Freya ran as fast as her feet could take her.

  It was hard to believe Cedric could be defeated. With his skills, even above-average cultists shouldn't be his match. Then again, his enemy was another otherworlder.

  She knew more than most how troublesome they could become.

  Freya realized in her mind that she had been careless. She only prayed her carelessness didn't cost her another teammate.

  Third floor... Cedric’s signal is over there. Let me make it in time!

  Freya sensed lifeforms between her and the destination. When she laid eyes on them, they were cultists. They were... spreading disease on the prisoners.

  Sickness and blight were the signature of the Gardeners of Perfection, worshipers of the Greater Devil Teorph.

  If she left them unchecked, then there was a possibility the infection would grow out of control. Meanwhile, the warden and the prison guards had their hands full.

  She had gotten close enough for them to sense her. She counted a dozen enemies. The leader was a Level 4 that wore a green tattered priest garb.

  “Holy Rotpriest, a strong enemy approaches,” one said to him.

  Freya recognized the name. It was one of the rising stars among the Gardeners. Individuals who might become future Level 5s.

  The priest looked at her and smiled.

  “A Silver Legionnaire. Come, woman. Your flesh will become a most pleasing offering for the Great Foul One!”

  Rotpriest grew a huge root taller than him from his arm and three poisonous insects, each a Rank 4 monster, emerged from it.

  She had no time for this.

  Arte - Incandescent Sword Trails!

  She unleashed her Victa and moved across the group of enemies with blinding speed, leaving lines of golden light and phantoms in her wake.

  She appeared behind them. She unmaterialized her rapier and went on her way.

  Suddenly, as if time went forward again, the golden lines and Freya’s phantoms burst out, releasing heat. The enemy’s bodies showed signs they had been hit multiple times, blood sprayed out and limbs fell. There were no screams, as if they had never realized they had been slashed.

  Rotpriest’s head slid down his neck and fell to the ground.

  The fallen bodies burned up in golden flames. Freya didn't only get the cultists but the infected prisoners too. In a flash, she had taken care of a group of infiltrators in an overwhelming manner.

  She found Cedric slumped on a chair, head down. With a worried heart and voice, she shook him awake.

  “Thank the Goddess, you’re alive. Here, drink this.”

  The soul-healing item was rare and precious but she didn't hesitate to give it to Cedric. He looked a bit better after that.

  “I’m very sorry... I couldn't do anything. I’m a disgrace.”

  “Don't think about that for now.” Freya examined Cedric’s condition. The soul damage was even deeper than she imagined. Cedric’s soul was like a cut cloth held together by spider strings.

  “We need to get you to a medic, fast. Hold on to me.”

  Cedric grasped Freya’s wrist. “That guy, Tanael, is the worst kind of otherworlder. The kind that think this world is a game for them to enjoy and destroy as they wish.”

  Cedric coughed heavily.

  “You must stop talking,” Freya tried but Cedric’s grip only grew tighter.

  “He is going for the others. He wants to use them for some dark purpose. He could have killed me but he didn't, so I can slow you people down. Don't let him succeed, Freya. Promise me...”

  “I will. I promise.”

  Cedric smiled a little and passed out.

  Freya now had a choice: to go up where the Tower of Remorse’s main medical center was, or go down, where Tanael and the other cultists were making waves.

  ...Warden Myers, I hope your reputation matches your strength.

  With Cedric on her shoulders, she went up.

  ***

  The fourth floor of the Tower of Remorse was called the Thunder Bath.

  The floor’s design had this enclosed, religious, grim gothic outlook to it, which reminded Tanael of the inside of a Warhammer 40K battlebarge. Instead of the skull imagery, the Tower of Remorse had angels. There were also a lot of mini altars to Estelle, the Goddess.

  There were praying altars on the previous floors too but on the fourth, there seemed to be one in every ten meters and in every prison cell. But what was most striking about this floor was something else entirely.

  The very floors and walls were covered by lightning blue color, electrifying anyone who so much as touched them, which was everywhere, hence the floor’s name.

  Tanael was pretty sure the lightning had some holy element mixed in it.

  Unlike the third, the prisoners of the fourth were not living zombies so they felt pain when zapped by electricity. For a Level 4 like Tanael, the electric shock couldn't touch him but not so for the prisoners who had their Victa sealed. Regardless of their Pathseeker Level before, now they had to live while being electrocuted eighteen hours a day.

  Besides the six hours of grace for sleeping, there was only one time when they wouldn't be zapped: when they were praying.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  And not only by praying willy-nilly or half-heartedly. They had to pray while committing their heart and soul. If not, the electric shock would get them. The praying session also included confession of sins, immersing in religious texts, special ceremonies, et cetera. They had to drown in the punishment and forgiveness of Estelle.

  Oof. This floor is pretty hardcore... I wonder if Freya reached Cedric yet.

  Tanael had set a simple trap for Freya. He made it look like Cedric’s soul damage was more severe than it actually was. He hoped Freya would take Cedric up to the ground floor, where he could get treated instead of her going down and possibly becoming a strong enemy and obstacle to him or the other cultists. That wasn't ideal because Tanael’s objective was on the floor below.

  Well, it’s probably fine. Those good-guy hero types never abandon friends in need. It’s like a design flaw... but despite such a flaw, they also always arrived in the nick of time. Damn it! I gotta pick up the pace.

  Tanael saw a lot of prisoners praying, almost all of them actually. Some of them weren't praying hard enough and got zapped. Some asked him for help while being electrocuted and sobbing but even if he let them out of their cells, where would they go? Tanael ignored them.

  He didn't get to see much of the fourth floor before meeting a roadblock. In front of him, there was a huge battle. He saw the cultists that went ahead of him, futilely throwing armies of lesser demons against a Level 5.

  Warden Magellan... Whoops, that’s not right... Myers! Yes, that’s his name.

  “Men with black hearts who desecrate this holy place of redemption and second chances, your sin deserves death!”

  Warden Myers was in the form of a gigantic black smoke and burning embers. He looked more like a demon than the actual demons that he swatted around like flies.

  Fire and smoke affinity... Or is that his Palladion Icon thingy?

  Tanael knew that was the Level 5 special ability but that was still above his league at this point.

  With the angered Level 5 barring the way -Level 5 high at least- the path forward was cut off. Tanael could see Izabella and the rest of the Blood Church, Whiskey Dog and his lunatic warband too. The tête-à-tête he had with Cedric pushed Tanael’s position to the back in this race.

  He also knew from the soul-searched prison guards that the warden would be guarding the fourth floor. Conversation with the otherworlder was also too good an opportunity to pass up, so Tanael was convinced he had made the right decision.

  Now then, demonic cultists, this is the time to show your trump card. Surely you people aren't going in without some way to deal with the famous warden, right?

  Tanael entered with the cultists for a reason. Alone, he would never get past the entire Tower of Remorse’s defenses. Now, he watched as the cultists did the heavy work for them.

  “We can't take much more of this!” Izabella grimaced.

  “Where are the guys from the Teorph cult? Fuck them for being slowpokes!” Norgard the Gourmand of the Death Society said while ripping a chunk of meat with his teeth.

  “We have to do this now.” An icy lady said while producing a black gem with a foul aura. She must be Olivia the Rimeheart of the Black Ice Apostates.

  “Is five out of seven enough?” Yuri, the young leader of the Wicked Tempters, also pulled out a similar gem from his robes.

  “Six,” Whiskey Dog said. “The skulking people are here.”

  Vadym, the prince of Latias and a high member of the Bone Ravens, showed himself from the shadows. “We’re here. Let’s go.”

  To Tanael’s amusement, Croix’s half-brother was already a Level 4. He should be only nineteen. That was a very fast cultivation speed, even faster than his main body. He must be using some unsavory method. The rogue prince seemed to be the type who didn't balk at that sort of thing.

  “We have no choice. Six out of seven will have to do. We must pay the bill for the missing part. Don't any of you dare to hold back or we all might die here!” Izabella threw her black gem and it floated above her.

  “Damn it! I’m going to kill those Gardener bastards when I see them!” Whiskey Dog did the same and the other leaders followed.

  Six black gems created a magic circle. The six leaders poured their power and made individual sacrifices. For example, Izabella sacrificed her life force; her red hair was going white. The very air thrummed with power.

  Woah! That’s pretty bad. My sense of danger is tingling. What are they doing now? Those black gems contain Fell affinity. It has to be.

  Warden Myers realized what was going on and tried to stop them but the army of demons blocked his way like a living tide.

  “Cease this sacrilege at once! In the name of the Goddess!”

  “Yeah, no. Bite me, sucker!” Norgard, much thinner now, bit back at Myers.

  “Estelle has no power over me, come forth!” Olivia said her condemnation as her left pinky turned black and crumbled to dust. It seemed all of them had beef with the Estellian faith or the Goddess herself.

  Then, as if a deal had been finalized once the appropriate price was paid, the six gems broke apart, creating a spatial rift. Immediately, a clawed hand grabbed both sides of the rift, forcibly expanding it. The leaders hurriedly jumped back and created some distance, each of their faces colored with worry.

  Whatever that thing was, the six of them didn't hold the leash to it.

  “No! What have you done? Do you abominations do not fear divine punishment? Does holiness and order of this world mean nothing to you!?” The Warden said with fury.

  A Level 5 aura engulfed them all. Unlike the Warden’s this aura carried the aura of pain and brimstone. Tanael winced. Despite all his defenses, he still felt like he was being blasted by skin-melting acid. Thankfully only a feeling. His skin was still fine.

  The thing that came out of the rift was completely covered in fire. It looked somewhat humanoid but its head was even bigger than its torso. It was surely a demon based on its aura but it was different from any demons that Tanael met before.

  “Is that... an Infernal?” One of the prison guards behind the warden said.

  “Impossible, there hasn't been any Infernal sightings for over five hundred years!”

  “Well they happen to be the seven cults! Who else but them can call an Infernal!”

  An Infernal? I see... I’ve only read it in stories.

  The flaming being let out an ungodly roar. As it began to unleash its power, the floor began to melt. Not only that, the smoke it emitted had a demonic corruption effect, very potent. The demon charged at the warden, perhaps sensing he was the highest threat. The two wrestled like a man trying to wrangle a raging bull.

  The Warden in his fire and smoke form looked very much like a demon himself but anyone with sense could feel that he didn't have demon energy in him, only the burning demon did. The Warden used several powerful Artes that rocked the whole floor but the demon acted as if it didn't even feel it and continued attacking with total abandon.

  Perhaps it really is an Infernal after all.

  The Infernal was a type of demon but it was very special. These demons were few in number and only existed in the lower reaches of Hell. Compared to other demons, Infernal’s demonic toxicity was incomparable. Just by existing, its corruption would spread to its surroundings, turning other beings into demons.

  Furthermore, they were almost immortal.

  They could only be damaged by Holy affinity, at least once they manifested in this material plane of existence. All other affinities were completely useless against it!

  While the Estellian Church was known to be able to use Holy, only a select few were able to use it.

  Most likely, even Warden Myers couldn't use Holy and without Holy, the Infernal was unkillable. An immortal Level 5 demon rampaging in the Tower of Remorse? Tanael couldn't imagine a worse outcome other than two Infernals.

  The Warden and the Infernal’s fight destroyed many walls. Tanael tried to damage them in the previous floor but to no avail. Apparently Level 5s had just enough power for that. With the two brawling, there was a huge opening in the blockade. The cults charged in with force and violence.

  Infernals... Even if they are immortal without Holy, they can be sealed. That’s how it is for unkillable evil in the Fables. With how many Level 5s are still hanging on the outside, probably the Tower wouldn't fall completely.

  But that’s fine. The complete destruction of the Tower is not my purpose. Keeping the warden busy is enough. Besides, a threat like this is exactly the kind of enemy that Freya should face. I can bet a million dollars that she can use the Holy element. If things get too messy, I can always pit her against the Infernal.

  With his heart at ease, Tanael made his way to the next floor.