“You bastard! Do you think that this is some kind of a joke!” That was exactly what Nick thought, but Zich looked offended like he had been greatly misunderstood.

“How could you say such harsh words? I simply wanted to cheer you on,” Zich said.

“Don’t fall for his tricks and activate the Pyramid of Vengeful Souls now!” the leader of the robed figures shouted. Nick was about to activate the pyramid when Zich’s words stopped him.

“Well, Ellie will also lose her life since she is at Pialu, but I suppose that can’t be helped either.”

“…What?” Nick’s face fell in disbelief. This was a provocation that Nick couldn’t ignore in the slightest, and Zich smiled brightly at him after seeing his reaction.

“Since it’s about time for us to wrap up this situation, I called Ellie to Pialu. Walter was fine since he met his dad from time to time, but Ellie whined quite a bit since she hadn’t been able to see her dad for so long. So, to comfort her, I brought the children to Pialu and hid them there. I thought that by doing so, I could also have you as hostage if you tried anything weird.”

“Don’t listen to...