A tense silence stretched across the battlefield. No one moved. Even the air seemed to hesitate.
Then Marcus broke it—spectacularly—with a fresh round of high-intensity prayer. Hands clasped, eyes shut tight, muttering something feverishly under his breath.
Honestly, at this point, he was probably praying to every deity in existence, including the god of discounted socks if it meant salvation.
The goblins turned to each other with matching expressions that said: Did you just see that shit, bro? Their lips quivered—then they burst out laughing. Ugly, shrieking cackles echoed through the corridor.
Grub, drunk on vengeance, sneered. He looked Kai dead in the eyes and made the slicing gesture across his neck again, just to rub it in.
Then, slow and theatrical, he raised the spear high above Marcus's back, ready to make a goblin-flavored kebab out of his new favorite Outrider.
Kai stood there, red-cheeked and slack-jawed.
'Even for me, that was embarrassing...'
Shame was a foreign emotion to him, but it just got its first tourist visa.
Still, there was no time to mope. He was just about to charge in and use his katana when—
Thwack!!
A divine slap from the heavens.
The spinning spear, the one that had been somersaulting uselessly through the air, chose that exact moment to return to the scene like a dramatic ex.
It slammed into Grub's head with a wet crunch, cutting his war cry into a stunned croak. The goblin's eyes rolled, legs wobbled, and he collapsed like a sack of goblin potatoes.
Kai blinked.
"This... this is Lady Luck?!" he muttered in awe. "No wonder this stupid guy's still alive..."
And for once, Kai genuinely believed in miracles.
The remaining goblins stared at the fallen spear... then at Grub, who was now face-down in the dirt with little cartoon birds probably circling his head.
Their tiny, underdeveloped brains couldn't process the glitch in reality that just occurred.
Just a second ago, their glorious leader was full of swagger and murderous glee—now he was drooling on the floor, unconscious, possibly dreaming of better career choices.
Kai didn't waste a second.
He dashed toward Marcus, who was already scrambling to his feet now that Grub's foot was no longer pinning him down.
In that moment of chaos, Kai's eyes flicked to the goblins. Every single one of them was still turned toward their fallen leader, backs exposed, forming a neat little arc.
And Kai has a Katana.
A wicked grin spread across his face like a bad idea about to happen. He whispered a silent thanks to whatever god was watching, then lunged.
One smooth, savage motion—he dashed past the first goblin, blade at his side. Then, with a grunt and a twist of his hips, he unleashed the katana in a clean, horizontal arc, dragging the blade across a beautiful line of exposed goblin calves like he was trimming grass made of stupid.
"GYAAAAHH!!"
One by one, the goblins shrieked and toppled like bowling pins, clutching their legs and rolling around in circles, kicking and screaming. It was absolute chaos.
Kai didn't even slow down. He flicked the blood from his katana with a little dramatic flourish—anime protagonist style.
"Lady Luck, huh?" he muttered with a grin. "I think I'm starting to like her style."
Marcus was still shivering, eyes fixed on the fallen goblins with a face caught somewhere between horror and existential crisis.
Kai grabbed his arm, snapping him out of it and making him jolt like a spooked cat.
"Come, brother," Kai said with a smirk. "Let us depart from this humble mess. I shall lead the way."
"Y...yes. Thank you," Marcus stammered, still catching his breath.
He didn't understand why Kai bothered to pick up the rickety spear—the same one that miraculously clocked the goblin—when he already had a katana of all things.
But he wasn't in the mood to question the lunatic hero logic.
So he kept jogging. Better to run now, question later.
The cries of the goblins echoed behind them, pitiful and shrill, but eventually, they faded into silence.
Doors lined the corridor—left, right, some open, some cracked—but neither of them dared to stop. It wasn't just about getting distance from the monsters.
It was also about the other monster—the blonde one.
Kai glanced sideways at Marcus.
"You alright?"
And like a dam finally bursting—Marcus exploded.
"Goddammit! Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting for this day?! To finally beat my brother's smug ass into the dirt and prove I'm better than him? And now, now, barely an hour in, I get jumped by a pack of giggling goblins with stupid sticks and rocks!"
He jogged like a caffeinated squirrel, arms flailing, completely unaware of how loud he was being—or how little anyone cared.
Kai didn't say anything. Just let him vent. Then, with a sigh, he gave Marcus a couple of reassuring pats on the back, like you would a horse that just lost a race.
"Well, life's a bastard. So either take it as it comes, or make it into something better. If you can't take it—make it. Though… if I'm honest, making's more complicated. So maybe just take it."
Marcus blinked.
"…What?"
He stared at Kai like he'd just started speaking in riddles and tax code. Then he shook his head and gave a defeated laugh.
"Sorry, man. I—I got worked up. I guess I owe you an apology. And a thank-you. You saved my ass."
He smiled sheepishly, shoulders finally unclenching.
Kai chuckled.
"Save it. But if you really want to make it up to me, start talking. What's going on here? Where is here? And what the hell did I just walk into?"
Marcus let out a slow breath, shaking his head like a man finally coming down from a caffeine overdose. Then his eyes settled on Kai — and there was something new in them.
Pity.
"Ah yes… the chosen one of Azrael. The famed 998th Outrider of Death."
He chuckled, low and bitter, like he was remembering the punchline of a joke that no one laughed at.
Kai frowned. He didn't like the tone. Or the look. Or any of it.
"What's so funny?"
The smile vanished from Marcus's face.
"Back in the kingdoms," he said slowly, "your kind has a name."
Kai raised an eyebrow. "My kind?"
A smirk crept in — sharp and slow like a blade sliding free from its sheath.
"They call you the Obituary in Motion."
Kai blinked. The words landed like bricks in his gut.
"…Cheery."
Marcus didn't laugh this time. Just stared, unreadable.
"You know why they call you that?"
Kai hesitated. "…No."
Marcus licked his lips, like he was savoring what came next.
"Because you're already dead. You're just too slow to lie down."
The silence that followed was cold and loud.
Kai's stomach knotted.
Marcus chuckled again, but it held no joy.
"Death has chosen 997 Outriders before you."
He raised a gloved finger.
"Guess how many walked out of the trial alive?"
Kai didn't answer. he looked at the finger Marcus had held up.
"…One," he whispered, finally.
Marcus nodded.
"And even she wishes she hadn't."