Liam's crows circled overhead, guiding them through Rascal Land as they maneuvered past the ghostly landscape, careful not to attract any Sinners.

The castle grounds seemed relatively safe given the situation, but they left Halo's clone, Sunday, behind just in case. It was strong and capable enough to handle any minor threats that might arise.

The weight of their situation was crushing. Death awaited them from all sides, but at least on this path they'd chosen, they could fight for their lives.

The orders were simple: protect the castle until Rascal Land itself ended. It should have been an easy assignment, considering the castle existed in the space between triad lands, technically belonging to none. But it turned out the gods had known exactly what they were doing.

The castle should have protected them as well, given they were its guardians, but that privilege was reserved for the legends alone.

Fade of Bridle, the legend who could connect with Sinners' bodies, was buried just a few miles into Rascal Land. They weren't anywhere close to the grave yet, but suddenly Liam grabbed at his eye in agony before collapsing to his knees.

"What's the problem, Liam?"

Seraph hurriedly reached out to him.

"There are some people there… and they are digging up the body. They just destroyed one of my crows."

The moment he spoke, the air grew thick with confusion.

'Some people? How?'

They had been very cautious about where they buried the body, since they didn't know what the Crawler's intentions were for searching for the body, they couldn't be careless with it. So how? Who saw them?

"I didn't see them well, but there was a girl and a man."

Liam added.

But Halo barely processed his words before leading the way. They couldn't risk losing the body, if they do, they might as well be dead.

Actually, Halo would have preferred whoever took it to just run off with the body. That way, the Crawlers would follow them instead. But since he'd realized the castle intended to kill them for removing the body from its premises, that was no longer an option.

He sprinted across the land with the others following, hardly stopping. He needed to be careful, though. Whoever came for the body knew about them, which meant they'd likely spotted his clones and still chose to arrive as just a pair.

He commanded Light and Tough to take a different path and only attack on his command. Since they were both clones, they were most likely to hide in the shadows.

They reached the graveyard quickly, and as they drew near, he skidded to a halt. The sight before him was bewildering. He stumbled, nearly losing his footing, but Liam grabbed his shoulder tightly and leaned back to help keep him upright.

Before them was Mill, the guardian of Mirror Steppe, one of the triad lands. Halo had thought the bastard's recent visit was strange and unwelcome, but how the hell did he know where they buried the body?

"You bastard…"

Halo said aggressively with a sneer.

They had already dug up the body, save for the tent Halo built to prevent anything from making contact with the body.

Mill shot Halo a cocky smile and struck an elegant pose. For the first time since they'd met, Mill wore black instead of his usual white, which told Halo all he needed to know about his twisted intentions.

Next to him was a red-haired girl in a loose brown shirt with long sleeves, a red leather belt at her waist, brown arm guards, and fitted black pants designed for mobility. An axe rested lazily on her shoulder.

The aggravation from her dark eyes alone told Halo everything. Her blood was thicker than his.

"I knew it… I knew something was fishy about you from the first day we met."

Seraph said, her anger causing her body to tremble violently.

"Oh come on… I am not the bad person here."

Mill said cheerfully. He sighed.

"You kids were the ones who buried a highly valued legend's body in such filthy mud."

Halo's gaze narrowed. He ought to be furious, but he felt strangely calm. He knew the scent of malicious intent, and Mill didn't carry it. But the girl, though, her entire being seemed to radiate it, as though she'd been born from evil itself.

Still, he was going to resort to violence if Mill decided to make their lives miserable.

"I thought you didn't believe the legends about the Fade of Bridle? Why dig up his body?"

Mill gave his words a beat.

He smirked.

"Fade's body stays with me. Try to take him, and you'll regret it. Go back to your castle and mind your place."

Seraph scoffed.

"Keep talking. We've killed Crawlers that made you look harmless."

She said and assumed her stance.

Mill stood there as though he wasn't affected by Seraphim's threats. He gestured toward the girl beside him.

"Do you remember the tenth member of the Vile of Hawks, Halo? I told you about her. Well, this is that powerhouse herself."

Halo gave him a lazy look in response. She'd supposedly massacred an entire castle single-handedly, and Halo had no trouble believing it. Her presence alone told him everything he needed to know.

Even so, he was certain they could beat her handily. Light and Tough were already positioned in the shadows, and his own group was far from helpless. And if nothing went their way, he could always call on Sunday.

But he still had many questions to ask. He knew best to keep them subtle. He didn't want to burn out Seraph's rage.

"You wanted the body, didn't you? Then why not come to us? You clearly know how it draws the Crawlers, that knowledge could've been our advantage. So tell me, why take such an inelegant route? It doesn't fit your style."

Mill stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter alongside the girl.

"Naive… you still think the world listens to kindness, don't you? This place chews people like you alive."

Halo exhaled deeply.

He still couldn't sense any dangerous intentions from Mill, perhaps there was some misunderstanding. But he wasn't going to be stupid, their lives depended on securing that body.

"You give me no choice, Mill…"

He called forth his daggers and ordered Tough and Light to step out.

Mill's expression showed confusion. The girl, on the other hand, looked thrilled.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.