The presence of Muryoko filled the entire room. A chill went down Shogai's spine. He had an urge to kneel, to apologise. To pray that this superior being wouldn't destroy him.

  He was scared.

  Muryoko raised an eyebrow when he saw his guests. He was the only Aberrant that Shogai had ever seen with normal, non-glowy eyes. That meant he wasn’t even using Elano’s Heart. And yet still, he’d completely destroyed them.

  “Nemean.” He said in a cold, grating voice. “Who’s your friend?”

  “Oh, him?” Nemean replied in mock surprise. “You know him. The Nexean that stood up to you. Really no big deal, he’s only here for the fun of it.”

  Shogai wanted to hit Nemean. Muryoko hadn’t recognised him before, but he certainly did now. Shogai felt stupid for recklessly running towards him last night, especially since he was so out of steam. He was lucky that Muryoko didn’t seem bothered to get into another fight. He seemed eager to leave. But now Nemean had brought Shogai right to Muryoko and basically said, “Remember the Nexean that attacked you? He’s right here. All yours.”

  Muryoko was glaring at Shogai. His eyes were filled with a lot of anger, but one small emotion seemed to be behind them.

  “What’s his rank?” Muryoko asked. Nemean shrugged.

  “Not important. But on an unrelated note, you’ve never met Inner Rank One, have you?”

  The second emotion widened until Shogai recognised it. A tint of fear.

  “What do you want, Nemean?” Muryoko asked, keeping his gaze away from Shogai, who was sweating and hoping Muryoko wouldn’t notice. So this was Nemean’s plan? Make Muryoko think that Shogai was Inner Rank… 1? This was an insane bluff, a massive gamble, but it looked like it was working. Was Muryoko that paranoid of the strongest fighter in Nexus?

  “Straight to the point, are we?” Nemean chuckled. “What’s the matter? Scared?”

  “In your dreams, human. I’ve lived dozens more lifetimes than you.”

  “And yet you’re still whimpering in the face of us?”

  Shogai once again wanted to punch Nemean. He was taking this game way too far. But he couldn’t voice his concerns without blowing his cover. Muryoko was scared of what he could do. So Shogai needed to play the part.

  “I think that’s enough banter, boys," He said it as if he weren’t talking to two figures who were far older than himself. “Nemean, hurry up and get this done. I’m bored already.”

  Nemean nodded, seeming satisfied with Shogai’s cover. Shogai, meanwhile, was doing all he could to keep his straight face. If Muryoko realised that he could end them in a second, they were screwed.

  “Fine. Well, Muryoko, I’m here to kindly ask what you’re doing with the Cavere Crystal we generously gave you. And perhaps how many you have and where you’re striking next.”

  Muryoko folded his arms. “Don’t push your luck. You’re in the middle of Deviant territory. All my Primes are mere rooms away. I’m a King. I won’t fold so easily.”

  “I see… then you won’t mind us taking a little stroll, right?”

  Nemean beckoned Shogai to follow him, and he blankly nodded. They turned their backs on the Deviant King and walked towards a giant stone door. Nemean pushed it open and began walking.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Muryoko asked, appearing beside him. Nemean glared at him straight in the eye and didn’t blink.

  “It’s been 40 years since I first met you, Muryoko. And I’ve been sure to visit often, to make sure you don’t get lonely. Why did you never kill me over any of those times?”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Because you’re pathetic, Nemean. You’re so far beneath me that your death would mean nothing. I don’t care about your little friendship group of rebels. None of you threaten me. Why kill you?”

  “None of us threaten you, huh? Nexean, could you–"

  Shogai was one step ahead. He activated Elano’s Heart. Beforehand, someone like Raven could have knocked him out if he wasn’t able to control it. But right now… he had a really good feeling about this. Shogai’s eyes glowed red, and Muryoko took a step back. Shogai focused, concentrating, and he felt his eyes cool down. In the reflection of Muryoko’s eyes, he could see that his own eyes went back to normal. He smirked. There was no guarantee that the same would happen in combat, but if he could deactivate Elano’s Heart by himself now, that was a huge step.

  The smirk, to Muryoko, must have looked like a challenge, and he growled.

  “Elano’s Heart. You humans should never have been blessed with that power.”

  “Tough. It is what it is, Muryoko.”

  Muryoko rolled his eyes. “Humans. Always so arrogant. As I was saying-”

  Nemean interrupted him, “Blah blah blah, something about us not being threats. If that’s the case, a little peek around your kingdom won’t hurt.”

  Nemean kept eye contact with this powerful being, who sighed. “Whatever. I’ll give you the tour.” His voice dripped with sarcasm.

  Muryoko led the way out of the doors. They were in an enormous cavern, similar to the one under Nexus, but it was filled with Aberrants. Shogai, Muryoko and Nemean were on a ridge, overlooking hundreds – no, thousands – of them. They blankly stood and shuffled about as if they were completely dormant when they couldn’t sense humans. Unfortunately, Shogai and Nemean were humans. At once, endless pairs of glowing eyes looked up at them, and a few Aberrants roared. They gripped the wall beneath their prey and began climbing up to them. Shogai braced himself, ready to fight, but this was bad.

  Even if he could beat all those monsters, there was no way Muryoko would let him. And even if he did, Shogai would be revealing his limits immediately. Shogai looked to Nemean for orders, but he was calm. Instead, he was looking expectantly at Muryoko.

  Muryoko walked to the edge of the cliffside. He tapped his foot, and a wave of fire emerged from his heel. It was enormous, leagues above anything that Ryukyu or Valerie could emit. The fire incinerated the Aberrants that were on the wall, turning them to dust. It didn’t stop there. It flowed across the bottom floor, setting every Aberrant on fire and causing them to scream in pain. Some died on the spot. Others managed to put themselves out. Muryoko watched, his face illuminated by the carnage beneath him, and a crazed grin on his face. By the time the flames died down, the majority of the army was gone. The few dozen remaining Aberrants fled like prey to a hunter.

  Shogai took a step back, which Muryoko acknowledged. “You’re not scared, are you? Inner Rank One.”

  Shogai couldn’t speak. Muryoko had just wiped out an entire army with a tap of his foot. To prove a point? Thankfully, Nemean saved him from answering.

  “That’ll be a dent in your army, I imagine", Nemean said, inspecting the damage with interest. Muryoko laughed.

  “Not at all! That small group is maybe a hundredth of our full might, and a weak fraction at that. Their use to me was limited. Now then, have you seen what you wanted to see?”

  A hundredth. That meant the full might of the Aberrants exceeded a hundred thousand… right? That- that was their opponent. How was Nemean keeping a straight face?

  “Not quite, Muryoko. I would still like to know where you plan to strike next.”

  Muryoko scoffed. “I’m not that stupid. You built an army of 16 people. You were never going to be able to beat enemies like us. Give up, Nemean. Live the rest of your life in peace. Doesn’t that sound nice? Why die early? You’re not going to figure out our plans.”

  “Master Muryoko!” A voice called from down the hall. Vera came walking up to them. Her head was down, and she was counting on her fingers.

  “We’re ready to find the last crystal. We are prepared to attack Isapora, Harabel, Caluva and Nomun. We await your order-”

  “Vera, you IDIOT!” Muryoko snarled at her. Vera jumped, looking up in fear and seeing Muryoko’s company.

  “Sir, Master Muryoko sir! I deeply apologise! I promise, I-...” She faltered when her eyes lay on Shogai. “...what’s this old man and Shogai doing here?”

  “Shogai?” Muryoko asked, and he seemed to be racking his brain. It occurred to Shogai that Muryoko had probably heard his name through Ciela’s body.

  “Yeah, Shogai. He’s the one that killed Sekara.” Vera’s eyes narrowed. She still seemed to hold a grudge about that.

  “The one that killed Sekara?” Muryoko continued pondering. “Wasn’t Sekara killed by an amateur?”

  “Yeah. Shogai only became a Nexean a couple months ago. He’s a weak Outer Rank.”

  Muryoko tilted his head towards Nemean and Shogai. The bluff was over. Shogai grabbed Nemean’s arm, who saluted Muryoko.

  “Thank you for having us.”

  Muryoko roared and lashed out at the two of them, but Nemean was already gone. Shogai shivered. He could almost feel Muryoko’s claws at his throat.