“Hey! Anna!” Torres turned to Anna as he watched Marco run toward them. 

“Do you know him?”

“…He’s the leader of the family I was part of.” Anna stared at the ground, her voice devoid of life. 

“Tsk, it’s an important day.” He looked around, and they slipped into an alley. 

“Anna! Anna!” Marco smiled brightly as he approached them. Torres blinked. 

“Who are you and why are you bothering our Anna?”

“H-hello! I’m Marco. I’m Anna’s older brother…”

“Ah, so you’re Marco? I’ve heard a lot about you. Isn’t that right, Anna?”

“……” Anna didn’t look up from the ground.

“…She seems a little strange. Is she sick?” Marco asked, worried. Torres patted Anna’s shoulder. 

“Of course not. Anna’s just tired because she just woke up. Isn’t that right?”

“Yes.” 

“Haha. Anna, it’s been a while since you’ve seen your family, so you should greet him with a smile.”

“A smile…” Her empty eyes suddenly filled with life. She grabbed Marco’s hands and jumped up and down as if nothing had happened. “Kyaa! Marco-oppa! How long has it been? Two months?”

“Yeah, how’ve you been?” Marco smiled as he saw the Anna that he knew return. 

“Yup! Paradise is great. The teachers are really nice and the food is really yummy! Look at my clothes!”

“I have eyes, you know! It looks really new. I’m glad you’re doing well.” His doubt started to fade away. 

“Are Max and the others doing okay? Does Pierre still cry a lot?”

“It’s the same as always. Pierre cries a lot because he misses you.” 

“Geez, that crybaby… If only I could come out more often, I could see them.”

Marco shook his head. “No. We’re happy as long as you’re happy. I’ll tell the kids that you’re doing well.”

“Yes, please.” 

Torres cut off their conversation. “Marco, did you tell your siblings that you’re coming here?”

“Huh? No. They’re still sleeping.”

“…Really?” Torres’s lip curled upward. He held out his hand to Marco. “Then…”

“Oh, you were here!”

Torres quickly pulled his hand away. He wrinkled his nose as he saw the man. 

Sunglasses with a mask and cap? The strange man walked over to them, holding an umbrella. 

“At least tell me where you’re going. Why’d you run off alone?”

“Oh… sorry. I was just excited to see Anna.”

Torres cut in, “And you are…?”

“Oh, I’m a tourist. My name’s Sonny. I hired this guy to be my local guide.”

“Sonny… I see. My name is Torres.”

Seo Jun-ho blinked. He has guts. He’s telling me his real name. That probably meant that he was confident he wouldn’t get caught. 

Seo Jun-ho held out his hand. “Nice to meet you, Torres.”

“Yes, it’s nice to meet you, Mr. Sonny.” As Torres shook his hand, he looked down and back up at Seo Jun-ho. “Are you a player? You’ve got quite a grip.”

“Wow, how did you know? That’s right. I’m actually level 27.” Seo Jun-ho puffed out his chest as if he were boasting.

“I see. You must be an excellent player.”

“Yeah, people call me a genius all the time… I probably am.”

“Ah… I see.” Torres smiled, but he was snorting on the inside. He’d already made his evaluation. 

So he’s level 27… I can tell. He could kill him with one finger. 

“Oh, Marco. Is this the person from Paradise?” Seo Jun-ho asked, baiting his attention. 

“Yeah. Anna’s doing really well there. It’s a great place.”

“…Wait, didn’t you say you’re a tourist? How do you know about Paradise?” Torres was smiling, but there was suspicion in his eyes. 

“I heard from this guy. It’s a long story, is that alright?”

“Please, go ahead.”

Seo Jun-ho grinned. “Was it fifteen years ago? My one and only little brother… Oh, he’s two years younger than me, but he was a little taller. I was stronger, though, so I would always win when we wrestled…”

“Excuse me, can you summarize it?” Torres was getting annoyed at his rambling. 

“Tsk. I was just getting to the good part… Anyways, I believe that my brother is at Paradise.”

“He shouldn’t be. We don’t have any adult men at the moment.”

“Probably, but he would’ve been there in the past. You have records, right? I want to take a look.”

“……” They didn’t. All the children that went to the orphanage either died or became fiends. Torres did the calculations in his head. 

This isn’t good. If he sent the man back like this, Paradise’s existence might be revealed to the world. People wouldn’t believe orphaned pickpockets, but they might listen to a player.

“…Alright. Let’s go to Paradise together. But may I ask you something first?”

“What is it?”

“You haven’t told anyone else about Paradise, have you?”

“Of course not. No one even knows I’m in Rome.” Seo Jun-ho said what Torres wanted to hear, and he relaxed. 

“Good. I will take you there.”

“Goodness, weren’t you going somewhere?”

“…I can cancel my appointment.” He looked at Marco. “You should come as well.”

“Huh? I have to feed the kids, though.”

“Don’t you want to see your other little siblings? It will only take about two hours.”

“Oh, if it’s only two hours…” Marco nodded slowly. He wanted to see their faces. “I’ll go. It’s raining, so they’ll just sleep anyway.”

“Let us be on our way.” Torres started to lead them away, and the Frost Queen clicked her tongue. 

“Contractor, what is your plan? I believe that man wishes to kill both you and the child.” Just as she said, Torres’s intentions were obvious. He was planning to bring them to Paradise and get rid of them there; it was the simplest solution. 

Seo Jun-ho waited for Torres to go ahead. “Anyone would do that,” he whispered. 

That is, until they were hit first. 

* * *

“…Wow.” Marco marveled at the estate beyond the gate. “Is that Paradise?” 

“Haha, yes. Isn’t it quite big?”

The playground was full of all sorts of equipment; slides, seesaws, swings, a soccer field, a basketball court.

“When it’s not raining, it’s full of kids.”

“They must love it here.”

“But of course. This is Paradise, after all.” Torres smiled and opened the gate. They passed by the playground and approached a large building. 

“Wow. Is this where they live?”

“Living quarters, classrooms, the cafeteria, and even the baths are here.”

“Where are my other siblings?”

“They are in the lecture hall.” He turned to Seo Jun-ho. “I will show you the records after I show him around.”

“Sure.”

“Right this way.” Torres escorted them down the hall as he explained Paradise’s history. “This year is the 20th anniversary of Paradise’s founding.”

“It must have a deep history.”

“Ah, yes. Paradise has produced many outstanding individuals.”

“Really? Who?” 

Torres paused, and the Frost Queen cackled. 

“He looks like a deer caught in the headlights. Of course he cannot tell you. They are all evil fiends.”

Torres laughed awkwardly and continued. “Well, most of them don’t like others to know that they are orphans. I don’t have their permission.”

“No need to tell me, then.”

“Thank you for understanding.” Torres bowed to him. As he took the lead again, he looked disgusted. Dammit, I can’t believe I had to bow to this insect. 

But his humiliation wouldn’t last for long. He’d already ordered his subordinates to check that no one was tailing him. If the two weren’t being followed, he would kill them immediately.

“How many children are here?”

“217.”

“You remember the exact number?”

“They are all like my own children.”

“I see.” That’s bullshit, Seo Jun-ho thought. He stopped and looked into the window of the lecture hall. “What are they doing?”

The children stood in two lines, facing each other with sharp weapons. They emanated a strong sense of bloodlust.

“Haha, they’re training hard to become players.”

“Director!” A teacher came running toward them and whispered something into Torres’s ear.

“It’s all clear. We even searched the rooftops, but he’s alone.”

“…Is that so?” Torres smiled like he’d remembered something funny and opened the door to the hall. “Won’t you impart some of your wisdom on the children as a sunbae?”

“Me? I don’t know…”

“I’m sure it will help them a lot.”

“Well, if you say so…” Seo Jun-ho scratched his head and nodded. Torres led him inside and clapped his hands. 

“Attention, everyone! Please welcome… What was your name?”

“Sonny.” 

“Please welcome Mr. Sonny. He is an active player, and he’s come to teach you some things as a sunbae.” He gave a look to the teacher, who quickly escorted the children to the benches. Dozens of men and women started to approach them, carrying sharp weapons.

“…Hey, doesn’t something seem weird?” Marco asked from behind him, gulping. Seo Jun-ho glanced back at him. 

“As I thought, you’re quick. You’d make a good player,” he muttered. 

“What?” 

One of the teachers slowly walked up to Seo Jun-ho. His eyes were red, seeming like they would start dripping blood at any second. 

“F-fuck! H-his eyes are red?!” Marco cursed, quickly looking around. The two hundred children and thirty teachers all had red eyes. “I-if their eyes are red…”

“It means they’re fiends.” 

Torres smiled from his seat in the audience. “You’re unlucky. This wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t mentioned Paradise in front of me.”

“…Did you feed the children the blood of the demon clan?” 

Torres shrugged, spreading his arms. “What do you think? How else would they become fiends?”

Seo Jun-ho let out a shaky breath. All these young children were fiends, and none of them had become one willingly.

“They didn’t want to become fiends.”

“Of course not. But they were practically begging for it when some of them were killed as examples.” His shoulders shook as he cackled. “Oh, you should’ve been there. It was hilarious! They were licking the blood off the ground… Hahahaha! They were so desperate to live.”

“…What?” Marco pushed aside Seo Jun-ho, his face unreadable. He looked toward the benches, looking for familiar faces. 

Anna, Finn, Leo, Shu…

“No… no… This can’t be…” Their faces were lifeless, eyes burning red like the others. Marco fell to his knees, crying. “I-I sent them off… I pushed them forward with my own hands…”

Anna, who had cried because she didn’t want to leave her sisters and brothers. 

Finn, who had complained that Max would become the vice-leader if he left. 

Leo and Shu, who had been the youngest ones. 

He had sent them off with his own hands. Marco had simply wanted them to be happy. 

“But… how…?” How had they become fiends? Why were they staring at him with those red eyes?

“Urp… Bleeeghh!” He felt sick. He saw stars.

Finally, Marco slowly picked himself up. 

“You bastard…!” He ran toward Torres, but his body lifted into the air. One of the teachers took the chance to punch him in the stomach, and he bent over, vomiting again.

“Hahaha! Look at him squirming like an insect!” Torres gestured toward Anna. “That’s your brother. What do you think?”

“……” She stared down at Marco, who was groaning in pain. “I… do not think anything.”

Torres laughed until he cried. 

Marco hit the ground with his fists. His skin was starting to peel and bleed, but he did not stop. He felt pathetic; he couldn’t even get revenge for his siblings. He’d forced them to come to such a place, despite promising that he would take care of his family. 

“You…” He glared up at Torres, eyes full of venom. “Specter-nim will kill you all.”

“Specter? That’s a name I haven’t heard in a while.” 

Once upon a time, Torres had looked up to Specter. He shone like a star, and normal players like Torres could never even hope to reach him. 

“But it’s been too long.”

25 years had passed. That was more than enough time for his shine to fade. 

“Even if Specter came back, there is no fiend that is afraid of him.” It was true. Not even Torres himself was scared. He was level 75 and had gotten stronger as a fiend. He was confident that he could defeat Specter. 

“You… Once Specter-nim comes for you…” Rather than fear, Marco trembled in frustration. 

Seo Jun-ho approached him. “It hurts a lot, doesn’t it?”

“Now’s not the time…”

“Once you become a player, you’ll experience things even more painful than this.” Seo Jun-ho took off his coat and placed it on top of Marco. “If you want to become a player, you have to keep fighting. Even if your loved ones die right before your eyes.”

“……?” Marco wiped away his tears with his sleeve. But once he started, the tears wouldn’t stop.

“If you really want to become a player, you must be able to raise your sword before an enemy you cannot defeat.”

Marco looked at him like he was speaking nonsense. Even without the children, the fiends numbered over thirty. Trying to fight them would be suicide. 

“You’re telling me to fight right now?”

“Only if you’re a player. But you haven’t quite become one yet…” Seo Jun-ho took off his sunglasses, mask and his cap. “I’ll help you out this time.”

There was a simple black mask in his hand. There were no symbols or words written on it. But the simple mask was the most famous mask in the world. 

“Cut off the heads of all the fiends,” Seo Jun-ho whispered as he fastened his mask. The darkness around him started to undulate. He looked up at the fiends in a final warning. “That way, their corpses will remain.”

Specter’s voice rang in the lecture hall.