Whitesky, Realm Between.
"Ahhh!"
"Lord, please save us!"
"Where are you, My Lord?"
A mist-clouded city was ablaze—buildings of white marble crumbled into ruins—the black smoke of the towering flames blotted out the crimson sun.
Screaming could be heard from every corner of the city.
The half-burned citizens of the city ran to the streets, but then white-haired figures jumped out from the corners, and cut them down mercilessly.
The crimson blood of the innocents flowed down the cobblestone roads and stained the white ash that fell gently from the sky.
"Please, Lord, save us!"
The citizens of Realm Between ran to the yard of the castle—knelt on the ground, hands in prayer, and heads bowed—they prayed for help.
Inside the castle's master bedroom of the lord.
"Realm Between~ Realm Between~ Home Sweet Home~"
A panicked-looking man took a step forward. Stopped. He then turned left and took another long step forward.
Stopped again.
Turned left again and took a long step. Stopped. And turned left and took another long step forward.
He made a square and ended up right back where he started.
Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!
He clapped four times and then looked towards a corner of the room—a small iron coin stood there—and bowed in that direction.
"Iris Coin."
He then turned to another corner of the room—there was strangely half-eaten bread on the floor there—and he bowed over there.
"Half-eaten bread."
He turned around, looked towards another corner, and bowed there—this time around, there was a hair strand.
"My hair strand."
He then turned to the last corner of the room—there was a chair, upside down, and he bowed over there.
"Upside-down chair."
Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!
He clapped four times, closed his eyes, and a second later, he opened his eyes again, but he was surprised to see that he was still inside his bedroom.
"Why… Why am I still stuck in the Realm Between?"
He grabbed his head, cursed under his breath, and then heard screams coming from the hallway.
He opened the door, looked to the hallway, and saw a white-haired person cutting down a servant of his castle.
At that moment, the white-haired figure turned around, knelt on the ground, and kowtowed so that his forehead touched the ground.
From the stairs, nine figures appeared on the floor—they all looked cold and menacing.
"Nine Fingers…"
The man closed the door, gritted his teeth, and walked to the desk—there he opened a locked drawer, and there was a small box inside.
After opening the box, there was a bullet inside—a copper bullet with 'R' etched onto its bottom—and he took it out.
Then, he flicked his wrist, and a beautiful silver revolver materialized into his hand—he sat behind the desk, slid the bullet into the chamber, and spun it before snapping it shut.
Click!
"Thank you, O' Goddess of Outlaws, I owe you one."
The man said and pointed the silver revolver towards the door—he placed his hooked finger on the trigger.
The door opened, and the nine figures entered the room—the wall above the door broke apart as gigantic hands tore through the stone.
"Is that bullet inside the chamber for us? There are nine of us, so what are you going to do after you shoot one of us down?"
Blasphemous Reverence asked.
He was a hunched man, cane in hand, and wore an old gray cloak that trailed behind him as he shuffled through the stone.
"The Wretched One sent His loyal dogs just for me? Or is there something else He is after in the Realm Between?"
The man asked with a frown.
"We're tired of being homeless—Realm Between is just nicely placed between the Garden and the Whitesky's mortals.
"We need a place to call our own, and this place is perfect~"
Blasphemous Reverence said with a smile—the rotted teeth of his showed as he grinned maliciously.
"Who taught you the spell to get here? Who is the betrayer?"
The man asked.
"Haha… Wouldn't you like to know?"
Blasphemous Reverence said.
"A person of Earth finally realized the truth. We, Rav'akari, are capable of getting rid of the crime that has been plaguing the mortal world for so long.
"He realized that."
Deceptive Innocence said in a shy tone.
She was just a little girl with black hair, but she didn't have a mouth, no nose, no eyelashes, and not even eyes.
"A human of Earth told you the spell? That's impossible… They've been given power by gods, so why would one of them betray us?"
The man asked in shock.
"Because humans are greedy."
Perverted Justice said with an ugly laugh.
He was just an overweight blob of meat, legs barely visible over his feet, and had a face full of fat—he drooled everywhere as he spoke.
"That human wants to become the Tenth Finger of the Wretched One."
Deceptive Innocence said with a giggle.
"…"
Nefarious Humility looked coldly towards the silver revolver—he could see the copper bullet inside—and took a step forward.
He had cold, black eyes of darkness, hair that was darker than night, and skin as white as snow—but he also looked like a child.
No older than eight years old.
"And who is this one? I've heard that the Wretched One gave Her ninth divinity to a young Rav'akari. I wonder what kind of demon child you are."
The man asked.
"This one here is Nefarious Humility. Three days after his birth, he already slew his first Blessed One—one day, he will stand in the same standing as the Wretched One."
Blasphemous Reverence said with a cold smile.
"The world is really doomed…"
The man said, gritted his teeth, and pointed the silver revolver straight at Nefarious Humility—right in the spot between his brows.
"…"
Nefarious Humility looked coldly at the barrel.
At that moment, a savage-looking man stood in front of Nefarious and laughed sinisterly with his muscles rippling like a fierce ocean wave.
"I have been tasked with the protecting of Nefarious. Name's Savage Mercy. Try putting that bullet into me. Let's see what happens."
He said with a gigantic grin.
"This bullet is for none of you."
The man said and placed the barrel of the silver revolver against his temple—he opened his eyes wide and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The copper bullet tore through the side of his head and sent a spray of blood and brain matter flying across the room.
He collapsed on the desk, his eyes still wide open, and blood pooled around him.
"A death by suicide? And that's how the life of Lord of Realm Between ended? What a shameful exit."
Savage Mercy said with a chuckle, took the corpse into a carry, and tossed it out of the window—the corpse smashed into the ground below.
"…"
Nefarious Humility walked over to the window, looked down towards the corpse, and narrowed his eyes.
"That shot wasn't meant to end his life once and for all. What was that bullet?"