The Eighth District wasn't nearly as large as the Eighteenth. It looked like a slightly oversized church with a smaller staff, mostly handling routine maintenance and serving as a transit point.
'The "subway entrance" was even more bizarre. A man-sized, dark-green mailbox?'
"Memorize this pattern. I'm only demonstrating once."
The Priest guiding him spoke, then KNOCK KNOCK KNOCKED a few times on the mailbox, which split open sideways.
"I have a feeling I'll be climbing into a trash can one of these days..."
Lloyd said offhandedly.
But the Priest overheard him.
"Hmm? That's not a bad idea. Worth considering..."
"No! I was just kidding."
Lloyd waved his hands dismissively and quickly scrambled into the mailbox.
Ten minutes later, Lloyd was 'spat' out...
COUGH! COUGH! COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!
He felt like his brain had been flung right out of his skull.
Fortunately, the panel offered some timely consolation:
[Ding~ Madness Value +50, Skill Fragment +1]
This time, however, there was no kind soul to help him up. He could only plant his hands on his knees, gasping for air.
As he was catching his breath, Lloyd heard a delicate, restrained cough from behind him:
"Cough, cough..."
He turned to see it was none other than the cold, stunning Judge Weiya.
She was in much better shape than Lloyd, though. Her gorgeous face was just a little pale.
"'Morning..."
Lloyd squeezed out a greeting.
Weiya glanced at him coolly before speaking in a professional tone:
"You'll get used to it after a few more trips. It's a vital mode of transport for us. If you don't feel better after a while, you can go to the prayer room on the sixth floor for treatment."
With that, she left alone, neither offering him a hand nor waiting for him.
After recovering for a good while, Lloyd said with a hint of disappointment:
"Such a shame. And she's so beautiful..."
...
When Lloyd arrived at Tower Nine, he found many other Executors gathered around a bulletin board, whispering amongst themselves. Every so often, someone would step forward and pluck a key from the board.
Getting closer, he saw rows of keys hanging on the board. Each was labeled with a number like '114' or '201', corresponding to a cell on one of the basement levels. Next to each key was a small note with some basic information.
These were the Demons the Executors were tasked with executing.
The tasks were voluntary, but they offered evaluation points and bonuses as incentives.
Soon, the keys starting with a '1' were taken one by one, leaving behind those starting with '2' and '3'. These represented the Danger Level 2 and 3 Demons imprisoned on the -2 and -3 floors, which no one had touched yet.
Lloyd watched for a moment longer before he saw a burly, square-jawed Executor with the air of a classic tough guy walk up and take key '201'.
Someone nearby immediately spoke up:
"Just what I'd expect from you, Buster. Picking the most troublesome one on the -2 floor right off the bat. Mind if we watch?"
"Fine. But don't get in my way, or this will be the last time."
The tough guy replied coldly.
Lloyd thought for a moment and quickly followed along, putting aside his plans to go back to the library.
'As a progressive, well-educated young man, he knew he had to balance theory with practice.'
Two of the other Executors noticed his unfamiliar face, marking him as a newcomer. They whispered a few words to each other but didn't greet or question him, maintaining that same cold indifference.
Lloyd followed in silence, entering cell 201 with the group.
The moment he stepped inside, he felt a shift in the atmosphere. His eardrums and skin began to prickle faintly, and a series of notifications sounded in his ear:
[Ding~ Madness Value +1]
[Ding~ Madness Value +1]
'This feeling of leveling up just by breathing... it's back!'
'The Promised Land. This is the Promised Land.'
Lloyd was feeling pretty great, right up until he laid eyes on the Demon shackled inside the cell—
A cockroach as tall as a grown man...
Its limbs were somewhat mutated. The antennae on its head looked as sharp as spears, and the bristles covering its body writhed madly like tentacles. Its original mouthparts had morphed into something like a human mouth, sprouting individual teeth. But with no lips or skin to cover them, they were just exposed to the air in a wide, grotesque grin.
Lloyd was from the south and no stranger to cockroaches, but he'd never seen one this big. His scalp instantly went numb, and the notifications in his ear exploded into a cacophony.
[Ding~ Ding~ Ding~ Ding~ Ding~ Madness Value +++++]
It wasn't just the newcomer who was unnerved. The other Executors present were also grimacing, their expressions turning sour.
Even the tough guy, Buster, furrowed his brow and snorted.
"Hmph. Just what you'd expect from a Danger Level 2 Demon Ghost. You suffer Spiritual Contamination just from looking at it..."
Then, he turned to the others who had come to watch.
"I'm starting. Don't push yourselves."
Two of them immediately shook their heads and backed out, clutching their heads and mouths as they fled. Only Lloyd and one other person remained.
The tough guy gave the two who remained a hard look, as if committing their faces to memory.
He then strode over to a nearby tool rack, took down a small dagger, and infused it with some Spiritual Power. The blade began to glow faintly, emitting a sharp, cold glint.
According to the manual, its technical name was Spiritual Blade. Its resilience and sharpness varied depending on the amount of Spiritual Power infused into it. It was not only the primary tool for an Executor's work but also a key weapon for front-line combatants.
'The long blade Weiya had used to slay that Demon was just a plus-sized version of this.'
With his tool ready, the tough guy returned to the giant cockroach.
Several chains pinned the giant cockroach firmly to the wall. Two-finger-thick white steel spikes, etched with complex patterns and symbols, were driven into several of its vital points.
Similar patterns and symbols were visible all over the surrounding walls and floor, collectively forming an Orbit that sealed the Demon, rendering it helpless.
The burly man took a deep breath, held it, and in one swift motion, brought the blade down.
With a spray of dark-green blood, one of the spear-like antennae was sliced cleanly off.
Lloyd instantly felt something intangible wash over him, and a new notification sounded in his ear:
[Ding~ Madness Value +10]
'So I don't even have to do it myself? I can get Madness Value just from watching someone else's execution?'
He perked up immediately and began to watch more intently, carefully observing the tough guy's technique as he dismembered the Demon with the practiced ease of a master butcher.
'Honestly? It was pretty satisfying to watch.'