The cursed fog grew thicker as the team moved east.
By midday, the compass Kairo gave them had started spinning wildly, confused by cursed interference. The map was no longer working either. It was as if they were walking deeper into a part of the world that didn't want to exist.
Then, they saw it.
A ruined city stretched out in the distance. Broken buildings, leaning towers, shattered roads. But lights still glowed in the windows. And strange shadows moved along the cracked streets.
Ren narrowed his eyes. "What city is this?"
Yumi checked the map again. "There's nothing marked here."
Rei stepped forward. "Then we just found another lost zone."
Aki looked nervous. His cursed thread was flickering under his skin again. "I don't like this. The energy here feels... confused. Like it doesn't know where to go."
---
Entering the City
The sign at the city's entrance was broken. Only one word remained:
> "Forgotten."
Kael clicked his weapon into ready mode. "Sounds welcoming."
They stepped in.
The moment they crossed the city's boundary, a sharp chill ran through each of them.
It wasn't cold.
It was emptiness.
Ren blinked. "What... was I saying?"
Yumi looked around. "Where... are we?"
Rei clutched her weapon tightly. "Who—who are you people?"
Kael frowned. "What are we doing here?"
Only Aki didn't forget.
He looked around at his confused teammates. "No... it's the city. It steals memory."
Ren looked at him. "Wait… do I know you?"
Aki stepped forward, holding out his hand. "It's me. Aki. We're part of the same team. We're trying to stop cursed energy from consuming the world."
No one moved.
Then Ren hesitated. "I… believe you."
Rei lowered her blade. "It feels... true."
Yumi rubbed her forehead. "Something's fighting in my head. Like two lives."
Kael groaned. "So this city eats identity?"
Aki nodded. "Yes. It erases your name first. Then everything else."
---
A Shadow in the Fog
They walked deeper into the city, trying to remember who they were.
The buildings whispered. The wind carried voices.
> "I used to have a name." "She forgot me." "We forgot ourselves."
Suddenly, a shadow stepped from the fog.
It looked human — tall, wearing a cracked mask and holding a twisted staff made of bones.
Its voice echoed like glass breaking.
> "You are intruders. The Forgotten do not want remembering."
Ren stepped forward. "We're not here to hurt anyone."
The masked being laughed.
> "Then you'll be forgotten too."
It raised its staff, and a cursed wave hit the team.
They were thrown back — hard.
Ren hit a wall and gasped. "My name... it's slipping."
Rei shouted, "I can't remember how to use my blade!"
Kael fired a blast — but missed. "I forgot how to aim!"
Yumi dropped her sketch pad. Her eyes were wide with fear.
Aki stood tall.
He summoned cursed energy and pushed forward. "I REMEMBER."
He grabbed his crystal — the limiter — and crushed it.
His eyes turned red with divine glow.
A cursed aura poured from his back — shaped like wings.
> Divine Art: Memory Seal Breaker – Level One!
The cursed spirit inside him roared, "Let me take over, damn brat!"
Aki growled back, "Not yet, you pig-faced freak!"
He slammed his fist into the ground, and light burst out, pushing the shadow away.
The wave washed over the others.
Their eyes cleared.
Ren gasped, "My name… I remember!"
Rei stood. "My blade!"
Yumi picked up her sketch pad. "It's glowing again."
Kael smirked. "You really like dramatic timing, huh, Aki?"
---
The Fight for Memory
The masked enemy rose again.
> "You remember… but for how long?"
It summoned creatures — Forgotten ones — ghost-like beings with no faces.
The team spread out.
Ren drew a Spiral Wall to block the first wave.
Rei danced through shadows, cutting echoes in two.
Yumi painted barriers with glowing ink that trapped spirits in loops.
Kael blinked from one building to another, sniping weak spots.
And Aki — Aki took the lead.
He summoned cursed energy with divine flow, his body glowing brighter.
The spirit inside him laughed wildly.
> "Now we're talking!"
Aki flew forward, kicking the masked figure into a wall.
"You steal names," Aki growled, "but we've written ours in fire."
He raised his hand.
> Divine Art: Red Curse Flash!
The blast lit the city sky.
When the smoke cleared, the enemy was gone.
The fog around them began to clear.
The buildings stopped whispering.
And on the wall behind them, words appeared:
> "The Spiral remembers those who refuse to forget."
---
Aftermath
They left the city before nightfall.
Yumi looked back. "What was this place?"
Ren spoke quietly. "A cursed zone where forgotten people became forgotten spirits."
Rei shook her head. "So cruel."
Kael asked, "What happens to the people who were already in there?"
Aki answered. "They're still there. But now they remember."
Ren added, "And they'll remember us too."
They continued toward the Spiral Watchtower.
Only 2 more zones to cross.
And something — or someone — was still calling all cursed spirits.
But now the team was stronger.
They had faced forgetting.
And remembered who they were.