Ding.

  The elevator doors slide open. Instantly, the cool air conditioning and the faint scent of lemongrass from the Keio Plaza evaporate. Instead, what hits us in the face is the smell of dust, the stench of rotting paper, and the chill of a crypt.

  Before us lies a dark office corridor, the paint peeling to reveal bare brick, the floor choked with yellowed files. The only light comes from crimson bulbs flickering like the heartbeat of a dying monster.

  Whipping out my phone, I launch GodMap. The positioning circle spins for a moment before locking onto a pitch-black coordinate.

  [Current Location: World 4466 (Beta). Warning: Restricted Area.]

  "Sister Alethea is a monster," I mutter, a shiver running down my spine. "Her Calculation Laws predict things with terrifying accuracy, down to the decimal point."

  Zhen Shan steps out of the elevator, the massive shadow of the Tiger God engulfing the narrow corridor. His amber eyes burn through the darkness, scanning the hallway from end to end.

  "See any trace of the kids?" I ask, silently hoping for good news.

  Zhen Shan shakes his head, ears drooping in disappointment. "No. My Divine Sight picks up no familiar spiritual signatures. Nanao, Xiaolang, and young Kaito are not on this floor, nor even in this building."

  "Wonderful." Sighing, I lean back against the wall. "So we have to play detective again?"

  We begin running down the list of possibilities.

  "Worst case scenario: This elevator game is a lottery machine, throwing people to a random world every time they play," I propose the first theory.

  "Let's rule that out for now." Zhen Shan dismisses the idea instantly, his tone dripping with technical expertise. "In terms of spatial theory, the god behind this cannot establish a portal with such random destinations remotely. To do that requires a signal station and direct technical support at the arrival point. He merely hacked the rules of the urban legend."

  "Makes sense," I nod. "So, second possibility: The exit spawn point of the elevator is random within the same world. Meaning the kids are also here in World 4466, but they 'fell' into another building a few blocks, or a few kilometers, away."

  "Or the third possibility." Zhen Shan stares out the broken window at the giant black shadows lumbering through the fog. "They stepped out and were immediately attacked by something terrifying, forcing them to flee and hide while masking their aura."

  I follow his gaze. Those pitch-black monsters, tens of meters tall, are wandering about like walking meat grinders.

  Scrolling his furry finger across the phone screen, Zhen Shan reads aloud the bright red reviews on GodMap.

  "The comment section is full of curses. The recognition system of the Executors has a critical bug. They attack indiscriminately."

  "Don't come here on business unless you want to be beaten to a pulp. These jailers can't recognize employee ID cards."

  "Sure enough," he growls. "These hellish employees are experiencing severe technical difficulties. They are not very friendly."

  "Or possibility number four," Reo's voice echoes in my head, dry and brutal. "The three of them are already inside those things' stomachs. Probably finished digesting by now."

  "Hey! Don't jinx it!" I snap, rapping my knuckles lightly against my own head. "Xiaolang and Nanao argue a lot, but their survival skills are top tier. They won't die that easily."

  Zhen Shan turns back, his expression resolute. "In short, we have to turn this godforsaken place upside down. Split up or stick together, depending on the situation. But first..."

  He glances back at the old elevator, our only exit right now.

  "We must protect this door. If this elevator is destroyed by the monsters, we will be stranded. At that point, the only option is to wait for the Cloud-Hopper of the Conglomerate to open an emergency rescue gate."

  He pauses for a moment, then turns to look at me with eyes full of implication.

  "...And if we have to use the rescue Cloud-Hopper, the cross-dimensional operation costs will be charged to Department 1031's operating budget for this quarter. Anything over budget is deducted directly from the year-end bonus."

  That sentence hits harder than a Heavenly Punishment.

  "WHAT?!" I nearly jump out of my skin. "Deducted from the bonus? No! Absolutely not! My money!"

  Scrambling to the elevator, I wave my hands frantically.

  "Reinforce it! Reinforce it immediately! Zhen Shan, use your most expensive, tankiest defensive Law! Pour concrete, erect a firewall, do whatever the hell you want as long as not even an ant can get through! Hurry up! Money is life!"

  Zhen Shan smirks (I swear he just sneered), then begins to weave hand seals. Thick, solid streams of golden light form a protective shell around the entire building.

  Once the surrounding building is reinforced with a barrier so thick that even a nuclear warhead would bounce off like a rubber ball, Zhen Shan and I dive into the gloomy sky of World 4466 to start our mission.

  "Just how vast is this place?" Reo’s voice echoes in my head, sounding thoroughly exasperated. "Finding three people in this endless ruin is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Actually, no, it is like looking for a needle in a vat of acid."

  Before I can answer that philosophical question, a swarm of uninvited guests descends.

  SCREEE!

  Winged Executioners, looking like bats crossbred with humans in a botched genetic experiment, rush at us like a swarm of starving locusts. Conversation clearly isn't on their agenda as they open their wide maws, spraying jets of crimson liquid that hiss through the air like laser rounds.

  "How annoying!" Swerving to dodge a blood jet, I choke on the metallic stench assaulting my nose. "Hey Zhen Shan, you are the security expert. Can you decode and shatter the Law that created these abominations?"

  Zhen Shan flies beside me, swatting the monsters away like houseflies. "I can. Their Law structure is quite rudimentary since this is a Beta version. However, a wide-area wipe requires deep intervention authority into the world system."

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  He turns to look at me, his gaze cold. "In short: I fear going over budget."

  I shudder and immediately shake my head vigorously. "Fine... we will just coexist with the pests then."

  So, two gods of the Nexus have to suffer the indignity of being chased by a horde of low-level monsters, all because we are stingy. But this swarm is as persistent as starving leeches. They cling to us, spraying blood everywhere and obscuring our vision, which severely disrupts the search mission.

  "Stop for a moment!" I shout, throwing up a temporary energy shield. "Does your Divine Sight pick up anything? I have been scanning for a while now, and there is absolutely no life signal."

  Zhen Shan frowns, his amber eyes glowing as they sweep over the ruined buildings below. "Dammit. Nothing. The kids must have used Concealment or Seclusion spells to evade the Executioners."

  "Fantastic." I clap my hands. "The problem with training your staff too well. Now they hide so effectively that even their bosses cannot find them. We are just increasing the difficulty of our own game."

  "Are you sure they fell into the vicinity?" Reo speaks up again, voice full of worry. "What if the elevator threw them to the other hemisphere? If we are unlucky and this world is the size of Earth, we will be searching until next season."

  A deadly silence hangs over us, except for the screaming of the monsters outside the shield.

  "How about..." Zhen Shan suddenly suggests, a glint in his eyes. "...we give them a signal? If they are nearby and conscious, they will surely see it and find a way to respond."

  "Great idea!" I snap my fingers. "Let me handle it. I am getting sick of these flies anyway."

  Drawing a deep breath to channel the spiritual energy within Reo’s body, I gather a blue flame on my palm. It grows larger and larger, swirling like a miniature galaxy.

  "Watch this! FOXFIRE : AZURE HEAVEN BEACON!"

  I hurl the fireball straight up, targeting the densest cluster of Executioners.

  BOOM!

  A silent but blinding explosion erupts. The blue flame expands, dyeing the pitch-black sky of hell with brilliant azure light. Unlike normal fire, Foxfire does not burn physical flesh. It infiltrates the energy structure, incinerating the Law links that constitute the monsters.

  Hundreds of Executioners shriek miserably as their bodies disintegrate into black flakes, falling like ash rain. After taking a hit like this, even with their infinite regeneration, it will take them quite some time just to reassemble their mouths to scream again.

  The sky clears up.

  "How was that?" Dusting off my hands, I tilt my chin toward Zhen Shan. "Is that impressive enough for the kids to see?"

  "My, my," Reo clicks his tongue inside my head. "You always complain about FP costs, yet you show off like this? That fireball just now must have cost a fortune, right?"

  "Have you forgotten?" I smirk. "I am possessing your body. A Vessel amplifies efficiency and minimizes consumption. Using a flashy move like this costs less than a tenth of the usual price. Why not use it?"

  "Are you two done praising each other?"

  Zhen Shan’s deep voice cuts through my self-congratulation. He is not looking at me. He is staring intently into the distance, where the residual light of the beacon still flickers.

  "No sign of our people yet," Zhen Shan says, pointing a finger straight ahead. "But your fireworks display just attracted a rather massive catch."

  From the dark horizon, a colossal black shadow lumbers toward us. He is significantly larger than the giants we saw at the hotel. His physique is muscular, bristling with sharp spikes erupting from his back and shoulders.

  He looks up at the sky, where the blue flame just exploded.

  "Careful," Zhen Shan warns, flying back slightly. "This one is on a completely different level compared to the small fry. Looks like... a Chief Executioner."

  "Relax," I shrug. "We are at an altitude of 500 meters. No matter how big he is, he cannot reach..."

  The words barely leave my mouth when the giant's back suddenly splits open.

  CRACK!

  Two streams of black liquid erupt, instantly solidifying and spreading into a pair of gargantuan bat wings, easily a hundred meters across.

  "Oh, you have got to be kidding me..." My jaw drops.

  The giant flaps his wings. A hurricane churns below. And that thousand-ton mass of flesh begins to ascend, rocketing toward us with the speed of a jet fighter.

  "He grew wings!" I scream. "Why on earth can this monstrosity fly?!"

  We rocket upwards, desperate to put some distance between us and that flying meatball. Only now, looking down from above, do I truly grasp his sheer scale. This Chief Executioner stands at least twenty stories high. Each flap of his colossal wings generates air pressure strong enough to level an entire city block below into a flat wasteland.

  "It is coming!" Reo screams in my head.

  He tucks his wings and charges straight at us like a living, titanic torpedo. Zhen Shan and I scramble to split in two different directions.

  WHOOSH...

  The wind screams past my ears like a razor blade. Even though I dodge the direct hit, the sheer pressure from that charge makes my defensive shield tremble violently.

  "Fine, you want to play hardball?" I grit my teeth.

  Raising Reo's right hand, I pinch my index and middle fingers together. Aura surges through the Vessel’s body, condensing into a blazing Foxfire arrow so dense that it warps the air around it.

  "Eat this! FOXFIRE ARROW!"

  The azure bolt tears through the wind, aiming straight for the faceless head of the giant.

  BOOM!

  A massive explosion erupts, blue smoke billowing everywhere. I smirk, waiting for the sight of his head popping like a balloon.

  But when the smoke clears, my smile dies instantly.

  He has raised an arm to block his face. On his skin, which looks black and shiny like cold steel, there is a scorch mark and a crimson energy membrane wrapping around the limb.

  "Energy shield?" I widen my eyes. "It knows how to use defensive Laws?"

  "KEKEKEKEKE!"

  He roars. The maniacal laughter echoes from his hollow chest, sounding like grinding metal. He cannot speak human language, but the way he spins in mid-air and throws a hook punch immediately after the block proves his combat technique is top-tier. He is not clumsy at all.

  "I got this!" Zhen Shan roars.

  The Tiger God glides forward, his black suit flapping in the wind. He waves his hand, his sharp tiger claws drawing brilliant golden sigils in the void.

  A cube of light materializes, crushing the giant and locking his movements in mid-air.

  But in the very next second, the giant does not struggle. His body swells and...

  POP!

  The Executioner self-destructs, disintegrates into millions of drops of black, slimy mud. The sludge slips through the cracks of the light cage, flies out, and reassembles behind Zhen Shan, reforming the giant in a single breath.

  The Seal of Order becomes completely useless.

  "What is this now?!" Reo’s horrified voice echoes in my mind. "You said these things had technical glitches and stupid AI! Why does it operate so smoothly in combat?"

  "Shut up, will you!" I scream internally while retreating. "That's Murphy's Law! Anything that can go wrong will go wrong!"

  "Do gods believe in silly human laws?"

  "If we do not believe it, there is no way to explain our rotten luck so far!" I snap back. "It is clearly a Beta version, but this Boss runs on the latest patch!"

  The regenerated giant raises both hands, gathering a massive red and black energy sphere.

  Zhen Shan looks at the energy sphere, his round tiger ears twitching slightly. Halting his charge, he suddenly mutters in an ancient tongue.

  "All of Creation, Open The Gate."

  Space cracks open before him. A pitch-black, bottomless rift cuts across the sky.

  I gape. "You have to use the ultimate move already?"

  "Well," Reo clicks his tongue inside my head. "I thought Zhen Shan-sama was the type to be upright and honorable, preferring death over dishonor. Turns out he knows the 'running away is the best strategy' move too? He’s definitely corrupted by Itsuki-sama."

  Zhen Shan turns back, his amber eyes glaring at me (and Reo) with searing intensity.

  "So are you getting in? Or waiting to eat that blast?"

  "In! I am getting in!"

  Without a second thought, I dive into the rift. Zhen Shan steps back and jumps in right after.

  The spatial rift closes instantly, swallowing us into darkness and leaving the Chief Executioner roaring madly outside.