Several months earlier, in a humalemehe borders of Sunless Cradle, it was raining back then; the sound of droplets p on the roofs produced a tinuous series of plinks.

  Dowreet, where people were scarce, a man soaked in the rain halted on his steps. He was wearing a long bck suit, and a hood covered his facial features. Two bdes were strapped on both of his legs, and a casket earring dangled on his right ear.

  He began to look around the area as if searg for something. There was this peculiar light ing from his left eye.

  'There's nothing simir in here,' he thought upon seeing several digits written in blue and bck.

  Then he looked above himself and stared at the number zero floating on his head. Its hue was a mixture of red and bck. Its shade had no crete pattern, more like an abstract.

  However, this odd set of colors left a deep puzzle in the young man's mind. Since having the ability to see anything or anyone's growth, he saw no other shades aside from blue and bck, but he always believed that there were more colors thawo, and he was not mistaken.

  After disc it by act, he learned about the existence of the third color, a tapestry of red and bck, but it was not the most shog part; it was her than the number he viewed was a plete zero; it was the first time he saw a growth rate lower than one.

  In light of this fact, he trained himself to the extreme; he ran bad forth on the dangerous terrain of the mountains to enhance his vitality, and he accepted several missions, including fiend subjugation, hoping that the number zero would increase.

  However, even after finishing all those tasks alo remaihe same; nothing had ged.

  So he embarked on a jouro look for clues about his eye even though the only hint that he had was the casket dangling from his ear.

  . . . . .

  "Unbelievable," the captain uttered, leaving his mouth partially open.

  He couldn't believe the se that transpired in front of him. In a blink of an eye, Efraim mao kill the fiend, assassinating it in a small fra of time possible without giving it any ce to react.

  Along with the admiration that the old ma, he begaioning his abilities as well. Being ihird string throughout his life, he couldn't execute what the young man did.

  Aside from this, his css praiser, a title that was not fit for battle; pared to him, who had a swordsman's cssification, what Efraim showed was beyond the norm.

  "The guild should really stop assigning a css based on their Firs," he stated.

  After pting for a few more seds, he went towards Efraim's position. He saw him looking above and noticed his left eye glowing in an unusual -colored hexagram.

  'Is that his Fir? I wonder how that thing works,' he thought as he approached the young man.

  "You really never failed to amuse me!" he excimed upon closing the distance.

  Efraim looked at his captain; his left eye was now back to its normal bck color. The sed, he wore his smile and swung both of his bdes on his side; the blood dripping from them was removed in an instant, and then he uhed his ons and greeted the captain.

  "You fttered me," he said.

  The moment, the old man handed him a bck handkerchief.

  "Wipe those bloodstains or we'll attract other beasts," he suggested.

  Efraim didn't even think twice; he grabbed the piece of cloth from the man's hand and ed the traces of blood from his face.

  Afterward, the two of them went towards the boratory to tihe scouting, and like in the coliseum, they found nothing.

  "The night is getting deeper," Efraim ented as soon as they walked outside the boratory.

  "I hope we find something in the area. Is it the st one for tonight, isn't it?" He added, asking.

  The old man nodded, firming the youor's query before speaking.

  "The pce for honing warriors, the arena. If we still find nothing in that pce, we'll be going bad advang tomorrow with the whole team," the old man replied.

  "But what if we discover something?" Efraim replied with a curious expression.

  The old man looked at him and smiled.

  "I'll let you decide; I believe more in an appraiser's judgment," he said.

  His answer made Efraim's lips curl upward. Afterward, they moved towards their target location. Upon arriving, shattered walls and broken gates were the ohat greeted the equators. The arena was a rge spherical dome with half of its roof damaged and crushed.

  The two people walked towards the stage; the seats were scattered onto the ground, and several skeletons could be seen still sitting in the audience's wing.

  "There's nothing in here as well," the captain veyed his thoughts.

  However, Efraim didn't respond to his words; the youor was busy staring at the opposite end of the arena.

  The sed, the cold wind blew, causing the dust and ashes to rise while the dle lights hanging in the cracked walls lit up oer the other. Then, the silence was broken as loud cheers ing from the audience seats echoed in the hall, though there were no other people present aside from the two equators.

  Efraim put his hands on the hilts of his bdes, preparing for what was about to e.

  Meanwhile, the old man stepped closer to Efraim; his shoulder stiffened, and beads of sweat formed on his head. Theiced the casket dangling from his panion's ear, it was glowing with a strange white light.

  "Do you think we should head back?" He asked, ign the light ing from the casket.

  The his eyes roamed around.

  "I don't think we have the luxury to do so," Efraim imparted, and a thunderous roar followed.

  The cheers tinued, and the g sound of swainst sword reverberated ihe arena. Then, Efraim drew his bde and raised it in front of him. However, something struck him on the side, sending him flying into the debris of the broken walls.

  "Efraim!" The old man shouted and ran towards the appraiser, but he was grabbed in the leg and was soon throwhe audience seats.

  The never-ending cheers were repced by ughter, and the ground began to tremble. The old man stood up and pulled out his sword, but the moment, he found himself suspended in the air, with his feet above and his face almost kissing the ground. He tried to kid stabbed his sword upward, hoping to ihe enity that was holding him, but instead, he was sent flying once again, though this time, Efraim mao catch him and prevent him from crashing into the walls.

  "We're being pyed," the bck-haired man stated.

  Theivated his left eye; its pupil shrank, and a -colored hexagram appeared on his iris; however, there was not a single number present in the area, and it only meant ohing.

  "This pce is filled with apparitions!" Efraim excimed as he dodged and pulled his captain to the other side.

  "What do we do, then?" The old man cried out, asking.

  The sed, a sound of arrows being unched resonated in the dome.

  Without knowing the exact trajectory, the two people just ran away from their positions. They searched for the exit, but the path where they came from moments ago was o be found.

  With this development, Efraim took a sed to g the roof, and then he pulled out his bdes.

  "Follow me," he gave out a and before leaping up into the air.

  Then, he created a ptform of energy in front of him and used it as a foothold; he repeated it several times until the distance was close enough for him to cut the roof.

  Without wasting another sed, he swung his bdes several times, creating a hole big enough for a person to fit. Afterward, he jumped onto it, and the sed, he looked bad extended his hand to the old man.

  "Here! Grab it!" He yelled.

  And as soon as the captain held his arm, he pulled him outside. Then, the silend darkness returned as the cheers ihe arena died down along with the dle lights hanging on its walls.

  . . . . .

  The two equators headed back to their camp; everyone was already asleep aside from the night guard and the person sittio a tent.

  "Lindsay, you're still awake," the old man said, his voice ced with .

  "I 't sleep at all knowing you two are still out there, venturing in the ruins," Lindsay replied.

  Theood up and smiled.

  "So, did something happen?" She asked, but upon seeing the expression on their faces and the bloodstains from Efraim's clothes, she already khat it was not a simple one.

  "We found nothing about beast traffickers, but..." The old man veyed then he paused for a while and inhaled a deep breath before tinuing. "We entered a pce filled with apparitions, and we almost died in there."

  . . . . .