In the dark silence of his cell, Rei sat motionless. He was a prisoner of his own body as much as the iron cage; he could see nothing, hearing only the steady, rhythmic drip of water hitting the stone floor.
When night fell, a guard shuffled down the corridor, sliding two wooden plates under the bars. The food was foul—expired, bitter, and barely edible—but Rei ate it without a word. Across the cell, Dell finished his meal and went to work. For four days, Dell used his wooden plate to chip away at the mortar around a loose metal window bar, the sound masked by the ambient noise of the prison.
During those same four days, Rei was dragged to the arena repeatedly. He defeated every warrior they threw at him, either forcing them into submission or knocking them unconscious with terrifying precision. His fame exploded. The crowd no longer called him the "Blind Swordsman." They called him The One, a title marking his absolute mastery of both the blade and martial arts.
Back in the cell, Dell finally grunted as a metal bar came loose. "I've got it," he whispered. "Now I just need to mold it into the key."
"How?" Rei asked. "You don't have a forge."
"I have my blood," Dell replied. Red tattoos began to glow brightly across his skin. His family's bloodline power surged, allowing him to soften and shape the cold iron with his bare hands. After molding it into what seemed like a key he pressed the metal into the clay imprint he had made of the guard's key, and then removed the parts that were irregular or crooks, after 20 minutes he completed making the key and Then, he sweated profusely until the glowing tattoos faded, leaving him gasping for air.
"Check if it works," Dell wheezed, tossing the makeshift key toward Rei.
Rei couldn't see it, but he heard the clink. "A little to your right," Dell guided. Rei felt the floor until his fingers closed around the cold metal. He slid it into his cuffs. Click. The locks snapped open.
"It's a match," Rei said, though he hid the key and put the cuffs back on. "When do we move?"
"My power needs a week to recharge," Dell said. "Then, we break out."
Across the border at the Revolutionaries' headquarters in Astria, the air was thick with tension. Ben sat at the head of a round table, tossing a report onto the wood.
"This individual was spotted at the Soo Family mansion," Ben explained. "He killed Lord Soo and has been systematically terrorizing every noble family that aligns with us. Even the Royal Knights couldn't stop him."
"Is it Rei?" Levi asked, his voice low.
"Nonsense," Arizona countered. "Rei doesn't kill humans, and his techniques are far more unorthodox than what the witnesses described."
"Whoever it is, I want to fight them," Alya said, her eyes gleaming with battle lust.
Ben stood up. "Selene, you stay here and handle the paperwork. Luc and Arizona will stay to guard the base. Emilia, Alya, Levi, and I are heading out to intercept this killer. We need practical experience, and we need to protect our allies."
Selene groaned. "You're leaving me with the boring work? Ben, that's cruel!"
"Don't forget who gave you the liberty to live here," Ben smirked.
Luc said "I concur you 2 should get some practical experience as well Levi will go with you for this"
Selene said "what about me"
Arizona said "sorry Selene but i too agree with them you have to stay here, we need someone who can do the paperworks, you, Emilia and Ben are the only ones who can do that."
Selene was very disappointed and Arizona turned to Ben and Emilia and said "go get your gears you are gonna leave tomorrow"
Ben and Emilia said "sure"
Alya said "I am going with them as well to make sure they will be safe plus I am very interested in this mission as well"
Ben said "we appreciate your help."
The team geared up. Emilia packed her magic formations, her sword, and her custom guns. Ben checked his trusted magic firearms and support gear and Alya took some of the magic formations. By the next morning, they were in an ordinary cart, heading toward the heart of the conflict.
Within the Principality, a different kind of fire was brewing. Astarte sat on a jagged rock, watching the sunset, while Silas paced nervously nearby.
"We're the most hated people in the country now," Silas muttered. "What's the plan? We're cornered."
"Don't be so dramatic," Kade replied, though his hand rested on his weapon. "We can still salvage this."
"How?" Vera asked. "The branches are hunting us. The people fear us."
Astarte said "either we see through this to the finish or none of us will be able to live quietly, I am going to see this through even if I am the only one I will wait for Peirs to come back to us is anyone with me or not"
Kade smirked and said "you took the words out of my mouth"
Silas thought and then sighed and said "I am gonna regret this"
Severin nodded,
Vera said "I too"
Garth and Xander said "don't worry I have full faith that Peirs will come" "me too"
Astarte looked out at the gathered ranks of Devil and Guardian holders and said "everyone I know how much difficult it must be for you to march into the fight again knowing you might die just like your peers but think again why did you joined Peirs was it because you were entranced by his power, the cruelty of the devil and guardian branches, revenge for your friend or something else"
Everyone thought their reasons for coming what all of them had in common was some sort of trauma inflicted by the branches
Astarte said "I ask you this again"
Astarte took a long breath and took out her sword and said with a voice that boomed "will you follow me"
Astarte's voice boomed, echoing through the canyon. She lifted her sword, the steel flashing. "Will you follow me into the jaws of death?"
"YES!" the army roared in unison.
"If they kill one of us, two more will take our place! If they exterminate us the entire world will take our place and hunt them down till none of them remains." Astarte shouted. "We will give them no rest! We fight until every branch, every person is destroyed and until the name of Peirs is cleared!"
The roar of the soldiers shook the earth. They were no longer just a group of fugitives; they were a legion with a single, bloody purpose.
Back at the Houlhart prison, the week had finally passed. Dell sat up, his tattoos glowing with a faint, restored light. He looked at Rei, who was already standing, his unlinked chains draped silently over his arms.
"I'm ready," Dell said, his voice cold and focused.
"Then let's go," Rei replied. "Time to show them that 'The One' can't be caged."