"Honorable Death God and esteemed Judges of the Netherworld, with the assistance of those Heroes, I have completed your trials."
Baird stood below the lengthy steps, his head raised as he addressed the assembly before him:
"Now, it's time for you to fulfill your promise."
The unconscious three-headed dog lay beside him, its four legs sprawled as if crawling on the ground. The Heroes all looked unanimously towards the Death God and Judges on the Palace steps; they remained silent, yet their collective gazes interwove anticipation with oppression.
The Judges exchanged glances, caught off guard. They had always remembered the wager with the Great Angel, hence they had troubled the heroes to the utmost in the nine trials, yet in truth, they had not prepared to keep their promise after the trials.
