Eric, who had been staring at Kiv for a moment, swung his sword towards him without hesitation.

“Whoa, wait a moment!”

Kiv narrowly avoided it and waved his hands to stop Eric.

“I just helped the captain, didn’t I? Isn’t it unfair to try to kill me so suddenly?”

“Appearing out of nowhere in this situation is just as suspicious as a demon!”

“Ah, yes, that’s true. Ack!”

Eric’s sword slashed Kiv’s shirt, leaving it in tatters.

Clutching his torn shirt, which he thought he had dodged by a hair’s breadth, Kiv grumbled.

“Wow, this was my favorite shirt.”

“No need to regret it. It’ll be useless if you’re dead anyway.”

“Oh, dear. Then, before I die, would you mind listening to my introduction first? It’s sad to die as an unknown person in an unknown place.”

“……”

“I’m Kiv, a member of the Zero Knights. You need help, don’t you?”

Eric stared at the grinning Kiv.

Seeing Eric’s expressionless face, not surprised or curious even with a member of the rumored Zero Knights before him, Kiv was rather taken aback.

Scratching his head awkwardly, Kiv laughed.

“Oh my. Your reaction is unexpectedly indifferent? This is embarrassing. It’s my first time encountering this.”

“……”

Eric frowned.

He was already short on time, and now this strange guy suddenly appeared, acting friendly, which annoyed him.

Moreover, claiming to be from the Zero Knights – how could he know if it was true when no one knew about them?

‘Should I just cut him down? Or-‘

While Eric was contemplating internally, Kiv continued speaking, unconcerned.

“By the way, the Second Knights aren’t coming. We intercepted the order. The only ones here now are-”

As Kiv was speaking, flames erupted from behind, followed by a loud noise.

When Eric looked towards the sound, Kiv shrugged and grinned.

“Just me, the Zero Knights’ exclusive mystic artist making a ruckus over there, and Captain Russell. Only us three.”

While Eric glared at Kiv for a moment, the rampaging mystic artist approached.

“I’ve eliminated all the demons over there.”

Unlike Kiv, he spoke calmly with a monotone voice, but curiosity shone in his eyes as he looked at Eric.

“I’m Noah, from the Zero Knights.”

“……”

Seeing no reaction from Eric, Noah looked at Kiv quizzically.

Silence fell between the three for a moment.

“You may claim to be from the Zero Knights.”

Eric’s voice resonated coldly.

“But proof?”

“Uh-”

Kiv and Noah looked at each other.

But Eric needed to clearly confirm their identity and affiliation.

The public safety officer who brought the letter to the square didn’t even remember delivering it.

If they were dealing with a mage capable of manipulating actions and memories, he couldn’t trust their identity just because they insisted they were from the Zero Knights.

When the two didn’t answer, Eric raised his sword.

The air changed instantly, causing Kiv to take half a step back, while Noah immediately rolled up his robe sleeve.

A blue mark was visible on his wrist.

Eric didn’t know what the Zero Knights’ emblem looked like, but he could recognize the dagger symbol commonly used by all knightly orders in the empire, including his own.

“This is the mark given to Zero Knights members.”

“Hey, hey. That’s confidential-”

“It’s better than dying.”

“Ugh.”

Kiv also showed the part on his shoulder. It bore the same mark.

Only then did Eric lower his sword.

“I’m Eric Russell Gloucester.”

As he revealed his name, he naturally issued orders to the two.

“I’ll take the front, Kiv, cover the rear. Noah, provide support from the side. Move diagonally. Follow me.”

“Yes.”

Naturally complying, Kiv and Noah moved according to Eric’s instructions.

Then, realizing they were following Eric’s orders naturally, they looked at each other in surprise.

[This is the timeline separator]

“The mage’s magical power must be considerable. To summon demons of this level.”

Noah, the mystic artist, frowned as he exhaled heavily.

Not only was he starting to feel the limits of his magical power, but the air in this space itself was heavy, rapidly depleting his physical strength.

And Eric and Kiv were feeling it too.

‘Should I send these guys back first? It could be dangerous if they stay like this.’

Nevertheless, Eric had no intention of turning back until he found Alicia.

Although this was the domain of the Zero Knights, if they hadn’t intercepted the order, he could have expected the arrival of Allen and others.

“You two return immediately.”

“What?”

Eric commanded calmly.

“There might still be demons left, not to mention on the way back. Save your remaining strength for then.”

“No, after coming all this way? Are you telling us to drop out now?”

“Why did you intercept another knight order’s commands in the first place?”

“Ugh.”

As Kiv flinched, Eric sighed.

“It was an overreach, but I won’t say anything since I received help anyway. So don’t get involved any further. If there’s any information I get from here later, I’ll share it.”

“That’s not the issue-”

“You’re not planning to go back, Captain?”

“I have something to confirm. Originally, they only invited me. Maybe that’s why they’re interfering more.”

Kiv and Noah looked at each other.

At that moment, a demon suddenly lunged from the side.

Eric instinctively pushed Noah away and dodged, but there was an impact on his body.

“Ugh.”

“Captain?”

As Eric blocked the charging demon with his sword, he was pushed back several steps.

Then, there was a surging feeling, and the demon, Kiv, and Noah disappeared from his sight.

“What?”

Eric lowered his sword and looked around.

It was clearly the same space where they had all been standing earlier, but no one was in sight.

He stood there for a moment, surveying the surroundings.

The air felt lighter than before, making it easier to move.

Holding his side where the demon had hit him earlier with one arm, he started walking.

Following the partially destroyed inner walls, he turned a corner and stopped in his tracks.

Despite the shadows cast by the walls making it dark, he could see someone walking from afar.

‘Fortunately, she’s such a bright woman.’

The moment Eric took a step, Alicia seemed to have spotted him too and started running.

“Eric!”

Seeing Alicia calling his name while running urgently with an iron rod in hand, a smile naturally appeared on Eric’s face.

‘What’s with that iron rod now? Last time it was a rusty sword, and now this. I didn’t expect her to stay still, but please stop doing dangerous things. She never listens.’

Though grumbling internally, Eric smiled, feeling relieved.

“Don’t run. You’ll fall and get hurt.”

While saying that, Eric moved towards Alicia with open arms.

‘Quickly. Come faster.’

Soon, Alicia fell into Eric’s arms.

Although it wasn’t a completely safe situation yet, the feeling of Alicia hugging him tightly was always comforting.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes.”

Alicia answered, burrowing deeper into Eric’s embrace.

“I would have gone even if you didn’t come.”

“I had no choice. It’s safer here than there.”

At those words, Eric tightened his arms around her.

“I’m sorry, Eric. I don’t know what happened either… Eric?”

Feeling the strength gradually leaving the arms holding her, Alicia raised her head from Eric’s chest.

Eric’s body was slowly collapsing.

“Eric? Eric!”

Even as he was falling, Eric continued to speak to Alicia.

“Sorry. I think I let my guard down too much. It’s okay, so will you go first? There are guys named Kiv and Noah who came with me outside, they’ll take you to safety.”

“What are you saying now?”

“I still have more to investigate, so-”

Alicia put her hand on Eric’s face, who kept talking incessantly.

His complexion looked as bad as a dying person, making her heart sink.

“Eric. Are you okay?”

“……”

He seemed to be saying something, but Eric’s voice was getting so faint that she couldn’t understand.

Alicia’s hands holding Eric’s body felt something sticky.

“What… is this?”

With a bad feeling, Alicia examined her hand and found it covered in blood.

Fear struck her, and her mind went blank.

“Eric!!”

She called out, but there was no response or movement from Eric.

Her whole body was trembling, and her mind was in chaos, but Alicia tried to think.

‘No, pull yourself together. What if something happens to Eric while you’re like this?’

‘First, lay him down somewhere, stop the bleeding, and then-‘

‘We’ll think about the rest later.’

She had to do something right now for Eric’s sake.

[This is the timeline separator]

“How is it?”

“It’s a barrier.”

“A barrier?”

“It doesn’t seem to be made with barrier stones, but magic. Looks like it’s simple to manipulate space with magic too.”

Noah muttered.

Mystic arts that isolate space like barriers were difficult to formulate, so commercialization had failed.

“There must be a reason why only the Captain could enter the barrier.”

“Didn’t he say he was invited earlier?”

“So there might be something, but I’ve never seen a barrier made by magic before.”

“It’s the first time for all of us to encounter a real mage, except for our Captain and the Chief Mystic Artist.”

“Let’s move when there’s a response.”

“Alright. Then first-”

Kiv looked around.

Several demons were prowling towards them, aiming for the two.

“Let’s hope these are the last of the demons.”

As Kiv readjusted his grip on his sword with a pale expression, Noah nodded and stood beside him.

[This is the timeline separator]

Alicia laid Eric down on what used to be curtains, now spread out on a flat surface.

Hurriedly removing his clothes, she saw a long, deep gash made by a demon, stretching from his chest to his side.

‘There was something like a pond earlier, right?’

She quickly got up and grabbed a large ceramic jar with a slightly broken mouth, the first thing that caught her eye, and ran out.

The water looked clear and didn’t smell strange, so she drew some and hurried back to Eric.

Unable to find cloth clean enough to wipe the wound, she tore the cleanest part of her dress’s underskirt, soaked it in water, and cleaned the wound area.

‘What should I do? The bleeding won’t stop.’

Having used up all the clean water, Alicia stood up again.

Tears kept falling from Alicia’s eyes as she moved.

It was getting darker, and her tears blurred her vision, causing her to stumble and fall several times as she hurried, but she didn’t even feel the pain.

After going back and forth multiple times, wiping away blood and trying to stop the bleeding, it finally ceased.

With trembling hands, Alicia finished bandaging the wound and slumped down beside Eric.

Seeing Eric’s pale face, motionless as if in deep sleep, tears welled up again.

‘His face looks so blue.’

She paused while brushing back his disheveled hair, noticing his complexion.

Placing her hand near his heart, she could feel it beating, but his body was cold.