Pssssssssssssss
The wind blew softly through the forest, rustling the trees as their branches creaked like old bones. Moonlight barely filtered through the canopy—this part of the woods was swallowed by darkness.
A black crow perched silently on a branch, its beady eyes staring into the void.
Tap...
Something struck the tree. The crow let out a sharp screech and took off in a panic, disappearing into the shadows, feathers trailing behind it.
"I can already feel the pressure of its anti-tenzen," Nara muttered, pushing forward.
"So this is what an upper-class demon's aura feels like..." Code thought, his heart thudding. Even from this distance, the pressure was suffocating.
He raised his palm, staring at it, then slowly closed his fist.
"I'm going to defeat it," he whispered to himself.
The three trudged deeper into the forest. With every step, the demonic presence thickened, wrapping around them like fog. Before long, they noticed it—something had changed.
The trees no longer held leaves. Their bark was brittle and gray. The grass was dead, crumbling underfoot. Everything around them had withered, sucked dry of life.
They stopped.
"This is the real deal," Nara whispered. He reached for a leaf, and the moment he touched it, it turned to black dust and scattered into the wind.
"We're close," Hina said, adjusting the sword rack on her back.
Step by careful step, they moved through the lifeless trees until the forest suddenly opened up.
What they saw made them freeze.
"What the hell?!" Code gasped, eyes wide.
Before them stood a massive cube, towering in the clearing like an alien monument. Its surface shimmered in bold, mismatched colors—red, blue, yellow, green, white, and orange—each face of the cube painted in large, clean sections.
"It doesn't fit Van's description," Nara said, voice cracking slightly.
"He called it a castle... But I guess this counts, even if it looks like a puzzle toy from hell," Hina muttered.
"Why does it feel... familiar?" Nara asked, scratching his head.
Hina gave a slow nod, her expression grim. "We might be dealing with a very powerful demon."
She unsheathed her katana, gripping it tight in her right hand. "Let's go."
Code took a deep breath. Fear crept in like cold water, but then an image flashed in his mind—the child he made a promise to.
"I'm bringing her back... no matter what," he muttered, fire burning behind his eyes.
The trio stepped onto the wide wooden bridge that stretched over a deep moat, the only path to the cube. Every plank groaned under their boots. They reached the open entrance—just a black hole in the face of the cube, yawning like a silent threat.
"Wait… what if it's a trap?" Nara asked.
"Maybe it is," Hina said, calm and steady. "But we came here to face the demon, trap or not. There's no other way."
She peered inside. No light. No sound. Just thick, unnatural darkness.
A faint dark aura gathered around Hina's hand, wrapping around her sword like smoke. Nara's eyes glowed faintly red.
"Code, you're awfully quiet," Hina said, glancing at him.
"Haha…" Code let out a weak laugh. "Just meditating."
Nara slapped his back. "No need to be nervous. We've got your back."
Hina nodded. "Alright, let's move."
"Yeah!"
"Let's do it."
Together, they stepped into the darkness.
The moment they did, they heard it—SCREEEEECH—followed by the sound of something massive dragging against the floor.
"What was that—?" Hina turned, but didn't get to finish her sentence.
BAM!
The entrance slammed shut behind them.
"Ugh!" Nara flinched, spinning back. The door was gone. Only solid wall now.
"No turning back," he muttered.
A soft flame lit in Nara's hand, just enough to illuminate their surroundings.
They looked around—and paused.
The entire interior was built from brick. Floor, walls, ceiling—everything was solid brick, colored and divided into sections that felt... strangely organized.
Each room was cube-shaped, their walls painted in one or two bold colors. Some glowed faintly with red, blue, or yellow light. Others were split diagonally with green and white, orange and blue. They stood inside what looked like a massive grid of connected rooms—each colored like different tiles on a puzzle.
It was disorienting. The rooms stretched into the distance, forming a dizzying maze of repeating cubes. Some led into others. Some looked like dead ends. And at the center... something pulsed quietly, deep within.
Code blinked in confusion. "What is this place?!"
"I feel like I've seen this before," Nara whispered, wide-eyed.
But Hina's face turned serious the moment she stepped in.
"You haven't just seen it before..." she said.
She turned to them slowly, her voice dropping.
"You've touched it before."
Then she dropped the bomb.
"It's a Rubik's Cube."
"Rubik's Cube?!" Code and Nara shouted at the same time.
"Yeah," Hina nodded, her gaze steady. "A cubic castle, made of smaller cubic rooms—each marked by bold colors and dividing lines. Some rooms connect, others are dead ends. It's too specific to be a coincidence. This place is modeled after a Rubik's Cube."
"But… how's that even possible?" Code asked, baffled. "Van said the castle appeared only a few months ago. No way anyone could've built something this complex in that time. Even with construction sorcery or whatever, it'd take at least a year."
"This isn't construction," Hina said, her tone shifting—darker, heavier. "It's something else entirely."
Nara's eyes lit up in sudden realization. "It's a domain," he muttered.
"Exactly," Hina confirmed. "Domains aren't built—they're manifested. Formed entirely by the caster's will. It reflects their power, their mind... sometimes even their insanity."
"Then that means..." Code started.
"We're dealing with a domain manipulator," Hina finished for him. "And not just any kind... an upper-class demon."
"Arrrgh," Nara groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "This just keeps getting worse. No wonder people go in and never come back out. This place is like a damn trap maze."
"That's why we're here," Code said firmly, fists clenched. "To end it. To kill the demon."
"Don't get too fired up," Hina said calmly. "This entire structure—the walls, the floor, even the air—it's all anti-tenzen. The demon's probably watching us as we speak."
She stepped into the next room without hesitation, the colors of the chamber shifting slightly under her feet.
Nara raised his hand, intensifying the flame hovering above his palm, casting flickering shadows across the walls.
"Be careful," Hina warned, her eyes scanning every corner. "Tenzen and anti-tenzen don't mix well. One wrong move could trigger something."
They went into the next room—walls painted in stark green and orange, glowing faintly as if aware of their presence.
***
TBC