning as though someone was jabbing it with needles.

"You've got this, Halo."

He muttered through his agony and gripped his daggers tightly.

'Beelzebub.' He called.

In that instant, dark flames covered more than half of his daggers, unlike before when only the tips burned.

A wicked grin played on Halo's lips. His limbs tried to draw him back and lock him in place, but he moved before he could even register the agony.

He might have been moving on adrenaline, but his body felt light as a feather. Maybe because he was already a walking corpse.

He swiftly avoided most of the creature's attacks, his eyes locked on the giant's limbs. After letting its attacks pass, Halo's blade tore aggressively through the creature's vines, leaving Beelzebub to fill every inch of it.

For the first time, he saw the creature let out an aggressive growl. But it was too late. Its anger couldn't match the Shadow of Death's response.

Halo left a handful of cuts on the vine creature every opportunity he got. The bastard wanted to make his work harder, but the giant just couldn't keep up.

Soon enough, Halo stood alone, panting heavily as the giant's body slowly crumbled into midnight dust.

Halo tilted his head upward. He wanted to scream, relief and dread both, but even his voice betrayed him. Caught between frustration and triumph. Maybe loneliness too.

What he killed was nothing but an imitation. He'd fought one of the actual Sinners not long ago, and if any of those things came after him again, he wasn't sure he could handle them.

Worse, he stood in a forest, and every tree around had a Sinner, maybe Sinners, under it. He couldn't have asked for a better hell.

But he still needed to get out of here, and he'd head where they least expected him to: the center of the forest. Maybe that place could get him out, help him finally find his crew.

***

The entire forest looked like where he'd been staying all this time. He thought he'd die before finding a place to rest, but then he spotted something familiar—a root above the ground, far from the infestation of vines.

He rested on it and slept for a while. When he finally woke, he couldn't stop thinking of Delilah.

Halo's life was bound to be terrible. After all, that was how it had always been, even in his past life. But Delilah, she could actually fight against it…

"What am I saying?"

Actually, he wanted to fight against it. He'd never had a reason to go to such lengths for anyone else. Even when he had, his own interests were what really mattered, except for a few people.

This was supposed to be hell, yet he'd met both of them here. Delilah and Saint.

It could be argued that he shared a deeper connection with Saint because she was a part of him, but Delilah was different.

They didn't even know each other for long. Yet when she called him brother, though never to his face, it was enough to encourage him.

What if…?

"Hmph… what if?"

What if he'd always needed this kind of companionship too, but never had the opportunity to find it?

Now he had more reason to believe this was what he wanted to do. This could be at least one good thing.

"A sister, huh? Funny… it might not be bad."

Sister or not, at the moment, Halo was lost. It had been many nights since he'd arrived here, and their ship sailed without pause. The likelihood of him getting back was slimmer than a thread.

Unless he threaded carefully, he might miss it. He wouldn't even get the chance to see her again.

"What if she's having a fun time? Like that's possible."

He clenched his fist as they trembled.

Only the heavens could answer that, but he had his assumptions. With her True Ability, Broken Mind, they probably had a person who could nullify abilities just so she could be tortured. Stretched, burnt, and roasted.

If that ever happened, Halo would make all of them pay. He'd lost a good ally, Iris, and he wasn't willing to lose another in a world where such people were hard to come by.

If it happened, he'd start with Holly, the thirteen-year-old Hybrid who'd shown him what being pathetic truly meant.

Then whoever captured Delilah would be next. That bastard with the glasses. He'd make him see through the back of his skull. Then it would spread to everyone who'd contributed to her death. He might not be that strong yet, but he'd build an army if that's what it took.

"If she were my real sister, wouldn't I have gone further? Or is this already the worst I'm capable of?"

But all of it was nothing but dreams. A lost, delusional child with bruises and broken ribs who couldn't do anything but dream in his dire situation.

But one thing was certain: Delilah was becoming more of a sister to him than he'd ever known.

Urgent matters pressed. He was surrounded by countless creatures that lived beneath trees, and even though he wanted to, he knew he was far from getting to anything beneficial in the middle of the forest.

Was he even in the middle of it?

Huuu

"I wish I had wings."

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