Ato: "So I think you've understood… that you lost. Surrender."
Kojo: "Surrender fast, idiot."
The masked man thought for a moment and finally spoke.
Masked Man: "Okay. I surrender." He said, accepting defeat.
Ato: "Then answer us first… why did you kill everyone?"
Masked Man: "They deserved to die… but I didn't kill them."
Both Ato and Kojo stared at him in disbelief. Ato grabbed the masked man by the collar.
Ato (angrily): "Do you think human lives mean nothing, you monster?! Didn't kill them? What kind of joke is this? If you didn't kill them, then where are the people?"
Masked Man: "I said I didn't kill them!"
He shouted, then continued in a calmer but darker tone.
Masked Man: "You want to know why I attacked this island, right?"
Ato and Kojo remained silent, listening carefully.
Masked Man: "Do you know what this island was famous for?"
Ato: "It was a big, bright, wealthy city."
Masked Man: "Do you know how the chief made it big, bright, and wealthy?"
Ato thought for a moment, but couldn't answer.
Masked Man: "You don't know… Right? Let me tell you. This place was famous for girl slavery and drugs. Do you know where the slave girls came from…? From my island."
Ato: "From your—"
Kojo: "Island? Why?"
Masked Man: "Because my island, where knowledge is everything, had no military force. The chief of this town hired EDEN soldiers and pirates to invade us. The women were taken away… and any man who resisted was tortured to death on their own land."
Both Ato and Kojo were stunned.
Kojo: "But the man in the village said you were charging them 100,000 e-coins every month."
Masked Man: "That man… was he bold and greedy?"
Kojo: "Yes."
Masked Man: "Then that man was the chief. He could've paid even a million e-coins a month. Don't forget—he ruled this entire island."
Kojo: "…But he told me he only had three loaves of bread to reward us."
Masked Man: "The chief wanted everything, but he never wanted to give anything away. That's the kind of man he was."
Kojo: "So he lied to me…"
Ato: "Then why did you leave ten percent of the people unharmed?"
Masked Man: "Because I'm not a monster. Six percent of them were children. I left them… and a few adults to protect them."
Ato: "Then where are all the people whose souls you took?"
Masked Man: "Come with me. Their bodies and souls are behind this bunker."
He turned and started walking. Ato and Kojo followed. When they reached a massive steel door, the masked man spoke again.
Masked Man: "Open."
The door slid open. Inside, on one side of the room, people lay inside glass capsules. On the other side, small glowing containers held their trapped souls.
Masked Man: "I'll release their bodies and souls now that I've lost."
Kojo: "Wait, I've got a question. Have you used any of their souls already?"
Masked Man: "Yeah."
Kojo: "That was fast."
Masked Man: "I used two. One for the six-armed creature, and one for the black-haired guy you defeated."
Kojo: "Six arms? Oh… after I defeated the guy with the six swords, I saw something like a soul leave his body. Where will it go now?"
Masked Man: "It will return to its capsule."
They continued walking deeper into the room.
Masked Man: "If I press this button, their bodies and souls will be reunited. If I press the blue button… this whole place will self-destruct."
He slowly removed his mask. Light-green hair fell around his face. He looked no older than seventeen.
Masked Man: "Sorry for the late introduction. My name is Faramis Takanaba."
Ato: "Oi… I've got something to ask you."
Faramis: "Huh? Me? Go on."
Ato: "…Will you join my crew?"
Kojo & Faramis (together): "WHAT?!"