"Hey Ray!!! Get up, man! Let me sleep, I'm exhausted, please!!"
"Ray, get up! Everyone's calling you!"
"Huh! What happened, Gen? Why are you bothering me? Did you forget Master Magnus called us at 6?"
"Ohhh right, I completely forgot. I was so tired I didn't even realize when I slept
"It's fine. Come on now, everyone's already left."
"Oh, you didn't go?"
"Nope, I just woke up too," Gen said, laughing.
"Alright, let's head in through the left door."
As they walked toward the left door, Ray muttered, "I don't know what Master Magnus is going to make us do now. That guy really scares me. He's an elite member, after all."
"He's cool though," Gen replied.
As they stepped inside, they saw something unexpected—a party was going on. Everyone was enjoying themselves.
"Bro! Is that… a party?" Gen said in disbelief.
"Whaaaat? Yeah dude, they're all having fun!"
"Forget that—look over there! That old man Magnus is drinking with Gary!" Gen pointed.
"You're kidding me!" Ray said, shocked. "The same guy who was yelling at everyone this morning is now drinking and partying… with Gary, a newcomer?"
"Oye Gen! Why are you standing there? Come here," Master Magnus called out.
"Yes, sir! Coming!" Gen replied excitedly.
"You guys started without us, huh?" Gen said.
Master Magnus laughed. Ray thought to himself, He can laugh?
"Come on, boys, join us!"
"Gary is really funny," Magnus chuckled.
"You're funnier, Master!" Gary replied.
Both were clearly very drunk.
"Let's have a drink too, Ray," said Gen.
"They're branded bottles, man. This kind of chance won't come again."
"Nah, I don't drink. You go ahead."
"Oh, come on. It's no fun alone," Gen said.
"Gary's here, go join him," Ray joked.
"You two are late," Sam and Max said, walking up. "Earlier, Master Harry and Master Magnus were dancing together!"
"What?! For real?"
"Yes! I told you, Ray, this guy is cool," Gen said.
"Where's Master Harry now?"
"He went to bring the others," Sam replied.
Meanwhile, Gary was teasing Master Magnus, "Your community is hilarious, man. What kind of name is 'Sorcerers'? With all these rules and suits you guys wear while hunting… it's entertaining. You should be called Hunters. Soul Hunters. Don't you think, Master Magnus?"
"You're right, Gary," Magnus laughed. "We should be called Hunters. But people call us sorcerers because what we do seems like magic to them. That's why we're not just Hunters… we're Sorcerers."
"Waaah! That was deep!" Gary said, and both of them burst out laughing.
Others joined in, enjoying their bizarre, funny, and totally illogical conversation.
Gen and Ray sat with the others, enjoying the drinks and laughing at Magnus and Gary's antics
"Hey Gen! Hey, why are you sitting over there with the others?" Gary called out.
"Come on! You were such a big shot during the test. Come join us here!" Master Magnus added.
"Yes, sir! Coming!" Gen said, excited.
All three of them sat, sipping drinks and enjoying the moment.
Gary turned to Magnus and asked, "Master, you're so handsome and strong. Your family must never be scared, right? You're married, right? Must have a kid around 16 or 17?"
Everyone chimed in, "Yeah, Master, tell us about your family!"
Magnus laughed softly and said, "Yes, I was married. I had a small child too."
"Had? What do you mean by that, Master?" Gen asked. "Don't they live with you anymore?"
Magnus grew quiet, his smile fading.
"No, they're not with me anymore."
For a moment, complete silence filled the room. The cheerful air froze.
Master Magnus began to speak, his voice heavy.
"Six years ago, everything was fine. I had a family—my wife and my ten-year-old son. Life was perfect. But one day, when I came home from work—I used to be a mechanical engineer back then—I saw a crowd gathered near my house. I felt a wave of fear wash over me.
"As I got closer, I saw a woman locked in some kind of jail-like structure… and beside her lay the body of a child. Blood was everywhere. Things around were broken. I ran forward… and then I saw… the boy… the body lying there… was my son.
"He was dead.
"His body was brutally torn apart. His chest… it was completely ripped open. His heart was missing. His face… unrecognizable.
"The woman locked up… was his mother. My wife. She was crying, screaming in agony at what had happened to our son. When she saw me, she cried even louder, asking me who had done this to her baby.
"As I tried to go near her, people held me back. 'Don't go near her!' they said. 'She's gone mad. She killed her own child. We saw it with our own eyes.'
"My heart shattered. My tears wouldn't stop. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
"And then… my wife banged her head against the iron bars repeatedly until she took her own life.
"I tried to save her, but they didn't let me through. I lost everything in front of my eyes. My parents had died when I was a kid… and now, my wife and son… gone.
"I later found out… my wife had been killed by a Soul Devourer. They made a clone of her… and that thing, that clone, murdered my child."
At this point, tears welled up in Magnus's eyes. Everyone in the room was dead silent. Many had tears in their eyes. The atmosphere was heavy, full of sorrow.
Ray couldn't hold back his tears. Hearing this reminded him of his own mother and younger brother.
"But my son… is still with me," Magnus continued. "Yes, his clone was killed—I killed it myself—but my real son's body is still with me. We are still together. I will perform his final rites the day I find the Soul Devourer that destroyed my family."
He paused, trying to hold himself together.
"But enough about that. You guys enjoy yourselves. Looks like I ruined the party," he said, wiping his eyes and trying to walk away.
No one had imagined that the same man who had scolded them earlier… was carrying such a heartbreaking story inside him. Everyone felt heartbreaking story inside him. Everyone felt heavy, grief-stricken.
As Master Magnus began to walk away, Ray suddenly called out, his voice trembling slightly.
"But Master Magnus… how are you so sure that the one who killed your wife wasn't just a clone, but a Soul Devourer?"
Magnus stopped, turning slightly, his expression grave.
"Because I know who did it," he said, his voice deep and cold.
"I've been searching for that monster ever since… the one who destroyed my family. I know it wasn't just a clone. It was a Soul Devourer."
With those final words, he turned and walked away into the shadows.
Just moments after Master Magnus disappeared into the dim corridor, the room stayed quiet. No one spoke. The once lively party hall was now heavy with a strange silence.
Then suddenly—
"I'm back, guys!" a loud cheerful voice echoed. It was Master Harry, walking in with the rest of the sorcerers behind him.
But as soon as he saw everyone's faces, his smile faded.
"What happened? Why does everyone look so gloomy… and why are some of you crying?"
He looked around confused.
"Where's Magnus? And where's Gary? They were just here with you, right?"
Gen stepped forward, his voice soft, filled with lingering emotion.
"Yeah… they were. But Master Magnus just… walked away. He shared something really personal. Something none of us ever expected to hear from him."
Gary, who was usually cracking jokes, stood silently to the side. His head was lowered.
He mumbled, "We had no idea that someone so strong, so fearless… was carrying pain like that."
The weight in his words was heavy. Then, without another word, Gary turned and slowly walked out of the hall.
Ray stood frozen for a second, eyes still wet. His fists clenched slightly at his side. His mind replayed everything—Magnus's loss, the betrayal, the unimaginable grief.
And then suddenly, tears rolled down his face again.
"What's happening to this world…?" he whispered.
"Why is it that everyone seems to be carrying scars? Why are the people who smile the most, often the ones who've been broken the worst?"
Unable to stop the flood of emotions, Ray, too, walked away—quietly, tearfully.
One by one, others followed.
Even the loudest ones fell into silence.
Even the happiest faces had turned solemn.
Master Harry stood there in the middle of it all, still stunned.
He looked around at the almost empty hall, where laughter had once echoed just a few minutes ago.
He sighed and murmured,
"It seems… Master Magnus's story touched deeper than we expected. Everyone's left shaken."
James, one of the senior sorcerers, stepped beside him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry, Harry," James said. "We'll meet the new recruits tomorrow."
Harry slowly nodded.
"You're right. They've seen a side of this world we usually hide. Let them rest… Let their hearts settle."
"Yeah. Let's go, team. Time for us to head out too."