"I'm sorry, kids, but it's already late and I'm about to get home," the coachman says as he looks at Raia and Raiden, adjusting his bowler hat. A faint chime of coins reaches their ears as he taps his hand on the brown pouch strapped to his waist.

That slight movement may have been unintentional, but it is more than enough to imply that the carriage driver did not make enough money today. That being the case, he is hesitant to end his shift.

"Are you sure?" Raiden asks, his voice brimming with persuasion. After assisting the girl in bringing her father to her house not long ago, they made their way into the main street and found only one public carriage.

The coachman averts his gaze. He looks at Raiden after a brief moment of hesitation.

"How much can you give?" he asks, his voice hesitant. "At this late hour, there should be a fare increase, especially since my shift just ended."

Raiden smiles and reaches inside his coat. "How about this?"

The coachman's eyes widen when he looks at the tan drawstring pouch sitting on Raiden's palm. Then he frowns.

"Y-you're giving me all that?" he blurts out, unable to keep the disbelief out of his voice.

When Raiden nods, the coachman slowly reaches out a hand and takes the tan pouch from him with a little reluctance.

"Okay then, get in," the coachman says, gazing at the bag of sacred coins with a sparkle in his eyes. "This is more than enough to buy my son something good to eat."

Raiden thanks him several times before stepping inside the black carriage with Raia. They take their seats across from each other, and the carriage begins to move forward, passing huge buildings with windows full of golden glimmer, matching the glow of the bright, yellow street lamps that run along the side street. A cool breeze blows in across the deserted street, gently caressing their cheeks. The sound of horse hooves clicking against the cobblestones becomes a sort of lullaby for them.

"Are we there yet?" Raia asks, breaking the silence around them as she looks out the window.

"Not yet," Raiden answers, staring at the green leaf between his two fingers, one that came from his Blessing. "It's on the outskirts of town, and we're only a half-hour away now."

Raia sighs. "Half an hour."

She hasn't had much sleep for three days, looking for the organization that her master told. Her body feels tired and heavy already, she's even becoming more aware of the hunger surging through her. Does she even eat anything besides apples? Her forehead creases when her stomach lets out a quiet grumble.

"You kids okay in there?" the coachman says.

Raiden looks up from the leaf to respond, despite the fact that he can't see him. "Yeah." He casts a glance at Raia. "By the way, where are you from?"

Raia's brows furrow. "I'm Urielean."

Raiden's eyes widen in awe, his blond hair and golden eyes gleaming in the moonlight streaming in through the window. "Really? Wow. So you came here instead to be branded as an Aragon in the Mikaelean Branch?"

When Raia only nods, he shakes his head, still stunned. "That has never happened before. Well, I know someone who was transferred to another Branch. But being Branded to a place where you weren't born . . . that's new to me. Well, I'm glad you've chosen to be a part of our Branch. However, why haven't you joined the Urielean Branch?"

"My master sent me here," Raia responds quietly, returning her gaze to the window.

Raia has no idea why her master sent her to the central continent instead of the land she was born in. Perhaps it's because her master is from here.

But Raia remembers what he said.

"You can heal, which is a miracle from Elysium. You might have been sent here with a sole purpose, so I'll be sending you to the Mikaelean Branch for someone who really needs your power."

"What do you mean?" Raia asked him, but he merely smiled.

That's why Raia came here, obeying her absurd master with only a crappy map he drew roughly himself. He may be an absurd man, but he is the only one she has. The one who saved her from that lonely orphanage.

Raiden clicks his tongue. "I see. Who's your master, by the way?"

The carriage jolts to a halt before Raia can respond, and they both fall out of their seats. Her head thumps against Raiden's.

"I'm sorry!" Raiden exclaims, but Raia has already exited the carriage, allowing the cold wind to respond.

As Raia steps out of the vehicle, she finds herself in a wide street lined with brick terrace houses. The horses galloping down the road transform into a silhouette before the night swallows it. Then her eyes land on the coachman lying unconscious on the stone cobbles. As she approaches him, she notices a black stain creeping up his neck. She stares in horror.

He is tainted.

Raia's brow furrows as she touches her silver cross pendant. "Answer my call, Raphael."

Her necklace shines and transforms into a longsword with a holy flame, shining brighter than the lampposts lit down the street. She rushes over to the infected coachman and raises her weapon, her gaze fixed on the black stain covering half of his face.

"May the Light be with -" Someone kicks her from behind, knocking the wind out of her and sending her tumbling to the ground. She winces and raises her head, glaring at the scrawny woman standing next to the unconscious coachman.

Raiden rushes over to her and helps her to her feet. "Are you okay?"

"The man is tainted," Raia says in a deep tone as she stands.

Raiden looks up at the Outcast, who has long dark hair tied in a messy ponytail. She's dressed in a long shirtdress, and her dull eyes are fixed on them- on the bright orange flames blazing in their chests. Light is flickering in her palm.

"Answer my call, Cypress," Raiden utters, and his silver cross earring brightens and transforms into a broadsword.

The rest of the sword is pitch black with trimmings of silver. Like Raia's longsword, a shining cross is emblazoned on the center of the crossguard. A vine with thorns surrounds the blade in a spiral-a holy vine.

Raiden charges at the Outcast, his broadsword fending off the spherical light. He tightens his grip on his weapon's hilt and delivers a horizontal cut.

Raia charges forward with her flaming sword, but their opponent has already escaped beyond the reach of their holy blades.

The Outcast leaps onto the carriage roof and swings her hand. Her movement creates a massive arc of light that speeds toward Raiden.

Raiden defends himself from the light by holding his sword up in front of his face. When it collides with the blade of his sword, a powerful force propels him backward into a brick wall. He groans. As he slowly rises to his feet, shards of stone and mortar fall from him. A scream erupts from the house he crashed into. People are soon rushing out of their homes to see what the commotion is all about. Then they shriek when they see two people with swords and a woman standing on the carriage's roof.

"How many has she tainted?" Raiden shouts.

"We're both clueless," Raia answers as she dodges the ball of light. When she turns her head, her eyes widen upon seeing the people huddled in front of the red brick houses, the lampposts barely illuminating their features. Since innocent humans are an Outcast's prey, it is not safe for them to be exposed in an open area where a threatening being is present. And if the demon taints one more soul, she may evolve into an even stronger opponent.

"Dammit!" Raia hisses. She lunges forward, and Raiden follows suit.

They attack at once, but the Outcast leaps high into the air as their blades cleave downward.

The Outcast alights on the roof of the house in front of them and looks down. Her feature is now nothing more than a silhouette.

Raiden furrows his brows. "She's on the verge of transition. We must finish her before she evolves."

"Of course," Raia says, her face set in a deep frown.

With a single fluid movement of her hand, the Outcast sends bullets of light below. Raia and Raiden adopt a defensive stance and hit them with their swords. Light particles float through the air before fading away.

The Outcast leaps from the roof, landing with a thud on the ground. Raia and Raiden spin around, and their eyes widen in terror. The Outcast is standing next to a man.

It's the tainted coachman.

"He has now awakened," Raia snarls, glaring at the two Outcasts. "I should have released him sooner before he regretted something."

The coachman's dull eyes fall on them, staring at the bright-orange souls flickering in their chests. Then he tilts his head to one side, as if perplexed.

A tainted Outcast is unaware of the existence of an Elysian unless told by a vengeful spirit.

The woman Outcast's mouth moves as she tells the coachman something, and with a sudden spring, she leaps toward them and swings her foot into Raia's stomach.

"Raia!" Raiden yells as Raia slams into a brick house, causing the wall to shatter.

"The tainted!" she roars, glaring at Raiden as she pulls herself up from the debris.

Raiden clenches his teeth and looks away from her. He grips the hilt of his sword as the coachman raises a hand, a spherical light flickering in his palm.

"Darn it!" Raiden swears through clenched teeth and lunges at him. It takes a few seconds for the tainted coachman to drag himself away from him, still summoning a ball of light, but he's too slow. Raiden closes the distance between them and thrusts the sword into his chest.

The blade passes through him as if it were an intangible object, ignoring his physical body and causing no harm to it. Despite this, the coachman screams in agony. His soul, which is shrouded in darkness, slips from him, and his lifeless body slumps to the ground.

Raiden grips the hilt of his broadsword with both hands and holds the blade up to his face. He shuts his eyes and casts the Cleansing Spell. "Cypress, pour thyself with Absideon and destroy the darkness thy blade touches. Purify the tainted soul and deliver it to Elysium!"

Multitudes of vines sprout from the rain-guard of his sword, covering the tainted soul hovering in front of him.

"Cypress, free him. Vines of purification!" The vines that surround the soul emit a momentary burst of light before dissipating. As he stares at the white soul, his expression softens. "May the light be with you."

Raia lands next to him on the ground. The soul flickers before dissipating into thin air. Raiden then clenches his fists as the coachman's body slowly dissolves into light particles like little fireflies before fading away into nothingness as if he never existed.

The fate of the tainted is worse than that of the possessed.

When Raiden looks up at the dark sky, Raia frowns at him. A sad expression flashes across his face.

"I'm sorry," he utters in a soft voice.

"Raiden!" Raia hisses. She lowers herself into a crouch and leaps into the air. Then she swings her flaming longsword as she lands on the roof where the Outcast is.

The woman jumps from the roof and lands with a thud on the ground. She raises her hands and conjures a spherical light.

Raia looks down at Raiden from the roof and yells at the top of her lungs. "Now!"

"Alright!" Raiden responds with a hard expression on his face before charging at the Outcast with his sword raised. When he delivers a diagonal cut, the Outcast jumps backward and points her hands at the small crowd. When the demon unleashes light bullets, the disciple's face pales. With horror in his eyes, he chases after them.

"What a trouble," Raia murmurs as the people flee for cover with cries of fear and surprise, but Raiden blocks the lights with his broadsword before they can taint someone.

Raia tightens her grip on her sword's hilt and pushes her feet off the stone tiles. She holds her sword in both hands and looms behind the Outcast, her dark-purple hair and cloak fluttering in the breeze. The crescent moon shines in the sky behind her, as if it was placed there on purpose to guide the disciple of light through the darkness.

Raiden and the crowd look at Raia in awe, as if a light has emerged from the darkness, like a savior who has come to deliver a sinner from the error of his ways.

"Raphael!" Raia bellows as she descends, driving the flaming sword through the Outcast's body, causing no harm except to the lost spirit within.

The Outcast screams in agony before collapsing to the ground. The lost spirit floats in the air.

Raia lands on the stone cobbles with a soft thump and raises her sword blade to her face. She closes her eyes and chants.

"Raphael, pour thyself with Absideon and destroy the darkness thy blade touches. Purify the tainted soul and send it to the Elysium!"

She leaps up. The flame around her blade flares up and turns purple, illuminating the area like a massive torch.

"Flame of purification!" she shouts as she delivers the final blow to the lost spirit.

The purple fire devours the lost spirit, consuming every drop of darkness that surrounds it. The fire then burns out, leaving embers fluttering around before melting away. Raia lands on the ground, her gaze raised to the purified soul hovering in the air in front of her.

"Rest in peace," she whispers, and the soul flickers like a flame before dissipating.

"That was a nice move," Raiden says as he approaches her, his arms hanging limp at his sides. "Your master is Apostle Simon, am I right?"

Raia frowns, remembering the face of her master. "Yeah."

Raiden scratches the back of his neck with a smile. Raia grabs his arm when he opens his mouth to speak again.

"Show me your arm," she orders.

Raiden creases his brow and averts his gaze. He then begins unbuttoning his coat, revealing a double-breasted grey vest and an open-collar white dress. He sighs and rolls his right sleeve up.

Raia's face turns as white as a sheet as she stares horrified at the black mark that covers half of his arm. "You're tainted."

Raiden blinks, perplexed by her sudden display of concern, and then lets out a short laugh. "You're such a sharp individual. And you can also fight with such skill. You're truly an apprentice of Apostle Simon. That man worries a lot too."

Raia scowls. "Don't put me in the likes of him." She clutches her silver cross pendant and whispers, "Answer my call, Raphael."

Raiden's eyes widen as Raia's necklace transforms into a longsword. When she points the flaming blade at his face with a fixed gaze, he looks at her in befuddlement. He blanches and takes a step backward. "W-what do you think you're doing?"

Raia frowns. "Now, tell me where the Order's headquarters is before I stop your change."

"What?" Raiden blurts out in a ridiculous tone, appearing to be confused.

Raia has never met any disciples before apart from her master, and so she has never come across an Elysian being tainted. A mere thought of a holy individual being tainted and corrupted by the darkness puts her in uneasiness. A sudden sense of disappointment floods her inside. For someone holy to suddenly becoming a sinner, what a tragic turn of events.

Raia won't let him cause trouble and become a hindrance.

Since she doesn't know him, she doesn't mind killing him. At the very least, his soul will be saved, and he will be set free before committing a sin. Better get things done quickly before they become a hindrance.

Raia closes her eyes. "May the Light forgive this fallen warrior -"

"Stop!" Raiden hisses, grabbing her arm and keeping a safe distance from the flaming blade. "What are you even talking about? Didn't you know about our immunity?"

Raia frowns. "Immunity?"

Raiden sighs and shakes his head in disbelief. "Yeah. Since we're Elysians, our souls are special and we are immune to the darkness. Look." When he touches his right arm, the black stain fades away. He smiles as he looks at Raia. "We will not be tainted. However, receiving too much can weaken us."

Raia narrows her eyes, and her sword transforms back into a silver cross necklace. That is something she has never heard of before. Simon, her master, never mentioned anything about an Elysian being immune to the attacks of an Outcast.

"Well, it's a good thing then," Raia mumbles in a toneless voice. "But, if that's the case, why do you appear so terrified when you know perfectly well that my Blessing will not harm you?"

Raiden gives her a funny look. "What scared me was the fact that you looked so determined to do it." He heaves a deep sigh and shakes his head.

Ignoring him, Raia sweeps her gaze over the cowering crowd and sighs. Leaving these people befuddled and terrified could lead to further complications, so it's best to reassure them before they continue on their journey. She can't afford to waste any more time dealing with another problem. She needs to get to the headquarters as soon as possible to become an Aragon.

"Jeez. Crazy woman," Raiden mutters under his breath. "Didn't even think twice about killing me."

Raia says nothing as if she doesn't hear him. She tucks her hair behind her cloak and pulls on the hood.

Raiden shakes his head again. "How could Apostle Simon fail to inform you of this? So you've been fighting Outcasts without being hit by their lights?" He stares at her in awe.

Raia merely shrugs. "Maybe he doesn't want me to depend on such luck."

Raiden's lips curve into a soft smile as he puts on his coat. "He's really a great man, isn't he?"

"No."

Raiden's brow furrows in response to the curt tone in her voice. When he opens his mouth to say something, Raia cuts him off.

"Let's not waste any more time, and you should do something about those people. I'll handle the woman." Raia walks up to the unconscious woman lying on the ground.

Raiden sighs. "Yeah, and I have to get you to the headquarters as soon as possible to be branded."