Chapter Text
Walter Park was in chaos.
Emergency crews rushed back and forth through the damaged attractions. Demons searched through collapsed buildings. Medics treated the injured while parents desperately looked for separated children.
Yet despite everything, there was only one thing on everyone's mind.
Suzuki Iruma was missing.
The atmosphere throughout the park had become tense and heavy.
No one dared joke around when one of the Three Greats was furious.
Sullivan had always been known as a cheerful old demon.
Now his smile was gone.
And that frightened people far more than any shouting ever could.
No one knew exactly what had happened.
One moment Iruma had left to meet up with his friends.
The next, he had vanished.
He had never even made it to them.
Search teams had been dispatched almost immediately. Detection magic had been cast repeatedly. Every corner of Walter Park had been checked and checked again.
Nothing.
Not a single trace.
No magical signature.
No clues.
No witnesses.
It was as if the blue-haired boy had simply disappeared from existence.
'Damn it, Iruma. Where the hell did you go?'
Kalego suppressed a growl as he swept his gaze across the area once more.
Beside him, Opera silently continued their search.
This must have been their fifth? Tenth? Twentieth time combing through this section of the park.
Kalego had long since lost count.
The temporary shelters were overflowing with exhausted visitors and injured victims.
The Student Council President had done an admirable job organizing rescue efforts and directing volunteers where they were needed most.
Yet even from a distance, Kalego could see the strain she was under.
The devastation, worry, and fear.
She hid it well.
Most people probably wouldn't notice.
Kalego did. He was a teacher after all he was meant to notice things.
The Misfit Class had been affected just as badly.
Usually they were loud, chaotic, and annoying. Now they lingered around the shelters with subdued expressions.
They still helped where they could. Carrying supplies. Assisting medics. Guiding lost visitors.
But the energy that normally surrounded them was gone.
One of their own was missing.
And everyone felt it.
Especially Asmodeus and Valac.
Neither had strayed far from the shelters since the search began.
Every time a new search team returned, their eyes would immediately look up.
Only to fall again when Iruma wasn't with them.
Normally Kalego would have appreciated the silence.
Instead it only made his chest feel heavier.
Shichiro remained at one of the medical stations, helping treat the injured and exhausted.
At least someone was making tangible progress.
Meanwhile every search Kalego participated ended the same way.
Nothing.
No clues.
No Iruma.
No answers.
He glanced toward Opera.
Most demons probably wouldn't have noticed.
Kalego did. He had known his senpai since they were in their teenage years after all.
Opera's ears had been drooping lower with every passing hour.
A visible sign of worry and helplessness.
And there was nothing either of them could do about it.
The realization left a bitter taste in Kalego's mouth.
Iruma was gone.
And they were running out of places to look.
The walk back was silent.
Neither Kalego nor Opera had anything left to report.
No traces of anything were left. Almost as if Iruma never joined them in the first place.
Nothing.
The command center had been established inside one of Walter Park's larger administration buildings. Demons moved in and out constantly, relaying reports and coordinating rescue efforts.
Yet the moment Kalego and Opera entered, the room seemed quieter.
Not because anyone had ordered silence.
Because everyone knew who was standing in the center of the room.
Sullivan.
The Chairdemon stood before a large map of Walter Park.
Perfectly still, composed.
His expression was calm.
Far too calm.
Kalego would have preferred shouting.
At least shouting was predictable.
This silence felt suffocating.
Several search demons stood nearby, nervously avoiding eye contact with him.
The Chairman turned toward them.
His smile was gone.
"Opera."
The security devil’s ears lowered further.
"Sullivan-sama."
"Report."
The single word made the room tense.
Opera bowed slightly.
"We completed another sweep of the eastern sector."
Silence.
"No traces."
Sullivan nodded.
His expression didn't change.
"The underground maintenance tunnels?"
"Searched."
"The collapsed attractions?"
"Searched."
"The restricted staff areas?"
"Searched."
Each answer seemed to make the room colder.
"And?"
Opera's hands tightened behind their back.
"Nothing."
For a moment nobody spoke.
Then Sullivan's gaze shifted.
"Kalego."
The professor resisted the urge to grimace.
"Chair-demon."
"What do you think?"
The question surprised him.
Sullivan wasn't asking for a report.
He was asking for an opinion.
Kalego folded his arms.
"Iruma didn't wander off."
The room became even quieter.
"He isn't the type to suddenly disappear."
Several nearby demons nodded slightly.
It was true.
The boy was reckless in strange ways, but not careless.
If Iruma said he was going somewhere, he usually arrived there.
Sullivan remained silent.
Waiting.
Kalego continued.
"There are no signs of an accident. No remains. No magical residue. No evidence he was caught in the destruction."
His expression darkened.
"Someone took him."
The room froze.
A nearby demon dropped a stack of papers.
Nobody looked at them.
Sullivan's eyes narrowed.
The pressure in the room increased instantly.
Magical power leaked from him.
Not enough to harm anyone.
Just enough to remind everyone exactly why he was one of the Three Greats.
"Kidnapping."
The word came out quiet.
Dangerously quiet.
"That is your conclusion?"
"Yes."
Kalego answered immediately.
"Everything points to it."
The windows rattled.
Several demons visibly stiffened.
The magical pressure vanished just as quickly as it appeared.
Which was somehow worse.
Sullivan lowered his gaze.
When he spoke again, his voice was calm.
"If someone has harmed my grandson..."
Nobody wanted to hear the rest of that sentence.
Fortunately, he didn't finish it.
Opera stepped forward.
"There is one more possibility, Sullivan-sama."
The Chairdemon looked up.
Opera hesitated.
A rare thing.
"If Iruma-sama was taken alive..."
The room's attention shifted toward them.
"...then he may eventually attempt to summon Kalego-kun."
Kalego blinked.
Sullivan's eyes sharpened.
The Chairdemon immediately understood.
The familiar contract.
Of course.
If Iruma was conscious and capable of using magic, summoning Kalego would be the fastest way to call for help.
Hope flickered through the room.
Only for Kalego to crush it.
"That's assuming several things."
The room turned toward him.
"He needs to be awake. Unrestrained. Capable of using magic. Capable of performing the summoning."
Each condition made the hope shrink.
Silence.
"If he's being restrained, he would not even be able to draw a summoning circle."
Opera's ears drooped further.
Sullivan closed his eyes.
The room held its breath.
When he opened them again, they seemed older somehow.
More tired.
"Then our only lead..."
"...is waiting for Iruma-sama to summon Kalego-kun," Opera finished quietly.
Kalego hated how helpless that sounded.
Because it was true.
Even after the search, this was the only possible lead they had to find Iruma.
Yet it was also something completely outside their control.
Sullivan slowly looked down at the map spread across the table.
A grandfather searching for his missing grandson.
A Chairdemon searching for one of his students.
One of the Three Greats searching for a demon who had somehow become precious to him.
And all three had reached the same conclusion.
Someone had taken Iruma.
They had no idea who.
No idea why.
And no idea where he was.
The room fell silent.
Then Sullivan smiled.
A small, gentle smile.
The kind he usually wore around Iruma.
For some reason, that smile frightened Kalego more than the anger had.
"Very well."
His voice was soft.
"Then we will simply find him."
The windows shook.
The walls groaned.
For a split second, everyone in the room felt the overwhelming presence of one of the strongest demons in the Netherworld.
"If someone believes they can take my grandson from me..."
The smile never left Sullivan's face.
"They are welcome to try."
No one spoke.
No one moved.
And somewhere deep inside, Kalego almost felt sorry for whoever had taken Iruma.
Almost.
Opera hated this.
They hated every second of it.
They hated standing around while search teams returned empty-handed.
They hated watching Sullivan-sama force himself to remain calm.
They hated the helpless looks on everyone's faces.
Most of all—
They hated not knowing where Iruma-sama was.
Iruma-sama could be hurt.
He could be frightened.
He could be trapped somewhere calling for help.
And Opera could do nothing.
Their claws dug slightly into their palms.
They were supposed to protect him.
That had been their duty from the moment Sullivan-sama entrusted Iruma-sama to their care.
And they had failed.
The attacks had stopped.
Walter Park had begun settling down.
The danger had appeared to be over.
So when Iruma-sama had asked to go meet his friends, Opera had allowed it.
They should have known better.
They should have questioned why everything suddenly stopped without a clear perpetrator.
They should have stayed with him.
Instead, Iruma-sama had vanished.
Now all they could do was assist with rescue operations and wait for news that never came.
It was unbearable.
Opera closed their eyes briefly.
Somewhere out there, Iruma-sama was alone.
And they could not reach him.
A familiar figure caught their attention.
Kalego-kun.
Their kohai was helping distribute supplies near one of the shelters.
At some point he had shed his usual irritation and simply thrown himself into helping wherever he could.
Children were being directed to their families.
Blankets were being handed out.
Medical supplies were being moved.
Kalego-kun had quietly inserted himself into all of it.
Anything to stay busy.
Anything to avoid thinking.
Opera understood.
Because they were doing exactly the same thing.
Their thoughts drifted toward the familiar contract seal that Kalego-kun had admitted he could still feel.
The contract still existed.
That alone meant Iruma-sama was alive.
The thought had become the fragile thread of hope everyone was clinging to.
If Iruma-sama could summon Kalego-kun...
If he was conscious.
If he had access to magic.
If he was not restrained.
If he was able to draw the circle.
Then perhaps—
No.
Opera forced the thought away.
Hope was dangerous.
Especially when built on so many assumptions.
Still...
Their eyes lingered to Kalego-kun.
Please, Iruma-sama.
Summon him.
Give us something.
Anything.
A sudden commotion broke through their thoughts.
Opera looked up.
Kalego-kun had just returned from helping one of the rescue teams.
Immediately, a familiar group descended upon him.
The Misfit Class.
Asmodeus reached him first.
"Sensei!"
Clara wasn't far behind.
"Eggy-sensei!"
The rest followed close after.
Questions immediately began flying.
"Did you find him?!"
"Was there a clue?"
"Did anyone see him?"
"Did the search teams find anything?"
"Is Iruma-chi okay?"
Kalego visibly stiffened.
Opera almost felt sorry for him.
Almost.
The students weren't being unreasonable.
They were scared.
Their classmate was missing.
Their friend was missing.
Iruma was missing.
Every one of them looked desperate for good news.
Unfortunately...
There wasn't any.
Kalego's expression tightened.
The silence alone gave them their answer.
The hopeful looks on their faces slowly fell.
Even Clara grew quiet.
Even Asmodeus stopped speaking.
And no one knew how to bring him home.
Then a brilliant flash of light erupted around Kalego-kun.
The sudden glow immediately drew everyone's attention.
The Misfit Class stumbled backward in surprise.
"Kalego-sensei?!"
"What is that?!"
"Wait—"
Kalego himself froze.
The familiar contract.
Their only lead. It was activating.
His eyes widened.
For a brief moment, he simply stared at the magic gathering around him.
Then his gaze snapped toward Opera.
A silent question.
A silent request.
Permission.
Opera's breath caught.
The contract.
Iruma-sama had done it.
Iruma-sama was alive.
The relief that threatened to overwhelm them was almost painful.
Without hesitation, Opera nodded.
"Go."
Kalego didn't waste another second.
The familiar contract flared brighter.
The next instant—
Poof.
The professor vanished.
One moment he was standing in the middle of the shelter.
The next, there was nothing there at all.
Silence.
Complete silence.
The Misfit Class stared at the empty spot.
Several students blinked.
Trying to process what they had just witnessed.
Then realization slowly began spreading.
Asmodeus was the first to understand.
His eyes widened.
"Iruma-sama..."
Clara gasped.
"Iruma-chi summoned Eggy-sensei!"
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Hope.
For the first time all day, genuine hope appeared on their faces.
Questions immediately erupted.
"Does that mean he's okay?!"
"Did he find him?!"
"Can Kalego-sensei bring him back?!"
"Where is Iruma now?!"
"Can we follow him?!"
Opera raised a hand.
The students immediately quieted.
Not because they wanted to.
Because Opera rarely needed to repeat themselves.
The familiar forced their expression into something calm and reassuring.
For the students' sake.
For Sullivan-sama's sake.
For their own sake.
"Kalego-kun will find Iruma-sama."
The certainty in their voice surprised even them.
But they believed it.
If anyone could reach Iruma-sama right now, it was Kalego-kun.
Their kohai would not fail.
Not now.
Not when he was finally standing at the end of the trail they had been searching for all day.
Opera turned toward one of the nearby search demons.
"You."
The demon immediately straightened.
"Inform Sullivan-sama."
The demon practically sprinted away.
Opera looked back toward the empty space where Kalego had vanished.
For the first time since Iruma-sama disappeared, they could actually do something.
There was a direction now.
A lead.
A chance.
Small though it might be.
The familiar's tail twitched behind them.
Hold on, Iruma-sama.
Kalego-kun is coming.
And if that wasn't enough...
They would soon follow.
The moment Kalego arrived, he knew they were surrounded.
The familiar summoning deposited him in the middle of what appeared to be some sort of underground laboratory. Strange machines lined the walls, thick pipes ran across the ceiling, and unfamiliar magical devices blinked with colored lights from every corner of the room. More importantly, dozens of demons immediately turned toward him the moment he appeared.
So Iruma had been kidnapped after all.
Several of the demons froze in shock before shouting erupted throughout the facility.
"HE SUMMONED HIS FAMILIAR!"
"STOP HIM!"
"ATTACK!"
Kalego ignored them.
The enemies didn't matter right now.
The machines didn't matter.
The shouting didn't matter.
All that mattered was the fact that Iruma was somewhere behind him.
"Cerberus."
Lightning exploded across the laboratory as the massive three-headed beast emerged with a roar. Several demons were thrown backward by the sheer force of the summon while others scrambled for cover. Cerberus didn't wait for instructions. The familiar lunged into the nearest group, crushing machinery beneath its paws as arcs of lightning spread across the room.
Only then did Kalego finally allow himself to glance over his shoulder.
Iruma stood several meters away, looking exhausted and bruised. There were cuts along his arms and dirt smeared across his clothes, but he was standing on his own feet and appeared mostly unharmed.
Relief settled somewhere deep in Kalego's chest.
The boy was alive.
The boy was conscious.
That was enough.
Part of him wanted to demand an explanation. Another part wanted to lecture the idiot for getting himself kidnapped in the first place. Both thoughts vanished the moment he took in the state of the room.
No.
That could wait.
Iruma had done exactly what he was supposed to do.
He had called for help.
"Stay behind me."
The boy nodded immediately.
Good.
Now Kalego could focus on the actual problem.
The demons themselves were pathetic. Most lacked any real combat ability and relied almost entirely on strange devices scattered throughout the laboratory. Bright beams of magic shot toward them from multiple directions, but Kalego barely paid attention. A flick of his wrist produced a wall of crackling lightning while Cerberus tore through another group attempting to flank them.
The laboratory descended into chaos.
Machines exploded.
Walls cracked.
Demons shouted.
Somewhere above them, warning alarms began screaming.
Kalego pressed forward regardless.
The faster he cleared a path, the faster they could leave.
Then instinct screamed at him.
His head snapped toward the far side of the room.
One demon had remained hidden behind a damaged machine. Unlike the others, he wasn't aiming at Cerberus.
He wasn't aiming at Kalego.
He was aiming directly at Iruma.
"Kalego-sensei!"
The beam fired.
Kalego moved without thinking.
He threw himself between the attack and the boy while layers of defensive magic sprang into existence around him. Any normal attack would have shattered against those barriers.
Instead, the beam passed straight through them.
Kalego's eyes widened.
The attack struck him directly in the chest.
Pain exploded through his body.
For one horrifying second, it felt as though every part of him was being ripped apart and reconstructed at the same time. His magic fluctuated violently. Feathers scattered into the air around him as his familiar form began to unravel.
He heard Iruma shout something.
He heard Cerberus roar.
Then the pain vanished as abruptly as it had arrived.
Kalego dropped to one knee and stared down at his hands.
His hands.
Not claw.
Not feathers.
Hands.
His demonic form had returned.
Younger than it should have been, but unmistakably his own.
Around him, the battle continued. Cerberus was still tearing through enemies. The laboratory was still collapsing. Whatever the beam had done, it clearly hadn't affected his magic.
Good.
That meant he could still fight.
"This will do."
Yellow lightning crackled across his arm and the nearest machine exploded.
Behind him, Iruma looked absolutely horrified.
"S-Sensei!"
"Do not worry about me."
Kalego rose to his feet and launched another volley of lightning into the enemy ranks. The transformation could wait until later. Figuring out what had happened could wait until later.
Right now, getting Iruma out of here took priority.
Unfortunately, the laboratory seemed to have other plans.
A massive explosion rocked the facility.
Then another.
Then another.
The floor trembled beneath his feet as cracks spread through the walls. Fire erupted from damaged machinery while warning sirens grew louder and louder overhead. The Six Fingers members had stopped trying to fight and were now attempting to flee.
Kalego followed their gaze and immediately understood why.
At the center of the laboratory stood a massive magical reactor.
And it was breaking apart.
His stomach dropped.
Idiots.
Absolute idiots.
Whatever experiments they had been conducting, they had clearly lost control.
"IRUMA!"
The boy immediately looked toward him.
Kalego didn't hesitate.
He lunged forward just as the reactor detonated.
White light swallowed the world.
The explosion that followed was unlike anything he had ever experienced. It wasn't merely fire or force. It felt as though raw magic itself had been unleashed all at once. Walls disintegrated. Machinery vanished. Even Cerberus disappeared beneath the expanding wave of destruction.
Kalego reached Iruma a split second before the blast.
He wrapped both arms around the boy and pulled him against his chest.
Then he turned his own body toward the explosion.
If one of them was walking away from this, it was going to be Iruma.
The impact hit.
Pain tore through every nerve in his body.
Heat.
Lightning.
Magic.
Debris.
Everything crashed into him at once.
His vision blurred.
His hearing faded.
Somewhere in the distance, he could feel Iruma's heartbeat.
Good.
The boy was still alive.
The thought brought an odd sense of relief.
Then darkness swallowed him whole.
And the explosion consumed everything.
His head hurt.
Actually, everything hurt.
It felt as though someone had taken his entire body, thrown it down a mountain, then decided to repeat the process just to be sure.
The pain dragged him awake slowly.
For several moments, he simply lay there with his eyes closed, trying to gather enough energy to move. His thoughts felt sluggish and disconnected, as though they were moving through mud.
What happened?
The question came naturally.
The answer did not.
His brow furrowed.
Where was he?
Why did he hurt?
What was he doing before this?
Nothing came.
The harder he tried to remember, the worse his headache became. Sharp pain throbbed behind his eyes, forcing him to abandon the attempt before he made himself sick.
At least he still knew his name.
Iruma.
Suzuki Iruma.
The fact that he knew that felt important somehow.
Unfortunately, it was also the only thing he knew.
With a small groan, Iruma finally opened his eyes.
Darkness greeted him.
The room wasn't completely black, but it was close. Weak light filtered in from somewhere outside, just enough to reveal rough stone walls and iron bars.
A cell.
He was in a cell.
That seemed bad.
Iruma stared at the ceiling for a few moments, waiting for panic to arrive.
It didn't.
Mostly because he still had no idea why he was supposed to be panicking.
Slowly sitting up, he glanced down at himself.
His clothes were dirty.
There were cuts along his arms.
Bruises covered portions of his skin.
Nothing seemed broken, though.
At least not that he could tell.
He flexed his fingers experimentally before wincing as fresh aches spread through his body.
Definitely not having a good day.
The thought came surprisingly easily.
Almost enough to make him laugh.
Since staring at the ceiling wasn't helping, Iruma decided to look around.
The cell was small and mostly empty. Stone floor. Stone walls. Iron bars.
Not exactly luxurious.
As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he noticed something else.
Someone else.
A figure sat against the opposite wall.
For a second, relief flooded through him.
Another person.
Then he noticed the chains.
The boy looked about his age, maybe a little younger. Dark hair fell across his face, making it difficult to make out his features in the poor lighting.
Unlike Iruma, he wasn't merely locked inside the cell.
He was restrained.
Heavy chains bound his wrists above his head, forcing his arms into an uncomfortable position. A dark collar wrapped around his neck while additional restraints secured him to the wall.
Iruma frowned.
That couldn't be comfortable.
Actually, it looked painful.
The other boy's clothes were torn in several places, and even from a distance Iruma could tell he hadn't escaped the injuries either.
Who was he?
More importantly...
Why did seeing him make something in Iruma's chest loosen slightly?
The feeling was strange.
He didn't recognize the boy.
At least, he didn't think he did.
Yet somehow his presence felt... familiar.
Comforting.
Like seeing someone he was supposed to know.
The thought only made the headache worse.
Giving up on figuring it out, Iruma carefully crawled across the floor. The cuffs around his wrists scraped against the stone as he moved, drawing his attention for the first time.
Oh.
He was restrained too.
Just not nearly as badly.
Well.
That was probably another sign that things weren't going great.
Eventually he settled down beside the unconscious boy and leaned against the wall.
The corridor outside the cell was just as dark as the room itself. Weak lanterns hung at long intervals, barely illuminating the path beyond the bars.
No guards.
No movement.
No sounds.
The entire place felt abandoned.
Which was somehow more unsettling than if there had been guards.
Iruma was beginning to wonder if he should try waking the other boy when movement caught his eye.
The dark-haired boy shifted.
His brow twitched.
A quiet groan escaped him.
Then, slowly, his head lifted.
dark purple eyes blinked open.
For a moment, they stared blankly ahead.
Confused.
Disoriented.
Lost.
The exact same way Iruma felt.
The boy's gaze slowly shifted until it landed on him.
Neither of them spoke.
Neither of them seemed to know what to say.
After all...
It was difficult to introduce yourself to someone when you weren't entirely sure who you were.
"Uh..." Iruma began awkwardly.
Then paused.
"...Hi?"
It seemed as good a place to start as any.
"…Hi?" the boy in front of him spoke. The demon smells odly delicious to him.
"...Hello." His voice sounded rough.
Not surprising.
Everything hurt.
The movement had also been a mistake. The moment he pulled against the chains, pain shot through his shoulders and arms. Judging by the way the restraints barely moved, escaping by brute force wasn't going to happen anytime soon.
The boy beside him seemed relieved that he was awake.
"Uh... my name is Iruma."
Iruma rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
Or at least tried to before remembering his wrists were cuffed.
"I think."
The addition earned a confused look from the dark-haired demon.
"Think?"
Iruma laughed weakly.
"Well... I know my name is Suzuki Iruma. But that's kind of all I know."
The demon blinked.
"...Oh."
Silence settled between them.
That wasn't a normal response.
Iruma seemed to realize it too.
"Please don't tell me..."
The demon closed his eyes.
Immediately regretting it.
Pain exploded behind them.
Fragments of thoughts flashed through his mind.
Dark feathers.
Lightning.
A classroom.
An annoying group of demons.
Then everything vanished before he could grasp it.
"...I appear to have the same problem."
Iruma stared.
"You forgot too?"
"Yes."
That seemed to make Iruma feel slightly better.
Which was strange.
The situation was objectively terrible.
Yet somehow having someone equally confused appeared comforting.
After a moment Iruma tilted his head.
"Do you remember your name?"
The demon frowned.
His name.
His name was...
The answer sat frustratingly out of reach.
He knew he had one.
Obviously.
Everyone had a name.
Yet every time he reached for it, it slipped away.
He grit his teeth.
Think.
What was his name?
A faint memory surfaced.
Someone shouting.
A room of some sorts.
Demons causing trouble.
A voice calling—
"Kalego."
The name escaped before he fully realized it.
His eyes opened.
"...Kalego."
Something in his chest settled.
Yes.
That was right.
That was his name.
"Kalego?"
Iruma repeated.
Kalego nodded slowly.
"That is my name."
At least he hoped it was.
It certainly felt right.
"Nice to meet you, Kalego-san."
The words came so naturally that for a moment Kalego simply stared at him.
They were trapped inside a cell.
Possibly kidnapped.
Injured.
Missing their memories.
And this boy had just introduced himself as if they were meeting at a café.
Iruma blinked.
"...What?"
"Nothing."
The answer came automatically.
For some reason, hearing Iruma speak made him feel less uneasy.
That realization was almost more concerning than the cell itself.
Before he could examine the feeling further, Iruma pushed himself to his feet.
"Since neither of us remembers anything, maybe we should look for clues."
Kalego glanced around.
The room was a prison cell.
A very empty prison cell.
"There are no clues."
"You don't know that."
The boy sounded surprisingly determined.
Then he immediately tripped over his own shackles.
Kalego watched him catch himself against the wall.
"..."
"..."
Iruma cleared his throat.
"I meant there might be clues."
Despite himself, Kalego felt the corner of his mouth twitch.
The feeling was unfamiliar.
Still, he watched as Iruma began investigating the cell.
The boy checked the walls.
The floor.
The bars.
Every corner of the room.
Unfortunately, there wasn't much to find.
After several minutes Iruma moved to the cell door and peered into the corridor beyond.
"What do you see?"
Kalego asked.
Iruma squinted into the darkness.
"A hallway."
Very informative.
"There are more cells too."
That caught Kalego's attention.
"Occupied?"
Iruma looked left.
Then right.
For several long moments he remained silent.
Finally he shook his head.
"No."
"None?"
"No."
The answer sent a chill down Kalego's spine.
Iruma crawled slightly farther forward to get a better look.
"There are at least six more cells."
His voice echoed softly through the corridor.
"Maybe more."
"And?"
"They're all empty."
That was wrong.
Deeply wrong.
If this was a prison, where were the prisoners?
If this was a hideout, where were the guards?
The corridor was silent.
No sound could be heard from beyond the bars.
Iruma slowly pulled back from the bars.
The cheerful determination from earlier had faded.
"Do you think..."
He hesitated.
"Do you think we're alone?"
Kalego looked out into the dark hallway.
Listening.
Waiting.
The silence stretched on.
Then, somewhere far down the corridor, metal scraped against stone.
Both boys froze.
Apparently not.
Footsteps echoed through the hallway.
The sound was distant at first, barely audible over the oppressive silence of the prison. Yet as they drew closer, both boys instinctively tensed.
Iruma immediately retreated from the bars and moved closer to him.
There was nowhere else to go.
Nowhere to hide.
They were trapped.
Kalego fixed his gaze on the darkness beyond the cell, every muscle in his body tightening as the footsteps grew louder.
Slow.
Unhurried.
Confident.
As though whoever was approaching knew there was absolutely nothing they could do.
Then a voice drifted out from the darkness.
"Oh? You're both awake."
The voice was pleasant.
Polite.
And somehow that made it worse.
A figure emerged from the shadows carrying a lantern.
Brown hair.
Dark horns.
A gentle smile.
The sort of face that should have looked trustworthy.
Instead, every instinct Kalego possessed screamed danger.
Beside him, Iruma had gone rigid.
Good.
At least he wasn't the only one who felt it.
The demon stopped outside their cell and produced a key.
The lock clicked open.
The metal door creaked as it swung inward.
Neither boy moved.
"Oh, don't look at me like that," the stranger said with a chuckle. "I'm simply happy to see our test subjects awake."
Test subjects.
Kalego's stomach twisted.
"That means we can finally continue the experiment."
The demon stepped into the cell.
Every step made the space feel smaller.
More suffocating.
Kalego instinctively pulled against his restraints.
The chains rattled uselessly.
"Stay away."
The growl escaped before he could stop it.
The stranger paused.
Then smiled wider.
"Oh my."
Amusement danced in his eyes.
"How frightening."
His gaze traveled over Kalego.
"Babyls' guard dog is still trying to bite."
The words meant nothing.
At least they should have.
Yet something about them made his chest tighten.
Babyls.
Guard dog.
The terms felt familiar.
Important.
Before he could grasp why, the feeling vanished.
The demon continued forward.
Kalego bared his teeth.
Somewhere deep inside, a small voice insisted this behavior was undignified.
That he shouldn't be growling.
That he was better than this.
Unfortunately, he was currently chained to a wall.
Dignity could wait.
The stranger stopped directly in front of them.
Iruma suddenly stood.
His legs were shaking.
His hands were shaking.
His entire body was shaking.
Yet he still stepped between Kalego and the other demon.
"S-Stay away."
His voice cracked.
"D-Don't touch Kalego-san."
For a moment, the stranger simply stared.
Then he laughed.
Not loudly.
Just enough to send a chill down Kalego's spine.
"Oh, Iruma-kun."
The demon crouched slightly.
"You don't need to worry."
The smile never faltered.
"I wasn't after him anyway."
The moment the words left his mouth, he moved.
Fast.
Far too fast.
One second he was standing there.
The next his hand had shot out and seized Iruma by the arm.
"Iruma!"
The boy yelped as he was yanked off balance.
"LET HIM GO!"
The demon ignored him completely.
As though Kalego's existence wasn't worth acknowledging.
As though he wasn't even a threat.
That hurt more than Kalego wanted to admit.
Iruma struggled.
Kicked.
Twisted.
Tried desperately to pull free.
It didn't matter.
The older demon's grip might as well have been iron.
"Kalego-san!"
Kalego threw himself against the chains.
Pain exploded through his shoulders.
The restraints barely budged.
Again.
He pulled again.
The metal bit into his wrists.
Again.
Nothing.
The demon was already dragging Iruma toward the cell door.
Panic clawed its way into his chest.
No.
No, this wasn't right.
He couldn't let him take Iruma.
Not when the boy was scared.
Not when he was looking at him like that.
Not when he was the only thing in this place that felt familiar.
Magic surged instinctively.
Kalego didn't know how he knew how to do it.
He simply reached for it.
Power gathered inside him.
Wild.
Violent.
Enough that for a split second he thought he might actually break free.
Then the collar around his neck activated.
Pain exploded through his body.
A violent shock coursed through every nerve.
"Ghk—!"
The magic collapsed instantly.
His vision blurred.
The chains rattled as his body spasmed.
"Kalego-san!"
Iruma's voice sounded distant.
Worried.
The concern in it only made everything worse.
"I-Iruma..."
Kalego tried to rise.
Tried to fight through the pain.
Tried to do something.
Anything.
But his body refused to obey.
The demon carrying Iruma didn't even look back.
The cell door slammed shut behind them.
The lock clicked.
And just like that, they were gone.
Silence returned to the corridor.
Cold.
Empty.
Kalego stared at the place where Iruma had disappeared.
The place where he should have stopped them.
Where he should have done something.
Anything.
Instead he was alone.
Still chained to the wall.
Still trapped.
And for the first time since waking up, genuine fear settled into his chest.
Because he had no idea if he would ever see Iruma again.