With his eyes a little swollen, Mine walked through the strangely empty corridors of the mansion. He followed a trace of mana that the leafy beings left before rotting and turning to dust when they finished ensuring the fragile integrity of Mine's core that, until then, held the opportunity to break the flimsy temporary shield only in drastic measures.

But he didn't want to think about that now. He needed to find Younri and Lydia quickly.

He needed answers.

What did Lydia know about Younri? Who was the man Lydia said was with Younri? How did Lydia manage to do that kind of spell on him?

He really needed answers.

Find Younri. Find Lydia with Younri. Find the other girls with Younri and Lydia. Run away. Mine repeated the plan in his head like a mantra. Argh! Everything is so confusing!

He still wore the borrowed mask and rose adornment, and as he walked, the trimmings on his skirt rustled. Luckily, the corridors remained strangely empty, as did the halls that had previously been full of puppet people. Even the entertainment hall was as empty as the hallways.

Something is wrong with this place. Mine slowed down the pace.

He looked at the mana trace, and it looked the same as before, without changing anything, not a single curve or intensity. It was as if he had been frozen. Mine took the semi-transparent line and felt it wrap around his hand like a cloud of smoke that dissipated and condensed again.

The trace then glitched, and Mine gasped. I'm walking in circles.

Before Mine could proceed, his surroundings glitched like a bug, and he returned to the same lobby he was in previously. The place was strangely empty and cold, with a few touches of dense humidity - like the other rooms.

Mine felt eyes on him. Not only one but several hidden eyes were staring at him as if he was their toy.

Mine launched an orb of mana towards the chandelier, which cracked with the encounter and collapsed miserably on the floor in the lobby. The crystals shattered and flew in various directions.

Mine's hair slowly turned red as he observed the chandelier destroyed on the floor. His fists clenched, and feeling an enveloping and toxic euphoria, he launched another sphere of mana towards the lobby bar, which collapsed piece by piece, scattering dust, drinks, and glass into the air.

"THE FUCK YOU TOYING ME?! AGARATH!!" Mine shouted, and his hair turned as crimson as his dress.

A loud but soft chuckle filled the air, but that voice wasn't Agarath's. The voice was soft and feminine, intertwined with notes of honey and warmth, but there was also an underlying and unsettling danger.

Mine looked at the source and saw the same woman he was standing beside in the lobby. She had a unique, enviable elegance. Her eyes were serene but they were covered by a long hat as black as her wavy hair, showing only her ruby lips with a solitary mole. Her smile was strangely warm and cold despite the gentle tone of her laughter.

"Oh, it seems I found another living being!" she opened the fan in her hands, showing its adorned pattern.

"How did you get rid of the trance?" Mine cautiously took two steps back.

"I don't know," she joyfully shrugged. "I only know the night was fun, but… where's everybody?" she looked around, confused, and fanned herself.

"… I don't know-"

Mine widened his eyes when he saw a trace of miasma coming from her, and he quickly imbued his hands with a mana sphere. "You're not human," he sweated.

The woman chuckled again and closed her fan. "Of course not. VIP members are special," she smiled, showing her fangs and warm smile. "But… it doesn't matter, right?" she dusted her dress, and a single black rose fell from the adornments.

Mine took two more cautious steps back. "Who are you?" his knees slightly tensed.

"You're smart! Ha ha ha!" she clapped her hands joyfully. "It's a pity you were sold... Don't worry. You're being used for something way bigger."

"I'm not following."

"You will," she grinned, her fangs now turning vicious. "Agarath, stop the illusions," she snapped her fingers.

"I told you he was too smart," Agarath grumbled, but he wasn't there. "It's a pain to deal with illusions, Miss! If you wanted a piece of him, you must wait." His voice said, annoyed and ethereal like an omniscient character.

Beside the woman, Agarath appeared from a breach in the background. He was grumbling endlessly and snapped his fingers as well, which made Mine slightly curl when he did so, but nothing happened to him… but it did do something to the lobby they were in.

It was no longer a lobby. They were in an abandoned theater.

Cobwebs, dust, and the majestic stage were illuminated by irregular lights that probably resisted time with great difficulty and were only lit by a true miracle.

The star of the stage was right in the center. The mana spheres in Mine's hands disappeared as her arms dropped when she realized where she was, dangerously lowering her guard. The large red velvet curtains were quite dusty, but still looking majestic.

In the VIP audience, upstairs from the common audience, was the mysterious woman and Agarath. Their once muffled conversation became crystal clear for the star on stage, who was looking for an escape route.

"My dear, beautiful Chronos… I see you met my dearest guest!" Agarath bowed respectfully. "I also see you want some spice to your last running performance… that's very incredible!!" he clapped his hands, and Mine slightly curled, his hands glowing the Chronos marks.

"What's your plan, psycho?!! Why don't you leave me alone?!" Mine shouted.

"You can't run away from us," the woman appeared beside Mine, who flinched and prepared a repelling spell that didn't work. "Now that I see you have my precious person's traces all over you… I want to break our contract, Agarath," she looked at the man in the chair, who sprang and started yelling.

"What?!"

"You're very cute…" The woman grabbed Mine's face and lifted him to look directly into her eyes, but the hat made it difficult for him to see her face. "And way more useful than I thought you'd be…" she chuckled. "Agarath, let's fight for him," she pressed a finger on Mine's forehead, numbing him.

Agarath landed loudly on the stage, and his eyes were glowing as crimson as fresh blood. His fists were clenched, and his clothes had changed to a suit with a red tie and black leather gloves covering his once calloused hands. He dragged a long, scaly tail behind him while nervously flapping his dark, leathered wings, causing the woman's hair to twirl.

"… You promised me…" Agarath snarled.

"I know, but you hid from me the fact you'd imprison the Chronos and my Heir," she snapped back, opening her fan. "It's fair to see who will claim him now, right?"

"LILITH!!" Agarath growled.

"Stay back and watch little lovely thing," Lilith smiled and caressed Mine's cheeks.

Get away from here!

Mine's breathing turned erratic when Lilith used a spell to take Mine to the front roll and watch their brawl. She grinned joyfully at him, turning her fan into a black, adorned umbrella. She swung and opened it, and many black roses fell from the ceiling.

A loud "THUD" and Agarath's attack was intercepted by Lilith's tail slap.

Mine, listen. Use me!

Lilith sent Agarath to the ceiling with a kick, and he slumped on the floor as gravity told him to. He made a cracking sound when he hit the flooring, and a metallic stench filled Mine's nose.

Mine, USE ME!

Agarath coughed blood and looked at Lilith, who grinned and crouched. She whispered something at him, and Mine saw a smile form on Agarath's face.

MINE!!!! RUN!

Mine gasped and felt his skin being torn apart when a sudden glow blinded him.

He blinked a couple of times and looked at the shocked duo on the stage. Lilith's eyes were still a mystery, but her grin wasn't honest. Agarath's gaze was crystal clear with sheer admiration and that sick desire. He stood up and clapped his hands to Mine.

"Bravo! We did it, Miss Lilith! He activated his survivability system as you predicted," he looked at Lilith, and she offered him a napkin.

"Wipe the blood from your face," she said, her tone emotionless. "You're rare… you're not like your uncles and aunt…" She took two steps forward, and Mine felt his body shiver, but still numb. "You… ha ha ha! You're indeed valuable!"

"Did you like our show?" Agarath smiled. "Now… we only need to weaken this system so we can take care of you in a proper way," he raised his hand, and his fingers were positioned for a single snap.

Mine widened his eyes and curled, closing them tightly.

Snap!

…

…

…

But nothing happened!

Mine gasped and looked at Agarath, whose eyes were as confused as his speech in a foreign language with Lilith. He looked around, and his limbs felt free, no longer numb or stiff.

He ran like a stray animal.

Stumbling on the chairs and dodging the spells the duo launched at him. A dark mana sphere hit Mine's back, and he fell on his knees. It stung and burned, but he got up again when he heard flapping of wings and indistinct shouts.

He charged on the door and reached the backyard, but not that odd backyard he saw with Agarath. It was the mansion's garden, so he wasn't in an illusion anymore!

"Don't you dare run away from me!" Lilith shouted, and she hit the floor with a dark mana sphere.

Mine's neck shivered.

Watch out!

With a swift step to the side, Mine evaded an oncoming attack from a black whip. The rush of air brushed against his skin as he leaned to the side, narrowly missing the strike.

His muscles tensed, reacting instinctively to the threat, and he shifted his weight seamlessly to avoid another attack. Black, vicious vines rose and tried to grab Mine's ankles and body, but he dodged most of them even though a few ragged his once beautiful dress.

The mess of dark mana vines destroyed most of the beautiful bushes around them as well as statuses and fountains, staining the grass with that black, ominous "liquid."

Agarath, on the other hand, used more long-ranged spells to hit Mine and slow his pace, but every time he got hit, he only turned faster. Despite them being fast, Mine was way faster.

The garden, once beautiful and pompous, turned into a wasteland behind them. Still, Mine's eyes were glued to what was in front of him, searching for a way into the mansion.

Mine's thoughts were a mess. He couldn't think of a way to distract them or how to act.

He just ran like a mad, stray animal.

A black vine caught his ankle, and he hit the grass, flickering his glow as his body reacted to the dark mana. When he was about to wear the Chronos mask, someone hopped in front of him and shot the vine, dissipating it in a go.

Mine raised his eyes to the person in front of him, but he could only face their back.

They wore clothes that seemed to be straight out of action movies as if the person was part of some kind of tactical police team. They had a belt with pockets and something on his arm, as well as leather gloves that held a silver gun. Their hair was silky and as white as snow, tied in a long braid.

"Are you ok?" the person asked, aiming the gun towards the duo who had just stopped their chasing.

"I-I…" Mine stammered.

"Don't worry. I'm a friend," the person chuckled. "I'll distract them, go." He started shooting at the duo.

That person was way too out of the ordinary to be using a single gun against two entities... Or just plain dumb or too bold. Still, Mine quickly stood up and ran to the front door.

When he reached the stairway, the same black vines broke the marbles and flooring as viciously as they were, and the person left behind shot a shower of bullets at them after dodging an attack directly from Agarath.

"Run!" the person shouted to Mine, who halted and reached the huge, adorned door with gold.

Mine struggled to open the heavy door, and a firecracker-like spell hit it before Mine could close the door behind him, launching him inside as the door slammed shut. He fell on his knees and panted as outside noises were a mess.

When he stood up, he saw a man in front of him. He was crossing his arms and had a tattoo on his left arm. He was way too different from the person he had just seen.

Mine imbued his hands with mana and glared at him, but the man only raised his hands. "I'm no threat," he said. "I'll guide you to Younri. He needs you to be safe."

Mine gasped, and the mana on his hands stopped flowing. "Younri? H-How do you know him?!"

"It's a long story, but if you want to run wild… it's your choice only. We need to be quick before Agarath uses his illusions," he started walking, and Mine seemed hesitant. "What? Will you wait for him to come and get you?"

"Who are you?"

"Does it matter?" the man grumbled, impatient. 

"I don't trust you."

Outside, bullets and shouts were heard and the man's impatience grew. "You think way too much," he grabbed Mine's dress, pressing him against the wall. "If I wanted to harm you, I wouldn't make a dumb show like those two dog-shit-headed freaks. Now, come," he released Mine's dress.

"Tch, Fine…" Mine dusted his dress and followed that mysterious man.

"By the way. The one in the backyard isn't Lilith."

Mine blinked and looked at the man. "Then, who is that?"

"A freak named Aiden."