Underground Prison
Deep beneath Noctharis Castle, where even the sound of the storm could no longer be heard, Junyu sat alone in darkness.
A single blue flame burned outside the bars of his cell, its light barely strong enough to touch the damp stone walls. Water dripped steadily from the ceiling, each drop echoing through the underground like the ticking of a clock.
Junyu leaned against the cold wall and stared upward.
"So deep…"
His voice vanished into the silence.
"It took almost ten minutes just to bring me down here. That means this prison is buried far beneath the real castle."
He slowly stood and placed his hand against the invisible barrier surrounding the cell.
The air rippled.
The moment his fingers touched it, a sharp pulse of energy pushed him backward.
Junyu frowned.
"They used my own energy to seal me."
The realization settled heavily on him.
"A protective layer… made from my power."
He looked toward the endless darkness beyond the bars.
"Even if someone tries to rescue me, they can't simply walk down here."
His eyes narrowed.
"This isn't an open prison passage. It's a hidden corridor that only appears with a magic spell."
For a moment, despair crossed his face.
"So this is where I die."
The blue flame flickered.
Junyu clenched his fists.
"No."
He took a slow breath.
"I can't lose hope now."
He moved to the center of the cell and straightened his back.
"If I'm trapped here, then I'll use the time I have."
Red energy flickered faintly around his body.
"I'll train."
Far above him, thunder shook the castle.
Above the Prison — Devil Horns' Chamber
The storm raged outside the windows.
Blue fire cast long shadows across the room as the Devil Horns gathered around a small table.
No one sat comfortably.
No one looked calm.
"Six hours," Michael said quietly.
"Possibly eight," Katsa added.
Mil paced back and forth, his boots striking the floor with growing impatience.
"The security is tighter than anything we've seen."
Salim rubbed his forehead.
"If we're going to rescue him, we need a plan."
Ton slammed a fist onto the table.
"Forget the plan. Let's break the prison open."
Katsa shook her head immediately.
"We can't just charge into the castle and start fighting."
Michael nodded.
"This has to be done properly."
A tense silence followed.
Then Mil stopped pacing and looked directly at Salim.
"By the way…"
His voice became dangerously calm.
"Where is the prison?"
Salim blinked.
"…I don't know."
The entire room froze.
Ton stared at him.
"What?"
Mil's eye twitched.
"You don't know?"
Salim raised both hands defensively.
"I know Junyu is underground, but I don't know where the entrance is."
Mil threw his hands into the air.
"So what exactly do you know?"
Salim sighed.
"Almost nothing. That's why I woke all of you up."
The frustration in the room became almost tangible.
Ikiro, who had been silent until now, finally spoke.
"We need a planning stage."
Mil turned sharply.
"What planning stage? This is violence now."
Ikiro stood and walked to the center of the room.
The others watched him.
"I have a plan."
The storm outside seemed to pause.
Ton leaned forward.
"Please tell me it's better than 'run around and hope.'"
Ikiro ignored him.
THE PLAN
"We don't know where the prison is," Ikiro began.
"So the first step is finding it."
Katsa nodded slowly.
"And how do we do that?"
"We send someone inside."
Michael frowned.
"All of us can't get arrested. That would immediately reveal we're trying to rescue Junyu."
Ton pointed at himself.
"So… we sacrifice one idiot?"
Ikiro continued calmly.
"We create an incident. A fight. A disturbance. Something serious enough that one of us is thrown into the prison."
Mil's eyes narrowed.
"And then?"
"Once someone reaches Junyu, I can track their location."
Michael looked up sharply.
"Track?"
Ikiro met his gaze.
"I can also teleport to places I've marked."
Silence.
Katsa blinked.
Ton's mouth slowly opened.
Salim stared at him.
Mil stopped moving entirely.
"When," Mil asked slowly, "did you get abilities like that?"
Ikiro shrugged.
"I awakened them during the seven days. They're part of my Blue Emperor awakening."
Katsa crossed her arms.
"You're explaining every hidden ability after we save Junyu."
Ikiro nodded.
"Fair."
For the first time since the arrest, a tiny spark of hope appeared in the room.
They had a plan.
A dangerous one.
But a plan.
Junyu looked above " My crew will come and I am 100% sure about it "