Delroz had been by his side all this time, yet until now, there had never been direct contact between him and Banteon. Startled by the unfamiliar sensation, Banteon turned to face him.
Before he could utter a single word, the tremors intensified. Rocks came crashing down, obscuring his vision, and the path ahead was completely blocked just as the ground beneath him gave way. Instinctively, he gripped Delroz’s hand tightly, the one that had just wrapped around him.
“……!”
He felt powerful arms clutch him even tighter.
Banteon’s body plummeted straight down with the collapsing earth.
***
Drip. Drip.
Water dropped steadily into a small pool. Through the hazy blur of his vision, Banteon could just make out the stalactites and stalagmites formed by the lime-infused water.
His entire body ached, tense and sore as if every muscle had been strained. His sluggish mind tried to piece together why he was in such a place. Faint fragments came to him—falling, as the mine quaked like it was about to cave in completely.
“…….”
Then this must be below the mine. But unlike the abandoned tunnels with their dry, suffocating air, the air here was clear. There was a damp, earthy scent, and the ground beneath his hands felt soft.
Humid, cool, and… soft?
Soft?
At the sensation beneath his head, Banteon’s eyes flew open. When he lifted his gaze, he met a pair of eyes that had been quietly watching him.
“You’re awake?”
“…What is this…?”
What he’d thought was soft was actually Delroz’s thigh. Beneath them lay Delroz’s large jacket, and Banteon, realizing he’d been using the man’s leg as a pillow, jolted upright in shock.
The sudden movement sent a sharp ringing through his skull.
“Ugh…”
“Careful. You might’ve hit your head.”
“…Where are we?”
“The bottom of the mine. The very lowest part.”
At Delroz’s reply, Banteon raised his head and looked around. Just as he said, they were inside a vast cavern that appeared to have formed naturally. Faint light came from somewhere above, giving them just enough visibility. The floor beneath his palm was wet—slippery with moss-covered stone.
“What happened? Are the others safe?”
“They’ll survive on their own. More importantly—are you hurt anywhere?”
At that, Banteon checked himself. Though his body felt heavy and bruised, like he’d been pounded all over, there was no distinct pain.
Looking up, he spotted the massive hole he’d fallen through. The height was dizzying, yet he’d survived the fall virtually unscathed. As much as he hated to admit it, Delroz must have shielded him during the descent.
Even if the ground collapsed, someone like Delroz could easily have escaped on his own. The fact that he had come down with him—he’d chosen to.
“Why so quiet? Are you injured somewhere?”
“No. I’m fine.”
The bitterness between them ran too deep for him to offer sincere thanks. But despite Banteon’s curt reply, Delroz simply nodded without issue. Then, standing up, he casually brushed off his clothes and stretched. Considering the height they’d fallen from, it was almost absurd how unharmed he looked.
Banteon turned his head to check his own condition and noticed the tear in his glove, revealing bare skin beneath. These gloves were supposed to suppress his guiding abilities. Through the torn fabric, he could see the color of his own hand. Come to think of it—wasn’t this the hand he used to grab Delroz during the fall?
The more he recalled that desperate moment, the tighter his lips pressed together. It hadn’t been his imagination. He had definitely touched Delroz with his bare hand. And when he came to, he was lying with his head on Delroz’s leg.
‘Did he notice?’
With a quiet sigh, Banteon forced himself up. He didn’t know how long he’d been unconscious, but his stiff body was slow to respond. Using the wall for support, he finally managed to stand, only for a sharp pain to shoot up from his left foot.
“Ugh.”
A jolt like an electric current surged through the sole and ankle, forcing a groan from him. He bit his lip to endure it.
“What’s wrong?”
“I think I twisted my ankle.”
Of all places to injure his ankle, it had to be in the middle of this enormous cavern. With the poor visibility, this wasn’t good. He frowned, troubled by the situation.
Delroz, watching, clicked his tongue softly and stepped closer. Without warning, he knelt down and grabbed Banteon’s ankle, inspecting it.
Without hesitation, Delroz tore the lower half of his shirt. Through the ripped fabric, his chiseled abs were briefly exposed, but he paid it no mind as he firmly bound Banteon’s ankle, securing it tightly from foot to calf. Only after ensuring it wouldn’t move did he rise again.
“…Thank you.”
At this point, even someone like Banteon couldn’t forgo expressing gratitude. Despite the polite tone of his words, Delroz’s expression didn’t soften.
“Pathetic.”
“Well, it’s not like I had a choice—we fell from a ridiculous height.”
Banteon muttered his protest under his breath. From that altitude, a twisted ankle was honestly getting off light.
But Delroz only glanced up lazily and shook his head like it was nothing of concern. Of course. For a monster like him, that height probably wasn’t even enough to make a dent.
Banteon slowly took stock of the situation, scanning his surroundings. He had no idea how much time had passed, but considering his clothes were still dry even in this damp cave, it likely hadn’t been long.
The hole above was a void of endless black. The diameter was so wide that it was almost a relief that only the two of them had fallen.
Though Banteon couldn’t judge the exact height, if anyone could scale the walls and climb back up, it would be Delroz. Shaking the moisture from his clothes, he steadied himself on his legs and stood.
“Then let’s get back up.”
“Back up?”
Delroz tilted his head like he’d just heard something absurd.
“We can’t stay here forever. The people up there are probably worried. We need to regroup.”
With their strongest fighter separated from the front line, there was no guarantee the others were safe. Judging by the lack of debris falling into the hole, it didn’t seem like the mine had collapsed entirely. They had to return before some unexpected monster appeared.
It was the obvious course of action, yet Delroz’s expression twisted into something unpleasant.
“Don’t talk nonsense. How the hell do you expect us to climb that?”
“You could manage it, couldn’t you?”
“That’s if I was alone.”
At that, Banteon tilted his head slightly. Delroz’s strength was certainly exceptional in physical combat, but his other abilities—especially telekinesis—were also rated highly. He was capable of smashing and lifting entire buildings. Carrying one person? That should be nothing.
“I’m not that heavy.”
“Your weight’s not the issue. You’re soft—like pudding. How am I supposed to haul that up?”
‘Pudding?’
Banteon scowled at the unfamiliar insult.
“Look at you. You’d get crushed just brushing against the wall. What if you get hurt trying to squeeze through those narrow gaps?”
“…A little scraping isn’t a big deal.”
Delroz was treating him like a child. Even if he took a few scrapes on the way up, it wasn’t worth fussing over. But that only made Delroz’s frown deepen.
“What gives you the confidence to treat your body like it’s disposable?”
There was unmistakable irritation in his voice.
“I’ve thought about it for a while now—someone like you, who should be sitting safely somewhere protected, decides to tag along with the Subjugation Squad and even insists on leading from the front? You think monsters care if your body’s precious?”
“Everyone else is doing the same.”
His textbook response didn’t seem to sit well with Delroz, whose eyebrow twitched.
“Why don’t you act like the noble you are and stay somewhere safe? From what I’ve heard, you didn’t even need to come here in the first place.”
Was he being sarcastic? Or was it a genuine question? It was hard to tell. They were clearly speaking the same language, yet Banteon couldn’t grasp what Delroz truly meant.
As Banteon stumbled from the pressure on his injured ankle, bracing himself against the wall, Delroz reached out and firmly gripped his wrist. Not just a stabilizing hold—the way his palm made deliberate contact told Banteon exactly what he was doing.
He looked up at Delroz.
His golden eyes glowed darkly in the cave’s dim light. The red energy that had been flickering wildly around him rapidly subsided. Even with the clear change, Delroz’s face remained unmoved. Not a trace of surprise. That confirmed it—he already knew.
Delroz met his eyes and gave a feral grin.
“Thought so. It works like a charm.”
“When did you find out?”
“I wasn’t 100% sure. You felt different from the others. It bugged me—some random guy shouldn’t get under my skin like that.”
“……”
“When I grabbed you—just before the fall.”
The distance between them, already close, narrowed further. It was close enough to feel oppressive. Banteon wanted to take a step back, but a massive boulder loomed behind him.
“It’s cliché, but it really felt like stars exploded in my eyes. Couldn’t think of anything else the whole way down.”
His eyes spoke nothing but the truth. Banteon, uncomfortable under the weight of that direct gaze, unconsciously turned his head. He thought he heard a soft chuckle near his ear.
“For whatever reason, it seems you’re the only one I can Guide with right now.”
“How unfortunate for you.”
“You said it.”
Delroz gave a nonchalant shrug before continuing.
“You might not care since you swing both ways, but I’m really not loving this situation.”
‘Like hell you are.’
Banteon clenched his teeth. The words were right there on the edge of his tongue, but he forced them back down. Delroz had voiced exactly what Banteon wanted to say.
