There were fewer than two days left until the planned mission to the Village of Fool of Baals.

Concord remained just as gloomy, and the heavy gray clouds didn’t let a single ray of sunlight through.

*Vroooom...* At that moment, a black motorcycle, looking like the very peak of aerodynamics, pulled up in front of a familiar building.

Mr. Nobody parked it in a small alley and stowed his helmet in the bike’s storage compartment.

The cat lazily shifted from his lap to his shoulder.

"Here we are again..."

He was wearing his usual motorcycle jacket with the old Black Gold patch. He never wore the wolf suit to a place like this.

Approaching the entrance, he glanced at the neon sign bearing the building’s name with a smirk.

"Black Partisan Bar"

"Hah..." he smiled wearily and shook his head. "And that old man keeps talking about their ’perfect cover’."

"Meow..."

"Yes, kitty, this is where the Partisans of Darkness ended up... Or rather, what’s left of them."

He scratched his cheek and, without a second thought, tried to open the door.

It was locked.

"Hmm...?"

He knocked and waited...

About thirty seconds passed, but there was no sign of movement inside.

*Click* He frowned and quietly cocked the revolver in his pocket.

"..." The cat shifted her gaze to his face.

"...Paymax, you still have the access key, don’t you?"

Without waiting for an answer, he held the black bracelet up to the electronic lock.

A few seconds later, a confirmation beep sounded, and the door opened.

He stepped inside and saw the familiar dimly lit interior with a few tables and a bar counter.

On the back of the door was a sign that wasn’t lit up.

"Seeking a kind and decent waitress for a kind and decent team!" It was a hiring notice.

It hadn’t been activated yet, which meant...

"Looks like Marcel just hasn’t opened the bar yet. Or maybe he took the day off."

Moving cautiously, he walked to the bar and pulled one of the bottles. A familiar secret passage opened.

Descending the stairs deep below, he found himself in front of a massive black door.

"Unidentified subject..." The red scanner immediately focused on him.

"..." He turned and showed the patch on his left shoulder.

"Unidentified mercenary, Black Gold rank... Beep!" The scanner suddenly flared crimson. "Southville mercenary credentials invalid. Intrusion attempt. Alarm will be triggered..."

"God, you’re stupid," he replied irritably.

Rummaging through his pockets, he found a new patch and held it up to the scanner.

"Beep. Accepted. Unidentified mercenary, Uncut Diamond rank... Welcome, Anonymous." The scanner lost its red glow and became almost invisible.

Mr. Nobody clicked his tongue and was about to open the door, but...

"Unidentified subject, identify yourself." The scanner lit up crimson again and prevented the door from opening.

It was strange, but he focused on the cat on his shoulder.

"...Are you fucking serious?"

"..." The cat shifted her gaze to the scanner.

"Identify yourself..."

Blue eyes stared into the red glow without blinking...

And a moment later, it died out.

"Stupid piece of scrap." Vowing to himself that he’d smash this thing someday, Mr. Nobody walked in.

...

He stood in front of the familiar black door in the basement.

Even through the closed door, he could hear the vivid sounds of life coming from inside. As he listened, he nervously clenched a metal key in his hand. Just an ordinary key.

"Meow?" She meowed softly in his ear.

"Sorry, I just... It’s just complicated." He forced a smile.

"..." The cat didn’t answer, barely pushing the cape behind her with her paw.

A few seconds passed, and then...

"Nudge..." He felt something soft and fluffy touch his neck and cheek.

He felt a tickle and couldn’t help but smile.

"Paymax, give me the face of an ordinary Southville resident," he asked with an awkward smile.

After a while, the face on his mask began to resemble the faces of those seven corpses in the Pit.

"..." Closing his eyes, he leaned into the cat slightly in response and inserted the key into the keyhole.

*Click* The door opened.

...

With his eyes closed, he descended an even deeper and darker staircase.

’So this is where it all began...’

Two years ago, Marcel had led him by the arm down this very staircase. Much had changed since then, except for one detail...

There was always a bright light at the end of this staircase.

"..." He stopped when he felt the warmth of the light reaching his legs.

Somewhere in the distance, he could hear cheerful songs. Nearby — the lively chatter of women.

And even closer, he could hear children’s laughter during some kind of game.

Listening to it all, he felt as if every face carried a smile.

Listening to these sounds, he felt warmth spreading through his chest.

He felt as if, after so long... he was finally home.

"Haa... Don’t forget who you are." Sighing, he whispered to himself.

Stepping down from the last step and taking a couple of steps forward, a strange scent of warmth and fresh baking hit his nose, and his eyes were struck by...

Sunlight.

"..." Opening his eyes, he saw bright, old European-style streets. Kids were playing and running through the streets, and women were chatting cheerfully outside bakeries and old restaurants.

Looking up, he saw a clear blue sky with a bright sun. It stood in stark contrast to the gloomy weather in Concord.

It wasn’t natural. And everything unnatural in this world belonged to one thing — the supernatural.

Thinking back, he realized that the sky in the Pit had been strange, too. From there, he couldn’t see the Abode of Dreams or the orbital station hovering over Concord.

Given where the Entrance was, that shouldn’t have been possible...

"Agh...!" As he tried to recall the location of the entrance to that place, pain struck his head again.

The pain made him lean forward slightly, and at that moment...

*Click* The barrel of a pistol pressed against his forehead.

"...What?"

"Surrender and beg for mercy, Chico!" A cheerful voice rang out. "Mr. Nobody has come for your soul."