Their brief stay at the Free Space, which was more of a training and a lecture than relaxation, ended when the two couple left the peaceful forest and went back to the Frozen Keep.

"The humans actually want to reach an inaccessible place beyond the keep. It's actually an old monument that was used to hold my soul. My presence here is what's keeping Riarravar intact and they plan to destroy it and force a way out of here. Of course, if this world starts breaking, there is no way every one of them would survive, however, from their perspective, it's better than staying him for all eternity."

Timos explaining the humans' goal, not hiding from the couple the consequences of freeing the soul.

"Wouldn't you want to be set free?"

Seeing that Timos wasn't that optimistic about being freed, Arthur curiously asked. From how he behaved, it was apparent that the Black Devil was bored of this place and wished to leave.

"I do want to be set free but there are other ways. When 'God' and Quhea sealed me here, they made sure that my freedom comes at the cost of Riarravar so they tightly bound my soul and kept me here. As a human who transcended immortality, the man who calls himself the Shogun is almost as old as I am but he had reached his limits thousands of years ago or else he would have done the task all by himself. Be careful and don't be deceived… that's all I have to say."

Before leaving, Arthur was guided to an underground room that was awfully eerie and deadly. The silent winds ripped his clothes and even cut off his arm, only when Makaze was shown did the wind blades stop attacking him but they still smashed into the unbreakable walls. The moment it came out of the storage, the Dark Blade released a deafening cry then flew out of Arthur's hand and stopped at the only illuminated area of the room.

It was a small circular altar with Evil Wind at the center, its sharp tip stabbing the cold ground while the rest of it heavily shook, from excitement and forgotten grief.

…

The way back to the keep didn't long as they weren't bothered by any ambushers. Arthur, wearing Zodiak's ominous black robe which covered him from head to toe, stood next to Lucy, who, surprisingly, wore white light armor. Timos told her that rather than plain clothes, an armor would suit her better then he motioned for her to take out one of the armors in her storage and throw it in the crystalline liquid.

The piece of equipment didn't change much in terms of appearance but Lucy could feel that it contained a small percentage of Primordial Energy which can protect her in dire situations.

The couple stood before the long bridge for a couple of seconds before the guards from last time appeared, however, this time they didn't bother with greetings as they nervously raised their weapons and readying themselves for a battle.

There was no need for Arthur and Lucy to come back after being chased out, so the only reason the guards could come up is that this weird duo wanted to cause trouble and harvest lives.

Arthur paid no attention to these samurai-like patrols and, instead, gazed at the woman at the back, whose face remained expressionless.

"We want to talk with the Shogun."

The woman was uninterested as she shrugged her shoulders and was about to talk only for the robbed Arthur to suddenly vanish. She felt chills down her spines as she tried to retreat only for a dark shadow to appear inches away from her.

She attempted to kick him but alas, he vanished again, his body being replaced by a formless darkness which assaulted. Though the woman was faster than the creeping darkness, she still wasn't able to outrun Arthur, who teleported behind her and reached his hand to her neck, easily grasping it.

The strong woman was about to counter-attack but her body didn't obey her. Her limbs refused to move and a painful snake-like energy invaded her body and caused her to momentarily shake.

Arthur didn't hold her for long as he soon released his grasp and coldly said: "Take us to the shogun."

The woman, blood coming out of her lips, glared at Arthur but didn't dare attack or retort. She could feel strange lightning tightly wrapping around her heart and despite her desperate tries, the lightning would not budge.

Lightning-users were rare and the man seemed to be some sort of a mage. She was more like a warrior so she wasn't adept at manipulating therefore she ended up falling victim to the parasite's Natural Lightning. Once Arthur planted enough Natural Lightning into someone, their lives would be in his hands. Even if they tried to forcefully push it out of their bodies, it'll automatically detonate, ripping their insides and ending their lives.

The guards at the back were shocked when they saw the woman captured so easily. They were about to interfere only to hear ear-splitting gunshots coming from behind them. Before they could react, the bullets hit the back of their head and made them fall unconscious.

As Arthur didn't come here to massacre but to talk with the Shogun, he found it unnecessary and troublesome to kill the guards hence Lucy's 'benevolent' actions.

Although she wasn't chained, the woman still felt like a hostage as she led the couple to Frozen Keep. She didn't know what they wanted but felt a bit relieved when she saw Lucy knock the patrols instead of killing them.

After they crossed the bridge and arrived in front of the gigantic metallic gate, another group of patrols stopped them, clearly noticing something strange.

However, the woman shook her head and said:

"Go bring Lous and the others."

After eying her for a few seconds, the man who seemed to be their leader quietly complied. He glared at Arthur and Lucy but the couple ignored him and followed the woman.

Seeing that she was purposely slowing her steps, Arthur pushed to the front and warned again:

"The place isn't big so either you obediently guide me or I'll do it myself."

…

Unexpectedly, though there was a fair number of surviving humans, the place seemed quite deserted and devoid of any souls. Arthur saw a couple of people carrying some provisional sacks but there was a serious lack of guard inside of the fortress.

In less than ten minutes, he was brought to the main building, which was heavily fortified using magic and all sorts of stuff. In fact, ever since he stepped inside, he could feel his body tingling and distorting as if it was rejecting this place. Lucy didn't experience anything which is why he was sure of their safety even if things turn chaotic. She was a 7-star God Monarch with a Pure Yin Physique and can use the Golden Crow flames.

Furthermore, she has Lonely Moon, the eye, and her perfected Cultivation technique which now has a terrifying, almost unstoppable might.

***

"You didn't need to act so aggressively, I was going to invite you anyway hahahaha"

A middle-aged man with long black hair, a beard and two green and narrowed eyes laughed as he gazed at the guests. He seemed very calm even though two powerful individuals barged into his keep and appeared in his private room.

He sat cross-legged next to a small wooden table, where there was a hot cup of tea ready to be gulped. The Shogun wasn't threatened by Arthur and Lucy, instead, he motioned for them to sit next to him while saying:

"There is no need for fights, we all have the same goal."

Arthur inspected the room then focused on the nonchalant, sensing an invisible pressure coming out of him. He certainly seemed strong but he didn't fear or helplessness like that time when he first encountered Timos. If he could compare him to someone then it'd be the Black-Haired Marshall who arrived at the end of the war between the Specters and the Undead. Of course, this was but a speculation but Arthur was certain of his hunch.

With him and Lucy, they could definitely overpower the Shogun, however, it's still too soon to think about the outcome.

"That's not what you said the last time we came."

As he heard Arthur's emotionless voice, the Shogun momentarily frowned before explaining himself

"Ahh.. That! It was my friend acting discourteously due to our current circumstances. At that time, I was battling a few rats that managed to sneak into our keep."

The man sounded genuine but for some reason, Arthur couldn't bring himself to believe him. The Shogun stared at the woman next to the couple and said:

"We've had it rough ever since the parasites started getting active so my friend here became overly-cautious. Please forgive our previous rudeness."

He bowed his head toward the couple before laughing again, his face containing nothing but genuine honestly.