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Western Plateau on the Third Floor.

Hannon was sprinting across it without hesitation.

Clinging to his back like a shadow was a man.

The man, Solvas—the owner of the shadow—kept his lips tightly shut.

There was a simple reason why he was stuck to Hannon like this.

They were being pursued by a nameless Apostle.

And the only one who could outrun it was Hannon.

Hannon had legs so fast he could be considered the fastest in the world.

In terms of evasion, he was likely unmatched.

That was Hannon Irey.

But even Hannon was barely maintaining this desperate race.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Terrifying sounds exploded from behind.

The Apostle chasing them was relentless.

No matter how many times it was shaken off, it caught up again.

Using both hands and feet, tongue flicking in the air, it sprinted like a beast.

“What is that thing?”

“We’ve heard about them, remember?”

Hannon replied in his usual, casual tone.

At that, Solvas’s face went stiff.

“…An Ascended Apostle.”

Hannon nodded instead of answering.

“Do you have a plan?”

It was a shame to be piggybacking like this, but simply running away wasn't a real solution.

“I at least think we need to tie that thing down here as long as we can.”

“...Because there are still Academy students on the upper floors?”

“Exactly.”

Solvas quickly caught the point.

That thing couldn’t be dealt with by Academy students.

The fact that even Solvas himself had fled helplessly proved it.

“But Hannon, you know better than anyone you can’t keep this up forever.”

Sweat already drenched Hannon's forehead.

He was pushing himself hard.

Especially since he was carrying Solvas—it was an added burden.

“At the very least, let me—…”

Solvas's expression darkened.

“You know,”

Hannon suddenly began speaking.

“I recently met the kind of hero I used to dream about.”

He flashed a carefree smile despite his exhaustion.

“I watched fairy tales as a kid and thought, I want to be like that hero. I dreamed that dream again and again.”

He beamed, even though he was soaked with sweat and looked worn out.

“And now that kind of hero is walking the path of a hero again.”

Hannon pushed even more power into his legs.

“So shouldn’t I at least try to walk that same path?”

He clutched tightly to Solvas’s shadow.

His will was crystal clear—and it reached Solvas without a word.

After a short pause, Solvas averted his eyes slightly.

“…No, actually, I just meant let me off on a floor where I can head to the fifth. I’ll go call for backup.”

He wore an embarrassed expression.

If they lured the Apostle toward the third floor’s entrance, it would just bolt to the second floor.

So his plan was to head to the fifth floor and inform other Academy members, calling for support.

Even if they couldn’t defeat it, they could at least slow it down.

“But I understand your resolve, Hannon.”

The shadow beneath Hannon’s feet began to ripple.

“It looked so hideous I hesitated, but we’re proud students of Aquiline Academy.”

The shadow surged upward, forming a snake.

Dozens of shadow-snakes flicked their tongues, brimming with hostility.

“I also once wanted to be a hero.”

Even though the Umbra Count family had nothing to do with heroes, and he'd had to accept reality.

The boyhood dream still lingered in his heart.

The star of the hero burned brightly.

And the flame that leapt from that star touched a pile of firewood once thought long burned out.

It was up to them to kindle that spark again.

But both of them—here and now—had what it took to fan that spark into a blazing star.

“The Academy students' life signals are relayed to the surface through magic, so by now, they must’ve realized something is happening. Even without us telling them.”

The shadow-snakes flew toward the Apostle.

It raised both arms mid-run and crushed the snake’s neck effortlessly.

It was a chilling sight—but Solvas forced a smile.

He needed it to drive away the fear.

If one snake wasn’t enough, he’d make ten.

If ten wasn’t enough—he’d make a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand.

“I won’t let you become a hero alone.”

He vowed to buy time—at least until the higher-ups could act.

Solvas declared it.

Hannon powered up his legs.

“This might be the longest run of my life.”

Time to run like hell.

* * *

The shadow tore through the air as it shot out.

Starting as snakes, then turning into spikes and spears, then walls—relentlessly interfering with the Apostle’s path.

Each time, the Apostle crushed them all.

Its charging power was like that of a raging bull—it showed no signs of slowing down.

But thanks to the shadows briefly blocking its vision, Hannon managed to widen the distance little by little.

A barely-there game of tag.

Enough to make the Apostle furious.

“That thing's dumber than I thought!”

Solvas shouted as he summoned another wave of shadows.

He’d lost all track of time; it could be dusk or midnight—who knew?

What was certain was that this was more manageable than they’d feared.

Shadows sometimes formed beneath Hannon’s feet, helping him move faster.

His body had built up so much momentum that removing friction with shadows let him keep gliding forward.

Solvas’s support had given Hannon time to recover some stamina.

“That thing can’t run forever either! Eventually it’ll have to stop to rest!”

“I really, really hope so.”

Hannon replied to Solvas’s hope as he focused on steady breathing—

Trying to conserve energy for the long haul.

Solvas decided not to interrupt Hannon’s breathing and conjured more shadows—until something caught his eye.

The Apostle.

Something looked… off.

Its body seemed redder than before.

For a moment, he thought it was an illusion.

Using the night shadows so intensely had even made his fingertips tremble.

Solvas hurriedly rubbed his eyes.

And then, when his vision cleared—

He realized it wasn’t a trick of the light.

The Apostle’s entire body had turned completely red.

Ah, this is a bad sign.

In that instant of instinct, Solvas saw the apostle's jaws open wide.

Solvas shoving Hannon away with a strong push of shadow was purely an instinctive act.

And that very instinct became the decisive moment that saved both of their lives.

Piiing—

The speed of light far exceeds human perception.

The heat ray fired from the apostle's mouth tore through the ground, with enough firepower to obliterate everything around it.

KWAGAGAGAGAGAGANG!

The sound, slower than light, followed with a violent explosion that swallowed everything whole.

The towering trees around them couldn't withstand the blast and were uprooted entirely, tumbling away.

The scene was scorched and devastated in an instant.

A ball of shadow rolled over the scorched earth.

Crack, Clang!

Moments later, the shadow orb shattered into pieces and Solvas tumbled out.

“Kegh… kuhak…”

Blood trickled from between his ashen-gray hair.

He had narrowly avoided being vaporized by the heat ray, but the shockwave alone had been enormous.

The bones inside his body trembled uncontrollably.

It felt like a miracle he was even alive.

“Hannon… Hannon.”

Though they had been rivals in the international individual competition, right now, they were comrades fighting through the same crisis.

As Solvas looked around, hoping Hannon had made it out safely—

Thud—

An unwelcome face appeared through the smoke.

That long, grotesque snout emerged.

It was the apostle, now back to its original color after firing the heat ray.

Solvas rose to his feet.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he summoned his shadow and shouted as if vomiting blood.

“Hannon, the apostle’s here! Run, somehow—!”

In his desperation, he threw aside his usual polite tone.

Now that the enemy had caught up to them, it was too late.

All he could hope for was that Hannon would escape.

The eyeballs atop the apostle’s snout darted around before all turning to stare at Solvas.

His legs shook.

Terror and the imminence of death flooded his mind.

He was so scared he felt like he might die from fear alone.

Tears welled up, threatening to blur his vision.

He was sure he'd be torn apart like the rest of his teammates.

Yet his clenched fists shone more brilliantly than anyone else’s.

“Come at me, you beast.”

With those words, both Solvas and the apostle lunged at the same time.

Solvas poured his full mana into his technique, Night Shadow.

He was already a dead man.

This was his final, desperate resistance.

Magic surged out from every pore in his body as blood spilled out and activated Night Shadow.

Night Shadow – The Outlaw of the Waves

The shadow turned into a vortex of waves and struck the apostle.

The charging apostle collided with the vortex and was pushed back two steps.

The vortex of shadow roared as if trying to shred the apostle's body to pieces.

Solvas screamed with all his strength, pouring out every drop of his magic.

At that moment, the apostle's legs began to swell grotesquely.

Thud!

The apostle began to push through the vortex, step by step.

Though its skin was scarred from the attack, it paid no mind.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!

Its pace accelerated.

The distance between Solvas and the apostle rapidly shrank.

But all Solvas could do was watch with wide eyes.

If he stopped The Outlaw of the Waves now, he would die instantly.

Death was approaching.

Yet he had no choice but to watch.

And strangely, Solvas felt at peace.

A surge of pride, greater than anything he had ever felt in his life, filled his heart.

He was born into the Umbras, a cunning noble family who gained advantage through deceitful diplomacy.

But in this moment, he shone brighter than anyone else.

That pride alone made it worth shouting at death.

Finally, the apostle broke through The Outlaw of the Waves and swung its hand toward Solvas.

Solvas neither dodged nor averted his gaze.

The boy who once dreamed of being a hero had become one.

And… a hero doesn’t always stand alone.

Tap—

Footsteps echoed from somewhere.

At the same time, a floating sensation enveloped Solvas’ body.

When he opened his eyes again—

He was in midair.

The ground was rising to meet him.

Realizing this, he hastily summoned the last remnants of his shadow to cushion the fall.

Thud!

The shadow softened the impact just enough to save him.

He truly thought he was going to die.

As he scrambled to regain his senses, he realized—

The apostle was no longer around.

And at the same time, he noticed someone was holding him.

It was Hannon.

Hannon’s gift—The Hidden Wind.

Normally, it allows him to move freely to any desired location, but within the Demon Dungeon, its effect is limited.

He can only teleport within the same floor.

Hannon had snatched Solvas away just before he was struck and used the Hidden Wind.

The shock from the escape made him slow to recover his senses.

If Solvas hadn’t yelled at him to run, tragedy would’ve struck.

“Hannon, you bastard.”

Back from the brink of death, Solvas clung to Hannon with overwhelming emotion.

But then he realized—Hannon’s body was far too limp.

Drip—

He heard something pouring onto the ground.

When he looked down, he saw a large pool of blood.

Hannon’s side…

A chunk had been torn out, leaving a gaping void.

Just before saving Solvas—

The apostle’s hand had grazed him.

“No… Hannon, Hannon!”

Solvas cried out desperately.

But Hannon could only gasp for breath—he couldn’t speak.

He simply pushed Solvas weakly with his hand.

That hand seemed to say, at least you should escape.

Not all heroes survive.

Sometimes, the path of a hero is written in blood.

“No. Don’t say that crap! Where’s the fire you showed in the tournament? I know your body’s tougher than anyone’s!”

That person wasn’t the same as before, but Hannon no longer had the strength to explain.

Solvas, now carrying Hannon on his back, tried to flee at any cost.

But despair was not done with them yet.

KWAHHHHHHHHHH!

Behind them, the apostle landed with a crash.

The nostrils on its snout flared.

It had tracked the scent of the mystic energy from the Hidden Wind.

The creature stuck out its tongue and licked the blood off its fingers.

Then it smirked with the tip of its snout and charged at them again.

Solvas turned his body, shielding Hannon in a last attempt to save him.

KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!

A sound so sharp it could tear ears apart rang through the air.

There stood a man with snow-white hair, colliding against the apostle’s attack with a blade-like hand.

“Solvas. Hannon.”

His amber eyes turned into the shape of a dragon, gleaming with intensity.

“You’ve done well to endure.”

It was time for revenge.