The knight who had attempted to cut Gamma down lay in a pool of his own blood, his own sword rammed through his throat. Another knight stepped forward, gripping his blade tightly, fear and determination flickering in his eyes.

  Gamma didn’t move.

  His body acted on pure instinct, honed from years of war. He didn’t even bother dodging as the knight swung at him. The sword slammed into his armor with a metallic clang—not a dent, not a scratch.

  Gamma grabbed the knight’s wrist, crushing bone beneath his fingers. A scream tore from the man’s throat, but it was cut short as Gamma drove his fist into his neck. The knight crumpled like a puppet with its strings cut, his windpipe crushed.

  More rushed in.

  Gamma didn’t hesitate.

  A backhand to the ribs shattered a knight’s chest plate—his lungs collapsed instantly. Another lunged with a spear, only for Gamma to sidestep, grab the shaft, and drive it through the attacker’s own gut. Blood splattered the stone floor.

  One tried to retreat. Gamma closed the distance in a heartbeat, grabbed him by the back of the head, and slammed his face into the castle wall. Bone cracked, and the knight slumped lifelessly to the ground.

  In mere seconds, six men lay dead. Their once noble armor drenched in their own blood.

  Gamma exhaled. No challenge.

  As he descended the castle corridors, a robed figure stepped forward from the shadows. A wizard.

  A glowing magic circle formed beneath his feet. Ancient runes shimmered in the air as a sphere of flames gathered in his palm.

  "Ignis Flamma!"

  A fireball burst forth, roaring through the air, scorching everything in its path.

  Gamma’s armor registered the rising temperature—200 degrees Celsius. Not enough.

  The fireball struck. Smoke and cinders filled the hall. The wizard smirked—until the smoke cleared.

  Gamma still stood. Unmoved. The armor’s heat-resistant plating absorbed the flames like a sunbaked rock.

  The wizard’s smirk vanished.

  Gamma took a step forward.

  Another spell—"Ignis Lancia!" A flaming spear shot toward him.

  Gamma raised his gauntleted hand. The spear of fire struck, dispersing into harmless embers.

  The wizard’s confidence crumbled into sheer terror. He turned to run.

  Too late.

  Gamma was already upon him.

  One powerful swipe—his talon-like gauntlet tore through flesh. The wizard’s head detached from his body, rolling across the stone floor. Blood gushed like a fountain.

  Gamma stepped over the corpse and kept moving.

  As he reached the castle’s outer gate, a group of archers took aim from the walls. Crossbows loaded. Bows drawn.

  And in front of them stood a knight in glowing armor. A paladin.

  "Devil!" the knight spat, stepping forward, gripping his enchanted sword. "How dare you defile this holy ground?"

  Gamma sighed. "Oh, shut the fuck up."

  The knight’s eyes flared with rage. "Ars Incendia!"

  Flames burst to life along the paladin’s sword. His body blurred—his movement speed enhanced by magic.

  Gamma barely acknowledged it.

  The knight lunged at inhuman speed, flames trailing behind his blade. But before the burning steel could reach him—

  Gamma raised his pistol.

  BANG.

  A single shot.

  A hot laser pierced through the paladin’s skull.

  The knight collapsed, the fire on his sword extinguished as his lifeless body hit the ground.

  The remaining soldiers atop the towers loosed their arrows. Some were enhanced with magic—fire, lightning, wind, even water-infused projectiles.

  Gamma didn’t care.

  He ran. Not away—but toward them.

  His gauntleted fingers dug into the stone wall. The servo-motors in his armor activated, boosting his strength. He scaled the wall like a beast.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Panic spread through the archers.

  "Where—where did he go!?"

  One turned—only to find Gamma right behind him.

  His visor glowed blood-red.

  The archer screamed—his cry cut short as Gamma’s talons tore through his throat.

  The other archers fired wildly, but Gamma vanished into the shadows.

  One by one, he hunted them down.

  Bodies fell from the towers. Blood painted the stone parapets.

  Not a single archer survived.

  Gamma made his way back inside. He knelt beside Gia’s cold, lifeless body, brushing his fingers against the worn metal of her dog tag.

  "I'll take you home, Gia."

  He reached to his wrist and activated his flame module. A tool meant for survival—but now, it served a different purpose.

  Fire engulfed Gia’s body.

  He watched as the flames consumed her, turning flesh to ash. When nothing remained but embers, he collected her ashes into a small metal canister. He attached it to his belt.

  She would not be left in this godforsaken place.

  She was going home.

  Gamma walked down to the castle’s lowest floor.

  There—barrels upon barrels of alcohol.

  Explosives disguised as liquor.

  He raised his pistol. Aimed.

  Pulled the trigger.

  The shot ignited the liquid instantly—fire erupted through the castle corridors.

  Walls cracked. Ceilings collapsed.

  As he stepped out through the main gate, the entire castle exploded behind him.

  Flames reached into the night sky.

  The screams of the last surviving soldiers died in the inferno.

  Gamma didn’t look back.

  Only one thing mattered now.

  Find Hiro.

  Find the traitors.

  Burn them all.

  The castle was a graveyard of flames and smoldering ruins. The once-mighty walls now lay in heaps of blackened rubble, smoke curling into the morning sky like the breath of a dying beast.

  Rie’s heart pounded.

  Who… who could have done this?

  The answer stood at the castle gates.

  A lone figure, clad in midnight-black armor, kneeling among the dead.

  A monstrous black sword was planted in the ground beside him, its surface slick with blood. Scattered around him lay the remains of fallen knights, some burned beyond recognition, others torn apart by what could only be described as inhuman force.

  The demon captain approached cautiously, resting a gauntleted hand on the hilt of his weapon.

  "Are you the one who did this?"

  The black knight slowly lifted his head.

  When he spoke, his voice was calm.

  Cold.

  "Get the fuck off if you want to live."

  The captain hesitated. That voice…

  Rie’s breath caught in her throat. Gamma?

  The demon captain’s grip tightened on his sword. "Are you their ally?"

  Gamma snorted, standing to his full height. The black armor glinted menacingly in the dawn light.

  "No. But I will tell you this—" He get up and clean his pauldron, he spoke his next words with absolute certainty.

  "My name is Gamma. Marshal from Hell’s Third Company. I have come to this world to hunt the angels."

  The air grew deathly still.

  A ripple of shock coursed through the Demon Army.

  A marshal. From Hell’s Army.

  Rie’s blood turned to ice.

  She had thought Gamma was just some lost warrior from a distant land.

  But now…

  Now she didn’t know what he was.

  The captain of the demon knights straightened. “A high-ranking devil…?”

  He took a cautious step forward. "Can you prove your claim?"

  Gamma clicked open his pistol’s magazine, replacing the standard energy cell with an explosive round. He lifted the gun and aimed it at a half-collapsed wall.

  The shot rang out.

  BOOM.

  The wall shattered into a cloud of debris, the sheer force sending chunks of stone hurtling through the air.

  Silence.

  The demon soldiers stared in awe.

  A single being had wiped out an entire castle overnight.

  A high devil had descended to help them.

  Gamma lowered his pistol. "Do you trust me now?"

  One by one, the demons fell to their knees. Some bowed their heads, others looked on in sheer disbelief.

  The captain himself placed a fist over his chest. "We will take you to our queen."

  Gamma nodded, satisfied.

  But before they could move—

  "Gamma!!"

  A blur of movement.

  Rie ran to him, her arms wrapping tightly around his waist.

  Her body trembled against his armor, her grip desperate.

  "Why did you leave me alone?!"

  She was shaking. Her voice cracked as she buried her face against his chest plate.

  She had been so scared.

  So afraid that he had left her.

  Gamma stiffened for a brief second before softly ruffling her hair.

  "Sorry, kid. I had a duty to fulfill."

  His words were gruff, but his touch was gentle.

  The demon captain frowned. "My Lord… who is this oni girl, and why does she embrace you?"

  Gamma let out a sigh, placing a firm hand on Rie’s back.

  "She’s my sister."

  Rie’s breath hitched. She pulled back slightly, looking up at him in shock.

  Gamma met her gaze.

  "I took her in. I adopted her. That means wherever I go—she goes."

  Rie’s lips trembled.

  She had always been alone. Always.

  And yet, Gamma had just given her a place beside him.

  The demon captain nodded. "Understood, my Lord. We will escort you both to our queen immediately."

  Rie tightened her grip on his cloak.

  She didn’t understand what was happening.

  She didn’t know why Gamma had suddenly declared himself a Marshal of Hell.

  But one thing was certain—

  No matter where he went, she would follow.

  Even if it meant stepping into Hell itself.

  As the demon army moved, the soldiers whispered amongst themselves.

  "A devil from Hell itself…"

  "A warrior strong enough to bring ruin to a castle…"

  "And now, a war against the angels…"

  The world would soon come to know the name Gamma.

  For he was no longer just a wandering knight.

  He was the Black Marshal.

  And his war was only just beginning.