When Tanael descended to the fifth floor, he was greeted by trees. So many trees.

  “Stop them!”

  “Hold them until the Warden gets here!”

  Fights were rife around him. The cultists who had entered first had begun fending off the guards. There were not many of the prison guards, since the bulk had been called to the fourth floor for the blockade. These guards were remnants but they were pretty strong, especially the Guard Chief of the fifth.

  Still, the big shots of each cult penetrated the hastily made defense line and made their way inside.

  It’s showtime for them.

  Six cults made their way here and they each had their own agendas. If they were going to pull out a big scheme, the fifth was where they were going to do it because this floor was special.

  The Tower of Remorse was not exactly a tower in a physical sense. It was more like layers of pocket spaces. The fifth floor was like the center foundation or something. Tanael didn't really get the specifics, only that the cults aimed for this floor.

  Tanael did not.

  Izabella didn't even look at him; her eyes were busy scanning the trees. Based on that, Ursula, the woman that she wanted to save, was also on this floor. Which was a bit weird since Tanael thought she should be located on the fourth. Perhaps something happened.

  Still, what a macabre floor this is... The Addams family would approve of this.

  Tanael looked at his surroundings again. The sky above was draped in burgundy color, making the scenery incredibly bleak. The trees, despite being numerous, were not overly tall. They were about the height of apple trees. From the distance from each tree and the next it was clear the planting was planned.

  As he walked, avoiding the attacks from the battle around him, he didn't see a single convict out and about. On the previous floors, the convicts were always around, like people in a downtown district.

  Here, the convicts had been turned into trees.

  When Tanael looked closely enough, each tree had a face and had the outline of a human body. On the branches covered by green leaves, red fruits grew. The shape was different from normal apples but not that different.

  This was the fifth floor, the Forest of Punishment.

  According to his understanding, despite turning into immobile trees, their minds were working normally. These criminals with heavy crimes would stay here and reflect for a long time. Their time as trees was easily a hundred years at the minimum. Like it or not, they were forced to come to terms with the weight of their crimes.

  When Tanael imagined being in their shoes, he couldn't help but shudder. For someone that easily got bored like him, being turned into a tree with nothing to do and deprived of his five senses for hundreds of years, was a horrifying thought.

  He would prefer death.

  No wonder the expressions on each tree were that of suffering. This was a cruel punishment for their cruel deeds. Not just anyone was sent this deep into the Tower of Remorse.

  Tanael casually plucked one of the red fruits. This fruit was a cultivation resource. Each tree produced a different flavor and benefits according to their previous past. The Church used these fruits to grow their men.

  It was almost poetic that the criminals who used to be their enemies were now ‘feeding’ the Church. For their crimes that harmed a great deal of people and the innocent populace, they were now empowering the forces that prevent future atrocities and mend the damage they caused.

  Tanael had to say it; the Estelian Church really made one hell of an industry here. His Magisterium Tower really paled in comparison to this Tower in terms of human resources.

  ...I should take notes.

  Out of curiosity, Tanael tried to absorb the soul of one of the tree convicts. He couldn't. With his sword, he’d split the tree and felled it before trying again. This time he was successful but the state of the soul was... not good.

  The soul isn't damaged per se, more like wilted and turned hollow. Not surprising given what they experienced. Hmm... nope.

  Tanael tossed the soul away. He probably could use it for something but the quality was so bad that he felt it was not worth his time. Ironically, even the souls of the zombie prisoners on the third floor were in a better state than this.

  He gathered a few of the fruits too for research purposes. Most of the Silver Legion didn't know where the fruit that they ate came from. If they knew the origins…

  Perhaps they would balk.

  The fruit wasn't a super cultivation booster like his own Nutra and lost its effectiveness the higher the Level, but for Pathseekers chicks, they were pretty good.

  By now the six groups of the cults had spread out and gone their own way.

  With no intention of wasting precious time, Tanael paid no more attention to the trees. Cruel as it might be, he left the defeated to their fate.

  His objective lay deeper still. The people he wanted were a different breed.

  Hm? Isn't that Izabella and her group? I didn't intend to follow them but I guess we went in the same direction. Ah, it seems like she finally found her sister.

  Out of curiosity, Tanael decided to silently witness the conclusion of Izabella’s storyline. She had become Viers’ employee for the sole purpose of saving Ursula after all.

  Just like the others, Ursula was a tree. How Iz had found her in the entire forest Tanael did not know but he doubted it was a one-by-one search. She must have some sort of prior intel or detection method.

  The Blood Church members used a ritual to reverse the tree and turned Ursula back into human form. It was a pretty interesting piece of blood magic. Tanael took a mental note. Perhaps he could learn it.

  “Sister Ursula!”

  After the reversing process was done, Iz covered Ursula’s body with a piece of cloth and called out to her. The cold-blooded vampiress was nowhere to be seen; only a concerned woman.

  “ I knew... You’d come for me.”

  Ursula slowly opened her eyes, and with trembling fingers she touched the tear-stained cheek of Izabella.

  “I’m sorry! I’m sorry it took so long.” Iz said among the sobbing.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Ahh, how touching. Villain or not, that is a pure display of familial affection right there. Could've brought me to tears.

  “How long... has it been?” Ursula asked.

  “Five years, Ursula.”

  “I see... Five years. Only five years... It’s nowhere near enough.”

  “Eh?”

  “Leave me be, sister. For all the evil I have done, all the suffering I’ve caused, let me atone for my sins.”

  Izabella was horrified by what she was hearing.

  “What are you saying?”

  “Izabella, we are wrong. The whole Blood Church, the other cults, are wrong. Estelle is the one true God. Her teaching is the correct one. My eyes have been opened and I have realized the truth. For the sake of your own immortal soul, you too should repent, sister.”

  “Nononono. What have they done to you!?”

  A hail of arrows showered their location before Izabella could receive an answer. It came from the prison guards. Alan, Helene, and Restil created a barrier that protected their cohort. The rest of the Blood Church members weren't strong enough.

  With their attention drawn to one side, a single man drew the string of his bow from the opposite side, Izabella’s head was his target.

  “Guard Chief of the Fifth, Salec, I presume? Drop it, before I drop you.”

  Tanael poised a blade to his neck from behind. Salec lowered his bow.

  “Good. Interrupting reunions is bad manners. Let’s go.”

  Tanael pushed Salec to approach the Blood Church group and reveal his presence.

  “Manners Maketh Man guy!” Helene pointed out.

  “Tanael! What’s he doing here?” Alan said.

  “Men, stand down. Retreat.” Salec said to the prison guards and they obeyed. Despite having a blade to his neck and alone among enemies, he showed no fear whatsoever.

  “Blood Exarch Ursula of the Blood Church, sentence: 402 years. It is still far too early for you to be released. Do not fear, Ursula, you’ll resume your penance soon enough,” Salec said with a smile.

  “Yes, yes. Thank you, lord,” Ursula looked upon the man like a holy prophet. Her hands cupped in supplication. “If I may ask, please allow these people, my misguided former colleagues, to receive the same absolution as I.”

  “But of course,” Salec nodded. “It is only right and proper to return the lost flock to the Radiant-”

  Restil punched Salec on the face.

  “No! Stop adding more to your sins. We-”

  Alan put his hand on Ursula’s forehead and put her to sleep. She was a Level 4 before but she was greatly weakened and without Victa. Putting her to sleep was very easy.

  After entrusting Ursula to Alan, Izabella approached Salec.

  “What, did you do to her?” Her voice was bone-chillingly cold.

  “She did it to herself,” Salec smiled with bloody lips. “After she pays for her sins, she would have a new life, a better life as a redeemed. Shame on you, for disrupting her salvat-”

  Izabella had heard enough of Salec’s bullshit and crushed his head with her bare hands. The head burst like a pressed fruit. How easily one could forget that behind her dainty hands, the vampire had the power that could crush bones easily.

  “What is this, Tanael? I sensed that Ursula’s soul is weird. What can you tell me?” Iz asked.

  “The Tower of Remorse... You should also know that the punishments here are not simply torture of the flesh. It’s in the name, the convicts are made remorseful for their crimes. Souls are shaped by the lives they lived. After being a tree for five years, of course there’s some oddity but that doesn’t mean the soul is damaged.”

  “So what are you saying?” Iz asked for clarification.

  “Long story short, this whole tower is a brainwashing correctional facility. Next time you trade insults with the bright-eyed youths of the Silver Legion, you can tell them that the cults and Church are not so different after all,” Tanael scoffed.

  Izabella looked at the unconscious Ursula. The happiness of the reunion was spoiled in a flash. “Can she be fixed?”

  “I believe the answer is yes, though it won't be easy. These things are... delicate.”

  “I’ll see what I can get from my Church first. If I need help on the soul side, I’ll turn to you. They should be happy to study someone from this deep.”

  “Hm?” Tanael didn't understand.

  “No prisoners have ever escaped the Tower of Remorse, but we’ve heard rumors. Apparently some turned, became redeemed. Some of them become the prison guards after their sentence is done,” Iz sighed at the bleak sky.

  “Well, well, well.”

  “Ursula should be a valuable case study. I don't like it but as long as she wasn't hurt and returned to normal...”

  “Izabella, we should go before more trouble shows up,” Restil said. “As of this moment, I’m the leader.”

  “I’ll take care of Ursula,” Alan put her on his back.

  “Okay. Tanael, what are you going to do now?” Izabella asked.

  “Now wait a minute. Since you made it here because of us, as the leader, I am going to ask you to do a bit of work for the cause. Huh? Where did he go?”

  By the time Restil and Izabella realized, Tanael was no longer around. He pulled off the Batman trick.

  “Holy Hell,” Helene gasped. “The prison guard chief is gone too. That’s a bunch of Level 4 loot! He’s one sneaky sonnova-”

  “Fair warning to you all,” Tanael’s voice came from around them as if whispered by the trees. Helene immediately shut her mouth with both hands. “There’s a troublesome Silver Legionnaire currently present in the Tower. A one, Freya. You should probably avoid her.”

  “Freya? Freya Marianus? Granddaughter of the Silver Legion’s Supreme Commander?”

  But to Izabella’s question, the wind answered with silence.

  “I've only heard bad things about the Freya girl. Like she cuts down our kind as if we’re only grass,” Helene shuddered. “The Darkbane.”

  “We should go,” Alan urged again.

  “Follow me, you lot,” Restil led the way.

  Iz caressed Ursula’s cheek. “Just sleep for a while longer, Ursula. I’ll fix you up, no matter what it takes.”

  ***

  Freya had pushed herself up to the ground floor and back down under with breakneck speed. Her aim was the fifth floor. On the way, she received worrying news that the Warden’s blockade on the fourth floor had failed thanks to an Infernal.

  She was torn about whether she should help the warden but decided to go to the fifth.

  That was because from the fifth, the one that Cedric warned him about, Tanael, could enter the space where the otherworlders were living in peace.

  Cedric warned her that Tanael was after them and should he succeed...

  Freya had seen the restricted record of a time long past, thousands and thousands of years ago, the otherworlders created great nations, more advanced than any other in the whole Lumen Continent’s history.

  They destroyed each other using superweapons called nuclear.

  The Goddess had to send angels down to restore the broken land. That was why the Church was wary about the advancement of technology. The Taboo ones, especially.

  Just so it happened, every one thousand years, there was a great purge that would curb technological growth. It was not of the Church's design but it served their purpose. However, a single otherworlder could make a technological leap using the knowledge of their world.

  Not to mention the strange abilities they might have. These people were dangerous and needed to be regulated.

  Some ran amok, like Tanael.

  While others only wanted to live in peace and agreed to live under the Church’s wing.

  Then there were others who needed to be convinced to follow the rules.

  Tanael was coming for them and Freya doubted he was the kind that would leave quietly after being told no.

  For what purpose he wanted these men, she did not know but she had to foil Tanael’s plan.

  After she arrived on the fifth, she immediately went to the hidden waypoint that would take them to the Sanctuary.

  She was afraid she was too late but she was relieved to see the teleportation waypoint was undisturbed. She arrived faster than Tanael. Her teammates were on their way too.

  With the extra time, she prepared for battle. She expected a hard fight, for in Tanael, she saw a shadow from the past. One that she failed to catch.

  Viers Isuel.

  Soul Pathseekers were rare. Viers might have disappeared but Tanael matched the growth of Viers so the Church had long suspected they were one and the same.

  Freya had chased Tanael’s tail multiple times but he always eluded her.

  Today might be the day for their promised reunion. Master Gregory always said that they would meet again and warned her not to take him lightly.

  Freya honed her edge and waited. Every minute that passed by she was like a knife that grew sharper.

  And waited.

  Waited...

  “...Oh no.”

  ***

  “Finally!” Tanael grinned. “The hidden sixth!”