God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

'There is no shortage of bad news today, huh...'

Cain was torn between laughter and tears as he considered the fate of his planet.

{Replying to host: Affirmative...}

Cain: "..."

{Replying to host: "..." }

Cain suddenly asked the system in all seriousness,

"Tell me all I need to know about the devils..."

{Replying to host: This piece of information will cost you 70% of your remaining system points. Do you still wish to proceed?}

'Yes."

{Replying to host: Request Affirmed...}

The system paused for a few seconds before it began...

{Eons ago, during the primordial era, the very first sentient being appeared in the universe. That being would later be referred to as the Nomad. This being possessed powers so unimaginable, there exists no words grand enough to properly describe the extent of his powers}.

{With its vast reserve of powers and unfathomable intelligence, it created the very first true living beings. These beings were the very personification of all things perverse. They were called Devils...}

{The devils were created as the perfect war machines, their only purpose being to kill and devour one another. But consuming the essence of heaven and earth, they continued to grow stronger and stronger, completely disregarding all things to grow their strengths.

Everywhere they went, all they did was bring destruction. In most places in the universe, they are referred to as the harbingers of death, as any world they came across usually didn't survive their onslaught...}

{The history books tell that the Nomad was disgusted by the abominations he had created and deemed them unfit to inhabit his domain. Hence, he abandoned them...}

{Any world they ever tried to occupy rejected them... He cast them out without giving them a place to call home. Their only option was to wander the dark endless void in search of host planets strong enough for them to inhabit for a while}.

{Maybe out of spite for their creator, the devils made it their sole purpose and mission to destroy the domain of the Nomad. They traveled across the void in search of new worlds to devour. Eons later, they arrived on this world as well.

If left to their devices, it will take only a few years for them to completely devour all the mana from the pearly blankets, and after that, all the inhabitants of this world...}

Cain stood still for a while, trying to process all the information. Suddenly, he let out a bitter chuckle...

'So they are our savior, as well as our destroyers... That's more than a bit ironic.'

Without the presence of the devils, the planet, Urbus, would be destroyed by the tremendous amount of mana. But in the process of devouring the abundant mana, they would also devour everything else in between.

'That means we need to defeat them, but not so quickly that they are all gone before they can take care of the abundant god ash. Correct?'

{Replying to host: Affirmative... However, it would do the host some good to know that the longer the devils are allowed to inhabit the planet they have infested, the harder it will be to eradicate them.

The devils are a very ancient race and possess more than a few ways to defeat the very brittle and structureless human race}.

'Structureless?!'

{Replying to host: Affirmative. Structureless...}

'Guess you are right about that...' Cain had no choice but to agree after thinking about it for a second.

Cain then thought hard about it for a while before he could come up with a reasonable conclusion.

"The golden balance... What we need to find, is the golden balance. Although the devils might be getting stronger fast, we humans are doing so as well. If we can find a way to balance the rate at which we kill them off, we might be able to survive this.'

'The problem with this plan is that there are too many unknowns involved. I know for a fact that these devils are many times tougher than the mutant beasts. They are also very intelligent. Much more intelligent than the mutant beasts, and possibly most humans as well.

This isn't going to be easy.'

Cain was worried, but he was not overly so...

He had an odd sense of confidence he wasn't able to explain.

Was it confidence in himself, or something else? He couldn't say...

'I guess we will just have to see. Some things are better dealt with as they come. Other things require more urgent attention.'

Since Cain had been standing and staring out the windows for a while, it was only natural someone would notice after some time.

"What are you staring at?" A voice called out to him from behind.

"Hmmm?" Cain glanced behind himself, only to be greeted with a wave of auburn hair and a slight floral scent.

"There is nothing but gray skies out here. What are you looking at?" Susan walked up like it was the most natural thing and stood directly beside Cain.

Cain stood there for a while before he let out a chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Susan raised a brow at him, her lips slowly forming a pout.

"Nothing..."

"Hmph! Good."

Silence fell between them for a while before Susan spoke.

"I feel a bit guilty..."

Cain raised a brow, "Hey... When did I become a priest? Don't confess to me... I'm a sinner just like you, you know?"

"Shut it."

"Yes ma'am."

Cain didn't know why, but this former class monitor of his still had that same intimidating aura around her...

Susan let off a sigh as she rolled her beautiful eyes. Those same eyes turned a shade darker as she spoke in a low voice, "Our classmates, the teachers. Almost everyone in the school... They are dead."

At that moment, Cain noticed the mood around her drop, so he turned solemn as well.

"We should have done something. If we had convinced them harder or tried something, they might still be alive now." Susan said, her voice filled with bitterness and blame.

Cain held a great amount of indifference toward his previous classmates. He didn't hate them, nor did he hold any obvious positive feelings for them. That's why he didn't feel too many emotions when he learned of their unfortunate demise at the hands of the {Miasma Devil}.

"No. If we had done any more, they could still have perished. Some things can't change even if we go back in time to do them differently." Cain responded indifferently.

"What do you mean?" Susan looked Cain at Cain with narrowed eyes.

Cain paid the subtle change in her temperament no mind as he continued, "Even if we convinced them to leave with us, do you think a majority of them would have survived up until now?" Cain asked her with an inquisitive look spread on his face.

"We might not have been able to save all of them, but we should have tried." The expression on her face was a mixture of sadness and anger.

Cain merely shrugged, before he turned sideways to face her. Cain was able to observe her features and came to realize that she was really beautiful up close. Fair porcelain-like skin with rosy cheeks.

Even though they hadn't had the opportunity to clean up properly for a few days, she didn't have any offensive odors about her. A faint floral fragrance wafted from her body like an autumn breeze.

A pair of rosy lips, a hair full of auburn hair, and a sharp yet soft expression told of her soft heart, yet diligent character.

"Let me ask you something..." Cain said.

Susan looked at him suspiciously but decided to play along, "Sure. Go ahead,"

Cain stared as she shifted on her feet nervously from his hard gaze. He gazed at her for a few more seconds before asking,

"Where did you learn how to shoot?"

Cain knew that Susan was a part of the school archery club, but he figured her level of skill wasn't something one could learn at a mere archery club.

Susan was a bit caught off guard, but she gave Cain a reply after considering it for a while.

"Well, I learned from my grandfather. He is a master marksman, and has studied the art his entire life, as it is a family tradition."

"Hmmm... I see."

Cain knew there existed families just like Susan's who taught martial arts to their successors, but they were very few and far between. They always had one or both of the two following traits in common.

Either they were incredibly rich or had ties to the military...

Cain didn't know why that was so, but he had come to learn this when he was doing a bit of digging around for his master.

"How rare do you think it is for someone to possess your level of skill?" Cain asked her again.

Susan frowned, "I guess not a lot of people possess the same level of proficiency as I do..."

Cain kept pressing her, "Do you think your skills have had anything to do with your survival so far?"

"They do..." Not sure where he was going, Susan kept answering, a bit flustered.

"Let me spell it out straight for you."

Cain's expression suddenly hardened as they gazed into each other's eyes, "Most of them couldn't even hold a knife, not to mention a weapon that actually kills when it mattered. You saw the way they panicked like headless chickens." The glare in his eyes was ruthless as he continued.

"They lack the heart to do it. They would still have ended up dead. If you didn't have the conviction to use the bow in your hands to kill, do you think you would still be alive? No.

Their fates were sealed the moment all this began. If they didn't die then, there is no way they would have survived what was to come. They might have even been the cause of our deaths if they weren't ticked off first.

I refuse to put myself in a situation where I will be forced to forfeit my life due to the incapabilities of another."

Cain took a deep breath to calm his emotions. He noticed that since he suffered the attack of the {Soul Devil} or Phantasma, he had been having a tough time keeping the emotions he had forced himself to suppress at bay.

Only when he was done with his rant did he realize what he had done...

'Crap...'

Cain turned away from Susan, his heart rate speeding up. His pupils were dilating rapidly, and his breathing was getting heavier. However, he fought hard to conceal all these things.

"You probably think I'm a heartless monster, huh..." Cain had no idea why he said it. He didn't know what he was looking for when he did.

Was he looking for someone to validate his thoughts?

Or was he looking for someone to condemn them...

He couldn't tell.

Just when he was about to take his leave, he felt a hand come to rest on his. This hand was soft and radiated a slight warmth that brought a great deal of comfort to him. Suddenly, he felt his heart calm down.

He glanced down, only to see Susan's unblemished hand grasping his...