Emmanuel entered the haunted tavern, crawling.
Blood trailed behind him on the worn wooden floor.Rain was pouring heavily outside the broken windows, and lightning intermittently lit up the grey sky, like the city's heart throbbing with pain.
But now...now he was leaving it as if reborn.
His breath was heavy, but he didn't feel weak, even though it was his reality. Because his stubbornness had been renewed, becoming stronger than ever. Alexander's touch still lingered on his shoulder, burning within him like a hidden fire that had brought him back to life from its ashes.
Here he was now, walking with steady steps beside Ronnie, while Edgar, unconscious, dangled over Ronnie's shoulder. They were emerging together from the tavern submerged in its shadows. They looked as if they had just emerged from an unseen war.
The tavern was filled with astonishment and surprised eyes,whispers, stares, confusion.
Everyone was wondering:
"Who are they? Did they really come out of the tavern? Or from Hell itself?"
The black armor Emmanuel wore shimmered with a fleeting glint whenever light hit it. His footsteps produced a deep metallic echo — Clink... clink... clink... — filling the place with awe.
But the biggest shock was for Duncan.
When he saw Edgar unconscious,and also saw Ronnie injured, his eyes carrying the look of someone who had seen death but hadn't died yet. Then he looked at Emmanuel — a stranger to him, but one who had emerged from the same place he himself had never entered.
Duncan froze, speechless.
But after a moment,he said nervously as he approached:
"What exactly happened?!"
No one answered. Instead, Duncan bent his head over Edgar, spat sticky snot on him, and wiped it on Edgar's face.
"Splaaaat!"
Edgar woke up terrified,opened his eyes and saw Duncan's smiling face and his snot glistening on it, and shouted with vexation:
"Not again, Duncan!"
Ronnie laughed despite the pain, while Edgar slowly got up, holding his injured side. The first thing he did was grab Ronnie firmly by the arm, a strange look on his face, a look that meant one thing:
"It's not over yet... I still have a task to complete."
Emmanuel was silent, his eyes moving in every direction, trying to understand what was happening around him.
Everything seemed different.
The buildings,the lights, the sounds of vehicles that were no longer horse-drawn carriages but strange engines going "Vroooom!" as they passed.
Edgar took a step back, then asked in a trembling voice:
"Who are you?"
Emmanuel replied hesitantly:
"I'm a Cleaner like you... I was inside the tavern too, but I don't remember what I did there. All I know now is that London... looks different... darker..."
And suddenly, he shouted, pointing at the street:
"What is that?!"
Everyone turned and saw a car crossing the road.
Ronnie laughed lightly and said:
"That? It's a car, man!"
Emmanuel repeated the word as if hearing it for the first time:
"Ca...r?"
Ronnie laughed more and said:
"How long exactly were you in that world?"
Emmanuel held his head, a strong dizziness hit him, then he whispered in a broken voice:
"What year is it?"
Edgar answered:
"The year 1920."
Emmanuel stood rooted to the spot, his eyes widened, then he whispered as if time had stopped:
"Impossible..."
Then he ran, ran with all his might, the wind whistling in his ears, "Whoosh!", searching for any clue, anything that would tell him this wasn't real.
Had he lived in a black hole?
Had 200 years of his life been swallowed in an instant?
No memories,no past, only a strange light and the touch of 'Alexander' still burning in his chest.
As for Edgar and Ronnie, they left for the Organization accompanied by their escorts. Edgar held onto Ronnie the entire way, while Ronnie was lost in thought — his face pale, his inner voice screaming:
"How did I lose like that? How did I fall before him?"
When they arrived at the Organization's headquarters, Edgar collected his share of the money and put it in his pocket without interest, then prepared to leave. But before he could take a step, a strange notification arrived on his wristband: "Urgent summons to the Announcement Hall on the same floor, the eighth floor."
He pressed it and was transported with Duncan to a large hall.He was surprised to find hundreds of Cleaners gathered inside.
The scene was astounding:
Strange faces,varied clothing, escorts of indescribable forms — birds the size of humans, ghosts, creatures half light and half shadow.
The atmosphere was charged with tension.
In the middle, he and Duncan stood together, not understanding the reason for the summons, until an old man emerged from the ranks.
He wore a formal black suit,silver glasses, and held a long cane. His steps were slow, but every tap of the cane on the floor produced a powerful echo — Tap... tap... tap...
The hall fell completely silent.
The man raised his head and said in a hoarse voice:
"Today... is an exceptional day. The Organization will change completely."
Everyone murmured anxiously.
He continued:
"This change... is necessary. Because the King of Keys — the most powerful Cleaner the Organization has ever known, simply and without warning — has disappeared."
Faces froze, whispers rose: "The King of Keys? Disappeared? How?!"
But the old man raised his hand and said:
"Silence. After his disappearance, the Organization has become weak. Regarding the most dangerous Gates, no one dares to clean them anymore. The King of Keys was the glue that held us together, but now things are different, and we are not spectators... we are soldiers in a constant battle against the darkness."
He paused for a moment, then continued:
"He was a strange person who carried many questions,never answering any of them. The mask he always wore, his destructive power that no one knew about. And his strange reclusiveness despite the trends. But he was clear about his duty, and after he grew old, the mystery only grew until he completely disappeared, causing the loss of a great foundation for the Organization."
"And now, from today, no one will work alone. Teams of Cleaners will be formed, each team with a different number and level. You might see a Class E Cleaner fighting alongside a Class A. This is the new system... Cooperation."
A light applause sounded, while others whispered in discontent.
But the old man continued confidently:
"The maximum number for a team is eight. And a team cannot begin its work unless all its members are Class B or higher. Those below that level mean the entire team remains on individual work... until the other members prove their worth. Good luck."
The wristbands on everyone's arms lit up with a blue light, and a faint voice said: "You have been summoned to the Council Hall. Press to transport."
Edgar pressed the option.
In an instant,the light around him disappeared, and he found himself standing inside a spacious room with soft white light and a majestic table in the center. Duncan was beside him, and both exchanged confused looks.
In the corner, sat a young man wearing an elegant white suit and a matching hat. He was slowly tossing a coin in the air.
Tink... tink... tink...Each time the coin fell, it was reflected in his cold red eyes.
The young man looked up at them and said in a confident, mocking tone:
"You're a low Rank, aren't you?"
Edgar frowned immediately and said sharply:
"And how would you know my Rank?"
The young man smiled, stood up slowly, approached until his face was inches away, then said in a low voice:
"That's not an insult... it's a fact. Don't blame me, blame yourself. Your eyes betrayed your weakness before you even spoke."
Then he raised his hand, tipped his hat down slightly, revealing his short white hair and red eyes. On his shoulder perched a small honey badger, staring challengingly at Edgar.
"My name is Jack."
Edgar shook his hand nervously, responding with a faint smile.
Jack returned to his corner and sat down,whistling in a chilling manner, while a board appeared on the wall listing the full team names:
Team Number 25:
Alfred –––> The Dreaming Boy [C]
Elizabeth –––> The Bone Crusher [A]
Ronnie –––> The Angry Steel [B]
Jack –––> The Silent Killer [A]
Edgar –––> The Thunder King [E]
Emmanuel –––> The wild Knight [C]
Olivia –––> The Elegant Angel [B]
Alexander [ ]