The world returned to Nutaila in fragments.
At first, there was only sound—distant, echoing, like water dripping inside a hollow cave. Then came smell: damp stone, rusted iron, old smoke, and something bitter that burned her throat. Her body felt heavy, pinned beneath an invisible weight. When she tried to move, pain answered first, sharp and unforgiving. Her eyes fluttered open.
Dim orange light flickered above her, casting long, crooked shadows across stone walls. Chains rattled somewhere nearby. For a moment, she thought she was alone. Then she heard breathing—slow, uneven, unmistakably human.
"Scarlet…" she whispered. Her voice came out dry, barely more than air.
"Nutaila?" The reply was weak, but it was real.
Nutaila turned her head. Scarlet was lying a few feet away, her wrists bound with thick iron cuffs attached to the wall. Her dark hair was matted with sweat, her face pale, but her eyes were open and burning with restrained fury.
"Where are we?" Scarlet asked.
Nutaila tried to sit up. A sharp pain shot through her side, forcing a low grunt from her throat. She looked down. Her own wrists were bound the same way, iron biting into her skin.
"A cellar, Or something worse."Nutaila said slowly.
Around them, the room revealed itself. Stone walls carved deep underground. Old wooden beams reinforced the ceiling. Rusted weapons hung like trophies—broken swords, spears snapped in half, shields stained dark with old blood. They saw all their gears were hanged also. There were cages too. Empty ones. Some not.
"Raven?" Nutaila called out. A faint groan answered.
To her left, Raven lay slumped against a pillar, her head bowed. A thin trail of blood ran from her temple. Nadia was beside her, still unconscious, her chest rising and falling shallowly.
"Milan?" Scarlet asked, panic creeping into her voice. Nutaila's heart clenched. She scanned the room desperately. Then she saw him.
Milan lay on a stone slab near the far wall. His body was still, unnaturally so. Tubes were attached to his arm, leading into glass containers filled with cloudy liquid. Symbols were carved into the stone around him—old symbols, ritualistic, etched deep and dark.
Scarlet struggled against her restraints.
"What did he do to him?" she demanded.
Before Nutaila could answer, slow clapping echoed through the chamber.
"Well done, You woke up faster than I expected."a familiar voice said.
The old man stepped out of the shadows.
Up close, he looked different. Taller. Straighter. The hunched posture was gone. His eyes no longer looked cloudy or weak—they were sharp, calculating, ancient. The toothless grin was replaced with a thin, knowing smile.
"You," Scarlet snarled.
"Yes, yes," he said calmly.
"The tea worked perfectly. A refined mixture, passed down through generations. Very few can resist it."
Nutaila glared at him.
"What do you want?"
The old man walked slowly toward Milan, placing a hand on the stone slab as if claiming it.
"Want? No. I don't want anything. I collect."he repeated.
"Collect what?" Scarlet asked.
"Debts, for humans, Fingers, toes and eyes as for Vampires, I take the lower body."he said simply.
"You drug travelers and chain them underground for pleasure and take out their body parts then hang them on the road?"Nutaila's eyes narrowed.
"You said you could wake him."Scarlet's voice trembled.
"And I can, But every cure demands a cost."the old man replied.
"Take something from me. Leave them."Nutaila leaned forward despite the pain.
The old man studied her carefully, his gaze lingering on the necklace around her neck.
"You already carry something valuable," he said softly.
"Don't."Scarlet stiffened.
"Oh, I won't take it by force, I prefer consent. It makes the exchange cleaner."he said.
"What are you?" Raven's voice rasped weakly.
The old man turned.
"Ah. Awake at last." He turned back to Milan.
"Your friend is special. His condition is… rare. holding him can either seal his soul permanently—or pull him back."
"Don't you dare touch him!" Scarlet shouted. A soft growl was coming from the darkness. The old man smiled. From the shadows, figures emerged. Not human. It was the same creature Scarlet saw in the church, but this was bigger 3 times.
"Guys, this is bad. It's the same creature I saw in the church," Scarlet said, her voice low and tense. The old man suddenly started laughing, a dry, broken sound that echoed against the stone walls. From the shadows, two more creatures emerged, their forms crawling out of the darkness. They all stood behind the old man, unmoving, watching.
"You are controlling them?" Scarlet asked, her eyes fixed on him.
"What are they?" Nadia asked. Raven was quietly trying to break free from the chains, straining without making a sound. Nutaila noticed her movement and turned her head slightly.
"They are called the Gloom Stalkers. According to the myth, they were the first failed guardians created by the ancient darkness before the Five were fully Bound. They were meant to watch sacred thresholds, guard ritual grounds, and cull the unworthy. But they lacked a true master. Instead of serving, they learned to observe. Instead of obeying, they learned to wait. Now they exist as sentinels of awakening. They usually appear wherever a Bound loses their powers, a ritual fails, or when a chosen vessel begins to awaken."
They were all shocked as they listened, their eyes slowly turning toward Milan.
"No," Nutaila whispered silently.
The creatures began moving toward Milan, their steps slow and deliberate.
"No, you can't do this!" Nutaila started shouting. The old man only smiled wider.
Suddenly, all the creatures stung Milan with their tails. Milan's body jerked violently as poison rushed through his veins. He began shaking uncontrollably, a seizure tearing through him as tubes fell away and clattered loudly onto the stone floor. The creatures themselves trembled, as if afraid of what they had done. The old man laughed even harder.
Then, without warning, Milan's body vanished from the stone.
They all froze, shocked, their eyes wide.The old man was still laughing.
In an instant, his neck was chopped clean through. His head dropped to the ground at his feet, rolling once before stopping. Nutaila, Scarlet, Raven, and Nadia stared in disbelief. They couldn't see what had killed him. Whatever it was, it moved too fast—faster than their eyes could follow.
Suddenly, it stopped right in front of them.
It was Milan. His eyes were completely dark.
"Milan," Scarlet tried to call out to him, her voice trembling. Milan didn't look at her. He was focused entirely on Nutaila.
"That's not Milan. That's the Vessel, and he is fully awakened right now," Nutaila said.
The creatures tried to disappear into the darkness, but before they could move, Milan reached them. In a single second, he tore all three of them apart. He took their heads and began drinking their blood. He was impossibly fast, impossibly strong.
Nutaila broke free from the chains and was about to land on the ground when Milan reached her in an instant. He grabbed her by the throat and choked her hard, lifting her up.
"You… I remember you," Milan said. Nutaila struggled desperately, gasping for air.
"Milan, stop it!" Scarlet shouted, but Milan couldn't hear her.
He slammed Nutaila violently into the wall beside them, then smashed her down onto the ground. She hit hard, coughing blood.
"No!" Scarlet cried, tears streaming down her face.
Raven broke free as well. She grabbed a spear and moved to throw it at Milan, but before she could, Milan grabbed her and lifted her into the air.
"Too slow," Milan said coldly.
He snatched the spear from her and stabbed her deeply, brutally, straight into the chest. Blood poured from Raven's mouth and nose as she began to weaken. Milan smiled at her.
"Noooooo!" Scarlet screamed.
The power inside her exploded outward, shining brightly as it burst with a thunderous force. All the chains shattered. The shockwave hit everyone inside the chamber, sending them crashing to the ground—even Milan. Dust filled the air, thick and blinding.
Nutaila lay on the ground, slowly catching her breath. Through the haze, Scarlet's swords began to shine, glowing with power. Everyone could see them—but they couldn't see Scarlet herself.
Milan stood up and walked toward Nutaila, grabbing her and lifting her again.
"It's time you wake up," Milan said as he used his darkness to summon Nutaila's own darkness.
Suddenly, Nutaila's wounds began healing. Her eyes turned completely dark. Milan released her.
Nutaila's Herald was fully awakened.
"Yes… yes, I'm back," Nutaila said, laughing.
They both turned and saw Nadia standing alone. Raven lay on the ground, struggling for her final breaths.
"She's yours," Milan, the Vessel, said to Nutaila, the Herald.
Nutaila walked toward Nadia, but the moment she tried to touch her, she froze in midair.
"What the hell!?" she shouted.
Slow footsteps echoed through the chamber.
Scarlet emerged from the dust.
Her eyes were pearly blue, shining with overwhelming power. She stood taller, stronger than both of them. Milan smiled, eager to fight her. He rushed forward, but Scarlet struck him hard in the chest. He flew backward, slamming down before he could hit the ground. In the same instant, Scarlet appeared again, grabbing his leg and smashing him violently into the floor.
Nutaila rushed in from behind, but Scarlet turned and caught her with one hand, gripping her tightly. Milan stood up and used his darkness to enter Scarlet's mind, trying to manipulate her. Scarlet grabbed him as well, holding both of them suspended by their feet.
"Even with your full powers, you are still no match for me," Scarlet said calmly.
Her power surged again, shining brighter than before. Another burst exploded from her, throwing them both down heavily to the ground.
Silence followed as the air slowly cleared. Two minutes passed. They all opened their eyes.
Scarlet looked around, confused.
"What just happened?" she asked.
Raven coughed weakly. They turned and saw her.
"Oh my God, Raven," Milan said as he rushed to her side.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to—"
Nutaila's eyes turned dark again. The Herald and the Vessel were forced back into sleep by Scarlet's power. Everything returned to normal. Nutaila regained control of her darkness and walked toward Raven. Slowly, carefully, she pulled the spear out of Raven's chest. As soon as it was free, Nutaila placed her hand over Raven's wound. The injury began to close and heal.
Two minutes later, Raven opened her eyes.
"My God, can we just have a simple journey without being hanged around?" Raven shouted.They all laughed.
"Welcome back," Scarlet said.
"Thank you, Scarlet, for what you did. Wait… was that you, or—?" Raven asked.
"It's her powers. As I said, they only came because you were about to be harmed," Nutaila replied.
"What you all saw was just half of her powers," Nutaila added.
Everyone stared at Scarlet in shock.
"Wait, guys… where is Zero?" Milan asked.
Nutaila's eyes filled with darkness, and in the next instant, she disappeared, moving faster than sight.