Both of them arrived at the hilltop.
Ahead was a small village surrounded by broken walls.
The houses were covered in weeds and dirt.
Barely any person was visible from above.
"I don't see anything else besides this ruined village. No way that god is here," the man said.
Larkwing smirked.
"Let's check it out. After all, we do have to rest, don't we?"
He began walking downhill, and the man followed him.
"Tell me something. What will I even call myself if someone asks who I am!? I don't know shit about my past life!" the man complained.
Larkwing stopped and looked back in surprise.
"The devil didn't tell you your name? You're Yaku. That's all you need to know."
"Was that my name before?" Yaku asked.
"It wasn't. But it is now. Your past is irrelevant. Don't care about it," Larkwing said.
"I think I should. It's the reason I'm the devil's slave now," Yaku muttered, voice rising.
Larkwing stared at him for a few seconds, then turned around and kept walking.
"Yaku, huh? Guess I'll just roll with it… for now," Yaku said, clearly displeased.
They entered the ruined village.
Immediately, the stench in the air made Yaku gag.
"Corpses… lots of them, probably."
Larkwing didn't even flinch. He kept walking.
They arrived near a village well, close to the animal shed.
Yaku looked down and saw murky water.
"And I thought I'd finally get something to drink," he muttered.
"Oh yeah, make sure you stay fed and hydrated. You can starve to death, you know?" Larkwing said.
"Damn, ain't you a genius?" Yaku said sarcastically.
"Just reminding you. You might've forgotten after spending all that time in the Sin Furnace," Larkwing said with a smirk, walking ahead.
Yaku was about to follow when he heard low banging noises from inside the animal shed.
They were getting faster.
"L-Larkwing, I think something's in the shed," Yaku called nervously.
"Pay it no mind! We've got bigger stuff to do!" Larkwing yelled, already walking far ahead.
Yaku rushed to catch up.
They arrived in a lane of small, ruined houses. The awful smell from inside made Yaku sweat.
"Will that… Nareem guy attack us?" he asked.
Larkwing turned and laughed.
"Don't be afraid, dear. Even if he tries something funny, I'll protect you."
Yaku gave him a skeptical look.
"Why don't you go ahead and find a clean house for us to rest in?" Larkwing said, still smiling.
Yaku nervously passed him and began checking houses.
Most had rotting corpses right at the doorstep.
In one bedroom, he found a dead couple with slit wrists.
Yaku returned to the street where Larkwing stood, hands in pockets.
"Looks like they had nothing to eat," Yaku said.
"They didn't. No crops means no food for humans or animals. Even livestock needs plants to survive. Their meat sources didn't last long," Larkwing explained.
"Hmm… so Nareem doomed this world just by being its ruler, right?"
"Correct. Not really his fault though. He represents darkness, and every god must rule a world. He even made a deal with the devil to supply food here for a while. But any flame in the dark only lasts so long. Eventually, it all goes black," Larkwing said.
Yaku gave him a sad glance and entered another house.
This one was cleaner—still dirty, but compared to the others, it was a palace.
"Pretty clean… kinda fishy," Yaku muttered.
He checked the bedroom. Empty.
The dining room—empty.
Finally, the kitchen: only a metal pot, some wood, and an axe.
It was quiet.
"Well, looks like a fine resting spot to me," Yaku muttered with a small smile.
Then his eyes landed on the water in the pot.
It looked… clean.
"Such clean water in such a dirty village?" he muttered, dipping a finger in.
His eyes widened.
"The water… it's warm. How—"
Suddenly, a bearded man rushed at him from behind with a kitchen knife!
Yaku grabbed the axe, turned, and swung—burying it in the man's neck.
The man fell, eyes and mouth wide open.
Panting, Yaku shouted,
"Larkwing, come here! This house has living people!!"
Suddenly, the front door flew open. A woman stormed in with a loaded crossbow!
She aimed it at Yaku. He tried to yank the axe free from the bearded man's neck—
"Larkwing, where are y—"
Thwack!
An arrow hit him right in the eye. Yaku dropped dead in the kitchen.
His body exploded into butterflies—and instantly, he revived in the same spot.
The woman stood frozen, stunned.
As she fumbled to reload, Yaku yanked the axe out and rushed at her.
She lifted the crossbow—but he reached her in time and slammed the axe into her skull.
Breathing hard, Yaku rushed outside.
"Larkwing! Where the fuck are you!?" he screamed.
In front of him stood ten skinny villagers with pitchforks, knives, and crossbows.
"No food… only rotten flesh… we don't have enough for you…" they mumbled as their mouths watered.
"I don't want anything from you!! Leave me alone!!" Yaku shouted.
They marched forward.
"Alright then!! Bring it on, you rotting fuckers!!" Yaku roared, charging.
One swing—decapitation.
Another tried to stab his gut—Yaku dodged and took off their arm with the axe.
He kicked that one down, rushed another, and split her skull.
Two archers shot from behind.
Both arrows hit Yaku's shoulders. He fell.
They rushed in—pitchforks, knives, hammers. He screamed, then went silent.
Moments later, he revived nearby.
This time, he grabbed a knife and charged again.
One by one, he stabbed necks.
A villager swung a hammer—Yaku sidestepped and slashed his gut open.
Only the two archers remained.
Yaku sprinted—one arrow missed, the other struck his shoulder—but he didn't stop.
He stabbed one archer in the face.
The second pulled a knife and slashed Yaku's face.
Yaku blocked with his arm, the blade sinking in.
Gritting his teeth, he stabbed the villager repeatedly in the gut until he dropped.
Yaku collapsed, panting.
He pulled the knife from his arm and hurled it away in fury.
"Larkwing… you motherfucker," he growled.
Then he noticed someone.
A little girl in a tattered pink dress, blonde, malnourished.
She stumbled toward him. Her eyes were lifeless.
She looked at the bodies… then at Yaku.
"You hurt… mommy and… daddy. I… I'm hungry," she mumbled.
Yaku looked away, eyes softening.
She picked up a knife and walked toward him.
Yaku didn't move.
He closed his eyes.
She stabbed him in the heart with both hands.
"I-I'm not a bad child. Y-You… hurt us… first," she whispered, crying.
"That's right. You're a good girl," Yaku said softly, patting her head before collapsing.
Butterflies again. He revived in front of her.
She shrieked and fell back.
Yaku stood silently, looking down at her.
He picked up his axe.
Without a word, he turned and walked away.
10 MINUTES LATER
Yaku approached the edge of the village.
"Hey hey! Where are you going!? I found a place to rest!" Larkwing called out with a grin.
Yaku didn't speak. He stopped.
As Larkwing neared, Yaku suddenly turned and swung the axe at him.
Larkwing dodged with a lean.
"Whoa! Careful! You almost killed me!"
"Yeah, 'cause I fucking want to! You left me, motherfucker! I died three times out there!" Yaku yelled.
"But you revive! I'm just a weak guide—I'd get killed by a puppy with a stick! I ain't built for fighting!" Larkwing said, hands up.
"'I'll protect you, love.' What about that bullshit!?"
"That was to comfort you, dear. Look, I won't leave again. Promise. I just wanted to test your capabilities after you received an Aether Bliss," Larkwing said with a smile.
"Don't test my capability—or my patience—again. I will kill you and hide from the devil forever," Yaku growled in his ear.
"Now show me a place to rest!" he snapped.
Larkwing narrowed his eyes with a smile.
"Right away, sir!" he said, following behind.