The tunnel beneath the mountain stretched on like a living labyrinth, its passages splitting again and again into narrow corridors and winding chambers.

Reconnaissance team moved in scattered groups, torches flickering against damp stone walls as they searched for hidden routes. Some called out to one another, their voices swallowed by the twisting paths. Others pressed forward in silence, convinced they were close to uncovering the truth.

More than a few had already lost their sense of direction. Marks carved into the stone to guide their return led only to other identical carvings. Every turn seemed to promise discovery, yet delivered only another fork, another shadowed descent.

They believed the enemy was somewhere deeper within the mountain, hiding beyond one more bend.

They did not know that the true confrontation had already begun.

While soldiers and scouts wandered through stone corridors, unaware of how far they had strayed from the center of events, Tyler and Kaeya stood face to face with the target.

"Well, it’s not my fault," Tyler said, tilting his head slightly. "She was the one who hit it off with me."

The casual tone only made Gailo’s spider eyes glow brighter.

"You are dead meat," Gailo replied coldly.

Tyler blinked. "You’re going to kill me?"

"No." Gailo’s voice shifted, losing some of its hostility and gaining something far more dangerous— amusement. "She is not truly my daughter in this world. Not by blood. Also in Boundless World... she carries a lineage far beyond what you imagine. If you took advantage of her while her memories were fractured, then you had better prepare yourself."

Tyler folded his arms. "Prepare for what?"

"For when she regains everything." Gailo’s lips curved beneath the chitin mask. "When she returns to the real world."

Tyler scoffed lightly. "I live a million years after her timeline."

"Then you are even more cooked," Gailo replied smoothly. "A million years later, she will not be some wandering girl. She will have wealth beyond kingdoms and power beyond comprehension. She will find you."

Kaeya stood beside them, utterly lost.

"Real world? Boundless World? A million years?" she muttered under her breath. "What madness are you speaking of?"

Tyler ignored her for the moment and looked back at Gailo.

"I don’t understand something," he said calmly. "Why are you a Demon General?"

Gailo’s eyes gleamed.

"Not ’now.’ I have always been one."

Tyler paused. "So your Orion task was real?"

"It was." Gailo shrugged slightly. "And another task was to participate in this war."

"Wait." Kaeya finally stepped forward, unable to contain herself. "What exactly is happening here? What are the two of you talking about?"

"I’ll explain later," Tyler said quickly. "For now, we fight."

Kaeya did not hesitate.

She vanished.

In the next instant, a blade of light pierced toward Gailo’s throat.

"So fast," Gailo murmured.

His arm twisted, transforming into a curved white blade. He slashed, sending a scarlet arc cutting through the air toward Kaeya’s sword.

Before it connected, her blade disappeared.

Swoosh.

It reappeared at his side.

Another scarlet arc cut outward.

The sword vanished again, reappearing behind him, stabbing toward his back.

Gailo spun, slashing downward like a falling guillotine.

Again, the blade was gone.

For several heartbeats, the cavern became a blur of light and red arcs. Kaeya’s teleporting strikes met Gailo’s sweeping counters dozens of times in a breath, yet no clean clash occurred. Every attack dissolved before contact, every counter barely missing its mark.

Tyler watched quietly.

Then he moved.

He disappeared and reappeared directly in front of Gailo, fist already cocked.

Boom.

Gailo crossed his blade-arm just in time. The impact cracked the cavern floor and sent him sliding backward several meters, carving trenches into stone.

Gailo steadied himself, eyes narrowing.

"You grew stronger in a very short time."

Tyler rolled his shoulders as if they had just finished a light spar instead of cracking the floor of a cavern.

"I’ve been farming," he said casually. Then his tone shifted. "Let’s talk about something more interesting. How about you join our side in this war?"

Kaeya’s head snapped toward him. "There is no way we can invite a demon to our ranks."

Tyler shrugged. "Demon, human... they’re just races. Labels. The world doesn’t burn because of race. It burns because of choices."

Kaeya frowned but did not interrupt again.

Tyler pointed lazily at Gailo. "After all this is over, he won’t even remain here. He’ll disappear."

"Like hell I can believe that," Kaeya said flatly.

"It’s true," Tyler replied calmly. "But that part isn’t important right now."

Gailo lowered his blade-arm slightly, spider eyes narrowing with interest. "And why," he asked, "would I join you?"

"Because your task is to participate in the war, isn’t it?" Tyler replied. "You didn’t say you had to fight for the Demon King specifically. Just participate. So choose this side."

Gailo tilted his head.

"And what," he asked slowly, "is your task?"

Tyler’s mouth twitched for a brief second before he answered. "Becoming the ruler of this world."

For a heartbeat, silence hung between them.

Then Gailo burst into laughter.

"That is far more troublesome than my task," he said, amusement echoing through the cavern.

Tyler scratched his cheek. "It sounds harder than it is."

"Does it?" Gailo replied dryly.

Tyler nodded toward Kaeya. "This one next to me? Crown Princess Kaeya. In disguise most of the time. I happen to be her fiancé. She agreed to support my claim."

Kaeya stiffened. "You did not need to reveal that here."

Gailo’s laughter stopped abruptly.

He studied them both with new intensity.

"Princess," he murmured. "And future king."

Kaeya crossed her arms. "Future king is still under negotiation."

Tyler ignored her. "Think about it. If we win, your task will fulfill anyways. If the Demon King loses... your task might refresh if you die.."

Gailo’s eyes flickered slightly at that.

"I have seen how he treats failure," Kaeya continued though she doesn’t understand what is happening. "Three generals gone already. One devoured personally. You really think you’re safe?"

The cavern grew quiet again.

Gailo tapped one blade against the stone floor, thinking.

"Hmmm... If I must participate in the war," he said at last, "then logically, I should choose the side with the higher probability of victory."

Kaeya stared at him. "You are considering this?"

"I prefer to stand on the winning side," Gailo replied calmly.

Tyler smiled faintly. "Smart spider."

Kaeya exhaled slowly, still confused by half the conversation and disturbed by the rest.

"Someone," she muttered, "is going to explain everything to me in full later." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Tyler grinned.

"Sure," he said. "After we secure ourselves a Demon General."

┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉

They stepped out of the collapsing tunnel and into the damp air of an abandoned mine carved into the cliffs near the kingdom’s eastern border. Faint daylight filtered through broken wooden supports, and beyond the rocky ridge, the outline of a frontier city could be seen in the distance.

Kaeya looked back toward the sealed passage, her expression dark.

"A hidden corridor stretching all the way into our territory... and we never discovered it," she said quietly. "If they had mobilized through here in full force..."

She did not finish the sentence.

Tyler adjusted the bundle in his arms—maps, coded markings, and deployment plans Gailo had handed over before vanishing back into the depths.

"Well," he replied lightly, "at least we found it before they used it properly. Credit where it’s due. Our spider friend was helpful."

Kaeya turned and slashed her blade across the tunnel entrance. Stone collapsed inward, sealing the path in a controlled cave-in. Dust rose briefly, then settled.

"I still cannot believe he agreed to join us," she said as they began walking toward the city road. "A demon general volunteering to become our spy."

Tyler shrugged. "He’s pragmatic. Smart creatures survive by switching sides at the right time."

"He is also the one who murdered that healer girl without hesitation," Kaeya said sharply. "Do not speak of him as if he were merely clever."

Tyler glanced at her. "I’m not excusing him. I’m saying he calculated his odds. That’s all."

She fell silent for a few steps, then said coldly, "If this war ends and he remains alive, I will judge him myself."

"Fair enough," Tyler replied. "Though killing him might not end everything."

Kaeya stopped walking.

She turned and fixed her eyes on him. Tyler met her gaze without flinching. He already knew what was coming.

"You owe me answers," she said steadily. "Who are you really? What is this ’Boundless World’ you mentioned? What are these Orion tasks? And why did he speak as if you both share some secret beyond this world?"

Tyler looked past her toward the distant city walls, their banners fluttering faintly in the afternoon light. For a moment, he said nothing.

Then he exhaled.

"These answers aren’t simple," he said. "And they’re not easy to accept either."

"Try me," Kaeya replied, her voice firm, almost stubborn. "You said you would tell me."

Tyler studied her expression—the determination, the refusal to back down. She deserved the truth, or at least part of it.

After a brief pause, he nodded.

"I suppose," he said calmly, "it’s time you learned a few truths."