“This way!” Iris called out as she pulled Finn behind her, and the two flew as fast as they could towards the front doors, which were the nearest exit from where they were. Upon reaching it however, they realized that it was locked, and with their current size compared to the house’s, there was no chance in hell that they were going to force it open.

“Damn… and all the windows are shu-“

“Look out!” The man with them yelled from below, and Finn immediately pushed Iris away from him. The two split up just in time before a thick drop of white, corrosive goo fell down in between them from the ceiling, and Iris glanced up to see a horrifying sight:

The ceiling was slowly melting away, and for every little bit that did, it turned into liquid that fell down like heavy rain. It didn’t take a genius to know what would happen if one got hit.

“Tch…” Finn muttered and activated his Devil’s Timing Ability, helping him dodge any drops that came close. Iris, on the other hand, called upon her newfound power to erect a white force field around the two, safely blocking them from what was coming down above.

“What now…” Iris whispered under her breath, then an idea struck her. “Oh, that’s right… where we came in from—the chimney!”

Finn gave a nod, signaling his agreement, and the two immediately flew in the direction of the chimney—there was no time to dawdle. On the way, however, Finn purposely scooped down and picked up the man who had warned them earlier, as a way of saying thanks. Originally, neither he nor Iris had any intention of saving him as given his current state, he would be more of a liability than a help. However, since he had saved the two just now, he deserved some fair payback.

Zooming into the fireplace of the house, the trio soared upwards through the chimney, and could feel their bodies gradually getting bigger as they flew, as if returning to normal size.

However, the Emperor wasn’t going to just let them go free that easily.

“Above us!” The man being carried called out, and Iris and Finn gritted their teeth as the chimney was suddenly closed off by a mysterious white goo, converging into a makeshift ceiling of sorts.

“… Tch,” Iris skidded to a stop mid-air as the ceiling formed, and narrowed her eyes. “Well, what do we do now?”

“… Kid, can you boost me upwards?” The man suddenly asked Finn, who was holding onto his arms.

“… What?”

“You heard me. If you can launch me towards that pile of goo, I can do something about it. I just need to get closer.”

“But… didn’t you say if we come into contact with that substance, we’ll melt away?” Iris asked in worry.

“There’s no time,” the man growled. “Just do as I say if you want to get out of here.”

“… Alright,” Finn said after some thought. “Ready?”

“Get on with it, kid!”

Finn nodded, took a deep breath, and activated his Cardmaster Angelica. Then, summoning the Strength Card, he enclosed his massive translucent, spiritual hand around the man, and launched him upwards with the momentum of a rocket ship during take-off. The man’s eyes widened at the sudden surge of momentum, clearly exceeding what he had expected, but thankfully, he still managed to prepare his break-out attack and shrouded his body in white light.

Then, clasping his hands together above his head and gluing his legs tightly together, the man adopted a missile-like position using his body. Rotating violently, the man turned into the physical embodiment of a spinning drill, and plummeted towards the white goo.

“Eat… THIS!”

BOOM!

The missile-like man tore directly through the white goo with ease, taking down parts of the house with him. This, in turn, however, sparked a deep, inhuman wail coming from the center of the structure, and the parts of the house that got torn away instantly disintegrated into nothingness.

Finn and Iris quickly flew out of the building using this opening given to them, and with Iris’s help, Finn managed to catch the man before he fell to the floor. He was badly battered and wounded, but alive. That attack must’ve taken everything he had left from the days of starvation he experienced in that house.

“… We owe you one,” Finn said, setting the man down on the plain white ground.

The man gave a light chuckle. “… Take that bastard down, kid. That’s the best way you can repay me.”

Finn gave a nod, and turned around to face where the house had once been. Now that it had been forcefully torn through, the entity’s true nature had been exposed. They were no longer looking at a house, but instead a giant white blob of goo: a Specter.

“EEEEEE…!” The Specter wailed deeply like an undead zombie. No doubt, it was angry and wanted to spit curses at the three Ghost Hunters for wounding his body, but unfortunately, Specters were the only Ghost archetype of the five that was incapable of speech.

Still, judging from its wobbling figure and pulsating body, its anger could be felt.

“So… finally showing your true form, huh?” Iris smirked and drew her gun, while Finn slowly took out his sword from its sheath on his back. The demon inside, eager for blood, smirked in anticipation despite not having a mouth.

“You really played a number of tricks on us,” Iris said, ascending into the air using her wings. “Many Ghost Hunters before us fell to your games and tricks. But we are different—and your deception ends today. Ace?”

She turned to Finn, who rose up beside her and gave a nod, sword in hand. His armor’s crevices glowed ominously purple, two horns of light popping out on his head, as the Voidheart energy in it was activated.

“It’s time to finish this.”

Iris smiled, then aimed her weapon at the enormous Specter Emperor.

“Let’s do it, Ace.”