She's Just Like You And Me, But She's Homeless

Ariel refused to call it a house. It would imply that he could live there, but the floor was too filthy, the rats and roaches were too numerous, and the smell was too foul.

Why, then, was he staying in this place where the walls seemed like they would fall off at a strong breeze?

He was simply exhausted. Leaving the Underworld for the Outmost Ring had taken a lot out of him, mentally and physically.

When he finally reached his destination, he didn't overthink it. He approached the first person he saw and asked if there was a place that would accept someone like him, who didn't possess any of the currency the overworlders used.

In fact, he had nothing except the clothes on his back. All his rations and tools were used in the effort to leave the tunnels. His clothes were a memento from his late father. He refused to part with them for a night's sleep.

The stranger had directed him to a dilapidated, two-story building. However, he could see outside that the second floor was destroyed and lifeless. Stepping inside, he saw dozens of people crammed into tiny rooms, drinking, smoking, playing cards, chatting... though all activity stopped once he raised his voice to ask for a room.

All the tenants gathered around, talking over each other, discussing whether he could stay. Ariel ended that quickly by stating he didn't care about most of their opinions. He wanted to know from the person who owned the place.

The Underworld didn't have the concepts of deeds and landlords, but property still existed. Strong individuals carved their spaces, and the weak were forced to learn theirs.

The Outer Ring people laughed and kindly explained that there was no single-handed domination here. It was all theirs because they claimed it, and no one could dispute it.

He couldn't stay, they said. Smelled too much like one of those subhumans.

Ariel had also laughed before kindly showing his thoughts on their culture. After beating up all the squatters and kicking them out, he had a... property, which he refused to call a house. He was a neat freak, though he was sure the previous tenants would laugh at his face if he said so. A resident of the Underworld, known for worse conditions than these, complaining about a dirty room? Insanity.

But his mother, Rea bless her soul, was sickly since his earliest memory, and he had always tried his best to keep their environment free of anything that could worsen her condition. Now she was gone, but the old habit hadn't died alongside her.

Tired as he was, his pride still wouldn't allow him to look for somewhere else after all this trouble. So he would turn this into a proper house by deep cleaning it.

But this glorified dump didn't even have a broom. Ariel wouldn't need one, thanks to his telekinesis. But it couldn't remove the stains on the ground without destroying it, nor could it fix the crimes against nature in that sorry excuse for a bathroom. He would need soap, bleach, plus... whatever else they sold here. He wasn't used to variety in the Underworld, so he'd take what he could get.

It dawned on him that he'd need money for those cleaning supplies. Thankfully, the squatters didn't exactly have time to unpack before they left, so there were some bills around the... property... that he could use.

Night had fallen on the Outmost Ring when he left. The full moon cast long shadows on the vacant streets, which smelled of smoke and something bitter but unknown to him. Although he couldn't help but admit that it was better than the darkness and stale air of the Underworld.

Not much later, he stood outside a small, nameless grocery store. He pushed open the creaky door, eyes adjusting to the dim light inside. The place was cluttered with haphazardly stacked shelves, some nearly toppling over due to the weight of their contents. Crates and boxes were strewn about on the floor, their labels mostly legible to him.

Behind the counter, an older man with a graying beard looked up from the magazine he was reading, his gaze lingering on Ariel before flicking back to the page. "What can I help you with?" he asked gruffly.

He scanned the shelves, taking in the unfamiliar products and prices scrawled beside them. "Just cleaning supplies," he said, reaching for the things he recognized. Soap bars, bleach, trash bags, towels, a mop... something called a scent booster, which he had never used before. But he could figure out its purpose easily enough.

"That'll be 70 Cruiser."

Ariel retrieved all his bills, comparing their values with the price tags he'd seen. He realized he wouldn't have enough to pay for everything, so he pushed the money over the counter and removed a few soap bars from his purchase.

The shopkeeper snorted, looking as if he knew he was utterly clueless. But he still took the money and put his things in a plastic bag. Except for the broom, of course.

The knowing look followed him until he crossed the door, irritating him. The stares and murmurs he drew on the way to his new property didn't help, either.

Where were all these people lurking when he was going to the store? Had they all been hiding because they saw what he did to those squatters, coming out once they confirmed he wasn't a violent maniac? Ariel glared at nothing in particular, hoping they would get the hint.

His frown only deepened once he approached his property, spotting a bunch of grown men surrounding a bespectacled girl. She hadn't realized her situation yet, looking more confused than anything.

Normally, he wouldn't care, but there were two extenuating factors.

One, they were doing this too close to his door.

Two, he recognized the clothes the brunette was wearing. That strapped vest, red and black like the sleek metal gauntlets going up her elbows... the plain white shirt and black pants underneath... the scabbard on her hip...

It was an old knight's uniform. This girl was from the Underworld, like him.

Ariel's aura crackled around him, a warning that the group didn't notice.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked, voice low.

They turned at that, all stepping back in hesitation, save one. A hulking man with a scar across his cheek scoffed at the shorter, green-haired boy.

"Move along, Princess. We're bu—"

The brute's head snapped to the side, startling the others. He slumped but didn't fall to the ground, held by his collar by a shimmering, floating glove.

"The hell did you just call me?" Ariel growled, eyes narrowing at the dazed, trembling man. The brunette slipped away from the circle, moving closer to him. Once again, she seemed more curious than afraid, watching as his aura dragged the kneeling man closer.

"L-Listen man, I'm sorry, I didn't know you were—Ughh..."

His power was barely contained, threatening to gouge the earth below and destroy the buildings around them, but he managed to hold himself back.

"Didn't know that I was an Esper? Or something else?"

"I-I—"

"Get out of my sight. And don't come near my place again."

The man dropped to the ground, scrambling backward until he hit a wall. Ariel glared at him as he ran away with his cronies, then turned to the girl, taking in her appearance once more.

He wasn't mistaken.

"Thanks—"

"You." He pointed at her, interrupting whatever she was about to say. "Come with me." His tone brooked no argument. He strode inside the building with heavy steps, expecting her to follow.

As he walked towards one of the more spacious rooms, he heard her behind him, closing the door shut.

The mini-fridge in one of the rooms creaked open, and a water bottle floated to his hands. He opened it, took a swig—

Then closed it, tossing it to the girl with a grimace. Sitting on the floor, she caught it and set it aside, which he respected, if nothing else.

"You're an Underworlder, aren't you?" he asked, crossing his arms.

She shrugged. "I dunno. I woke up a few minutes ago and couldn't remember anything."

Well, that was a way to start a conversation. Ariel blinked rapidly, taking several moments to think his next question through. "... where did you wake up?"

"I think it was a cave... dark, damp, quiet... too quiet," she spoke in a low tone as if confirming her memories rather than telling him anything. "I kept walking north until I found a tunnel, and then it split, so I chose the path where more light came through... which led me here. Was that the Underworld?"

Ariel nodded, and she continued.

"I tried looking for clues about... anything. But everyone I met was really rude," she commented, pouting. "I was asking those guys if they knew where the nearest library was, but they kept laughing at me... until you showed up, anyway."

"You made the right choice. Leaving the ruins, I mean. Talking to them was stupid as hell."

Her lips twitched, almost forming a smile. "Well, thanks for the advice? And for pushing them away, I suppose. But now, I should—"

"Do you want to stay here?" he offered bluntly.

"I... shouldn't. I need to keep searching for answers."

Ariel frowned. "You really think you can handle the Outmost Ring alone? Without your memories? It's impossible for someone like you."

Her brows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"If you came from the Underworld, you're an Underworlder, like me. But the people in this city call us Subhuman because we live with the monsters down there. I only noticed you because of that armor you're wearing, and if anyone else does, it won't be a few punks surrounding you. They'll hunt you like an animal because they think it's the right thing to do."

"..."

She glanced at the door before meeting his gaze again, fixing her spectacles. "But... isn't it more dangerous here? I mean, those people know you live here now. What if they come back?"

"Then I'll beat them again," he claimed, the very picture of confidence. She didn't look swayed.

Ariel sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Look, I'm just offering you a place since it's almost midnight and you don't remember where to go. Not even I'm staying in this dump forever."

There was a lull in the conversation, in which the brunette's shoulders relaxed ever so slightly.

Why was he even doing this again? Out of some twisted sense of nationalism? He fought countless fellow Underworlders for resources, but he'd roll out the red carpet for the first pretty face he met above ground?

For all he knew, this girl could be lying or scheming against him... but a schemer would have chosen something more believable...

She nodded, smiling faintly. "Okay. I'll stay."

And now he would feel like a piece of shit if he took the offer back.

"... don't mention it." He looked away, trying to hide his frustration. A good host didn't make his guests feel like they were a bother.

"I'm going to clean this place now. Pick whatever room you want."

His aura washed over the groceries, and he walked away. Before he crossed the door with the cleaning supplies floating behind him, he finally introduced himself.

"I'm Ariel, by the way. Ariel Nowell."

She dipped her head in acknowledgment. "Ser Angelica The Third."

He winced as if physically struck, but as his back was turned to her, she didn't notice it.

He assumed she was an Underworlder, but they weren't the only people who appeared there. Outer Ring merchants and smugglers occasionally carried their deals there, where the sun didn't shine, and Inner Ring knights often came down to slay the "Subhumans"...

Considering her clothes and name, could it be that she... no. There was no way she was a noble, right? Their uniforms were gaudier than what she had on.

He hoped he wasn't in denial, helping a noble with amnesia. What a terrible way to start his life above ground would that be.

"So... you remember your name?" he probed, splitting his attention between the cleaning supplies working telekinetically and the girl looking around the rooms.

"It was in my sword," she explained, patting her scabbard. Her expression became more hopeful. "Do you recognize it?"

"I sure hope not..." he muttered, low enough to escape her ears. Angelica... Angelica...

"No family name?"

"Nope."

That suggested she was an Underworlder. Most didn't have family names, as their ancestors gave them up ages ago, along with their lives. As if they knew their descendants would rise above ground and claim their birthright one day. Ariel was also born without one, but he gave himself the surname of Nowell as a way to blend in with the Ringed City denizens.

His focus returned to the girl just in time to see her move past him and enter one of the rooms.

"Well, this one looks good," she said, peering around the small space with that same smile. "I'll take it."

Definitely an Underworlder. A noble wouldn't smile at a room like this even without memories. Their subconscious would compel them to call it out for the rubbish it was.

"Right. Let me know if you need anything."

He moved to another room to keep cleaning. Angelica choosing to leave the Underworld as soon as she awoke was a testament to her survival instincts. But if she wanted clues on her identity, she would have to look there, where she was likely born and raised.

With a thought, a few trash bags flew outside the windows. All the other houses had their waste dumped outside, too. So he didn't feel guilty.

He would tell her where she could find clues but wouldn't follow her if she took his advice. He had already spent too much of his life down there.

All the furniture rose from the floor, revealing the stains and insects underneath. Ariel's aura gathered the latter into a living, crawling sphere before flinging them outside.

He helped her tonight because she happened to be close, but soon, they would go their separate ways. There was nothing else to it.

When he finished with the first room, he found her in the next one, sitting cross-legged on the mattress, staring intently at the large stain on its unoccupied corner.

"Get off. I'm throwing that away."

"Can't it be cleaned?"

"I can wash it, but if I leave it out to dry it'll get stolen. I'd rather save time."

She left the mattress, and he left the room with it trailing behind him.

"Is this really saving time?" Oh great. Now, she was following him after he took her seat. "Didn't you say you wouldn't stay here for long?"

"It's not a waste of time to clean things." he felt insulted that she could even imply otherwise. "I refuse to sleep in a dump, and I refuse to leave this dump as is."

"Why?"

"Because I kicked out the people living here! If I didn't do anything with this space, that would make me a waste of space too."

She laughed, and to his surprise, he wasn't that annoyed by it.

"You're weird."

"Nothing weird about it," Ariel grumbled, trying to tune her out and focus on his telekinesis. "You need a reason to fight or it's just violence."

He paused before a door to glare at her. "Now stop following me like a baby duck unless you're going to help."

"Fine, fine... can you leave one mattress, though? I don't want to sleep on the floor..."

"Hmph." The floors would be cleaner than any of the mattresses when he finished. "Suit yourself."

After many more minutes of dusting, washing, scrubbing, pest-killing, garbage-collecting, and scent-boosting, Ariel finally turned the dusty, crumbling building into something he could consider a house.

He was drying his hands near the mini-fridge when Angelica approached him again. She had stripped herself of her scabbard and most of her uniform, wearing only the pants and a black crop top that had been underneath it all. He'd raised an eyebrow at the change, then flattened his expression. Her armor did look painful to sleep with, and he wasn't about to tell her she should be on high alert around him.

She fetched a water bottle from the mini-fridge, drinking while looking around what he'd dubbed the kitchen area. Her eyes grew increasingly wide before she turned to him again with a thumbs up.

"Nice job."

For the first time today, he cracked a genuine smile. "Yeah, I know." His emotional walls were rebuilt as quickly as they crumbled, and he regarded her seriously again. "You're about to go to sleep, right?" A nod. "I'll probably be gone when you wake up, so here's some advice. There's a high chance you'll find clues about your identity in the Underworld since that's where you're from."

He fished inside his pockets before thrusting a few bills in her direction. The last of what he found while cleaning. "This should be enough for breakfast."

Ariel felt her hesitation as their hands touched and saw the guilt in her eyes as she pocketed the money. "... are you sure you have enough to give away?"

"Yeah," he lied, and it was enough to appease her.

"... I'll pay you back," she said as she left for her room. Ariel leaned back and sighed, knowing he should rest but worrying that it would leave him vulnerable.

The telltale glow of his aura spread around the house, extending his awareness. He let some of it clump around his body, taking a solid, cocoon-like form.

"..."

That should be enough to detect any intruders and protect his body. Now, he needed to keep it up through the night.

Another breath escaped his lips as he closed his eyes, imagining himself far away from this apartment, the Outmost Ring, or even the Ringed City...

He was sinking in a river. But before the water could soak him, an air bubble surrounded him, letting him sink further into the darkness... sinking... sinking... sinking...

Then, there was a sudden, harsh light, and he sprung into a crouch, blinking rapidly. How did it get past his—

Oh... it was morning.

For a moment, he was almost impressed with himself for forgetting he was above ground. Then, he felt stupid for panicking at the sun. Sure, he'd needed an impactful mental image to accompany him in his sleep and keep his aura active. But if he hadn't held back at the last moment now, he could have brought the entire building down...

Banishing those dark thoughts, Ariel stood up, stretching his limbs and hearing a few satisfying cracks.

A quick check on the room opposite his revealed the girl he sheltered on a whim, still snoring softly against the mattress.

Good.

After running a hand through his hair to fix it, Ariel left the house, determined to start the next chapter of his new life.

Before they left this world, Ariel's parents told him to go to the city. To use his talents for a better life than what the Underworld could provide.

The young man had set his sights on the Middle Ring. It had better infrastructure than the Underworld and Outmost Ring, and it was far enough from the nobles that he wouldn't routinely fear for his safety.

However, there was one problem. To leave the Outmost Ring and live in the Middle Ring, he needed a passport...

Actually, he could cross the gate just fine without one. But he would need identification to join a school or find a decent home. While he could attempt to get one through legal venues, he didn't know everything involved. It couldn't be as simple as giving them his name and birthday and getting a document.

No. More questions would be involved, questions Ariel wouldn't be keen on answering because he couldn't risk the government discovering he was an Underworlder. Thus, he needed a passport from someone who wouldn't ask too much.

Strolling towards the Middle Ring's gates, he looked between the flow of immigrants and emigrants and spotted someone standing beside it.

It was a teen around his age, leaning with his back against a building and a cigarette between his lips. He wore a patchwork hoodie with a denim body and a cheap cotton hood.

Patchwork Hoodie raised an eyebrow at Ariel's approach, turning his head to blow smoke away from him.

"I need a passport," Ariel told him, much to the white-haired boy's confusion.

"Okay? I don't have one."

"Do you know someone who does?"

He'd never prided himself on subtlety. Why waste hours of his life watching people flow between the borders to deduce who could help him when he could take a risk and find out?

The young man's eyes widened as he looked around, checking if the gate's guards were listening. "L-Look, man... I don't know who sent you here, but I don't mess with that stuff..."

"Do you know someone who does?" Ariel repeated, undeterred.

"I don't!" he exclaimed, cigarette falling from his hands. That caught the gatekeepers' attention. Ariel turned around, sensing this was becoming too much of a bother to continue.

"... try Macy. From the Toyama Dojo." A whisper from behind made him pause.

"Alright." Ariel nodded. Then, as a second thought, "... thanks."

"Weirdo..." he heard the teen mutter but let it slide.

---

[She's Just Like You And Me, But She's Homeless]

---

The Toyama Dojo wasn't a dojo at all. It was a front for something Ariel had seen many times before. His nose wrinkled at the smell of gunpowder permeating the dark halls of this facility. "Students" of the dojo could be seen walking around carrying various black boxes, their contents obscured yet still clear to him.

Arms trafficking. How dull.

After he approached their entrance asking for "Macy", they spent a few minutes figuring out if he was law enforcement, then inspected his body for weapons and guided him inside.

The room he entered didn't smell like gunpowder but rotting wood. It was small and dimly lit, holding three people besides himself: the two thugs who guided him here and a tall, blond woman sitting behind a desk, typing away at a computer. She looked up at them as the door closed with a question on her lips.

"Who—"

It died on her lips as she noticed him, a strange glint in her eyes as she looked him up and down. "You..."

"What?" Ariel asked, scowling. The guards beside him tensed, and he took a small breath, reigning in the almost palpable disdain he felt. He didn't care about the morality or legality of arms trafficking. But these people tended to carry their shady deals in the Underworld, which prompted law enforcement to search for them there, causing more trouble for him and others who lived there.

"Ah, nothing..." she waved him off, leaning forward on her desk. "What's your name, cutie?"

"Ariel."

"I'm Macy, but you could probably guess that. What can I help you with?"

"I need a Middle Ring passport."

She sighed. "Shame. And you couldn't get one legally because...? Secret spy? Criminal starting fresh? A subhuman playing human?" Her smile only widened at the glare he sent her. "Don't answer; I don't care as long as your money's good."

For a few seconds, all that could be heard in the room was the clicking of a keyboard. Then, Macy turned the monitor to him, showing a template for what he assumed was his passport card and the information it needed.

Nationality. Given Name. Surname. Sex. Date of Birth. Place of Birth.

"After we fill this out, I'll insert you into the Middle Ring's database, print the card, and you can pass as a normal citizen, as long as you stay clear of any blue bloods."

"... I'm planning on joining an academy. Is this enough to fool them?"

"Ha! Good one. But really, stay away from uptown and..." She paused once he noticed Ariel's glare. "Wait... you're serious?"

More laughter, this time with an undertone of disbelief.

"O-Of course, a passport isn't enough! Have you ever heard of something called school records? Unless you wanna take classes with a bunch of elementary school brats, you—"

"Yeah, yeah, I get the picture." Ariel waved her off. "Can you fake those school records, too?"

"Heh... sure. But it'll cost ya extra."

"I don't have any cash. I'll pay you with a favor."

"Cocky, aren't we? What makes you think I want a favor from you?"

"You may not want it, but you need it. People like you always do."

She hummed, drumming her fingers on the table. "You're right. But what can you do except look pretty and make demands?"

"Anything I put my mind to." Ariel's aura flared around him as he spoke, a living testament to his boasts.

"And I'm sure the Ringed City's future will be safe in your hands, Mr. Wannabe Student," the merchant snarked before leaning forward. "Alright, here's the deal."

Ariel straightened at the grave tone of her voice.

"I had a few of my men working Underground, making tunnels to transport our goods. But a few days ago, they stopped reporting their progress. I didn't want to risk more of my people down there to discover what happened, but you're not one of my people. Get where I'm going with this?"

"Is this a rescue mission?"

"Maybe, but I'm not so naive. I only want to find out what got them. If there's anyone alive or any equipment still working, you can drag them back with that telekinesis of yours."

"How many people did you send?"

"A dozen. You can tell who they are by the symbol on their uniform's shoulder."

Ariel glanced at a guard. The symbol seemed more like a word in a language he couldn't recognize, but that was irrelevant.

Memorizing what he needed to know, he whipped around and walked away.

"Wait! We have a map of the tunnel we developed so far! Take it—!"

"Don't need it."

Ariel regretted the words as soon as he spoke them, but by the time he thought of returning and taking the map, he'd already left the dojo. So what if she suspected he was an Underworlder now? The sooner he finished this, the better.

---

[She's Just Like You And Me, But She's Homeless]

---

He hadn't missed any of it.

The stale air, the eerie silence, the cramped tunnels he had to squeeze through. Darkness consumed every inch of the path ahead, making him second-guess his every step.

Minutes turned into hours as Ariel descended into the Underworld, eventually finding a faint green light from a glowstick attached to a cave wall. Another identical glowstick shimmered a few meters ahead.

He followed this intermittently lit path, then paused as a rotten, sulfuric scent entered his nostrils.

Demonic flames. Ariel's aura covered his body, lifting him off the ground. A few glowsticks were ripped from the walls, lighting his path further as he flew to his location. He blew past a dense black cloud and landed softly on the cave, but he'd been a few hours too late.

He knelt closer to the corpse, whose features were charred beyond recognition. If they once carried Macy's gang symbol, then he couldn't tell.

Ariel stepped away from the body, but not before muttering a brief prayer for their soul.

It would not be the last. Seconds later, he found a pair of bodies, similarly burnt.

Then, a fourth body.

And finally, he found Macy's symbol.

Two legs splayed out...

A hand split from its arm and laid perpendicular to it...

The other arm, bent at an acute angle and attached to part of the torso...

And the rest of the torso. The head was impaled on a stalagmite, lifelessly staring at the macabre writing.

There were two kinds of creatures in the Underworld.

The Underworlders, descendants of the knights who formed a dauntless vanguard against the Demons that burst from beneath the Earth ages ago. Their ancestors were left to rot underground after the war, as the demonic energies surrounding the place had seeped into their minds, bodies, and souls.

And the Monsters, other organisms tainted by the Demons and mutated into nasty pests.

Both could wield demonic flames, but only one was capable of such needless cruelty. Not to mention that the body trail spanned wider than the size of a regular monster's territory.

The tunnelers had fallen prey to a particularly sadistic Underworlder, who had... toyed with them. Taking the time to kill one while the next victim ran away, only to die a few meters ahead of their ally.

Deep in his heart, he knew they were all dead already. But he wouldn't return until he confirmed it with his own eyes. So he kept on walking, feeling something inside him grow heavier with each desecrated corpse.

By the end of the bloodied trail, Ariel stood before a hole that split the tunnel he'd followed so far. He didn't know what to expect when he reached the last body. The culprit, still inspecting their handiwork? Or perhaps their corpse would also be there, taken down in a pyrrhic victory.

After a deep breath, he slid through the narrow opening, finding a cavern on the other side, ten times larger than the tunnels. At its center, a small puddle illuminated by fungi clinging to the rocks. Despite the green light, the water was pitch-black, courtesy of the blood mixed with it.

It was a massacre. Dozens of body parts were scattered across the cave, belonging to creatures of various sizes and shapes: furred monsters, scaled monsters, and even feathered monsters.

This was not the Underworlder's work. Their victims had been burned to death or torn apart from limb to limb. These cuts were too clean. The tunnelers' firearms also didn't match up.

These monsters' corpses were still relatively fresh, and the expedition had stopped over a day ago, so he could safely assume whoever did this wasn't related to his current investigation.

Turning back to the tunnels, Ariel—

Almost stumbled in his next step.

The cavern, no, the Underworld itself seemed to be shaking. Ariel let his aura levitate him again, forming a barrier around him.

His gaze turned south as a distant, rumbling noise echoed from far away, leaving an oppressive silence in its wake.

However, nothing came save for dust and crumbling rocks falling from the ceiling. Ariel kept his defensive stance, ready to support the cave if it came crashing down...

Then, the cavern shook again, far more violently, to the point he could see the corpses tumbling on the ground.

The impacts were getting closer. It was no longer a question of withstanding the disaster but stopping whatever was causing it.

Another impact spread cracks on the wall ahead of him, and he calmly solidified his psychic power into weapons. Spears, swords, chains...

Thought it was the gauntlets that moved first, batting away the stone fragments bursting from the newly created hole. Ariel's eyes trained on the newest arrival.

"... You?"

The bespectacled girl landed beside him on a crouch, looking at him with wide eyes. "A-Ariel?!" She wiped the sweat from her brow, huffing from exertion. "... you're... here?"

A thundering step from the other side of the wall made her shake off her confusion. She rose to her feet and brandished her weapon at the other newcomer.

They were... it was... something that should not exist.

Its body was hunched over, yet still struggling to fit inside the cavern, with muscular limbs that exuded strength with each step. Its skin was rough and gray, oozing pitch-black blood from several cuts on its limbs, chest, and even scalp. Two horns protruded from its skull, spiraling in different directions.

Two burning red orbs were aimed at Ariel as the... thing smiled, showing too many fangs.

There were two kinds of creatures in the Underworld. The Underworlders and the Monsters.

There were no Demons. Not since humanity won the war against them and sealed the Hell's Mouth for good.

But what stood before him... it couldn't be a mere Monster. Being near this creature, staring at the flames burning in its eyes, made Ariel nauseous. It felt like something wholly alien to him as a human, yet strangely familiar as a native of the Underworld. An echo of the primordial chaos that had seeped into its very bedrock.

As if sensing his turmoil—his weakness—The Demon took a step forward.

Immediately, Ariel's chains wrapped around its body, tying legs and arms together and squeezing with enough force to make its cuts spurt blood like a fountain. The swordswoman was already stepping forward and leaping, her weapon rushing toward the hellspawn's neck—

It bounced off its hide harmlessly, just like Ariel's aura armaments. The chains rattled as their enemy took another step forward, and Ariel frowned, mentally tightening their bonds again.

He exerted enough force to crush a building into dust, yet it barely kept it in place.

"Keep holding it!"

However, it was enough for his current ally to capitalize on. She moved around The Demon's blind spots as it tried to track her down and lash out with sluggish movements. Her blade danced around the shimmering chains, finding the wounds already dealt to The Demon's body and carving them deeper. It maintained that unsettling grin, a fiery beam bursting from its eyes as it tried to attack her while trapped.

Two pikes were flung into its eye sockets, but its eyes reformed around the weapons, made of flames that wouldn't disappear no matter how hard he tried to snuff them. Still, it was enough to block the demonic flames' trajectory.

As he wondered if death by a thousand cuts would be enough, a chain snapped. Suddenly, the swordswoman was forced to step back to avoid a giant fist that sent rocks and psychic links flying in every direction.

It had gotten stronger. With each of the abomination's steps, The Underworld rumbled ominously. The enemy was still too slow to threaten their lives, but it was clear to see what was happening.

Its physical might increased as it got hurt, and even though it wasn't healing, it didn't feel any pain or exhaustion either. A battle of attrition would lead to a moment when it would surpass both of them.

"I'm loosening the chains," he told his ally as his aura erupted from him in a pillar of energy. "Try to keep up."

He would speed up its death to the point that window would be too short. The chains were spun into thin, hollow vines, jamming inside The Demon's wounds, draining its blood and scraping its insides. No longer weighed down, it charged straight at them even as pools of black ichor formed from its every step.

They burst through the cavern a moment later, now on the back foot. The cramped tunnels weren't enough to slow down the hellspawn as it clung to the walls and propelled itself forward like a burrowing animal. Were it not for a thin sheet of Ariel's aura covering and supporting said walls, everything around them would have collapsed, burying them in cold, unfeeling stone.

He could exploit that. Contain the collapse around him and his ally and let The Demon be buried alone. However, he knew that wouldn't be enough to kill it.

Ariel had already left this place behind, but the idea of taking the easy way, of fleeing and leaving this creature alive to torment the Underworld another day... it disgusted him.

The Demon was already as fast as his flight speed, leaving his ally lagging behind. But he could see the way the flames in its eyes flickered, burning its life away as it moved only for destruction's sake.

The tunnels shook around him, and as his eyes twitched at a bit of dust falling from above, the abomination was already upon him.

A wall sprung between them, breaking before he could even finish blinking. Dark claws grasped his clothes, cracking at his hastily crafted armor and tugging him forward. His ally swung her sword from his peripheral, aiming to decapitate The Demon as it lunged for him...

This was it. The borderline. The moment when the enemy was simultaneously at its weakest and strongest.

The battle must be against an enemy of humanity.

All Challenges completed.

"Hellflame, Open!"

Flames burst from his fingertips. His hand thrust forward like a spear at his enemy's face, but it was a wasted movement. This power moved for destruction's sake. It was his inheritance as a member of The Underworld. Though weak compared to a True Demon's fire, it was enough to swallow up the embers in his weakened enemy's eyes, quickly engulfing its head in bright green flames.

A sword cut through the flames, and a bundle of ashes shaped like a head flew into the air.

Both fighters didn't dare to stop yet. Ariel floated away, restraining his enemy's body with chains again. The swordswoman stepped back and shifted into a defensive stance, eyes flying between the headless body and the burnt head.

The Demon's head muttered something in its eldritch tongue, falling limp right after. There were no final explosions or hellish screams. Only death and silence, save for the sound of blood dripping onto the stone floor.

Then, Ariel fell on his butt, gasping for breath. He wiped a drop of blood running down his nose and looked up in puzzlement as the swordswoman loomed over him.

"Are you okay?" she asked with a nervous frown, her eyes roaming up and down his body, checking him for injuries.

"Better than expected," he grunted, pushing himself to his feet and brushing dust off his pants. "What about you? You were the one fighting it before you found me."

She shook her head, finally letting herself lean against a wall for support, her exhaustion evident with each subsequent rise and fall of her chest. Her answer came a few seconds later.

"I'm not hurt... just tired. That... thing was chasing me since I got here."

Memories flooded back into Ariel of how he told her to seek answers about himself in the Underworld and how they parted ways... hours ago.

"... you've been fighting since morning?" he asked, almost impressed.

"Yeah. But I couldn't do anything but scratch it until you came in..." She didn't sound upset about it. Ariel could feel her gaze on his right hand—the one he'd thrust like a spear seconds ago.

"Hmph. I could only weaken it and kill it because of those scratches." But he wasn't keen on killing her curiosity for his demonic flames.

She smiled weakly at that, and he did not know why. It wasn't as if he was praising her skills; he was deprecating his.

They walked away from the Demon's remains, reaching the tunneler's corpses again. As he and Macy had expected, none survived the ordeal, and their equipment was beyond use.

Now, what would Ariel tell his employer? If rumors spread of a Demon living in the Underworld, the inner city nobles would panic and come down with a fury, putting Underworlders in the crossfire. However, if that Demon wasn't the only one lurking here, they'd die all the same.

As always, there was no good choice when it came to this place, only the choice that led to fewer deaths.

"Did you find anything about yourself?" he asked the brunette, ending that thought. It wasn't like him to agonize over his decisions. He would tell Macy the truth and nothing more.

The girl shook her head. "I traced my steps to where I first woke up, but I didn't find anything. Then I tried looking for someone who might know me, but I only met a bunch of monsters."

"... where you going next?"

"I dunno. Can I crash on your place again? I promise I'll help with chores—"

"No."

He put a hand on her shoulder.

"Come with me to the Middle Ring. Someone like you shouldn't wander aimlessly and let your talents go to waste."

"My talents...?"

"Monster-slaying. The city we're under was built to raise warriors who defend humanity from the abominations you met today."

"..."

She didn't reply, and he watched as his words sunk in. Her posture became a bit straighter, her eyes a bit more focused. Unconsciously, she had already accepted that duty as hers. As expected from someone who woke up in her attire.

"I will be one of those warriors," he continued, jabbing a thumb at this chest, which deflated slightly at his following words. "But before that, I need to... complete my education."

The brunette snapped her fingers. "I get it."

"Good. So, will you—"

"You want a friend in your class, right?"

His eyes flashed in annoyance. "No. If you're a knight, then I'm your lord. I'll help you live in this disgusting city, and when I call for you during a battle, you'll move."

"Do I have to call you Lord Ariel, though?" When his glare intensified, she made a placating gesture, laughing awkwardly. "Kidding, kidding! But I'll take your deal. You're a bit..." she paused, re-thinking her words. "... a lot rough around the edges, but you seem nicer than the people at the Outer Ring."

"Wonderful," he grunted, offended that she could even make that comparison but wanting to move the conversation along. Now that he had a follower—one with amnesia, even—the amount of preparations in his agenda had doubled. "Now, first things first..."

He needed to get her a fake passport so she could join the academy with him. Hopefully, that arms dealer could be haggled with.

"... what was your name again?" he asked, realizing he would need it for her passport.

"I told you yesterday! How did you forget already?"

"Don't nag me. I thought we'd never see each other again, so I didn't bother remembering."

"Is that how you treat everyone you meet?"

He clicked his tongue and held up three fingers. "You have three seconds to introduce yourself before I start calling you by the first thing I think of for the rest of your life."

"Angelica! Ser Angelica The Third!"

Privately, Ariel wondered if he should use a nickname anyway. What a stupidly old-fashioned name. Although...

"... It fits you."

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Demon Crash Adventure: END
NEXT: School Days Adventure(?)

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