Prelude to the Workshop Battle (1)

*The chapter content is an event that happened in the manhwa. Those who had read the manhwa, could skip this one without missing too much.*

The 28th Floor, five months before the start of the Workshop Battle.

Khun Aguero Agnis, a handsome man with cobalt blue eyes and shoulder-length silvery-blue hair. His bangs cut across his forehead and hanged just over his eyebrows.

Agnis wore a white outfit and had a black cloak over it, he disembarked a vehicle that resembled a car but had no wheels underneath it.

Following behind him were two Regulars that Lumen had met on the 22nd Floor, Khun Ran, and Novick. Novick wore a black cloak similar to Agnis while Ran wore a blue one.

The three of them had left the residential area on the 28th Floor and had arrived near the slums, where the Regulars lived in tents. In front of them was a giant hand made of stone that reached towards the sky, with numerous stone pillars that were scattered around it.

A very strong Regular, the Devil's Right Arm, had recently been spotted here. A picture of a woman taking a selfie with him in the background had recently gone viral on the Box, an information-sharing community used by Light Bearers, where they can share and search for information. The most distinguishing feature of the Devil's Right Arm was a small blue wing that was floating behind his left shoulder.

Agnis had already made his mind on making him join his team, so even if the Regular refused, he would force him to join, as he has done with many other members of his team.

"So, this is where he is hiding, huh?" Novick said and turned towards Ran. "The Devil's Right Arm is mine! Don't touch him, Ran!"

"Shut up! Spear Bearers should just throw spears." Ran replied in annoyance. Novick hadn't stopped following him ever since they fought that one time. Agnis had even recruited him in his team, and he had to bear his annoying antics.

Ran divides people into six categories. Slightly bothersome. A little bothersome. Bothersome. Very bothersome. Too bothersome. And wants to kill. Novick was in the too bothersome category and was nearing the wants to kill category.

"Then let's see who catches him first and see who's really number one in our team." Novick like always wanted to compete with Ran.

"Stop bothering me. Go away." Ran had beat Novick so many times already that he simply didn't want to bother competing with him anymore. His goal was to reach and surpass the masked Regular that had completely destroyed him on the 22nd Floor.

"It's time to hunt the Devil," Agnis stated with a cheerful smile, and the three made their way towards the stone arm.

"The Hand of Arlene, I don't know how it looked before, but it looks grotesque right now. It'd be better to just destroy it." Agnis said while looking at the stone arm.

"Do you think he is in there?" Novick asked him while biting his finger. An annoying habit that he had.

"Maybe. He's hidden himself perfectly from others for such a long time. I don't think it was a coincidence that he left a perfect clue like that." Agnis replied.

"He's showing his exact location if you just take a closer look. Also, a boring picture like that spreading so quickly in the Box is a bit suspicious. I think this is to invite someone to the Hand of Arlene." Agnis mused.

"Of course, he didn't mean to invite us." He stated afterward.

"Which means people other than us might come as well." Said Novick, while Agnis was looking at his Lighthouse. Like all other items that he owned, the Lighthouse was stolen from his father's, Khun Eduan, treasury, and it was a high-rank item.

A map of the surrounding area appeared on his Lighthouse, and Agnis was able to see all the paths and the traps that were scattered around.

"Ran, Novick, there are traps in the area. Eliminate them while I'll support you." Agnis commanded the two.

"Ok, let's go, Ran." Novick turned towards Ran, but the blue-haired boy had already disappeared from his spot. Turning around, Novick saw him already dashing towards the traps.

"Ran, don't do it yourself!" Novick called out to him, but the blue-haired boy didn't care.

"It's better if I do it alone." Ran replied while rushing ahead. If he couldn't deal with some simple traps, how would he dare face against the masked Regular in the future?

"Wait for me!" Novick yelled and chased after him, while a smaller Lighthouse followed after them.

[2 meters ahead, there's a trap in the front collum.] Agnis informed Ran.

The blue-haired boy, wielding a blue hook that was given to him by Agnis, easily destroyed the stone pillar.

"Ran, don't go alone!" Novick continued yelling while chasing him.

[One more trap in the right collum.] Agnis informed him, and Ran destroyed it.

[5 meters forward...] Agnis was informing him of another trap, but Ran couldn't hear him due to Novick's screaming.

"Be prepared just in case!" Novick yelled. "We don't have a Scout. You, the Fisherman, should take that role."

"Shut up! I can't hear him from your yelling!" Ran attacked Novick with his hook without even looking back. However, Novick was standing right behind the small Lighthouse, and Ran's attack destroyed it.

Ran shot Novick and annoyed look and continued searching for traps afterward. "Whatever."

"Ran!!!" Novick screamed and ran after him.

Meanwhile, Kang Horyang, a black-haired, massive, brooding man, whose body was wrapped up in black bandages, and with a blue wing floating above his right shoulder had just arrived near the giant arm made of stone. He, like Agnis, was also searching for the Devil's Right Arm, but for a different purpose since he personally knew who that man is.

Horyang and the Devil's Right Arm, or Casano Beniamino as he knew him, were both children that had been abandoned in the Middle Area and later sold to the Workshop, where they were raised and experimented on. They were the only two survivors out of 99 999 test subjects. At the age of 12, both of them were injected with a creature in the form of a substance that is known as a Devil. They each received one half of that creature and became the first pair of Living Ignition Weapons.

They had been split apart afterward, and while Horyang was being escorted to a different location, he met with Headon and entered the Tower.

Being a Living Ignition Weapon, Horyang easily climbed up to the 20th Floor, where he had spent years of doing nothing since he had no desire to climb higher. At one point, he took the Test on the 20th Floor and encountered Jyu Viole Grace and a bunch of other Regulars, who became like a family to him.

Despite how much he cared for them, Horyang cared even more for Casano, as the two of them were like brothers. He wanted to meet him and learn what had happened with Casano after the two were separated.

'Did you call me here?' Horyang questioned himself. He hadn't managed to find any clues about Casano until a picture of him appeared on the Box.

Horyang had just entered the field of stone pillars when a red eye appeared on two of those pillars. They transformed into two arms made of stone and punched towards Horyang.

The wing on his back momentarily changed into a boot, and he easily dodged the attacks. The boot changed into a red fist, and he destroyed the two stone pillars with a punch.

Horyang continued making his way towards the Hand of Arlene, but since he had no one to support him, he was having a tough time with all the traps. He had destroyed another couple of stone golems when he heard an explosion happen close by. A part of a stone pillar flew from there and landed right next to him.

"Who's there?" Horyang yelled out and saw a blue-haired boy covered in a blue cloak and wielding a blue hook.

"Who are you?" Horyang asked him, but he didn't receive an answer.

"Are you the Devil's Right Arm?" Ran questioned as he observed him. Horyang had a blue wing and black bandages, which matched the description of the Devil's Right Arm.

"You've gained weight," Ran stated and dashed towards him. He attacked him with his hook, but Horyang was able to block his attack.

"Who are you? Why are you looking for the Devil's Right Arm?" Horyang yelled out.

"To fight. Do you need more of an explanation?" Ran replied arrogantly and jumped towards him again.

"Of course. You are mistaking me for someone else. I'm not the Devil's Right Arm that you are looking for!" Horyang tried explaining himself, but Ran wasn't listening. He attacked him again, but this time he enhanced his attack with Shinsoo.

Feeling the pressure, Horyang understood he has no other choice than to fight. The wing on his back transformed into a boot, and he disappeared from his spot.

"If you block my way, I will crush you!" Horyang appeared behind Ran, and the boot on his back transformed into a red fist. His right arm turned red as well and grew larger. Horyang attacked Ran with his giant arm, but the blue-haired boy was easily able to dodge the attack.

"I don't know why you are looking for him, but I've got no time to play with you!" Horyang stated.

Ran appeared in front of him with lightning coursing through his right hand. "If you got no time, I'll be quick."

Ran hit him in the chest and followed up with more lightning enhanced attacks that Horyang wasn't able to dodge. Ran used his momentum to form a lightning spear with his Shinsoo and threw it at Horyang. "Maschenny Style Lightning Spear: Electrica Perla."

The lightning spear hit Horyang and detonated into a massive explosion. After the dust settled down, the wing on Horyang had changed into a shield with two small wings, and he was still standing there paralyzed from the attack, but with no injury on his body. As a Living Ignition Weapon, very few could damage his body. Ran also wasn't giving his all while fighting him.

"How did you survive that? Does your defense increase as the wing changes form? Interesting." Ran mused while observing him. Very few E-Rank Regulars are able to survive that attack, as simple as it was. He had gone through hellish training, in order to become stronger and be able to pierce through the masked Regular's incredible defense when he meets him again.

As Horyang was thinking of a way to deal with Ran, he heard something coming in his direction. Looking up, he saw a weird, spinning blade that was flying towards him. With his wing still in his shield form, he was easily able to deflect it. The parried blade flew back straight into Novick's hand.

"Who are you?" Horyang questioned him in annoyance. First, it was the weird blue-haired boy, now another strong one appeared.

"Novick Grand." He answered Horyang with a lie. Novick enjoyed making many different family names and introducing himself falsely.

"The Devil's Right Arm, I'm here to catch you." Novick confidently declared to him.

"Why are you interfering?" Ran questioned him in annoyance. He was already fighting with him, so why was the idiot stepping in.

"I can't let you have all the fun by yourself," Novick answered Ran and turned towards Horyang. "Nice to meet you, the Devil's Right Arm. You've gained weight." He told him while biting his finger.

"I've heard you have extraordinary powers, and I really wanted to fight you," Novick said.

Horyang stayed quiet and wondered what to do. Both Regulars were extremely strong, and he didn't know if he could take them down with his current power. His only option was to Ignite, but he had already done it once earlier when he had to fight Jyu Viole Grace. That was the only way to test out if Viole was a Living Ignition Weapon like him.

As he was wondering what to do, he heard someone call out. [Ilmar.]

Before he started calling himself Kang Horyang, he carried the name Ilmar Beniamino, and there are no more than a handful of people that knew that name. He was also able to recognize that voice.

"Casano?! Where are you, Casano?!" Horyang screamed out.

[Look behind you.] Horyang turned around and spotted an Observer there.

[Follow the Observer.] His wing changed into a boot, and he sprinted after the Observer.

"Are you running away?" Novick yelled at him, but Horyang didn't respond.

Novick and Ran weren't planning on letting him go, so they dashed after him.

"He is fast," Novick commented while chasing him.

"He is troublesome." Ran agreed with him.

Horyang was nearing the Hand of Arlene, while the two were right behind him.

"Don't follow him too far, Ran. It might be a trap." Novick told Ran, but the blue-haired boy didn't care about that. Even if it was a trap, he didn't care. If he wants to surpass the masked Regular, he needs to be able to deal with situations like this one. With a burst of speed, Ran left Novick and sped towards Horyang, who had just entered the Hand of Arlene.

There was a small opening at the bottom of the stone arm, and inside it, the place was shrouded in darkness. One could barely see a few meters ahead in that place.

"Casano! Where are you?" Horyang screamed but received no response. Ran appeared behind him and attacked him with his hook, but Horyan dodged it with the speed of his boot form.

"You are getting annoying." Ran told him. "Stop running and fight, the Devil's Right Arm."

"Wait!" Someone yelled out, as Horyang was wondering what he is supposed to do with those two. The voice came from somewhere above, and all three looked up.

"It's not him. The Devil's Right Arm that you are looking for is here." In the darkness, they were barely able to see a small, blue wing above them.

"Casano..." Horyang uttered, as he was able to recognize that blue wing.

Suddenly, the man above them jumped from his spot and appeared in front of Ran with a burst of speed. A large amount of blue Shinsoo gathered around his left arm, and he punched the blue-haired boy away before he could dodge. Ran flew and hit a wall, where he created a small hole with his impact.

"You jerk." Novick cursed him and set a punch towards his way, but Casano jumped over his attack. With the blue Shinsoo still covering his left arm, he sent a punch towards Novick and sent him flying like Ran. However, Novick was able to block a bit of that attack and didn't hit a wall.

"Who are you?" Novick asked him while wiping a bit of blood that was coming out of his mouth.

"Casano Beniamino, the Devil's Right Arm," Casano replied back to him.

After Ran was sent flying into the wall, he slowly stood up and stared at Casano and Horyang with cold eyes.

"Casano!" Horyang exclaimed. "Why did you call me here? And what's with those guys?" He asked, but received no response.

"Casano! Say something!" Horyang yelled at him.

"You'll know soon enough, Ilmar," Casano replied and dashed towards Ran and Novick.

"Are there two Devil's Right Arm?" Novick question, wondering what's happening right now.

"Novick." Ran calmly called out to him. "Let's change positions. I will throw the spears." Ran's main position was a Fisherman, but he was ranked even higher as a Spear Bearer, thanks to the techniques taught to him by his sister.

"So, you are finally being serious?" Novick asked him.

"I want to end this as quickly as we can." Ran had no desire to spend any more time on these two. Horyang and Casano were strong, but the people he wanted to surpass were even stronger. His sister and father were two of the strongest Rankers in the Tower, so he had a long way before he could reach their level.

However, the masked man was just like him, a Regular. Ran didn't think that the masked Regular would have any trouble dealing with the two in front of him. After he suffered the crushing defeat on the 22nd Floor, he had been training like a madman, in order to have his rematch against Lumen in the future.

"Alright," Novick replied and gathered red Shinsoo around his fists. "Hayeol Style: Crimson Soul Fist - Seal." He slammed his hands on the ground, and a spherical dome of red Shinsoo formed around them, stopping Casano in his tracks.

Casano was surprised by the shield, and he sensed something extremely dangerous. Turning around, he saw Ran, who had moved behind him. The blue-haired boy was holding a massive sword made of lightning.

"Take this, slim Devil's Right Arm." Ran said as he threw the lightning sword. "Espada de la Luz."

The lightning sword reached Casano in an instant. It pierced through him and carried him until it hit the wall behind, causing a massive explosion that anyone near the Hand of Arlene was able to hear. The wall collapsed into rubble and buried Casano underneath it.

At the moment that the explosion happened, two individuals were making their way towards the stone arm. One of them was Xia Xia, a brown-haired girl with rabbit ears. She wore red robes and had a red Lighthouse in front of her.

The other person was Jyu Viole Grace. He had long, brown hair with the bangs covering the upper part of his face and was dressed in a black outfit.

Viole had come here searching for his teammate, Horyang. Xia Xia had told him that she saw a man matching his description that had went towards the Hand of Arlene. Since Viole was alone, she had offered to help him as she was a proficient Light Bearer.

Hearing the explosion from the Hand of Arlene, Viole got worried about Horyang's safety.

"The explosion came from the statue!" Xia Xia exclaimed, but Viole was already speeding towards it.

"Wait! Let's go together!" Xia Xia yelled and ran after him, but he was a lot faster than her.

"Hey, slow down a bit! I told you it's dangerous out there. There might be a trap." Xia Xia couldn't allow him to reach the statue right now, but Viole was ignoring her. The safety of his teammate was his top priority right now.

Xia Xia was annoyed by that and thought of a way to slow him down. She purposefully stepped on a trap and triggered one of the stone golems.

"Ahhh! There's a trap here!" She screamed out, and that caught Viole's attention.

An arm made of stone was about to hit Xia Xia, but before it could reach her, it was destroyed by a Baang of Shinsoo that was formed in an instant.

Viole reached Xia Xia and asked her in concern. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, yeah. Thank you. So, why don't you slow down a bit?" She asked him, trying to make sure she delays him as much as possible. However, Viole was worried about Horyang, so he had no desire to slow down. He wrapped his hand around her and dashed towards the Hand of Arlene. "Let's hurry."

"Why are you in such a hurry to find that man?" Xia Xia asked him in annoyance after her plan failed.

"I guess he is a close friend." She stated afterward, testing him out.

"I... Just know him." Viole replied back while rushing towards the statue.

"He would be sad to hear that..." Xia Xia commented while being carried by him. Since she had no other option, she decided to help him out and show him the way. Well, she would lie from time to time, making sure Viole is delayed in reaching the Hand of Arlene.

Meanwhile, Agnis was wondering what to do after Ran broke his Lighthouse.

"What are those two doing right now? Urgh, this is why I didn't want to bring only those two. How could everyone else be busy at the same time?" Agnis mused out loud.

"Damn, I guess I got no choice. I hope they are not fighting against the wrong person." Agnis shook his head.

Suddenly, the map that he was observing on his Lighthouse disappeared, and it was replaced with a message. [You are caught in a trap.]

His eyes widened in surprise, seeing this message. Someone had actually hacked into his Lighthouse.

Agnis turned around, sensing something behind him, but there was nothing there. As he was looking around, a long tongue that had a small mouth appeared from the ground. A small needle covered with poison was shot out of the tongue's mouth and flew towards Agnis's heart. The poisoned needle hit him in the chest, and he weakly fell to the ground.

A grey-skinned man with green eyes emerged from the sand afterward. He had two grey scales on his cheeks, and his lower body was that of a snake. The tongue with a mouth was flowing out of his mouth as he looked at the downed Agnis.

"Huh? I thought he would be stronger than this. It was quite boring." The grey-skinned man commented and slithered closer to Agnis.

"She's paying me a lot of money for someone so weak. She's got plenty of money, I guess. Well, good for me, anyway. With that money, I can get out of this place, all thanks to you, boy." He laughed out and reached towards Agnis's face, to remove the blue earrings that he wore.

"You won't be needing these earrings anymore, so I'll..." Before he could finish what he was about to say, Agnis grabbed his hand and questioned him with a threatening voice. "Who are you? And who paid you to kill me?"

The snake man instantly slithered away from him. "You! How can you be alive? The poisoned needle went through your heart! How?" He asked him as Agnis slowly stood up.

"It didn't," Agnis replied to him while removing a blue and white cloth from underneath his cloak.

"Armor Inventory?!? How can you have such pricey stuff as an E-Rank Regular?" The snake man asked in wonder. He had never even seen such an item, so he couldn't understand how the Regular in front of him had one.

"My dad gave it to me. Well, at least I believe so." Replied Agnis and looked at him with cold eyes. "So, who paid you to kill me?"

"Hah, do you think I will answer that?" The snake man laughed out.

"I don't think you understand your situation, boy. I'm not some weakling who would lose to a Light Bearer in a 1v1 fight!" The snake man stated and was about to move towards him, but Agnis disappeared from his spot.

"I think you got it wrong." He appeared behind the snake man.

"I'm not a Light Bearer because I'm bad at fighting." Agnis caught him by the neck and stabbed him with a knife.

"I'm a Light Bearer because I like giving orders," Agnis told him while the snake man was screaming in pain from being stabbed in the back.

"Stay still if you want to keep breathing," Agnis told him with a smirk.

"So, who told you to do this?" He asked him while pushing the knife deeper.

"The...rabbit ears! A girl with rabbit ears! I didn't see her clearly because it was too dark! But I'm sure! She said she would pay me if I killed the person sneaking around this statue!" The snake man spilled everything he knew, under Agnis's threat, but that wasn't enough for him. "What else?"

"That's all I know! It was the first time I ever spoke with her!" The snake man said while preparing to strike Agnis with his tail.

"Please let me go! I told you everything I know!" The snake man pleaded as he was about to strike him with his tail.

"You did? Then you should die now." Agnis replied while his Armor Inventory blocked the snake man's tail.

"Because you are useless." Agnis stabbed him again with his knife, and the snake man dropped dead on the ground.

"A Light Bearer who can hack like this and a hired killer." Agnis mused. "Who are they trying to catch with the Devil's Right Arm as a bait?"

At that moment, he heard the explosion from the Hand of Arlene. He knew very few Regulars that could cause such an explosion, so he was sure that's Ran's doing.

"It's getting noisy over there. I guess they are also in a trap, but we were already prepared for that." Agnis calmly stated.

"The Devil's Right Arm is a good test to check the results of their training. And also my training." He pulled out a flash drive-looking device that had a pointed tip from his pocket.

During the 2nd Floor, when Yuri and her teammates had arrived, one of them had hacked into his Lighthouse. That was the biggest shame to a Light Bearer, for someone to hack into their Lighthouse.

Since then, he had pushed himself a lot in order to never suffer such humiliation again, and Agnis had learned how to track the hacking back.

"I'll get you by tracking back your trap." He stated and plunged the flash drive-looking device into his Lighthouse. After a few moments, he was able to find the hacker, but that left him astonished.

It was Apple, a blonde-haired woman that was a Scout and a Light Bearer. She was also his teammate, but why had she betrayed him? Why had she set him up? What's her plan?

Agnis wasn't sure, but knowing that this situation is a lot more complicated than what he imagined, he rushed towards the stone arm as soon as possible.

At that moment inside the Hand of Arlene, Horyang was searching for Casano under the pile of rubble. "Casano! Casano! Answer me!"

"It's useless. Few could survive taking the sword of lightning through their chest." Ran calmly told him. He knew of only one E-Rank Regular that could do it, and he wouldn't be thrown like that. The masked Regular hadn't even taken a step back when received his attack, so he didn't think Casano had survived.

"Bastard, I will kill you," Horyang declared with a cold voice. He had been searching for Casano for so long, and he was now killed in front of his eyes. He was enraged, so he decided to Ignite, even if his body wouldn't be able to handle it.

The wing on his back grew in size and was now a few times larger than him. The black bandages on his right arm got undone as his arm turned light blue.

"Oh, so that's the Devil living in your right arm?" Novick wondered while Horyang rushed towards the two.

"It's no use to just rush," Novick told him while slamming his fists on the ground, creating the spherical dome of red Shinsoo. He was confident in his defensive abilities, but he had underestimated Horyang, who had Ignited himself.

His punch destroyed the spherical dome, and he was about to punch Novick. Thankfully, he had a teammate. Ran appeared next Horyang and blasted him away with a massive lightning blast. The two double-teamed him with Novick acting as the Fisherman and Ran as the Spear Bearer.

In close combat, Novick was able to match Horyang despite him having Ignited himself.

"You are tough." Novick complimented him while exchanging attacks with Horyang.

"Take this, the fat Devil's Right Arm. Espada de la Luz!" Ran sent another sword made of lightning towards Horyang, but the big man was able to block his attack thanks to having Ignited himself.

Horyang was pushed back towards the place where Casano was buried. He was panting, exhausted from having to Ignite for the second time today when suddenly, a hand made of red Shinsoo pierced him from behind.

"Casano?" He was barely able to utter that as he fell on the ground, bleeding from the hole on his stomach.

"What the??" Novick questioned in surprise, not expecting this. He though the two of them were supposed to be teammates.

"Mr. Horyang!" At that moment, they heard a scream from the entrance of the Hand of Arlene. Turning around, Novick and Ran saw a boy with long brown hair that was being accompanied by a girl with rabbit ears. Viole was staring a the downed Horyang with trembling eyes.

"You... What have you done to Mr. Horyang?" Viole questioned in anger. That was his teammate, friend, and family who was lying on the ground while bleeding out of his abdomen.

"Now, who is this?" Novick mused as he observed him.

"He is not breathing... He is dead." Xia Xia lied to him, fully knowing that Horyang was alive. Being a Living Ignition Weapon, he could survive injuries that normal Regulars couldn't. However, she wanted Viole to kill Novick and Ran.

"Are you the ones who did this?" Viole asked them, already boiling with anger on the inside.

"That's..." Before Novick could respond, he was interrupted by the rabbit-eared girl.

"Yes! It's those two that attacked and killed that man! I saw it with my Lighthouse!" Xia Xia framed them.

"It's true that we attacked him, but he was killed by..." Turning around, Novick saw no traces of Casano since he was buried under the rubble.

"Damn..." Novick cursed out while shaking his head and turned towards Viole. "Yes, we killed him. So, what?" As long as he wasn't facing the masked man, Novick didn't fear any of the other E-Rank Regulars.

*Edited by O'Brien.*