The next day came.
I woke up in a terrible mood.
The thoughts from last night hadn't left my head. No matter how much I tried to calm myself, that fear was still there… deep inside me.
But even so, we went to training.
As soon as Mirei looked at me, she immediately noticed something was wrong. Her eyes narrowed slightly, as if she could see straight through me.
She started speaking.
"Are you like this because of yesterday?"
I stayed silent for a moment… then answered honestly.
"I'm scared… what if darkness wins? What if I lose control and kill the people I care about?"
My voice felt heavy.
Mirei didn't interrupt me. She listened carefully, then replied calmly.
"I understand. But that doesn't mean you should stop getting stronger."
"I know… but what should I do? I can't stop thinking about it…"
Before I could say anything else, Mirei suddenly turned her head.
"Lucas!! Come here, I need to tell you something."
Lucas walked over, confused.
"Yeah? What's going on?"
I frowned.
"And why did you call him?"
Mirei looked at both of us seriously.
"Listen carefully. Especially you, Zeus."
Something about her tone felt different.
"Today, you will fight Glutton again."
I smirked.
"Good. I was waiting for that."
But then she added something unexpected.
"This time… I won't help you."
My smile froze for a second.
"Let's see… which side your Sol will choose when you're on the verge of death."
I laughed.
"Don't make me laugh. I'm not planning to die anytime soon."
For a moment… Mirei looked surprised.
Those weren't the kind of words I usually said.
She stepped closer.
"Come here, Zeus."
"Ugh… what now—"
BAM!
A powerful punch landed straight on my face.
I staggered back.
"Wake up," she said coldly. "Fight the way you always do."
I wiped the blood from my lip… then smiled.
"Of course."
We charged at Glutton with everything we had.
But before that, Lucas and I made a promise.
No abilities.
Only physical strength.
At first, we attacked together.
We struck.
Dodged.
Moved as fast as we could.
But—
We got knocked down.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Again.
And again.
And again.
No matter how many times we attacked, it didn't matter.
We were thrown around like nothing.
Our bodies screamed in pain.
Our breathing became heavier with every second.
Still…
We kept getting up.
No matter how many times we fell.
No matter how much it hurt.
We refused to stay down.
Time passed.
We lost count of how many times we were defeated.
Our legs were shaking.
Our vision was blurry.
We were exhausted.
Then—
Mirei shouted.
"Now! Attack with everything you have!"
Lucas and I looked at each other.
No words were needed.
We ran.
With everything we had left.
Every last bit of strength.
Every last bit of will.
We closed the distance—
And struck.
Even though it was just a small hit…
Glutton's massive body tilted.
Then—
It fell.
We froze.
…What?
Mirei smiled slightly.
"Now you understand… why you were dragging those huge rocks all this time."
My eyes widened.
So that training… wasn't meaningless.
It was all for this moment.
After that, something strange happened.
Until now, Glutton had never hit us directly.
But the moment we finally landed a hit—
Everything changed.
We blacked out.
Days passed.
We kept trying.
Again.
And again.
We fought Glutton over and over.
Failing.
Getting stronger.
Failing again.
Until finally…
That day came.
We entered a cave.
The atmosphere felt different.
Heavy.
Quiet.
Then suddenly—
Glutton opened its mouth.
And spoke.
"…Until now, I haven't spoken to you."
Lucas and I froze.
It continued.
"You… are Lucas, right?"
Lucas blinked.
"…Yeah?"
Then it turned toward me.
"And you… the one who keeps staring at me with that angry face… Zeus."
My eyes narrowed.
"…What are you talking about?"
Glutton yawned slightly.
"This whole time… I was sleeping. Your attacks just woke me up."
My brain stopped for a second.
"…What?"
"What do you mean sleeping?! Then how were you moving? How were you attacking us?!"
Glutton answered casually.
"It's called animal instinct."
Silence.
Lucas stepped forward.
"…Can you teach us?"
Glutton paused.
Then laughed.
"You really want that?"
"Yeah," Lucas said seriously.
Glutton shook its head.
"I am Gluttony. Endless hunger. What more do you want?"
I scratched my head.
"I don't know… money? More power?"
Lucas instantly hit me.
"Idiot, that's not what he meant!"
Glutton sighed.
"…Anyway. I'm leaving."
We both looked confused.
"Someday… you'll come to me again. I know it."
I frowned.
"…What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
Glutton turned away.
"And by the way… I haven't even used my power against you."
My body froze.
"…What?"
"That was only instinct."
With those words…
It disappeared into the darkness.
Silence filled the cave.
"…What the hell was that?" I muttered.
We returned to Mirei.
Lucas scratched his head.
"I don't really get what just happened…"
Mirei sighed.
"I'll explain."
She looked at us seriously.
"His name is Glutton. That means Gluttony."
"One of the Seven Deadly Sins."
My eyes widened.
"…Seven Deadly Sins?"
I slowly said:
"Lust… Gluttony… Greed… Sloth… Pride… Envy… and Wrath…"
Mirei looked surprised.
"You know them?"
"In our previous world… Lucas and I used to read the Bible a lot."
"Ah… I see."
Then her expression became serious again.
"Our goal… is to kill all seven sins."
Lucas frowned.
"But wouldn't that destroy the balance of the world?"
Mirei shook her head.
"No. You're wrong."
"These monsters approach people… and force them to commit the sin they represent."
Her voice became colder.
"They were created by the Devil."
"They are alive… and they walk this world."
"We must kill them all."
"…And then destroy the Devil itself."
Silence.
Lucas smiled slightly.
"I like that idea."
Then he looked at me.
"What about you, Zeus?"
I crossed my arms.
"…Same. But how are we supposed to become strong enough for that?"
Mirei turned away.
"We're going to a place called Mirage."
"A country where monsters and humans live together."
I blinked.
"…Why there?"
Mirei smiled faintly.
"You'll understand when we get there."
She started walking.
"For now… rest."
"Today was a good day."
"Starting tomorrow…"
"We head to Mirage."