The room had once again fallen into deep silence and the only sound that could be heard was Able's cries.
Abyss held Able in his arms, letting the man weep until his sobs softened into quiet gasps. The warmth of that embrace carried more power than any spell could conjure—it was the quiet assurance that someone still cared.
When Able's breathing steadied, Abyss released him gently, his voice soft but firm." Enough blaming yourself," he said. "You did what you had to. No parent should ever have to choose between their child's life and their conscience. "
Able didn't respond—he just nodded weakly, the guilt still shadowing his face.
Star stepped forward, resting a reassuring hand on Able's shoulder."Don't worry," he said. "We'll make things right. Just tell us what we need to know."
Then, more seriously, he asked,"Where is the entrance to this sewer system?"
Able wiped his tears with the back of his sleeve and replied, "It's near the northern edge of town. Hidden behind the storage sheds by the frozen river. There's a small stone arch leading underground—you won't find it unless you know what you're looking for."
Star nod's and said " How many kidnappers are there "
Able hesitated before answering. "About two hundred are stationed there right now, and—"
"Two hundred?" Star and Abyss exclaimed in unison.
Able gave a shaky nod. "Yes. Around two hundred stay in the main base at any given time. The rest travel between towns—either making deals or… or taking more children. They try not to draw attention by focusing on one place."
" There are bases of the organization in other towns as well "
Abyss frowned deeply. "This organization goes deeper than I thought. How could something like this grow so quickly?"
Able lowered his gaze. "Because most of them are like me… people who had no choice. Parents who lost their children and were forced to work for the organization to buy them back. They recruit the desperate."
Star's expression darkened. "That complicates things. We won't know who's doing it for greed… and who's doing it for their child."
"Exactly," Abyss murmured, his tone grave.
Able looked up suddenly. "I—I'll help you however I can. Just please… please save my daughter." He bowed his head low.
Abyss puts a hand on Able's shoulder and says " don't worry we will save her as well as all the children in there "
Star crossed his arms. "Then tell us everything you know about the hideout's layout." he said to Able.
Able nodded. "It's built like a maze—long corridors, twisting tunnels. That's deliberate. Even if the knights discovered it, they'd struggle to navigate the place, giving the kidnappers time to escape with the children and the money."
He paused, then continued, "It's divided into three main sections: the leader's chamber, the prison, and the storage room. The storage area connects directly to the leader's chamber, while the prison lies far to the right."
"I see…" Star muttered, lost in thought. He tapped his chin. "That might just work."
Abyss raised an eyebrow. "What might just work?"
Star says " I have an idea and with his help and I think we can pull it off " his eyes towards Able as he is saying that.
" Go on then what is your plan " Abyss says
Star starts explaining his plan " What we will do is that one of us will go save the children while the other one confronts the leader "
" You dumb ass, if it were that easy I wouldn't be here planning. Our concern is not the kidnapper's them selves but the children, defeating them is not the problem. The problem is if they take any of the children hostage then we won't be able to do anything " Abyss says to Star.
Star says " Let me finish first OK, What we will do is, you'll disguise yourself as a child. Able will take you inside, pretending he captured you. I'll go with you as his accomplice. Able can say I helped him with the kidnapping, and I'll claim I want to join their group."
Abyss frowned. "And then?"
" Once I am inside, I will try to pick a fight—cause a big enough commotion. In that fight they are most likely to call most of their forces leaving the prison with no less than a few kidnappers, then you can transform back into your self and swiftly take care of the remaining kidnappers and save the children. "
Abyss folded his arms. "And how exactly do you plan to make me a child? Last I checked, you don't have that kind of power."
Star and Abyss both can't use their god powers in this world, even if they just stand with their power fully unleashed in the world, it would destroy itself.
Its because unlike other world which have a tendency to absorb magic, their's do not have that since their are no beings in this world other than Angels and Demons who can use magic and even they got the ability to use magic very recently.
Thus they never need to make their world absorb magic. It was only when they gave Angels and Demons magic that they made their world absorb magic as well.
Star and Abyss them selves can only use light and dark magic respectively and only a little bit of their creation and destruction powers.
" Its simple " Star replied to Abyss, then he summons a ring out of thin air on his palm " with this " his eyes toward the ring.
Able was shocked to see Star summon a ring it was something he had never seen.
Abyss eyed the ring suspiciously. "And what's that?"
"It's a transformation ring. Whoever wears it can take on any form they wish," Star said proudly.
Abyss narrowed his eyes. "And where did you get it?" he said.
"I made it myself," Star replied
Abyss groaned. "You make the weirdest things… but I can't deny, they do come in handy."
Then his eyes narrowed again. "Wait—you still have the teleportation staff, right? That would make this a lot easier."
"Uh…" Star scratched his head with an awkward smile. "I might've… left it with Arc."
"You did WHAT?!" Abyss shouted.
"Hey, don't yell at me! I just forgot, okay?" Star said defensively.
Abyss rubbed his forehead, exhaling through his nose. "What am I going to do with you…"
He exhaled sharply, then looked at both Star and Able. "Fine. We'll go with Star's plan. If anything goes wrong, we'll improvise."
"Yes, sir!" Star said cheerfully."Yes, sir," Able echoed nervously.
Abyss shot Star a serious look. "And one more thing—you are forbidden from hurting anyone unless it's absolutely necessary."
"What? Why?" Star protested.
"Because you'll probably kill everyone otherwise—and we don't know who's innocent," Abyss said flatly.
"Come on, don't do this to me," Star pleaded.
"A no is a no," Abyss said, ending the discussion.
Able stared at the two, completely bewildered. Are these really apostles of the gods? he wondered silently.
"Shouldn't we… go now?" Able asked timidly, raising a hand.
Star grinned. "Right. Let's move."
They reached the northern edge of town not long after. The streets there were darker, abandoned, and lined with half-broken fences and frozen barrels. The faint smell of damp earth and mold clung to the air.
The frozen river stretched out beside them like a sheet of silver glass, reflecting the pale moonlight. Behind a row of storage sheds, Star spotted what looked like an old, half-buried archway, covered in snow and vines.
" Is that it ," he said quietly to Abyss.
Able crouched and brushed some of the snow away. " Let's go then "He swallowed hard.
Then, without another word, all of them stepped into the darkness below.
The air grew colder with each step. The dim light from above faded quickly, replaced by the flicker of faintly glowing fungi clinging to the damp walls. The sound of dripping water echoed through the narrow tunnel, a slow and rhythmic reminder of how deep they were going.
Both Star and Abyss were in auw and shocked to know and see something like this was under the town all along.
As they reached the bottom, a faint noise reached their ears—whispers. Faint, overlapping voices echoing from deeper within the tunnels. The stench of old metal grew stronger.